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Fasciola hepatica: the biological, biochemical and mechanical characterisation of a novel serpin, FhSrp-6
No full textFasciola hepatica, known as liver fluke, is a globally distributed parasitic helminth (worm) capable of infecting a wide range of mammal hosts, including humans. It is an economically important pathogen of livestock (particularly sheep and cattle), responsible for extensive losses of around 2.5 billion euro worldwide, and approximately 90 million euro to the Irish livestock industry annually. Drug resistant parasites, especially to the frontline flukicide triclabendazole, are emerging in all continents leaving farmers devoid of means to control the parasite on their farms. It is imperative that we develop new means of parasite control and, at the same time, move away from the use of environmentally damaging chemicals. Therefore, the future of parasite control depends on the development of efficacious vaccines.
Serine protease inhibitors (serpins) regulate proteolytic events within diverse biological processes, including digestion, coagulation, inflammation and immune responses. The presence of serpins in juvenile and mature F. hepatica excretory-secretory products indicates that the parasite uses these inhibitors to alter protease activity encountered during its development within the mammalian host. Interrogation of the F. hepatica genome identified a multi-gene serpin family of seven members that has expanded by gene duplication and divergence to create an array of inhibitors with distinct inhibitory profiles. Here, we investigated the molecular properties and functions of F. hepatica serpin-6 (FhSrp-6), which is expressed throughout the lifecycle of the parasite. The recombinant version of FhSrp-6 produced exhibited a unique inhibitory profile for serine proteases compared to other F. hepatica serpins, namely FhSrp-1 and FhSrp-2, previously characterised in our laboratory. This inhibitory profile revealed that rFhSrp-6 is potent against a range of proteases involved in digestion and the inflammatory immune response. Furthermore, we show that the unique inhibitory profile of this serpin was consistent with differences in amino acids presents in the reactive centre loop (RCL) of the inhibitor.
rFhSrp-6 efficiently inhibited chymotrypsin (Ki = 1.38 nM), chymase (Ki = 9.65 nM) and cathepsin G (Ki = 2.25 nM). The potency at which rFhSrp-6 inhibits the activity of these proteases suggests a high level of complexity of F. hepatica and its ability to expand the serpin family to allow it to survive within the definitive host. The vulnerability of the parasite shows why such potent inhibitors are needed to deter any harmful proteolytic effects of host proteases.
Future investigation is needed into this superfamily of serine protease inhibitors to understand the complexity of the host-parasite interaction. However, given the proposed importance of serpins in fluke biology and host-parasite interactions we suggest that this and other members of the serpin family are potential candidates at which new anti-fluke vaccines could be directed
Educating the romantic child in the novels and poetry of Anne Brontë
No full textThis PhD project is centred on Anne Brontë’s engagement with eighteenth- and nineteenth-century philosophical and aesthetic discourses relating to pedagogy and childhood in her novels and poetry. It comprises a written thesis alongside the production of a digital scholarly edition and accompanying website. Through a focus on Brontë’s interventions into discourses surrounding the Romantic child and their ideal education, this thesis illuminates Brontë’s vision of reshaping society through transforming approaches to the raising of children. I argue that this approach unites various key themes in her work, moving from questioning established modes of Romanticism in her poetry, to her critiques of pedagogical theories without parental support in Agnes Grey (1847), to her firm articulation for a new approach to education for both genders in The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848). This approach centres Brontë’s interrogation of key philosophical and political theorists and illuminates unexpected common ground between arrestingly realist fiction, lyric poetry and the affective potentiality of the figure of the Romantic child.
In Chapter One, this thesis explores Brontë’s often-neglected poetry. I contend that an increasingly complex and critical approach to childhood emerges in her later poems which is tinged with a bittersweet longing for the comfort provided by the nostalgic Romantic aesthetics of innocence invoked in her earlier work. Throughout Chapter Two, the thesis positions Agnes Grey as performing a sustained critique of Enlightenment and Romantic models and their influences, including the work of Bentham, Locke and Rousseau. In Chapter Three, I investigate Brontë’s deployment of Romantic aesthetics relating to childhood amid the otherwise faithfully realist tone as a vehicle for legitimising the radical critique of marriage law in Tenant. However, I argue that both novels still retain a particular and notable preference for deploying Romantic imagery when it comes to childhood, innocence and the mother-child relationship, complicating Brontë’s critiques surrounding the practical and gendered limitations of Rousseau’s approach in Agnes Grey and Tenant. A substantive element of this PhD project is the production of a digital scholarly edition of a selection of her poems that relate to childhood. Through a manuscript-centred focus on Brontë’s work the edition reveals additional facets of Brontë’s intellectual positioning within her poetry, illuminating crucial vexed internal dynamics surrounding themes of motherhood, nostalgia and Romanticism, informing and enhancing the thesis work.Moore Institute, University of Galwa
Effects of sward diversity and nitrogen application on agronomic and environmental responses of grasslands
No full textA significant portion of grassland production systems comprise of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) monoculture relying heavily on synthetic nitrogen (N) inputs. These N inputs drive the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from synthetic fertilizer manufacturing process until grass production stage, especially after application to soil, which drives the nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions, where N2O is a potent GHG having global warming potential of 273 times higher than carbon dioxide. However, sward composition plays a crucial role in regulating the nitrogen (N) cycling and associated emissions, making it an important factor in grassland management. Moreover, there is also a policy shift across globe towards renewable energy sources and anaerobic digestion (AD) is gaining importance for biogas/biomethane production. The solid effluent of AD process called digestate is an organic N source for grassland production. The effectiveness of digestate as fertilizer, however, is influcnec by the receiving sward composition, which affects both N use efficiency and emissions. As AD gains importance, it is predicted that grasslands will be a source of feedstock for AD as well as receiver of digestate. This will lead to increase in grass demand which will require to increase the yields of grasslands without increasing GHG emissions.
Recently, there has been increased use of grass-legume and multi-species swards, mainly due to benefits of diverse swards regarding drought resistance, lower N requirements, higher yields, and animal performance. Sward composition also influences N losses via N2O and NH3 emissions, as well as ruminal fermentaions process in ruminants. This PhD thesis addresses the knowledge gaps regarding potential of increasing grassland diversity to overcome the effects of decreasing N inputs, digestate effectiveness as fertilizer on diverse swards, N2O emissions, emissions intensities, ammonia (NH3) emissions after land-application of digestate to diverse swards. The first experimental chapter (chapter 2) assess the annual dry-matter yield, nitrogen yield, and carbon-nitrogen ratio of the biomass of systematically varied monocultures and mixtures using simplex experimental design. The first experimental chapter also assess the same for selected grassland communities fertilized with digestate and synthetic fertilizer at different N application rates. The second experimental chapter assess N2O emissions and emissions intensity for selected grassland communities fertilized with digestate and synthetic fertilizer in a two-year experiment. This allows for assessing the role of sward composition in affecting N2O emissions responses to different N sources. The third experimental chapter quantifies the NH3 emissions after land-application of digestate to either perennial ryegrass monoculture or a mixture of six grassland species at two different heights. This highlights how plant diversity influences NH3 volatilizaation following digestate application. And the last experimental chapter assess the in vitro fermentation responses and methane (CH4) production after in vitro incubation of individual forages in six-species mixture and six-species mixture itself. Given that plant functional groups differ in their nutrient composition, diet composition may also shape ruminal CH4 emissions.
Key findings of this thesis include a significant effect of increasing grassland diversity on yield and nitrogen yield as mixtures with lower N inputs outperformed perennial ryegrass monoculture at high N inputs. This suggests that sward composition can be manipulated to balance productivity with lower N inputs. The N2O emissions for digestate were significantly lower than synthetic fertilizer and mixtures had significantly lower emissions intensities compared to perennial ryegrass with high N inputs. These results reinforce the role of sward composition in mitigating emissions, with diverse swards reducing N2O emissions per unit of yield. There was a significant reduction in NH3 emissions after land-application of digestate to six-species mixture compared to perennial ryegrass monoculture. The in vitro incubation experiment showed a large variability in CH4 production and fermentation responses for different forages, showing the potential of constituent six-species forages in affecting CH4 production.
In conclusion, I show that mixing plant species is a more viable strategy of increasing yields of grassland production systems and reducing N inputs. Sward composition emerges as a key determinant of nitrogen cycling, influencing emissions of N2O and NH3, as well as the efficiency of digestate as a fertilizer. Moreover, my results show that digestate can be used as N source for grassland production systems. However, its effectiveness depends on the sward composition, which determines nitrogen retention and loss pathways. Overall, this thesis shows the role of increasing grassland species diversity in climate-smart grassland production system
Design, synthesis and evaluation of sialic acid-based mimetics as siglec-8 and galectin-8 inhibitors
No full textSiglecs are a family of sialic acid-binding immunoglobulin (Ig)-like lectins, which are single-pass transmembrane proteins found on the surface of human cells. Siglec-8, a human immune-inhibitory receptor, is expressed on eosinophils, basophils, and mast cells. When siglec-8 binds to antibodies or glycan ligands, it triggers apoptosis in eosinophils and inhibits the release of mediators from mast cells, without affecting their stability. Consequently, glycan ligands targeting siglec-8 hold potential
as inhibitors for treating eosinophil- and mast cell-related diseases, such as asthma, chronic rhinosinusitis, chronic urticaria, hypereosinophilic syndromes, as well as mast cell and eosinophil malignancies and eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders.In a previous study, mimetics of 6’-sulfo-sLex, a specific glycan ligand for siglec-8, were identified. Keeping neuraminic acid (sialic acid), while replacing the galactopyranose with a cyclohexyl derivative led to a higher affinity ligand with significantly reduced carbohydrate character. Here, I present design and synthesis of C9-naphthylsulfonamide sialyl triazoles where the sulfated galactose residue is replaced by a triazole ring carrying a carboxylate or sulfonate. The affinity of the best representative 36 with a KD of 45.5 µM (determined by ITC) has 6-fold improved affinity compared to the natural ligand 6’-sulfo-sialyl Lewisx. In addition, the C-5 acetamide was further modified to hydroxyl methyl acetamide, resulting in compound 56. Molecular dynamics simulation (100 ns) was performed predicting several key interactions: the hydroxyl group of hydroxymethyl acetamide forms hydrogen bonds with residues Lys132 and Tyr27 and the sulfonate group engages in salt-bridge interactions with Arg72 and hydrogen bonding with Gln75 and Tyr74 of Siglec-8. Also, O-glycoside based sialyl mimetics functionalized with triazole-linked carboxylates (compounds 66 and 67) were synthesized but found to be suboptimal for binding with siglec-8. These results provide new insights for the development of more potent siglec-8 inhibitors.
Galectins are carbohydrate-binding proteins that specifically bind with various β-galactosides. Galectin-8 plays a crucial role in regulating cancer growth, metastasis, tumour progression, and tumour cell survival. Notably, galectin expression is often higher in tumour tissues compared to non cancerous tissues. Galectin-8 also plays a role in defending against bacterial and viral infections, as well as in immune regulation. Galectin-8 contains two distinct carbohydrate recognition domains (CRDs, Gal8N and Gal8C), and selective inhibitors targeting at least one of these CRDs are valuable for both galectin-8 biology research and potential pharmacological applications.Gal-8N shows a preference for binding to 3’-sialyllactose with a KD of 2.3 µM, while its derivative, sialyl galactose, exhibits reduced affinity with a KD of 150 µM. Here, I have designed macrocyclic mimetics (M1-M6) based on disaccharides composed of sialic acid and galactose to constrain the flexible sialic acid-galactopyranose linkage by: i) connecting the anomeric position of the galactose moiety to the C9 position of the sialic acid moiety, and ii) connecting the C2 position of the galactose moiety to the C7 position of the sialic acid moiety. The successful synthesis of macrocycle M2 was achieved, leading to a substance exhibiting a KD of 40 μM, which represents a 4-fold improvement compared to NeuAcalpha(2-3)Galbeta1-OMe. Metadynamics studies revealed a single low-energy conformer for the macrocycles (M1, M2, M5, M6-β), which closely align with the binding conformation of the natural ligand, 3’-sialyllactose, as observed in its crystal structure complex with galectin-8N. These macrocycles provide new insights, as further functional group modifications could lead to more potent galectin-8N inhibitors
In vitro modelling of glial and fibrotic scar following spinal cord injury
No full textSpinal cord injury (SCI) is a condition that has caused disability worldwide. Following the injury, a scar composed of inner glial scar and outer fibrotic scar is formed. The glial scar is made of inhibitory extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules while the fibrotic one contains the ECM proteins, which both becomes upregulated in response to injury. The structure and composition of the ECM vary after the injury, inhibiting the regeneration. Hence, it is of pivotal importance to propose new model systems and protocols that allow the cells to produce ECM in vitro to assess therapeutic strategies for targeting inhibitory molecules. Exposing cells to an environment crowded with macromolecular crowders (MMC) is an effective strategy to mimic the physiological cellular milieu and develop an in vitro model of glial and fibrotic scar. A three-dimensional (3D) environment for scarring was generated using cells within a collagen hydrogel followed by adding a small molecule to both 2D and 3D in vitro models with the focus on suppressing the expression of inhibitory factors.
Chapter 3 aimed to evaluate the impact of different concentrations of MMCs, including dextran sulphate (DxS) and carrageenan (Ca), and Ficoll (FC) cocktail 70 kDa/FC 400 kDa, on Neu7 astrocyte and primary astrocyte cell morphology, metabolic activity, viability, and ECM molecules deposition. Furthermore, the expression of various ECM proteins of the glial and fibrotic scar as a function of MMCs concentration was explored. FC was adaptable to either Neu7 astrocytes or primary astrocytes, leading to enhanced expression of glial and fibrotic scar proteins.
Chapter 4 examined the effect of FC cocktail 70 kDa/FC 400 kDa on morphology, migration pattern, and ECM molecule deposition in Neu7 astrocytes, primary astrocytes, leptomeningeal (LPG) cells, and mixed glial cultures (MGC). FC had no negative impact on the morphology and migration pattern of Neu7 astrocytes, primary astrocytes, LPG cells, and MGC. In addition, FC increased the expression of glial scar markers in Neu7 astrocytes, primary astrocytes, and MGC, as well as the deposition of fibrotic scar markers in Neu7 astrocytes, primary astrocytes, LPG cells. Treating cells with FC was proposed as an effective strategy to create an in vitro model of glial and fibrotic scar formation without applying physical (scratch) or chemical injury (cytokine cocktail). Primary astrocytes were found to be more suitable for use in this in vitro model of SCI, as they not only accurately reflect the protein composition observed in actual SCI scars but also offer more stable growth over extended periods. Importantly, upregulation of MMPs and reduction in DRG neurite length suggests a dynamic interplay between ECM deposition and degradation.
Chapter 5 details the developed 3D in vitro model of glial and fibrotic scar using collagen hydrogel. Cell viability results revealed that primary astrocytes were alive in the collagen hydrogel. By adding FC to both collagen solution and culture media, expression of glial and fibrotic scar markers were enhanced. Additionally, TGFb1, known to induce astrocyte reactivity, was introduced into the culture media to see its effect on ECM molecules. TGFb1 and FC synergistically increased the expression of scar markers. These findings highlight the importance of both FC and TGFβ1 in modulating astrocyte behaviour and ECM production, offering a more accurate model to study glial scar formation and potential therapeutic strategies for SCI. The small molecule Sp-8-BnT-cAMPS (S220) was loaded into microparticles (MPs) with uniform morphology and was shown to release over 48 hours. Notably, the S220 released from the MPs reduced the expression of glial scar markers in primary astrocytes in both 2D and 3D in vitro models. S220 offers a targeted approach to modulate the inhibitory microenvironment of glial scars.
This novel MMC in vitro model of glial and fibrotic scar formation mimics the cellular and molecular changes that occur following SCI and provides a new direction for screening of therapeutic compounds to modulate the environment of the glial and fibrotic scar in spinal cord repair
Resisting extractivism in the Sperrins: Countermapping and making relatives for post-extractive futures
No full textAs the extractive frontier expands out into peripheralised parts of Europe, branded as critical for the green transition, communities are resisting. Research on resistance to this extractivism has ballooned in recent years. I build on feminist and decolonial scholarship which has conceptually widened extractivism from a physical removal of resources to be understood as a logic, worldview, a way of relating in the world rooted in coloniality and about relations of power. This thesis contributes to these debates around grassroots resistance to extractivism by asking in what ways are communities resisting extractive logics in the Sperrin Mountains? Here in County Tyrone, North of Ireland communities have been resisting gold mining for almost ten years.
There remains a large research gap in how communities resist extractivism in Ireland and particularly the North of Ireland. I use a mix of activist, creative and participatory methodologies to challenge academic extractivism. I detail how extractive logics are manifesting in the Sperrins as colonial constructions of place, embodied and emotional slow violence and through social engineering. I argue that in challenging these extractive logics, the resistance movement is “Making Relatives” and transforming relations with the human and more-than-human world. This is characterised in three ways, firstly through building relations within the campaign based on care and commoning, secondly, through relations with the more-than-human and thirdly by building relations with other translocal frontline communities. This is significant for understanding ways to challenge oppressive systems that underlie extractivism and work towards post-extractive futures. I contribute to debates around the ontological question of extractivism and how we build alternative life-worlds
Invisible Dublin: Working-class theatre and performance in times of economic crisis 2008-2024
No full textThis dissertation contributes new perspectives and understandings to the field of Irish theatre studies, performance studies, and historiography by addressing the representation of class in contemporary theatre and performance. Using theatre in Dublin as a case study, the project’s main argument is that the body of working-class performance produced from 2008-2024, represents a reaction against an inherited tradition in how the working-class has been represented historically, and within contemporary neoliberal forms of class-making.
To contextualise this argument, I firstly examine how the legacy of Seán O’Casey has permitted the circulation of dominant forms and tropes when the working class is represented on stage. Such hegemonic depictions can be seen as reinforcing the status quo by privileging cultural stereotypes that insulate and generalise people and their life experiences. However, this dissertation is mainly concerned with counter-hegemonic performances that challenge and/or resist the hegemonic order through processes of undermining, reforming, or replacing canonised standards in terms of form, representation, and story. Of particular interest is the work of Veronica Dyas, Fiona Whelan, Emmet Kirwan, and Pat Kinevane. Specific productions by Brokentalkers, THEATREclub and Multi-Story are also central to this research.
As such, the principle argument of this thesis is that (a) performances of working-class identity can affirm or resist dominant discourses of social class in Ireland, (b) such resistances can be seen as counter-cultural interventions, and (c) such interventions can be argued as particularly significant in the context of late capitalism where poor-blaming and shaming have become an inherent features of neoliberal ideology. The performances examined in this dissertation can be seen as making visible what I have termed “invisible Dublin”, a part of working-class Dublin identity that is often overlooked or ignored within dominant hegemonic portrayals.
Consequently, this thesis demonstrates how reading the performances and performativity of working-class Dublin identity makes visible the ways in which hegemonic representations and neoliberal forms of class-making can be contested. By reading class as a performance and a practice, rather than an inherent or innate part of identity, this study expands understandings of class and culture as a collective process, and challenges rigid understandings of Irish working-class identity
Role of UPR-regulated long non-coding RNAs in breast cancer progression and response to therapy
No full textBreast cancer accounted for about 23.8% of all new cancer cases in women and 11.6% of all new cancers globally, making it the world’s most prevalent cancer among women. Approximately 70% to 80% of breast cancers are classified as estrogen receptor -positive (ER+) breast cancer that relies on ER signalling. Endocrine therapies that aim to block or reduce the action of estrogen, which is the fire line for crucial for ER+ breast cancer patients, while up to 40% of patients develop resistance over time, leading to a big clinical challenge. This can occur via gain-of-function mutations in estrogen receptor α (ER), altered interactions of ER with coactivators/corepressors, or engagement of compensatory crosstalk between ER and growth factor receptors and unfolded protein response (UPR). UPR is a cellular stress response initiated at the endoplasmic reticulum (EnR) with three sensors: inositol requiring enzyme1α (IRE1α), activating transcription factor-6 (ATF6), and protein kinase RNA-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (PERK). The UPR aims to restore normal EnR function by halting protein translation, degrading misfolded proteins, and activating signalling pathways that lead to increased production of EnR-resident molecular chaperones. Estrogen signalling and UPR are two crucial pathways that interact in various cellular processes, particularly in the context of ER+ breast cancer. Additionally, in breast cancer, the crosstalk between ER and UPR components can contribute to resistance against anti-estrogen therapies and chemotherapeutics.
long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are important regulators of cellular processes. lncRNAs can coordinate UPR by modulating other cellular pathways, such as autophagy, apoptosis, and cell cycle regulation. Recent studies have highlighted the role of interaction between the UPR and the estrogen signalling pathway in contributing to endocrine resistance. I hypothesize that lncRNAs that modulate both the UPR and ER signalling may contribute to the development of endocrine resistance. However, not much is known about UPR-regulated lncRNAs and their effect on EnR stress responses and cancer development. Here, I have identified H19 and Linc01588 as two UPR-regulated lncRNAs and characterized their effect on ER signalling and breast cancer.
In the first chapter of results, a systematic bioinformatics approach to identify differential expression of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) regulated by the XBP1 was used. From this analysis, three candidate UPR-regulated ncRNAs—H19, MINCR, and LINC01588 were selected for further validation. Among them, H19 and LINC01588 were significantly downregulated upon EnR stress induction, supporting their potential role in UPR regulation. Then the expression profiles of LINC01588 and H19 across all cancer types and breast cancer subtypes showed a significantly elevated expression of LINC01588, while H19 showed a decreased expression in multiple human cancers. Additionally, the prognosis value of LINC01588 and H19 across different breast cancer subtypes showed that increased LINC01588 expression was associated with poor overall survival in ER+ and HER2+ breast cancer patients but not in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). High expression of H19 was associated with a higher hazard ratio in overall survival in TNBC patients. Further analysis revealed a strong link between LINC01588 and estrogen signalling pathways, suggesting its possible role in hormone-responsive tumour biology.
In the second chapter of results, we show that the expression of the lncRNA H19 is downregulated under conditions of EnR stress. In addition, we selected spiperone, which was the only compound found to downregulate H19 expression, from a group of UPR-inducing compounds including the FDA-approved drug bortezomib and the clinical trial drug fenretinide. H19 expression potentiated the activation of ATF6 and PERK pathways while attenuating the IRE1-XBP1 signalling during conditions of UPR. Furthermore, H19 overexpression was found to enhance cell viability and inhibit EnR stress-induced cell death. Our results suggest that lncRNA H19 constitutes a pivotal regulatory node in the UPR, where PERK-mediated repression of H19 governs cell fate decisions under EnR stress, underscoring its potential as a promising therapeutic target in breast cancer.
In the third and fourth chapters of results, we report increased Linc01588 expression in primary and metastatic breast cancer as compared with normal breast tissue. There are 5 isoforms of LINC01588 variant 4 (Linc01588 V4) and variant 5 (Linc01588 V5) were two predominantly expressed variants in breast cancer cell lines. The expression of Linc01588 V4 was markedly elevated in ER+ breast cancer cell lines upon E2-stimulation, while Linc01588 V5 was not. Tamoxifen treatment increased Linc01588 V4 expression in MCF7 cells but not in T47D cells. Knockdown of Linc01588 V4 in MCF7 and T47D cells reduced cell proliferation and migration but had no effect on the expression of ERα protein and induction of E2-responsive genes. Furthermore, Knockdown of Linc01588 V4 sensitized the cells to DNA-damage-induced apoptosis. Moreover, Linc01588 V4 expression was downregulated upon treatment with UPR inducers in ER+ breast cancer cell lines in a PERK-dependent manner. Linc01588 V4 expression enhanced the activation of ATF6 pathway while inhibiting the signalling via IRE1-XBP1 and PERK-ATF4 arm during conditions of UPR. Knockdown of Linc01588 V4 sensitized the cells to UPR-induced apoptosis.
Our results provide new insights into potential treatment strategies to overcome endocrine resistance in ER+ breast cancer patients by targeting the lncRNAs that play key roles in endocrine resistance and UPR signalling
Expanding the boundaries of national belonging: The institutional and discursive politics of nationalisation of the Polish National Democrats before 1926
No full textThis thesis analyses the process of nationalisation by looking at discourses and institutions created by civil society. It shows that nationalisation is a conflictual and multi-vectorial process in which competing centres of influence simultaneously operate.This dissertation analyses the ideology and discourse of National Democracy. It reveals how, through discourse and institutions, National Democracy carried out a large-scale process of nationalisation aimed particularly at rural communities, the largest social group in Poland at the beginning of the twentieth century. It focuses on the ethnically mixed territory of Galicia before and immediately after the establishment of the independent Polish state in 1918.
The National Democrats emerged in Poland as a political movement at the end of the nineteenth century, and their ideological understanding of what the Polish nation is and who belongs to it have been an essential part of Polish political discourse ever since. Using a few ideological axioms, they set themselves the task of changing the understanding of the term “Polishness” – hitherto associated by the broad masses of society with the class exclusivism of the nobility – to encompass the peasantry who formed the vast majority of the Polish population.
Using Schmittian distinctions between 'enemy' and 'friend' (Schmitt, 2010), this work analyses the nationalisation process of the social groups co-opted into the forming Polish nation by focusing on how the representatives of the National Democracy articulated the question of the nation's place in time and space, its ethics, interests and structure. This work outlines the fundamental theoretical assumptions of National Democracy, as defined by its founders, including egoism, Darwinism, and realism in international relations, and the subsequent political and discursive practices applied within the newly formed democratic Polish state.
Drawing on and developing the concept of the grounding of nationalism proposed by Sinisa Malesevic (2019). This work analyses the role of non-state and supra-state elements in grounding Polish nationalism, specifically non-governmental organisations, newspapers, and opinion journalism, i.e., civil society. By utilising the concept of nationalisation (Hutchinson, 2006) parallel to the concept of grounding, this dissertation provides evidence of the processual and fluid nature of nationalism. Adapting to their political and social environment’s circumstances, nationalists co-opt various elements of political traditions, histories, identities, and interests that increase their pragmatic utility in consolidating their influence. This thesis assesses the practical manifestation of the multi-vectorial process of nationalisation of society, particularly outside the state's activities.
This dissertation critically examines in a historical context the National Democratic newspaper, the Wieniec-Pszczółka. It demonstrates how, in practice, nationalists sought to shape the opinions of the electorate in accordance with the fundamental principles of their political ideology. Wieniec-Pszczółka was a newspaper mainly for the Galician peasants. It was founded in 1875 on the initiative of Stanisław Stojałowski and was one of the first and most widely read peasant newspapers. Taken over by the National Democrats in 1912, it became a powerful tool of influence, simultaneously lending credibility to the mainly urban Endek movement among the peasantry. Using political propaganda, a benevolent interpretation of history, a nationalist-centred concept of education or patriotic art, they sought to shape the worldview of their readers based on the evolving dogmas of modern nationalism.
This dissertation also situates that period, the newspaper, and the entire movement within the historical context of the intellectual, social, and political longue durée of Polish nationalism's development. It compares Wieniec-Pszczółka with other similar newspapers and with a host of other primary and secondary sources, including political memoirs and pamphlets.
Carl Schmitt's proposed understanding of the political as the antagonism between friends and enemies enables a deeper understanding of the scheme by which the National Democrats disseminated their ideology and how the basic assumptions of their ideology aligned with the political character of nationalisation.
Focusing on the Polish provinces of former Austro-Hungarian Galicia, where the National Democrats' political message reached their audience through a network of newspapers and social organisations, this work offers new insights into the amalgamative nature of National Democrats' nationalist ideology and how and why conservative and Catholic populism permeated modern Polish nationalism
The jurisprudential development of the prohibition of collective expulsion of aliens under Article 4 of Protocol No. 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights
No full textThis article-based PhD is made up of six journal articles. At the time of submitting, three of them are published, two are forthcoming, and one is under review. Each of them addresses the prohibition of collective expulsion of aliens under Article 4 of Protocol No. 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) from a different angle, analysing in depth the intriguing evolution of the interpretation of this provision from its origins to date