Journal of Postgraduate Research Vol.14 2015http://hdl.handle.net/2262/740332024-03-29T05:10:35Z2024-03-29T05:10:35ZJOURNAL OF POSTGRADUATE RESEARCH VOLUME XIV 2015Davies, Gareth (Ed)http://hdl.handle.net/2262/740592016-09-09T19:01:11Z2015-01-01T00:00:00ZJOURNAL OF POSTGRADUATE RESEARCH VOLUME XIV 2015
Davies, Gareth (Ed)
It is with great pleasure that we present the fourteenth volume of Trinity
College Dublin’s Journal of Postgraduate Research (JPR). The JPR provides
an opportunity for postgraduate students to present original and innovative
research to the University community and beyond. The papers included in
this year’s edition represent contributions from across a range of schools
and disciplines from molecular medicine to art history, and demonstrate
the breadth and reach of postgraduate research. Contributions in this
volume show that the work undertaken by Trinity’s postgraduates have
both national and international significance.
2015-01-01T00:00:00ZPutting oesophageal cancer on the RACK A study of the RACK1 scaffolding protein in oesophageal adenocarcinomaDuff, Deirdrehttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/740582016-09-09T19:01:56Z2015-01-01T00:00:00ZPutting oesophageal cancer on the RACK A study of the RACK1 scaffolding protein in oesophageal adenocarcinoma
Duff, Deirdre
Purpose
There is a need to identify new therapeutic targets for oesophageal adenocarcinoma.
Deoxycholic acid is a component of gastro-oesophageal refluxate and is believed to
promote oesophageal adenocarcinoma. RACK1 is an intracellular scaffolding protein
whose expression is altered in many cancers. The role of RACK1 in oesophageal
adenocarcinoma has not been investigated. The purpose of this study is to examine
the expression of RACK1 in oesophageal adenocarcinoma and to assess its potential
as a contributor to this disease. This study also aims to investigate if deoxycholic acid
modulates RACK1 in oesophageal adenocarcinoma cells.
Methods
Normal oesophageal epithelial cell lines, Barrett’s metaplastic and dysplastic cell
lines and oesophageal adenocarcinoma cell lines were used to construct a model of
oesophageal adenocarcinoma disease progression.
RACK1 expression levels were assessed by western blotting.
RACK1 subcellular localisation was examined by immunofluorescent confocal microscopy.
Results
RACK1 protein levels generally increase with increasing disease progression across
a panel of cell lines representing the multistep sequence from normal oesophagus to
oesophageal adenocarcinoma.
Deoxycholic acid downregulates RACK1 protein levels in SKGT-4 (31% reduction;
P=0.01) and FLO-1 (26% reduction; P=0.03) oesophageal adenocarcinoma cells.
RACK1 has a diffuse, cytoplasmic localisation in SKGT-4 and FLO-1 cells and is most
concentrated in the perinuclear area. This pattern of RACK1 subcellular localisation
is not altered by deoxycholic acid
Conclusion
RACK1 may be upregulated during the development of oesophageal adenocarcinoma.
Deoxycholic acid can modulate RACK1 protein levels in oesophageal adenocarcinoma
cells. RACK1 may contribute to the progression of oesophageal adenocarcinoma and
further investigation into its role in this disease is warranted.
2015-01-01T00:00:00ZVarieties of Untranslatability Exploring a potential system of classification for the discussion of untranslatability in literary textsGleeson, Liathhttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/740572016-09-09T19:01:54Z2015-01-01T00:00:00ZVarieties of Untranslatability Exploring a potential system of classification for the discussion of untranslatability in literary texts
Gleeson, Liath
This paper outlines a new theoretical framework for the discussion of untranslatability
in translation theory and practice. It reacts to the observation that the concept of
untranslatability within Translation Studies has largely been treated as a homogenous
idea, applicable without modification to any text. It builds upon the work of Emily
Apter, Barbara Cassin, Susan Bassnett, David Bellos and others to show that the
discussion of ‘untranslatables’ may in fact benefit from the recognition of multiple
‘untranslatabilities’ on various textual and non-textual levels. Five such strands of
untranslatability are presented. The first encompasses sound patterns, syntax and
linguistic humour, drawing from Bellos’ Is that a fish in your Ear? (2012) to argue for
a specifically linguistic strand of untranslatability. The second highlights meaning
transmission in the context of culture, examining the unique translation challenges
posed by culturally-embedded texts like Cassin’s philosophical untranslatables and
Stanisław Wyspiánski’s Wesele (1901). Strand three concerns what Walter Benjamin calls
‘the unfathomable’ element in translation, theorising that the loss of this mysterious
element may result specifically from the many minor adjustments that inevitably
occur during translation. Section four uses Carli Coetzee’s analysis of translation
practice in South Africa to argue that social and cultural power relations can render
a text untranslatable from the outside. The fifth section argues for the recognition
of ‘absolute untranslatability’, drawing on Jean-Jacques Lecercle’s discussion of
nonsense literature. Finally, the conclusion recognises both the malleability of the
proposed framework and the dynamism of untranslatability as a concept in itself
2015-01-01T00:00:00ZBody/Language: Embodied Sexuality in Cyberspace and Spike Jonze’s HerMcGrath, Meadhbhhttp://hdl.handle.net/2262/740562016-09-09T19:01:26Z2015-01-01T00:00:00ZBody/Language: Embodied Sexuality in Cyberspace and Spike Jonze’s Her
McGrath, Meadhbh
This essay offers a sustained analysis of the role of embodiment in cybersex, with
reference to “phone sex” in Spike Jonze’s Her (2013) and chat-based “tinysexual”
encounters online (particularly those which are described in Julian Dibbell’s My
Tiny Life (1999)). I argue that cybersex neither suppresses the body nor expresses
a “postcorporeal” sexuality separate from the body, but instead demands a new
way of conceiving and perceiving the relationship between desire, fulfilment
and the body. I propose that cybersex fundamentally involves the performance
of a body, and that this virtual body emerges from a process of interaction
with other users. I examine how language provides a means of embodiment to
cybersex participants, and how cybersex can be considered as a writing exercise
or text fantasy, in which writing skills are invaluable. My argument is based on
Allucquére Rosanne Stone’s conception of cybersex as data compression, where
a single mode of communication carries not just words but the representation
and performance of a body. The paper also explores how cyberspaces offer users
a greater degree of fluidity in self-presentation, yet users still choose to construct
their virtual bodies more rigidly in accordance with the prevailing images of beauty
in the “real world.” Finally, I consider the untapped potential for exploration of
queerness and non-normative sexualities in cyberspace. The paper concludes that
at the same time as cybersex transcends boundaries, it is deeply heteronormative
and conservative, as users continue to impose limits on their virtual bodies
2015-01-01T00:00:00Z