The body literate: Discourse and inscription in early literacy

The collection will cover all the major fields of discourse studies: including, grammar, stylistics, conversation analysis, narrative analysis, argumentation, psychology of comprehension, ethnography of speaking, and media. It will include classic articles, work from the top scholars in the field, and reflect all the significant debates.

Engineering an Ecosystem : Taking Cues from Nature’s Paradigm to Build Tissue in the Lab and the Body

This manuscript took a 'top down' approach to understanding survival of inhabitant cells in the ecosystem bone, working from higher to lower length and time scales through the hierarchical ecosystem of bone. Our working hypothesis is that nature “engineered” the skeleton using a 'bottom up' approach,where mechanical properties of cells emerge from their adaptation to their local me-chanical milieu. Cell aggregation and formation of higher order anisotropic struc- ture results in emergent architectures through cell differentiation and extracellular matrix secretion. These emergent properties, including mechanical properties and architecture, result in mechanical adaptation at length scales and longer time scales which are most relevant for the survival of the vertebrate organism [Knothe Tate and von Recum 2009]. We are currently using insights from this approach to har-ness nature’s regeneration potential and to engineer novel mechanoactive materials [Knothe Tate et al. 2007, Knothe Tate et al. 2009]. In addition to potential applications of these exciting insights, these studies may provide important clues to evolution and development of vertebrate animals. For instance, one might ask why mesenchymal stem cells condense at all? There is a putative advantage to self-assembly and cooperation, but this advantage is somewhat outweighed by the need for infrastructural complexity (e.g., circulatory systems comprised of specific differentiated cell types which in turn form conduits and pumps to overcome limitations of mass transport via diffusion, for example; dif-fusion is untenable for multicellular organisms larger than 250 microns in diameter. A better question might be: Why do cells build skeletal tissue? Once cooperatingcells in tissues begin to deplete local sources of food in their aquatic environment, those that have evolved a means to locomote likely have an evolutionary advantage. Once the environment becomes less aquarian and more terrestrial, self-assembled organisms with the ability to move on land might have conferred evolutionary ad-vantages as well. So did the cytoskeleton evolve several length scales, enabling the emergence of skeletal architecture for vertebrate animals? Did the evolutionary advantage of motility over noncompliant terrestrial substrates (walking on land) favor adaptations including emergence of intracellular architecture (changes in the cytoskeleton and upregulation of structural protein manufacture), inter-cellular con- densation, mineralization of tissues, and emergence of higher order architectures?How far does evolutionary Darwinism extend and how can we exploit this knowl- edge to engineer smart materials and architectures on Earth and new, exploratory environments?[Knothe Tate et al. 2008]. We are limited only by our ability to imagine. Ultimately, we aim to understand nature, mimic nature, guide nature and/or exploit nature’s engineering paradigms without engineer-ing ourselves out of existence.

Stories of cross-dressing and the body : family memories in fiction

Ruth Finnegan (2006, 179) describes how family myths have the power to provoke images that recur throughout generations. This paper will document my own encounter with such persistent images in the stories of a mother and daughter. Both mother and daughter told stories about encountering cross-dressing men in the streets of Brisbane, and both showed similar anxiety over their own body size. As a creative writer working with oral histories, I found these stories of the disguised body compelling. By drawing on the storytelling strategies and preoccupations present in the interview, I used imagination and fictional techniques to investigate the possibility of symbolic resonance of memories across generations. In her novel Beloved, Toni Morrison (1987) uses the notion of ‘rememory’ to describe how characters actively make and suppress meanings in their recollections. Like Morrison, my writing speaks to notions around the way stories are remembered and told.

Fashion, the body and technology : tracing early 20th century techno-utopian ideas, aesthetics and impulses in 21st century wearable technology

‘Wearable technology’, or the use of specialist technology in garments, is promoted by the electronics industry as the next frontier of fashion. However the story of wearable technology’s relationship with fashion begins neither with the development of miniaturised computers in the 1970s nor with sophisticated ‘smart textiles’ of the twenty-first century, despite what much of the rhetoric suggests. This study examines wearable technology against a longer history of fashion, highlighted by the influential techno-sartorial experiments of a group of early twentieth century avant-gardes including Italian Futurists Giacomo Balla and F.T. Marinetti, Russian Constructivists Varvara Stepanova and Liubov Popova, and Paris-based Cubist, Sonia Delaunay. Through the interdisciplinary framework of fashion studies, the thesis provides a fuller picture of wearable technology framed by the idea of utopia. Using comparative analysis, and applying the theoretical formulations of Fredric Jameson, Louis Marin and Michael Carter, the thesis traces the appearance of three techno-utopian themes from their origins in the machine age experiments of Balla, Marinetti, Stepanova, Popova and Delaunay to their twenty-first century reappearance in a dozen wearable technology projects. By exploring the central thesis that contemporary wearable technology resurrects the techno-utopian ideas and expressions of the early twentieth century, the study concludes that the abiding utopian impetus to embed technology in the aesthetics (prints, silhouettes, and fabrication) and functionality of fashion is to unify subject, society and environment under a totalising technological order.

Effect of cold water immersion after exercise in the heat on muscle function, body temperatures, and vessel diameter

Cold water immersion (CWI) is a popular recovery modality, but actual physiological responses to CWI after exercise in the heat have not been well documented. The purpose of this study was to examine effects of 20-min CWI (14 degrees C) on neuromuscular function, rectal (T(re)) and skin temperature (T(sk)), and femoral venous diameter after exercise in the heat. Ten well-trained male cyclists completed two bouts of exercise consisting of 90-min cycling at a constant power output (216+/-12W) followed by a 16.1km time trial (TT) in the heat (32 degrees C). Twenty-five minutes post-TT, participants were assigned to either CWI or control (CON) recovery conditions in a counterbalanced order. T(re) and T(sk) were recorded continuously, and maximal voluntary isometric contraction torque of the knee extensors (MVIC), MVIC with superimposed electrical stimulation (SMVIC), and femoral venous diameters were measured prior to exercise, 0, 45, and 90min post-TT. T(re) was significantly lower in CWI beginning 50min post-TT compared with CON, and T(sk) was significantly lower in CWI beginning 25min post-TT compared with CON. Decreases in MVIC, and SMVIC torque after the TT were significantly greater for CWI compared with CON; differences persisted 90min post-TT. Femoral vein diameter was approximately 9% smaller for CWI compared with CON at 45min post-TT. These results suggest that CWI decreases T(re), but has a negative effect on neuromuscular function.

Understanding body image disturbance in the promotion of mental health : a discourse analytic study

Health care interventions in the area of body image disturbance and eating disorders largely involve individual treatment approaches, while prevention and health promotion are relatively underexplored. A review of health promotion activities in the area of body image in Australia revealed three programmes, the most extensive and longest standing having been established in 1992. The aims of this programme are to reduce body image dissatisfaction and inappropriate eating behaviour, especially among women. Because health promotion is concerned with the social aspects of health, it was hypothesized by the authors that a social understanding of body image and eating disorders might be advanced in a health promotion setting and reflected in the approach to practice. In order to examine approaches to body image in health promotion, 10 health professionals responsible for the design and management of this programme participated in a series of semi-structured interviews between 1997 and 2000. Three discursive themes were evident in health workers' explanations of body image problems: (1) cognitive-behavioural themes; (2) gender themes; and (3) socio-cultural themes. While body image problems were constructed as psychological problems that are particularly experienced by women, their origins were largely conceived to be socio-cultural. The implications of these constructions are critically discussed in terms of the approach to health promotion used in this programme.

The ancient gene C12orf29 : an exploration of its role in the chordate body plan

The sheep (Ovis aries) is commonly used as a large animal model in skeletal research. Although the sheep genome has been sequenced there are still only a limited number of annotated mRNA sequences in public databases. A complementary DNA (cDNA) library was constructed to provide a generic resource for further exploration of genes that are actively expressed in bone cells in sheep. It was anticipated that the cDNA library would provide molecular tools for further research into the process of fracture repair and bone homeostasis, and add to the existing body of knowledge. One of the hallmarks of cDNA libraries has been the identification of novel genes and in this library the full open reading frame of the gene C12orf29 was cloned and characterised. This gene codes for a protein of unknown function with a molecular weight of 37 kDa. A literature search showed that no previous studies had been conducted into the biological role of C12orf29, except for some bioinformatics studies that suggested a possible link with cancer. Phylogenetic analyses revealed that C12orf29 had an ancient pedigree with a homologous gene found in some bacterial taxa. This implied that the gene was present in the last common eukaryotic ancestor, thought to have existed more than 2 billion years ago. This notion was further supported by the fact that the gene is found in taxa belonging to the two major eukaryotic branches, bikonts and unikonts. In the bikont supergroup a C12orf29-like gene was found in the single celled protist Naegleria gruberi, whereas in the unikont supergroup, encompassing the metazoa, the gene is universal to all chordate and, therefore, vertebrate species. It appears to have been lost to the majority of cnidaria and protostomes taxa; however, C12orf29-like genes have been found in the cnidarian freshwater hydra and the protostome Pacific oyster. The experimental data indicate that C12orf29 has a structural role in skeletal development and tissue homeostasis, whereas in silico analysis of the human C12orf29 promoter region suggests that its expression is potentially under the control of the NOTCH, WNT and TGF- developmental pathways, as well SOX9 and BAPX1; pathways that are all heavily involved in skeletogenesis. Taken together, this investigation provides strong evidence that C12orf29 has a very important role in the chordate body plan, in early skeletal development, cartilage homeostasis, and also a possible link with spina bifida in humans.

SHOX gene is expressed in vertebral body growth plates in idiopathic and congenital scoliosis : implications for the etiology of scoliosis in Turner Syndrome

Reduced SHOX gene expression has been demonstrated to be associated with all skeletal abnormalities in Turner syndrome, other than scoliosis (and kyphosis). There is evidence to suggest that Turner syndrome scoliosis is clinically and radiologically similar to idiopathic scoliosis, although the phenotypes are dissimilar. This pilot gene expression study used relative quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) of the SHOX (short stature on X) gene to determine whether it is expressed in vertebral body growth plates in idiopathic and congenital scoliosis. After vertebral growth plate dissection, tissue was examined histologically and RNA was extracted and its integrity was assessed using a Bio-Spec Mini, NanoDrop ND-1000 spectrophotometer and standard denaturing gel electrophoresis. Following cDNA synthesis, gene-specific optimization in a Corbett RotorGene 6000 real-time cycler was followed by qRT-PCR of vertebral tissue. Histological examination of vertebral samples confirmed that only growth plate was analyzed for gene expression. Cycling and melt curves were resolved in triplicate for all samples. SHOX abundance was demonstrated in congenital and idiopathic scoliosis vertebral body growth plates. SHOX expression was 11-fold greater in idiopathic compared to congenital (n = 3) scoliosis (p = 0.027). This study confirmed that SHOX was expressed in vertebral body growth plates, which implies that its expression may also be associated with the scoliosis (and kyphosis) of Turner syndrome. SHOX expression is reduced in Turner syndrome (short stature). In this study, increased SHOX expression was demonstrated in idiopathic scoliosis (tall stature) and congenital scoliosis.

Investigating the association between sun exposure and folate degradation in the human body

This thesis is the first study to investigate the associations between sun exposure and folate degradation in a group of childbearing age women in a high UV environment. It examined whether the degree of sun exposure experienced by women influenced blood folate levels following a period of folic acid supplementation and found a strong significant relationship between increased sun exposure and folate degradation. This relationship has strong implications for public health and the thesis has provided a foundation for further research in this area.

The body in grief : death investigations, objections to autopsy, and the religious and cultural 'other'

Sudden, violent and otherwise unexplained deaths are investigated in most western jurisdictions through a Coronial or medico-legal process. A crucial element of such an investigation is the legislative requirement to remove the body for autopsy and other medical interventions, processes which can disrupt traditional religious and cultural grieving practices. While recent legislative changes in an increasing number of jurisdictions allow families to raise objections based on religious and cultural grounds, such concerns can be over-ruled, often exacerbating the trauma and grief of families. Based on funded research which interviews a range of Coronial staff in one Australian jurisdiction, this paper explores the disjuncture between medico-legal discourses, which position the body as corpse, and the rise of more ‘therapeutic’ discourses which recognise the family’s wishes to reposition the body as beloved and lamented.

Segmental bioelectrical impedance in the assessment of body composition of Sri Lankan children

Abstract: Over the years bioelectrical impedance assay (BIA) has gained popularity in the assessment of body composition. However, equations for the prediction of whole body composition use whole body BIA. This study attempts to evaluate the usefulness of segmental BIA in the assessment of whole body composition. A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted at the Professorial Paediatric Unit of Lady Ridgeway Hospital, Colombo, involving 259 (M/F:144/115) 5 to 15 year old healthy children. The height, weight, total and segmental BIA were measured and impedance indices and specific resistivity for the whole body and segments were calculated. Segmental BIA indices showed a significant association with whole body composition measures assessed by total body water (TBW) using the isotope dilution method (D2O). Impedance index was better related to TBW and fat free mass (FFM), while specific resistivity was better related to the fat mass of the body. Regression equations with different combinations of variables showed high predictability of whole body composition. Results of this study showed that segmental BIA can be used as an alternative approach to predict the whole body composition in Sri Lankan children.

A Chlamydia trachomatis strain with a chemically generated amino acid substitution (P370L) in the cthtrA gene shows reduced elementary body production

Background Chlamydia (C.) trachomatis is the most prevalent bacterial sexually transmitted infection worldwide and the leading cause of preventable blindness. Genetic approaches to investigate C. trachomatis have been only recently developed due to the organism’s intracellular developmental cycle. HtrA is a critical stress response serine protease and chaperone for many bacteria and in C. trachomatis has been previously shown to be important for heat stress and the replicative phase of development using a chemical inhibitor of the CtHtrA activity. In this study, chemically-induced SNVs in the cthtrA gene that resulted in amino acid substitutions (A240V, G475E, and P370L) were identified and characterized. Methods SNVs were initially biochemically characterized in vitro using recombinant protein techniques to confirm a functional impact on proteolysis. The C. trachomatis strains containing the SNVs with marked reductions in proteolysis were investigated in cell culture to identify phenotypes that could be linked to CtHtrA function. Results The strain harboring the SNV with the most marked impact on proteolysis (cthtrAP370L) was detected to have a significant reduction in the production of infectious elementary bodies. Conclusions This provides genetic evidence that CtHtrA is critical for the C. trachomatis developmental cycle.