Kazakhstan Gulag heritage: dark tourism and selective interpretation

Kazakhstan holds some of the most significant Gulag heritage sites; however, tourism research remains limited. This article introduces analysis of contrasting sites and considers how some have been developed and others ignored. Selectivity in interpretation is linked to societal amnesia and the collective trauma experienced by the population of Kazakhstan. The article reaffirms the politicization of heritage in this emergent nation

Challenges in ophthalmic pathology: The vitreoretinal membrane biopsy

The introduction of vitreoretinal microsurgery has produced a new type of biopsy; that of the vitreoretinal membrane. This review investigates methods by which these scar-like tissues are handled in the laboratory and explores the implications of the results of such evaluations. The study of vitreoretinal membrane biopsies has provided much information concerning the pathobiology of the various conditions which may give rise to the tissue as well as insights into how membranes themselves develop. Moreover, the application of new laboratory techniques is expected to enhance our understanding of the formation of vitreoretinal membranes, and lead to further advances in their surgical and medical management.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Pathobiology of epiretinal and subretinal membranes: Possible roles for the matricellular proteins thrombospondin 1 and osteonectin (SPARC)

Epiretinal and subretinal membranes are fibrocellular proliferations which form on the surfaces of the neuroretina as a sequel to a variety of ocular diseases. When these proliferations complicate rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (a condition known as proliferative vitreoretinopathy or PVR), the membranes often contain numerous retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells and a variety of extracellular proteins. The extracellular proteins include adhesive proteins like collagen, laminin and fibronectin. In addition, several matricellular proteins with potential counter-adhesive functions are present in the membranes. Two such matricellular proteins, thrombospondin 1 and osteonectin (or SPARC: Secreted Protein Acidic and Rich in Cysteine), tend to be codistributed with the RPE cells in PVR membranes. By virtue of their counter-adhesive properties, thrombospondin 1 and SPARC may reduce RPE cell-matrix adhesion and so permit key RPE cellular activities (for example, migration or shape change) in periretinal membrane development. Furthermore, within a 'cocktail' containing other proteins such as the metalloproteinases and growth factors like the scatter factor/hepatocyte growth factor family, matricellular proteins may play a role in the RPE cell dissociation from Bruch's membrane, which characterises early PVR.link_to_OA_fulltex