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For queer individuals, social space can be a matter of negotiating between being seen or unseen by others, and this negotiation underpins one’s ability to feel rooted or comfortable, as well as being capable of movement. In this paper, a spatial phenomenological approach to queer embodiment is employed that understands space as an intrinsically socio-material landscape whereby perceptions and embodiments of gender and sexuality facilitate mobility. Interviews were conducted with fourteen (14) individuals who self-identified as LGBTQA and were newcomers to Hamilton. The interviews were transcribed and then analyzed using a three-step Interpretive Phenomenological Approach (IPA). Four overlapping themes are highlighted: embodiment, nonphysical violence, visibility and invisibility, and disorientation. Together, these themes are used to discuss how LGBTQA individuals in Hamilton experience living space in highly complex and nuanced relationships with other embodied subjects. Diverging from traditional social constructionist and psychological approaches to queer geographies, our findings demonstrate the utility of revisiting phenomenological concepts to understand gender, romantic, and sexual minorities, and also corroborate the emerging research that demonstrates a significant interplay between gender, sexuality, and space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inflammation-induced oligodendrocyte death and CNS demyelination are key features of multiple sclerosis (MS). Inflammation-triggered endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and oxidative stress promote tissue damage in MS and in its preclinical animal model, experimental autoimmune encephalitis (EAE). Compound AA147 is a potent activator of the ATF6 signaling arm of the unfolded protein response (UPR) that can also induce antioxidant signaling through activation of the NRF2 pathway in neuronal cells. Previous work showed that AA147 protects multiple tissues against ischemia/reperfusion damage through ATF6 and/or NRF2 activation; however, its therapeutic potential in neuroinflammatory disorders remains unexplored. Here, we demonstrate that AA147 ameliorated the clinical symptoms of EAE and reduced ER stress, oligodendrocyte loss, and demyelination. Additionally, AA147 suppressed T cells in the CNS without altering the peripheral immune response. Importantly, AA147 significantly increased the expressions of Grp78, an ATF6 target gene, in oligodendrocytes, while enhancing levels of Grp78 as well as Ho-1, an NRF2 target gene, in microglia. In cultured oligodendrocytes, AA147 promoted nuclear translocation of ATF6, but not NRF2. Intriguingly, AA147 altered the microglia activation profile, possibly by triggering the NRF2 pathway. AA147 was not therapeutically beneficial during the acute EAE stage in mice lacking ATF6 in oligodendrocytes, indicating that protection primarily involves ATF6 activation in these cells. Overall, our results suggest AA147 as a potential therapeutic opportunity for MS by promoting oligodendrocyte survival and regulating microglia status through distinct mechanisms., (© 2025 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)