The Narrative Creation of Self in the Fiction by African-American and African-Caribbean Women Writers.

This study entails an examination of the works of six authors (Maya Angelou, Audre Lorde, Paule Marshall, Toni Morrison, Gloria Naylor and Simone Schwarz-Bart) whose works are shaped by values and perceptions influenced by their experiences of sexual, racial and social marginalization. While I acknowledge differences in origin, beliefs and personality, I explore the common ground which unites them, and more specifically the complex ties that bind their individual writing I with their environment-- communitas, to use Victor Turner\u27s term. This study is also an exploration of the modes in which these six writers create their idiosyncratic selves out of the continued tension between the writer\u27s I and the communitas to which she claims to belong. Furthermore, while addressing the links that connect these authors\u27 works with larger literary categories (i.e, the novel, autobiography, African-American and Caribbean literary traditions, literature written by women), I distinguish what is specific to each of these narratives in their affirmation of distinct black female selves. In my first chapter, I investigate the social and historical strictures that have governed the development of both specific black narrative traditions in the New World and of the so-called black female literary tradition since the publication of Harriet Jacobs\u27s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Following my initial discussion of the trope of confinement in works by black women, in my second and third chapters I explore the diverse representations of place and time within black cultures from Africa and the diaspora. In chapter IV, I discuss the particular constraints that determine the construction of specifically female identities in the texts by these six authors. This discussion takes into account: the role of female-male relationships, the retention of strong African-centered traits concerning maternal roles and mothering; and the crucial part played in most of these texts by same-sex bonding and identification. In the fifth chapter, I study more closely two autobiographies (Lorde\u27s and Angelou\u27s) and show how they partake of the self-genesis of black women\u27s selves in America and the Caribbean. Finally, to avoid the essentialist fallacy, my conclusion is open-ended; I demonstrate how these six authors\u27 narrative techniques and uses of voices re-affirm the constant need to merge the individual and the communal voices in an ultimate celebration of identity and continued survival against all odds. Throughout this study, my intention is to show that each author\u27s definition of an idiosyncratic female--or male--self depends in part on spatial, temporal and social paradigms of blackness and femaleness. These individual definitions serve as a chronicle of the way in which multiple social, cultural, historical and linguistic factors create ever-expanding black female literary traditions in the Americas

Spatial analysis of air pollution and childhood asthma in Hamilton, Canada: comparing exposure methods in sensitive subgroups

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Variations in air pollution exposure within a community may be associated with asthma prevalence. However, studies conducted to date have produced inconsistent results, possibly due to errors in measurement of the exposures.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A standardized asthma survey was administered to children in grades one and eight in Hamilton, Canada, in 1994–95 (N ~1467). Exposure to air pollution was estimated in four ways: (1) distance from roadways; (2) interpolated surfaces for ozone, sulfur dioxide, particulate matter and nitrous oxides from seven to nine governmental monitoring stations; (3) a kriged nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) surface based on a network of 100 passive NO₂monitors; and (4) a land use regression (LUR) model derived from the same monitoring network. Logistic regressions were used to test associations between asthma and air pollution, controlling for variables including neighbourhood income, dwelling value, state of housing, a deprivation index and smoking.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were no significant associations between any of the exposure estimates and asthma in the whole population, but large effects were detected the subgroup of children without hayfever (predominately in girls). The most robust effects were observed for the association of asthma without hayfever and NO₂LUR OR = 1.86 (95%CI, 1.59–2.16) in all girls and OR = 2.98 (95%CI, 0.98–9.06) for older girls, over an interquartile range increase and controlling for confounders.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings indicate that traffic-related pollutants, such as NO₂, are associated with asthma without overt evidence of other atopic disorders among female children living in a medium-sized Canadian city. The effects were sensitive to the method of exposure estimation. More refined exposure models produced the most robust associations.</p

Genetics of asthma: a molecular biologist perspective

Asthma belongs to the category of classical allergic diseases which generally arise due to IgE mediated hypersensitivity to environmental triggers. Since its prevalence is very high in developed or urbanized societies it is also referred to as "disease of civilizations". Due to its increased prevalence among related individuals, it was understood quite long back that it is a genetic disorder. Well designed epidemiological studies reinforced these views. The advent of modern biological technology saw further refinements in our understanding of genetics of asthma and led to the realization that asthma is not a disorder with simple Mendelian mode of inheritance but a multifactorial disorder of the airways brought about by complex interaction between genetic and environmental factors. Current asthma research has witnessed evidences that are compelling researchers to redefine asthma altogether. Although no consensus exists among workers regarding its definition, it seems obvious that several pathologies, all affecting the airways, have been clubbed into one common category called asthma. Needless to say, genetic studies have led from the front in bringing about these transformations. Genomics, molecular biology, immunology and other interrelated disciplines have unearthed data that has changed the way we think about asthma now. In this review, we center our discussions on genetic basis of asthma; the molecular mechanisms involved in its pathogenesis. Taking cue from the existing data we would briefly ponder over the future directions that should improve our understanding of asthma pathogenesis

Dexamethasone intravitreal implant in previously treated patients with diabetic macular edema : Subgroup analysis of the MEAD study

Background: Dexamethasone intravitreal implant 0.7 mg (DEX 0.7) was approved for treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME) after demonstration of its efficacy and safety in the MEAD registration trials. We performed subgroup analysis of MEAD study results to evaluate the efficacy and safety of DEX 0.7 treatment in patients with previously treated DME. Methods: Three-year, randomized, sham-controlled phase 3 study in patients with DME, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of 34.68 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study letters (20/200.20/50 Snellen equivalent), and central retinal thickness (CRT) 65300 \u3bcm measured by time-domain optical coherence tomography. Patients were randomized to 1 of 2 doses of DEX (0.7 mg or 0.35 mg), or to sham procedure, with retreatment no more than every 6 months. The primary endpoint was 6515-letter gain in BCVA at study end. Average change in BCVA and CRT from baseline during the study (area-under-the-curve approach) and adverse events were also evaluated. The present subgroup analysis evaluated outcomes in patients randomized to DEX 0.7 (marketed dose) or sham based on prior treatment for DME at study entry. Results: Baseline characteristics of previously treated DEX 0.7 (n = 247) and sham (n=261) patients were similar. In the previously treated subgroup, mean number of treatments over 3 years was 4.1 for DEX 0.7 and 3.2 for sham, 21.5 % of DEX 0.7 patients versus 11.1 % of sham had 6515-letter BCVA gain from baseline at study end (P = 0.002), mean average BCVA change from baseline was +3.2 letters with DEX 0.7 versus +1.5 letters with sham (P = 0.024), and mean average CRT change from baseline was -126.1 \u3bcm with DEX 0.7 versus -39.0 \u3bcm with sham(P < 0.001). Cataract-related adverse events were reported in 70.3 % of baseline phakic patients in the previously treated DEX 0.7 subgroup; vision gains were restored following cataract surgery. Conclusions: DEX 0.7 significantly improved visual and anatomic outcomes in patients with DME previously treated with laser, intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor, intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide, or a combination of these therapies. The safety profile of DEX 0.7 in previously treated patients was similar to its safety profile in the total study population

Inversion numérique de la transformée de Laplace

* INRA, URD, Domaine Saint-Paul, Site Agroparc, 84914 Avignon, Cedex 9 Diffusion du document : INRA, URD, Domaine Saint-Paul, Site Agroparc, 84914 Avignon, Cedex

[Acute endophthalmitis: from bacteria to clinical settings]

International audienceThe clinical presentation of endophthalmitis depends on numerous factors, especially the bacteria involved, which determines the delay of infection, the amount of ocular inflammation, and the final prognosis. Results of epidemiological studies have provided a better understanding of the correlation between bacteria and clinical characteristics. Some clinical signs may help the clinician to suspect a virulent bacterium. Clinical and microbiological factors are essential to guide the therapeutic strategy in patients with acute endophthalmitis