title: Metformin induced expression of Hsp60 in human THP-1 monocyte cells

authors: Tsuei, An-Chi

subjects: Metformin

abstract: Metformin is in widespread clinical use for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in patients. It has been shown to inhibit mitochondrial bioenergetic functions by inhibiting complex I of the electron transport chain. The expression of mitochondrial-specific molecular stress protein Hsp60 is a key consequence of mitochondrial impairment. Since this protein has important immune-modulatory properties, we have investigated the expression of Hsp60 in human THP-1 monocyte cells exposed to metformin. In this study, we demonstrate significant up-regulation of Hsp60 at both mRNA and protein levels when these cells were exposed to metformin at therapeutic dosage levels. Interestingly, there was also an increase in expression of CD14 mRNA in these cells. This suggested a possible modulation of the differentiation rates of the THP-1 cells during exposure to metformin. As monocyte differentiation marks a critical step in atherosclerosis, these observations suggest that long-term exposure to metformin could have important implications for the diabetic patient.

text: Metformin induced expression of Hsp60 in human THP-1 monocyte cells Metformin is in widespread clinical use for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in patients. It has been shown to inhibit mitochondrial bioenergetic functions by inhibiting complex I of the electron transport chain. The expression of mitochondrial-specific molecular stress protein Hsp60 is a key consequence of mitochondrial impairment. Since this protein has important immune-modulatory properties, we have investigated the expression of Hsp60 in human THP-1 monocyte cells exposed to metformin. In this study, we demonstrate significant up-regulation of Hsp60 at both mRNA and protein levels when these cells were exposed to metformin at therapeutic dosage levels. Interestingly, there was also an increase in expression of CD14 mRNA in these cells. This suggested a possible modulation of the differentiation rates of the THP-1 cells during exposure to metformin. As monocyte differentiation marks a critical step in atherosclerosis, these observations suggest that long-term exposure to metformin could have important implications for the diabetic patient.

year: 2011

title: Welcome ground for women faculty in academe: An international perspective

authors: Copper, Joanne

subjects: welcome ground

abstract: With the continued documentation of a persistent hostile or chilly climate for women in academe (Blum, 1991; Cooper, 2002; Curtis, 2005; Glazer-Raymo, 1999), questions arise about whether women faculty can find a home or welcome ground, both in the United States and around the world (Caplan, 1993; Cooper, Benham, Collay, Martinez-Aleman, & Scherr, 1999).  The literature identifies a number of differing ways of viewing the academy as home. For example, Jane Roland Martin (2000) refers to the academy as "the home of thought" (p. 41). In discussing this concept, many women academics talk about finding or forging, if not a home, then welcome ground or a neighborhood. Whatever the term, the connotation is one of a place that is friendly, rather than hostile; one that counters the chilly climate image that Sandler and Hall (1986) have written about.
This article explores the question of finding a home or welcome ground by asking if these concepts are relevant both in the new millennium and in the international arena.  We examine the experiences of women academics in three countries: the United States (US), Aotearoa/New Zealand (NZ), and Romania (Ro). We build on the recent exploration of US women's efforts to find or forge a home (Cooper, Ortiz, Benham, & Scherr, 2002; Cooper, et al., 1999), and explore this concept in three countries that are geographically distant from one another. They are vastly different in size, from the giant United States to the tiny New Zealand, as well as culturally, politically, and economically different. We share the stories of twelve women, four each from the US, NZ, and Romania. Because experiences are embedded in the particular socio-cultural, political conditions of the individual country, the next section will describe existing research about women's experiences in each country.

text: Welcome ground for women faculty in academe: An international perspective With the continued documentation of a persistent hostile or chilly climate for women in academe (Blum, 1991; Cooper, 2002; Curtis, 2005; Glazer-Raymo, 1999), questions arise about whether women faculty can find a home or welcome ground, both in the United States and around the world (Caplan, 1993; Cooper, Benham, Collay, Martinez-Aleman, & Scherr, 1999).  The literature identifies a number of differing ways of viewing the academy as home. For example, Jane Roland Martin (2000) refers to the academy as "the home of thought" (p. 41). In discussing this concept, many women academics talk about finding or forging, if not a home, then welcome ground or a neighborhood. Whatever the term, the connotation is one of a place that is friendly, rather than hostile; one that counters the chilly climate image that Sandler and Hall (1986) have written about.
This article explores the question of finding a home or welcome ground by asking if these concepts are relevant both in the new millennium and in the international arena.  We examine the experiences of women academics in three countries: the United States (US), Aotearoa/New Zealand (NZ), and Romania (Ro). We build on the recent exploration of US women's efforts to find or forge a home (Cooper, Ortiz, Benham, & Scherr, 2002; Cooper, et al., 1999), and explore this concept in three countries that are geographically distant from one another. They are vastly different in size, from the giant United States to the tiny New Zealand, as well as culturally, politically, and economically different. We share the stories of twelve women, four each from the US, NZ, and Romania. Because experiences are embedded in the particular socio-cultural, political conditions of the individual country, the next section will describe existing research about women's experiences in each country.

year: 2006

title: Final arrangements following death: Maori indigenous decision making and tangi

authors: Nikora, Linda Waimarie

subjects: Maori death rituals

abstract: Death is a universal event. It will happen to all of us, yet how we respond to death is particular and influenced by our cultural worlds. This study offers an investigation of the idiographic, of how one woman responded to, and made arrangements to, mourn and bury her mother. Specifically, we explore how she and her whanau (family) under pressure of time and grief and in the absence of clear final wishes, met to consider issues and make decisions about the situation they were confronted with. This case forms part of a much larger programme of research into Maori death rituals, change and adaption. Informing a scholarly audience unfamiliar with the Maori world requires a significant amount of contextual information. The case study is a powerful strategy to achieve this and one that draws readers into deep understanding (Willig, 2008). This case provides insight into the struggles of an indigenous fourth-world people living within the heterogeneity of Aotearoa/New Zealand society; it demonstrates how values change across generations as people live their lives increasingly away from their ancestral homelands; and how traditionally defined roles and responsibilities within the whanau (family) are challenged by members living away from each other.

text: Final arrangements following death: Maori indigenous decision making and tangi Death is a universal event. It will happen to all of us, yet how we respond to death is particular and influenced by our cultural worlds. This study offers an investigation of the idiographic, of how one woman responded to, and made arrangements to, mourn and bury her mother. Specifically, we explore how she and her whanau (family) under pressure of time and grief and in the absence of clear final wishes, met to consider issues and make decisions about the situation they were confronted with. This case forms part of a much larger programme of research into Maori death rituals, change and adaption. Informing a scholarly audience unfamiliar with the Maori world requires a significant amount of contextual information. The case study is a powerful strategy to achieve this and one that draws readers into deep understanding (Willig, 2008). This case provides insight into the struggles of an indigenous fourth-world people living within the heterogeneity of Aotearoa/New Zealand society; it demonstrates how values change across generations as people live their lives increasingly away from their ancestral homelands; and how traditionally defined roles and responsibilities within the whanau (family) are challenged by members living away from each other.

year: 2012-03