Traduzir um texto inacabado : O Livro do Desassossego em Portugal e na Alemanha

Apesar de nunca ter sido publicada numa versão autorizada pelo autor, o Livro do Desassossego marcou a receção da obra pessoana fora e dentro de Portugal. Dos por volta de quinhentos fragmentos da primeira edição em livro, publicada em 1982, Pessoa apenas publicou doze. Além de inéditos, os trechos também não estavam organizados, mas encontravam-se dispersos na famosa arca de Pessoa. Por isso, a publicação em volume exige um trabalho editorial considerável requerendo, além da transcrição dos manuscritos, escolhas a nível da ordenação e seleção dos textos. De facto parece possível defender que existe uma intervenção coautoral dos editores que se manifesta nas diversas edições, dando origem a versões distintas do Livro que resultam de escolas e abordagens teóricas e editoriais diferentes. Também no contexto da tradução, o Livro é particularmente interessante por levantar a questão de saber como se traduz um texto que só existe em formas múltiplas. Em alemão existem, por exemplo, duas traduções com abordagens diferentes relativamente às edições portuguesas. O primeiro tradutor, Georg Rudolf Lind, propõe uma seleção e ordem própria dos fragmentos, em vez de respeitar a organização da primeira edição portuguesa. Na segunda tradução, pelo contrário, a tradutora segue a organização proposta na edição portuguesa de Richard Zenith, mas pretende, ao mesmo tempo, fazer uma revisão da versão de Lind, apesar das diferenças em termos de ordem e seleção dos trechos. Devido à falta de uma versão definitiva, o Livro do Desassossego levanta várias questões a nível da autoria e da circulação do texto, pondo em causa as noções românticas de obra e autor. A presente dissertação analisa, por isso, as edições portuguesas e as traduções alemãs, sugerindo que representam versões diferentes que assentam em interpretações distintas. Em vez de um objeto estável, trata-se de um processo inacabado de produção de significado em que vários indivíduos contribuem para a construção da obra. Nesta perspetiva, as fronteiras entre edição e tradução, entre texto de partida e texto de chegada tendem a apagar-se e não se conceptualiza a figura do autor como um indivíduo que dá origem a uma obra, mas como uma construção cultural que serve para classificar e caracterizar realidades discursivas. Deste modo, apesar da pluralidade textual, os nomes da obra e do autor servem para unir as várias versões num projeto comum e condicionam a circulação do Livro dentro e fora de Portugal.Although the Livro do Desassossego has never been published in an authorized version by the author, it has had an important impact on the reception of Fernando Pessoa’s work both in Portugal and abroad. Pessoa published only twelve of the over five hundred fragments of the first edition which appeared in 1982. Therefore, all existing Portuguese editions are based on a process of transcription, selection and organization of the otherwise unorganized and unpublished texts, an organization performed not by the author, but by several editors. Consequently, it seems possible to argue that the editors intervene in a co-authorial way, creating different versions of the text, which are the result of different theoretical and editorial schools and approaches. The Livro do Desassossego gains a particular relevance when one considers its translations because they challenge the notion of a stable source text. In the case of the German translations, for instance, there are two translations, each with a very different approach to the Portuguese editions. The first translator, Georg Rudolf Lind, proposes a new organization and selection, instead of following the source text of the first Portuguese edition. In the second translation, the translator respects the organization proposed by Richard Zenith’s Portuguese edition, while wishing to revise the first translation at the same time, even if it differs significantly from it in terms of selection and order. Due to the inexistence of a definite version, the Livro do Desassossego challenges the romantic notion of authorship and allows for new perspectives on the relationship between authorship and text circulation. Therefore, the aim of this dissertation is to study the different Portuguese editions and the German translations, suggesting that they may represent different versions, which offer different interpretations of the text. The work does not seem to be a stable object, but rather an unfinished signifying process in which several individuals participate. In this perspective, the borders between edition and translation, between source and target texts tend to be erased, and the author is not conceptualized as a historical figure, but rather as a cultural construct which classifies and characterizes discursive realities. Therefore, despite its textual plurality, the names of the work and author unify different versions in a joint project and condition the circulation of the Livro in Portugal and abroad

TRPV4 Stimulation Level Regulates Ca2+-Dependent Control of Human Corneal Endothelial Cell Viability and Survival

The functional contribution of transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) expression in maintaining human corneal endothelial cells (HCEC) homeostasis is unclear. Accordingly, we determined the effects of TRPV4 gene and protein overexpression on responses modulating the viability and survival of HCEC. Q-PCR, Western blot, FACS analyses and fluorescence single-cell calcium imaging confirmed TRPV4 gene and protein overexpression in lentivirally transduced 12V4 cells derived from their parent HCEC-12 line. Although TRPV4 overexpression did not alter the baseline transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER), its cellular capacitance (Ccl) was larger than that in its parent. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that only the 12V4 cells developed densely packed villus-like protrusions. Stimulation of TRPV4 activity with GSK1016790A (GSK101, 10 mu mol/L) induced larger Ca2+ transients in the 12V4 cells than those in the parental HCEC-12. One to ten nmol/L GSK101 decreased 12V4 viability, increased cell death rates and reduced the TEER, whereas 1 mu mol/L GSK101 was required to induce similar effects in the HCEC-12. However, the TRPV4 channel blocker RN1734 (1 to 30 mu mol/L) failed to alter HCEC-12 and 12V4 morphology, cell viability and metabolic activity. Taken together, TRPV4 overexpression altered both the HCEC morphology and markedly lowered the GSK101 dosages required to stimulate its channel activity

Staphylococcus aureus α-Toxin Triggers the Synthesis of B-Cell Lymphoma 3 by Human Platelets

The frequency and severity of bacteremic infections has increased over the last decade and bacterial endovascular infections (i.e., sepsis or endocarditis) are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Bacteria or secreted bacterial products modulate platelet function and, as a result, affect platelet accumulation at sites of vascular infection and inflammation. However, whether bacterial products regulate synthetic events in platelets is not known. In the present study, we determined if prolonged contact with staphylococcal α-toxin signals platelets to synthesize B-cell lymphoma (Bcl-3), a protein that regulates clot retraction in murine and human platelets. We show that α-toxin induced αIIbβ3-dependent aggregation (EC50 2.98 µg/mL ± 0.64 µg/mL) and, over time, significantly altered platelet morphology and stimulated de novo accumulation of Bcl-3 protein in platelets. Adherence to collagen or fibrinogen also increased the expression of Bcl-3 protein by platelets. α-toxin altered Bcl-3 protein expression patterns in platelets adherent to collagen, but not fibrinogen. Pretreatment of platelets with inhibitors of protein synthesis or the mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR) decreased Bcl-3 protein expression in α-toxin stimulated platelets. In conclusion, Staphylococcus aureus-derived α-toxin, a pore forming exotoxin, exerts immediate (i.e., aggregation) and prolonged (i.e., protein synthesis) responses in platelets, which may contribute to increased thrombotic events associated with gram-positive sepsis or endocarditis

Remembering world war II refugees in contemporary Portugal : a translational perspective on memory and the refugee other in Daniel Blaufuks' sob Céus Estranhos, Domingos Amaral's Enquanto Salazar Dormia and João Canijo's Fantasia Lusitana

Propondo-se a conjugar a reconceptualização das dimensões culturais da memória com a análise de três obras artísticas sobre a presença de refugiados em Portugal entre 1933 e 1945, esta tese tem dois objetivos principais. Por um lado, pretende contribuir para a atual reorientação dos estudos de memória no sentido de alargar as suas abordagens teóricas e metodológicas. Assim, propõe uma perspetiva tradutológica que contrapõe alguns dos pressupostos básicos das abordagens com ênfase em lugares, nações e identidades idiossincráticas que têm caraterizado os estudos de memória no âmbito das humanidades desde os anos 80 do século XX. Em vez de resumir memória à capacidade de corroborar a identidade e auto-imagem específicas de uma comunidade, esta é concebida como sendo o produto de processos de tradução que se manifestam em redes de significação complexas e que podem corroborar ou contestar as relações de poder estabelecidas. Por outro lado, propõe-se a desenvolver o primeiro estudo sistemático sobre como a presença dos refugiados é (re)presentada, negociada e recordada em obras artísticas em Portugal. O papel de Portugal como país de exílio, estação de trânsito e cidade aberta para espiões antes e durante a Segunda Guerra Mundial tem, recentemente, dado origem não apenas a vários estudos académicos, mas também a artigos de jornal e um número considerável de exposições, filmes e romances. Em vez de um inventário exaustivo de obras artísticas sobre a temática, este estudo prosseguirá um “arquivo de implicação” [archive of implication] (Rothberg, 2013, 2014) para entender como três das obras com mais divulgação e maior impacto no espaço público implicam a memória da presença dos refugiados na confirmação ou contestação da noção de comunalidade dominante. Através de uma análise da obra interartística Sob Céus Estranhos (2002/2007) de Daniel Blaufuks, do romance Enquanto Salazar Dormia (2006) de Domingos Amaral e do documentário Fantasia Lusitana (2010) de João Canijo, esta tese pretende dar visibilidade à pluralidade e heterogeneidade das práticas e discursos mnemónicos em Portugal. As principais questões que conduzem a investigação são, primeiro, se e como estas obras mobilizam diferentes redes de significação heteroculturais e, segundo, se e como desenvolvem diferentes maneiras de implicar a presença dos refugiados no presente, contestando ou reforçando, com isso, formas tradicionais de comunalidade e solidariedade.This research combines a theoretical reconceptualization of the cultural dimensions of memory with the analysis of three artistic media that negotiate the refugee presence in Portugal between 1933 and 1945. The aim of this thesis is therefore twofold: on the one hand, it seeks to make a contribution to the ongoing attempt of widening the theoretical and methodological scope of memory studies. It therefore advances a translational perspective that challenges basic assumptions of the site-bound, nation-bound and identity-bound framework that has characterized most research on memory within the humanities since the 1980s. Rather than limiting memory to its potential to support a particular identity and selfimage of a community, it is conceived of as the outcome of translational processes that unfold in complex networks of signification, whose results might work in favor but also against established power relations. On the other hand, it presents the first systematic analysis of the remembrance and negotiation of the refugee presence within artistic media in Portugal. Portugal’s role as country of exile, transit station and open city for spies before and during World War II has recently been the subject not only of several academic studies, but also of newspaper articles and a number of expositions, films and novels. Rather than an exhaustive inventory of artistic media dealing with the topic, this study pursues an “archive of implication” (Rothberg, 2013, 2014) to understand how three of the most widely circulated and discussed artistic media implicate the memory of the refugee presence in reinforcing or challenging dominant notions of communality. Through a detailed close reading of Daniel Blaufuks’ interart-project Sob Céus Estranhos [Under strange skies] (2002/2007), Domingos Amaral’s novel Enquanto Salazar Dormia [While Salazar was sleeping] (2006) and João Canijo’s documentary Fantasia Lusitana [Lusitanian fantasy] (2010) this thesis seeks to give visibility to the plurality and heterogeneity of mnemonic practices and discourses in Portugal. The principal questions of this study are, first, if and how these artistic media mobilize different heterocultural networks of signification, and, second, if and how they develop different ways of implicating the refugee presence in the present and thereby challenge or reinforce established forms of communality and solidarity

Cellular Immune Response after Vaccination with an Adjuvanted, Recombinant Zoster Vaccine in Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients

Hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients have a high risk of developing primary varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection and reactivation. VZV vaccination may prevent infection and reactivation. In the current study, recipients of allogeneic HSCT (34 females, 45 males) were vaccinated with adjuvanted, recombinant zoster vaccine Shingrix™, which contains the VZV glycoprotein E. Cellular immunity against various VZV antigens was analyzed by interferon-gamma ELISpot. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of recipients with versus without prior shingles (n = 36 and n = 43, respectively) showed approximately twofold higher VZV-specific responses prior to and post vaccination. After the first and second vaccination, ELISpot responses towards the glycoprotein E were significantly higher in males versus females (median of spots increment 18 versus 1 and 17 versus 4, respectively, p ≤ 0.02 each). Multivariate analysis showed that shingles and sex both impacts significantly on VZV immunity. Whereas vaccination-induced changes could hardly be detected after stimulation with a whole VZV antigen, there was a significant increase in responses towards glycoprotein E after vaccination (p < 0.005). These data indicate that vaccination with Shingrix™ augmented cellular, VZV-specific immunity in HSCT recipients. Shingles and male sex could both be identified as factors leading to increased immunity

Dynamics of litterfall in a chronosequence of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii Franco) stands in the Beaujolais mounts (France)

Litterfall is a major component of the carbon and nutrient cycles in forest ecosystems. Results of the present study are from a chronosequence of Douglas-fir stands monitored continuously for seven years. Aboveground litterfall was measured every three months, sorted by components, and analysed for major nutrients. Results make it possible to characterize the dynamics of organic matter and nutrient returns to the forest floor during stand development. Simple extrapolation was used to estimate the total return in litter, cumulated over a 70-year-rotation length. Already published data were collected in order to try to identify simple relationships capable of predicting the litterfall return from structural stand characteristics. These models failed to be predictive, due on the one hand to insufficient data, and, on the other hand, to data not always perfectly comparable. Litterfall is a quantitative ecological measurement necessary to validate the models of ecosystem function.
Dynamique des retombées de litière dans une chronoséquence de Douglas (Pseudotsuga menziesii Franco) située dans les Monts du Beaujolais (France). Les retombées de litières représentent un paramètre écologique fonctionnel important des écosystèmes forestiers, apportant des informations-clés sur le cycle du carbone et des éléments nutritifs. Les résultats présentés dans cette étude proviennent d'une chronoséquence de trois peuplements de Douglas situés dans les Monts du Beaujolais, étudiée pendant sept années. La litière a été collectée tous les trimestres, séparée en compartiments et analysée pour son contenu en éléments nutritifs. Les résultats permettent d'analyser en détail la dynamique des restitutions de carbone et d'éléments nutritifs au cours du développement du peuplement. Une extrapolation simple permet de calculer les retombées cumulées pour la révolution forestière complète. Une analyse bibliographique a permis de sélectionner une vingtaine de peuplements de Douglas pour lesquels les restitutions de litière ont été mesurées. L'objectif était de mettre en évidence des relations statistiques simples permettant d'estimer les restitutions de litière à partir de données de structure des peuplements, existant plus couramment dans la littérature. L'analyse des données montre que ces modèles généraux ne peuvent pas encore être élaborés, d'une part faute de données suffisamment nombreuses, et d'autre part faute de données parfaitement comparables. Les mesures écologiques quantitatives telles que les retombées de litière, doivent être poursuivies de façon à pouvoir valider des modèles de fonctionnement d'écosystèmes

An efficient ELISA protocol for measurement of SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific IgG in human plasma and serum samples

Here, we describe a protocol for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The protocol was developed with a keen focus on optimizing several key parameters, including antigen coating concentration, antibody and sample dilutions, and assay development time. The final protocol features the following characteristics: • The capability to detect SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific IgG in both plasma and serum samples. • A streamlined procedure that requires only 1 hour and 20 minutes of hands-on time. • Reliable assay performance, with a remarkable sensitivity of 98.1 % and specificity of 99.5 %