Inclusive conservation and the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework : Tensions and prospects

Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Author(s)The draft Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework commits to achievement of equity and justice outcomes and represents a “relational turn” in how we understand inclusive conservation. Although “inclusivity” is drawn on as a means to engage diverse stakeholders, widening the framing of inclusivity can create new tensions with regard to how to manage protected areas. We first offer a set of tensions that emerge in the light of the relational turn in biodiversity conservation. Drawing on global case examples applying multiple methods of inclusive conservation, we then demonstrate that, by actively engaging in the interdependent phases of recognizing hybridity, enabling conditions for reflexivity and partnership building, tensions can not only be acknowledged but softened and, in some cases, reframed when managing for biodiversity, equity, and justice goals. The results can improve stakeholder engagement in protected area management, ultimately supporting better implementation of global biodiversity targets.Peer reviewe

Leave Me Alone With Your Symptoms! Social Exclusion at the Workplace Mediates the Relationship of Employee's Mental Illness and Sick Leave

Although a substantial part of employees suffers from a mental illness, the work situation of this population still is understudied. Previous research suggests that people with a mental illness experience discrimination in the workplace, which is known to have detrimental effects on health. Building on the stereotype content model and allostatic load theory, the present study investigated whether employees with a mental illness become socially excluded at the workplace and therefore show more days of sick leave. Overall, 86 employees diagnosed with a mental disorder were interviewed and completed online-surveys. Path analyses supported the hypotheses, yielding a serial mediation: The interview-rated severity of the mental disorder had an indirect effect on the days of sick leave, mediated by the symptomatic burden and the social exclusion at the workplace. In the light of the costs associated with absenteeism the present paper highlights the harmfulness of discrimination. Organizations and especially supervisors need to be attentive for signs of exclusion within their teams and try to counteract as early as possible

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Abstracts from the 20th International Symposium on Signal Transduction at the Blood-Brain Barriers

https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138963/1/12987_2017_Article_71.pd

Improvement of antimicrobial blue light therapy by inhibiting key players of the bacterial SOS response

In Anbetracht der stetig ansteigenden Zahl an antibiotikaresistenten Bakterienstämmen, welche weltweit eine enorme Bürde für unser Gesundheitssystem darstellen, ist es notwendig, neue und effektive Behandlungsmöglichkeiten zu finden. Als solche rücken Lichttherapien immer mehr in den Fokus der Forschung, wie zum Beispiel UV-Lichttherapie. Während die keimtötenden Eigenschaften von UV-Licht schon lange genutzt werden, schränken dessen negative Nebenwirkungen – wie DNA-Schäden, Hautalterung und Karzinogenität – die Möglichkeiten und potenziellen Anwendungsbereiche ein. In den letzten Jahren konnte jedoch auch mit blauem Licht (400 - 500 nm) vielversprechende Ergebnisse hinsichtlich der Inaktivierung von Mikroorganismen wie Bakterien, Hefen und Pilzen gezeigt werden. Während die zugrunde liegenden Mechanismen noch nicht vollständig geklärt sind, wird vermutet, dass intrinsische Chromophore, z.B. Porphyrine oder Flavine angeregt werden und Sauerstoffradikale (ROS) erzeugen, die wiederum Lipide, Proteine und Nukleinsäuren zerstören. Im Laufe dieser Arbeit wurde aufgedeckt, dass Bakterienstämme, denen das Gen recA fehlt, anfälliger für Blaulicht-Therapie sind als solche, die eine intakte Kopie des Gens besitzen. Da das Protein RecA für die homologe Rekombination, DNA-Reparatur und Induktion der SOS- Antwort verantwortlich ist, stellten wir die Hypothese auf, dass die Inaktivierung des Proteins die Empfindlichkeit resistenter Stämme gegenüber blauem Licht erhöhen und die antimikrobielle Wirkung der Behandlung verstärken würde. Dieser Effekt konnte mittels der verwendeten RecA Inhibitoren – mit Ausnahme von Piceatannol – jedoch nicht beobachtet werden. Andererseits wurde die Relevanz von recA gezeigt, indem ein anfälliger bakterieller Phänotyp durch Einbringen des Gens reversiert wurde. Zusammenfassend konnten wichtige Erkenntnisse bezüglich des Mechanismus von Blaulicht-Therapie gewonnen werden, die den Grundstein für weiterführende Experimenten gelegt haben.The increase of antibiotic resistance represents a major global challenge for our health systems and calls for alternative treatment options, such as antimicrobial light-based therapies. While the germicidal properties of UV light have already been used for a long time, its negative side effects, for example DNA damage, photoaging and carcinogenicity, limit the possibilities and potential fields of application. Alternatively, blue light with wavelengths between 400 – 500 nm has shown promising results regarding the inactivation of a variety of microorganisms such as bacteria, yeasts and fungi. While the underlying mechanisms of blue light therapy have not been completely resolved yet, it has been proposed, that intrinsic chromophores e.g. porphyrins or flavins, generate ROS upon irradiation which destroy lipids, proteins and nucleic acids. The present thesis revealed that strains lacking the gene recA were more susceptible towards irradiation than those with an intact copy of the gene. In most bacterial strains, the protein RecA is responsible for homologous recombination, DNA repair and induction of the SOS response. Therefore, we hypothesized that the inactivation of the protein would increase the susceptibility of resistant strains and enhance the antimicrobial effects of the treatment. Although the potentiation of the therapy via RecA inhibitors was only partially successful, the influence of recA was confirmed by rescuing susceptible bacterial strains with the insertion of a plasmid carrying the gene. However, further experiments are needed to uncover the mechanisms behind the tolerability of blue light therapy and the importance of the SOS response

Resistance of Bacteria toward 475 nm Blue Light Exposure and the Possible Role of the SOS Response

The increase in antibiotic resistance represents a major global challenge for our health systems and calls for alternative treatment options, such as antimicrobial light-based therapies. Blue light has shown promising results regarding the inactivation of a variety of microorganisms; however, most often, antimicrobial blue light (aBL) therapy is performed using wavelengths close to the UV range. Here we investigated whether inactivation was possible using blue light with a wavelength of 475 nm. Both Gram-positive and -negative bacterial strains were treated with blue light with fluences of 7.5–45 J/cm2. Interestingly, only some bacterial strains were susceptible to 475 nm blue light, which was associated with the lack of RecA, i.e., a fully functional DNA repair mechanism. We demonstrated that the insertion of the gene recA reduced the susceptibility of otherwise responsive bacterial strains, indicating a protective mechanism conveyed by the bacterial SOS response. However, mitigating this pathway via three known RecA inhibiting molecules (ZnAc, curcumin, and Fe(III)-PcTs) did not result in an increase in bactericidal action. Nonetheless, creating synergistic effects by combining a multitarget therapy, such as aBL, with an RecA targeting treatment could be a promising strategy to overcome the dilemma of antibiotic resistance in the future

The BAF complex interacts with Pax6 in adult neural progenitors to establish a neurogenic cross-regulatory transcriptional network

Numerous transcriptional regulators of neurogenesis have been identified in the developing and adult brain, but how neurogenic fate is programmed at the epigenetic level remains poorly defined. Here, we report that the transcription factor Pax6 directly interacts with the Brg1-containing BAF complex in adult neural progenitors. Deletion of either Brg1 or Pax6 in the subependymal zone (SEZ) causes the progeny of adult neural stem cells to convert to the ependymal lineage within the SEZ while migrating neuroblasts convert to different glial lineages en route to or in the olfactory bulb (OB). Genome-wide analyses reveal that the majority of genes downregulated in the Brg1 null SEZ and OB contain Pax6 binding sites and are also downregulated in Pax6 null SEZ and OB. Downstream of the Pax6-BAF complex, we find that Sox11, Nfib, and Pou3f4 form a transcriptional cross-regulatory network that drives neurogenesis and can convert postnatal glia into neurons. Taken together, elements of our work identify a tripartite effector network activated by Pax6-BAF that programs neuronal fate