Mitochondrial Diseases

Mitochondrial Diseases are very diverse. Specialized organelles in every cell of the body (only red blood cells lack mitochondria). Mitochondria generate more than 90% of the energy required by the body. Mitochondrial dysfunction depletes cells of energy causing cell damage and even cell death. Due to the high energy requirements of brain and muscle, mitochondrial disease typically affect these parts of the body causing Brain and Muscle disease. Other organs are frequently affected including: eye, ears, heart, liver, gastrointestinal tract, liver, kidney, endocrine system, nd blood.The diseases predominantly affect children, but adult-onset disorders are being recognized with increasing frequency. Mitochondria are unique organelles because they are the products of their own genetic material and nuclear DNA. Therefore, mitochondrial diseases are caused by mutations in either mtDNA or nuclear DNA. Mitochondrial diseases are often difficult to diagnose and therefore, it is important for patients to be evaluated at a medical center with appropriate expertise.Physical examination and laboratory tests are necessary to characterize involvement of various organs and to reach the correct diagnosis. Laboratory studies typically include: blood tests, brain MRI or CT scans, heart tests, ophthalmological and neurological evaluations. Finally, genetic testing of blood, urine, or muscle is performed to pinpoint the exact mutation responsible for a specific disease. Treatment of mitochondrial diseases is limited. Therapies to treat specific symptoms and signs of mitochondrial diseases are very important.For example, in mitochondrial patients, epilepsy typically responds to anti-convulsant drugs while insulin and other standard treatments are effective for diabetes mellitus. Retinitis pigmentosa is an inherited mitochondrial condition that involves both eyes. If it starts in one eye,it usually moves to the next eye. There are about 75,000 people in the United States with retini tis pigmentosa (RP). Since retinitis pigmentosa begins as rod degeneration, the patient first notices increasing difficulty in night vision, followed by ifficulty seeing in the periphery.Slowly progressive constriction of the visual field leads to tunnel vision. A small area of central vision in both eyes usually persists for years. Generally night blindness precedes tunnel vision by years or even decades. Total blindness eventually ensues in most cases. For years, vitamin A therapy has been recommended for many RP patients, based on research dating back to the early 1990s. , it has been the only treatment found that slows the RP process. Mitochondrial Diseases By eliJahcolas1

Ex Post Facto Laws Essay

Ex post facto laws refer to laws that apply to acts committed before the enactment of such laws and are, therefore, disadvantageous to the affected persons. The United States constitution in article I, section 10 prohibits the state from enacting such retroactive laws. This prohibition protects individuals from unjust legislative acts. However, the ban on ex post facto laws applies only with regard to criminal and not civil laws (Zollar, 2002). I believe that the US constitution is reasonable and consistent by containing provisions that limit the enactment of ex post facto laws since this help in safeguarding the rights of individuals under existing laws. If the constitution did not contain the ex post facto clause, individuals would be unfairly subjected to laws that act retrogressively and deny them justice. For instance, an adult should not be prosecuted for crimes he committed when he was a minor if such crimes could not be instituted against him at that time due to limitation on juvenile court jurisdiction. I concur with the authors of the ex post facto clause that laws should not be applied retroactively. However, where the rule cannot be reasonably applied, various exceptions should be incorporated to make the rule workable. Like every other rule, I believe that it is important for the ex post facto clause to have various exceptions that would ensure its enforceability. While I agree that laws should not be enacted retrogressively, I feel that the biggest challenge facing the ex post facto clause is the obscure differentiation of criminal laws from civil laws. The clause that prohibits ex post facto laws bans several acts. First, it prohibits the creation of criminal laws and making them retroactive. Such retroactive laws have the effect of criminalizing acts committed before their enactments. The clause also prohibits laws that are made in order to retroactively aggravate a crime, for instance, by retroactively changing a misdemeanor to a felony. Retroactively increasing the punishment for a crime is also prohibited under US laws. Furthermore, the Ex post facto clause also bans the creation of laws that alter the rules of evidence and instead allow conviction based on different or lesser evidence than what the law proscribed at the time of the crime’s commission (Gardner & Anderson, 2011). There are several exceptions to the limitation of retroactive laws in the ex post facto clause. The rule is limited to penal law and is not applicable to cases where the new laws favor the accused. Moreover, the rule is not applicable to customary laws and precedent laws that are retrospective with regard to previous cases. Another exception to the ex post facto rule is a retroactive law that provides for retribution for certain acts that were illegal but not criminal when they were committed. An example of such a law is the London Agreement, which is retroactive to the extent of acts that constituted violations of international laws when they were committed (Bassiouni, 2011) One of the most important current aspects of ex post facto laws is taxation. Prohibition of retroactive laws is limited to criminal acts. Therefore, there is no ex post facto law prohibition in taxation since it is a civil act. In the case of Fernandez vs. Fernandez, it was ruled that prohibition on ex post facto laws was limited to criminal laws and that tax laws were civic. In September 2012, the U.S Commerce Department imposed an ex post facto tax of $ 100 million as an anti-dumping measure (Foldvary, 2012). I feel that there is need to address the lack of prohibition of ex post facto laws in taxation. It would be unjust if entrepreneurs would lose property through confiscation by the government in an effort to recover retroactive taxes. References Bassiouni, M. C. (2011). Crimes against humanity: Historical and contemporary application. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Foldvary, F. E. (2012). The Progress Report: Ex post Facto Taxation. Retrieved October 27, 2012 from: http://www.progress.org/2012/fold784.htm Gardner, T. J. and Anderson, T. M. (2011). Criminal Law. Belomont, CA: Cengage Learning. Zollar, J. (2002). Prohibition against Ex Post Facto laws. House Research. Retrieved October 7, 2012 from: http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/pubs/ss/clssexpost.pdf

The Current Policing Philosophies Have a Positive Impact on the Commun Research Paper

The Current Policing Philosophies Have a Positive Impact on the Communities - Research Paper Example The current policing philosophies have a positive impact on the communities since they ensure community partnerships in addressing the underlying causes of crime and entail the use advanced technologies in the collection of intelligence information that ensure a proactive response. The history of policing in America has similarities to that of England since Colonial America had a system of night guards who were supposed to guard the cities and municipalities against disorder, fire outbreaks and crime (Palmiotto, 2000). A distinct characteristic of policing in the 1800s was the powerful influence of politicians since police chiefs were hired in order to further the interests of the politicians. Police officers were often accused of corruption, misuse of force and violence towards certain racial groups in the society (Adlam & Villiers, 2003). The Southern states such as Carolina established the ‘Slave Patrol’ that tasked the officers with the duty to apprehend and return escaping slaves and subject the slaves to summary disciplinary measures outside the formal judicial system (Reisig & Kane, 2014). The officers would also enforce the ‘Jim Crow’ laws that advocated for segregation and unequal access to the political rights. The end of slavery led to the evolution of policing work since formal police departments were established in order to deal with local law enforcement. The changes saw the establishment of the centralized municipal police department in the 1830s and the cities of Boston, New York and Chicago were the first to establish the American police force (Palmiotto, 2000). The 20th century led to urbanization and increase in crime rates thus better-equipped police force was established in order to handle crime (Cordner, 2014). The civil rights era led to a shift of policing from the tradi tional crime control to more cooperative partnerships with communities.  

The Costs and Benefits of Joining EMU Case Study - 1

The Costs and Benefits of Joining EMU - Case Study Example The increasing interdependence among the European states is aimed at creating free mobility of goods, services, labour, and capital within the trade region (Debra, & Colin, 2007, p. 162). The EMU has increased the common rules among the member states to combine the separate markets and economies by increasing the economic coordination and cooperation and setting new competition policies for the member states. The EMU has created economic interdependence so as to eliminate monetary policies that undermine and distort benefits realized from such interdependency (Debra, & Colin, 2007, p. 162). For the EMU to function smoothly, the following feature must be present: The member states of EMU must surrender their sovereignty in some areas of policy formulation. Such areas include interest rates and exchange rates determination, and constraints acceptance in macro-economic exercise (Debra, & Colin, 2007, p. 163). The politicians from the member states of EMU are required to undertake unpopular policies required for a state to qualify to be a member of EMU, and also introduce economic structural reforms that will ensure their country’s economies survive within the economic and monetary union. However, reluctance among the major European Union community has led to serious problems of EMU. The above feature and condition do not determine whether the European Union has an ideal environment for using the common currency. The optimal currency areas (OCAs) theory sets the preconditions for use of common currency among states. For the EMU to succeed in using the common currency, the following conditions must be fulfilled: Though the EMU has been launched, some of these conditions appear to be lacking within the European Union trade region. However, some benefits have gained by the European Union countries for being members of EMU. The main perceived benefits of joining economic and monetary union include low costs of the transaction, single market consolidation, the convergence of prices, stabilization of foreign exchange rates, and price stability (De Grauwe, 2005).     

Negative impacts of mega-event tourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Negative impacts of mega-event tourism - Essay Example The Olympic Games, United Nations conferences, cultural festivals that draw tourists from all over the world and international religious conferences are all examples of mega events. The high profile nature of the event, the involvement of a group of people with vested interests referred to as the key elites, the short duration of the event and the pressure of organizing and executing a large number of tasks on time, usually generate analysis of the cause-and-effects relationships based on economic benefits such as increase in tourism, development of infrastructure and other more intangible gains such as image building and boosting of national pride. Such economic and other benefits are more perceived and projected than based on any realistic assessment. In their haste to justify public expenditures for mega events, governments and organizers marshal evidence of economics and other benefits -- many of which it turns out are incalculable, or if calculable are best considered as estimat es only (Mules & McDonald, 1994; Crompton and McKay 1994:33). In the introduction to his paper Assessing the Impact of Mega Events: A Linkage Model, Harry H Hiller makes the phenomenon very clear: ‘Indeed in many cases, the contribution to economic growth becomes the dominant rationale for hosting the event. The economic justification is so compelling to key elites that other impacts are considered minor. Negative impacts are either ignored or hidden under the table (Hall & Hodges, 1996). Opponents are considered unpatriotic, naysayers, or prisoners of unacceptable ideologies.’ According to Hiller, this over emphasis on the obvious and immediate economic impact of the mega event itself has more often than not resulted in overlooking of other dimensions which may be part of a broader process with three kinds of linkages: forward linkages, backward linkages and parallel linkages. Forward linkages refer

The understanding of modern urban life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The understanding of modern urban life - Essay Example Simmel underlined that "the city conspires to erase difference by assaulting the individual with an overwhelming and never-ending stream of visual stimuli" (Byram, 2002) and also that our society consists of individual interactions and this defines its identity: "While there is no perception of society until individuals begin to interact, once formed by the interaction of individuals, the society affects the individuals as an outside force" (Crow Ch., et al., 2000). Benjamin considered the modern urban experience through the development of technologies and supported communications development; he was positive about new technologies, emphasizing their liberating influences. He was positive towards such technologies as film and photography: "New media technologies such as phonographs, epic theatre, and especially film and photography, not only destroy art's 'aura' but demystifies the process of creating art, making available radical new access and roles for art in mass culture" (Bicket, 2001). Simmel and Benjamin both underlined the importance of technological development and its influence on art, culture and our understanding of social environment. Simmel's views tend towards the negative influence of urban life on individuals, while Benjamin is more positively inclined tof technological and cultural aspects of modern and post-modern urban society. _______________________________________ Link both essays in together and edit from 1100 to 600 words ie what is contained between the line above and the line at the end A utopia is an imaginary place, situated in a particular time and space, that is socially, morally, and politically ideal, and a dystopia is its exact opposite. Ideologies are as transient as fashions and can be subjective, as they are relative to the perspective employed. Hitler and his comrades had a utopia in mind when they sought to create the Thousand Year Reichbut Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, and other victims of his vision would beg to differ (Tartar, 2004). Human rationality implies, for enlightened thinkers, an attempt to know and understand the natural world. As Norman Hampson writes, "human reason, operating by means of careful observation and checking its conclusions by further observation or experiment, could for the first time in the history of man reveal the mechanism of the natural world. "The extreme rationalism of Descartes, its traditional alternative and empiricist aspects and the debate between them, constitute the most influential part of Enlightenment in the nineteenth century. The Enlightened thinkers were generally confident that they could use rational principles to solve social interaction problems and this belief led to the Enlightened faith in social progress and the culmination of the Enlightenment ideals in a utopian society. Nietzsche opposed this Enlightened faith in progress as nave;but being unable to elude it, itwas the Enlightenment's utopianism that accompanied him through his most radical critiques (Call, 1995). A second theme involves the contradictions that necessarily exist between communality and individuality. Human consciousness is passive in accepting ideology, doctrine, orthodoxy and mass thinking and often sees reality in terms of the liturgy of certain

Environmental Ethics. Assignment 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Environmental Ethics. Assignment 2 - Essay Example It is a fact that human beings will perish if they do not constrain their actions towards the ecosystem or nature. The notion of anthropocentric is synonymous to human centeredness, which indicates that all ethics are related to humans. As far as it is concerned, only human beings are can reflect on the ethical aspects of disciplines; therefore all moral debates are usually human centric. Zoos are not immoral only because they provide an unnatural habitat to the animals. Zoos cannot be considered immoral as they help animals to survive. Good zoos try to lessen the impact on animals by providing them with the surroundings similar to their natural habitats. Some animals are kept in the zoos for their own safety and for the preservation of their species. Many of the endangered species of the animals are present in the zoo so that they may repopulate their society and at some point of time they may return back to their natural habitat. Tree-hugger is basically the term used for the environmentalist campaigners. It is also referred to the practices which prevent trees from felling down. The notion of tree hugger is all about the broad ideology, philosophy and social movement related to the protection of environment and the improvement of its health. The idea of tree hugger is also related to the environmental ethics as it is all about protecting the trees, which are considered to be one of the important natural resource of the ecosystem. Tree huggers speak about the environmental ethics related to the trees and about their sustainable management. Sustainable living offer the human beings an ongoing opportunity for practicing the spiritual mindfulness. Each of the eco-friendly acts performed by the humans (such as repairing, composting, recycling, reusing, eco-wise shopping and conserving energy and water) are also considered to be the acts of spiritual mindfulness. It is degree of mindfulness that we