1. The examining the patient signs and symptoms presented in the case study; discussing the

primary cellular pathophysiological processes, and the significance for symptom

development and diagnosis (make sure to review the labs)

2. What role do genetic mutations play in the development of the disease?

3. What is the impact of the disease on the immune system? …… How do treatment strategies

target the pathophysiological mechanisms of the disease?

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.

God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

  • Cellular Pathophysiological Processes:
    • I’ll analyze the patient’s symptoms and lab values to identify the primary cellular processes involved.
    • I’ll explain how these processes contribute to the development of the observed symptoms and how they aid in diagnosis.
  • Genetic Mutations:
    • I’ll discuss the role of genetic mutations in the development of the disease, if applicable.
    • This will include identifying specific mutations, their impact on cellular function, and their inheritance patterns.
  • Impact on the Immune System and Treatment Strategies:
    • I’ll explain how the disease affects the immune system, including any immune system dysregulation or suppression.
  • Cellular Pathophysiological Processes:
    • I’ll analyze the patient’s symptoms and lab values to identify the primary cellular processes involved.
    • I’ll explain how these processes contribute to the development of the observed symptoms and how they aid in diagnosis.
  • Genetic Mutations:
    • I’ll discuss the role of genetic mutations in the development of the disease, if applicable.
    • This will include identifying specific mutations, their impact on cellular function, and their inheritance patterns.
  • Impact on the Immune System and Treatment Strategies:
    • I’ll explain how the disease affects the immune system, including any immune system dysregulation or suppression.
    • I’ll discuss how treatment strategies target the pathophysiological mechanisms of the disease, including how they address the immune system’s involvement.

Example of How I Will Answer, Once Provided with the Case Study.

Let’s say, hypothetically, the case study describes a patient with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL).

  1. Cellular Pathophysiological Processes:
    • In CLL, there is a clonal expansion of mature B lymphocytes in the bone marrow, lymph nodes, and spleen.
    • These cells are dysfunctional and accumulate, leading to lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, and bone marrow suppression.
    • The lab results would likely show an elevated white blood cell count with a predominance of lymphocytes.
    • This accumulation of abnormal lymphocytes leads to the signs and symptoms of fatigue, frequent infections, and easy bruising.
  2. Genetic Mutations:
    • CLL is often associated with genetic mutations, such as deletions or mutations in genes like TP53, ATM, and SF3B1.
    • These mutations can affect cell signaling pathways, apoptosis (programmed cell death), and DNA repair, contributing to the uncontrolled proliferation of lymphocytes.
  3. Impact on the Immune System and Treatment Strategies:
    • CLL weakens the immune system, as the abnormal lymphocytes crowd out normal immune cells and impair their function.
    • This increases the risk of infections.
    • Treatment strategies, such as targeted therapies (e.g., ibrutinib, venetoclax) and immunotherapy, aim to target specific signaling pathways involved in CLL cell survival and proliferation, or to boost the bodies own immune response to the cancer. Chemotherapy can also be used to kill off the abnormal cells.

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