Browsing by Author "Duro, Eduardo"

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The Double-Edged Sword: The Friction Between Community HIV Support and Stigma in Confissões de um soropositivo and its Implications within the Medical Discourse
(2023) Duro, Eduardo
This article examines the concurrent space where stigma and support overlap and its impact on individuals diagnosed with HIV, through the lens of Léo Cezimbra's experiences outlined in his book Confissões de um soropositivo. While Brazil is recognized for its exceptional HIV/AIDS epidemic response, stigma remains a significant barrier to treatment. The analysis shows that social and self-stigma, as well as social support, can create tension for Cezimbra and negatively impact his ability to cope with HIV. The concurrent space where stigma and support overlap can act as a double-edged sword, leading to social withdrawal, distress, and frustration. Support can also act as a vector for stigma rooted in historical events. The findings underscore the need to integrate support networks into HIV treatment and educate support networks to avoid the concurrence of support and stigma. These insights have implications for healthcare and highlight the importance of external factors in the success of treatment regimens.
LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE AND CULTURAL IDENTITY IN BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE HERITAGE SPEAKERS
([Bloomington, Ind.] : Indiana University, 2021-05) Duro, Eduardo; Namorato, Luciana
Brazilians make up 1% of immigrants in the United States and this number continues to increase. Historically, Brazilians immigrated to the US in search of economic opportunities, for example, during periods of hyperinflation that followed the two-decade military rule in Brazil (Batalova 1). Today, one of the biggest challenges Brazilian descendant heritage speakers (HLS) face is maintaining their heritage language (HL) in monolingual environments. A HL can be defined as a language other than the dominant language that is spoken in the home, often without institutional, community, or formal support systems. A heritage language can also be defined as a language with which individuals have a personal connection (Fishman, Reversing Language Shift 362). Heritage languages are of utmost importance as “Language defines how one views the world, how they form their thoughts, with whom they identify, and what worlds are open to them. It is a precious, invaluable resource that is sought after by many people in a number of schools and institutions, an enviable asset” (Vallance 3). Hence, without one’s heritage language, they face disadvantages as well as miss part of their identity. In this study, I focus on Brazilian Portuguese (BPT), which is the national language of Brazil, the seventh most spoken language in the world and second most common romance language (Boyce). Those who successfully maintain their HL usually had access to a number of resources that facilitated the maintenance of their language skills. In the modern-day globalized world, speaking a second language or being bilingual creates new opportunities and allows one to preserve their connection to their heritage culture. There are several techniques and methods that have been shown to work in improving and maintaining fluency in a HL. This paper presents a collection of resources on this topic and compares and contrasts them to a small-scale study where BPT HLS are asked questions about their language habits and their language fluency. Of a total of eight participants, three were contacted for additional study and completed a borrowed-word assessment activity; they also answered questions based on my preliminary conclusions. The findings of the study offer insights into HL maintenance and the importance of factors, such as cultural identity and language perception. Using the study, I identify aspects like cultural competence, socialization, family support, formal instruction, language perception and language material consumption, and examine how they influence HL maintenance. Furthermore, I identify the impact that these aspects have on HL maintenance and offer suggestions on how to maintain a HL and how to overcome potential challenges in HL maintenance.
Painting Wings - Evidence for a Role of Ca$^2$$^+$ in Butterfly Wing Phenotypic Plasticity
([Bloomington, Ind.] : Indiana University, 2022) Duro, Eduardo; Tracey, W. Daniel
Wing patterns in butterflies serve several functions such as mimicry, sexual dimorphism, camouflage, and temperature regulation. Based on temperature adaptations by butterflies involving change in brightness and calcium mediated temperature responses. Here, we investigate the role of calcium in mediating the expression of light and dark scales. Through utilization of the butterfly Vanessa cardui as a model, I investigated how fluctuations in cytosolic calcium levels can potentially influence the development of wing brightness. Specimen brightness was manipulated with tungstate and thapsigargin injections. Tungstate has been shown to modify butterfly wing patterns but its mechanism of action has yet to be identified. Thapsigargin is a well-studied drug known to result in increases of cytosolic calcium similar to that of natural heat responses. Through utilization of these compounds, my hope was to reach a better understanding of the specific ways in which wing patterns are regulated by calcium. The specimens manipulated with pharmacological injections of thapsigargin showed an increase in the number of light scales within the injected area. Alternatively, specimens injected with tungstate showed a larger proportion of dark scales. Overall, findings suggest that calcium potentially plays a significant role in organizing wing pattern development.