bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Sexual Satisfaction Results with the Vaginal pH Modulator from the Phase 3 AMPOWER Study
Authors: Thomas Michael A. , Morlock Robert , Dart Clint , Howard Brandon 
Published: April 2022

ABSTRACTBackgroundThe novel vaginal pH modulator (VPM; Phexxi) is a non-hormonal, woman-controlled, on-demand, water-based, surfactant-free contraceptive vaginal gel; VPM has also been cleared by the Food and Drug Administration for use as a personal lubricant.AimThe aim of this study is to report on sexual satisfaction results from the phase 3 AMPOWER study.MethodsAMPOWER was a single-arm, open-label, multicenter study to assess the safety and efficacy of VPM in preventing pregnancy. Women were enrolled who were healthy, age 18-35 years, and sexually active with regular cyclic menses.OutcomesWomen’s satisfaction (including sexual satisfaction) was an exploratory endpoint measured at Baseline and Visits 3-5; sexual satisfaction-related patient reported outcomes (PROs) were assessed via 3 different questions: (i) a question related to the impact on a woman’s sex life; (ii) a question from the Sexual Function Questionnaire (SFQ) related to the frequency of ten sexual problems; and (iii) a question from the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) related to lubrication.ResultsFor sexual satisfaction-related PRO measures with baseline assessments, the majority of women reported the same or improved scores at Visit 5 (ranging from 85.8% to 98.4%). The percentage of women who reported that their sex life was improved and/or maintained was higher in Visit 3, 4, and 5 (95.4%, 95.1%, and 93.6%, respectively) compared to Baseline (87.6%). The mean impact on sex life score significantly improved at Visit 5 compared to Baseline (P &lt; .001). In the SFQ, the mean score significantly improved (P &lt; .005) at Visit 5 vs Baseline in 7 of the 10 variables measured (vaginal dryness, lack of sexual interest and/or desire, vaginal tightness, pain, anxiety, unable to orgasm, and vaginal bleeding or irritation). In women who reported sexual activity in the last 4 weeks, the mean FSFI score also significantly improved from Baseline to Visit 5 (P = .037).Clinical ImplicationsIn this post-hoc analysis of the phase 3 AMPOWER study, the PRO results demonstrate a high level of sexual satisfaction with VPM.Strengths and LimitationsThe primary strength of this analysis was the large study size of 1,330 women. Limitations included the non-randomized study design, the post-hoc nature of the analysis, and the fact that sexual satisfaction was an exploratory endpoint.ConclusionAs a non-hormonal, woman-controlled, on-demand, lubricating contraceptive gel, VPM offers women a unique set of benefits with positive impacts on their sexual health.
Oral health and vitamin D in adult: a systematic review
Authors: Ab Malik Normaliza , Mohamad Yatim Saari , Mokhtar Kasmawati Norhidayati , Md Ramli Siti Nur Rasyidah , Dissanayaka Waruna Lakmal , Pelekos George , McGrath Colman 
Published: April 2022

AbstractThis systematic review aimed to provide a synthesis of the evidence relating to how the provision of vitamin D supplements influences oral health status. An electronic database search was performed across six databases using a standardised search strategy. The PICO framework (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) was used to define the review question. The screening and selection followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses process (PRISMA). The quality of reporting was assessed using Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) guidelines, and the bias was assessed using the revised Cochrane tool RoB2. A total of 1812 studies were retrieved. 1427 studies were excluded due to unmet inclusion criteria. Full texts of seventy-five potential studies were retrieved and ultimately six studies met the inclusion criteria. There were limitations in the quality of reporting of studies (between 49 % and 73 %). 70 % of the risk of bias items were in the low risks category. Vitamin D interventions varied with respect to dosage and duration. Qualitative syntheses identified significantly better oral health outcomes. Heterogeneity of study design, intervention and outcomes precluded quantitative synthesis. Few clinical trials investigated the effect of vitamin D supplementation on oral health. There is considerable heterogeneity among studies interventions and oral health outcomes. Quality of reporting of studies has limitations and there is evidence of study biases. Nonetheless, qualitative synthesis of the evidence suggests that vitamin D supplements improve oral health outcomes, particularly periodontal health. Calcium may also play a significant role. Further high-quality trials are required of comparable vitamin D supplements with similar oral health outcomes focused to inform quantitative synthesis of the evidence.
Nano‐FTIR Investigation of the CM Chondrite Allan Hills 83100
Authors: Young J. M. , Glotch T. D. , Yesiltas M. , Hamilton V. E. , Breitenfeld L. B. , Bechtel H. A. , Corder S. N. Gilbert , Yao Z. 
Published: April 2022

AbstractMid‐infrared (MIR) spectroscopy has been used with great success to quantitatively determine the mineralogy of geologic samples. It has been employed in a variety of contexts from determining bulk composition of powdered samples to spectroscopic imaging of rock thin sections via micro‐Fourier transform infrared (micro‐FTIR) imaging spectroscopy. Recent advances allow for IR measurements at the nanoscale. Near field nanoscale infrared imaging and spectroscopy with a broadband source (nano‐FTIR) enable understanding of the spatial relationships between compositionally distinct materials within a sample. This will be of particular use when analyzing returned samples from Bennu and Ryugu, which are thought to be compositionally like CI or CM1/2 carbonaceous chondrites. Returned samples will likely contain olivine/pyroxene chondrules that have been transformed into hydrous phyllosilicates, sulfides, carbonates, and other alteration phases. The use of near‐field infrared techniques to probe the boundaries between once pristine chondrules and alteration phases at the nanoscale is a novel approach to furthering our understanding of the compositional evolution of carbonaceous asteroids and the processes that drive their evolution. Here we report the results of nano‐FTIR spectroscopy and imaging measurements performed on the carbonaceous chondrite Allan Hills (ALH) 83100 (CM1/2). We show with nanoscale resolution that spatially resolved Fe‐Mg variations exist within the phyllosilicates around a chondrule rim. We also present effects of crystal orientation on the nano‐FTIR spectra to account for the spectral differences between the meteorite and mineral spectra.
Gravity Waves in Different Atmospheric Layers During Martian Dust Storms
Authors: Wu Zhaopeng , Li Jing , Li Tao , Cui Jun 
Published: April 2022

AbstractGravity waves (GWs) are ubiquitous in the Martian atmosphere and critical for coupling the entire atmospheric system. Recent observations reveal a significant enhancement of thermospheric GW activity in global dust storm conditions, which could increase hydrogen escape. However, the source of these high‐altitude GWs and their link to the lower atmosphere are still unknown. We investigate detailed GW distributions and evolutions in three altitude ranges covering the lower, middle, and middle‐to‐upper transition layers (Lp, Mp, and Hp) of the Martian atmosphere based on multiyear observations from Mars Climate Sounder. The nighttime Mp‐layer GWs in the northern tropical region increase significantly after the peak time of regional dust storms, with potential energy 4 times larger than before or at other latitudes. These GWs correlate well with a zonally distributed detached dust layer during storm time, both of which may be generated by a tropical jet system. The upper atmospheric GWs observed during global dust storms are mainly excited in the Hp‐layer (∼50–70 km) above the main dust layer, except for Mars year 28 global dust storm, when the polar jet in the Mp‐layer (∼30–50 km) at high northern latitudes may be a major excitation source.
Behavioral characteristics of dopamine D5 receptor knockout mice
Authors: Sasamori Hitomi , Asakura Toshiaki , Sugiura Chiaki , Bouchekioua Youcef , Nishitani Naoya , Sato Masaaki , Yoshida Takayuki , Yamasaki Miwako , Terao Akira , Watanabe Masahiko , Ohmura Yu , Yoshioka Mitsuhiro 
Published: April 2022

AbstractMajor psychiatric disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and schizophrenia are often accompanied by elevated impulsivity. However, anti-impulsive drug treatments are still limited. To explore a novel molecular target, we examined the role of dopamine D5 receptors in impulse control using mice that completely lack D5 receptors (D5KO mice). We also measured spontaneous activity and learning/memory ability because these deficits could confound the assessment of impulsivity. We found small but significant effects of D5 receptor knockout on home cage activity only at specific times of the day. In addition, an analysis using the q-learning model revealed that D5KO mice displayed lower behavioral adjustment after impulsive actions. However, our results also showed that baseline impulsive actions and the effects of an anti-impulsive drug in D5KO mice were comparable to those in wild-type littermates. Moreover, unlike previous studies that used other D5 receptor-deficient mouse lines, we did not observe reductions in locomotor activity, working memory deficits, or severe learning deficits in our line of D5KO mice. These findings demonstrate that D5 receptors are dispensable for impulse control. Our results also indicate that time series analysis and detailed analysis of the learning process are necessary to clarify the behavioral functions of D5 receptors.
KIF4A promotes tumor progression of bladder cancer via CXCL5 dependent myeloid-derived suppressor cells recruitment
Authors: Lin Ningshu , Chen Luyan , Zhang Yunni , Yang Yi , Zhang Lei , Chen Lei , Zhang Peng , Su Huiming , Yin Min 
Published: April 2022

AbstractAlthough KIF4A has been found to play an important role in a variety of tumors and is closely associated with the activation of immunocytes, its role in bladder cancer (BC) remains unclear. Here, we report increased expression of KIF4A in both lymph node-positive and high grade BC tissues. High expression of KIF4A has been significantly correlated with fewer CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and a much worse prognosis in patients with BC. With respect to promoting tumor growth, the expression of KIF4A in promoting tumor growth was more pronounced in immune-competent mice (C57BL/6) than in immunodeficient mice (BALB/C). In addition, the more increased accumulation of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) was observed in tumor-bearing mice with KIF4A overexpression than in the control group. Transwell chemotaxis assays revealed that KIF4A overexpression in T24 cells increased MDSC recruitment. Furthermore, according to ELISA results, CXCL5 was the most noticeably increased cytokine in the KIF4A-transduced BC cells. Additional studies in vitro and in vivo showed that the capability of KIF4A to promote BC cells to recruit MDSCs could be significantly inhibited by anti-CXCL5 antibody. Therefore, our results demonstrated that KIF4A-mediated BC production of CXCL5 led to an increase in MDSC recruitment, which contributed to tumor progression.
Road Transport Act 2018 in Bangladesh: a critique of the transport workers’ liability for driving offences occasioning deaths in light of their equivalents in NSW-Australia
Authors: Solaiman S. M. , Algie Jennifer 
Published: April 2022

AbstractRoad safety laws play a vital role in the system of enhancing road safety outcomes. Ineffective and outdated laws do not provide the essential foundation needed for generating and maintaining positive community attitudes towards road safety. The Road Transport Act 2018 of Bangladesh (RTA2018) took almost a decade in the making, owing to strong resistance by transport companies. The RTA2018 aims to improve road safety by primarily punishing the offenders. This article finds that the provisions of the RTA2018 concerning the liability for deaths are flawed in many respects having implications for their enforcement and achievement of the legislation’s professed objective. This is illustrated recently in serious public unrest triggered by the deaths of two students, which led to students taking to the street to protest (Jawad in Road deaths and protests: a cycle doomed to repeat itself, 2021). The current complexities created by overlapping and effectively redundant critical new provisions mean that justice cannot be delivered under the RTA2018. This article demonstrates how the laws in Bangladesh regarding transport workers’ liabilities could be streamlined following the Australian (NSW) model. Specific recommendations are furnished to address flaws in the RTA2018. This detailed analysis of laws may also be used by other countries with poor road safety records to improve their laws.
Effects of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) on DNA methylation and histone modification in parthenogenetically activated porcine embryos
Authors: Cheng Hui , Han Yu , Zhang Jian , Zhang Sheng , Zhai Yanhui , An Xinglan , Li Qi , Duan Jiahui , Zhang Xueming , Li Ziyi , Tang Bo , Shen Haiqing 
Published: April 2022

Epigenetic mechanisms play an important role in oogenesis and early embryo development in mammals. Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is frequently used as a solvent in biological studies and as a vehicle for drug therapy. Recent studies suggest that DMSO detrimentally affects porcine embryonic development, yet the mechanism of the process in parthenogenetically activated porcine embryos has not been reported. In this study, we found that treatment of embryos with 1.5% DMSO significantly decreased the cleavage and blastocyst rates, total cell number of blastocysts and the anti-apoptotic gene BCL-2 transcription level; however, the percentage of apoptotic cells and the expression levels of the pro-apoptotic gene BAX were not changed. Treatment with DMSO significantly decreased the expression levels of DNMT1, DNMT3a, DNMT3b, TET1, TET2, TET3, KMT2C, MLL2 and SETD3 in most of the stages of embryonic development and increased 5-mC signals, while the staining intensity for 5-hmC had no change in porcine preimplantation embryos from 2-cell to the blastocyst stages. Meanwhile, DMSO decreased the level of H3K4me3 during the development of parthenogenetically activated porcine embryos. After treatment with DMSO, expression levels of the pluripotency-related genes POU5F1 and NANOG decreased significantly (P < 0.01), whereas the imprinted gene H19 did not change (P > 0.05). In conclusion, these results suggest that DMSO can affect genome-wide DNA methylation and histone modification by regulating the expression of epigenetic modification enzymes, and DMSO also influences the expression level of pluripotent genes. These dysregulations lead to defects in embryonic development.
Myanmar's strategy in the China–Myanmar Economic Corridor: a failure in hedging?
Authors: Kobayashi Yuka , King Josephine 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
This article examines Myanmar's hedging strategies in China's Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), a key component of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Myanmar has avoided being overly reliant on China by strategically hedging and diversifying its foreign relations with other countries in the region. However, Myanmar's ability to hedge is compromised by its domestic fragmentation, caused by the protracted civil war and rising civil–military tensions. We focus on the two advanced projects in CMEC, the Muse–Mandalay railway and Kyaukphyu deep seaport, and have conducted qualitative, semi-structured interviews with key actors involved in China–Myanmar relations (2016–2021) under the National League for Democracy (NLD). Through the fieldwork findings, we problematize the assumption in the hedging literature which takes for granted a country's competence to act strategically in their foreign policy. Our findings from the Myanmar case suggest that the state's level of fragmentation and capability to hedge are inversely proportional. The multiple actors in Myanmar's political space complicate its China policy and limit its ability to hedge effectively. This is augmented by the military coup in February 2021, which further fragmented the country, compromising Myanmar's China policy even further, making hedging a less viable framework to examine Myanmar's China strategy.
Transitional justice and the ongoing exclusion of sexual exploitation and abuse by international intervenors
Authors: Anania Jessica 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Transitional justice has addressed only conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) while excluding sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA). This exclusion persists despite both SEA and CRSV occurring during armed conflict, taking the same forms, impacting congruent victim populations, and falling within the Women, Peace and Security framework. SEA is perpetrated by international intervenors such as peacekeepers and aid workers. Excluding SEA denies victims a critical pathway to accountability and undermines prevention efforts for all forms of sexual violence. Using the original Gender Violence in Truth Commissions database, this article examines why SEA is excluded from transitional justice. To date, only two transitional justice mechanisms—the Sierra Leonian and Liberian truth commissions—have addressed SEA by intervenors. Analysis of these two exceptional cases reveals barriers to inclusion of SEA within transitional justice, including intervenor-involvement in transitional justice mechanisms, issues with SEA reporting and data, and dependency on media coverage and public outcry. The article concludes with policy recommendations for addressing SEA and CRSV as separate but related violations through transitional justice mechanisms, including truth commissions and reparations programmes.
Safety and Efficacy of Submuscular Implantation With Resterilized Cardiac Implantable Electronic Device in Patients With Device Infection: A Retrospective Observational Study in Taiwan
Authors: Yu Chia-Meng , Yu Chieh-Ming , Yao Wen-Teng , Lee Ying-Hsiang , Liao Feng-Ching , Chien Chih-Yin , Chang Sheng-Hsiung , Liao Hung-Wei , Chen Yu-Fan , Huang Wen-Chen , Tung Kwang-Yi , Tsai Ming-Feng 
Published: April 2022

Abstract

Background
Reuse of cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) can reduce the cost of using these expensive devices. However, whether resterilized CIEDs will increase the risk of reinfection in patients with previous device infection remains unknown. The aim of the present study is to compare the reinfection rates in patients who had initial CIED infection and underwent reimplantation of resterilized CIEDs or new devices.

Methods
Data from patients with initial CIED infection who received debridement of the infected pocket and underwent reimplantation of new or resterilized CIEDs at MacKay Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, between January 2014 and June 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Patient characteristics, relapse rates of infection, and potential contributing factors to the infection risk were examined.

Results
Twenty-seven patients with initial CIED infection and reimplanted new CIEDs (n = 11) or resterilized CIEDs (n = 16) were included. During the 2-year follow-up, there were 1 (9.1%) and 2 (12.5%) infection relapses in the new and resterilized CIED groups, respectively. No relapse occurred for either group if the lead was completely removed or cut short. The median duration between debridement and device reimplantation in patients with infection relapse vs patients without relapse was 97 vs 4.5 days for all included patients, and 97 vs 2 days and 50.5 vs 5.5 days for the new and resterilized CIED groups, respectively.

Conclusions
Subpectoral reimplanting of resterilized CIEDs in patients with previous device infection is safe and efficacious. With delicate debridement and complete extraction of the leads, the CIED pocket infection relapse risk can be greatly decreased.
Prevalence of Frailty and Prefrailty in People With Human Immunodeficiency Virus Aged 50 or Older: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Yamada Yuji , Kobayashi Takaaki , Condo Angela , Sangarlangkarn Aroonsiri , Ko Fred , Taniguchi Yu , Kojima Gotaro 
Published: April 2022

Abstract

Background
With effective antiretroviral therapy, there is an emerging population of adults aged 50 years or older with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Frailty is an increasingly recognized clinical state of vulnerability associated with disability, hospitalization, and mortality. However, there is a paucity of large studies assessing its prevalence in people with HIV (PWH) aged 50 or older.

Methods
PubMed was systematically searched for studies published between January 2000 and August 2020 reporting the prevalence of frailty in PWH aged 50 or older. The pooled prevalence of frailty and prefrailty was synthesized using a random-effects meta-analysis.

Results
Of the 425 studies identified, 26 studies were included in the analysis, with a total of 6584 PWH aged 50 or older. The included studies were published between 2012 and 2020, and all studies used the Fried frailty phenotype to define frailty. The overall pooled prevalence of frailty and prefrailty was 10.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 8.1%–14.2%) and 47.2% (95% CI, 40.1%–54.4%), respectively. A high degree of heterogeneity was observed (I2 = 93.2%). In the subgroup analysis, HIV-related variables and other demographic variables were examined, and heterogeneity disappeared only in the group of a longer duration since HIV diagnosis (I2 = 0%).

Conclusions
The pooled prevalence of frailty and prefrailty defined by the Fried frailty phenotype was assessed in PWH aged 50 or older. Findings from this study quantified the proportion of this specific population with this common geriatric syndrome. Future studies identifying effective strategies for frailty screening and intervention are required for this vulnerable population.