Clashing overpopulation(s): the religious, the secular, and the unnatural “conception” of human multitudes with rights

Overpopulation is a fraught concept because it immediately involves several competing ideas. First, the primary objectives of the human race vis a vis reproduction. Second, conflicting ecological understandings of the planet and the human impact on it, and finally, complex contradictions regarding what humans can and should “do” about all these conflicts. At the heart of the ensuing conflicts is the impossibility of definitively casting the issue of overpopulation as an exclusively natural/biological problem or instead a social/cultural problem: population straddles these domains at every angle. Discussions of “human nature,” as something internal and inexorable slide messily into discourse regarding “Nature,” intended as something outside, surrounding us. Any decision taken in an attempt to solve population excesses collides headlong into “natural” circumstances alongside those which are manmade. “Preserving” land or planting trees are often accompanied by the evacuation of people. Clearing land for industrial production similarly produces the displacement of people or the compromising of their living conditions, and then pollution and resource extraction with a broad negative impact on humans. Using medically assisted means to produce children currently results in thousands of “excess” embryos. The choice to avoid all “intervention” in support of “natural” reproduction has similarly led to bourgeoning populations. These contradictions demonstrate how it is impossible to cleanly separate (or universally define) “human nature” and “planetary/outside nature” because both are continuously built, or constructed, in evident but also more subtle ways. There is no pre-existing singular “nature” inside nor outside that exists without our inventions and interventions. The positive side of this conundrum is that we have creative tools available to invent and intervene. Both religious and secular approaches to the challenges of “nature” have cognitive as well as ethical/moral contributions that can be leveraged toward the construction of new solutions. We must compare these dimensions meaningfully if we are to have any hope of solving an increasingly cramped ecological coexistence. If we can unpack the components of a wider span of ideas about Nature1 and its contrasting legitimations, we may find possibilities for categorical openings, ways of seeing that reveal new creative approaches to realizing human needs and desires while simultaneously attending to steadily growing and ever more urgent environmental concerns

Culture, religion, and the new geographies of law: troubling takedowns in ‘Ewa Glawischnig-Piesczek v. Facebook Ireland Ltd’

From the right to information to the right to privacy, from freedom of expression to protection from defamation, online conflicts are troubling private entities and jurists alike, particularly as the ever-increasing spread of global communications changes the meaning and impact of territories and jurisdiction. Beneath the hubbub runs a babbling brook of values, as pervasive and persistent as they are hidden. Religiously rooted conceptions permeate our legal decisions even as technological approaches are proposed as solutions. In this vein, a recent legal decision of the CJEU ordering Facebook to remove posts adjudicated as defamatory has mostly been analyzed in terms of content filtering technology. The essay argues, however, that true import of the case lies in the largely unattended cultural motors that are silently and perhaps inadvertently determining social paths. These religious and cultural values extend tendrils across global platforms through blunt decisions that lack the nuance to address potential impacts. At risk is a detachment between law and common sense in which fundamental human rights are not only unprotected, but not even acknowledged. Changing this state of affairs requires a more sophisticated cultural awareness that leverages the semiotic potential of legal instruments to deliver interculturally aware solutions

Futile otherness. religion and culture vs. Futile motives in criminal law

Within Italian criminal law, the category of motive entitled motivi futili, or futile motives, is used as an evaluation standard in determining an increase in the severity of a penalty for a crime committed, not unlike the designation ‘aggravated’ in common law systems. An application of the penalty means that the motive for a crime is deemed so unreasonable, illogical, superficial, without sense that it becomes especially abhorrent and therefore additionally punished. Courts rule on what internal reason or lack of reason drove the defendant to commit the crime. However, secular criminal law operates from the premise that it is tasked with evaluating and ruling on ‘facts,’ not on the forum internum of individuals. Thus, an interpretive evaluation of motive, which lies squarely in the domain of the internal forum, is not really an undertaking that properly belongs to law. Nevertheless, it is impossible to determine just punishment for crimes without an evaluation of the degree of the crime. The qualification of degree, at least in Western legal systems, depends on an evaluation of motive, and complicating matters, intent. The issue of culture is also inextricably tied to questions of motive and intent in intricate ways that are frequently the cause of further interpretative confusions, including the role of religion, understood anthropologically, within cultural evaluations. I will argue that the category of futile motives offers a valuable keyhole to viewing cognitive struggles inherent to the evaluation of crimes, and motives more generally, in the Italian legal context in ways that are, however, globally relevant. The adjudication of a subject’s motives as ‘futile’ demonstrates how specific categorical schemes shaped by cognitive assumptions betray an alleged universalism that prevents law from maintaining legitimacy before its subjects. ‘Futile’ motives sound an alarm demanding we pay more critical attention to the relationships among facts, culture, and the law’s aspirations towards a representative justice. Intercultural translation offers an alternative theoretical and practical approach that could lead to better solutions

Dual effects of entomopathogenic fungi on control of the pest Lobesia botrana and the pathogenic fungus Eutypella microtheca on grapevine

Background: Entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) are the natural enemies of insect pests. Nevertheless, research on the use of EPF for simultaneous prevention of pest and disease agents on the same crop is limited. In this study, we explored the potential dual effects of three strains of the EPF Metarhizium anisopliae on the control of detrimental agents of Vitis vinifera L., including different developmental stages (larvae, pupae, and adult) of the insect pest Lobesia botrana and the phytopathogenic fungus Eutypella microtheca. Methods: Laboratory pathogenicity trials were performed to examine the effects of the three M. anisopliae strains on the mortality rate of L. botrana. In addition, field trials were conducted to assess the biocontrol potential of one selected M. anisopliae strain on the larval stage of L. botrana. Moreover, inhibitory effects of the three EPF strains on E. microtheca growth were examined in vitro. Results: All the M. anisopliae strains were highly effective, killing all stages of L. botrana as well as inhibiting the growth of E. microtheca. The in vitro mortality of larvae treated with the strains was over 75%, whereas that of treated pupae and adults was over 85%. The three EPF strains showed similar efficacy against larvae and adult stages; nevertheless, pupal mortality was observed to be strain dependent. Mortality of L. botrana larvae ranged from 64 to 91% at field conditions. Inhibition of E. microtheca growth reached 50% in comparison to the control. Conclusions: Our study showed that M. anisopliae strains were highly effective in ensuring control of two different detrimental agents of V. vinifera L., providing new evidence to support the dual effects of entomopathogenic fungi.Fil: Aguilera Sammaritano, Juan Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción; ChileFil: Caballero, Juan Jose. Universidad Nacional de San Juan. Facultad de Ingeniería. Instituto de Biotecnología; ArgentinaFil: Deymié Terzi, María Celina. Universidad Nacional de San Juan. Facultad de Ingeniería. Instituto de Biotecnología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Rosa, Melisa. Universidad Nacional de San Juan; ArgentinaFil: Vazquez, Fabio. Universidad Nacional de San Juan. Facultad de Ingeniería. Instituto de Biotecnología; ArgentinaFil: Pappano, Delia Beatriz. Universidad Nacional de San Juan; ArgentinaFil: Lechner, Bernardo Ernesto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; ArgentinaFil: González Teuber, Marcia. Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción; Chil

Dental caries and intake of sugar-sweetened beverages in early childhood

Fil: Giménez Evjanian, Melisa. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra de Integral Niños y Adolescentes Área Odontopediatría A; Argentina.Fil: Armando, Maria Sol. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra Odontopediatria A; Argentina.Fil: Martin, Anabela. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra Odontopediatria A; Argentina.Fil: Vazquez, Fernando Rafael. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra Odontopediatria A; Argentina.Fil: Cornejo, Lila Susana. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Equipo de Investigación Interdisciplinaria Promoción de Salud Contextualizada (PROCON); Argentina.Fil: Carletto Körber, Fabiana Pia Marina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Cátedra de Odontopediatria A. Facultad de Odontología; Argentina.Analizar la asociación de la ingesta de bebidas azucaradas con caries en niños de 2 a 4 años. La población de estudio estuvo conformada por 23 niños de ambos sexos, asistentes al Servicio de la Clínica Odontológica del Bebé de la Facultad de Odontología. Se realizó un estudio descriptivo. De la historia clínica se extractó: edad de la madre, nivel de estudio materno, régimen de salud, tipo de parto, peso del niño al nacer, sexo, lactancia materna, ingesta de bebidas azucaradas, frecuencia de cepillado y uso de pasta dental. Los datos clínicos odontológicos se obtuvieron siguiendo el procedimiento de rutina tacto visual, registrándose elementos dentarios sanos, cariados, con extracciones indicadas o perdidos y obturados en dentición temporaria. A partir de estos datos se calculó el índice ceod según criterios de la OMS. Se aplicó test T y ANOVA, con significación estadística p 6 (p=0,117). El índice ceod presentó asociación significativa al sexo varón del niño (p=0,039), observándose además incremento de ceod en niños &#8805; 3 años (p=0,666), en niños que no le cepillan los dientes (p=0,219), y en aquellos que consumen bebidas azucaradas (p=0,265). Asimismo, en el modelo de contraste reducido resultó significativo el sexo varón del niño (p=0,015) y el consumo de bebidas azucaradas (p=0,018). Estos resultados muestran la necesidad de continuar ampliando la población de estudio con la finalidad de confirmar las tendencias observadas.The study population consisted of 23 children of both sexes, attending at the Baby Dental Clinic Service of the School of Dentistry. A descriptive study was carried out. From their clinical history were extracted: mother's age, mother´s level of education, health sector, type of childbirth delivery, child’s weight at birth, sex, breastfeeding, intake of sugar-sweetened beverages, frequency of teeth brushing, and use of toothpaste. The clinical dental examination was carried out using the visual touch procedure; the amount of healthy, decayed, missing and filled teeth in temporary dentition was registered. From these data, the dmft index was calculated according to WHO criteria. T test and ANOVA were applied, with statistical significance p<0.05. The protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Dentistry (UNC), Nº3929/2019. The children´s daily consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages showed a significant association with mother's level of education (p=0,008). It was also observed higher consumption of sugary drinks in children with dmft>6. The dmft index is significantly associated with the male sex of the child (p=0,039), in addition, higher dmft in children ≥3 years (p=0,666), child no tooth brushing (p=0,219), and child sugar-sweetened beverage intake (p=0,265). Likewise, in the statistical reduced contrast model the male sex of the child (p=0,015) and the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (p=0,018) were significant. These results show the need to continue increasing the study sample in order to confirm the observed trendsFil: Giménez Evjanian, Melisa. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra de Integral Niños y Adolescentes Área Odontopediatría A; Argentina.Fil: Armando, Maria Sol. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra Odontopediatria A; Argentina.Fil: Martin, Anabela. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra Odontopediatria A; Argentina.Fil: Vazquez, Fernando Rafael. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Odontología. Cátedra Odontopediatria A; Argentina.Fil: Cornejo, Lila Susana. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Equipo de Investigación Interdisciplinaria Promoción de Salud Contextualizada (PROCON); Argentina.Fil: Carletto Körber, Fabiana Pia Marina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Cátedra de Odontopediatria A. Facultad de Odontología; Argentina.Otras Ciencias de la Salu

Cationic Amino Acid Uptake Constitutes a Metabolic Regulation Mechanism and Occurs in the Flagellar Pocket of Trypanosoma cruzi

Trypanosomatids' amino acid permeases are key proteins in parasite metabolism since they participate in the adaptation of parasites to different environments. Here, we report that TcAAP3, a member of a Trypanosoma cruzi multigene family of permeases, is a bona fide arginine transporter. Most higher eukaryotic cells incorporate cationic amino acids through a single transporter. In contrast, T. cruzi can recognize and transport cationic amino acids by mono-specific permeases since a 100-fold molar excess of lysine could not affect the arginine transport in parasites that over-express the arginine permease (TcAAP3 epimastigotes). In order to test if the permease activity regulates downstream processes of the arginine metabolism, the expression of the single T. cruzi enzyme that uses arginine as substrate, arginine kinase, was evaluated in TcAAP3 epimastigotes. In this parasite model, intracellular arginine concentration increases 4-folds and ATP level remains constant until cultures reach the stationary phase of growth, with decreases of about 6-folds in respect to the controls. Interestingly, Western Blot analysis demonstrated that arginine kinase is significantly down-regulated during the stationary phase of growth in TcAAP3 epimastigotes. This decrease could represent a compensatory mechanism for the increase in ATP consumption as a consequence of the displacement of the reaction equilibrium of arginine kinase, when the intracellular arginine concentration augments and the glucose from the medium is exhausted. Using immunofluorescence techniques we also determined that TcAAP3 and the specific lysine transporter TcAAP7 co-localize in a specialized region of the plasma membrane named flagellar pocket, staining a single locus close to the flagellar pocket collar. Taken together these data suggest that arginine transport is closely related to arginine metabolism and cell energy balance. The clinical relevance of studying trypanosomatids' permeases relies on the possibility of using these molecules as a route of entry of therapeutic drugs

Comparación de la violencia y agresiones sufridas por el personal de salud durante la pandemia de COVID-19 en Argentina y el resto de Latinoamérica

Objetivos. Explorar la frecuencia e impacto de la violencia contra los trabajadores de salud de Argentina y compararlo con el resto de sus pares de Latinoamérica en el contexto de la pandemia por COVID-19. Materiales y métodos. Estudio de corte transversal a través de una encuesta electrónica al personal médico y no médico de Latinoamérica que desempeño tareas asistenciales desde marzo de 2020. Se utilizó una regresión de Poisson para estimar las Razones de Prevalencia crudas (RP) y ajustadas (RPa) con sus respectivos intervalos de confianza al 95%. Resultados. Un total de 3544 participantes de 19 países respondieron la encuesta; 1992 (56,0%) residían en Argentina. Entre los mismos, el 62,9% padeció al menos un hecho de violencia: 97,7% refirió violencia verbal y 11,8% violencia física. El 41,5% de los agredidos padecieron situaciones de violencia al menos una vez por semana. El personal de salud de Argentina vivenció más frecuentemente violencia que los de otros países (62,9% vs. 54,6%, p<0,001), siendo estos eventos más habituales y estresantes (p<0,05). Además, refirieron más frecuentemente haber considerado cambiar sus tareas asistenciales y/o deseos de abandonar su profesión (p<0,001). En la regresión de Poisson, los participantes de Argentina tuvieron una prevalencia de violencia mayor que los trabajadores de salud de la región (14,6%; p<0,001). Conclusiones. Existió una elevada prevalencia de violencia contra el personal de salud de Argentina durante la pandemia por COVID-19. Estos hechos tuvieron un alto impacto negativo entre quienes los padecieron. Nuestros datos sugieren que, esto podría haber sido más frecuente en Argentina respecto de otras regiones del continente

Rad21-Cohesin Haploinsufficiency Impedes DNA Repair and Enhances Gastrointestinal Radiosensitivity in Mice

Approximately half of cancer-affected patients receive radiotherapy (RT). The doses delivered have been determined upon empirical experience based upon average radiation responses. Ideally higher curative radiation doses might be employed in patients with genuinely normal radiation responses and importantly radiation hypersensitive patients would be spared the consequences of excessive tissue damage if they were indentified before treatment. Rad21 is an integral subunit of the cohesin complex, which regulates chromosome segregation and DNA damage responses in eukaryotes. We show here, by targeted inactivation of this key cohesin component in mice, that Rad21 is a DNA-damage response gene that markedly affects animal and cell survival. Biallelic deletion of Rad21 results in early embryonic death. Rad21 heterozygous mutant cells are defective in homologous recombination (HR)-mediated gene targeting and sister chromatid exchanges. Rad21+/− animals exhibited sensitivity considerably greater than control littermates when challenged with whole body irradiation (WBI). Importantly, Rad21+/− animals are significantly more sensitive to WBI than Atm heterozygous mutant mice. Since supralethal WBI of mammals most typically leads to death via damage to the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) or the haematopoietic system, we determined the functional status of these organs in the irradiated animals. We found evidence for GIT hypersensitivity of the Rad21 mutants and impaired bone marrow stem cell clonogenic regeneration. These data indicate that Rad21 gene dosage is critical for the ionising radiation (IR) response. Rad21 mutant mice thus represent a new mammalian model for understanding the molecular basis of irradiation effects on normal tissues and have important implications in the understanding of acute radiation toxicity in normal tissues

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Summary Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030