Menstrual patterns and self-reported hirsutism as assessed via the modified Ferriman-Gallwey scale: A cross-sectional study.

Objective: Hirsutism, the presence of excess terminal hair in a male pattern, is a clinical marker of androgen excess in women. We used cross-sectional data from a North American preconception cohort study to evaluate the association between menstrual cycle characteristics and hirsutism.

Study Design: Women aged 21-45 years were recruited to a North American cohort of pregnancy planners.

Mitochondrial oxygen affinity increases after sprint interval training and is related to the improvement in peak oxygen uptake.

Aims: The body responds to exercise training by profound adaptations throughout the cardiorespiratory and muscular systems, which may result in improvements in maximal oxygen consumption (VO peak) and mitochondrial capacity. By convenience, mitochondrial respiration is often measured at supra-physiological oxygen levels, an approach that ignores any potential regulatory role of mitochondrial affinity for oxygen (p50 ) at physiological oxygen levels.

Methods: In this study, we examined the p50 of mitochondria isolated from the Vastus lateralis and Triceps brachii in 12 healthy volunteers before and after a training intervention with seven sessions of sprint interval training using both leg cycling and arm cranking.

Effects of Spectral Resolution and Frequency Mismatch on Speech Understanding and Spatial Release From Masking in Simulated Bilateral Cochlear Implants.

Objectives: Due to interaural frequency mismatch, bilateral cochlear-implant (CI) users may be less able to take advantage of binaural cues that normal-hearing (NH) listeners use for spatial hearing, such as interaural time differences and interaural level differences. As such, bilateral CI users have difficulty segregating competing speech even when the target and competing talkers are spatially separated. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of spectral resolution, tonotopic mismatch (the frequency mismatch between the acoustic center frequency assigned to CI electrode within an implanted ear relative to the expected spiral ganglion characteristic frequency), and interaural mismatch (differences in the degree of tonotopic mismatch in each ear) on speech understanding and spatial release from masking (SRM) in the presence of competing talkers in NH subjects listening to bilateral vocoder simulations.

Effect of a Home Pregnancy Test Intervention on Cohort Retention and Pregnancy Detection: A Randomized Trial.

We conducted a parallel, nonblinded randomized trial to assess whether offering home pregnancy tests (HPTs) to preconception cohort study participants influenced cohort retention or pregnancy detection. Pregnancy Study Online participants were female, aged 21-45 years, attempting pregnancy, and not using fertility treatment. At enrollment (2017-2018), 1,493 participants with 6 or fewer cycles of attempt time were randomly assigned with 50% probability to receive 12 Clearblue visual HPTs plus the standard protocol (n = 720) or the standard protocol alone (n = 773).

Insights for Blood Flow Restriction and Hypoxia in Leg Versus Arm Submaximal Exercise.

Purpose: To assess tissue oxygenation, along with metabolic and physiological responses during blood flow restriction (BFR, bilateral vascular occlusion) and systemic hypoxia conditions during submaximal leg- versus arm-cycling exercise.

Methods: In both legs and arms, 4 randomized sessions were performed (normoxia 400 m, fraction of inspired oxygen [FIO2] 20.9% and normobaric hypoxia 3800 m, FIO2 13.

More Screening or More Disease? Gonorrhea Testing and Positivity Patterns Among Men in 3 Large Clinical Practices in Massachusetts, 2010-2017.

Background: Gonorrhea diagnosis rates in the United States increased by 75% during 2009-2017, predominantly in men. It is unclear whether the increase among men is being driven by more screening, an increase in the prevalence of disease, or both. We sought to evaluate changes in gonorrhea testing patterns and positivity among men in Massachusetts.

Relationship between cardiorespiratory phase coherence during hypoxia and genetic polymorphism in humans.

Key Points: High altitude-induced hypoxia in humans evokes a pattern of breathing known as periodic breathing (PB), in which the regular oscillations corresponding to rhythmic expiration and inspiration are modulated by slow periodic oscillations. The phase coherence between instantaneous heart rate and respiration is shown to increase significantly at the frequency of periodic breathing during acute and sustained normobaric and hypobaric hypoxia. It is also shown that polymorphism in specific genes, NOTCH4 and CAT, is significantly correlated with this coherence, and thus with the incidence of PB.

Dietary phytoestrogen intakes of adult women are not strongly related to fecundability in 2 preconception cohort studies.

Background: Phytoestrogens are plant-derived hormonally active compounds found in soy, cruciferous vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Although phytoestrogens have been associated with altered endogenous hormonal activity, luteal phase deficiency, and reduced endometrial decidualization, the literature reporting examinations of phytoestrogen intake and fertility presents mixed findings.

Objectives: We sought to evaluate prospectively the association between dietary phytoestrogen intake (isoflavones, lignans, and coumestans) and fecundability, the per-cycle probability of conception, in 2 cohorts of women planning pregnancy.

Acute Hyperenergetic, High-Fat Feeding Increases Circulating FGF21, LECT2, and Fetuin-A in Healthy Men.

Background: Hepatokines such as fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), leukocyte cell-derived chemotaxin 2 (LECT2), fetuin-A, fetuin-B, and selenoprotein P (SeP) are liver-derived proteins that are modulated by chronic energy status and metabolic disease. Emerging data from rodent and cell models indicate that hepatokines may be sensitive to acute nutritional manipulation; however, data in humans are lacking.

Objective: The aim was to investigate the influence of hyperenergetic, high-fat feeding on circulating hepatokine concentrations, including the time course of responses.

Glycemic load, dietary fiber, and added sugar and fecundability in 2 preconception cohorts.

Background: Glycemic load (GL) reflects the quantity and quality of carbohydrates in the diet; dietary fiber and added sugar are components of GL. Few epidemiologic studies have assessed the association between these dietary factors and fecundability.

Objective: We prospectively evaluated the associations of GL, total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, and added sugar with fecundability.

A prospective study of treatments for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and fecundability.

Background: Treatments for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia remove precancerous cells from the cervix by excising or ablating the transformation zone. Most studies show no association between cervical intraepithelial neoplasia treatments and fertility outcomes. However, only 2 studies have examined time to pregnancy, both using retrospective study designs, with 1 study showing no association and the other showing a 2-fold increased risk of infertility (time to pregnancy >12 months) following excisional or ablative treatment.

Antibody Responses to Immunization With HCV Envelope Glycoproteins as a Baseline for B-Cell-Based Vaccine Development.

Background & Aims: We investigated antibody responses to hepatitis C virus (HCV) antigens E1 and E2 and the relevance of animal models for vaccine development. We compared antibody responses to vaccination with recombinant E1E2 complex in healthy volunteers, non-human primates (NHPs), and mice.

Methods: We analyzed 519 serum samples from participants in a phase 1 vaccine trial (ClinicalTrials.

Cohort differences in cognitive aging: The role of perceived work environment.

Studies of historical and societal influences on cognitive aging generally document that later-born cohorts outperform earlier-born cohorts on tests of fluid cognitive performance. It is often noted how advances in educational attainment in childhood and adolescence may contribute to these historical improvements in cognitive aging. Less is known about the role of work environment in adulthood.

Active Preconditioning With Blood Flow Restriction or/and Systemic Hypoxic Exposure Does Not Improve Repeated Sprint Cycling Performance.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of active preconditioning techniques using blood flow restriction or/and systemic hypoxic exposure on repeated sprint cycling performance and oxygenation responses.

Methods: Participants were 17 men; 8 were cycle trained (T: 21 ± 6 h/week) and 9 were untrained but physically active (UT). Each participant completed 4 cycles of 5 min stages of cycling at 1.

IRF4 Activity Is Required in Established Plasma Cells to Regulate Gene Transcription and Mitochondrial Homeostasis.

The transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 4 (IRF4) is critical for the development, maintenance, and function of plasma cells. The mechanism by which IRF4 exerts its action in mature plasma cells has been elusive due to the death of all such cells upon IRF4 loss. While we identify apoptosis as a critical pathway for the death of plasma cells caused by IRF4 loss, we also determine that IRF4 did not regulate the intrinsic apoptotic pathway directly.

Fecundability in relation to use of fertility awareness indicators in a North American preconception cohort study.

Objective: To quantify the frequency of use of selected fertility awareness indicators and to assess their influence on fecundability.

Design: Web-based prospective cohort study.

Setting: Not applicable.

AZD7648 is a potent and selective DNA-PK inhibitor that enhances radiation, chemotherapy and olaparib activity.

DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) is a critical player in the DNA damage response (DDR) and instrumental in the non-homologous end-joining pathway (NHEJ) used to detect and repair DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). We demonstrate that the potent and highly selective DNA-PK inhibitor, AZD7648, is an efficient sensitizer of radiation- and doxorubicin-induced DNA damage, with combinations in xenograft and patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models inducing sustained regressions. Using ATM-deficient cells, we demonstrate that AZD7648, in combination with the PARP inhibitor olaparib, increases genomic instability, resulting in cell growth inhibition and apoptosis.

When does prone sleeping improve cardiorespiratory status in preterm infants in the NICU?

Study Objectives: Preterm infants undergoing intensive care are often placed prone to improve respiratory function. Current clinical guidelines recommend preterm infants are slept supine from 32 weeks' postmenstrual age, regardless of gestational age at birth. However, respiratory function is also related to gestational and chronological ages and is affected by sleep state.

Mortality Risk Associated With Personality Facets of the Big Five and Interpersonal Circumplex Across Three Aging Cohorts.

Objective: To address the common reliance on the global Big Five domains in the personality and longevity literature, the present study examined mortality risk associated with subdimensions of Big Five domains as well as specific traits within the interpersonal circumplex (IPC) model of personality.

Methods: Data were drawn from three major longitudinal studies of aging that administered the NEO Personality Inventory-Revised, a comprehensive measure of the Big Five, and comprised a total of 4223 participants. Item Response Theory models were used to generate latent trait scores for each of the 30 Big Five facets and eight scales from the IPC.

The influence of different aspects of grouse moorland management on nontarget bird assemblages.

Conflict between stakeholders with opposing interests can hamper biodiversity conservation. When conflicts become entrenched, evidence from applied ecology can reveal new ways forward for their management. In particular, where disagreement exists over the efficacy or ethics of management actions, research clarifying the uncertain impacts of management on wildlife can move debates forwards to conciliation.

Evaluation of novel formulations for transarterial chemoembolization: combining elements of Lipiodol emulsions with Drug-eluting Beads.

Unlabelled: There are currently two methods widely used in clinical practice to perform transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). One is based on mixing an aqueous drug with an iodized oil (Lipiodol) and creating an emulsion that is delivered intraarterially, followed by embolization with a particulate agent. The other is based on a one-step TACE using Drug-eluting Beads (DEBs) loaded with drug.