Allelic Variation in BRCA Genes Could Be the Key to...

Allelic Variation in BRCA Genes Could Be the Key to Understanding Familial Breast Cancer Introduction Breast cancer is an uncontrollable division of cells within the breast tissue that affects about 12% of women in their lifetime. Cancer can be caused by sporadic mutations influenced by environment or by genetic disposition. Several genes play a role in cell division: Oncogenes are responsible for directing mitosis, and tumor suppression genes prevent the expression of genes involved in cell division. Mutations that occur in either gene can lead to carcinogenic tumor growth and immortal cell lines. BRCA1 and BRCA2 are tumor suppression genes known as caretakers that are responsible for maintaining the cell genome during cell†¦show more content†¦A quantitative allelic imbalance assay was developed to determine differences in gene expression from individual BRCA1/2 alleles. Allele-specific assays quantify gene expression specific to the allele being tested. For the BRCA1 gene, two individuals homozygous for the BRCA1-c.4308T/T or BRCA1-c.4308C/C polymorphism were tested. Complementary DNA (cDNA) was created from reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using RNAs extracted from blood lymphocytes. RT-PCR uses reverse transcriptase to form an RNA/cDNA heteroduplex that is then amplified by normal polymerase chain reaction techniques to produce a large quantity of cDNA. Ratios of the cDNA from the two alleles were mixed for use in real-time PCR (qPCR). qPCR uses fluorescent probes that anneal to the cDNA during PCR. These probes contain a reporter and a quencher; the reporter fluoresces when separated from the quencher, allowing a computer to measure the number of cycles needed for the fluorescence to exceed background levels (cycle threshold or CT). Using the ratios of cDNAs and ∆CT, a linear regression was computed to form an allelic expression standard curve that can be used to evaluate allelic imbalance. These same methods were repeated with BRCA2 with two individuals homozygous for the BRCA2-c.3396A/A or BRCA2-c.3396G/ G allele. The allelic imbalance assay developed was now used with specific single-nucleotide polymorphisms in BRCA1

Quest for Identity in Maxine Hong Kingstons...

Quest for Identity in Maxine Hong Kingstons Autobiography, The Woman Warrior Maxine Hong Kingstons autobiography, The Woman Warrior, features a young Chinese-American constantly searching for an unusual bird that would serve as her impeccable guide on her quest for individuality (49). Instead of the flawless guide she seeks, Kingston develops under the influence of other teachers who either seem more fallible or less realistic. Dependent upon their guidance, she grows under the influence of American and Chinese schools and the role models of Brave Orchid, Fa Mu Lan, and Moon Orchid. Her education by these counselors consequently causes her to abandon her search for an escort, the bird to be found somewhere in the measureless sky,†¦show more content†¦The first response, Yes, I have . . . Thank you. signifies the conventional Chinese response, valuing politeness, displaying modesty and consideration of the other, saving face (Ling 147). However, Kingston wants to give the assimilated American response, valuing honesty and directness, frankly looking o ut for number one, and tinged with humor, and Kingston thinks to herself No, I havent. . . . Im starved. Do you have any cookies? I like chocolate chip cookies (Ling 147). As evidence of Kingstons indecisiveness, Ling clarifies Kingstons cultural disorientation perceptible in her word choice: The expressed fondness for chocolate chip cookies seems a playful and somewhat greedy response, which Im sure Kingston intended. Can it then be that Kingston is advocating Chinese politeness at the same time that she is complaining about it? Is she subverting American directness while seeming to embrace it? (Ling 147). At this point in her autobiography, Kingston remains disoriented about her position in the two enveloping cultures, and Ling suggests this idea by considering the significance of Kingstons two culturally different responses rather than only one- either American or Chinese. Another result of American integration and participation in American

Character Analysis Of Ernest HemingwaysThe Sun Also Rises

In his first novel, The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway displays the destructive lives of expatriate characters living in Paris during the 1920s through the eyes of narrator Jake Barnes. By creating characters with such strong personalities, Hemingway created a story that â€Å"is much more a novel of character than event [where] the action would seem empty were it not for the rich texture of personalities that interact throughout the book† (Nagel 90). One of the defining features of some of the protagonists is their uncertainty about who they are, and their quest to change and form their identity comes to a culmination when they decide to go to Spain to watch the annual bullfights at San Fermin. The careful boundaries that they constructed†¦show more content†¦Yet, at the same time, there is the symbolism of the steer in the bullfights. Similar to Jake, the steers are castrated and thus unable to propagate. As he tells Bill, the â€Å"steers [are] in the corral to receive [the bulls] and keep them from fighting, and the bulls tear in at the steers and the steers run around like old maids trying to quiet them down† (Hemingway 138). While the bulls serve as a reminder to Jake, the simultaneous presence of the steers in the corral implies that he can never truly move on in his life without his wound impacting his life. Using powerful imagery to describe the bulls, such as the comparison to old maids, could echo Jake’s possible worries that one day he, too, will be an old maid, with no family to support him and no path in life to follow. In the big scheme of the bullfight, the steers are unimportant and feminine, leading Jake to question himself. Does his injury mean he is a steer, or is he greater than his injury? For Jake to figure out who he is, the idea of the bullfight could with him, and it is possible that he returns on a yearly basis to work out his problems with his identity. To others, Jake’s dedication to the bullfight is evident. When Jake and Bill arrive at Pamplona, the hotelkeeper, Montoya, decides that Bill is â€Å"not aficionado like [Jake] is† (Hemingway 136). Going on to describe aficionado as â€Å"one who is passionate about the bull-fights†,

Investment And Conflict Of Romantic Relationships

Investment and Conflict in Romantic Relationships Com 620 Mark Pace and Bo Zhang Investment Model The theory of relationship investment is an effort to understand maintenance of ongoing relationships. This model is an expansion of Kelly and Thirbaut’s (1978) interdependence theory, which specifies that satisfaction is a function of the reward value of a relationship, relative to expectations, and that commitment stems from the superiority of a relationship, compared with viable alternatives. Interdependence assumes that we evaluate the rewards and costs of our own and our partner’s various behaviors in a relationship, and that both partner’s actions and preferences impact the nature of the relationship. Rusbult (1980) expanded interdependence theory to include that commitment was determined by satisfaction, quality of alternatives, and investments with subcategories of intrinsic, and extrinsic. Intrinsic includes example ideas like emotion and time while extrinsic includes ideas like mutual friends and shared activities. Rustbult’ s ex pansion included the value of resources gained through involvement in a relationship and also resources devoted to developing the association. This model views the ending of a relationship as a loss of resources. Further research such as longitudinal studies on the topic of investment have only strengthened the theory (Bui, Peplau, Hill 1996). The investment model predicts that commitment should increase as the relationshipShow MoreRelatedThe Brain Is Wider Than The Sky1416 Words   |  6 Pagesfathom today. This mental state, depression has affected countless people throughout time. To get to our central point, depression causes deterioration in relationships, especially romantic ones. To understand how to mend relationships and build ourselves up as a community, we need to begin a discussion about depression within romantic relationships. 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Although narcissism tends to be looked down upon, studies have shown that there are positives associated with people who possess this trait, both in their personal lives and in romantic relationships. The purpose of this literature review is to study what is known about narcissism in relationships, the bright side of narcissists and how they can contribute to society, and topics for futureRead MoreThe Development Of The Pair Bond1513 Words   |  7 Pagesculture the relationship most often discussed when describing human interaction and that which is considered the most â€Å"ideal† or â€Å"normal† relationship (demonstrated by cultural morality and various forms of media) is that of the male-female couple. This pair-bonding is a phenomenon that exists to some degree in the natural world, but occurs most prominently in humans. 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“Social Construction of Reality” Free Essays

â€Å"Social Construction of Reality† Reality is not an objective thing that is imposed upon us, but is created by us. Reality does not exist externally but internally, as each individual or group interprets it, and is always changing. Due to these concepts sociologists often speak about the â€Å"social construction of reality† which is essential to understand when attempting to explain human social behavior. We will write a custom essay sample on â€Å"Social Construction of Reality† or any similar topic only for you Order Now Since realty is the basis of people’s actions, W. I. Thomas states, â€Å"If people define situations as real, they are real in their consequences†. The â€Å"social construction of reality†, human social behavior and W. I. Thomas’s statement are three concepts that fit hand in hand and are important when trying to explain one another. Sociologists speak about the â€Å"social construction of reality† as a way to describe the significance of how society shapes our definition of reality. People coming together to build reality and define something as real because we define it as real. As sociologists explain the social construction of reality they have observed that each society or the social groups that each person belongs to forms ones particular views on life. Our â€Å"social construction of reality† constructs our views of how we see the world around us therefore affecting how we see reality and why we do the things we do. People construct reality using the five senses: sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste. For example, when taking a table into consideration, one does not react to the concrete object but the meaning we give it. If this same table were to fall out of the sky, land in a jungle and tribe people were to stumble across it they most likely would not use it in the same context but maybe as a bed or a sacrificial altar. The â€Å"social construction of reality† not only applies to inanimate objects but to relationships and the basis of how someone treats someone else, such as symbolic interactionism (Essentials of Sociology, pg. 15). Symbolic interactionism such as we attach meaning to things and this is how everyone understands similar views in the world and how we communicate with one another. This is evident when one dissects the idea of the enslavement of Africans, known as the â€Å"white mans burden†. Whites defined blacks as less than human, savages or creatures that could not survive off of their own minimal cognitive reasoning. This understanding was the basis of slavery. Another example is the idea of marriage and divorce, and how the institution is ever changing. Up until the early 1900’s marriage was viewed as a lifelong commitment, divorce was â€Å"taboo† and shunned as being immoral and the abandonment of adult responsibility. In 1945 sociologists Ernest Burgess and Harvey Locke noted that couples were looking at marriage as less of a lifelong commitment and more of an arrangement that was based on attraction and feelings, it became a situation that could be broken when feelings changed. Divorce became more common and was defined more positive as freedom and new beginnings (Essentials of Sociology, pg. 16). An example of another â€Å"reality† is how from person to person there is no true definition of success. The letter grade â€Å"B† brings on different emotions depending on the individual. One student would jump for joy to pass with the â€Å"B† while others would be sad, even cry. In actuality â€Å"B† is just a shape, a letter of the English alphabet, given on paper but what the person defines it as gives it meaning to their reality, and then forget about the â€Å"+† or â€Å"-â€Å" given accompanied with the letter grade. Our social construction of reality defines our behavior and how we respond to the meaning that we give these situations or objects. Human social behavior is what is based off of once a reality is socially constructed. This is why it is so important to first understand the concept of the â€Å"social construction of reality† before trying to explain why people act the way they do. Because this object with four legs attached to a flat surface is defined as a â€Å"table† one uses it to eat on or sit at and not other things such as sleep on. If an individual were to use it as something else they would be looked at as being weird because they are not doing what is socially accepted or viewed as â€Å"breaking the rules†. The concept of ethnocentrism is where a group of people tries to change another group of people to make them like them so they can â€Å"save† them for their own good. This is done because according to their social construction of reality however the opposing group behaves is â€Å"wrong†. This can be seen throughout history for example the crusades, as stated before the â€Å"white mans burden† in Africa, and the war in Iraq. During the days of slavery, treating a black individual maliciously was socially accepted because of the way reality was constructed. The changing attitudes toward marriage and divorce are evident when one looks at the trends. Marriage is not viewed the same as it was 100 years ago; it is not necessary to be married forming a family by age 15. This concept of social construction of reality also explains why patterns form and how people can develop similar behavior without having to know each other. On the streets of New York good sidewalk etiquette is defined as passing another person on the right, walking far enough not to brush the other person ,if one can help it, and ensuring not to look at the person when walking by. However, when any of these rules are broken it makes the other individual uneasy or even angry. But these unwritten rules aren’t necessarily the same in different parts of the world, for example in London it is socially correct that if you are walking towards and passing someone else that you part ways on the left side. Other areas where unwritten rules exist are in elevators, such as where and how to stand, and also seen in face-to-face conversations, such as eye contact and distance something known as â€Å"personal space†. Ones views for what is right from wrong also comes from the foundation on what one defines as real. W. I. Thomas’s quote, â€Å"If men define a situation as real, its real in its consequences† correlates directly to the idea that human social behavior is based off of the â€Å"social construction of reality†. Thomas is analyzing that reality is a social product that is construed by whatever we define as real. Humans do what they do and react solely by the meaning we give things and not the things in and of itself. This is why money, gold and diamonds are â€Å"valuable†. Money is simply made of paper but because it is defined as currency we make it out to be very valuable. To better understand this notion one can take note of our system of crime and punishment, which is based off of W. I. Thomas’s thoughts. When the jury makes a decision, they are deciding on what they perceive as reality. They do not know exactly what happened but from witnesses and evidence they make this judgment. W. I. Thomas’s idea is significant in the study of human social behavior because it further proves that human actions are based off of the reality that something is true. This is why what is defined as â€Å"normal† varies from culture to culture and the decided meaning to an object or action is arbitrary. The â€Å"social construction of reality†, human social behavior and W. I. Thomas’s quote, â€Å"If men define a situation as real, it is real in its consequences† are concepts that compliment one another. To be able to understand fully, one must be able to comprehend all concepts. When sociologists speak about the â€Å"social construction of reality† through the groups that we belong to we learn ways of looking at whatever happens to us and what we see because through social interaction is how we construct reality and from that point on is how we behave and respond. It’s not a question of which came first the chicken or the egg, because in the eyes of sociologists human social behavior is caused by the â€Å"social construction or reality† and W. I. Thomas’s statement is an abridgment of these concepts explaining men’s definitions of situations given the meaning of what is what or who is who. It doesn’t matter what is real or not, what does exist or not exist, because we give meaning or â€Å"consequences† to this reality that has been portrayed and instilled in our minds. References Henslin, J. M. 2011. Essentials of Sociology: A Down-to-Earth Approach-9th edition. Pearson. How to cite â€Å"Social Construction of Reality†, Papers

Courtesy Key to a Happier World free essay sample

Every culture, society, individual and origination among the world has its own courtesy as a sign of respect and civility. The courtesy shows the politeness, attitude and behavior to others, although it may be varied among societies and individuals. In every society, the courtesy has its own golden rule that people try to live by. The courtesy is positively influenced by the religion, culture and civilization. In most of the Arab culture, the golden rule of the courtesy is the generosity. The Arab culture is considered one of the most hospitable cultures in the world. The Arab culture guests always experience generosity, hospitality and friendship. The Arab’s generosity is inherited from one generation to another regardless the time, place and religion. In pre-Islamic phase, there was a famous and generous man called Hatem Al-Taeei. He was a Christian and known by his extreme generosity that made him well known in Arab society up to date. We will write a custom essay sample on Courtesy: Key to a Happier World or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page There is a saying in Arabic More generous than Hatem that represent how generous the person is. One of the stories that made him so famous in generosity, he sacrificed his favorite and only horse for his guests, as he had nothing to serve them. Another example of the Arab’s generosity is during the early Islamic phase when the Holy Prophet Mohammad (S) established brotherhood among the Muslims. These Muslims had left all their wealth and possessions in Makka to come with the Holy Prophet (S) to Madina. They had no wealth or property. The other Muslims in Madina gave over one half of their wealth to their new brothers so that they could live comfortably in Madina. On the other hand, Islam is promoting the generosity and there are a lot of sayings support the generosity. People are applying the generosity as rule in their daily live. They were inspired by the good stories in the past and by the current Islamic rules as well. In conclusion, the generosity of the Arab’s societies is not changed by time, place or religion. It is applied by all generation in pre-Islamic, early Islamic phase and now days. In Arab’s society, people try to be generous as they could even if the price is too high.