The rich and the poor: Jewish philanthropy and social control in nineteenth century London

The purpose of this historical research is to discover new facts by tracing the development of the theory, practice and institutionalisation of the social control and paternalising mechanisms as had been intended in different schemes or implemented by the Jewish élite through its philanthropic institutions in regard to the poor and working class immigrants, mostly from eastern Europe, during the whole of the nineteenth century. As reflected in Jewish history, helping the poor was and remained one of the most appealing and cherished values based on the assumption that such help had generally functioned satisfactorily. The humanitarian implications of philanthropy have been discussed and tested in the light of the contrasting class interests of the rapidly acculturated Ashkenazic Anglo-Jewish élite which, in its pursuit of wealth, social status and political power in the host community, severely neglected the poor. There was a conspicuous disparity between the élite, characterised by extreme, exclusive élitism and antidemocratic aristocracy, and the large number of poor who lived and eked out their precarious living in the overcrowded and unsanitary Jewish East End. Aloof from the poor and encouraged by its achievements, the Jewish élite had embraced Benthamism, Smilesianism, Social Darwinism and economic theories associated with laissez faire as a basis for the policy of its philanthropic institutions. The narrowness of these doctrines and the influence of the harsh Poor Law of 1 834 and of the COS which emphasised personal responsibility of the individual for his economic situation, are particularly reflected in the activities of the London Jewish Board of Guardians - the key institution of the élite for controlling and regulating the poor. The encounter between the more conscious Jewish working class and the élite and the survival of the Jewish Board of Guardians through incrementalism and gradualism as well as the avoidance of a more radical communal split, have been analysed

Cation Binding to Xanthorhodopsin: Electron Paramagnetic Resonance and Magnetic Studies

Xanthorhodopsin (xR) is a member of the retinal protein family and acts as a proton pump in the cell membranes of the extremely halophilic eubacterium Salinibacter ruber. In addition to the retinal chromophore, xR contains a carotenoid, which acts as a light-harvesting antenna as it transfers 40% of the quanta it absorbs to the retinal. Our previous studies have shown that the CD and absorption spectra of xR are dramatically affected due to the protonation of two different residues. It is still unclear whether xR can bind cations. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy used in the present study revealed that xR can bind divalent cations, such as Mn²⁺ and Ca²⁺, to deionized xR (DI-xR). We also demonstrate that xR can bind 1 equiv of Mn²⁺ to a high-affinity binding site followed by binding of ∼40 equiv in cooperative manner and ∼100 equiv of Mn²⁺ that are weakly bound. SQUID magnetic studies suggest that the high cooperative binding of Mn²⁺ cations to xR is due to the formation of Mn²⁺ clusters. Our data demonstrate that Ca²⁺ cations bind to DI-xR with a lower affinity than Mn²⁺, supporting the assumption that binding of Mn²⁺ occurs through cluster formation, because Ca²⁺ cations cannot form clusters in contrast to Mn²⁺