128 research outputs found
Incorporating Gender in Research on Indigenous Environmental Knowledge in the Tunari National Park in the Bolivian Andes
No full textGender-based analysis of vulnerability to drought among agro-pastoral households in semi-arid Makueni district, Kenya
No full text«I am the head of the household now». The impacts of outmigration for labour on gender hierarchies in Nepal
No full textExploring the meaning of money: A study of the impact of microfinance in Koppal district of India
No full textThe proliferation of microfinance worldwide has been due to its claimed impacts on poverty reduction and women's empowerment. Conversely, it has been criticised for furthering the neoliberal policies of external agencies by using poor women’s entrepreneurship and mutual trust as a joint liability mechanism to reduce the costs and risks for the capital provider. Set against this, Indian microfinance exhibits a wide spectrum of delivery models, from subsidized to unsubsidized and commercial credit. Microfinance impact literature considers its impact to be neutral to the process of delivery and therefore contains few cross model comparisons. It privileges the dominant policy model of primarily positive impacts, and has overlooked rather than examined differing worldviews. This research questions external perspectives and explores actor perspectives. This research is located in a semi-arid livelihoods context, i.e. the Koppal district in Karnataka State, India. It takes a critical and interpretive approach and adopts a longitudinal case study methodology to examine use of money from women's own perspectives. The field work shows that loan demand is context dependent and low in a semi-arid region with uncertain and risky investment opportunities. Microfinance provided by informal sources was used for survival and social needs. Three models of formal microfinance delivery emerged, of which two relegated the poor to the margins but the SHG-Bank linkage model combined poverty focus and market orientation to offer a stable borrower lender relationship. The field research also considered the social learning process that takes place among Self Help Groups (SHGs) in the utilisation and repayment of microfinance. The women differentiate money delivered in different ways, and social relationships determined financial relationships. This research reveals multiple meanings of money, recognises new opportunities and vulnerabilities created by formation of SHGs, and highlights that microfinance models which provide women access and control over money enhanced their decision making ability and so were the most empowering
Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) Produced by Human Umbilical Tissue-derived Cells (hUTC) Is Required for its Effect on Hippocampal Dendritic Differentiation
No full textThe potential for non-embryonic cells to promote differentiation of neuronal cells has therapeutic implications for regeneration of neurons damaged by stroke or injury and avoids many ethical and safety concerns. We assessed the capacity of human umbilical tissue-derived cells (hUTC) and human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSC) to enhance differentiation of rodent hippocampal neurons. Coculture of hippocampal cells with hUTC or hMSC in transwell inserts for 3 days resulted in increase of several dendritic parameters including the number and length of primary dendrites. The effect of hUTC or hMSC on dendritic maturation was only apparent on neurons grown for two weeks in vitro prior to co-culture. Changes in dendritic morphology in the presence of hUTC were also accompanied by increased expression of the presynaptic marker synaptotagmin and the postsynaptic marker postsynaptic density protein 95kD (PSD95) suggesting that there may also be an increase in the number of synapses formed in the presence of hUTC. The effect of hUTC and hMSC on hippocampal cells in co-culture was comparable to those induced by treatment with recombinant human BDNF (rhBDNF) implying that a similar factor may be released from hUTC or hMSC. Analysis of hUTC conditioned medium by ELISA demonstrated that BDNF was indeed secreted. An antibody that blocks the actions of BDNF partially inhibited the actions of hUTC on dendritic morphology suggesting that BDNF is at least one of the factors secreted from the cells to promote dendritic maturation. These results indicate that hUTC secrete biologically active BDNF which can affect dendritic morphology.Peer reviewe
Early presynaptic and late postsynaptic components contribute independently to Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor-induced synaptic plasticity
No full textTrophin-induced synaptic plasticity consists of both presynaptic and postsynaptic processes. The potential interdependence of these mechanisms and their temporal relationships are undefined. The synaptic vesicle protein Rab3A is required for the early, initial 10 min phase, but not for the later phase of BDNF-enhanced transmission. We now examine the temporal distinction and mechanistic relationships between these phases of BDNF action. Rab3A mutant cells did not exhibit increased mEPSC frequency in response to BDNF in cell culture, indicating absence of the presynaptic component. In contrast, BDNF enhanced post-synaptic glutamate-induced current in the mutant neurons as in the wildtype, indicating that the postsynaptic component of the response was intact. Finally, the postsynaptic NMDA receptor subunit NR2B was phosphorylated at Tyr1472 by BDNF in Rab3A knockouts, as previously shown in wildtype. Our results are the first to demonstrate that presynaptic and postsynaptic components of BDNF-enhanced synaptic activity are independent and temporally distinct.Peer reviewe
Lateral Fluid Percussion: Model of Traumatic Brain Injury in Mice
No full textTraumatic brain injury (TBI) research has attained renewed momentum due to the increasing awareness of head injuries, which result in morbidity and mortality. Based on the nature of primary injury following TBI, complex and heterogeneous secondary consequences result, which are followed by regenerative processes 1,2. Primary injury can be induced by a direct contusion to the brain from skull fracture or from shearing and stretching of tissue causing displacement of brain due to movement 3,4. The resulting hematomas and lacerations cause a vascular response 3,5, and the morphological and functional damage of the white matter leads to diffuse axonal injury 6- 8. Additional secondary changes commonly seen in the brain are edema and increased intracranial pressure 9. Following TBI there are microscopic alterations in biochemical and physiological pathways involving the release of excitotoxic neurotransmitters, immune mediators and oxygen radicals 10-12, which ultimately result in long-term neurological disabilities 13,14. Thus choosing appropriate animal models of TBI that present similar cellular and molecular events in human and rodent TBI is critical for studying the mechanisms underlying injury and repair. Various experimental models of TBI have been developed to reproduce aspects of TBI observed in humans, among them three specific models are widely adapted for rodents: fluid percussion, cortical impact and weight drop/impact acceleration 1. The fluid percussion device produces an injury through a craniectomy by applying a brief fluid pressure pulse on to the intact dura. The pulse is created by a pendulum striking the piston of a reservoir of fluid. The percussion produces brief displacement and deformation of neural tissue 1,15. Conversely, cortical impact injury delivers mechanical energy to the intact dura via a rigid impactor under pneumatic pressure 16,17. The weight drop/impact model is characterized by the fall of a rod with a specific mass on the closed skull 18. Among the TBI models, LFP is the most established and commonly used model to evaluate mixed focal and diffuse brain injury 19. It is reproducible and is standardized to allow for the manipulation of injury parameters. LFP recapitulates injuries observed in humans, thus rendering it clinically relevant, and allows for exploration of novel therapeutics for clinical translation 20. We describe the detailed protocol to perform LFP procedure in mice. The injury inflicted is mild to moderate, with brain regions such as cortex, hippocampus and corpus callosum being most vulnerable. Hippocampal and motor learning tasks are explored following LFP.Peer reviewe
Book Review: Microfinance-Is it a means of Empowering Women?
No full textMultiple Meanings of Money: How Women See Microfinance by Smita Premchander, V. Prameela, M. Chidambaranathan, L. JeyaseelanSage publication, 2009, Pp 264, Rs. 595/-money, women, microfinance, India, poverty, empowerment, savings, SHGs, NGOs, Livelihood, Devadasis, RBI, RRBs, market, financial activity, banking sector, delivery, moneylenders, labour, households, agricultural, rural bank, business development
- …
