Apr 2009
Arizona Helen is a racehorse that was registered, and raced, as a filly.
The horse has a vagina. But tests showed high levels of testosterone. Further tests showed that Arizona Helen has XY sex reversal and testicular tissue.
Arizona Helen is intersexed, one of about 12 horses in the US that have been found with this condition.
Arizona Helen is now allowed to race against male horses.
Testing of horses for anabolic steroids has also uncovered geldings that produce, or appear to produce, testosterone.
Thursday 30 April 2009
Diane Schroer awarded nearly $500,000
In September 2008, US federal judge James Robertson ruled that the Library of Congress had discriminated against Diane Schroer when it withdrew a job offer after learning that that Schroer was to transition to female.
On 28 Apr 2009, Judge Robertson awarded Schroer $491,190 in back pay and damages.
On 28 Apr 2009, Judge Robertson awarded Schroer $491,190 in back pay and damages.
Thursday 23 April 2009
Brazil 2008 - violent trans deaths nearly double to 61
In 2007 there were 33 violent trans deaths in Brazil. In 2008, this nearly doubled to 61, according to GBG, a human rights organisation.
The GBG study is based on media reports, since there are no official statistics on hate crimes in Brazil. The annual GBG report is quoted by the Brazilian government’s National Secretariat for Human Rights and the U.S. State Department.
Head of the GBG, Marcelo Cerqueira, said that because of high poverty rates in many states, trans people had to turn to sex work, at least on an occasional basis. The report says the predominance of sex workers among the victims is due to street prostitution in areas heavily frequented by marginals and traffickers.
60% of the trans victims were killed with firearms, and 80% were killed in public spaces.
The GBG study is based on media reports, since there are no official statistics on hate crimes in Brazil. The annual GBG report is quoted by the Brazilian government’s National Secretariat for Human Rights and the U.S. State Department.
Head of the GBG, Marcelo Cerqueira, said that because of high poverty rates in many states, trans people had to turn to sex work, at least on an occasional basis. The report says the predominance of sex workers among the victims is due to street prostitution in areas heavily frequented by marginals and traffickers.
60% of the trans victims were killed with firearms, and 80% were killed in public spaces.
Zapata's killer guilty of murder and hate crime
22 Apr 09. Allen Andrade was found guilty of the 1st degree murder of Angie Zapata.
Angie Zapata was found in her apartment, in Greeley, Colorado, by her sister on 17 Jul 08. Andrade was charged in court by the end of the month after he was found in a car belonging to Zapata’s sister.
Andrade claimed he had killed Zapata in a state of panic when he found out she was trans. He had hit her on the head twice with a home fire extinguisher and thought she was dead. She then started moving and he hit her a 3rd time.
The trial began on 16 Apr 09. Andrade did not testify.
The jury took only 2 hours to find Andrade guilty of 1st degree murder, of a hate crime, of stealing Zapata’s sister’s car, and of using a card belonging to the sister.
This was the first time in Colorado and the 2nd time in the US that a person has been tried for killing a trans woman under hate crime laws.
Andrade gets a mandatory life sentence for 1st degree murder.
Angie Zapata was found in her apartment, in Greeley, Colorado, by her sister on 17 Jul 08. Andrade was charged in court by the end of the month after he was found in a car belonging to Zapata’s sister.
Andrade claimed he had killed Zapata in a state of panic when he found out she was trans. He had hit her on the head twice with a home fire extinguisher and thought she was dead. She then started moving and he hit her a 3rd time.
The trial began on 16 Apr 09. Andrade did not testify.
The jury took only 2 hours to find Andrade guilty of 1st degree murder, of a hate crime, of stealing Zapata’s sister’s car, and of using a card belonging to the sister.
This was the first time in Colorado and the 2nd time in the US that a person has been tried for killing a trans woman under hate crime laws.
Andrade gets a mandatory life sentence for 1st degree murder.
Friday 17 April 2009
Girl, 46XY, puts CBX2 before SRY
A baby was tested before birth to check for genetic conditions and was found to be 46XY – male. When born, the baby was a girl, and checks found a uterus and ovaries that appear to be normal.
In mice there is a similar situation causing male-to-female sex reversal, in which the mice are sterile.
Working back from known results in mice to humans, this suggests that mutations in Chromobox homolg 2 (CBX2) on chromosome 17 can shut off SRY, thus preventing the development of maleness.
It is too early to tell whether the girl, now age 7, will be sterile.
Published in American Journal of Human Genetics. March 2009.
In mice there is a similar situation causing male-to-female sex reversal, in which the mice are sterile.
Working back from known results in mice to humans, this suggests that mutations in Chromobox homolg 2 (CBX2) on chromosome 17 can shut off SRY, thus preventing the development of maleness.
It is too early to tell whether the girl, now age 7, will be sterile.
Published in American Journal of Human Genetics. March 2009.
Tuesday 7 April 2009
Brain research - regional grey matter difference found in putamen
Published in Neuroimage, Mar 2009.
“We analyzed MRI data of 24 male-to-female (MTF) transsexuals not yet treated with cross-sex hormones in order to determine whether gray matter volumes in MTF transsexuals more closely resemble people who share their biological sex (30 control men), or people who share their gender identity (30 control women). Results revealed that regional gray matter variation in MTF transsexuals is more similar to the pattern found in men than in women. However, MTF transsexuals show a significantly larger volume of regional gray matter in the right putamen compared to men. These findings provide new evidence that transsexualism is associated with distinct cerebral pattern, which supports the assumption that brain anatomy plays a role in gender identity.”
Abstract from Neuroimage.
The mean age of the transsexual subjects was 47, with a standard deviation of 13 years and a range from 23-72.
In a previous positron emission tomography (PET) study, it was demonstrated that the left putamen in a sample of MTF transsexuals (n=12), who had no history of estrogen treatment, activated differently to odorous steroids when compared to control males (Berglund et al., 2008).
Wikipedia
The main function of the putamen is to regulate movements and influence various types of learning. It employs dopamine to perform its functions. The putamen also plays a role in degenerative neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease.
Zoe Brain has more from the report.
“We analyzed MRI data of 24 male-to-female (MTF) transsexuals not yet treated with cross-sex hormones in order to determine whether gray matter volumes in MTF transsexuals more closely resemble people who share their biological sex (30 control men), or people who share their gender identity (30 control women). Results revealed that regional gray matter variation in MTF transsexuals is more similar to the pattern found in men than in women. However, MTF transsexuals show a significantly larger volume of regional gray matter in the right putamen compared to men. These findings provide new evidence that transsexualism is associated with distinct cerebral pattern, which supports the assumption that brain anatomy plays a role in gender identity.”
Abstract from Neuroimage.
The mean age of the transsexual subjects was 47, with a standard deviation of 13 years and a range from 23-72.
In a previous positron emission tomography (PET) study, it was demonstrated that the left putamen in a sample of MTF transsexuals (n=12), who had no history of estrogen treatment, activated differently to odorous steroids when compared to control males (Berglund et al., 2008).
Wikipedia
The main function of the putamen is to regulate movements and influence various types of learning. It employs dopamine to perform its functions. The putamen also plays a role in degenerative neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease.
Zoe Brain has more from the report.
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