2D:4D Digit Ratios in Adults with Gender Dysphoria: A Comparison to Their Unaffected Same-Sex Heterosexual Siblings,Cisgender Heterosexual Men,and Cisgender Heterosexual Women

Archives of Sexual Behavior - We compared gender dysphoria (GD) patients and their same-sex siblings in terms of their 2D:4D ratios, which may reflect prenatal exposure to androgen, one of the...     

A rare complication of mechanical aortic valve replacement: Separation in the region of the mitral‐aortic intervalvular fibrosa

A 28‐year‐old man was admitted to our emergency service with a shortness of breath and palpitation. On admission, his blood pressure was high and he was in hypertensive pulmonary edema. His physical examination showed rales in both lungs and pansystolic murmur at mitral focus. His medical history included aortic valve replacement (AVR) because of native aortic valve infective endocarditis. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) showed normal functional aortic valve. Color flow imaging demonstrated severe mitral regurgitation with posterior eccentric jet. To examine in detail, transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) and three‐dimensional (3D) echocardiography were performed. TEE disclosed a separation in the subaortic curtain leading to severe mitral regurgitation from the left ventricle to the left atrium. In addition to severe mitral regurgitation with posterior eccentric jet, 26‐mm‐long pouch was seen in mitral‐aortic intervalvular fibrosa (MAIVF) at 120° TEE view. This pouch was separated from the mitral anterior leaflet junction releasing the mitral anterior leaflet and causing prolapse and chorda rupture in the A2 scallop of the mitral anterior leaflet. The MAIVF connects the anterior mitral leaflet to the posterior portion of the aortic annulus. The separation of the MAIVF represents a complication of the aortic valve replacement.     

Sexual function may be impaired during pregnancy in adolescent women

Prevalence of sexual dysfunctions is reported as high as 70% during pregnancy. However, there are limited data about the burden of sexual dysfunction in pregnant adolescents. This cross-sectional study was conducted in the outpatient antenatal clinic of our institution between October and December 2014. The total female sexual function index scores and domain scores were compared between adolescent and adult pregnant women. A total of 121 pregnant women participated in the study. Of those women, 29 (24.0%) were 21 years old or younger (Group 1), whereas the remaining were older (Group 2). The sexual dysfunction ratios were 41.4% and 23.9% in Groups 1 and 2, respectively (p = 0.068). The desire (3.29 vs. 2.79, p = 0.024) and arousal (3.48 vs. 2.71, p = 0.008) domain scores of adolescent pregnant women were significantly higher whereas the remaining domain scores (i.e. lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction and pain) were not significantly different. The adolescent women seem to be more prone to sexual dysfunctions during the course of pregnancy, especially in the third trimester. The health care providers should consider discussing the sexual life during pregnancy as a part of routine antenatal visit to improve sexual function and quality of life, especially among adolescent pregnant population.     

MBL,P2X7, and SLC11A1 gene polymorphisms in patients with oropharyngeal tularemia

Conclusion: A significant association was found of oropharyngeal tularemia with SLC11A1 allele polymorphism (INT4?G/C) and MBL2 C?+?4T (P/Q). These results indicate C allele and Q allele might be a risk factor for the development of oropharyngeal tularemia.

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the relationship of SLC11A1, MBL, and P2X₇ gene polymorphism with oropharyngeal tularemia.

Methods: The study included totally 120 patients who were diagnosed with oropharyngeal tularemia. Frequencies of polymorphisms in the following genes were analyzed both in the patient and control groups in the study: SLC11A1 (5’(GT)_n Allele 2/3, Int4?G/C, 3’ UTR, D543N G/A), MBL (MBL2 C?+?4T (P/Q), and P2X₇ (?762 C/T and 1513 A/C).

Results: Among all polymorphisms that were investigated in this study, SLC11A1 gene showed a significance in the distriburtion of polymorphism allelle frequency at the INT4 region. Frequency of C allele was 54 (28%) in patients with oropharyngeal tularemia, and 31 (13%) in the control group (p?=?0.006 and OR = 1.96 (1.21–3.20)). An association was detected between MBL2 C?+?4T (P/Q) gene polymorphism and oropharyngeal tularemia (p?7 (?762 C/T and 1513 A/C) gene polymorphism and oropharyngeal tularemia in this study (p?>?0.05).     

Ideal,catch, and slip bonds in cadherin adhesion

Classical cadherin cell-cell adhesion proteins play key morphogenetic roles during development and are essential for maintaining tissue integrity in multicellular organisms. Classical cadherins bind in two distinct conformations, X-dimer and strand-swap dimer; during cellular rearrangements, these adhesive states are exposed to mechanical stress. However, the molecular mechanisms by which cadherins resist tensile force and the pathway by which they convert between different conformations are unclear. Here, we use single molecule force measurements with an atomic force microscope (AFM) to show that E-cadherin, a prototypical classical cadherin, forms three types of adhesive bonds: catch bonds, which become longer lived in the presence of tensile force; slip bonds, which become shorter lived when pulled; and ideal bonds that are insensitive to mechanical stress. We show that X-dimers form catch bonds, whereas strand-swap dimers form slip bonds. Our data suggests that ideal bonds are formed as X-dimers convert to strand-swap binding. Catch, slip, and ideal bonds allow cadherins to withstand tensile force and tune the mechanical properties of adhesive junctions.