Maurice Blanchot and the Problem of Time: an analysis of the novel Thomas, L'obscur

The question of the relationship between time and literature has long been the subject of discussions by various thinkers and philosophers. One of the contemporary writers whose works manifestly presents such as the French writer and thinker, Maurice Blanchot. The purpose of the present paper is to examine this relationship in Blanchot's works. A careful study of his fiction reveals the evolution that took place, in the first place, in his understanding of the question of time, and secondly in his continual attempt to challenge the views of other thinkers on the same subject, an attempt which has seemingly led Blanchot to a new formulation of the concept of time. An elaboration on this requires tracing the idea back to the definitions and discussions found among his endless dialogues with the other contemporary writers and thinkers (especially with his famous friend Emmanuel Levinas)

Dietary cobalt supplementation improves growth and body composition and induces the expression of growth and stress response genes in Tor putitora

A 90-day randomized feeding experiment was performed to assess the effects of dietary cobalt (Co) supplementation on the growth performance, muscle composition, status of iron and manganese in the muscle as well as the expression of growth-related genes in the muscle (myoblast determination protein 1 homolog (MyoD) and myogenin) and the stress-related gene heat shock protein 70 KDa (Hsp-70) in the liver of mahseer (Tor putitora). Feeding trial was conducted in triplicate under controlled semi-static conditions, and graded levels of dietary cobalt (0.5-3 mg/kg) were fed to six groups of advanced fry of T. putitora. The results obtained indicated a curvilinear relationship of dietary Co levels with body crude protein content and weight gain (%). A positive correlation was observed with up to 2 mg Co/kg diet. However, a decreasing trend was found with values over 2 mg Co/kg diet. The expression of muscle growth biomarkers MyoD and myogenin showed a similar response, upregulation up to 2 mg Co/kg diet and decreased expression at 3 mg Co/kg diet. Indeed, the highest dietary Co supplementation increased the expression of Hsp-70, a key gene expressed in response to stress. Moreover, the muscle content of iron and manganese showed an inverse relationship with the dietary Co supplementation. Our findings suggest that 2 mg/kg Co dietary supplementation stimulates myogenesis and optimize muscle growth and body composition, while higher levels enhanced the expression of stress response genes and impaired growth of T. putitora

FACTORS INFLUENCING THE DEVELOPMENT OF STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP IN IRAN'S CULTURAL ORGANIZATIONS WITH AN EMPHASIS ON NATIONAL MEDIA

Abstract. Problem statement. Along with the advent of strategic developments owing to the acceptance of the new communication and information technologies, changes in regulations of media field, formulation and implementation of policies of strategic leadership, merger of media organizations, change of organizational structure and variety in financial and human resources in media organizations have brought new concepts in the field of media leadership and also acceptance of major strategic changes in the media organizations of countries. Research Method: To this end, this research, with the aim of identifying the most effective factors in development of strategic leadership in Iran'smedia organizations, was conducted; which in terms of applied purpose and from the perspective of manner of implementation is a descriptive survey. The statistical population of the research is all experts (200 people) in the country's culture and media realm and the sample size, due to the limit of the population, based on Morgan's table is 132 people. In addition to library research, in order to collect data, a researcher-made questionnaire was developed and for the purpose of validity measurement tool Lawshe coefficient method was used; thus, content validity was confirmed. Questionnaire reliability too was acceptable by Cronbach's alpha 88%. In order to test the research hypotheses Structural Equation Modeling method was used for path analysis. Findings: The results of confirmatory factor analysis and model fitness test showed that indices of measurement models and general structural model areacceptable. Findings of the research, too, showed that governmental policies on the infrastructures and technology in the media organizations of the country (W3) with coefficient 72% has the most effect and strategic management in the media organizations of the country (W2) with the coefficient 45% has the least effect on strategic leadership in the country's media organizations. Conclusion: According to the results, it seems that in order to achieve maximum productivity, media organizations and in particular national media should employ appropriate mechanisms to take advantage of strategic leadership in terms of triple factors; Government policies on infrastructure and technology, strategic management, and the development or enhancement of cultural management to overcome the existingchallenges and barriers. To be able to keep pace with environmental changes move forward and fit any situation must put on the agenda.Keywords: strategic leadership, media organizations, governmental policies, strategic management, cultural management

Chitosan-Based Drug Delivery System: Applications in Fish Biotechnology

Chitosan is increasingly used for safe nucleic acid delivery in gene therapy studies, due to well-known properties such as bioadhesion, low toxicity, biodegradability and biocompatibility. Furthermore, chitosan derivatization can be easily performed to improve the solubility and stability of chitosan-nucleic acid polyplexes, and enhance e cient target cell drug delivery, cell uptake, intracellular endosomal escape, unpacking and nuclear import of expression plasmids. As in other fields, chitosan is a promising drug delivery vector with great potential for the fish farming industry. This review highlights state-of-the-art assays using chitosan-based methodologies for delivering nucleic acids into cells, and focuses attention on recent advances in chitosan-mediated gene delivery for fish biotechnology applications. The e ciency of chitosan for gene therapy studies in fish biotechnology is discussed in fields such as fish vaccination against bacterial and viral infection, control of gonadal development and gene overexpression and silencing for overcoming metabolic limitations, such as dependence on protein-rich diets and the low glucose tolerance of farmed fish. Finally, challenges and perspectives on the future developments of chitosan-based gene delivery in fish are also discussed

The administration of chitosan-tripolyphosphate-DNA nanoparticles to express exogenous SREBP1a enhances conversion of dietary carbohydrates into lipids in the liver of Sparus aurata

In addition to being essential for the transcription of genes involved in cellular lipogenesis, increasing evidence associates sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs) with the transcriptional control of carbohydrate metabolism. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of overexpression SREBP1a, a potent activator of all SREBP-responsive genes, on the intermediary metabolism of Sparus aurata, a glucose-intolerant carnivorous fish. Administration of chitosan-tripolyphosphate nanoparticles complexed with a plasmid driving expression of the N-terminal transactivation domain of SREBP1a significantly increased SREBP1a mRNA and protein in the liver of S. aurata. Overexpression of SREBP1a enhanced the hepatic expression of key genes in glycolysis-gluconeogenesis (glucokinase and 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase), fatty acid synthesis (acetyl-CoA carboxylase 1 and acetyl-CoA carboxylase 2), elongation (elongation of very long chain fatty acids protein 5) and desaturation (fatty acid desaturase 2) as well as reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate production (glucose-6-phosphate 1-dehydrogenase) and cholesterol synthesis (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase), leading to increased blood triglycerides and cholesterol levels. Beyond reporting the first study addressing in vivo effects of exogenous SREBP1a in a glucose-intolerant model, our findings support that SREBP1a overexpression caused multigenic effects that favoured hepatic glycolysis and lipogenesis and thus enabled protein sparing by improving dietary carbohydrate conversion into fatty acids and cholesterolPeer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Metformin counteracts glucose-dependent lipogenesis and impairs transdeamination in the liver of gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata)

Metformin is an anti-diabetic drug with a major impact on regulating blood glucose levels by decreasing hepatic gluconeogenesis but also affecting other pathways, including glucose transport and energy/lipid metabolism. Carnivorous fish are considered glucose intolerant, as they exhibit poor ability to using dietary carbohydrates. To increase the current knowledge about the molecular mechanisms by which metformin can improve glucose homeostasis in carnivorous fish, we addressed the effect of intraperitoneal administration of metformin, in the presence or absence of a glucose load, on metabolic rate-limiting enzymes and lipogenic factors in the liver of gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata). Hyperglycemia markedly up-regulated the expression of glycolytic enzymes (glucokinase and 6-phosphofructo-1-kinase, PFK1) 5 h following glucose administration, while at 24 h post-treatment it increased isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) activity, a key enzyme of the tricarboxylic acid cycle, and the expression of lipogenic factors (PGC1b, Lpin1 and SREBP1). Metformin counteracted glucose-dependent effects, and down-regulated glutamate dehydrogenase, alanine aminotransferase and mTOR 5 h post-treatment in the absence of a glucose load, leading to decreased long-term activity of PFK1 and IDH. The results of the present study suggest that hyperglycemia enhances lipogenesis in the liver of S. aurata, and that metformin may exert specific metabolic effects in fish by decreasing hepatic transdeamination and supressing the use of amino acids as gluconeogenic substrates. Our findings highlight the role of amino acid metabolism in the glucose-intolerant carnivorous fish model. KEYWORDS: Glutamate dehydrogenase; Lipogenesis; Liver; Metformin; Sparus aurat

Factors Affecting the Marketing of organic Farming Products (case Study: Miandoab county)

Organic agriculture is rapidly growing while the lack of knowledge and skills to manage organic farms and the lack of market opportunities for the organic products are the most important reasons for the disinclination to the use of the organic agriculture practices. The main aim of this study was to determine the factors underpinning the marketing of organic agriculture products. The research was a descriptive survey in terms of purpose. The research instrument was a questionnaire whose validity was determined by the content validity and its reliability was estimated to be 89% by Cronbach's Alpha. The population of the study included all organic farmers who have supplied their products to a fruit and vegetable market in Miandoab. The sample size was determined as 148 by the Morgan-Kerjisy table and was selected by stratified sampling method and simple randomization. Finally, 150 questionnaires were collected. The results showed a significant relationship between the marketing of the organic agriculture products with educational factors, economic factors, intelligence agents, production factors and social factors at the 0.05 level. Also, the results of regression analysis showed that the variables of production factors, educational factors, and economic factors captured 53% of the variance of the dependent variable

Gene markers of dietary macronutrient composition and growth in the skeletal muscle of gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata)

To increase our current knowledge on the nutritional regulation of growth and gene expression pattern in fish skeletal muscle, the effect of dietary macronutrient composition was assessed on digestibility, nutrient retention, growth performance, and the mRNA levels of key genes involved in functionality, growth and development of the skeletal muscle in gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata). Long-term starvation decreased the expression of myogenic regulatory factors such as Myod2, Myf5, myogenin (Myog) and Myf6 in the skeletal muscle of S. aurata. The supply of high or medium protein, low carbohydrate diets enhanced growth parameters, feed efficiency ratio, feed conversion ratio and significantly upregulated myod2. However, the supply of low protein, high carbohydrate diets restricted growth and stimulated the mRNA levels of myostatin, while downregulated follistatin (fst), igf1, mtor and rps6. Microarray analysis revealed igfals, tnni2, and gadd45a as gene markers upregulated by diets enriched with protein, lipids and carbohydrates, respectively. The results of the present study show that in addition to myod2, fst, igf1, mtor and rps6, the expression levels of igfals, tnni2 and remarkably gadd45a in the skeletal muscle can be used as markers to evaluate the effect of dietary macronutrient changes on fish growth and muscle development in S. aurata.This work was supported by the Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad, Spain (grant no. AGL2016-78124-R; cofunded by the European Regional Development Fund, European Commission) and the Agencia Nacional de Investigacion ´ y Desarrollo, Chile (Becas Chile/ 2011–72111506). The authors thank Piscicultura Marina Mediterranea (Burriana, Castellon, ´ Spain) for providing S. aurata juveniles.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Effect of component dismantling on quality of sterilization of mechanical torque limiting devices (pilot study)

Objectives Dental instruments may serve as a route of infection transmission. The necessity of dismantling of Friction-Style (FS) and Spring- Style (SS) mechanical torque limiting devices (MTLDs) prior to disinfection and sterilization is a matter of debate, aside fromthe fact that it is difficult and time-consuming. This study sought to assess the effect of dismantling of components on quality of sterilizationof MTLDs.Materials and Methods This in vitro experimental study was performed on 96 torque devices. Forty eight FS-MTLDs of two manufacturers (n = 24) namely Astra Tech (Hader SA, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland) and Dr. Idhe (Dr. Idhe Dental, Eching, Munich, Germany) and 48 SS-MTLDs of two manufacturers (n = 24) namely Nobel Biocare (Nobel Biocare, Goteborg, Sweden) and Straumann (Institut Straumann, Basel, Switzerland). After coding, specimens were inoculated with Bacillus stearothermophilus (PTCC1713) and 24 devices of four manufacturers each were divided into two groups (n = 12) for disinfection in assembled or disassembled form. Each group was then divided into two subgroups (n = 6) for sterilization in assembled or dismantled form. After disinfection and sterilization, bacterial proliferation was assessed for all MTLDs. In case of observing turbidity, Gram-staining and differential tests were performed. The results were expressed as presence or absence of contamination.Results Growth of B. stearothermophilus did not occur in any plate (no turbidity). Only one plate showed growth of Staphylococcus saprophyticus.Conclusion Dismantling of components had no significant effect on quality of sterilization of MTLDs

Potential Therapeutic Uses of Thalidomide for Pulmonary Fibrosis

Thalidomide was widely used to avoid morning sickness in pregnant women, but was recalled due to its teratogenic effects and malformations in thousands of children. However, potential beneficial effects such as anti-inflammatory, system regulatory activities and the anti-angiogenic effect of thalidomide have been reported. As the studies about thalidomide continued, its new effects and applications made researchers more interested in it and became a promising agent in the treatment of a variety of clinical situations where standard treatments have failed. To make this purpose more achievable, Scopus, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and PubMed were searched. After obtaining and reviewing articles related to thalidomide and its indications, different therapeutic uses of thalidomide for pulmonary diseases are classified on mechanisms. In recent years, thalidomide has been an effective agent in treating cough associated with pulmonary fibrosis and the main suggested mechanism refers to regulation production of inflammatory mediators, including cytokines and chemokines, which trigger Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT). The mechanism of EMT is related to the inhibition of Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β1)-mediated signaling pathways, Smad2 (Suppressor of Mothers against decapentaplegic homolog 2) / 3, Akt / Glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta (GSK-3β), and Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Thalidomide is also involved in paraquat-induced and bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Also, Thalidomide gained attention as a suitable agent for the treatment of cough associated with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and for severe pulmonary damage cause by severe acute respiratory syndrome, coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), responsible for the global pandemic in 2020, due to its anti-inflammatory-anti-angiogenesis and pro-apoptotic properties