title: BP’s use of posture to respond to the deepwater horizon crisis

authors: Goosen-Botes, Vida

subjects: legitimacy

abstract: This paper focuses on the posture the oil company BP adopted when faced with a legitimacy crisis during one of the worst environmental disasters in history. Against a backdrop of a discussion of the rhetorical aspects of image repair discourse and organisational legitimacy, Hearit’s strategy of corporate apologia was employed to determine the posture BP adopted in relation to the crisis. This paper adds to the literature on image repair strategies by heeding a call by Hearit for the context within which corporate apologia takes place to be taken account of, an approach that warrants a distinct line of research. The literature was further extended by complementing Hearit's strategy with semiotics and analysing its use in both the annual and sustainability reports. The additional focus on the sustainability reports is important, due to the high premium placed on sustainability in the changing business environment. On a practical level this paper contributes to an understanding of how organisations use sustainability reports to respond to legitimacy challenges.

text: BP’s use of posture to respond to the deepwater horizon crisis This paper focuses on the posture the oil company BP adopted when faced with a legitimacy crisis during one of the worst environmental disasters in history. Against a backdrop of a discussion of the rhetorical aspects of image repair discourse and organisational legitimacy, Hearit’s strategy of corporate apologia was employed to determine the posture BP adopted in relation to the crisis. This paper adds to the literature on image repair strategies by heeding a call by Hearit for the context within which corporate apologia takes place to be taken account of, an approach that warrants a distinct line of research. The literature was further extended by complementing Hearit's strategy with semiotics and analysing its use in both the annual and sustainability reports. The additional focus on the sustainability reports is important, due to the high premium placed on sustainability in the changing business environment. On a practical level this paper contributes to an understanding of how organisations use sustainability reports to respond to legitimacy challenges.

year: 2013

title: Characterisation of VapBC Toxin-Antitoxins from Mycobacterium tuberculosis

authors: Sharrock, Abigail Victoria

subjects: vapBC

abstract: Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems were identified more than 20 years ago on the mini F plasmid of Escherichia coli as plasmid stability elements; components responsible for purging bacterial cells that lack the plasmid from the population. More recent discovery of TA systems spanning a wide diversity of prokaryotic chromosomes, including that of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb), suggests a broader biochemical role. TA systems can be classified into a number of families, with the vapBC systems being by far the largest. The biochemical role of vapBC systems in M. tb remains unclear despite their abundance within the genome. 
This thesis describes the biochemical and functional characterisation of two vapBC systems encoded by operons Rv0065a/c and Rv0617a/c in the M. tb genome. VapCRv0617 overexpression had a bacteriostatic effect on the growth of Mycobacterium smegmatis cultures. Therefore, the biochemistry underlying this phenotype was investigated, along with that of the Rv0065a/c system. VapCRv0065 and VapCRv0617 are Mg2+-dependent, sequence-specific ribonucleases targeting GC rich 4-mers. Ribonuclease assays with in vitro synthesised RNA transcripts suggested an additional layer of target recognition resides in RNA secondary structure, and revealed that both VapC proteins exhibit high activity against isolated M. smegmatis 16S and 23S rRNA. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays with purified VapBC protein and labelled DNA demonstrated an autoregulatory function for the VapBCRv0617a/c complex and not the VapBCRv0065a/c complex. VapBCRv0617a/c bound specifically to a near-perfect inverted repeat in the Rv0617a/c promoter region that overlaps an annotated -10 M. tb promoter element. In contrast, the VapBCRv0065a/c complex exhibited no DNA binding activity against a putative Rv0065a/c promoter region. Individualised vapBC transcriptional regulation mechanisms may help explain the persistence of such an expanded number of these systems in the genome.

Knowledge of the physiological role of vapBC systems in M. tb will enable a better understanding of how they contribute to the pathogenicity of this bacterium. This would serve as the basis for the design of drugs which interfere with vapBC system functioning and in turn the ability of M. tb cells to enter the persistent state.

text: Characterisation of VapBC Toxin-Antitoxins from Mycobacterium tuberculosis Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems were identified more than 20 years ago on the mini F plasmid of Escherichia coli as plasmid stability elements; components responsible for purging bacterial cells that lack the plasmid from the population. More recent discovery of TA systems spanning a wide diversity of prokaryotic chromosomes, including that of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb), suggests a broader biochemical role. TA systems can be classified into a number of families, with the vapBC systems being by far the largest. The biochemical role of vapBC systems in M. tb remains unclear despite their abundance within the genome. 
This thesis describes the biochemical and functional characterisation of two vapBC systems encoded by operons Rv0065a/c and Rv0617a/c in the M. tb genome. VapCRv0617 overexpression had a bacteriostatic effect on the growth of Mycobacterium smegmatis cultures. Therefore, the biochemistry underlying this phenotype was investigated, along with that of the Rv0065a/c system. VapCRv0065 and VapCRv0617 are Mg2+-dependent, sequence-specific ribonucleases targeting GC rich 4-mers. Ribonuclease assays with in vitro synthesised RNA transcripts suggested an additional layer of target recognition resides in RNA secondary structure, and revealed that both VapC proteins exhibit high activity against isolated M. smegmatis 16S and 23S rRNA. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays with purified VapBC protein and labelled DNA demonstrated an autoregulatory function for the VapBCRv0617a/c complex and not the VapBCRv0065a/c complex. VapBCRv0617a/c bound specifically to a near-perfect inverted repeat in the Rv0617a/c promoter region that overlaps an annotated -10 M. tb promoter element. In contrast, the VapBCRv0065a/c complex exhibited no DNA binding activity against a putative Rv0065a/c promoter region. Individualised vapBC transcriptional regulation mechanisms may help explain the persistence of such an expanded number of these systems in the genome.

Knowledge of the physiological role of vapBC systems in M. tb will enable a better understanding of how they contribute to the pathogenicity of this bacterium. This would serve as the basis for the design of drugs which interfere with vapBC system functioning and in turn the ability of M. tb cells to enter the persistent state.

year: 2013

title: Māori and Pacific traditional caregiving practices: Voices from the community

authors: Glasgow, Ali

abstract: Increasing numbers of Māori and Pacific infants are enrolled in early childhood services in Aotearoa/New Zealand. This phenomenon is part of a larger societal trend in which mother return to the workforce within months of their infant’s birth. This development has significant impacts on early childhood service provision, particularly in relation to addressing the cultural needs of infants. A major concern is that Māori and Pacific infants are at risk of cultural deprivation within these services. According to the research reported in this chapter, there is a call within Māori and Pacific communities for Māori and Pacific infants to be raised in culturally responsive ways in early childhood services children’s home language, culture and identity are promoted and maintained. In Aotearoa/ New Zelanad, infant caregiving theory is largely based on Western European theory and principles that promote individualism and independence, and this will be elaborated upon in the chapter. This chapter outlines findings from a nationwide Aotearoa/ New Zealand online survey conducted with Māori and Polynesian Pacific “language nest” teachers on traditional cultural practices for Māori and Polynesian infants. The language nest philosophies and programmes promote culture, language and traditional practices. Respondents expressed the desire for autonomy in providing culturally authentic caregiving practices, and frustration with educational theory and government policies that did not align, or ran contrary to, modern cultural practice. Research findings revealed Māori and Polynesian Pacific traditional cultural values, beliefs and practices, and from this common base is an emerging Polynesian theoretical model of infant caregiving practices. It is anticipated that a Polynesian theory of infant caregiving will guide Aotearoa/ New Zealand’s early childhood education services and government policy, ensuring culturally responsive practices for Māori and Polynesian Pacific infants and their families.

text: Māori and Pacific traditional caregiving practices: Voices from the community Increasing numbers of Māori and Pacific infants are enrolled in early childhood services in Aotearoa/New Zealand. This phenomenon is part of a larger societal trend in which mother return to the workforce within months of their infant’s birth. This development has significant impacts on early childhood service provision, particularly in relation to addressing the cultural needs of infants. A major concern is that Māori and Pacific infants are at risk of cultural deprivation within these services. According to the research reported in this chapter, there is a call within Māori and Pacific communities for Māori and Pacific infants to be raised in culturally responsive ways in early childhood services children’s home language, culture and identity are promoted and maintained. In Aotearoa/ New Zelanad, infant caregiving theory is largely based on Western European theory and principles that promote individualism and independence, and this will be elaborated upon in the chapter. This chapter outlines findings from a nationwide Aotearoa/ New Zealand online survey conducted with Māori and Polynesian Pacific “language nest” teachers on traditional cultural practices for Māori and Polynesian infants. The language nest philosophies and programmes promote culture, language and traditional practices. Respondents expressed the desire for autonomy in providing culturally authentic caregiving practices, and frustration with educational theory and government policies that did not align, or ran contrary to, modern cultural practice. Research findings revealed Māori and Polynesian Pacific traditional cultural values, beliefs and practices, and from this common base is an emerging Polynesian theoretical model of infant caregiving practices. It is anticipated that a Polynesian theory of infant caregiving will guide Aotearoa/ New Zealand’s early childhood education services and government policy, ensuring culturally responsive practices for Māori and Polynesian Pacific infants and their families.

year: 2016