Characterisation and localisation of the endocannabinoid system components in the adult human testis

International audienceHeavy use of cannabis (marijuana) has been associated with decreased semen quality, which may reflect disruption of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) in the male reproductive tract by exogenous cannabinoids. Components of ECS have been previously described in human spermatozoa and in the rodent testis but there is little information on the ECS expression within the human testis. In this study we characterised the main components of the ECS by immunohistochemistry (IHC) on archived testis tissue samples from 15 patients, and by in silico analysis of existing transcriptome datasets from testicular cell populations. The presence of 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) in the human testis was confirmed by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization imaging analysis. Endocannabinoid-synthesising enzymes; diacylglycerol lipase (DAGL) and N-acyl-phosphatidylethanolamine-specific phospholipase D (NAPE-PLD), were detected in germ cells and somatic cells, respectively. The cannabinoid receptors, CNR1 and CNR2 were detected at a low level in post-meiotic germ cells and Leydig- and peritubular cells. Different transcripts encoding distinct receptor isoforms (CB1, CB1A, CB1B and CB2A) were also differentially distributed, mainly in germ cells. The cannabinoid-metabolising enzymes were abundantly present; the α/β-hydrolase domain-containing protein 2 (ABHD2) in all germ cell types, except early spermatocytes, the monoacylglycerol lipase (MGLL) in Sertoli cells, and the fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) in late spermatocytes and post-meiotic germ cells. Our findings are consistent with a direct involvement of the ECS in regulation of human testicular physiology, including spermatogenesis and Leydig cell function. The study provides new evidence supporting observations that recreational cannabis can have possible deleterious effects on human testicular function. Author Correction:https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-58153-

Iron and zinc nutrition in the economically-developed world : a review

This review compares iron and zinc food sources, dietary intakes, dietary recommendations, nutritional status, bioavailability and interactions, with a focus on adults in economically-developed countries. The main sources of iron and zinc are cereals and meat, with fortificant iron and zinc potentially making an important contribution. Current fortification practices are concerning as there is little regulation or monitoring of intakes. In the countries included in this review, the proportion of individuals with iron intakes below recommendations was similar to the proportion of individuals with suboptimal iron status. Due to a lack of population zinc status information, similar comparisons cannot be made for zinc intakes and status. Significant data indicate that inhibitors of iron absorption include phytate, polyphenols, soy protein and calcium, and enhancers include animal tissue and ascorbic acid. It appears that of these, only phytate and soy protein also inhibit zinc absorption. Most data are derived from single-meal studies, which tend to amplify impacts on iron absorption in contrast to studies that utilize a realistic food matrix. These interactions need to be substantiated by studies that account for whole diets, however in the interim, it may be prudent for those at risk of iron deficiency to maximize absorption by reducing consumption of inhibitors and including enhancers at mealtimes.<br /

Meta-analysis of five genome-wide association studies identifies multiple new loci associated with testicular germ cell tumor

The international Testicular Cancer Consortium (TECAC) combined five published genome-wide association studies of testicular germ cell tumor (TGCT; 3,558 cases and 13,970 controls) to identify new susceptibility loci. We conducted a fixed-effects meta-analysis, including, to our knowledge, the first analysis of the X chromosome. Eight new loci mapping to 2q14.2, 3q26.2, 4q35.2, 7q36.3, 10q26.13, 15q21.3, 15q22.31, and Xq28 achieved genome-wide significance (P < 5 × 10−8). Most loci harbor biologically plausible candidate genes. We refined previously reported associations at 9p24.3 and 19p12 by identifying one and three additional independent SNPs, respectively. In aggregate, the 39 independent markers identified to date explain 37% of father-to-son familial risk, 8% of which can be attributed to the 12 new signals reported here. Our findings substantially increase the number of known TGCT susceptibility alleles, move the field closer to a comprehensive understanding of the underlying genetic architecture of TGCT, and provide further clues to the etiology of TGCT

Introduction

This book reflects the fact that Marxist film activism is a question of the production, textual characteristics and reception of film. Consequently, practically all the essays included in this collection deal with one if not all of these three aspects. It presents a wide spectrum of cases, using examples from different periods of cinema’s history and different locations. The volume aims to fill a gap in research as this form of activism is barely covered in existing publications and to connect the almost hegemonic position of the neoliberal version of capitalism with an increased accessibility of digital technologies and growth of channels of distribution of films. Filmmakers covered are Aleksandr Medvedkin Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet, Chris Marker and Jean-Luc Godard to films like 5 Broken Cameras (2010) by Emad Burnat and Guy David, A Screaming Man (2010) by Mahomet-Saleh Haroun and Fernando Solanas and Octavio Getino’s seminal Third Cinema film, The Hour of the Furnaces (1968)

Introduction

This book reflects the fact that Marxist film activism is a question of the production, textual characteristics and reception of film. Consequently, practically all the essays included in this collection deal with one if not all of these three aspects. It presents a wide spectrum of cases, using examples from different periods of cinema’s history and different locations. The volume aims to fill a gap in research as this form of activism is barely covered in existing publications and to connect the almost hegemonic position of the neoliberal version of capitalism with an increased accessibility of digital technologies and growth of channels of distribution of films. Filmmakers covered are Aleksandr Medvedkin Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet, Chris Marker and Jean-Luc Godard to films like 5 Broken Cameras (2010) by Emad Burnat and Guy David, A Screaming Man (2010) by Mahomet-Saleh Haroun and Fernando Solanas and Octavio Getino’s seminal Third Cinema film, The Hour of the Furnaces (1968)

Introduction

This book reflects the fact that Marxist film activism is a question of the production, textual characteristics and reception of film. Consequently, practically all the essays included in this collection deal with one if not all of these three aspects. It presents a wide spectrum of cases, using examples from different periods of cinema’s history and different locations. The volume aims to fill a gap in research as this form of activism is barely covered in existing publications and to connect the almost hegemonic position of the neoliberal version of capitalism with an increased accessibility of digital technologies and growth of channels of distribution of films. Filmmakers covered are Aleksandr Medvedkin Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet, Chris Marker and Jean-Luc Godard to films like 5 Broken Cameras (2010) by Emad Burnat and Guy David, A Screaming Man (2010) by Mahomet-Saleh Haroun and Fernando Solanas and Octavio Getino’s seminal Third Cinema film, The Hour of the Furnaces (1968)

Marxism and the computer game:Special issue of the Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds

This article asks the question, how should the computer game as a new cultural form be assessed from a Marxist perspective? Marxism is a developed theoretical discourse operative in several domains that are potentially relevant to computer games. The first part of our discussion focuses on Marx’s discussion of technology in relation to art and presents his historical dialectic of alienation and disalienation. This dialec-tic highlights the ambivalence of technology: it is both the condition of possibility of a society of a plenty in which humanity is freed from drudgery and yet, with each step forward, it is associated with the imposition of new demands and novel forms of oppression. Viewed in this way, computer games are an important manifestation of digital technology, deeply implicated in new forms of capitalism. In the second section we use Marx’s ideas on art to explore the aesthetics of the new medium. The aesthetic occupies a special place in Marxist thought because it defines a space of reflection in which we can find a momentary escape from the fray of conflictual social relations and from which the future may shine a light. Viewed as a form of art, computer games are also ambivalent. On one side, they have been associated with a revival of play and a new culture of levity and creativity, which has spread as far as contemporary workplaces and even transformed the design of industrial, or productive, technology. At the same time, we argue that there has been no corre-sponding social transformation – people are not more free as a result of ‘gamifica-tion’. Rather, it seems that computer games present a deepening entanglement of aesthetic values (play, freedom, imagination) with technologies of control (interface, system, rules). In conclusion, we suggest that digital games bring the dream of art to life but that the result is not freedom but rather a perversion of play as its facility for opening up imagined spaces is used to restrict access to the space of freedom

The Deterritorialised Muslim Convert in Post-Communist Eastern European Cinema

This article analyses the Muslim convert as portrayed in three post-communist Eastern European films: Vladimir Khotinenko’s A Moslem (Мусульманин, Russia, 1996), Jerzy Skolimowski’s Essential Killing (Poland/Norway/Ireland/Hungary/France, 2010), and Sulev Keedus’s Letters to Angel (Kirjad Inglile, Estonia, 2011). Although set in different periods, the films have their origins in Afghanistan and then move to European countries. The conversion to Islam happens in connection to, or as a consequence of, different military conflicts that the country has seen. The authors examine the consequences the characters have on their environment, using Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari’s concept of deterritorialisation, understood as an opportunity to produce political and cultural change. Resettling from one religion and place into another means breaking up structures that need to be reassembled differently. However, these three films seem to desire deterritorialisation and resettlement for different reasons. In A Moslem, national structures need to be reset since foreign Western values have corrupted the post-communist Russian rural society. In Essential Killing, it is the Western military system of oppression that cannot uphold the convert and his values. Lastly, in Letters to Angel, the convert exposes the hollowness of post-communist capitalism. The Muslim converts in these films are subtle reminders that we can all reinvent ourselves