Administration of human chorionic gonadotropin at embryo transfer induced ovulation of a first-wave dominant follicle and increased progesterone and transfer pregnancy rates

Beef Cattle Research, 2011 is known as Cattlemen’s Day, 2011Embryo transfer (ET) has become more widespread in recent years as a way to improve cattle genetics. According to the annual statistical survey of the American Embryo Transfer Association, more than 200,000 fresh and frozen bovine embryos were transferred in 2008. But despite advancements in reproductive technologies that have occurred since ET was commercialized in the 1970s, industrywide pregnancy rates are only 62.4 and 56.9% for fresh and frozen-thawed ET, respectively. Using ET helps avoid problems from failed fertilization; however, fertilization failure has been characterized as a relatively unimportant factor of pregnancy loss. Approximately 10% of pregnancy failures resulted from fertilization failure and another 10% from failed embryo development. Approximately 20 to 25% of the pregnancy loss in an ET program could be characterized as early embryonic loss

Complex differences in infection rates between ethnic groups in Scotland: a retrospective, national census-linked cohort study of 1.65 million cases

Background Ethnicity can influence susceptibility to infection, as COVID-19 has shown. Few countries have systematically investigated ethnic variations in infection. Methods We linked the Scotland 2001 Census, including ethnic group, to national databases of hospitalizations/deaths and serological diagnoses of bloodborne viruses for 2001–2013. We calculated age-adjusted rate ratios (RRs) in 12 ethnic groups for all infections combined, 15 infection categories, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV) viruses. Results We analysed over 1.65 million infection-related hospitalisations/deaths. Compared with White Scottish, RRs for all infections combined were 0.8 or lower for Other White British, Other White and Chinese males and females, and 1.2–1.4 for Pakistani and African males and females. Adjustment for socioeconomic status or birthplace had little effect. RRs for specific infection categories followed similar patterns with striking exceptions. For HIV, RRs were 136 in African females and 14 in males; for HBV, 125 in Chinese females and 59 in males, 55 in African females and 24 in males; and for HCV, 2.3–3.1 in Pakistanis and Africans. Conclusions Ethnic differences were found in overall rates and many infection categories, suggesting multiple causative pathways. We recommend census linkage as a powerful method for studying the disproportionate impact of COVID-19

Psychosocial, socio-cultural, and environmental influences on mental health help-seeking among African-American men

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jomh.2012.03.00

Investigating Predictors of Preserved Cognitive Function in Older Women Using Machine Learning: Women's Health Initiative Memory Study

Background: Identification of factors that may help to preserve cognitive function in late life could elucidate mechanisms and facilitate interventions to improve the lives of millions of people. However, the large number of potential factors associated with cognitive function poses an analytical challenge. Objective: We used data from the longitudinal Women's Health Initiative Memory Study (WHIMS) and machine learning to investigate 50 demographic, biomedical, behavioral, social, and psychological predictors of preserved cognitive function in later life. Methods: Participants in WHIMS and two consecutive follow up studies who were at least 80 years old and had at least one cognitive assessment following their 80th birthday were classified as cognitively preserved. Preserved cognitive function was defined as having a score ≥39 on the most recent administration of the modified Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status (TICSm) and a mean score across all assessments ≥39. Cognitively impaired participants were those adjudicated by experts to have probable dementia or at least two adjudications of mild cognitive impairment within the 14 years of follow-up and a last TICSm score < 31. Random Forests was used to rank the predictors of preserved cognitive function. Results: Discrimination between groups based on area under the curve was 0.80 (95%-CI-0.76-0.85). Women with preserved cognitive function were younger, better educated, and less forgetful, less depressed, and more optimistic at study enrollment. They also reported better physical function and less sleep disturbance, and had lower systolic blood pressure, hemoglobin, and blood glucose levels. Conclusion: The predictors of preserved cognitive function include demographic, psychological, physical, metabolic, and vascular factors suggesting a complex mix of potential contributors

Using meta-analytic path analysis to test theoretical predictions in health behavior: An illustration based on meta-analyses of the theory of planned behavior

Objective: Synthesizing research on social cognitive theories applied to health behavior is an important step in the development of an evidence base of psychological factors as targets for effective behavioral interventions. However, few meta-analyses of research on social cognitive theories in health contexts have conducted simultaneous tests of theoretically-stipulated pattern effects using path analysis. We argue that conducting path analyses of meta-analytic effects among constructs from social cognitive theories is important to test nomological validity, account for mediation effects, and evaluate unique effects of theory constructs independent of past behavior. We illustrate our points by conducting new analyses of two meta-analyses of a popular theory applied to health behaviors, the theory of planned behavior. Method: We conducted meta-analytic path analyses of the theory in two behavioral contexts (alcohol and dietary behaviors) using data from the primary studies included in the original meta-analyses augmented to include intercorrelations among constructs and relations with past behavior missing from the original analysis. Results: Findings supported the nomological validity of the theory and its hypotheses for both behaviors, confirmed important model processes through mediation analysis, demonstrated the attenuating effect of past behavior on theory relations, and provided estimates of the unique effects of theory constructs independent of past behavior. Conclusions: Our analysis illustrates the importance of conducting a simultaneous test of theory-stipulated effects in meta-analyses of social cognitive theories applied to health behavior. We recommend researchers adopt this analytic procedure when synthesizing evidence across primary tests of social cognitive theories in health

Critical behavior of the two-dimensional N-component Landau-Ginzburg Hamiltonian with cubic anisotropy

We study the two-dimensional N-component Landau-Ginzburg Hamiltonian with cubic anisotropy. We compute and analyze the fixed-dimension perturbative expansion of the renormalization-group functions to four loops. The relations of these models with N-color Ashkin-Teller models, discrete cubic models, planar model with fourth order anisotropy, and structural phase transition in adsorbed monolayers are discussed. Our results for N=2 (XY model with cubic anisotropy) are compatible with the existence of a line of fixed points joining the Ising and the O(2) fixed points. Along this line the exponent $\eta$ has the constant value 1/4, while the exponent $\nu$ runs in a continuous and monotonic way from 1 to $\infty$ (from Ising to O(2)). For N\geq 3 we find a cubic fixed point in the region $u, v \geq 0$, which is marginally stable or unstable according to the sign of the perturbation. For the physical relevant case of N=3 we find the exponents $\eta=0.17(8)$ and $\nu=1.3(3)$ at the cubic transition.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figure

The Functional Renormalization Group and O(4) scaling

The critical behavior of the chiral quark-meson model is studied within the Functional Renormalization Group (FRG). We derive the flow equation for the scale dependent thermodynamic potential at finite temperature and density in the presence of a symmetry-breaking external field. Within this scheme, the critical scaling behavior of the order parameter, its transverse and longitudinal susceptibilities as well as the correlation lengths near the chiral phase transition are computed. We focus on the scaling properties of these observables at non-vanishing external field when approaching the critical point from the symmetric as well as from the broken phase. We confront our numerical results with the Widom-Griffiths form of the magnetic equation of state, obtained by a systematic epsilon-expansion of the scaling function. Our results for the critical exponents are consistent with those recently computed within Lattice Monte-Carlo studies of the O(4) spin system.Comment: 14 pages, 11 figure

Use of SMS texts for facilitating access to online alcohol interventions: a feasibility study

A41 Use of SMS texts for facilitating access to online alcohol interventions: a feasibility study In: Addiction Science & Clinical Practice 2017, 12(Suppl 1): A4

Narrowband Searches for Continuous and Long-duration Transient Gravitational Waves from Known Pulsars in the LIGO-Virgo Third Observing Run

Isolated neutron stars that are asymmetric with respect to their spin axis are possible sources of detectable continuous gravitational waves. This paper presents a fully coherent search for such signals from eighteen pulsars in data from LIGO and Virgo's third observing run (O3). For known pulsars, efficient and sensitive matched-filter searches can be carried out if one assumes the gravitational radiation is phase-locked to the electromagnetic emission. In the search presented here, we relax this assumption and allow both the frequency and the time derivative of the frequency of the gravitational waves to vary in a small range around those inferred from electromagnetic observations. We find no evidence for continuous gravitational waves, and set upper limits on the strain amplitude for each target. These limits are more constraining for seven of the targets than the spin-down limit defined by ascribing all rotational energy loss to gravitational radiation. In an additional search, we look in O3 data for long-duration (hours-months) transient gravitational waves in the aftermath of pulsar glitches for six targets with a total of nine glitches. We report two marginal outliers from this search, but find no clear evidence for such emission either. The resulting duration-dependent strain upper limits do not surpass indirect energy constraints for any of these targets. © 2022. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society