Lateinamerika in der globalen Zirkulation von Expertise über den Umgang mit historischem Unrecht. Das Beispiel der Wahrheitskommissionen

Since the 1980s, the ways societies grapple with past human rights violations have become another area that is increasingly exposed to specialized knowledge production. Together with the profound changes in the dealing with the legacies of illegal or illegitimate exercise of power over the last decades, the expertise in the field not only expanded dramatically, but also became more diversified. The transitions from military dictatorships to democracies in South America in the 1980’s marked the historical beginning of this new era of coming to terms with the past, conceptualized in the following decade paradigmatically in the field of “transitional justice”. The subcontinent remained a central site in the global production and circulation of this knowledge, not least in regard to the two major innovations in societies’ arsenal of means of dealing with the past and their increasing conventionalization: the internationalization and transnationalization of the criminal prosecution of gross human rights violations and the truth commissions. Focusing on the expertise about truth commissions, the article aims to reconstruct and to analyze the role of Latin American experiences and actors in the remarkable global career of a key instrument in confronting past atrocities

Parochialism or self-consciousness? Internationality in medical history journals 1997-2006

Research councils, universities and funding agencies are increasingly asking for tools to measure the quality of research in the humanities. One of their preferred methods is a ranking of journals according to their supposed level of internationality. Our quantitative survey of seventeen major journals of medical history reveals the futility of such an approach. Most journals have a strong national character with a dominance of native language, authors and topics. The most common case is a paper written by a local author in his own language on a national subject regarding the nineteenth or twentieth century. American and British journals are taken notice of internationally but they only rarely mention articles from other history of medicine journals. Continental European journals show a more international review of literature, but are in their turn not noticed globally. Increasing specialisation and fragmentation has changed the role of general medical history journals. They run the risk of losing their function as international platforms of discourse on general and theoretical issues and major trends in historiography, to international collections of papers. Journal editors should therefore force their authors to write a more international report, and authors should be encouraged to submit papers of international interest and from a more general, transnational and methodological point of view.

Diagnostic value of animal-side antibody assays for rapid detection of Mycobacterium bovis or Mycobacterium microti infection in South American camelids

Tuberculosis (TB) in South American camelids (SAC) is caused by Mycobacterium bovis or Mycobacterium microti. Two serological methods, rapid testing (RT) and the dual-path platform (DPP) assay, were evaluated using naturally infected SAC. The study population included 156 alpacas and 175 llamas in Great Britain, Switzerland, and the United States. TB due to M. bovis (n = 44) or M. microti (n = 8) in 35 alpacas and 17 llamas was diagnosed by gross pathology examination and culture. Control animals were from herds with no TB history. The RT and the DPP assay showed sensitivities of 71% and 74%, respectively, for alpacas, while the sensitivity for llamas was 77% for both assays. The specificity of the DPP assay (98%) was higher than that of RT (94%) for llamas; the specificities of the two assays were identical (98%) for alpacas. When the two antibody tests were combined, the parallel-testing interpretation (applied when either assay produced a positive result) enhanced the sensitivities of antibody detection to 89% for alpacas and 88% for llamas but at the cost of lower specificities (97% and 93%, respectively), whereas the serial-testing interpretation (applied when both assays produced a positive result) maximized the specificity to 100% for both SAC species, although the sensitivities were 57% for alpacas and 65% for llamas. Over 95% of the animals with evidence of TB failed to produce skin test reactions, thus confirming concerns about the validity of this method for testing SAC. The findings suggest that serological assays may offer a more accurate and practical alternative for antemortem detection of camelid TB.

Fructose overconsumption causes dyslipidemia and ectopic lipid deposition in healthy subjects with and without a family history of type 2 diabetes

BACKGROUND: Both nutritional and genetic factors are involved in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and insulin resistance. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to assess the effects of fructose, a potent stimulator of hepatic de novo lipogenesis, on intrahepatocellular lipids (IHCLs) and insulin sensitivity in healthy offspring of patients with type 2 diabetes (OffT2D)--a subgroup of individuals prone to metabolic disorders. DESIGN: Sixteen male OffT2D and 8 control subjects were studied in a crossover design after either a 7-d isocaloric diet or a hypercaloric high-fructose diet (3.5 g x kg FFM(-1) x d(-1), +35% energy intake). Hepatic and whole-body insulin sensitivity were assessed with a 2-step hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp (0.3 and 1.0 mU x kg(-1) x min(-1)), together with 6,6-[2H2]glucose. IHCLs and intramyocellular lipids (IMCLs) were measured by 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy. RESULTS: The OffT2D group had significantly (P < 0.05) higher IHCLs (+94%), total triacylglycerols (+35%), and lower whole-body insulin sensitivity (-27%) than did the control group. The high-fructose diet significantly increased IHCLs (control: +76%; OffT2D: +79%), IMCLs (control: +47%; OffT2D: +24%), VLDL-triacylglycerols (control: +51%; OffT2D: +110%), and fasting hepatic glucose output (control: +4%; OffT2D: +5%). Furthermore, the effects of fructose on VLDL-triacylglycerols were higher in the OffT2D group (group x diet interaction: P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: A 7-d high-fructose diet increased ectopic lipid deposition in liver and muscle and fasting VLDL-triacylglycerols and decreased hepatic insulin sensitivity. Fructose-induced alterations in VLDL-triacylglycerols appeared to be of greater magnitude in the OffT2D group, which suggests that these individuals may be more prone to developing dyslipidemia when challenged by high fructose intakes. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00523562.

Tuberculosis caused by Mycobacterium microti in South American camelids

BACKGROUND: Infection with Mycobacterium microti can cause chronic disease in animals and threaten human health through its zoonotic potential. OBJECTIVE: To describe clinical findings, diagnostic investigations, necropsy, and epidemiology results in South American camelids (SAC) infected with M. microti, member of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex. ANIMALS: Eleven SAC with tuberculous lesions. METHODS: Description of 10 llamas and 1 alpaca, aged 4-18 years, from 6 herds with a history of wasting and weakness admitted to the Vetsuisse-Faculty of Berne over 8 years. RESULTS: Clinical signs included weight loss, recumbency, and anorexia in late stages of the disease. Respiratory problems were seen in 6 animals of 11. No consistent hematologic abnormalities were identified. Suspect animals were examined in detail by abdominal ultrasonography and thoracic radiology. Abnormal findings such as enlarged mediastinal, mesenteric, or hepatic lymph nodes were seen only in animals with advanced disease. Single comparative intradermal tuberculin test with bovine protein purified derivate (PPD) and avian PPD was negative in all animals. At necropsy, typical tuberculous lesions were found, and confirmed by bacteriological smear and culture, molecular methods, or both. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Infection caused by M. microti should be considered a differential diagnosis in chronic debilitating disease with or without respiratory signs in SAC. Antemortem confirmation of the diagnosis remains challenging at any stage of infection. Because cases of M. microti infection have been reported in immunocompromized human patients, the zoonotic potential of the organism should be kept in mind when dealing with this disease in SAC.