In Brno there live about 500 Bulgarians, in most cases university-educated specialists, descendants of gardeners and students. Even though they do not acknowledge Bulgarian nationality, they speak Bulgarian and they maintain contacts among themeselves and with relatives in Bulgaria. Ethnic identity is being preserved in privacy. Czech majority considers them Czechs, only friends and colleagues know their ethnic origin. Seasonal migrations of gardeners reached peak in the 1930s, when the Bulgarian minority in Brno constituted the most numerous community in Bohemia. Through the contacts with Bulgarians, Czechs constructed the image of modest, hard-working, efficient Bulgarian workers and professionals. Bulgarians were respected and welcomed. They represented the most emancipated sector of Bulgarian population. They contributed to their home country as well as to Europe, they constituted part of European cultural history. Czech majority nowadays had already forgotten their activities and their results accepts as regular part of their life. Ignored is the educational contribution of Bulgarian graduates of technical institute and medical faculty in Brno. The incorporation of Bulgarian minority in Brno proceeded throughout generations, from acceptation of Czech particularities through gradual integration into uncompleted assimilation with certain manifestations of ethnic and cultural identity. The authors applied the method of guided interview during their field researches, they utilized archival sources and long-term personal acquaintance with Brno and Bulgaria.
Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) are undifferentiated cells capable of unlimited self-renewal. By introducing specific transcription factors, any somatic (fully differentiated) cell of the mammalian body can be changed (reprogrammed) into iPSC. The iPSCs are very similar to embryonic stem cells in their molecular and functional properties. By using specific factors, iPSCs can be differentiated into each of the about 200 cell types in the human body. The big advantage of iPSCs is the availability of somatic cells (isolation from blood or skin biopsy). Creation of "tailor made" iPSCs for each patient would allow transplantation of own cells and avoid problems with finding an immunologically compatible donor. and Kateřina Vodičková Kepková, Petr Vodička, Jan Motlík.
Among the African people an important social and religious role is performed by funeral rituals, which belong to rituals of passage connected with changing of man’s status and social position. The rituals of the first and secondary funerals among the Konkomba belong to the most extended of all the rituals of passage. The present article describes and analyses the rituals of the first funeral, which are the burial rituals of elderly people (men and women). They differ in the richness of rites and the social significance from the simpler burials of adult people, children or infants. and V živote afrických národů hrají významné místo pohřební rituály, které patří mezi „přechodové rituály", související se změnou postavení člověka ve společnosti. První a druhé pohřební rituály Konkombů patří mezi nejrozsáhlejší ze všech přechodových rituálů. Článek popisuje a analyzuje rituály prvního pohřbu u starších osob (mužů a žen). Tyto pohřby se bohatstvím rituálů i sociálním významem odlišují od jednodušších pohřbů mladších dospělých, dětí a novorozenců.