Trans*gressive Gesellschaft: Eine intersektionale Perspektive auf den Zugang zur medizinischen Versorgung für trans Identitäten

Introduction: Transmasculine people are those assigned female at birth (AFAB), but who live a male identity and trans non-binary people are those, who live a gender identity outside (or not exclusively) within the binary gender options of female and male. Both can be part of sexual networks of men-who-have-sex-with-men (MSM). This manuscript combines three analyses about the different circumstances regarding demographics, sexual behavior, sexual happiness and safety among European among trans MSM and German trans non-binary people in comparison to European assigned male at birth (AMAB; cis) MSM. Lacking data and health information about trans and gender-diverse (TGD) individuals in Europe (especially Germany) possess barriers to appropriate (sexual) health interventions for this population. Methods: The analyses include 2 data sets. First, the outcomes of the European MSM Internet Survey (EMIS-2017) were used, which included both AFAB and AMAB MSM. Secondly, the data of the German PrApp Study was included, to depict the situation of current PrEP users in Germany. Both studies recruited their participants through com-munity websites and social media for participation in an online survey. Parameters on sexual behavior, access to HIV prevention (i.e., HIV testing, PrEP), sexual happiness and safety of trans and cis participants were compared using descriptive methods and logistic regression models adjusting for age (EMIS-2017 German sub-sample & PrApp Study), country and employment (EMIS-2017 full dataset). Parameters on sexual happiness and satisfaction with sexual safety among Germany-based trans MSM were analyzed and compared those to outcomes of MSM assigned male at birth (cis MSM) living in Germany using descriptive methods and logistic re-gression models adjusting for age. Results: The EMIS-2017 study included 125,720 men (23,001 participants from Ger-many) and the PrApp Study included 4,350 respondents. In the European-wide EMIS-2017 sample 0.7% (n=1,049), in the German EMIS-2017 sub-sample 0.5% (n=122), and in the PrApp Study 1.5% (n=65) did not self-identify as cis. In both studies, TGD respondents were younger, had less financial stability, were more likely to live with mental health issues or to be unhappy sexually, and displayed more struggles negotiating safer sex, when compared to cis study respondents. TGD partici-pants were also less likely living with diagnosed HIV, but also had lower odds of get-ting tested for HIV, having talked to a healthcare provider about PrEP or were actually taking PrEP. Those TGD respondents from Germany taking PrEP were more likely to take the drug on-demand, compared to cis PrEP users. Conclusions: The (sexual) health inequalities of TGD people found in both studies highlight the need for targeted sexual health interventions that are based on the spe-cific needs and vulnerabilities of this population in Europe (and especially Germany).Einleitung: Transmaskuline und nicht-binäre Menschen sind Teil von sexuellen Netzwerken von Männern, die Sex mit Männern haben (MSM). Dieses Manuskript kombiniert drei Analysen über die unterschiedlichen Gegebenheiten bzgl. Demografie, Sexualverhalten, sexueller Zufriedenheit und Safer Sex unter europäischen trans MSM und deutschen trans nicht-binären Menschen im Vergleich zu cis MSM. Fehlende Daten und Gesundheitsinformationen über trans- und genderdiverse (TGD) Personen in Europa stellen eine Barriere für angemessene (sexuelle) Gesundheitsversorgung für diese Gruppe dar. Methoden: Die vorgelegten Analysen umfassen zwei Datensätze. Es wurden die Ergebnisse der Europäischen MSM-Internet Studie (EMIS-2017) verwendet, die sowohl trans als auch cis MSM einbezog. Zusätzlich wurden die Daten der deutschen PrApp-Studie verwendet, um die Situation der PrEP-Nutzer*innen in Deutschland darzustellen. Beide Online-Umfragen rekrutierten ihre Teilnehmenden über Community-Websiten und soziale Netzwerke. Parameter zum Sexualverhalten, zum Zugang zur HIV-Prävention (z.B. HIV-Tests, PrEP), zur sexuellen Zufriedenheit und zu Safer Sex von trans und cis Personen wurden mit Hilfe von deskriptiven Methoden und mittels logistischer Regressionsmodelle unter Berücksichtigung von Alter, Land und Erwerbstätigkeit verglichen. Anhand der PrApp Studiendaten analysierten wir Parameter zur sexuellen und Safer Sex Zufriedenheit unter in Deutschland lebenden TGD-Personen und verglichen diese mit den Ergebnissen von cis Männern unter Anwendung von deskriptiven Methoden und logistischen Regressionsmodellen, die auf Alter adjustiert wurden. Ergebnisse: Die EMIS-2017-Studie umfasste 125,720 Männer (23,001 Teilnehmende aus Deutschland) und die PrApp-Studie umfasste 4,350 Befragte. In der europaweiten EMIS-2017-Stichprobe gaben 0,7% (n=1,049), in der deutschen EMIS-2017-Unterstichprobe 0,5% (n=122) und in der PrApp-Studie 1,5% (n=65) an, sich nicht als cis zu identifizieren. In beiden Studien waren TGD-Teilnehmende jünger, hatten weniger finanzielle Stabilität, lebten häufiger mit psychischen Problemen, waren sexuell unzufriedener und hatten mehr Probleme, Safer Sex auszuhandeln, als cis Teilnehmende. TGD-Teilnehmende lebten zwar seltener mit HIV, hatten aber auch eine geringere Wahrscheinlichkeit, sich auf HIV testen zu lassen, mit medizinischem Personal über PrEP gesprochen zu haben oder tatsächlich PrEP zu nehmen. TGD PrEP-Nutzer*innen aus Deutschland nahmen das Medikament mit höherer Wahrscheinlichkeit mit Unterbrechungen ein, verglichen mit cis PrEP-Nutzern. Schlussfolgerung: Die in beiden Studien festgestellten Ungleichheiten bzgl. sexueller Gesundheit von TGD-Personen verdeutlichen erstmals die Hürden und den Bedarf an gezielten Maßnahmen, die auf die spezifischen Bedürfnisse und Vulnerabilitäten dieser Bevölkerungsgruppe in Europa abgestimmt sind

Duckweed (Lemnaceae): Its Molecular Taxonomy

Duckweeds include the world's smallest and fastest growing flowering plants that have the capacity to produce huge biomass with a broad range of potential applications like production of feed and food, biofuel and biogas. In order to achieve optimal and sustainable commercial system, it is necessary that suitable species and clones of duckweeds be identified and selected based on appropriate strategies. However, a high degree of reduction in their structural complexity poses serious problems in identification of closely related species of duckweeds, on a morphological basis. Use of molecular taxonomic tools is the present solution. The state of the art of molecular taxonomy of all the five genera of duckweeds (Spirodela, Landoltia, Lemna, Wolffiella, and Wolffia) is based mainly on the techniques of fingerprinting by amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and barcoding using sequences of plastidic DNA fragments. After more than 15 years of molecular taxonomic investigations, a certain viewpoint is now available demonstrating all five genera to be monophyletic. Also, the phenetic analyses had made huge progress in delineating the currently defined 36 species of duckweeds, although, all species cannot yet be defined with confidence. Wolffiella has turned out to be the most complicated genus as only 6 to 7 species out of the 10 can be reliably delineated. Further progress in the phylogenetic and phenetic analyses requires more advanced methods like next generation and/or whole genome sequencing. First results using the method genotyping-by-sequencing in the genus Lemna (in combination with metabolomic profiling by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass-spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) as well as AFLP and barcoding by plastidic sequences) are more promising: The species Lemna valdiviana and Lemna yungensis were united to one species, Lemna valdiviana. This reduced the total number of Lemnaceae species to 36

Differential localization of flavonoid glucosides in an aquatic plant implicates different functions under abiotic stress

Abstract Flavonoids may mediate UV protection in plants either by screening of harmful radiation or by minimizing the resulting oxidative stress. To help distinguish between these alternatives, more precise knowledge of flavonoid distribution is needed. We used confocal laser scanning microscopy (cLSM) with the “emission fingerprinting” feature to study the cellular and subcellular distribution of flavonoid glucosides in the giant duckweed ( Spirodela polyrhiza ), and investigated the fitness effects of these compounds under natural UV radiation and copper sulphate addition (oxidative stress) using common garden experiments indoors and outdoors. cLSM “emission fingerprinting” allowed us to individually visualize the major dihydroxylated B‐ring‐substituted flavonoids, luteolin 7‐O‐glucoside and luteolin 8‐C‐glucoside, in cross‐sections of the photosynthetic organs. While luteolin 8‐C‐glucoside accumulated mostly in the vacuoles and chloroplasts of mesophyll cells, luteolin 7‐O‐glucoside was predominantly found in the vacuoles of epidermal cells. In congruence with its cellular distribution, the mesophyll‐associated luteolin 8‐C‐glucoside increased plant fitness under copper sulphate addition but not under natural UV light treatment, whereas the epidermis‐associated luteolin 7‐O‐glucoside tended to increase fitness under both stresses across chemically diverse genotypes. Taken together, we demonstrate that individual flavonoid glucosides have distinct cellular and subcellular locations and promote duckweed fitness under different abiotic stresses

Lemnaceae and Orontiaceae Are Phylogenetically and Morphologically Distinct from Araceae

Duckweeds comprise a distinctive clade of pleustophytic monocots that traditionally has been classified as the family Lemnaceae. However, molecular evidence has called into question their phylogenetic independence, with some authors asserting instead that duckweeds should be reclassified as subfamily Lemnoideae of an expanded family Araceae. Although a close phylogenetic relationship of duckweeds with traditional Araceae has been supported by multiple studies, the taxonomic disposition of duckweeds must be evaluated more critically to promote nomenclatural stability and utility. Subsuming duckweeds as a morphologically incongruent lineage of Araceae effectively eliminates the family category of Lemnaceae that has been widely used for many years. Instead, we suggest that Araceae subfamily Orontioideae should be restored to family status as Orontiaceae, which thereby would enable the recognition of three morphologically and phylogenetically distinct lineages: Araceae, Lemnaceae, and Orontiaceae

Low genetic variation is associated with low mutation rate in the giant duckweed

Mutation rate and effective population size (Ne) jointly determine intraspecific genetic diversity, but the role of mutation rate is often ignored. We investigate genetic diversity, spontaneous mutation rate and Ne in the giant duckweed (Spirodela polyrhiza). Despite its large census population size, whole-genome sequencing of 68 globally sampled individuals revealed extremely low within-species genetic diversity. Assessed under natural conditions, the genome-wide spontaneous mutation rate is at least seven times lower than estimates made for other multicellular eukaryotes, whereas Ne is large. These results demonstrate that low genetic diversity can be associated with large-Ne species, where selection can reduce mutation rates to very low levels, and accurate estimates of mutation rate can help to explain seemingly counter-intuitive patterns of genome-wide variation

Mechanisms of temperature modulation in mammalian seasonal timing

Global warming is predicted to have major effects on the annual time windows during which species may successfully reproduce. At the organismal level, climatic shifts engage with the control mechanism for reproductive seasonality. In mammals, laboratory studies on neuroendocrine mechanism emphasize photoperiod as a predictive cue, but this is based on a restricted group of species. In contrast, field-oriented comparative analyses demonstrate that proximate bioenergetic effects on the reproductive axis are a major determinant of seasonal reproductive timing. The interaction between proximate energetic and predictive photoperiodic cues is neglected. Here, we focused on photoperiodic modulation of postnatal reproductive development in common voles (Microtus arvalis), a herbivorous species in which a plastic timing of breeding is well documented. We demonstrate that temperature-dependent modulation of photoperiodic responses manifest in the thyrotrophin-sensitive tanycytes of the mediobasal hypothalamus. Here, the photoperiod-dependent expression of type 2 deiodinase expression, associated with the summer phenotype was enhanced by 21°C, whereas the photoperiod-dependent expression of type 3 deiodinase expression, associated with the winter phenotype, was enhanced by 10°C in spring voles. Increased levels of testosterone were found at 21°C, whereas somatic and gonadal growth were oppositely affected by temperature. The magnitude of these temperature effects was similar in voles photoperiodical programmed for accelerated maturation (ie, born early in the breeding season) and in voles photoperiodical programmed for delayed maturation (ie, born late in the breeding season). The melatonin-sensitive pars tuberalis was relatively insensitive to temperature. These data define a mechanistic hierarchy for the integration of predictive temporal cues and proximate thermo-energetic effects in mammalian reproduction

Sexual and Mental Health Inequalities across Gender Identity and Sex-Assigned-at-Birth among Men-Who-Have-Sex-with-Men in Europe: Findings from EMIS-2017.

Some men who have sex with men (MSM) were assigned female at birth (AFB) and/or identify as trans men. Little is known about how these men differ from other MSM. We compared sexual and mental health indicators from the European MSM Internet Survey (EMIS-2017), comparing men AFB and/or currently identifying as trans men with those assigned male at birth (AMB) who identified as men. EMIS-2017 was an opportunistic 33-language online sexual health survey for MSM recruiting throughout Europe. We used regression models adjusting for age, country of residence and employment status to examine differences across groups. An analytic sample of 125,720 men living in 45 countries was used, of which 674 (0.5%) were AFB and 871 (0.7%) identified as trans men. The two sub-groups were not coterminous, forming three minority groups: AFB men, AFB trans men and AMB trans men. Minority groups were younger and more likely unemployed. Anxiety, depression, alcohol dependence and sexual unhappiness were more prevalent in sex/gender minority men. Conversely HIV and STI diagnoses were less common. AMB trans men were most likely to have sexual risk behavior with steady partners and to have unmet health promotion needs, and were least likely to be reached by interventions. Sex assigned at birth and trans identification were associated with different sexual and mental health needs. To facilitate service planning and to foster inclusion, sex-assigned-at-birth and current gender identity should be routinely collected in health surveys

Complex and shifting interactions of phytochromes regulate fruit development in tomato

Tomato fruit ripening is a complex metabolic process regulated by a genetical hierarchy. A subset of this process is also modulated by light-signaling, as mutants encoding negative regulators of phytochrome signal transduction, show higher accumulation of carotenoids. In tomato phytochromes are encoded by a multi-gene family, namely PhyA, PhyB1, PhyB2, PhyE and PhyF, however, their contribution to fruit development and ripening has not been examined. Using single phytochrome mutants- phyA, phyB1 and phyB2 and multiple mutants- phyAB1, phyB1B2 and phyAB1B2, we compared the on-vine transitory phases of ripening till fruit abscission. The phyAB1B2 mutant showed accelerated transitions during ripening with shortest time to fruit abscission. Comparison of transition intervals in mutants indicated a phase-specific influence of different phytochrome species either singly or in combination on the ripening process. Examination of off-vine ripened fruits indicated that ripening specific carotenoid accumulation was not obligatorily dependent on light and even dark incubated fruits accumulated carotenoids. The accumulation of transcripts and carotenoids in off-vine and on-vine ripened mutant fruits indicated a complex and shifting phase-dependent modulation by phytochromes(s). Our results indicate that in addition to regulating carotenoid levels in tomato fruits, phytochrome(s) also regulate the time required for phase transitions during ripening

Sexual happiness and satisfaction with sexual safety among German trans men who have sex with men: results from EMIS-2017

INTRODUCTION: The population of men-who-have-sex-with-men (MSM) includes people who are on the masculine spectrum but were assigned female at birth (AFAB), that is trans MSM. This study aims to identify current circumstances regarding sexual happiness and safety among German trans MSM. To date, there is no health information about trans MSM in Germany, limiting the ability of MSM sexual health programmes to meet their needs. METHODS: Data were used from the European MSM Internet Survey (EMIS-2017), where people identifying as men and/or trans men were recruited through dating apps for MSM, community websites and social media to participate in an online survey. We analysed parameters on sexual happiness and satisfaction with sexual safety among Germany-based trans MSM and compared those to outcomes of MSM assigned male at birth (cis MSM) living in Germany using descriptive methods and logistic regression models adjusting for age. RESULTS: In total, 23,001 participants from Germany were included, of which 122 (0.5%) indicated to be AFAB (i.e. trans MSM). Trans MSM were markedly younger than cis participants (median age: 28.5 vs. 39 years). Trans MSM more often reported being unhappy with their current sex life (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.82, 95% CI 1.24-2.67), had higher odds of disagreeing with the statements "the sex I have is always as safe as I want" ([aOR] = 1.82, 95% CI 1.24-2.67) and "I find it easy to say no to sex that I don't want" ([aOR] = 1.80, 95% CI 1.18-2.77). Trans MSM were more likely to not be living comfortably financially ([aOR] = 2.43, 95% CI 1.60-3.67) and to be living with severe anxiety and/or depression ([aOR] = 3.90, 95% CI 2.22-6.83). Trans MSM were less likely to have ever tested for HIV ([aOR] = 0.63, 95% CI 0.43-0.93). CONCLUSIONS: Sexual happiness, control of sexual boundaries, satisfaction with sexual safety, financial security, mental wellbeing and HIV testing were all lower in German trans MSM compared with cis MSM. Tailored sexual health interventions, contextualized with regard to needs and vulnerabilities, could address this inequality

Nutritional Value of the Duckweed Species of the Genus Wolffia (Lemnaceae) as Human Food

Species of the genus Wolffia are traditionally used as human food in some of the Asian countries. Therefore, all 11 species of this genus, identified by molecular barcoding, were investigated for ingredients relevant to human nutrition. The total protein content varied between 20 and 30% of the freeze-dry weight, the starch content between 10 and 20%, the fat content between 1 and 5%, and the fiber content was ~25%. The essential amino acid content was higher or close to the requirements of preschool-aged children according to standards of the World Health Organization. The fat content was low, but the fraction of polyunsaturated fatty acids was above 60% of total fat and the content of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids was higher than that of n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids in most species. The content of macro- and microelements (minerals) not only depended on the cultivation conditions but also on the genetic background of the species. This holds true also for the content of tocopherols, several carotenoids and phytosterols in different species and even intraspecific, clonal differences were detected in Wolffia globosa and Wolffia arrhiza. Thus, the selection of suitable clones for further applications is important. Due to the very fast growth and the highest yield in most of the nutrients, Wolffia microscopica has a high potential for practical applications in human nutrition