McGill University Thèses et mémoires publiés en 2002

The growth of an organism involves the proliferation and migration of cells within an extracellular matrix. As a cell surface receptor, the Dag1 gene product dystroglycan links the intracellular cytoskeleton to the extracellular basement membrane in many cells. Thought to act as a structural protein dystroglycan may also participate in signal transduction. This study aims to better understand the role of dystroglycan during kidney morphogenesis. I hypothesised that a lack of dystroglycan in the precursor cells of the kidney could lead to altered kidney growth. Chimaeric mice deficient in dystroglycan were generated to test this hypothesis. A total of 38 …  Lire la suite

Building on earlier work, notably Kager (1993, 1995) and framed in Optimality Theory (Prince & Smolensky 1993), this thesis presents a theory of foot structure in which the asymmetric maximal expansions of iambic and trochaic feet (cf. the Iambic/Trochaic Law: 1TL, e.g. Hayes 1995) are accounted for by a single constraint, HEAD GOVERNMENT (Mellander 2001c, 2002b). The present analysis devotes special attention to a class of quantitative processes in trochaic systems which generate uneven (HL) trochaic feet. In contrast to previous analyses (e.g. Hayes 1995), such processes are shown to be of phonological rather than phonetic nature in certain languages, …  Lire la suite

Six studies were conducted to examine the influence of various cognitive and social factors underlying children's suggestibility. In Study 1, a misinformation paradigm was used to assess if the addition of visual information to verbal reminders increases preschool children's accurate and inaccurate recall of an experienced event. The results showed that the presentation of pictorial information with verbal reminders increased children's susceptibility to misinformation; however, generation of guided visual imagery produced the same misinformation effects as simple verbal reminders. Study 2 examined the influence of guided visual imagery on kindergarten and grade 3 children's reports of an entire event. Children …  Lire la suite

In capture-recapture studies, the estimate of the size of the population is biased when members differ in the probability of capture by any source. Different log-linear models can account for the heterogeneity among individuals, using covariate information. We compare different methods modeling this observable heterogeneity using data from the Auckland Leg Ulcer Study, 1997--1998. One method is based on the Coefficient of Source Dependence (CSD) and the other one is based on logistic regression. We find that these methods reduce the bias of the estimate and we recommend their use.  Lire la suite

The main contribution of this work is to extend the present multi-path fading channel (MFC) models in two directions. First, the wireless communication system is viewed as a dynamical system where the channel constitutes the main plant of such a system. The random variables characterizing the magnitude of each multi-path component are generalized to random processes with time-varying statistics. It is claimed that the dynamics of both the log-normal shadowing and short-term fading channels is captured by the use of stochastic diffusion processes which emerge from mean-reverting Ornstein-Uhlenbeck processes, implying that signal envelope variations can be modeled using stochastic differential …  Lire la suite

This thesis attempts to establish the First Turkish History Congress (July 2--11, 1932) as an exemplary moment that can help us understand the relationship between nationalism and historiography. The thesis first examines the roots of nationalist historiography in the West and in Ottoman Empire, and then paraphrases the proceedings of the congress in detail. It arrives at the view that during the formation of a nation state in alignment with European standards, Turkish nationalists within the Ottoman Empire often found it necessary to review the methodology and the content of history books. The break with Ottoman historiography was a result …  Lire la suite

This classroom-based interpretive inquiry investigates how the teaching strategies used in a grade-three classroom in a small, private, arts-based primary school implement the arts mission of the school. Further, it explores the relationship between art subjects [music, visual arts, theater, and dance] taught in art ateliers and academic subjects taught in the classroom. The art teachers' practices and the classroom teacher's practices are conceptualized within a Vygotskian socio-cultural framework. Further theoretical background is provided by the literature from art-based curriculum studies, developmental psychology, philosophy of education, and theories of qualitative research. This inquiry challenges the traditional view of arts reflected …  Lire la suite

The concept of a semi-batch process for the intermittent treatment of effluent containing dissolved heavy metals was proposed. Like the high density sludge (HDS) process, heavy metals are removed by precipitation in the presence of other solids. The effects of cycling, neutralization rate, temperature, and solution composition were investigated. Sludge density, percent solids, sludge viscosity, and settling velocity of the solids generated were used to characterize the system. Experiments were performed on iron (III) and zinc solutions. For the iron system, it was shown that the solids generated were in the form of aggregates rather than discrete particles. Both cycling …  Lire la suite

Jurgen Habermas is a second-generation social philosopher of the Frankfurt school, the birthplace of critical theory. He suggests that modernity is a project of substituting rationality for religion. In his analysis, such a succession is the result of a process of social evolution, in which each developmental stage has its basic concepts and modes of understanding subjective, objective, and social worlds. For him, the salient feature of rationality consists of differentiation between various validity claims of truth, truthfulness, and sincerity which are indistinguishable in religious language. The rationalization of religion, hence, progresses in terms of a differentiation between validity claims, …  Lire la suite

We show, by internal analysis of the texts and references to other contemporary texts, that from 1470 to 1550 the French polyphonic chanson reveals more than ever before a strong tendency to pertain to the "popular" and its related categories, the "carnavalesque" and the "grotesque". From a corpus of close to a thousand popular chansons selected according to the courtly and "good life" "registers", we can assert that, in spite of the essentially learned dimension of polyphonic music, it is the textual component that seems to be popular. This is what indicates the study of their carnavalesque images and the …  Lire la suite

B-T lymphocyte interaction within lymphoid tissues following antigen exposure is a crucial step in the generation of high affinity antibody. Due to its expression pattern and specificity for B lymphocytes, CC Chemokine Ligand 19 (CCL19) may help initiate the adaptive humoral immune response following antigen exposure. Here we show CCL 19 induced [Ca2+]i mobilization, chemotaxis and rescue from apoptosis in B lymphocytes. Because CCL19 is constitutively expressed, we studied the expression and signalling properties of its corresponding chemokine receptor, CC chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7) in various B cell populations. We found that CCL19 responsive CCR7 + cells belonged to distinct …  Lire la suite

Obtaining equations of motion is quite demanding but indispensable for the simulation of a multibody system, especially in space applications. This thesis is devoted to establishing a dynamics formalism and modeling tool in the framework of the objectoriented method for flexible multibody systems in a tree topology. In order to manage the modular construct as well as to take the material flexibility of body into account, the formulations are based on the Euler-Lagrange method in conjunction with the natural orthogonal complement of the kinematic constraint matrix. The elements constituting the dynamics of multibody mechanical systems are identified under the standard …  Lire la suite

Adaptor proteins provide mechanisms by which extracellular signals are amplified and downstream effector proteins are regulated. Cytokine-dependent hemopoietic cell linker (Clnk), a third member of the SLP-76 family of adaptor molecules, was previously shown to be a positive regulator of TCR signaling. To better understand the role of Clnk in the immune cell signaling network, we first sought to identify additional, unknown, Clnk-binding partners, ultimately confirming the known partners, namely HPK1 and Fyb. Further studies surrounding the Clnk-HPK1 interaction illustrated important binding regions between the two proteins. Stable transfection studies of Clnk in the SLP-76 deficient cell line, J14, revealed …  Lire la suite

The aggregation behaviour of sphalerite suspension and the role of zinc and magnesium ions are investigated. Aggregation is monitored by suspension analysis (turbidity) and optical microscopy and, in particular, a conductivity-settling technique. To probe the mechanisms, electrophoretic mobility (zeta potential) measurements and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) imaging are used. In the case of sphalerite alone, for samples from a variety of sources, aggregation occurred at pH 8--10, well above the range in iso-electric point (pH 2--6). The aggregation is attributed to the presence of Zn(OH) 2, the dominant species over this pH range. To test whether zinc hydrolysis …  Lire la suite

The mathematical theory of communication has grown considerably since its inception 50 years ago. There are many problems that have been solved from the information theoretic perspective; yet remain open from the coding point of view. In particular, it is known what the optimum achievable performance of a certain system is, yet no practical coding scheme that achieves the optimal performance is known. This thesis is concerned with two such source coding problems: the Slepian-Wolf problem and the Wyner-Ziv problem. This thesis also investigates the related source coding problems of data compression and noise robust data compression. A unified framework, …  Lire la suite

This study examined job satisfaction among social workers in a correctional environment. A model was derived that defines job satisfaction as an attitude based on environmental and personal factors. The purpose of this research project was to examine what factors based on the model, lead to job satisfaction within the Ministry of Public Safety and Security using the Job Satisfaction Survey (Spector, 1997). Questionnaires and surveys were sent to all social work and psychology staff employed in a correctional institution across Ontario. Results support the model that both environmental and personal factors influence the perception and assessment of job satisfaction. …  Lire la suite

Many practical problems in engineering can be modelled as linear dynamical systems with periodically varying coefficients. This thesis proposes a new design method for the control of these linear time-periodic systems. First, Floquet-Lyapunov theory is used to derive the Floquet factors of the state-transition matrix of a given system. We introduce a novel approach to obtain every real representation. It is demonstrated that the periodicity of the periodic factor can be determined a priori using a constant matrix, which we call the Yakubovich matrix, based upon the signs of the eigenvalues of the monodromy matrix. We then introduce a novel …  Lire la suite

The CDP/Cux transcription factor contains four DNA binding domains: three Cut repeats (CR1, CR2 and CR3) and the Cut homeodomain (HD). The CCAAT-displacement protein (CDP) was first identified as it represses transcription of certain promoters by competing for the occupancy of the CCAAT sequence. CDP was then found to be the ortholog of the Drosophila Cut protein (Cux: Cu t homeobox&barbelow;). The goal of my project was to define the modes of interactions of CDP/Cux with DNA. I demonstrated that high affinity DNA binding requires the cooperation between at least two of the CDP/Cux DNA binding domains. Among all combinations …  Lire la suite

Nuclear factor-erythroid 2 (NF-E2) is a basic leucine zipper (bZIP) transcription factor that recognizes the DNA binding site [(T/C)GCTGA(G/C)TCA (T/C)] that contains a central AP-1 motif (underlined), but is distinct from AP-1 factors (Jun, Fos) due to the requirement of residues outside of the AP-1 core. NF-E2 is a heterodimer comprised of a cap'n'collar factor (p45) and a small Maf protein (MafF, G or K). It has been shown that NF-E2 promotes the opening of chromatin throughout the beta-globin loci, promoting gene expression and erythroid differentiation. Also, the p45 subunit is restricted to hematopoietic progenitor, erythroid, megakaryocytic and mast cells …  Lire la suite

In this thesis, the problem of closed loop control during the thermoforming sheet reheat process is considered. The approach aims to improve the material distribution of a formed thermoplastic part via better sheet temperature control prior to forming. Improved control of material distribution will increase part quality and result in fewer part rejects, thereby increasing production efficiency. A process model consisting of individual components describing sensor, heater, and sheet heating dynamics has been developed. Recommendations for improvements to the process model, particularly for the sheet heating model, are also made. An in-cycle control strategy is proposed and the feasibility of …  Lire la suite

The goals of the research in this thesis are twofold. First, I designed and tested a stair-traversing controller, which allows RHex to ascend and descend a wide variety of human sized stairs. I tested the stair-ascending controller on nine different flights of stairs, and the stair-descending controller on four different flights of stairs. Rhex was run ten times on each flight, and met with only a single failure out of the one-hundred-and-thirty attempts. Second, we built and tested three competing leg designs. The second and third leg designs proved adequate for use on RHex, enabling dynamic and off road behaviors. …  Lire la suite

Information Warfare involves the attack and defense of information and information systems, both in time of armed conflict and in operations short of war. While information technology provides the promise of a new class of less lethal military instruments, it also presents vulnerabilities occasioned by widespread dependence on an increasingly complex and interconnected global information infrastructure. These vulnerabilities, when exploited by those who would target civilians in order to inspire widespread fear in hopes of accomplishing a political agenda, can be understood as cyber-terrorism. As information warfare techniques evolve, those employing them should look to several relevant sources for normative …  Lire la suite

The present study is centered on understanding the gender concepts teachers have, and the form in which their gender perspective is related to the way teachers of a Mexican Montessori elementary school interact with their students according to the child's gender in the early elementary school years. The type of messages teachers are sending to children when they are in the classroom in relation to the concepts of masculinity and feminity are discussed. The analysis is rooted in qualitative research methodology and the gender category. Gender is seen as a social phenomenon. The paper deals with the work that has …  Lire la suite

Hierarchical habitat selection was studied in the North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) in Parc National du Bic, Quebec, Canada. To establish the study population, 150 porcupines were captured and immobilized using a mixture of ketamine and xylazine. Different drug doses and injection techniques were tested. Best results were obtained by injecting in the tail muscles, which allowed a 50% reduction in dose relative to reported dosage. Hierarchical analysis of habitat selection revealed that although porcupines are generalists at the landscape scale, they display habitat selection at the home range and individual tree scales. Human-used land and conifer forests were least …  Lire la suite

Neufeld, Ronald J. (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

5-chloro-3-(phenylsulfonyl) indole-2-carboxamide (CSIC) and clinically used efavirenz (EFV, SustivaRTM) are nonnucleoside inhibitors of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) polymerization. They have unusually low IC50 values, which are in the range of the enzyme concentration used in the assay. Their binding constants (KiCSIC = 0.1 nM, KiEFV = 8.5 nM) indicate that like UC781 (Ki = 2.4 nM) (Barnard et al., 1997), CSIC and EFV (Maga et al., 2000) are also tight-binding nonnucleoside inhibitors (TBNNI) of HIV-1 RT. As expected, TBNNI dissociate from HIV-1 RT slowly (6.4 x 10 -4--2.2 x 10-3 s-1 ). On the other hand, while we have confirmed …  Lire la suite

Mammalian prosomatostatin (PSST) yields two bioactive peptides SST-14 and SST-28 through C-terminal cleavage at basic residues by protein convertases (PCs). Additionally, a second cleavage, mediated by an unknown enzyme at a putative Lys13 residue at the NH2-termius generates PSST[1--10] (antrin). The function of the PSST prosegment is unknown, but its high degree of sequence homology throughout vertebrate evolution argues that it may harbor information for directing PSST towards the regulated secretory pathway (RSP). Therefore, the PSST NH2-terminal region has been extensively analyzed with the following questions asked: Does the NH2-terminus play a role in targeting of PSST to the RSP? …  Lire la suite

Analysing the financial fate of the surviving spouse in French and Ontario law reveals him or her to be both a partner and an heir. The patrimonial union between the spouses is indeed a partnership which is terminated by the death of one spouse. Moreover, marriage introduces each spouse into his or her partner's family for the purposes of succession. The dual character of status of the surviving spouse is the basis of the argument, advanced in this thesis, that this duality represents an important commonality between the French and Ontario legal systems, notwithstanding the disparities between the two. One …  Lire la suite

A method to synthesize a diastereomeric mixture of 2',5 '-phophorothioate A(psG) dimers in solution was developed. The sulfurizing reagent "EDITH" allowed for the synthesis of the diastereomeric mixture of dimers with minimal formation of oxidized side products. The separation of the two isomers was carried out using silica gel flash chromatography to afford the stereoisomerically pure Rp and S p dimers. The orthogonal solution-phase coupling of the individual dimers to the appropriately protected monomers allowed for the creation of the corresponding branched trimers bearing vicinal 2',5'-phophorothioate and 3',5'-phosphodiester linkages. Conversely, a convergent solid-phase strategy applicable to the synthesis of branched …  Lire la suite

A G protein-coupled receptor with structural characteristics of a biogenic amine GPCR was cloned from Schistosoma mansoni (SmGPCR). SmGPCR was codon-optimized and double-tagged with FLAG and His epitopes at the N- and C-terminal ends, respectively. Immunofluorescence experiments targeting these epitopes revealed that the expression of codon-optimized SmGPCR was highly increased compared to wild-type in mammalian cells. These studies also demonstrated that SmGPCR has a typical GPCR topology, the N-terminus being extracellular and C-terminus intracellular. Functional assays revealed that codon-optimized SmGPCR was responsive only to histamine, which caused a dose-dependent increase in intracellular Ca2+ (EC50 = 0.54 +/- 0.05 muM), but …  Lire la suite

Background. Daycare centres play a role in hepatitis A infection epidemiology; however, there is little information on this infection among daycare educators in Canada. Objective. To determine hepatitis A seroprevalence and risk factors among daycare educators. Methods. Directors and educators from randomly selected daycare centres in Montreal completed questionnaires on daycare-level and educator-level characteristics. Sera were collected during on-site visits. Results. The seroprevalence of hepatitis A among the 492 participating educators was 35.6% (15.9% among Canadian-born educators). Risk factors included: region of birth by income-level (OR = 20.8; 95% CI: 9.4, 46.0); report of previous hepatitis A vaccination (OR = …  Lire la suite

When mixing in a tank is insufficient solid particles are known to form a concentration gradient along the height. The one-dimensional sedimentation dispersion model provides a relationship between mixing parameters and the solids concentration gradient. An investigation of the relationship between the solid mixing properties and the solids residence time distribution, as derived from the sedimentation dispersion model has been conducted. Experimental results show that the solids residence time distribution was a function of particle size and differed from that for the liquid phase. An empirical correlation for the solids Peclet number to predict the residence time distribution of the …  Lire la suite

The socio-political tranquility of Hyderabad-Deccan preceding 1948 facilitated much educational and cultural advancement. This rapidly developing environment provided Hamidullah with the ideal opportunity for educational growth, having earned five degrees related to the field of law by the age of 28 in 1936. He began writing at age 18, and thereafter he dedicated his life to literary pursuits. Today, he has written over 100 books and 900 articles; he speaks over 20 languages and writes in over 10 languages. Along with one of his major areas of focus, Islamic constitutional law, he has written on a variety of other subject …  Lire la suite

Damha, Masad J. (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

Tree classifiers partition the feature space into regions based on simple binary decisions called splitting rules. It can be shown that many splitting rules are not universally consistent, meaning that they may not converge to the optimal solution. This thesis introduces a method for growing decision trees grown with a consistent splitting rule, using random jumps and local optimizations to avoid an otherwise computationally expensive task. The tree classifier is tested on synthetic and natural data, showing comparable performance with other machine learning methods. In addition, a new data set is introduced to perform automatic classification of underwater mines from …  Lire la suite

Emerging wireless communication systems strive for very high data rates, increased coverage and good quality of service. To achieve these goals under harsh conditions on many wireless channels (e.g., due to fading, multipath interference, power constraints and bandwidth limitations), both antenna diversity schemes and channel coding should be utilized. This thesis focuses on achieving reliable transmission over a class of multi-input multi-output Rayleigh faded channels at very low Signal-to-Noise Ratios (SNRs). The transmitter and receiver designs are based on turbo coding, multiple transmit/receive antennas and turbo equalization. Simulation studies were performed for systems with different coding rates, numbers of antennas …  Lire la suite

This dissertation presents solid-state NMR studies of the chain conformation, dynamics and morphology of three adsorbed polymer systems: two random semi-crystalline copolymers, poly(ethylene-co-acrylic acid) (PEA) and poly(propylene-co-acrylic acid) (PPA), and an amorphous homopolymer, poly(n-butyl methacrylate) (PnBMA). Zirconia (ZrO2) was chosen as the substrate for all three polymers since the binding of carboxylic acids to this metal oxide is well understood. The choice of polymers was based on their particular bulk conformational and dynamic properties as well as their common use in polymer coatings. These studies are motivated by the general lack of a microscopic picture of adsorbed polymers, which can …  Lire la suite

Hoffmann's Work is not just a reflection of a life. It is a work of art, an artwork. A common understanding of what art is and should be forms the background to the diverse works' heterogeneous forms of expression. Although the focus of this paper is on one of Hoffmann's Works, it reveals Hoffmann's ideas and ideals as a human being and romantic author, as well as his philosophical outlook on life ("Weltanschauung"). In Hoffmann's "The Devil's Elixirs," practically impossible events often serve a psychological function, by projecting the hero's internal processes externally and portraying mental or emotional events in …  Lire la suite

The purpose of this research was to design a method for the detailed comparison of processes. People already do process measurement and compare these measurements to internal or regulatory standards. The innovation in this thesis is the development of an algorithm for process comparison that accommodates any process, responds to any kind of semantic junction in the process model, deals with uncertain process data, and compares all or part of a process. This is done by the activity-by-activity comparison of data and measurements from an actual process to a model of a process. IDEF3 diagrams were used for process modeling, …  Lire la suite

About 40% of human pregnancies are unsuccessful and many of these are thought to be genetically normal. Our hypothesis is that decidual NK cells in abortion prone pregnancies produce IFN-gamma which primes macrophages. These primed macrophages are then triggered by a second signal to become the major effectors in early embryo resorption. Analysis of individual implantation sites was performed at day 9 of pregnancy to determine the cytokine profile of these NK cells and if NK cells selectively infiltrate the decidua of embryos that will undergo resorption. Use of a pan-NK cell marker (DX5) allowed labeling of decidual NK cells …  Lire la suite

Diksic, M. (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

To investigate the role of neurofilaments (NFs) in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), levels of the three subunits were genetically manipulated in transgenic mice expressing a mutant superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1 G37R). Reducing the amount of NFs in motor axons and thereby reducing axonal caliber, did not slow down motor neuron disease in SOD1G37R mice. Moreover, increasing the density of NFs in axons by human NF-L overexpression did not accelerate pathology either. Therefore, it is concluded that a high NF content and a large caliber of axons may not account for the selective degeneration of motor neurons in ALS mice. Surprisingly, …  Lire la suite

Turbo codes are recommended in all leading third generation wireless standards. It is there-fore of interest to examine their performance in fading channels, specifically for the scenario where the channel state information is not available at the receiver. The scheme studied in this thesis is based on combined modeling of the convolutional code and the channel state uncertainties using a finite state machine. The combined model forms a supertrellis, whose structure is exploited in the SISO MAP (Soft Input Soft Output Maximum A Posterior) module. Properties of convolutional codes with respect to the reflection invariance are studied. It is shown …  Lire la suite

The aim of this study was to: (a) identify risk factors for the development of venothromboembolism in a trauma population, (b) evaluate whether risk factors vary with increasing Injury Severity Score (ISS), and (c) assess the predictive ability of the Risk Assessment Profile for Thromboembolism (RAPT) in this trauma population. There were 7532 admissions for trauma between 1993 and 1998 to the Montreal General Hospital trauma center. A nested case-control design was used. Cases were defined as all patients with radiological evidence of either a deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolus during their admission. Controls were patients satisfying the same …  Lire la suite

Certain types of dead, inactive biomass can very effectively immobilize and concentrate heavy metals. In this work, a (bio-)sorption process has been studied using the biomass of waste crab shells which is particularly suited for extracting anionic metal species such as gold-cyanide, chromate and vanadate. These metal species are much difficult to remove from solutions. The current work demonstrated the crab-shell biosorbent potential. Acid Washed Ucides cordatus Shells (AWUS) removed more metal than other excellent biosorbents such as Bacillus (bacterium), Penicillium (fungus) or Sargassum (alga), with metal uptakes up to 0.79 mmol V/g dry AWUS, 0.54 mmol Cr/g, and 0.17 …  Lire la suite

MacKaay, E. Jan (Supervisor)  Lire la suite

The proper regulation of Hox gene expression during development is crucial for normal patterning to occur along the anterior-posterior axis of the embryo. Misexpression of Hox genes often results in homeotic transformations whereby structures located in anterior regions of the embryo resemble posterior-derived structures. In vertebrate embryos, treatment with retinoic acid (RA) during specific gestation times can anteriorize the borders of Hox gene expression resulting in homeotic transformations. RA exerts transcriptional control through nuclear receptors of the RXR and RAR families by binding DNA as a heterodimer at an RA response element (RARE). Previously, our laboratory characterized an RARE in …  Lire la suite

Potato ranks fourth after wheat, rice and corn as a major food crop. It is an excellent source of nutrients and at the same time relatively inexpensive, therefore it is the mainstay in the diets of people in both developed and developing countries. Potato losses and quality degradation due to the effect of storage variables or processing conditions must be reduced to increase the world food supply. To accomplish these objectives, studies have been conducted to evaluate: (a) quality changes in potatoes during cooking and frying, (b) quality changes in raw potatoes as influenced by storage conditions, (c) changes in …  Lire la suite

The objective of this thesis is to investigate the proteins interacting with specific DNA sequences, termed origins of DNA replication in vivo. Two previously described origin binding proteins, OBA/Ku and CBP/14-3-3 were analyzed. Previously, Ku was shown to bind to A3/4, a 36-bp origin sequence, in vitro, and 14-3-3 isoforms were identified as cruciform binding proteins (CBP) which interact with cruciform structures present in mammalian replication origins. Here, the in vivo association of Ku and 14-3-3 with mammalian origins of DNA replication was analyzed by studying its association with the monkey (CV-1) replication origins ors8 and ors12, by formaldehyde cross-linking, …  Lire la suite

This thesis examines the place of female customers and employees at the T. Eaton Company of Canada between 1869 and 1976. The central argument is that the word "witness" conveys well the nature of their place in this, one of the most important retail firms in Canadian history. Women were witnesses for the Eaton's and its development. They attested to and consolidated the company by collectively supporting it in huge numbers, whether as customers or personnel. Women were also key eyewitnesses of Eaton's, of its merchandise and marketing, its stores and catalogues. As the word "witness" suggests, visuality was central …  Lire la suite