“Odradek”, ou das novas veredas ético-estéticas

Nossa reflexão trata das novas formas de (des)organização do gozo no homem contemporâneo, antecipadas pela literatura de Kafka, a partir da abordagem psicanalítica. Serão enfocados os pontos de vista de Slavoj Zizek e Jacques-Alain Miller, sobre o conto “Odradek”, que iremos ler sob a perspectiva que lhe confere a Carta ao pai. Estas considerações serão compatibilizadas com o pensamento filosófico e literário a respeito de uma nova terra ethica, solo de um encontro suficientemente satisfatório entre o gozo e o significante, que articule a experiência de vida a um significado íntimo

A melancolia, a narrativa melancólica e sua abdução pela mídia sob os auspícios do discurso do capitalista

Pretendemos, partindo da caracterização estrutural da melancolia em Freud, Lacan e seus leitores, apontar os ecos estilísticos da mania na narrativa melancólica de Louis-Ferdinand Céline. Para tal, confrontamos o desespero degradante em Céline, com a forma shandiana assumida pelo Machado maduro, onde a ficção melancólica produz, paradoxalmente, um saber/satisfazer-se com a vida. Na sequência, examinamos os efeitos melancolizantes articulados à invenção do significante depressão, abduzido pelo discurso da ciência e difundido pela mídia, sob os auspícios do discurso do capitalista. O que nos confronta com uma ideologia da depressão, antecipada pela melancolia poética dos Paraísos artificiais. Tal ilusão de sociedade sem mal-estar, quando cooptada pela biopolítica, seria capaz de aguçar certas tendências narcotizantes no laço social, que vão da toxicomania medicamentosa, compatível com a sociedade de consumo, até o apetite desagregador pelas drogas ilícitas

Looping the loops: a tale of elliptic dual Feynman integrals

In this talk, we review a loop-by-loop approach used to generate differential equations for multi-scale (dual) Feynman integrals. We illustrate the method on a well-established example: the unequal mass elliptic sunrise.Comment: Contribution to RADCOR 2023, 8 page

Metal ions in macrophage antimicrobial pathways: emerging roles for zinc and copper

The immunomodulatory and antimicrobial properties of zinc and copper have long been appreciated. In addition, these metal ions are also essential for microbial growth and survival. This presents opportunities for the host to either harness their antimicrobial properties or limit their availability as defence strategies. Recent studies have shed some light on mechanisms by which copper and zinc regulation contribute to host defence, but there remain many unanswered questions at the cellular and molecular levels. Here we review the roles of these two metal ions in providing protection against infectious diseases in vivo, and in regulating innate immune responses. In particular, we focus on studies implicating zinc and copper in macrophage antimicrobial pathways, as well as the specific host genes encoding zinc transporters (SLC30A, SLC39A family members) and CTRs (copper transporters, ATP7 family members) that may contribute to pathogen control by these cells

Resolution of inflammation: what Controls its Onset?

The authors would like to acknowledge the funding agencies, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq, Brazil), Comissão de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal do Ensino Superior (CAPES, Brazil), Fundação do Amparo a Pesquisa de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG, Brazil), Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia (INCT in Dengue), and the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7-2007-2013, Timer consortium) under grant agreement HEALTH-F4-2011-281608. MP acknowledges funding from the Wellcome Trust (program 086867/Z/08), the Medical Research Council UK (MR/K013068/1), and the William Harvey Research Foundation

S100A8/A9 Is Not Involved in Host Defense against Murine Urinary Tract Infection

Background: Inflammation is commonly followed by the release of endogenous proteins called danger associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) that are able to warn the host for eminent danger. S100A8/A9 subunits are DAMPs that belong to the S100 family of calcium binding proteins. S100A8/A9 complexes induce an inflammatory response and their expression correlates with disease severity in several inflammatory disorders. S100A8/A9 promote endotoxin-and Escherichia (E.) coli-induced sepsis showing its contribution in systemic infection. The role of S100A8/A9 during a local infection of the urinary tract system caused by E. coli remains unknown. Methodology/Principal Findings: We investigated the contribution of S100A8/A9 in acute urinary tract infection (UTI) by instilling 2 different doses of uropathogenic E. coli transurethrally in wild type (WT) and S100A9 knockout (KO) mice. Subsequently, we determined bacterial outgrowth, neutrophilic infiltrate and inflammatory mediators in bladder and kidney 24 and 48 hours later. UTI resulted in a substantial increase of S100A8/A9 protein in bladder and kidney tissue of WT mice. S100A9 KO mice displayed similar bacterial load in bladder or kidney homogenate compared to WT mice using 2 different doses at 2 different time points. S100A9 deficiency had little effect on the inflammatory responses to E. Coli-induced UTI infection, as assessed by myeloperoxidase activity in bladder and kidneys, histopathologic analysis, and renal and bladder cytokine concentrations. Conclusions: We show that despite high S100A8/A9 expression in bladder and kidney tissue upon UTI, S100A8/A9 does not contribute to an effective host response against E. Coli in the urinary tract syste

Genome-Wide Functional Profiling Identifies Genes and Processes Important for Zinc-Limited Growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Zinc is an essential nutrient because it is a required cofactor for many enzymes and transcription factors. To discover genes and processes in yeast that are required for growth when zinc is limiting, we used genome-wide functional profiling. Mixed pools of ∼4,600 deletion mutants were inoculated into zinc-replete and zinc-limiting media. These cells were grown for several generations, and the prevalence of each mutant in the pool was then determined by microarray analysis. As a result, we identified more than 400 different genes required for optimal growth under zinc-limiting conditions. Among these were several targets of the Zap1 zinc-responsive transcription factor. Their importance is consistent with their up-regulation by Zap1 in low zinc. We also identified genes that implicate Zap1-independent processes as important. These include endoplasmic reticulum function, oxidative stress resistance, vesicular trafficking, peroxisome biogenesis, and chromatin modification. Our studies also indicated the critical role of macroautophagy in low zinc growth. Finally, as a result of our analysis, we discovered a previously unknown role for the ICE2 gene in maintaining ER zinc homeostasis. Thus, functional profiling has provided many new insights into genes and processes that are needed for cells to thrive under the stress of zinc deficiency

β-Microseminoprotein Endows Post Coital Seminal Plasma with Potent Candidacidal Activity by a Calcium- and pH-Dependent Mechanism

The innate immune factors controlling Candida albicans are mostly unknown. Vulvovaginal candidiasis is common in women and affects approximately 70–75% of all women at least once. Despite the propensity of Candida to colonize the vagina, transmission of Candida albicans following sexual intercourse is very rare. This prompted us to investigate whether the post coital vaginal milieu contained factors active against C. albicans. By CFU assays, we found prominent candidacidal activity of post coital seminal plasma at both neutral and the acid vaginal pH. In contrast, normal seminal plasma did not display candidacidal activity prior to acidification. By antifungal gel overlay assay, one clearing zone corresponding to a protein band was found in both post coital and normal seminal plasma, which was subsequently identified as β-microseminoprotein. At neutral pH, the fungicidal activity of β-microseminoprotein and seminal plasma was inhibited by calcium. By NMR spectroscopy, amino acid residue E71 was shown to be critical for the calcium coordination. The acidic vaginal milieu unleashed the fungicidal activity by decreasing the inhibitory effect of calcium. The candidacidal activity of β-microseminoprotein was mapped to a fragment of the C-terminal domain with no structural similarity to other known proteins. A homologous fragment from porcine β-microseminoprotein demonstrated calcium-dependent fungicidal activity in a CFU assay, suggesting this may be a common feature for members of the β-microseminoprotein family. By electron microscopy, β-microseminoprotein was found to cause lysis of Candida. Liposome experiments demonstrated that β-microseminoprotein was active towards ergosterol-containing liposomes that mimic fungal membranes, offering an explanation for the selectivity against fungi. These data identify β-microseminoprotein as an important innate immune factor active against C. albicans and may help explain the low sexual transmission rate of Candida