Desire, Resentment and Reprisal: Revisiting the Emotions of Myth in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby

This article aims to reassess F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic The Great Gatsby (1925), taking into consideration the myth-critical hypotheses of philosopher René Girard. Specifically, this essay will analyse the concepts of mimetic desire, resentment and reprisal violence as emotional components of myth, paying close attention to how the reinterpreted mythical pattern of the novel influences the depiction of such emotions as social traits of corruption. Finally, this article will challenge interpretations that have regarded Gatsby as a successful scapegoat-figure, examining instead how the mythical meanings and structures of the text stage an emotional crisis of frustrated desire and antagonism that ultimately offers no hope of communal restoration.

Comprehensive Inhibitor Profiling Of The Proteus Mirabilis Metalloprotease Virulence Factor Zapa (Mirabilysin)

In this study we report for the first time the comprehensive inhibitor profiling of the Proteus mirabilis metalloprotease virulence factor, ZapA (mirabilysin) using a 160 compound focused library of N-alpha mercaptoamide dipeptides, in order to map the S1´ and S2´ binding site preferences of this important enzyme. This study has revealed a preference for the aromatic residues tyrosine and tryptophan in P1´ and aliphatic residues in P2´. From this library, six compounds were identified which exhibited sub- to low micromolar Ki values. The most potent inactivator, SH-CO2-Y-V-NH2 was capable of preventing ZapA-mediated hydrolysis of heat denatured IgA, indicating these inhibitors may be capable of protecting host proteins against ZapA during colonisation and infection.