45 research outputs found
In the crevices of global capitalism: rural queer community formation
No full text“In the Crevices of Global Capitalism: Rural Queer Community Formation” is an interdisciplinary study of a cluster of intentional communities in Tennessee, referred to by residents as the “Gayborhood.” It asks what factors influence rural community-building, and how queer rurality is linked to larger historical, economic, and political patterns. As an interdisciplinary project, the dissertation draws on multiple methods, primarily ethnographic fieldwork, archival research, oral history, and media analysis. The project studies the Gayborhood not just from an LGBT history view, but more crucially from the perspective of the history of the land on which it is located. It argues that the creation of a queer community in rural Tennessee is predicated on several waves of displacement of other groups from the land, through an ongoing process of settler colonialism and capitalist exploitation. The dissertation makes four main interventions in the field of Queer Studies: First, it provides a reading of the concept of “labor of belonging.” The Gayborhood is created through constant labor, which is for the most part unremunerated, and not always acknowledged. This labor creates a multifaceted belonging: people belonging to a community, land belonging to people, and people belonging to the land. Second, the dissertation presents a theory of materiality and excess. The Gayborhood is in several ways built on waste: the utilizing of literal trash in building, discarded food in cooking, and also being located in a metaphorical post-industrial wasteland. Third, the project places rural queer intentional communities within the landscape of settler colonialism. The dissertation shows how the claiming of land by queer groups is predicated on the naturalization of white US citizenship, and the erasure of histories and presents of Native presence on the land. Fourth, the dissertation uses the concept of fermentation as metaphor and method. It poses that the process of fermentation, whereby microorganisms interact with feedstock materials in a process that combines decomposition and creation, can be used to explain how locations such as the Gayborhood become possible, and how they change.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical referencesby Stina Soderlin
Anarchist Pedagogy in the Gender and Women’s Studies Classroom
No full textAbstract
This article argues for the value of employing anarchist pedagogical methods in introductory Gender and Women’s Studies courses. The author draws on her experiences using feminist and anarchist pedagogical literature as well as her own experiences using anarchist pedagogy. Topics addressed include classroom structure, syllabus design, grading, and the question of opinions and neutrality.
Résumé
Cet article défend le mérite d’employer des méthodes pédagogiques anarchistes dans les cours d’introduction aux Études sur le genre et les femmes. L’auteure s’appuie sur ses expériences de l’utilisation de matériel pédagogique féministe et anarchiste ainsi que sur ses propres expériences de l’utilisation de la pédagogie anarchiste. Les sujets abordés comprennent la structure de la salle de classe, la conception du programme d’études, la notation et la question des opinions et de la neutralité
Anarchist Pedagogy in the Gender and Women’s Studies Classroom
No full textThis article argues for the value of employing anarchist pedagogical methods in introductory Gender and Women’s Studies courses. The author draws on her experiences using feminist and anarchist pedagogical literature as well as her own experiences using anarchist pedagogy. Topics addressed include classroom structure, syllabus design, grading, and the question of opinions and neutrality.Cet article défend le mérite d’employer des méthodes pédagogiques anarchistes dans les cours d’introduction aux Études sur le genre et les femmes. L’auteure s’appuie sur ses expériences de l’utilisation de matériel pédagogique féministe et anarchiste ainsi que sur ses propres expériences de l’utilisation de la pédagogie anarchiste. Les sujets abordés comprennent la structure de la salle de classe, la conception du programme d’études, la notation et la question des opinions et de la neutralité
Primary Versus Staged Reconstruction and Risk of Surgical Failure in Patients With Ulcerative Colitis: a Nation-wide Cohort Study
No full textLay Summary This population-based study of 2172 patients treated with colectomy for ulcerative colitis shows that a colectomy and restorative IRA/IPAA surgery performed simultaneously entails a higher risk of failure than when reconstruction is performed later. Background Restorative surgery after colectomy due to ulcerative colitis (UC) may be performed simultaneously with colectomy (primary) or as a staged procedure. Risk factors for failure after restorative surgery are not fully explored. This study aimed to compare the risk of failure after primary and staged reconstruction. Methods This is a national register-based cohort study of all patients 15 to 69 years old in Sweden treated with colectomy due to UC and who received an ileorectal anastomosis (IRA) or ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) between 1997 and 2017. Failure was defined as a reoperation with new ileostomy after restorative surgery or a remaining defunctioning ileostomy after 2 years. Risk of failure was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression adjusted for sex, age, calendar period, primary sclerosing cholangitis, and duration of UC. Results Of 2172 included patients, 843 (38.8%) underwent primary reconstruction, and 1329 (61.2%) staged reconstruction. Staged reconstruction was associated with a decreased risk of failure compared with primary reconstruction (hazard ratio, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.58-0.91). The 10-year cumulative risk of failure was 15% vs 20% after staged and primary reconstruction, respectively. In all, 1141 patients (52.5%) received an IPAA and 1031 (47.5%) an IRA. In stratified multivariable models, staged reconstruction was more successful than primary reconstruction in both IRA (hazard ratio, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.54-1.04) and IPAA (hazard ratio, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.52-1.01), although risk estimates failed to attain statistical significance. Conclusions In UC patients undergoing colectomy, postponing restorative surgery may decrease the risk of failure.</p
15 - Health Care Use, Work Loss, and Total Costs in Incident and Prevelant Ulcerative Colitis: Results from a Nationwide Study in Sweden
No full textReview of: © 2014, Kim et al. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.
No full textCdc42 is a signaling protein important for reorganization of actin cytoskeleton and morphogenesis of cells. However, the functional role of Cdc42 in synaptic plasticity and in behaviors such as learning and memory are not well understood. Here we report that postnatal forebrain deletion of Cdc42 leads to deficits in synaptic plasticity and in remote memory recall using conditional knockout of Cdc42. We found that deletion of Cdc42 impaired LTP in the Schaffer collateral synapses and postsynaptic structural plasticity of dendritic spines in CA1 pyramidal neurons in the hippocampus. Additionally, loss of Cdc42 did not affect memory acquisition, but instead significantly impaired remote memory recall. Together these results indicate that the postnatal functions of Cdc42 may be crucial for the synaptic plasticity in hippocampal neurons, which contribute to the capacity for remote memory recall.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02839.001View Full TextTo Top Cdc42 is a signaling protein important for reorganization of actin cytoskeleton and morphogenesis of cells. However, the functional role of Cdc42 in synaptic plasticity and in behaviors such as learning and memory are not well understood. Here we report that postnatal forebrain deletion of Cdc42 leads to deficits in synaptic plasticity and in remote memory recall using conditional knockout of Cdc42. We found that deletion of Cdc42 impaired LTP in the Schaffer collateral synapses and postsynaptic structural plasticity of dendritic spines in CA1 pyramidal neurons in the hippocampus. Additionally, loss of Cdc42 did not affect memory acquisition, but instead significantly impaired remote memory recall. Together these results indicate that the postnatal functions of Cdc42 may be crucial for the synaptic plasticity in hippocampal neurons, which contribute to the capacity for remote memory recall. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02839.001 Neurons communicate with one another at junctions called synapses, which are typically formed between the dendrite of one neuron and the axon terminus of another. The dendrites are protrusions coming out of the cell body that receive inputs from other cells; the axon is a cable-like structure that enables neurons to contact other cells. In excitatory neurons in part of the brain called the hippocampus, the dendrites are themselves covered in structures called spines, so most synapses are formed between an axon terminus (belonging to the presynaptic cell) and a dendritic spine (on the postsynaptic cell). The hippocampus is necessary for the formation of long-term memories. The strength of a synapse can increase or decrease over time—a property that is called synaptic plasticity. Changes in the strength of synapses are thought to underlie learning and memory, and long-lasting changes in synaptic strength involve increases or decreases in the number and size of dendritic spines. Such changes are possible because spines have an internal skeleton that can be assembled and disassembled in a matter of minutes. This ‘remodeling’ process is regulated by a family of enzymes called small GTPases. One of these, known as Cdc42, has been shown to promote the formation and maintenance of spines in cell culture, but its role in synaptic plasticity, learning and memory remains unknown. Now, Kim, Wang et al. have used genetically modified mice who have had Cdc42 deleted from excitatory neurons in their forebrain to examine the functions of this enzyme in living animals. These ‘knockout’ mice showed a small but statistically significant reduction in the number of dendritic spines in the hippocampus. They also showed smaller changes in spine volume and impaired long-term synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus. When the mice performed long-term memory tests where they learnt to associate a specific set of visual cues with an impending electric shock, the knockout mice performed well for up to a few days. However, when tested again on the same task 45 days later, the knockout mice did not perform as well as normal mice. This is surprising, given the presumed role of long-term synaptic plasticity in learning and memory, and indicates that Cdc42 is required for ‘remote memory’, the form of memory lasting for many days. Similar results were obtained with another memory test using a water maze, where the animals have to remember the location of a hidden platform. Normal mice remember the location for more than 30 days. In contrast, the knockout mice could only remember the location for a few days. As well as providing the first demonstration of the role of Cdc42 in synaptic plasticity in live animals, the work of Kim, Wang et al. has provided new insights into the functions of this enzyme in memory. Further work is required to determine how Cdc42 interacts with other proteins present at synapses. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02839.00
Pediatric Ischemic Stroke and Epilepsy A Nationwide Cohort Study
No full textBackground and Purpose: The risk of epilepsy after stroke has not been thoroughly explored in pediatric ischemic stroke. We examined the risk of epilepsy in children with ischemic stroke as well as in their first-degree relatives. Methods: In Swedish National Registers, we identified 1220 children &lt;18 years with pediatric ischemic stroke diagnosed 1969 to 2016, alive 7 days after stroke and with no prior epilepsy. We used 12 155 age- and sex-matched individuals as comparators. All first-degree relatives to index individuals and comparators were also identified. The risk of epilepsy was estimated in children with ischemic stroke and in their first-degree relatives using Cox proportional hazard regression model. Results: Through this nationwide population-based study, 219 (18.0%) children with ischemic stroke and 91 (0.7%) comparators were diagnosed with epilepsy during follow-up corresponding to a 27.8-fold increased risk of future epilepsy (95% CI, 21.5-36.0). The risk of epilepsy was still elevated after 20 years (hazard ratio [HR], 7.9 [95% CI, 3.3-19.0]), although the highest HR was seen in the first 6 months (HR, 119.4 [95% CI, 48.0-297.4]). The overall incidence rate of epilepsy was 27.0 per 100 000 person-years (95% CI, 21.1-32.8) after ischemic stroke diagnosed &lt;= day 28 after birth (perinatal) and 11.6 per 100 000 person-years (95% CI, 9.6-13.5) after ischemic stroke diagnosed &gt;= day 29 after birth (childhood). Siblings and parents, but not offspring, to children with ischemic stroke were at increased risk of epilepsy (siblings: HR, 1.64 [95% CI, 1.08-2.48] and parents: HR, 1.41 [95% CI, 1.01-1.98]). Conclusions: The risk of epilepsy after ischemic stroke in children is increased, especially after perinatal ischemic stroke. The risk of epilepsy was highest during the first 6 months but remained elevated even 20 years after stroke which should be taken into account in future planning for children affected by stroke.</p
Risk of lung cancer in rheumatoid arthritis and in relation to autoantibody positivity and smoking
No full textOBJECTIVE: Lung cancer is a common malignancy in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Since smoking is a risk factor for both (seropositive) RA and lung cancer, it remains unclear whether RA, in itself, increases lung cancer risk. METHODS: We performed a population-based cohort study of patients with RA and individually matched general population reference individuals identified in Swedish registers and from the Epidemiological Investigation of RA early RA study, prospectively followed for lung cancer occurrence 1995–2018. We calculated incidence rates and performed Cox regression to estimate HRs including 95% CIs of lung cancer, taking smoking and RA serostatus into account. RESULTS: Overall, we included 44 101 patients with RA (590 incident lung cancers, 56 per 100 000), and 216 495 matched general population individuals (1691 incident lung cancers, 33 per 100 000), corresponding to a crude HR (95% CI) of 1.76 (1.60 to 1.93). In subset analyses, this increased risk remained after adjustment for smoking (HR 1.77, 95% CI 1.06 to 2.97). Compared with general population subjects who were never smokers, patients with RA who were ever smokers had almost seven times higher risk of lung cancer. In RA, seropositivity was a significant lung cancer risk factor, even when adjusted for smoking, increasing the incidence 2–6 times. At 20 years, the risk in patients with RA was almost 3%, overall and over 4% for patients who were ever smokers and had at least one RA autoantibody. CONCLUSIONS: Seropositive RA is a risk factor for lung cancer over and above what can be explained by smoking, although residual confounding by smoking or other airway exposures cannot be formally excluded. There is a need for increased awareness and potentially for regular lung cancer screening, at least in a subset of patients with RA
Risk of Autism After Pediatric Ischemic Stroke
No full textBACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Ischemic stroke increases the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders; however, the risk of autism is not thoroughly explored. Our aim was to evaluate risk of autism and risk factors for autism in children with pediatric ischemic stroke and in their first-degree relatives. METHODS: In this cohort study, individuals with ischemic stroke from 1969 to 2016, <18 years of age, alive 1 week after stroke, and without prior autism were identified in Swedish national registers. Ten matched controls per index individual and all first-degree relatives of index individuals and controls were identified. Conditional Cox regression was used to calculate the risk of autism. Unconditional logistic regression was performed to analyze sex, gestational age, age at stroke diagnoses, comorbid adverse motor outcome, comorbid epilepsy, and a sibling with autism as risk factors for autism in children with ischemic stroke. RESULTS: Of the 1,322 index individuals, 46 (3.5%) were diagnosed with autism compared to 161 (1.2%) controls (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 3.02, 95% CI 2.15–4.25). There was no significant difference in risk of autism according to age at stroke: perinatal (aHR 2.69, 95% CI 1.44–5.03) and childhood stroke (aHR 3.18, 95% CI 2.12–4.78). The increased risk remained after exclusion of children born preterm or small for gestational age (aHR 3.78, 95% CI 2.55–5.60) and when children with stroke diagnosed from 1997 to 2014 were analyzed (aHR 2.91, 95% CI = 1.95–4.35). Compared to controls, the risk of autism was increased in individuals with ischemic stroke and comorbid epilepsy (aHR 7.05, 95% CI 3.74–13.30), as well as adverse motor outcome (aHR 4.28, 95% CI 2.44–7.51). When individuals with adverse motor outcome and epilepsy were censored, the risk of autism was still increased (aHR 2.37, 95% CI 1.45–3.85). Sex, gestational age, and having a sibling with autism were not associated with autism in individuals with pediatric ischemic stroke. DISCUSSION: An increased risk of autism was seen after pediatric ischemic stroke, particularly in individuals with comorbid epilepsy, and could not be explained by being born preterm or small for gestational age. The risk was increased also in individuals free from epilepsy and adverse motor outcome, implying that all children with ischemic stroke should be readily screened for autism if the disorder is suspected
Cumulative incidence and prevalence of perianal diseases in patients with inflammatory bowel disease and in the population: a nationwide Swedish study
No full textBackground: Perianal diseases are more common in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) than in the general population, but data are scarce in other inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) subtypes.Method: Using data from the Swedish National Patient Register (NPR) and SWIBREG, the national quality register for IBD, we estimated the cumulative incidence of perianal fistula/abscess and perianal diseases (fistula, abscess, stenosis, fissure or procedure code for perianal surgery) in relation to diagnosis, and the prevalence in 2023, in individuals with CD, ulcerative colitis (UC) and IBD-unclassified (IBD-U), and in a matched (age, sex, calendar year and region of residence) IBD-free cohort from the general population.Results: We identified 38,364 patients with incident IBD 2007-2017, and 98,229 patients with prevalent IBD as of 31 December 2022. The cumulative incidence of fistula/abscess was 6.7% at diagnosis, 8.3% at 1 year and 10.4% at 5 years in CD. The corresponding percentages in UC were 0.9%, 1.3% and 2.1%, and in IBD-U 2.4%, 3.1% and 4.5%, respectively. In 2023, 12.8%, 3.1% and 4.1% of patients with prevalent CD, UC and IBD-U had a history of fistula/abscess, compared to 0.8% in the general population. The corresponding numbers for perianal diseases were 19.7%, 7.4%, 8.6% and 2.2%.Conclusions: The cumulative incidence and prevalence of perianal diseases in Swedish patients with CD was in parity with reports from other countries, and in patients with UC and IBD-U, it was 3-4 times higher than in the population.Funding Agencies|Swedish Research Council [2020-02002]; Stockholm County Council; Karolinska Institutet [RS2021-0855]; Swedish Medical Society; Svenska Lakaresallskapet; Vetenskapsradet</p
