LGBTI+ Language and Understandings in Nepal: Creating Spaces and Forging Identities

The 1990 Nepali Constitution opened up opportunities for many forms of activism, and identity groups thus began solidifying to advocate for social change and justice (Karki 2012). After the Nepali Supreme Court ruling in 2007, Nepal became one of the first countries to offer a third gender category “Other,” becoming a leader for human rights in South Asia and the world (Mahato 2017). As Coyle and Boyce (2013) point out, there is little research on LGBTI individuals in Nepal. Furthermore, they advocate for more research and closer work with gender and sexual minority individuals in Nepal. This research attempts to increase understanding of Nepali LGBTI people’s lived realities and daily experiences, along with the language and terms used by these individuals and in government legislation. To do so, I conducted 17 semi-structured interviews with LGBTI individuals and activists across Nepal. Relying on queer phenomenology theories (Ahmed 2006) and queer linguistic methodologies (Motschenbacher 2013), I analyze how these individuals understand their identities and desires, how they must grapple with prevailing heteronormative discourses in Nepal, and how gender and sexuality are conceived of in Nepal and in the Nepali language. Additionally, I examine how global north terminology (e.g. LGBTI, transgender) has simultaneously helped and hindered activist efforts in Nepal. Incorporating Zimman and Hall (2009), I also draw on participants’ discussion of body to understand the relationship among linguistic practice, identity, and space

Missing in Action: A Review of State, Federal and International Sources of Information on Men's Health

In recent decades there has been a rise in attention devoted to men's health and men's health initiatives, particularly to health behaviors, lifestyle choices, societal factors, and gender socialization (Garfield, 2008). Despite this, in the US, men continue to lag behind women in many areas of health, notably life expectancy and health care use, and are more likely to engage in risky health behaviors with higher rates of steroid, alcohol, and tobacco use; these inequities are compounded and complicated by other factors such as race, class, and sexuality (Garfield, 2008). Brott et al. estimated that premature death and morbidity in men costs federal, state and local governments in excess of $142 billion annually. Additionally, it costs employers roughly$340 billion annually in direct medical payments, lost productivity, and decreased quality of life (Fadich et al. 2018, citing Brott et al. 2011). And, although the number of male coronavirus cases is similar to the number of female cases, globally men have a higher risk of death from Covid-19 (Global Health 5050, 2021). Another study found that in 2020 American men saw the largest decline in life expectancy since World War II as it dropped by 2.2 years (Aburto et al. 2021).The Partnership for Male Youth (PMY) is the only US national organization whose sole focus is on the health and wellbeing of adolescent and young adult (AYA) males, or males between the ages of 10 and 25. PMY has undertaken this study because the genesis of the men's health problem lies in adolescence. By the time most American adolescents reach the age of 13 they've stopped seeing a pediatrician – over 80% of all pediatric visits are by children under 13 (Bocian et al., 1999). Less than half of AYAs have primary care visits within the last year (Rand & Goldstein, 2018). Males are less likely than their female counterparts to seek care (Lau et al., 2014; Callahan & Cooper, 2004; Fortuna, Robbins, & Halterman, 2009). Females have a relatively seamless transition with age with gynecologists accounting for 23-42% of AYA female preventive visits (Rand & Goldstein, 2018). For males, however, there is no similar continuity of care. On the whole, with the exception of episodic school exams, sports physicals and visits to the emergency room, once they leave the pediatrician's office AYA males are left outside of our health care system, a pattern that extends into adulthood. In the intervening years they suffer from a number of illnesses and disabilities that are cause by a lack of preventive care.The purposes of this research are: 1) to determine which, if any, significant policies and programs exist at the US state and federal levels that can serve as models for advancing men's health in the US, as evidenced by their websites; 2) to examine international efforts to advance men's health that can inform policy change in the US; and 3) to make recommendations for policies and programs based on those findings.

From Missing Links to New Records: A Series of Novel Polychlorine Anions

Herein we report the synthesis and structural characterization of four novel polychloride compounds. The compounds [CCl(NMe2)2][Cl(Cl2)3] and [NPr4][Cl(Cl2)4] have been obtained from the reaction of the corresponding chloride salts with elemental chlorine at low temperature. They are the missing links in the series of polychloride monoanions [Cl(Cl)n]− (n=1–6). Additionally, the reaction of decamethylferrocene with elemental chlorine was studied yielding [Cp*2Fe]2[Cl20], which contains the largest known polychloride [Cl20]2− to date, and [Cp*2Fe][Cl(Cl2)4(HF)], which is the first example of a polychloride‐HF network stabilized by strong hydrogen and halogen bonding. All compounds have been characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and quantum‐chemical calculations

Caskin2 is a novel talin- and Abi1-binding protein that promotes cell motility.

Talin (herein referring collectively to talin 1 and 2) couples the actomyosin cytoskeleton to integrins and transmits tension to the extracellular matrix. Talin also interacts with numerous additional proteins capable of modulating the actin-integrin linkage and thus downstream mechanosignaling cascades. Here, we demonstrate that the scaffold protein Caskin2 interacts directly with the R8 domain of talin through its C-terminal LD motif. Caskin2 also associates with the WAVE regulatory complex to promote cell migration in an Abi1-dependent manner. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the Caskin2-Abi1 interaction is regulated by growth factor-induced phosphorylation of Caskin2 on serine 878. In MCF7 and UACC893 cells, which contain an amplification of CASKIN2, Caskin2 localizes in plasma membrane-associated plaques and around focal adhesions in cortical microtubule stabilization complexes. Taken together, our results identify Caskin2 as a novel talin-binding protein that might not only connect integrin-mediated adhesion to actin polymerization but could also play a role in crosstalk between integrins and microtubules

Human intrahepatic ILC2 are IL-13^*positive Amphiregulin^*positive and their frequency correlates with Model of End stage Liver Disease score

Innate lymphoid cells (ILC) have been implicated in the initiation of inflammation and fibrosis in mice. However, ILC have not been characterized in inflamed human liver tissue.Human intrahepatic lymphocytes were isolated by mechanical digestion and phenotyped by flow cytometry. Conditioned medium from cultures of primary human biliary epithelial cells, stellate cells, fibroblasts and inflamed human liver tissue was used to model the effects of the inflammatory liver environment of ILC phenotype and function.All three ILC subsets were present in the human liver, with the ILC1 (CRTH2negCD117neg) subset constituting around 70% of intrahepatic ILCs. Both NCRpos (NKp44+) and NCRneg ILC3 (CRTH2negCD117pos) subsets were also detected. ILC2 (CRTH2pos) frequency correlated with disease severity measured by model of end stage liver disease (MELD) scoring leading us to study this subset in more detail. ILC2 displayed a tissue resident CD69+ CD161++ phenotype and expressed chemokine receptor CCR6 allowing them to respond to CCL20 secreted by cholangiocytes and stellate cells. ILC2 expressed integrins VLA-5 and VLA-6 and the IL-2 and IL-7 cytokine receptors CD25 and CD127 although IL-2 and IL-7 were barely detectable in inflamed liver tissue. Although biliary epithelial cells secrete IL-33, intrahepatic ILC2 had low expression of the ST2 receptor. Intrahepatic ILC2 secreted the immunoregulatory and repair cytokines IL-13 and amphiregulin.Intrahepatic ILC2 express receptors allowing them to be recruited to bile ducts in inflamed portal tracts. Their frequencies increased with worsening liver function. Their secretion of IL-13 and amphiregulin suggests they may be recruited to promote resolution and repair and thereby they may contribute to ongoing fibrogenesis in liver disease

Data underlying the publication: Mapping recombination landscape and basidial spore number in the button mushroom Agaricus bisporus

- Raw data of counts of basidial spore numbers in lamellae of 2 varieties of A. bisporus, i.e. var. bisporus and var. burnettii (parents). The intervarietal hybrid and the intercross of haploid offspring of the intervarietal hybrid. These data sets are used to map QTL of the basidial spore number. - A selection of 71 haploid offspring of HBT03 that was outcrossed with H39. This set was used to generate 40-50 haploid offspring that was subsequently genotyped to assess crossover positions. These data were used to QTL map the trait " recombination landscape" - Genotypes of the intervarietal hybrid HBT03 (var. bisporus H97 x var. burnettii H119p4). 180 homokaryotic single spore isolates (SSIs) were genotyped using 215 SNP's using Kasp genotyping method. - 71 haploid offspring of the intervarietal hybrid HBT03 were outcrossed with the var. bisporis homokaryon H39. From each hybrid, 40-50 haploid offspring was genotyped using 4 SNP markers per chromosome: markers at the chromosome ends, and 2 markers 150-200 kb from chromosome ends ("border" marker)