VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
A Critical Exploration of Contingent Workers' Training and Access to Information and Communication Technology

In the late 1990s, many Western governments introduced policy programs to make information and communication technology (ICT) accessible to all. More than a decade later, however, such universal access is far from a reality. Between 2002 and 2005, in response to a request from a group of contingent workers who felt excluded from effective access to ICT training, a university research group on contingency conducted an applied research project in the form of a series of basic ICT courses. This qualitative dissertation both critically examines the training process and treats it as a case study for exploring broader issues of exclusion and resistance in the context of access to ICT. Specifically, it explores: (1) the symptoms of exclusion as they relate to ICT, social capital, and the community; (2) possibilities for resistance that can alleviate the conditions of exclusion; (3) the assumptions, theories, knowledge construction, policy methods, and processes that underlie the symptoms of exclusion; and (4) alternative assumptions, strategies, and activities that offer possibilities for resistive action. The case study provided an environment in which exclusionary and resistive experiences with access to ICT and training were examined from the perspective of excluded contingent workers, as supported by a university research group. A key finding is that generational behaviour in the domestic sphere erects barriers that contribute to the silencing and exclusion of immigrant contingent women; these barriers then reinforce similar patterns of exclusion in institutionalized ICT training. Another major finding is the need for alleviating the barrier that limited English skills create for ICT learning; addressing this issue must be part of any recommendations for curricular change. Guided throughout by a critical approach that focuses on the concept of ruling relations, this dissertation marshals critical knowledge gained from below in support of change by policymakers, educators, and community practitioners.

Keywords: immigrants
contingent Workers
digital divide
adult education
Information and Communication Technology
social capital
community
ruling relations
critical theory
exclusion
access to training
Advisor: Mojab, Shahrzad
Polymer Conformational Changes under Pressure Driven Compressible Flow in Nanofluidic Channels

A hybrid molecular dynamics/multiparticle collision dynamics algorithm was constructed to model the pressure-driven flow of a compressible fluid through a nanoscopic channel of square cross-sectional area, as well as the effect of this flow on the configuration of a polymer chain that was tethered to the surface of this nanochannel. In the process of simulating channel flow, a new adiabatic partial slip boundary condition was created as well as a modified source/sink inlet and outlet boundary condition that could maintain a specified pressure gradient across the channel without the large entrance effects typically associated with these algorithms. The results of the flow simulations were contrasted with the results from a series solution to the Navier-Stokes equation for isothermal compressible flow, and showed excellent agreement with the results from the series solution when slip-boundary conditions were applied. A finitely extendible non-linear elastic spring and bead polymer chain was used to simulate the effect of flow on the polymer chain configuration under poor solvent and θ solvent conditions. Under θ solvent conditions, the cyclical dynamics that have been previousy observed for tethered polymer chains in pure shear flows were noted, however they were restricted to the end of the polymer chain. Under poor solvent conditions, the polymer adopted a metastable helix configuration as it collapsed to a globule state. The study also examined interchain and intrachain entanglements in polymers using the granny knot and overhand knot. The mechanisms by which these tangles untied themselves were determined. At low flow rates, the tangles unravelled by the end of the chain migrating through the loops of the tangle. At high flow rates, the tangles behaved like an entrained object as they reptated towards the end of the chain.

Keywords: multiparticle collision dynamics
polymer
tangles
knots
nanofluidics
microfluidics
Advisor: Schofield, Jeremy
Characterization of CD109

CD109 is a 170kD glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored protein expressed on subsets of fetal and adult CD34+ haematopoietic stem cells, endothelial cells, activated T cells, and activated platelets. Cloning of the CD109 cDNA by our group identified the molecule as a novel member of the alpha2M/C3/C4/C5 family of thioester containing proteins. Curiously, CD109 bears features of both the alpha2M and complement branches of the gene family. Additionally CD109 carries the antigenic determinant of the Gov alloantigen system, which has been implicated in a subset of immune mediated platelet destruction syndromes. In this thesis, the status of CD109 in the evolution and phylogeny of the A2M family has been clarified. First, I elucidated the evolutionary relationships of CD109, and of the other eight human A2M/C3/C4/C5 proteins, using sequence analysis and a detailed comparison of the organization of the corresponding loci. Extension of this analysis to compare CD109 to related sequences extending back to placazoans, defined CD109 as a member of a distinct and archaic branch of the A2M phylogenetic tree. Second, in conjunction with collaborators, the molecular basis of the Gov alloantigen system was identified as an allele specific A2108C; Y703S polymorphism. Utilizing cDNA and genomic sequence we then developed methods to accurately and precisely genotype the Gov system. Finally, the expression kinetics of platelet CD109 was elucidated, in order to obtain basic information regarding its expression and subcellular localization, and to resolve discrepancies in reported platelet CD109 expression. Quantitative flow cytometry demonstrated that CD109 was expressed on the surface of activated platelets at very low levels in most healthy volunteers. In resting platelets, CD109 was localized to the OCS and intracellular storage granules. CD109 displayed differential agonist induced expression in comparison to GPIIb/IIIa epitope unmasking, and surface expression of CD62P and CD63. CD109 was rapidly expressed on the cell surface in response to low doses of both strong and weak agonists. This early expression is likely the result of CD109’s proximity to the plasma membrane in resting platelets. As such, CD109 is positioned to participate at early stages of primary haemostasis.

Keywords: molecular biology
haematology
cell biology
platelets
phylogenetics
CD109
macroglobulin
Advisor: Schuh, Andre
The Effects of Tribes Training in a Beginning-teacher-education Program

Research is emerging that documents the use of the Tribes process in elementary and secondary schools. Inquiry into the use of Tribes in beginning-teacher-education programs has not been conducted. This study investigated teacher candidates’ perceptions of the effectiveness of Tribes training in enhancing their learning, their concerns about implementing the Tribes process, and their levels of use of Tribes during the beginning-teacher-education program and their first years of teaching. A mixed-method research design was employed to collect data to determine the value of Tribes training during the beginning-teacher-education program. The Concerns Based Adoption Model provided a conceptual framework to measure, describe, and explain the process of change experienced by teachers implementing Tribes in their classrooms as well as how that change process was affected by the leadership and collegial support in the schools. The findings describe a belief in Tribes that was developed during the training in the beginning-teacher-education program. This belief in the value of Tribes and the importance of creating learning communities helped to solidify the teacher candidates’ belief systems about teaching and provided them with a vision of their future classrooms and a framework for their philosophies of education. The findings reveal that the knowledge and skills gained during the training in the beginning-teacher-education year were transferred into the practice of all graduates. The interviews and the questionnaires indicated an array of concerns. The data revealed that high-intensity informational and personal concerns were most evident in the profiles of the newest graduates. The profiles of the some of the most experienced teachers indicated lower self and task concerns, and increased impact concerns. All groups identified collaboration concerns related to resistance from colleagues and a perceived lack of leadership for change. The findings from the interviews revealed that all but two teachers were using the Tribes process with their classes from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 Calculus. Participants highlighted the importance of school culture as well as leadership style and behaviours as important factors in the implementation of Tribes.

Keywords: Beginning-Teacher-Education
Tribes Learning Communities
Advisor: Bennett, Barrie
Living with Loss: Mapping Derechos Humanos on the Landscape of Public Remembrance of the 1976-1983 Dictatorship in Argentina

The Argentine landscape is marked by countless sites of remembrance of the 1976-1983 dictatorship drawn by human rights groups in Argentina, producing a seemingly infinite command to remember the violence of this period and the 30,000 who were disappeared. Though this landscape can seem chaotic, this impression discounts the context of loss on which it is constructed as well as the deeply affective and contested political issues that motivate its construction. This study thus maps the ways demands for human rights mobilized through public remembrance of the dictatorship articulate a continual learning to live with loss. Investigating the specificities of loss in Argentina, I explore how human rights claims are made in the name of the disappeared who, neither dead nor alive, are at once everywhere and nowhere. I draw largely from my conversations with members of human rights groups to illuminate how the demand for derechos humanos is articulated in particular ways to address present-day social injustices and to affirm the living’s relationship with the disappeared. The study aims to contribute to an understanding of public remembrance as a continual process of teaching and learning about the past that is intended to motivate the formation of a public committed to constructing a better present and future.

Keywords: cultural memory of state violence, public remembrance and pedagogy, human rights, Argentina
Advisor: Simon, Roger I.
Role of Molecular Chaperones in the Biosynthesis of Anion Exchanger 1

Mutations in the SLC4A1 gene result in misfolding and trafficking defects of the human erythroid (AE1) and kidney (kAE1) forms of the anion exchanger 1 glycoprotein. This affects the amount of functional protein at the cell surface, resulting in hematological and renal diseases. In this thesis, the role of the quality control system of molecular chaperones (cytosolic and ER) was examined during the biosynthesis of wild type and mutant AE1 in different cellular models. The hypothesis to be tested is that molecular chaperones are responsible for the intracellular retention of AE1 mutants. Chaperones were found to interact with AE1 and kAE1 in vitro and in vivo (HEK-293, K562, MDCK cells). Disruption of the calnexin-AE1 interaction in K562 cells did not affect the cell surface levels of wild type or mutant erythroid AE1. AE1 also trafficked to the cell surface in mouse embryonic fibroblasts completely deficient in calnexin or calreticulin. In contrast, in MDCK cells, disruption of the calnexin-kAE1 interaction allowed functional dominant (R589H, R901stop), but not misfolded kAE1 mutants (kSAO, G701D), to escape the ER and traffic to the cell surface. Calnexin is therefore not required for the cell surface expression of erythroid AE1, but can be responsible for the intracellular retention of certain kAE1 mutants in cells with the complete complement of molecular chaperones. Components involved in membrane glycoprotein folding and quality control (calnexin, ERp57, Hsc70, Hsp70), were lost at later stages during the differentiation of CD34+ erythroid progenitor cells. This suggests that the loss of molecular chaperones may facilitate the massive production of red cell glycoproteins, allowing erythroid AE1 mutants to escape quality control, traffic to the plasma membrane, and be present in mature red blood cells. These studies demonstrate that the role chaperones play varies, depending on cellular context. By understanding the cellular context and factors involved, therapeutic strategies may be tailored to deal with protein misfolding diseases, and in the case of kAE1, rescue the cell surface trafficking of misfolded, but functional, transport protein using pharmacological modulators.

Keywords: membrane
glycoprotein
transporter
chaperones
biosynthesis
anion exchanger 1
disease
treatment
Advisor: Reithmeier, Reinhart A. F.
Distribution of Anti-cancer Drugs within Solid Tumours and Normal Tissues and its Potential for Modification to Improve Therapeutic Index

Anti-cancer drugs gain access to solid tumors via the blood, and must penetrate tissue to reach all viable cancer cells. This thesis aims to compare the distribution of anticancer drugs in normal tissues and tumours, to examine whether drug distribution is modifiable and quantifiable in solid tumours, and to determine whether extracellular drug distribution can be improved by modifying intracellular drug distribution. The time-dependent spatial distribution of three anticancer drugs, doxorubicin, mitoxantrone and topotecan, were studied in normal tissues and tumours. Ten minutes after drug administration, there was fairly uniform distribution in the heart, kidney and liver whereas drug distribution within tumours was limited to perivascular regions. Doxorubicin distribution in P-glycoprotein (PgP) over-expressing tumours was compared to that in wild-type tumours and changes in distribution were evaluated with the use of PgP inhibitors. There was better doxorubicin distribution in PgP-over-expressing tumours compared to wild-type tumours, and pretreatment of PgP-over-expressing tumours with PgP inhibitors decreased doxorubicin distribution. These data suggest that reduced uptake of drug into cells may enhance extracellular drug distribution, and the dual effects of PgP inhibitors (increased drug uptake in proximal cells, but poorer drug distribution) may explain, in part, why these agents have not provided clinical benefit. The effect of the proton pump inhibitor pantoprozole on intracellular and extracellular drug distribution was determined. Pantoprazole increased endosomal pH in cells, leading to less sequestration of doxorubicin within them, and increased the toxicity of doxorubicin for cultured cells. In wild-type MCF7 tumours, pretreatment with pantoprazole enhanced doxorubicin distribution and tumour growth delay without apparent increase in toxicity. These studies have led to initiation of a phase I clinical trial of pantoprazole and doxorubicin for patients with solid tumours. The work completed in this thesis demonstrates that drug distribution can be modified and that these changes can be quantified, and may correlate with improved anti-tumour effects. Improving drug distribution through the use of proton pump inhibitors may be an effective strategy to improve chemotherapeutic efficacy.

Keywords: Drug distribution
solid tumours
doxorubicin
Advisor: Tannock, Ian
Urban Dirty Work: Labour Strategies, Environmental Health, and Coping Among Informal Recyclers in Buenos Aires, Argentina

This dissertation investigates informal waste recycling practices in the modern urban centre of Buenos Aires, Argentina. My research sets a baseline for the living and working conditions of the approximately 9,000 informal recyclers (cartoneros) in the city, focusing on their health, socio-economic status, and access to social and material resources. The research methods included a survey (n = 397) and interviews (n = 30) with cartoneros, as well as key informant interviews and an analysis of newspaper articles addressing informal recycling in the city. My findings indicate that Buenos Aires’ cartoneros, while not the poorest of the poor, are of a relatively low socio-economic status. Their health outcomes and determinants of health are poor compared to others in the Greater Buenos Aires region, and these workers are often stigmatized and discriminated against because of their associations with waste. Cartoneros’ experiences of the city are characterized by a series of social, political, and physical exclusions, revealing a state of urban inequality in Buenos Aires. I argue that municipal agendas of neoliberal urban development are implicated in both the symbolic and physical marginalization of these workers. Cartoneros draw upon many resources in coping with the multiple vulnerabilities that they face (particularly social resources and assets derived from their labour). They also occasionally engage with urban processes of exclusion through collective action and rhetorical redefinitions of their role in society. These workers are therefore active agents in their own destinies, and potential actors for social change. The municipal government of Buenos Aires has recently implemented a formalization plan for some of the city’s cartoneros; the dissertation includes an assessment of these plans, as well as recommendations for other policy-based interventions to informal recycling practices.

Keywords: informal recycling
Buenos Aires, Argentina
environmental health
urban inequality
Advisor: Maclaren, Virginia W.
Daniere, Amrita
Contribution of Activated Coagulation Factor XII to Hypertension in Chronic Renal Failure: Investigation Involving Dialysis Patients and the 5/6 Nephrectomized Uremic Rat

Activated coagulation Factor XII (FXIIa) elevates blood pressure (BP) acutely by stimulating adrenomedullary catecholamine (CA) release in Brown Norway (BN) bioassay rats. These effects are absent in kininogen-deficient BN Katholiek (BNK) bioassay rats, indicating that these FXIIa-induced responses require an intact kallikrein-kinin system (KKS). In three hypertensive anephric pediatric patients, ΔFXIIa concentrations tracked peri-dialytic ΔBP. We hypothesized that FXIIa exerts a vasoconstrictor pro-hypertensive action, via the KKS, particularly evident in chronic renal failure (CRF). In CRF patients (n=11) receiving conventional hemodialysis, mean plasma FXIIa concentrations were 3-fold (p<0.05) greater than in healthy controls. Although conversion from conventional to nocturnal hemodialysis did not change mean FXIIa concentrations there was intra-session variation within individuals, such that ΔFXIIa concentrations correlated with changes in mean arterial pressure (MAP, r=0.66, p=0.026) and total peripheral resistance (TPR, r=0.75, p=0.007). In normotensive BN rats, FXIIa infusion (85 ng/min/kg for 60 mins) increased MAP (10±1 mmHg), TPR (0.5±0.1 Units), and CA, whilst left-ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV) and heart rate decreased (all p<0.05). After adrenalectomy, FXIIa infusion decreased MAP (5±1 mmHg), did not raise CA or induce sustained vasoconstriction, and caused a greater fall in LVEDV (all p<0.05). In the 5/6 nephrectomized (NX) rodent CRF model, MAP and TPR were significantly greater in BN NX (n=16) than in BNK NX (n=15) (147±4 vs. 133±2 mmHg, 2.8±0.2 vs. 2.3±0.2 Units; all p<0.05). Plasma FXIIa measured using our semi-quantitive ELISA was 3-fold higher in both BN NX and BNK NX than in controls (p<0.01), but only correlated with MAP (r=0.48, p=0.01) in the BN NX. Plasma CA were elevated in the BN NX (p<0.05) but not in BNK NX. Infusion of a specific FXIIa inhibitor into BN NX decreased MAP (-12 mmHg) and TPR (-0.5 Units) proportionally to baseline FXIIa (ΔMAP: r=-0.72, p=0.002; ΔTPR: r=-0.57, p=0.021), and plasma CA fell by 40-67% (all p<0.05). No such changes occurred in the BNK NX. In summary, a significant component of the hypertension of CRF can be attributed to FXIIa-induced vasoconstriction mediated via the KKS and stimulated CA release. In normal rats, FXIIa appears also to directly or indirectly decrease preload and heart rate.

Keywords: Coagulation Factor XII
FXIIa
hypertension
chronic renal failure
kinin-kallikrein system
sympathoadrenal
Advisor: Floras, John
Influence of Alkaline Copper Quat (ACQ) Solution Parameters on Copper Complex Distribution and Leaching

The effects of ACQ solution parameters such as copper to quat ratio, pH and copper to ligand ratio on distribution of copper complexes in solution and insoluble precipitates, and on fixation and leaching of copper in treated wood were evaluated. The distribution of ionic complexes, predicted by equilibrium speciation model (MINTEQA2), was related to laboratory fixation and leaching results at controlled ACQ solution parameters. A decrease in the relative proportion of copper in the ACQ formulation from a copper oxide (CuO) to didecyldimethylammonium carbonate (DDACb) ratio of 2:1 to 1:1 and 1:2 resulted in lower copper retention in the treated samples and substantially decreased the amount of copper leached per unit area. For monoethanolamine (Mea) based ACQ, solution parameters which favour a higher proportion of monovalent cationic complex, which consume one reactive site in wood, and the presence of insoluble carbonate precipitate of copper in wood during preservative treatment resulted in higher leach resistance compared to the neutral copper complex present at higher pH. Ammonia (NH3) based ACQ can fix more copper at high pH as there is no chelated neutral complex as in Mea based ACQ; however divalent copper-NH3 complexes may consume two sites to fix in wood. Addition of NH3 in Mea based ACQ at Cu:Mea:NH3 ratio of 1:4:6 at pH 10.6 significantly reduced copper leaching compared to 1:4:0 (without ammonia) at pH 9 due to increased divalent copper-ammonia complexes and decreased neutral copper amine complex at elevated pH. Ammonia addition with a lower proportion of Mea (1:2.5:4 at pH 10.5-10.7), significantly reduced copper leaching compared to 1:4:0 at pH 9; no reduction was observed for ammonia addition in ACQ with a higher proportion of Mea (1:4:4 at pH 10.45). The lower copper leaching from 1:2.5:4 resulted from the higher amount of divalent copper-NH3 complexes at higher pH without compromising the amount of copper precipitated at lower pH. The higher percent copper leached from tetramethylethylenediamine (Tmed) based ACQ compared to Mea and NH3 based ACQ suggested that highly stable complexes tend to stay in solution and do not result in leach resistant copper in the wood.

Keywords: Alkaline copper quat
ACQ
wood preservative
quaternary ammonium
DDAC
copper amine
copper ammonia
monoethanolamine
ammonia
tetramethylethylenediamine
copper leaching
copper speciation
copper distribution
MINTEQA2
Advisor: Cooper, Paul