Adults of the wingless bagworm moth, Eumeta variegata, show remarkable sexual dimorphism. Final-instar larvae of the male have invaginated wing discs, whereas those of the female are rudimentary. To determine the best method for culturing the wing discs of E. variegata, which in both sexes are attached to the larval integument, two methods of culturing the larval wing discs are compared. Initially, a stationary culture was used. In these cultures necrotic cells and degeneration of wing discs of males were sporadically observed. By contrast, many small vacuoles were observed in the female wing rudiment under these conditions. In order to overcome some of the problems associated with stationary culture, rotating culture was used and resulted in the wing discs of males and females remaining in good condition. A histological analysis revealed that the wing disc morphology was normal when they were cultured in this way. These results indicate that rotating the culture medium is the better procedure for studying the action of hormones on the differentiation and metamorphosis of reduced wing rudiments in E. variegata.
The e aim of this article is to cultivate Schmitt’s concept of the political, employing a funcional-systematic framework which was formulated in German sociology and social philosophy. By way of Luhmann’s systems theory and Habermas‘ systemising reconstruction of Weber’s conception of spheres of value, a model of intensity is worked out, which is constituted by two concepts: differentiation and politicisation. Whereas the systems theory of Niklas Luhmann is significant for the final delineation of the political as a system, Habermas’s Kantian differentiation of culture grounds the semantics of politicisation. This semantics also exploits considerations about re-distribution and recognition, with particular attention on Nancy Fraser’s “perspectival dualism”. The reason for cultivating Schmitt’s concept of the political is to develop the political as an independent concept which is an alternative to a conception that concentrates the political in politically active or activated civil society.
The genus Acanthamoeba includes more than 20 morphological species, but classification is problematical. Recently, the discovery of substantial interstrain differences in ribosomal DNA (rDNA) sequences has prompted questions about the relatedness of strains of the same species. In this study, therefore, we have investigated relationships between two isolates of A. polyphaga, CCAP 1501/3c and ATCC 30871, using morphological, biochemical, physiological, molecular and cytotoxicity assays. We observed that A. polyphaga ATCC 30871 exhibited up to six arms in endocyst while A. polyphaga CCAP 1501/3c exhibited a maximum of 5 arms thus indicating their position in group 2 and 3, respectively. Acanthamoeba polyphaga ATCC 30871 exhibited growth at 37°C and growth on 1M mannitol plates while A. polyphaga CCAP 1501/3c did not. In addition, both isolates exhibited differences in isoenzyme banding patterns and rDNA restriction fragment polymorphisms. More importantly, A. polyphaga ATCC 30871 produced cytotoxicity on corneal epithelial cells while A. polyphaga CCAP 1501/3c had no effects, suggesting differences in pathogenicity. Thus, all the results provide evidence for significant differences between the strains and further provided the basis for reclassification of the isolates. Implications of these results in the clinical diagnosis of pathogenic Acanthamoeba are discussed.
V článku je předložen model narativní komplexity. Jako východiska modelu jsou využity Todorovův pojem „narativní transformace“ a Brunerův koncept „potíž“. Narativní transformace je chápána jako to, „co vyprávění dělá s konstitutivní potíží“. S využitím těchto pojmů je narativní komplexita definována jako diferenciace a integrace různých aspektů narativní transformace. Pojem narativní komplexita poukazuje jak k dispozici, tak také k procesu i výsledku narativního ztvárnění zkušenosti v její složitosti, úplnosti a proměnlivosti. Model umožňuje včlenit do jednoho logicky konzistentního rámce různé aspekty narativní komplexity, tak jak byly doposud koncipovány z různých dílčích teoretických či praktických hledisek. Předložený model sestává z osmi souvisejících aspektů: 1) diferenciace a integrace tématu vyprávění, 2) diferenciace a integrace aktérství, 3) diferenciace a integrace narativní konstrukce, 4) diferenciace a integrace ztvárnění hodnot a přesvědčení, 5) diferenciace a integrace na rovině reflexe, 6) diferenciace a integrace hledisek a perspektiv, 7) diferenciace a integrace utváření postav, 8) diferenciace a integrace na rovině komunikačního a sociokulturního kontextu. Na závěr jsou zmíněny některé teoretické a empirické možnosti předloženého modelu., Model of narrative complexity is articulated. Todorov’s concept of “narrative transformation” and Bruner’s concept of “trouble” are used as a frame of narrative complexity conceptualization. Narrative transformation is presented as “something what story telling does with constitutive trouble”. Narrative complexity is thus defined as a differentiation and integration of various aspects of narrative transformation. Narrative complexity refers both to disposition and also to the process and to the result of narrative experience constructing in its complicatedness, completeness, and changeableness. The model enables to incorporate various aspects of narrative complexity from different theoretical and practical perspectives into one consistent framework. The presented model consists of eight interconnected aspects: 1) differentiation and integration of topic storytelling, 2) differentiation and integration of agency, 3) differentiation and integration of narrative construction, 4) differentiation and integration of values and believes embodiment, 5) differentiation and integration at the level of reflection, 6) differentiation and integration of different perspectives, 7) differentiation and integration of characters (protagonists), 8) differentiation and integration in communication and socio-cultural contexts. Theoretical and empirical consequences of the model are also discussed., Vladimír Chrz, Ivo Čermák., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
This paper analyses the nature of language and its role in realism-antirealism debate. The aim of the paper is (i) to present and defend the common-sense realism as a position, which enables us to offer a plausible explanation of the evolution of linguistic practice, and (ii) to present the realism-antirealism debate as a battle of an accent. The realists emphasize (a) the source of differentiation, while the antirealists accent the process of differentiation. Both of the aims are met via the conceptual analysis of the main realism-antirealism concepts such as language, differentiation, difference, reality, to constitute (to construct) and by the assessment of the impact that the results of the ab- ovementioned analysis would have on the position of common-sense realism., Příspěvek analyzuje povahu jazyka a jeho úlohu v diskusi o realismu a antirealismu. Cílem příspěvku je (i) prezentovat a hájit realismus ve smyslu zdravého rozumu jako pozici, která nám umožňuje nabídnout věrohodné vysvětlení vývoje lingvistické praxe a (ii) prezentovat debatu realismu a antirealismu jako bitva přízvuku. Realisté zdůrazňují (a) zdroj diferenciace, zatímco antirealisté zdůrazňují proces diferenciace. Oba tyto cíle jsou naplňovány koncepční analýzou hlavních konceptů realismu - antirealismu, jako je jazyk, diferenciace, rozdíl, realita, představování (konstruování) a hodnocení dopadu, který by výsledky uvedené analýzy vyplynuly. mají na pozici realistického myšlení., and Pavol Labuda
The phylum Microsporidia is a large group of parasitic unicellular eukaryotes that infect a wide range of invertebrate and vertebrate taxa. These organisms are significant human and veterinary pathogens with impacts on medicine, agriculture and aquaculture. Scientists working on these pathogens represent diverse disciplines that have had limited opportunities for detailed interactions. A NATO Advanced Research Workshop 'Emergent Pathogens in the 21st Century: First United Workshop on Microsporidia from Invertebrate and Vertebrate Hosts' was held July 12-15, 2004 at the Institute of Parasitology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic to bring together experts in insect, fish, veterinary and human microsporidiosis for the exchange of information on these pathogens. At this meeting, discussions were held on issues related to taxonomy and phylogeny. It was recognized that microsporidia are related to fungi, but the strong opinion of the participants was that the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature should continue to be applied for taxonomic descriptions of the Microsporidia and that they be treated as an independent group emerging from a paraphyletic fungi. There continues to be exponential growth in the pace and volume of research on these ubiquitous intracellular protists. The small genomes of these organisms and the reduction in the size of many of their genes are of interest to many disciplines. Many microsporidia are dimorphic and the mechanisms underlying these morphologic changes remain to be elucidated. Epidemiologic studies to clarify the source of human microsporidiosis and ecologic studies to understand the multifaceted relationship of the Microsporidia and their hosts are important avenues of investigation. Studies on the Microsporidia should prove useful to many fields of biologic investigation.
In vitro produced β-like cells can provide promising cell therapy for curing the epidemic of diabetes. In this context, we aimed to investigate the effects of different concentrations of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) on the differentiation of rat pancreatic ductal epithelial-like stem cells (PDESCs) into β-like cells. The PDESC line cells were cultured in the basal media (DMEM/F12 + 10% FBS + 1% penicillinstreptomycin) supplemented with 0 µM, 5 µM, 50 µM, 500 µM, and 5 mM of GABA for 28 days to induce their differentiation. The differentiated cells were detected by cell morphology, dithizone (DTZ) staining, immunofluorescence staining, real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) assay to validate their identity. At the end of 28 days, compared with the control group, enrichment of induced cells was high among the 5 μM, 50 μM, 500 μM, and 5 mM GABA induction groups. The formation of islet-like cell clusters (ICCs) began at 14 days, and the cell clusters showed a growth trend with the culture time. The induced ICCs were positive for DTZ staining, while the control group showed negative results for DTZ staining and the differentiated cells were also positive for β-cell-specific markers (Ins1 and Pdx1). GSIS assay of 50 μM induction group cells at 28 days showed significantly higher levels of C-peptide and insulin secretion than the control, 5 μM, 500 μM, and 5 mM GABA-treated groups (P < 0.01). At the same time, the 50 μM induction group cells also showed significantly higher levels of Ins1, Pdx1 and Nkx6.1 mRNA as compared to the 5 μM, 500 μM and 5 mM GABA groups (P < 0.01). Thus, the addition of GABA to the basal medium effectively induced differentiation of adult rat PDESCs into insulin-secreting β-like cells, and 50 μM was the most effective concentration for the induction.