No alternatives, always more, willful optimism: New editors of the European Journal of Cultural Studies in conversation

The following is a conversation, conducted over email in late 2019 and early 2020, between Yiu Fai Chow and Anamik Saha, the two incoming editors of European Journal of Cultural Studies

Bacterial Microbiota Profiling in Gastritis without Helicobacter pylori Infection or Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug Use

Recent 16S ribosomal RNA gene (rRNA) molecular profiling of the stomach mucosa revealed a surprising complexity of microbiota. Helicobacter pylori infection and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use are two main contributors to gastritis and peptic ulcer. However, little is known about the association between other members of the stomach microbiota and gastric diseases. In this study, cloning and sequencing of the 16S rRNA was used to profile the stomach microbiota from normal and gastritis patients. One hundred and thirty three phylotypes from eight bacterial phyla were identified. The stomach microbiota was found to be closely adhered to the mucosa. Eleven Streptococcus phylotypes were successfully cultivated from the biopsies. One to two genera represented a majority of clones within any of the identified phyla. We further developed two real-time quantitative PCR assays to quantify the relative abundance of the Firmicutes phylum and the Streptococcus genus. Significantly higher abundance of the Firmicutes phylum and the Streptococcus genus within the Firmicutes phylum was observed in patients with antral gastritis, compared with normal controls. This study suggests that the genus taxon level can largely represent much higher taxa such as the phylum. The clinical relevance and the mechanism underlying the altered microbiota composition in gastritis require further functional studies

Oxidative stress in children late after Kawasaki disease: relationship with carotid atherosclerosis and stiffness

Background: Persistent arterial dysfunction in patients with a history of Kawasaki disease (KD) and an integral role of oxidative stress in the development of cardiovascular disease are increasingly recognized. We sought to test the hypothesis that oxidative stress is increased in KD patients and related to carotid atherosclerotic changes and stiffness. Methods: We compared the serum levels of oxidative stress biomarkers, carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), and carotid stiffness index among KD patients with coronary aneurysms (n = 32), those without coronary complications (n = 19), and controls (n = 32). Results: Compared with controls, patients with coronary aneurysms had significantly higher serum levels of malonaldehyde (2.62 ± 0.12 μM vs 2.22 ± 0.07 μM, p = 0.014) and hydroperoxides (26.50 ± 1.13 μM vs 22.50 ± 0.62 μM, p = 0.008). A linear trend of the magnitude of oxidative stress in relation to inflammatory damage was observed for malonaldehyde (p = 0.018) and hydroperoxides (p = 0.014) levels. Serum malonaldehyde and hydroperoxide levels correlated positively with carotid IMT (p < 0.001 and p = 0.034, respectively) and stiffness index (p = 0.001 and p = 0.021, respectively). Multiple linear regression analysis identified serum malonaldehyde level as a significant determinant of carotid IMT (β = 0.31, p = 0.006) and stiffness (β = 0.27, p = 0.008). Conclusion: Our findings suggestoxidative stress is increased in KD patients with coronary aneurysms and is associated with carotid intima-media thickening and stiffening. © 2008 Cheung et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.published_or_final_versio

Connecting Memories, or the Making of an Inverted Archival Tree

Collect. Connect. I was intrigued by the correspondence between these two words, when I, primarily as a creative writer, started my residency at the Asia Art Archive (AAA) in Hong Kong, where I was invited to focus on AAA’s Ha Bik Chuen Archive (H.B.C Archive). Ha (1925–2009) was a well-known artist, a fervent collector of exhibition catalogues, documentations, and the photographs he took at these exhibitions, among other things. Visiting the HBC Archive and his old home, I started to think of Mrs. Ha, of the impossibility of a collection without connection. We collectively remember; we connect for memories. If we can’t know of what, we can at least know with whom. This essay documents my – or our – project titled Connective Memories , or the making of an inverted archival tree, a project that brought me into contact with six young people and over to the field of music. I end with a song on faith and letter-writing

Connecting Memories, or the Making of an Inverted Archival Tree

Collect. Connect. I was intrigued by the correspondence between these two words, when I, primarily as a creative writer, started my residency at the Asia Art Archive (AAA) in Hong Kong, where I was invited to focus on AAA’s Ha Bik Chuen Archive (H.B.C Archive). Ha (1925–2009) was a well-known artist, a fervent collector of exhibition catalogues, documentations, and the photographs he took at these exhibitions, among other things. Visiting the HBC Archive and his old home, I started to think of Mrs. Ha, of the impossibility of a collection without connection. We collectively remember; we connect for memories. If we can’t know of what, we can at least know with whom. This essay documents my – or our – project titled Connective Memories , or the making of an inverted archival tree, a project that brought me into contact with six young people and over to the field of music. I end with a song on faith and letter-writing

Towards an Ethics of Slowness in an Era of Academic Corporatism.

‘Now, of course, we live in Thatcher’s psyche if not her anus, in the world she made, of competition, consumerism, celebrity and guilt’s bastard son, charity: bingeing and debt.’ Hanif Kureishi (2008: 271) The hidden injuries of the neo-liberal University. In a recently published piece titled ‘Breaking the Silence: The Hidden Injuries of the Neoliberal University,’ Rosalind Gill reflects upon the experiences of academic work at Uk universities. Inspired by her text, we wish to ..