Intersex, Hermaphroditism, and Gonadal Plasticity in Vertebrates: Evolution of the Müllerian Duct and Amh/Amhr2 Signaling

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 149-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mateus Contar Adolfi ◽  
Rafael Takahiro Nakajima ◽  
Rafael Henrique Nóbrega ◽  
Manfred Schartl

In vertebrates, sex organs are generally specialized to perform a male or female reproductive role. Acquisition of the Müllerian duct, which gives rise to the oviduct, together with emergence of the Amh/Amhr2 system favored evolution of viviparity in jawed vertebrates. Species with high sex-specific reproductive adaptations have less potential to sex reverse, making intersex a nonfunctional condition. Teleosts, the only vertebrate group in which hermaphroditism evolved as a natural reproductive strategy, lost the Müllerian duct during evolution. They developed for gamete release complete independence from the urinary system, creating optimal anatomic and developmental preconditions for physiological sex change. The common and probably ancestral role of Amh is related to survival and proliferation of germ cells in early and adult gonads of both sexes rather than induction of Müllerian duct regression. The relationship between germ cell maintenance and sex differentiation is most evident in species in which Amh became the master male sex–determining gene.

2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (11) ◽  
pp. 3603-3617 ◽  
Author(s):  
James C. McCutcheon ◽  
Stephen J. Watts

Gateway theory has been the source of much debate in both the research literature and public policy. Support for gateway sequencing has been mixed, especially in research that has considered the role of criminological variables in the etiology of substance use. For example, limited prior research has observed as important in gateway sequencing the effects of severe stressors. Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health are utilized to test gateway theory and examine whether severe stressors affect the relationship between frequency of cannabis use and later use of other illicit drugs (OIDs). Findings suggest that while frequency of cannabis use does increase the likelihood of later use of OIDs, this relationship may be the result of the common cause of experiencing severe stress. Implications of the findings are discussed.


Author(s):  
Lisa Waddington

This chapter explores the relationship between disability quota schemes and non-discrimination law in Europe. While at first sight they seem to sit uneasily beside each other, the chapter reveals how, in some instances, quota schemes can serve to facilitate compliance with non-discrimination legislation. At the same time, the chapter explores seeming incompatibilities between the two approaches and considers whether there are differences between common and civil law jurisdictions in this respect. Tentative conclusions suggest that there is a greater willingness to establish quota schemes through legislation in civil law jurisdictions compared to common law jurisdictions, and that quota schemes in civil law jurisdictions are more likely to provide for the imposition of a levy in the case that employers fail to meet their quota obligations through employing the required number of people with disabilities. There also seems to be some indication that there is greater awareness of the potential for conflict or tension, in various forms, between non-discrimination law and quota schemes in common law jurisdictions than in civil law jurisdictions. Finally, the two schemes operating in the common law states are only applicable to the public sector—whilst in civil law states quotas are generally applied to both public and private sector employers. This may indicate different perceptions regarding the role of public sector employers and the legitimacy of imposing quota requirements.


2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 401-418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Crowe ◽  
Barbora Jedličková

Cartels have a significantly negative impact on economic welfare. Anti-cartel competition law–such as the provisions of pt IV div 1 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth)–tries to tackle this negative impact through civil and criminal remedies. The prohibition of cartels is most commonly justified on economic grounds. However, reference is also often made to broader moral grounds for proscribing cartels–for example, it is commonly stated that cartels are deceptive, unfair or engaged in a form of cheating. This article advances a unified account of the moral status of cartels that integrates both economic and moral factors. It does so by emphasising the relationship of cartel behaviour to the moral duty to promote the common good. Cartels are wrong because they undermine the role of open and competitive markets as a salient response to an important social coordination problem in a way that leads to seriously harmful economic outcomes. This combination of factors supplies a robust justification for both civil and criminal sanctions in appropriate cases, thereby affording a principled foundation for the current framework of cartel regulation in Australia.


QJM ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 113 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
S B Ali ◽  
A M Salama ◽  
Z A Mahmoud

Abstract Background Müllerian duct anomalies (MDAs) occur as a result from abnormal development of the uterus, cervix, and upper vagina. Many classification systems are presented, aiming to provide a more suitable and accurate categorization of female genital anomalies. Ultrasonography (US), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), or a combination of both are considered the gold standard in evaluation of uterine anomalies. Aim of the Work The main purpose of the study is to determine the diagnostic role of MRI and US in assessment of Müllerian duct anomalies and its subtypes. Patients and Methods This prospective analytical study was conducted at 14 patients suspected to have MDAs at Al-Demerdash Hospital-Ain Shams University in the period from September 2017 to May 2018, Their ages ranged from 15-40 year-old. All cases underwent Pelvic U/S and MRI, findings were correlated with laparoscopy. Results In this study the Mullerian duct anomalies were categorized into four groups: (a) congenital absence of the Müllerian ducts, or the Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser syndrome (n = 8), (b) disorders of vertical fusion (n = 1),(c) disorders of lateral fusion (n = 3) and (d) MDAs mimics(n = 2).MRI allowed correct diagnosis of 14 uterine anomalies (accuracy 100%) whereas US was correct in 13 out of 14 cases (accuracy 92.8%). Conclusion Two dimensional ultrasound stands as the first imaging modality of choice. MRI remains the reference imaging modality in diagnosis of Mullerian anomalies and it is subtypes and should be preserved for doubtful or complex cases.


2013 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
EDWARD HARRIS

Abstract H. Meyer‐Laurin has claimed that the Athenian courts took a stricti iuris approach to the law and did not take extenuating circumstances into account. Other scholars (Mirhady, Todd) have claimed that the courts sometimes ignored the law and took extra‐legal considerations into account, which was called ‘fairness’ (epieikeia). The essay begins with a careful reading of Aristotle's analysis of ‘fairness’ (epieikeia) in the Nicomachean Ethics and the Rhetoric and draws on an important essay by J. Brunschwig. Fairness was not a doctrine that attempted to undermine the authority of the law or placed the law of the city in opposition to the unwritten laws or the common law of mankind. Nor did the application of fairness introduce non‐legal factors into adjudication. Rather, fairness dealt with the problem of treating exceptions to the general rule contained in a specific written law. The essay then shows how litigants used arguments based on fairness and how the courts sometimes took extenuating circumstances into account. When Athenian judges swore to decide according to the laws of Athens, they did not just consider the law under which the accuser had brought his case. They could also take into account general principles of justice implicit in the laws of Athens as a whole. In this way, they avoided a rigid positivist approach to law. Finally, the essay sheds some light on the relationship between Aristotle's Rhetoric and the arguments used in the Athenian courts.


Author(s):  
Yuxin Xie ◽  
Duo Huang ◽  
Lianhe Chu ◽  
Yun Liu ◽  
Xiao Sun ◽  
...  

Abstract Zebrafish gonadal sexual differentiation is an important but poorly understood subject. Previously, we have identified a novel Igf named Igf3 in teleosts. The importance of Igf3 in oocyte maturation and ovulation has been recently demonstrated by us in zebrafish. In this study, we have further found the essential role of Igf3 in gonadal sexual differentiation of zebrafish. A differential expression pattern of igf3 between ovary and testis during sex differentiation (higher level in ovary than in testis) was found in zebrafish. An igf3 knockout zebrafish line was established using TALENs-mediated gene knockout technique. Intriguingly, all igf3 homozygous mutants were males due to the female-to-male sex reversal occurred during sex differentiation. Further analysis showed that Igf3 did not seem to affect the formation of so-called juvenile ovary and oocyte-like germ cells. Oocyte development was arrested at primary growth stage, and the ovary was gradually sex-reversed to testis before 60 dpf. Such sex reversal was likely due to decreased germ cell proliferation by suppressing PI3K/Akt pathway in early ovaries of igf3 mutants. Estrogen is considered as a master regulator in fish sex differentiation. Here, we found that igf3 expression could be up-regulated by estrogen in early stages of ovarian follicles as evidenced in in vitro treatment assays and cyp19a1a mutant zebrafish, and E2 failed to rescue the defects of igf3 mutants in ovarian development, suggesting that Igf3 may serve as a downstream factor of estrogen signaling in sex differentiation. Taken together, we demonstrated that Igf3 is essential for ovary differentiation in zebrafish.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (18) ◽  
pp. 7242
Author(s):  
María Lourdes Arco-Castro ◽  
María Victoria Lopez-Pérez ◽  
Sara Rodriguez-Gomez ◽  
Raquel Garde-Sánchez

Corporate philanthropy, as an expression of commitment to the common good, can contribute to the creation of social value in companies. This corporate philanthropy can be managed in various ways. The choice of how to channel corporate philanthropy could be, in accordance with stakeholder theory, the result of companies’ interactions with key stakeholders and, in accordance with the theory of signaling, a signal that companies use to respond to their demands. This approach contributes to the literature on bottom-up initiatives (stakeholder–managers) as opposed to top-down strategies (board–stakeholders) in relation to corporate social responsibility, which is becoming increasingly important in a society where networks of communication, cooperation and interaction are established. To this end, a study was conducted on 221 European companies indexed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices in the year 2018. The findings have several practical implications: The management of corporate philanthropy should take into account the stakeholders’ requirements, and stakeholders show greater affinity and trust with the company when philanthropy is channeled through foundations. By contrast, donations are not associated with stakeholder attitudes. As a theoretical implication, this paper supports the theories of stakeholders and signaling by explaining the role of philanthropy in the relationship with stakeholders.


2019 ◽  
Vol 118 (12) ◽  
pp. 142-165
Author(s):  
Dr. Nada Kaki Bira ◽  
Layla Naji Majeed Al Fatlawi

The global trend towards the use of fair value accounting is increasing, so the current study aimed to maximize the impact of fair value application on achieving relevance and representation faithfulness of accounting information in accordance with the common conceptual framework. To achieve the objective of this study, the researcher has determined in the theoretical framework the relationship of fair value with the characteristics of relevance and representation faithfulness of accounting information and the extent of achieving these characteristics, as well as conducting a field study by preparing a questionnaire distributed to a sample of academics (50) and auditors (50) with a total number of selected participants (100) of academics and auditors.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document