1,065 research outputs found
May I quote you on that?: a guide to grammar and usage
No full textWe all use language in different ways, depending on the situations we find ourselves in. In formal contexts we are usually expected to use a formal level of Standard English-the English codified in grammars, usage guides, and dictionaries. In May I Quote You on That? Stephen Spector offers a new approach to learning Standard English grammar and usage. The product of Spector's forty years of teaching courses on the English language, this book makes the conventions of formal writing and speech easier and more enjoyable to learn than traditional approaches usually do. Each lesson begins with hum
Acts of Devotion: Loving God with Body and Soul in The Cloud of Unknowing and The Book of Margery Kempe
No full text42 pg.The thesis examines the relationship between the active and contemplative life in the medieval English texts The Cloud of Unknowing and The Book of Margery Kempe. The similarities and differences between the views of the Cloud's author and Margery Kempe on the interplay between the active and contemplative life is discussed. I use their positions to support my theory that the mixed life, which involves aspects of both the contemplative and active life, permits an individual to serve God with both body and spirit. The diverse actions a person performs physically and spiritually will validate the multitude of paths that may be pursued in forming a relationship with God. The texts will be used to demonstrate that man must integrate both the physical and spiritual to unite with God in spiritual marriage. I will establish that Margery Kempe's call to serve all of humanity in the active life is the fruit of her commitment to contemplative prayer. The proof of a holy active life being rooted in prayer will be further established by the Cloud author's praise for the physicality involved in contemplation.Advisor(s): Spector, Stephen . Committee Member(s): ;Stony Brook University Libraries. SBU Graduate School in Department of English. Charles Taber (Dean of Graduate School)
Creating the Christian Anglo-Saxon and the Other in the Old English Judith and Beowulf
No full text39 pg.This thesis explores the thematic relationship between the Old English poem Judith and the Old English epic Beowulf. I focus on seven narrative similarities between the two texts that are used to distinguish between the heroes, Judith and Beowulf, and their enemies, Holofernes, Grendel, and Grendel's mother. In doing so, I claim that this Beowulf-Judith parallel exists because they define what the Christian Anglo-Saxon is versus what it is not despite the fact that both poems based on stories that are not Christian or Anglo-Saxon in origin. The seven similarities create a Christian Anglo-Saxon us versus them dichotomy as a way to identity the Christian Anglo-Saxon as a distinct identity and culture.Advisor(s): Martinez-Pizarro, Joaquin ; Spector, Stephen. Committee Member(s):Stony Brook University Libraries. SBU Graduate School in Department of English. Charles Taber (Dean of Graduate School)
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Trehalose, an mTOR-independent Inducer of Autophagy, Inhibits HIV Infection in Primary Human Macrophages
No full textABSTRACT OF THE THESISTrehalose, an mTOR-independent Inducer of Autophagy, Inhibits HIV Infection in Primary Human MacrophagesbySimson HonMaster of Science in BiologyUniversity of California, San Diego, 2017Professor Stephen Spector, ChairProfessor Li-Fan Lu, Co-ChairWhile tremendous progress has been made in terms of prevention, detection, and treatment of human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV), the agent that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), concerns remain as strains of HIV that are resistant to antiretroviral therapy (ART) have begun to emerge. In the face of this new threat, other methods must be considered in combination with medical treatment. Autophagy, a highly conserved pathway that enable cells to recycle cytoplasmic content to promote survival during periods of stress, has been receiving renewed attention for its role in neurodegenerative diseases and immune response to pathogen challenge. In fact, chemically induced autophagy has been shown to inhibit HIV replication in human primary macrophages. However, autophagy has been classically studied as a pathway regulated by the mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1), which recently, has been shown to have other modulatory effects beyond autophagy. As such, we determined if trehalose, small-molecule enhancer of rapamycin 28 (SMER28), and spermidine, which are compounds that have been shown to induce autophagy in an mTOR-independent fashion, are able to inhibit HIV replication in human primary macrophages. Here, I show that all three mTOR-independent inducers of autophagy have an inhibitory effect on HIV replication. Furthermore, I demonstrate that trehalose can induce autophagic flux in human primary macrophages. Yet, perhaps the most striking result was that trehalose downregulates CD4 and chemokine CC receptor 5 (CCR5) expression, both of which are key receptors for HIV entry. In support of this, I observed decreased HIV entry into human primary macrophages following trehalose treatment. Taken together, these results support further investigation into the beneficial effects that trehalose may have as part of standard HIV treatment
Research Designs
No full textAuthor Paul E. Spector provides a clear introduction to the principles of experimental and non-experimental design, including single group design, pre-test, post-test designs, and factorial designs. Spector also covers hierarchical designs, multivariate designs, the Solomon four group design, panel designs, and designs with concomitant variables
A study of the relationship between the general physical fitness of adolescents aged 15 – 19 years and their parents
No full textThe purpose of this study was to determine the degree of familial resemblance in general physical fitness between adolescents and their parents. Data was gathered from a sample of adolescent-parent pairs. Parents with children between the ages of 15-19 years of age were recruited by means of a poster campaign in the Abergele, Colwyn Bay and Llandudno postal areas of Conwy, North Wales. A sample of 32 adolescent-parent pairs was employed in this research. Participants completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and had anthropometric measures taken. The performance of adolescent-parent pairs was then measured for aerobic capacity, static strength, muscular endurance and flexibility. A correlational research design was employed for the project. The level of significance was set at p<0.01. All statistical calculations were performed using SPSS (Version 14.0 for Windows). Familial correlation models were fitted directly to the data under the assumption that the family data follow a multivariate normal distribution. The results indicated significant parent - offspring resemblance for weight (0.50), aerobic capacity (0.52), muscular endurance (0.48) and flexibility (0.60) and significant father/son resemblance for weight (0.29), height (0.46) and grip strength (0.39), together with mother/daughter resemblance for weight (0.33) and height (0.48). The results suggest that familial and perhaps genetic, factors are important in explaining the variance in general physical fitness
Critique [of Asians, Jews, and the Legacy of Midas by Alan Spector]
No full textThe author of Asians, Jews, and the Legacy of Midas presents a provocative comparative analysis of Asians and Jews. Spector utilizes both a cultural and economic basis for understanding the function of Asian stereotyping and applies his analysis to the Jewish situation. While the American context provides the locus of his research, he does present his argument in an international context. Spector illustrates how the categorization of Asians and Jews as the model for economic success is dehumanizing as such a perception drain(s) the life out of human beings and concretizes them into non-human statues. The conclusion of this author\u27s work in dealing with oppression based in stereotype is actually a starting point which scholars should begin addressing. To be sure, the model minority, as applied to Asians and Jews, has generated numerous articles and papers, and yet scholars have failed to develop analyses which reflect an interdisciplinary and historical approach to the reasons for propagating such stereotypes
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Tat-Vpu Peptide Inducing a Shock Effect on Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type-1 Infected Primary Macrophage Cells and Understanding a Novel NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation Induced by GU-rich Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type-1 ssRNA
No full textHuman immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) is a global pandemic that has infected millions across the globe and is the precursor to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Antiretroviral therapy (ART) allows HIV-1 infected individuals to live a full life; however, ART does not remove HIV-1 infected cells, allowing infected cells to become latent. These latent HIV-1 reservoirs cannot only reactivate once ART administration ends, but these latent HIV-1 reservoirs despite producing no replication competent virus can produce chronic inflammation in an individual leading to an assortment of other health conditions. A strategy to eradicate latent reservoirs is designed to reactivate HIV-1 from latently infected cells and kill the virus prior to it infecting uninfected bystander cells (often called “shock and kill”). Here, we identify Tat-Vpu peptide as a potential “shock” in the “shock and kill” cure strategy. We show that Tat-Vpu is able to increase HIV-1 viral release in infected macrophages through the LVEM66 amino acid sequence that is not observed in the tat-scramble.
To analyze the inflammatory pathway induced by HIV-1, we used a GU-rich single stranded RNA (RNA40) derived from the long terminal repeat (LTR) region of HIV-1. We identified that TLR8 is critical in causing “bystander” CD4+ T cells to elicit IL-1β production. We also show a lack of cell death in RNA40 stimulated macrophages, and identify that caspase-8 and RIPK3 are involved in efficient IL-1β release suggesting the involvement of an alternative inflammasome. We also show that potassium efflux is essential in producing an inflammatory response in RNA40 stimulated macrophages. The involvement of TLR8, no pyroptosis, potassium efflux, and involvement of proteins in the alternative inflammasome indicate that a novel inflammatory pathway is involved with the induction of IL-1β by RNA40
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Human immunodeficiency virus type-1 GU-rich ssRNA activates the NLRP3 inflammasome in macrophages through a non-canonical pathway
No full textHuman immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV) pathogenesis is associated with immune activation and chronic inflammation during active viral replication as well as during antiretroviral viral suppression. Even in cases where levels of replication competent virus are undetectable due to effective antiretroviral therapy, non-replicative virus is still produced with release of non-infectious viral RNA. This RNA is sensed by surveying innate immune cells, such as macrophages, which then induce pro-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β). Processing of IL-1β is associated with nod-like receptor protein-3 (NLRP3) inflammasome and caspase activation in many inflammatory diseases; however, the mechanism of IL-1β induction in human primary macrophages exposed to HIV RNA is unknown. To elucidate the mechanism of IL-1β activation by HIV RNA, we exposed human primary macrophages to RNA40 (a GU-rich ssRNA derived from the HIV long-terminal repeat region) and observed a significant induction of IL-1β. Processing of IL-1β in macrophages exposed to RNA40 required activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome independent of potassium efflux or reactive oxygen species production. RNA40 also triggered caspase-4 and -5 activation to mediate IL-1β release in a one-step event that occurs shortly after exposure to RNA40. In total, these findings indicate that following exposure of human primary macrophages to GU-rich ssRNA from the HIV LTR region, the NLRP3 inflammasome is activated through a non-canonical pathway involving caspase-4 and caspase-5 to process IL-1β. This mechanism provides further insight into HIV pathogenesis, and suggests that targeting caspase-4 and caspase-5 could be useful in controlling HIV-associated chronic inflammation
Spector, L. Covalent catalysis by enzymes
No full textLeonard B. Spector. Covalent catalysis by enzymes
As long as enzymes continue to catalyze, the analytical chemist will use them as components of a sensitive, highly selective, analytically useful reaction. For him, the details of the mechanistic aspects of enzyme catalysis are usually of secondary importance to the occurrence of the catalyzed reaction. Yet the advance of science, including analytical chemistry, ultimately depends on an understanding of all aspects of a subject, and this book provides an unconventional look at the mechanisms of enzyme catalysis. Its thesis is that enzymes, like many other catalysts, function by removing a molecular fragment from a substrate (reactant) to form a compound between that fragment and the enzyme. That fragment is subsequently transferred to a second reactant.
This contrasts with the popular view that the enzyme merely provides a favorable configuration and environment for direct transfer of the fragment between reactants. This “covalent” mechanism is supported by information concerning 465 enzymes, which contrast with a complete lack of information in favor of the “popular” interpretation. To the non-biochemist, at least, the arguments seem very persuasive and do not need the extra lessons in logic, which the author throws in for good measure. The book itself is well prepared and produced, with an abundance of formulas and references, and with a combined author and subject index.https://digitalcommons.rockefeller.edu/ru-authors/1163/thumbnail.jp
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