Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccination and Assisted Reproduction Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the association between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination and female assisted reproduction outcomes through a systematic review and meta-analysis. DATA SOURCES: We searched Medline (OVID), EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and ClinicalTrials.gov on January 11, 2023, for original articles on assisted reproduction outcomes after COVID-19 vaccination. The primary outcome was rates of clinical pregnancy; secondary outcomes included number of oocytes retrieved, number of mature oocytes retrieved, fertilization rate, implantation rate, ongoing pregnancy rate, and live-birth rate. METHODS OF STUDY SELECTION: Two reviewers independently screened citations for relevance, extracted pertinent data, and rated study quality. Only peer-reviewed published studies were included. TABULATION, INTEGRATION, AND RESULTS: Our query retrieved 216 citations, of which 25 were studies with original, relevant data. Nineteen studies reported embryo transfer outcomes, with a total of 4,899 vaccinated and 13,491 unvaccinated patients. Eighteen studies reported data on ovarian stimulation outcomes, with a total of 1,878 vaccinated and 3,174 unvaccinated patients. There were no statistically significant results among our pooled data for any of the primary or secondary outcomes: clinical pregnancy rate (odds ratio [OR] 0.94, 95% CI 0.88-1.01, P=.10), number of oocytes retrieved (mean difference -0.26, 95% CI -0.68 to 0.15, P=.21), number of mature oocytes retrieved (mean difference 0.31, 95% CI -0.14 to 0.75, P=.18), fertilization rate (OR 0.99, 95% CI 0.87-1.11, P=.83), implantation rate (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.84-1.00, P=.06), ongoing pregnancy rate (OR 0.95, 95% CI 0.86-1.06, P=.40), or live-birth rate (OR 0.95, 95% CI 0.78-1.17, P=.63). A subanalysis based on country of origin and vaccine type was also performed for the primary and secondary outcomes and did not change the study results. CONCLUSION: Vaccination against COVID-19 is not associated with different fertility outcomes in patients undergoing assisted reproductive technologies. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO, CRD42023400023

Effect of vermicompost on functional response of the parasitoid wasp Aphidius colemani (Hym., Braconidae) to the melon aphid, Aphis gossypii (Hem., Aphididae)

Changing of host plant quality via agricultural practices such as application of fertilizer may influence the behavioral traits of natural enemies. In this study, the effect of improving cucumber plants with different vermicompost: soil ratios (0:100 (control), 10:90, 20:80 and 30:70 % by volume) were studied on the functional response of the parasitoid wasp Aphidius colemani Viereck to the melon aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover. The logistic regression analyses revealed that the functional response of the parasitoid wasp to the melon aphid was type II in all treatments. The different vermicompost: soil ratios were differently affected the parameters of the functional response of the wasp. The results suggest that A. colemani can be efficiently used in integrated management programs against the melon aphid using vermicompost

Effects of Chlamydia trachomatis Infection on Fertility; A Case-Control Study.

BACKGROUND: Nowadays, Chlamydia trachomatis is known as a causative agent of infertility. Because of, asymptomatic nature of infection, many may suffer from its lasting complications such as infertility. This study was performed in Tehran during April 2007 to April 2008 to compare the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis infection in fertile and infertile women using ELISA and PCR methods. METHODS: Overall, 234 infertile and 223 pregnant women, as the fertile group, participated in this hospital-based case-control study. After completing an informed consent form and the questionnaire, first catch urine and blood sample were obtained for PCR and ELISA (IgG, IgM) tests, respectively. Logistic regression analysis was used to control possible confounding factors, and determine adjusted odds ratio of infertility due to the infection. RESULTS: PCR results revealed that 29 (12.4%) of the infertile and 19 (8.5%) of the fertile women were positive for C. trachomatis infection (p = 0.440). IgG was positive in 21 (9.0%) of the infertile and 11 (5.0%) in the fertile group (p = 0.093). IgM assays identified that 2 (0.9%) of the infertile and 4 (1.8%) of the fertile women were positive for the micro-organism (p = 0.375). CONCLUSION: We found no significant differences among fertile and infertile women for Chlamydia trachomatis infection. Nevertheless, molecular techniques which are more sensitive, more specific and non-invasive can be used to detect C. trachomatis infection

Characterization of the serum levels of Meteorin-like in patients with inflammatory bowel disease and its association with inflammatory cytokines

Background: Meteorin-like (Metrnl) is an adipokine with insulin sensitizing and anti-inflammatory properties that has been discovered recently. The relation among Metrnl, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), and obesity has been unexplored yet. Methods: The present study was conducted on 54 healthy control, 42 Ulcerative Colitis (UC), and 43 Crohn�s disease (CD) patients who were diagnosed by pathological examination. In all participants, serum levels of adiponectin, Metrnl, interleukin (IL)-6, and Tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) were measured using ELISA kits. Results: Metrnl concentration was considerably lower in both UC (85.25 ± 36.55 pg/mL) and CD (76.93 ± 27.92 pg/mL) patients in comparison to control (107.52 ± 35.33 pg/mL). In addition, it was seen that both patient groups have a decreased level of adiponectin compared to the controls. Besides that, the level of IL-6 and TNF-α were significantly greater in the patient groups. Moreover, the result showed that the level of Metrnl is inversely correlated with body mass index (BMI) in the controls and the patients. Metrnl levels are also inversely associated with IL-6, and TNF-α in both of the patient groups. Conclusions: The current study is the first one reporting the decreased levels of Metrnl in serum among patients with IBD, which is inversely related with BMI, TNF-α, and IL-6. These results suggested a possible relation of Metrnl with the pathogenesis of IBD, particularly through inflammatory process, although further studies are warranted to dissect the possible mechanism. © 2020, The Author(s)

Identification of structural features of condensed tannins that affect protein aggregation

A diverse panel of condensed tannins was used to resolve the confounding effects of size and subunit composition seen previously in tannin-protein interactions. Turbidimetry revealed that size in terms of mean degree of polymerisation (mDP) or average molecular weight (amw) was the most important tannin parameter. The smallest tannin with the relatively largest effect on protein aggregation had an mDP of ~7. The average size was significantly correlated with aggregation of bovine serum albumin, BSA (mDP: r=-0.916; amw: r=-0.925; p<0.01; df=27), and gelatin (mDP: r=-0.961; amw: r=-0.981; p<0.01; df=12). The procyanidin/prodelphinidin and cis-/trans-flavan-3-ol ratios gave no significant correlations. Tryptophan fluorescence quenching indicated that procyanidins and cis-flavan-3-ol units contributed most to the tannin interactions on the BSA surface and in the hydrophobic binding pocket (r=0.677; p<0.05; df=9 and r=0.887; p<0.01; df=9, respectively). Circular dichroism revealed that higher proportions of prodelphinidins decreased the apparent α-helix content (r=-0.941; p<0.01; df=5) and increased the apparent β-sheet content (r=0.916; p<0.05; df=5) of BSA

The correlation of RNase A enzymatic activity with the changes in the distance between Nepsilon2-His12 and N delta1-His119 upon addition of stabilizing and destabilizing salts.

The effect of stabilizing and destabilizing salts on the catalytic behavior of ribonuclease A (RNase A) was investigated at pH 7.5 and 25 degrees C, using spectrophotometric, viscometric and molecular dynamic methods. The changes in the distance between N(epsilon2) of His(12) and N(delta1) of His(119) at the catalytic center of RNase A upon the addition of sodium sulfate, sodium hydrogen sulfate and sodium thiocyanate were evaluated by molecular dynamic methods. The compactness and expansion in terms of Stokes radius of RNase A upon the addition of sulfate ions as kosmotropic salts, and thiocyanate ion as a chaotropic salt, were estimated by viscometric measurements. Enzyme activity was measured using cytidine 2', 3'-cyclic monophosphate as a substrate. The results from the measurements of distances between N(epsilon2) of His(12) and N(delta1) of His(119) and Stokes radius suggest (i) that the presence of sulfate ions decreases the distance between the catalytic His residues and increases the globular compactness, and (ii) that there is an expansion of the enzyme surface as well as elongation of the catalytic center in the presence of thiocyanate ion. These findings are in agreement with activity measurements

Multimessenger Characterization of Markarian 501 during Historically Low X-Ray and γ-Ray Activity

We study the broadband emission of Mrk 501 using multiwavelength observations from 2017 to 2020 performed with a multitude of instruments, involving, among others, MAGIC, Fermi's Large Area Telescope (LAT), NuSTAR, Swift, GASP-WEBT, and the Owens Valley Radio Observatory. Mrk 501 showed an extremely low broadband activity, which may help to unravel its baseline emission. Nonetheless, significant flux variations are detected at all wave bands, with the highest occurring at X-rays and very-high-energy (VHE) 3-rays. A significant correlation (&gt;3σ) between X-rays and VHE 3-rays is measured, supporting leptonic scenarios to explain the variable parts of the emission, also during low activity. This is further supported when we extend our data from 2008 to 2020, and identify, for the first time, significant correlations between the Swift X-Ray Telescope and Fermi-LAT. We additionally find correlations between high-energy 3-rays and radio, with the radio lagging by more than 100 days, placing the 3-ray emission zone upstream of the radio-bright regions in the jet. Furthermore, Mrk 501 showed a historically low activity in X-rays and VHE 3-rays from mid-2017 to mid-2019 with a stable VHE flux (&gt;0.2 TeV) of 5% the emission of the Crab Nebula. The broadband spectral energy distribution (SED) of this 2 yr long low state, the potential baseline emission of Mrk 501, can be characterized with one-zone leptonic models, and with (lepto)-hadronic models fulfilling neutrino flux constraints from IceCube. We explore the time evolution of the SED toward the low state, revealing that the stable baseline emission may be ascribed to a standing shock, and the variable emission to an additional expanding or traveling shock. © 2023. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society