17-beta estradiol alters the innate immune response to Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control demonstrates that African American women, in particular young people between the ages of 14-25, have an increased incidence of infection with the sexually transmitted pathogen Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Estradiol is a key regulatory hormone in female reproductive function. It has been studied extensively in the cardiovascular field, and has been linked to breast and endometrial cancers in women. However, its impact on infectious diseases is largely unknown. Given what is known about the effect of estradiol on immunologic and inflammatory disorders in women, I hypothesize that estradiol alters the infectivity of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in the female reproductive tract by altering the host inflammatory immune response. This may explain a risk factor for increased rates of infection in some populations. I sought to develop a relevant in vitro model. After screening a number of candidate cell lines, I selected the human endometrial adenocarcinoma cell line, Ishikawa. These cells express specific estrogen receptors and respond to exogenous estrogen stimulation. Estrogen treatment of Ishikawa cells did not have an impact on the invasion of N. gonorrhoeae, nor did it impact bacterial growth. However, gonococcal induced chemokine secretion was reduced by estrogen, as measured by interleukin-8 secretion. I conclude that estrogen blunts the inflammatory response to Neisseria gonorrhoeae without altering bacterial infectivity

Perceptions of Parenting, Self-Esteem, and Relationships

Levels of satisfaction in our close relationships can be the direct causes of break-ups, divorces, longevity, and many other outcomes. Using self-esteem as a connecting variable, it is possible to trace our satisfaction in relationships all the way back to the way in which we were treated as children. Specifically, children who grow up in a household with authoritative parenting end up with higher self-esteem than those who don’t (Zakeri & Karimpour, 2011; Pinquart & Gerke, 2019; Yousaf, 2015). Further, individuals with higher levels of self-esteem tend to have higher levels of satisfaction in their close relationships, romantic or platonic, throughout life (Gleeson & Fitzgerald, 2014; Erol & Orth, 2014; Bourne et al., 2014; Tariq, 2011). 60 undergraduate Belmont University students participated in this study through Qualtrics, a data collection software. Each participant’s perceived parenting style and self-esteem levels were measured through the Perceptions of Parents Scales (POPS) (Grolnick et al., 1997) and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965), respectively. Close relationship satisfaction was measured through the Experiences in Close Relationships Revised (Fraley et al., 2000) for romantic relationships and the Friendship Network Satisfaction (FNS) Scale (Kaufman et al., 2021) for platonic relationships. Results showed that those who had parents with a higher score in authoritative parenting scored higher on self-esteem, and those who scored higher on self-esteem also scored higher on their close relationship satisfaction. Implications of our study help shine a light on the importance of how we treat our children, for it could very much affect the satisfaction of the most important relationships they have throughout their entire lives

Sex-specific effects of nutritional supplements in infants born early or small: protocol for an individual participant data meta-analysis (ESSENCE IPD-MA).

INTRODUCTION: Preterm and small for gestational age (SGA) infants are at increased risk of poor growth, disability and delayed development. While growing up they are also at increased risk of obesity, diabetes and later heart disease. The risk of such adverse outcomes may be altered by how preterm and SGA infants are fed after birth. Faltering postnatal growth is common due to failure to achieve recommended high energy and protein intakes, and thus preterm and SGA infants are often provided with supplemental nutrition soon after birth. Enhanced nutrition has been associated with improved early growth and better cognitive development. However, limited evidence suggests that faster growth may increase the risk for later adiposity, metabolic and cardiovascular disease, and that such risks may differ between girls and boys. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will search Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, controlled-trials.com, ClinicalTrials.gov and anzctr.org.au for randomised trials that studied the effects of macronutrient supplements for preterm and SGA infants on (i) developmental and metabolic and (ii) growth outcomes after hospital discharge. The outcomes will be (i) cognitive impairment and metabolic risk (co-primary) and (ii) body mass index. Individual participant data (IPD) from all available trials will be included using an intention-to-treat approach. A one-stage procedure for IPD meta-analysis (MA) will be used, accounting for clustering of participants within studies. Exploratory subgroup analyses will further investigate sources of heterogeneity, including sex and size of infants, different timing, duration and type of supplements. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This IPD-MA is approved by the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee (reference number: 019874). Individual studies have approval from relevant local ethics committees. Results will be disseminated in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at international conferences. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42017072683

Constraints on Galileon-induced precessions from solar system orbital motions

We use latest data from solar system planetary orbital motions to put constraints on some Galileon-induced precessional effects. Due to the Vainshtein mechanism, the Galileon-type spherically symmetric field of a monopole induces a small, screened correction proprtional to \sqrt{r} to its usual r^-1 Newtonian potential which causes a secular precession of the pericenter of a test particle. In the case of our solar system, latest data from Mars allow to constrain the magnitude of such an interaction down to \alpha <= 0.3 level. Another Galileon-type effect which might impact solar system dynamics is due to an unscreened constant gradient induced by the peculiar motion of the Galaxy. The magnitude of such an effect, depending on the different gravitational binding energies of the Sun and the planets, is \xi <= 0.004 from the latest bounds on the supplementary perihelion precession of Saturn.Comment: LaTex2e, 11 pages, 1 table, no figures, 35 references. To appear in Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics (JCAP

Cosmological Constraints from calibrated Yonetoku and Amati relation implies Fundamental plane of Gamma-ray bursts

We consider two empirical relations using data only from the prompt emission of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs), peak energy ($E_p$) - peak luminosity ($L_p$) relation (so called Yonetoku relation) and $E_p$-isotropic energy ($E_{\rm iso}$) relation (so called Amati relation). We first suggest the independence of the two relations although they have been considered similar and dependent. From this viewpoint, we compare constraints on cosmological parameters, $\Omega_m$ and $\Omega_{\Lambda}$, from the Yonetoku and Amati relations calibrated by low-redshift GRBs with $z < 1.8$. We found that they are different in 1-$\sigma$ level, although they are still consistent in 2-$\sigma$ level. This and the fact that both Amati and Yonetoku relations have systematic errors larger than statistical errors suggest the existence of a hidden parameter of GRBs. We introduce the luminosity time $T_L$ defined by $T_L\equiv E_{\rm iso}/L_p$ as a hidden parameter to obtain a generalized Yonetoku relation as $(L_p/{10^{52} \rm{erg s^{-1}}}) = 10^{-3.88\pm0.09}(E_p/{\rm{keV}})^{1.84\pm0.04} (T_L/{\rm{s}})^{-0.34\pm0.04}$. The new relation has much smaller systematic error, 30%, and can be regarded as "Fundamental plane" of GRBs. We show a possible radiation model for this new relation. Finally we apply the new relation for high-redshift GRBs with $1.8 < z < 5.6$ to obtain $(\Omega_m,\Omega_{\Lambda}) = (0.16^{+0.04}_{-0.06},1.20^{+0.03}_{-0.09})$, which is consistent with the concordance cosmological model within 2-$\sigma$ level.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures, published in JCA

A Call to Action: Person-Centered Care Aligned with Reproductive Justice for Incarcerated Pregnant People with Substance Use Disorder

Although research has proven that jails and prisons are ineffective in preventing or reducing substance use among pregnant people, the USA continues to rely heavily on the criminal legal system as its intervention. Pregnant people with an opioid use disorder are more likely to experience incarceration than pregnant people without an opioid use disorder. In some states, pregnant people are transported from jail to prison through the process of safekeeping in order to receive physical or mental health care that the jail does not provide, despite conviction status. When pregnant and postpartum safekeepers with an opioid use disorder experience incarceration, they face barriers related to continuity of physical and behavioral health care, have limited access to maternal-infant attaching opportunities at delivery, and are at risk for an opioid-related overdose upon release. This commentary describes clinical care challenges that impact the reproductive health needs of pregnant safekeepers with an opioid use disorder and offers solution-focused innovations to reduce harm. Such solutions include uninterrupted optimal dosing of medication and integrated prenatal clinics, specialized substance use disorder treatment, and opportunities to integrate lactation programs and perinatal dyadic-focused services

Probing the cosmic acceleration from combinations of different data sets

We examine in some detail the influence of the systematics in different data sets including type Ia supernova sample, baryon acoustic oscillation data and the cosmic microwave background information on the fitting results of the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder parametrization. We find that the systematics in the data sets does influence the fitting results and leads to different evolutional behavior of dark energy. To check the versatility of Chevallier-Polarski-Linder parametrization, we also perform the analysis on the Wetterich parametrization of dark energy. The results show that both the parametrization of dark energy and the systematics in data sets influence the evolutional behavior of dark energy.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures and 1 table, major revision, delete bao a data, main results unchanged. jcap in press

Statefinder diagnostic in a torsion cosmology

We apply the statefinder diagnostic to the torsion cosmology, in which an accounting for the accelerated universe is considered in term of a Riemann-Cartan geometry: dynamic scalar torsion. We find that there are some typical characteristic of the evolution of statefinder parameters for the torsion cosmology that can be distinguished from the other cosmological models. Furthermore, we also show that statefinder diagnostic has a direct bearing on the critical points. The statefinder diagnostic divides the torsion parameter $a_1$ into differential ranges, which is in keeping with the requirement of dynamical analysis. In addition, we fit the scalar torsion model to ESSENCE supernovae data and give the best fit values of the model parameters.Comment: 18 pages, 15 figures, accepted paper in JCA