Critical Marketing in the Classroom: Possibilities and Challenges

Critical marketing studies are currently on the margins of the discipline, and the ideas and challenges to conventional marketing thought posed by these critiques are rarely examined in the marketing classroom. Drawing largely from debates in the management literature, discusses the problems and considers the possibilities of integrating critical reflection into the marketing curriculum.

Akt/PKB activation and insulin signaling: a novel insulin signaling pathway in the treatment of type 2 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disease categorized primarily by reduced insulin sensitivity, β-cell dysfunction, and elevated hepatic glucose production. Treatments reducing hyperglycemia and the secondary complications that result from these dysfunctions are being sought after. Two distinct pathways encourage glucose transport activity in skeletal muscle, ie, the contraction-stimulated pathway reliant on Ca2+/5′-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK)-dependent mechanisms and an insulin-dependent pathway activated via upregulation of serine/threonine protein kinase Akt/PKB. Metformin is an established treatment for type 2 diabetes due to its ability to increase peripheral glucose uptake while reducing hepatic glucose production in an AMPK-dependent manner. Peripheral insulin action is reduced in type 2 diabetics whereas AMPK signaling remains largely intact. This paper firstly reviews AMPK and its role in glucose uptake and then focuses on a novel mechanism known to operate via an insulin-dependent pathway. Inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6) kinase 1 (IP6K1) produces a pyrophosphate group at the position of IP6 to generate a further inositol pyrophosphate, ie, diphosphoinositol pentakisphosphate (IP7). IP7 binds with Akt/PKB at its pleckstrin homology domain, preventing interaction with phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate, and therefore reducing Akt/PKB membrane translocation and insulin-stimulated glucose uptake. Novel evidence suggesting a reduction in IP7 production via IP6K1 inhibition represents an exciting therapeutic avenue in the treatment of insulin resistance. Metformin-induced activation of AMPK is a key current intervention in the management of type 2 diabetes. However, this treatment does not seem to improve peripheral insulin resistance. In light of this evidence, we suggest that inhibition of IP6K1 may increase insulin sensitivity and provide a novel research direction in the treatment of insulin resistance.

The role, organisation and contribution of community enterprise to urban regeneration policy in the UK

This monograph investigates the organisation, constitution and delivery of community-based organisations which are normally called community enterprises in the UK. These are organisations which emerge from local communities at the neighbourhood level, work in partnership with the public and private sectors, and provide a range of services to meet social, economic and environmental needs. The main focus of the paper is to explore how these organisations contribute to local regeneration strategies, generate social capital and contribute towards the promotion of civil society in general. The main emphasis is on organisations in England and Wales but comparisons are made with the USA and other countries where relevant literature is available. The key questions to be answered relate to the organisation and management of these bodies; the extent to which they engage with and contribute to local regeneration strategies; and the impact they have particularly in acquiring and managing assets. The diversity of the sector, and the range, scale and level of benefits it can deliver is illustrated through five detailed case studies of community enterprises established at different times, in different geographical locations and with different objectives and funding regimes. But, whilst the UK political economy is moving towards less state intervention and more community self-help, the community development corporations in the USA provide an indication of the future direction community enterprises might take in the UK as part of a broad trend towards civic capacity building.

Community empowerment or a strategy of containment? Evaluating neighbourhood governance in the city of Westminster

The longstanding emphasis on the neighbourhood as a scale for intervention and action has given rise to a variety of forms of governance with a number of different rationales. The predominant rationales about the purpose of neighbourhood governance are encapsulated in a fourfold typology developed by Lowndes and Sullivan (2008). This article sets out to test this approach by drawing on an evaluation of neighbourhood initiatives in the City of Westminster which were delivered through a third sector organisation, the Paddington Development Trust. ‘Insider’ perspectives gathered at city and neighbourhood levels regarding the infrastructure for neighbourhood management are discussed and evaluated in the light of these rationales. The conclusions, while broadly reflecting Lowndes and Sullivan and a follow-up study of Manchester, suggest that in Westminster the civic and economic rationales tend to predominate. However, the Westminster approach is contingent on the prevailing ethos and funding regimes at central and local levels and remains relatively detached from mainstream services. While community empowerment is an important part of the policy rhetoric, it is argued that in practice a ‘strategy of containment’ operates whereby residents in the neighbourhoods have relatively little control over targets and resources and that new governance mechanisms can be relatively easily de-coupled when required. In retrospect, co-production might have been a more effective model for neighbourhood governance, not least given its fit with policy direction.

Akkermansia muciniphila and improved metabolic health during a dietary intervention in obesity: relationship with gut microbiome richness and ecology

Objective: Individuals with obesity and type 2 diabetes differ from lean and healthy individuals in their abundance of certain gut microbial species and microbial gene richness. Abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila, a mucin-degrading bacterium, has been inversely associated with bodyfat mass and glucose intolerance in mice, but more evidence is needed in humans. The impact of diet and weight loss on this bacterial species is unknown. Our objective was to evaluate the association between fecal A. muciniphila abundance, fecal microbiome gene richness, diet, host characteristics, and their changes after calorie restriction (CR). Design: The intervention consisted of a 6-week CR period followed by a 6-week weight stabilization (WS) diet in overweight and obese adults (N=49, including 41 women). Fecal A. muciniphila abundance, fecal microbial gene richness, diet and bioclinical parameters were measured at baseline and after CR and WS. Results: At baseline A. muciniphila was inversely related to fasting glucose, waist-to-hip ratio, and subcutaneous adipocyte diameter. Subjects with higher gene richness and A. muciniphila abundance exhibited the healthiest metabolic status, particularly in fasting plasma glucose, plasma triglycerides and body fat distribution. Individuals with higher baseline A. muciniphila displayed greater improvement in insulin sensitivity markers and other clinical parameters after CR. A. muciniphila was associated with microbial species known to be related to health. Conclusion: A. muciniphila is associated with a healthier metabolic status and better clinicaloutcomes after CR in overweight/obese adults, however the interaction between gut microbiota ecology and A. muciniphila has to be taken into account.

Habitual coffee and tea drinkers experienced increases in blood pressure after consuming low to moderate doses of caffeine; these increases were larger upright than in the supine posture

Caffeine users have been encouraged to consume caffeine regularly to maintain their caffeine tolerance and so avoid caffeine’s acute pressor effects. In controlled conditions complete caffeine tolerance to intervention doses of 250 mg develops rapidly following several days of caffeine ingestion, nevertheless, complete tolerance is not evident for lower intervention doses. Similarly complete caffeine tolerance to 250 mg intervention doses has been demonstrated in habitual coffee and tea drinkers’ but for lower intervention doses complete tolerance is not evident. This study investigated a group of habitual caffeine users following their self-determined consumption pattern involving two to six servings daily. Cardiovascular responses following the ingestion of low to moderate amounts caffeine (67, 133 and 200 mg) were compared with placebo in a double-blind, randomised design without caffeine abstinence. Pre-intervention and post-intervention (30 and 60 min) 90 s continuous cardiovascular recordings were obtained with the Finometer in both the supine and upright postures. Participants were 12 healthy habitual coffee and tea drinkers (10 female, mean age 36). Doses of 67 and 133 mg increased systolic pressure in both postures while in the upright posture diastolic pressure and aortic impedance increased while arterial compliance decreased. These vascular changes were larger upright than supine for 133 mg caffeine. Additionally 67 mg caffeine increased dp/dt and indexed peripheral resistance in the upright posture. For 200 mg caffeine there was complete caffeine tolerance. Cardiovascular responses to caffeine appear to be associated with the size of the intervention dose. Habitual tea and coffee drinking does not generate complete tolerance to caffeine as has been previously suggested. Both the type and the extent of caffeine induced cardiovascular changes were influenced by posture.

The relation between content providers and distributors: Lessons from the regulation of television distribution in the United Kingdom

Using the United Kingdom (UK) as a case study, this article analyses the growing commercial and regulatory significance of broadcaster-distributor relations within the contemporary television industry. The first part of the article argues that despite important changes in broadcast delivery technology, more recently shaped by the growth of the Internet, and the associated growth of options of receiving television content, the traditional delivery platforms (digital terrestrial, satellite and cable) remain by far the preferred choice for viewers in Britain. At the same time, public service broadcasters continue to be the biggest investors in domestic original non-sport content and account for over half of all television viewing. The strength of PSBs in content and their growing reliance on commercial proprietary subscription platforms (cable and satellite) and gradually on the Internet presents challenges in the nexus between broadcasters and distributors. The article focuses on the debate over retransmission fees between PSBs and Sky, and on the question of whether Sky should be required to offer some of its premium content to rival pay-TV platforms. These two examples highlight the impact regulatory intervention can have on the balance of power between broadcasters and distributors. The article concludes that such debates concerning the commercial relations between content providers and distributors will remain pivotal and become more heated given that similar issues are raised in the Internet environment.