Georges Bataille, Michel Leiris e a experiência do sagrado no entreguerras

O presente artigo tem como objetivo elucidar os usos e sentidos da noção de sagrado nas formulações teóricas e nas trajetórias intelectuais de Georges Bataille (1897-1962) e Michel Leiris (1901-1990) na Paris dos anos 1930. Em meio às diversas experiências estético-políticas da época, que questionavam as possíveis formas da ação política tendo em vista sua ligação com a arte, destaca-se a proposta do Collège de Sociologie (1937-1939), associação animada pelos autores junto a Roger Caillois (1913-1978). O grupo toma o sagrado em dupla articulação: ao mesmo tempo que conceito descritivo, ele passa a ser entendido também como um operador político. Tal ideia é o ponto de partida para as reflexões conjugadas e ao mesmo tempo originais de Bataille e Leiris.

WALTER BENJAMIN Y GEORGES SOREL: ENTRE EL MITO DE LA HUELGA GENERAL Y UNA POLÍTICA DE MEDIOS PUROS

En su ensayo Para una crítica de la violencia, Walter Benjamin reivindica el fenómeno social de la huelga general revolucionaria teorizada por Georges Sorel en su obra Reflexiones sobre la violencia, como una figura ejemplar de lo que sería un “medio puro de la política”, al margen de cualquier forma legitimada de poder. En este marco, pocos comentadores contemporáneos advierten una discordancia conceptual entre ambos filósofos: para Sorel, la huelga revolucionaria es un mito social, mientras que el mito, categoría esencialmente negativa en Benjamin, describe la violencia que aprisiona la vida y que se traduce en una forma de poder político superior. En este artículo quisiéramos demostrar esta discordancia conceptual para examinar en seguida cómo ha sido comentada por otros pensadores contemporáneos. La filosofía de la historia, la posibilidad de una acción política ética y la temporalidad mesiánica aparecen en el horizonte teórico que emparenta a estos filósofos y por el cual podría descifrarse su impasse conceptual. Esto se confirma si se despliega la idea de un “medio puro de la política”, pista que Benjamin ofrece sin profundizar y sobre la cual reenvía al pensamiento de un filósofo poco explorado, Erich Unger. En la última parte de este artículo desarrollaremos las claves dadas por Unger, que entran justamente en sintonía con la mención de la huelga general como medio puro de la política.

Etiological drug treatment of human infection by Trypanosoma cruzi

Forty-nine American Trypanosomiasis (Chagas' disease) patients, with xenodiagnosis proven parasitemia were treated by the authors. Forty-one of these patients were given benznidazole, at dosages ranging from 5mg/kg/day to 8mg/kg/day, during a pre-established period of 60 days. In this group, 17 patients had an undetermined form of the disease, whereas 22 had cardiologic disease and 4 had digestive disease (two patients had a mixed form of the disease). Side effects were frequent, and led to the discontinuation of treatment in 17 patients. The follow-up period ranged from 1 to 20 years (mean follow-up period of 6 yrs. 7 mo). 26 (63.4%) of the patients became parasitemia-negative. The other eight patients were treated with nifurtimox, during 120 days, following a variable dose regime of 5mg/kg/day (initial dose) to 17 mg/kg/day (final dose). Six of them had severe side effects, and only one patient remained parasitemia-negative throughout the observation period (ranging from 1 to 18 years). Benznidazole proved to be better tolerated and more effective in the management of parasitemia when compared to nifurtimox, although more effective and less toxic drugs are still desirable.

YELLOW FEVER PREVENTION STRATEGIES AWARENESS AMONG HIV-INFECTED PATIENTS IN SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL

Introduction: Vaccination is the main preventive strategy against Yellow Fever (YF), which is a public health concern in Brazil. However, HIV-infected patients might have insufficient knowledge regarding YF, YF prevention, and vaccines in general. Methods: In this questionnaire-based study, data from 158 HIV-infected individuals were addressed in three distinct outpatient clinics in São Paulo. Information was collected on demographic and clinical characteristics, as well as patients' knowledge of vaccines, YF and YF preventive strategies. In addition, individual YF vaccine recommendations and vaccine status were investigated. Results: Although most participants adequately ascertain the vaccine as the main prevention strategy against YF, few participants were aware of the severity and lack of specific treatment for YF. Discrepancy in YF vaccine (patients who should have taken the vaccine, but did not) was observed in 18.8% of participants. Conclusion: YF is an important and preventable public health concern, and these results demonstrate that more information is necessary for the HIV-infected population.

The pineal neurohormone melatonin and its physiologic opiatergic immunoregulatory role

The pineal gland functions as a neuroendocrine transducer that coordinate the organism response to changing environmental stimuli such as light and temperature. The main and best known pineal neurohormone is melatonin that is synthesized and released in a circadian fashion with a peak during the night darkness hours. We have recently reported that melatonin exerts important immuno regulatory functions. Here we describe the astonishing property of exogenous melatonin which is able to counteract completely the depressive effect of anxiety-restraint stress and/or of corticosterone on thymus weight, andibody production and antiviral responses. This effect seems to be mediated by antigen-activated T cells via an opiatergic mechanism.

First characterization of Candida albicans by random amplified polymorphic DNA method in Nicaragua and comparison of the diagnosis methods for vaginal candidiasis in Nicaraguan women

A total of 106 women with vaginitis in Nicaragua were studied. The positive rate for the identification of Candida species was 41% (44 positive cultures out of 106 women with vaginitis). The sensitivity of microscopic examination of wet mount with the potassium hydroxide (KOH) was 61% and 70% with Gram's stain when using the culture of vaginal fluid as gold standard for diagnosis of candidiasis. Among the 44 positives cultures, isolated species of yeast from vaginal swabs were C. albicans (59%), C. tropicalis (23%), C. glabrata (14%) and C. krusei (4%). This study reports the first characterization of 26 C. albicans stocks from Nicaragua by the random amplified polymorphic DNA method. The genetic analysis in this small C. albicans population showed the existence of linkage disequilibrium, which is consistent with the hypothesis that C. albicans undergoes a clonal propagation.