Neospora caninum é um protozoário Apicomplexa, parasita intracelular obrigatório que possui o cão como hospedeiro definitivo e principalmente os bovinos como hospedeiros intermediários, causando nos primeiros encefalopatia e nos últimos abortos com perda da fertilidade, o que acarreta prejuízos significativos na pecuária mundial. O parasita necessita multiplicar de modo intra-celular, utilizando a descarga de proteínas contidas em organelas filo-específicas, como as micronemas que liberam proteínas relacionadas a adesão e invasão ativa, além das roptrias e os grânulos densos. Este trabalho foi realizado sobre um tipo de proteína micronêmica denominada proteína Anônima Relacionada à Trombospondina (TRAP), relacionada à adesão e ligação com o motor intracelular, responsável pelo processo ativo de invasão. TRAP 1 já havia sido descrita pela literatura e o objetivo deste trabalho foi a caracterização molecular do até então desconhecido homólogo TRAP 2, com expressão de suas formas recombinantes e o uso de seus respectivos anti-soros para ensaios funcionais e localização da proteína nativa. Com base em banco dados de ESTs e genômicos de N. caninum e fazendo uso de RLM-RACE (Reação mediada por RNA ligase- amplificação rápida dos términos de cDNA-RNA,) foi possível a obtenção da sequencia completa do gene NcTrap 2, que possui quatro éxons separados por três íntrons. Sua forma protéica, como seu homológo, é formado por um peptídeo sinal, uma integrina, cinco trombospondinas, uma região transmembrana e a cauda citoplasmática. A integrina e as trombospondinas são motivos relacionados à adesão para início do processo invasivo e foram os alvos deste trabalho. Foram expressos dois recombinantes a partir deste cerne funcional (integrina e trombospondinas), com 52 e 78 kDa, e seus respectivos anti-soros foram obtidos. Estes foram utilizados em western blots 1D e 2D para localização da forma nativa de NcTRAP 2 de aproximadamente 80 kDa no extrato total e de sua forma processada no ESA (extrato secretado, simulando o momento invasivo do taquizoíta) com 70 kDa. O soro contra o recombinante 1 teve a capacidade de inibir o processo invasivo em valores de 53 a 61%, dependendo do método utilizado (contagem manual ou real time PCR). NcTRAP 2 foi encontrada no complexo apical parasitário do taquizoíta por imunofluorêscencia confocal, evidenciando sua provável localização nas micronemas. A nova molécula, NcTRAP 2 possui características que a diferencia de NcTRAP 1 o suficiente para ser considerada homóloga. O soro contra sua forma recombinante detectou as formas nativas integral e secretada e demonstrou que NcTRAP 2 possui capacidade de inibir a invasão dos taquizoítas, o que a torna um interessante alvo vacinal. / Neospora caninum is an Apicomplexan protozoan, obligatory intracellular parasite that has the dog as definitive host and especially cattle as intermediate hosts, causing in the first ones encephalopathy and in the last ones abortion with fertility losses. Such facts lead to significant losses to livestock worldwide. The parasite must invade the cells for its development, using the discharge of proteins contained in phylum-specific organelles, like the micronemes proteins related with adhesion and active invasion, besides the proteins from rhoptries and dense granules. This work was performed on a type of micronemic protein, a thrombospondin-related anonymous protein (TRAP), related with adhesion and connection with the intracellular motor responsible for the active process of invasion. Based on the homologue previously described in the literature, TRAP 1, the aim of this study was the characterization of the undescribed TRAP 2 homologue, the expression of its recombinant forms, the use of its anti-sera for functional assays, and detection of its native form. Based on ESTs and genomic data from N. caninum, and using the RLM-RACE (ligase mediated rapid amplification of cDNA ends) technique, the complete sequence of NcTRAP 2 was obtained, which had four exons separated by three introns. As NcTRAP 1, the protein sequence is composed of a signal peptide, an integrin, five thrombospondin, a transmembrane region and a cytoplasmatic tail. The integrin and thrombospondin motifs are related to adhesion for initiation of the invasive process and were the targets of this work. We expressed two recombinant fragments from the functional core (thrombospondin and integrin), with 52 and 78 kDa, which were utilized for antisera production. The anti-sera localized the native form NcTRAP 2 which had approximately 80 kDa, and its processed form in ESA (Excreted/Secreted Antigen) with 70 kDa, both in western blot 1D and 2D. The serum against recombinant 1 had the ability to inhibit the invasive process from 53 to 61%, depending on the experimental method used (manual counting or real time PCR). NcTRAP 2 was localized at the apical complex of the parasite of the tachyzoites by confocal immunofluorescence, pointing towards its micronemal localization. The new molecule, NcTRAP 2, holds features that differentiates it from NcTRAP 1 in a substantial way to be considered homologue. The serum against the recombinant form detected the native full length and secreted forms of NcTRAP 2 and demonstrated that NcTRAP 2 has the ability to inhibit the invasion of tachyzoites, turning it into an interesting vaccine target to be investigated.

O tema central desta tese é o papel do grupo Alcoólicos Anônimos frente ao alcoolismo, suas implicações sociais e as alternativas com as quais os sujeitos alcoolistas podem contar no campo da saúde pública e coletiva. A OMS, Organização Mundial da Saúde, estima que 140 milhões de pessoas no mundo sejam dependentes de álcool. O Estado em crise e as políticas neoliberais não atendem as demandas por saúde da sociedade, obrigando a mobilização de grupos da sociedade civil como o A.A. As reuniões do Alcoólicos Anônimos constituem um espaço de cidadania que oferecem aos sujeitos adictos a possibilidade de transformação de um estado de impotência, diante do consumo excessivo de bebidas alcoólicas, para a condição de sobriedade e de empoderamento social. Os objetivos da tese são caracterizar a experiência comunitária dos adictos no âmbito do A.A., os processos comunicacionais desenvolvidos pelos membros do grupo e analisar a importância dos discursos, dos diálogos e da conversação como experiência significativa para a transformação dos sujeitos alcoolistas em indivíduos sóbrios. A pesquisa qualitativa embasou-se no modelo epistemológico construtivo- interpretativo por meio de uma análise de um conjunto de sete a 21 adictos do A.A., pertencente ao Grupo Aliança de Jundiaí, no estado de São Paulo. Foram utilizados os seguintes instrumentos: pesquisa de campo com observação participante (estruturada artificialmente); entrevista padronizada e estruturada; análise documental dos discursos dos frequentadores da instituição; e pesquisa bibliográfica. Os métodos de pesquisa empregados foram: a Análise do Discurso (AD); a Análise da Conversação (AC); e o Método Etnográfico. Concluiu-se que o A.A. constitui uma comunidade na qual se compartilha um \"lugar comum\" denominado ¨Grupo-Base¨ e identificou-se neste espaço comunitário o compartilhamento de ideias e o acolhimento de indivíduos em busca de recuperação do alcoolismo. Identificou-se que o Grupo-Base possibilita às pessoas a obtenção de maior controle sobre as ações e as decisões que afetam a sua saúde. Na comunicação interativa oferecida pelo A.A. há a possibilidade de as pessoas não serem somente destinatárias da comunicação, mas interlocutores na conversação sobre a sua própria condição de saúde. Desvelou-se na tese que a experiência do alcoolismo se constrói em uma ordem de sentido, dentro do qual os significados da experiência da doença e da saúde são construídos. Concluiu-se nas falas e nos escritos dos membros da irmandade que é recorrente a citação de valores espirituais como elemento central na recuperação da saúde dos adictos. / The main subject of this thesis is the role of the Alcoholic Anonymous group facing alcoholism, its social repercussions and the alternatives with which the alcoholic subjects can rely on in the public and collective health care fields. The WHS, World Health Organization estimates that 140 million people in the world are alcohol addicts. The Federal Estate being in crisis and the neoliberal policies do not meet the demand for healthcare by the society, compelling the mobilization of groups in the civil society such as the AA. The AA meetings embody a space of citizenship which provides the addicted subjects the possibility of transformation from a helpless situation, in the face of excessive intake of alcoholic beverages, to an abstinence condition and to a social empowerment. The objectives of the thesis are to characterize the communal experience of the addicted in the AA sphere, the communicational processes developed by the members of the group and to analyze the importance of the speeches, the dialogues and the conversations as significant experiences for the transformation of the alcoholic subjects into sober individuals. The qualitative research was based on the constructive-explanatory epistemological model, through a typification of a group of 7 to 21 addicts from the AA, who belong to the \'Grupo Aliança de Jundiaí\', in the state of São Paulo. The following tools were used: field research with participating observation (artificially structured); structured and standardized interview; documental analysis of the speeches by the institution frequenters and bibliographic research. The research methods used were: the Speech Analysis (SA); the Conversation Analysis (CA) and the Etnographic Method (EM). It was concluded that the AA represents a community in which a \"common space\" is shared which is called \"Base-group\" and in this community space the sharing of ideas and the welcoming of individuals in search of recovering from alcoholism is identified. It was identified that the \"Base-group\" enables the people to obtain a greater control over the actions and decisions which affect their health. In the interactive communication offered by the AA there is the possibility of the people not being the receivers of the communication, but interlocutors in the conversation about their own health condition. The thesis shows that the alcoholism experience is built on a meaningful order, upon which the significance of the disease and the health are built. It was concluded that in the writings and speeches of the brotherhood members the citation of spiritual values is a central element to the health recovery of the addicts.

Neuróticos anônimos é uma associação formada por grupos de ajuda mútua que reúnem indivíduos que se consideram com problemas emocionais seguindo o Programa de recuperação de Alcoólicos Anônimos, adaptado às suas finalidades. Com base em pesqnisa etnográfica, incluindo a observação participante nas reuniões de três grupos localizados na cidade de São Paulo, foram caracterizadas as formas de participação, atividades dos grupos, as motivações, crenças e valores dos participantes, abordando ainda aspectos organizacionais e históricos da associação e do seu Programa. Considerando o processo de individualização em curso, esta pesquisa buscou compreender o papel desempenhado pela instituição na orientação do comportamento dos seus membros em relação às suas demandas específicas relacionadas aos problemas comuns da vida cotidiana. A partir do exame da socialização experimentada pelos participantes nos grupos, é mostrado como a participação engendra processos de identificação entre indivíduos que passam por problemas semelhantes, requerendo de cada um o envolvimento ativo e a motivação subjetiva - a formulação de um projeto para si e com outros por meio da construção autônoma de uma narrativa de vida para si mesmos. Afirma-se que o papel das instituições para os indivíduos se transformou, não mais determinando os rumos pelo qual eles devem traçar os seus destinos ao longo da vida, nem servindo para orientá-los completamente quanto aos inúmeros problemas que se colocam para eles na vida cotidiana. Isto é, os indivíduos selecionam uma dentre tantas outras instituições existentes, das quais participam e pelas quais são socializados ao longo da vida, para resolverem determinados tipos de problemas e não outros. / Neurotics Anonymous is an association formed by self-help groups bringing together individuais who consider themselves with emotional disturbances by following the Alcoholics Anonymous recovery Program adapted to your purposes. Based on ethnographic research, including participant observation conducted at the meetings of three groups located in the city of São Paulo, it was characterized forms of participation, the activities of groups, motivations, beliefs and values of the participants, also considering organizational and historical aspects of the association and its Program. Considering the ongoing process of individuation, this research sought to understand the role played by the institution in guiding the behavior of its members in relation to their specific demands related to common problems of everyday life. From the examination of socialization experienced by group participants, it is shown as the participation engenders processes of identification between individuais who go through similar problems, requiring each one the active involvement and subjective motivation - the formulation of a project for themselves and others through autonomous construction of a life narrative for themselves. It is argued that the role of institutions for individuais changed, not determining the direction in which they should draw their destinations throughout life, not serving to guide them completely as the many problems that arise for them in everyday life. That is, individuais select one among many others existing institutions, which they participate and for which they are socialized lifelong, to solve certain types of problems and not others.

This edition of the treatise on heresy ascribed to Pseudo-Reinerius is based on a collation of 29 extant mss. The text prepared from these has been compared with two mss. of sections V-XI of the longer recension of the so-called Anonymous of Passau treatise, the earliest version of which was compiled about 1260. This comparison has shown conclusively that the Pseudo- Reinerius treatise is derived in its entirety from these sections of the longer recension of the Anonymous of Passau treatise. The contents of both treatises have been analysed in detail, so that an assessment might be made of their value as source material for the history of heresy in the thirteenth century, more particularly in south Germany and Austria.

Orientador: Sergio Amadeu da Silveira / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do ABC. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Humanas e Sociais, 2013

Failure in treatment and Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) leads to continued addiction, but practitioners need to learn which factors predict better outcomes in AA to make better referrals. Here, the predictive relationship between spirituality and perceived social support with success in AA was examined based on Frankl's theory on meaning in life. A quantitative, correlational design was used to determine whether there was a statistically significant predictive relationship between spirituality, as measured by the Assessment of Spirituality and Religious Sentiments, and perceived social support, as measured by the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, with success in AA, as measured by the binomal sobriety variable with either totally sober over the last 90 days or not. Data were collected using an anonymous online and in person survey, and logistic regression was used to analyze the data on the final sample of 93. Inclusion criteria was adult age, U.S. residency, and former or current AA membership. The new model's classification table was nonsignificant without improving classification of cases as sober/nonsober. The overall model was significant per the chi-square results and the spirituality odds ratio was significant in predicting sobriety. Therefore, there was a significant predictive relationship found between spirituality and success in AA, but not for perceived social support. Recommendations include AA's value despite spirituality or social support level for recovery and spirituality as still a tool in recovery. Positive social change implications include better understanding of the factors leading to success in AA, and therefore better referrals to AA or other such adjunctive support services needed, which can improve outcomes for clients struggling with alcohol addiction.

This dissertation reviews the history and discourse of the debate regarding the use of unnamed sources in journalism. A quantitative and qualitative content analysis explores how the use of anonymous sources has changed over the years. The ethics justifying their use are examined through the lens of utilitarianism. The author offers guidelines for their future use.

No description available.

Due to the mature of networks and communication technologies, electronic commerce is growing up rapidly and many advanced applications in electronic commerce are developed recently, such as on-line shopping, on-line bidding, and on-line gambling. There are numerous types of gambling like typical lottery, sport lottery, and poker gambling where our research will focus on the lottery games. Because of some special characteristics of the lottery games such as fairness and anonymity, it is hard to design a perfect electronic lottery protocol. The transaction mechanism in an electronic lottery protocol is an important issue since it will affect the benefits of customers if it is not fair or secure. The generating of random winning numbers in a lottery game has been discussed in many papers, but the fairness and anonymity for purchasing tickets and claiming the prizes are only discussed in few papers where these previous results cannot completely cope with the problems of fairness and anonymity. In the thesis, we will propose two electronic lottery protocols that can achieve the fairness and perfect anonymity simultaneously.

Over the past 30 years, there has been little consensus on the benefits of peer review (PR) with respect to the teaching of expository writing in English to non-native speakers. Lu & Bol (2007) reported on several ESL writing instruction studies (Chaudron, 1983; Mangelsdorf, 1992; Paulus, 1999) that suggested peer feedback was as good as, and in some cases better than teacher feedback in helping revise and improve students' papers (p. 101). Brammer & Rees (2007), however, reported, "We frequently hear students complain bitterly that peer review is a waste of time or blame their peers for `not catching all the mistakes' and students do not stay on task during the peer review process" (p. 71). The literature also identifies social issues that can negatively affect the outcome of face-to-face PR, such as students being easily biased or not honest when providing feedback due to friendship, gender, race, interpersonal relationships, or personal preferences (Carson & Nelson, 1996; Ghorpade & Lackritz, 2001; MacLeod, 1999; Nilson, 2003; Zhao, 1998). To maximize the benefits of PR and reduce social interferences, this study incorporated anonymous electronic-peer review with 25 EFL students enrolled in an expository writing class in Spain. The goal of this dissertation is to explore the relationship between students' attitudes towards peer review and one) the amount and type of corrections a student makes to an essay in anonymous electronic-peer review, and two) the amount and type of corrections a student incorporates into his/her original essay after receiving feedback from a peer. The participants completed several Likert questionnaires, participated in PR training, wrote two drafts of an essay and were interviewed. The interviews provided data not only on the corrections mentioned above, but also how the participants viewed the experience, the effects PR had on their writing, insecurities about their English writing skills, and confidence they had in themselves and their peers based on perceived target language competence. Findings include discussion on perceptions and implications of electronic peer review on EFL learners' ability to provide helpful feedback and the willingness of the students to participate in peer review again in the future.