Round spermatids from infertile men exhibit decreased protamine-1 and -2 mRNA

During spermiogenesis, histone-to-protamine exchange causes chromatin condensation. Spermatozoa from infertile men are known to exhibit an increased protamine-1 (PRM1) to protamine-2 (PRM2) protein ratio. Since patients undergoing testicular sperm extraction (TESE) followed by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) reveal low fertilization rates, whether the outcome of ICSI could be related to the percentage of round spermatids expressing PRM1-mRNA and PRM2-mRNA was investigated. Applying in-situ hybridization, 55 testicular biopsies from men undergoing TESE/ICSI were investigated. The percentage of PRM1-mRNA and PRM2-mRNA positive spermatids was significantly (P < 0.0001) decreased in men with at least qualitatively normal spermatogenesis (PRM1-mRNA: 58.4 +/- 13.8%; PRM2-mRNA: 56.4 +/- 11.3%) and impaired spermatogenesis (PRM1-mRNA: 32.6 +/- 10.8%; PRM2-mRNA: 31.7 +/- 11.1%) compared with men with obstructive azoospermia and quantitatively normal spermatogenesis (PRM1-mRNA: 79.9 +/- 4.6%; PRM2-mRNA: 78.1 +/- 5.7%). A positive correlation (r(PRM1) = 0.733; r(PRM2) = 0.784; P < 0.001) was demonstrated between the score and the percentage of PRM1-mRNA and PRM2-mRNA positive spermatids. While successful fertilization was neither related to the score, nor to the percentage of PRM1-mRNA and PRM2-mRNA positive spermatids, a significant (P < 0.05) relationship was demonstrated between successful fertilization and the PRM1-mRNA to PRM2-mRNA ratio. Therefore, the PRM1-mRNA to PRM2-mRNA ratio in round spermatids may serve as a possible predictive factor for the outcome of ICSI.     

Cooperative extension initiatives in marriage and couples education

Cooperative extension has a long‐term history of delivering family life education. Further, the organization has developed numerous research‐based resources and undertaken statewide initiatives in marriage and couples education. Most promising of all is the work of a group of extension specialists to create a practical, research‐based curriculum that may reach communities in the United States through the established network of extension educators and their collaborators. We review various family relationship models and describe how the design of the new couples' curriculum is based on those models.     

Ajustement psychologique des couples confrontés à un cancer du sein : perceptions des comportements de soutien du conjoint

This cross-sectional study for couples explores the relationship between the perceptions within the couple of the spouse's supportive behaviors and the psychological adjustment of both partners during treatment for breast cancer. Forty-eight women operated on for a non-metastatic breast cancer and their spouses completed questionnaires assessing psychological adjustment (STAI, BDI-SF), and the spouse's support behaviors during discussions about the disease (PSE). Support behaviors are positively valued by both partners, especially non-verbal comfort and concrete actions. Support by minimization is associated with fewer depressive symptoms in patients and spouses. For spouses, the positive perception of support by concrete action is associated with a lower depression score. Moreover, high adjustment difficulties for spouses are linked to greater perception differences between partners on emotional support and minimization. These results highlight the importance of non-verbal comfort and minimization for the perception of social support within the couple, and the usefulness of support by concrete actions proposed by spouses. Advices for professionals are available.     

A Typology of Work‐Family Arrangements Among Dual‐Earner Couples in Norway

A symmetrical family model of two workers or caregivers is a political goal in many western European countries. We explore how common this family type is in Norway, a country with high gender‐equality ambitions, by using a multinomial latent class model to develop a typology of dual‐earner couples with children based on the partners' allocations of paid and unpaid work. Using data on 2,617 respondents from the Norwegian Generations and Gender Survey, we estimate 4 classes, of which 2 are characterized by a fairly equal sharing between the partners and 2 have more traditional arrangements. Equal sharing is practiced by 4 out of 10 couples and is most likely when the partners are well educated and work regular hours and the father is in public‐sector employment. A traditional practice is likely when the partners have less education, the mother has health problems, the father has private‐sector employment, and the partners work irregular hours.     

不良孕产史夫妇染色体核型的大样本分析

目的探讨不良孕产史夫妇染色体异常核型检出率及其分布，以及染色体异常核型与不良孕产史的关系，为优生优育及遗传咨询提供理论依据。 方法选取2016年1月1日至2017年12月31日，于济南艾迪康医学检验中心进行染色体核型检测的10 330对(20 660例)不良孕产史育龄夫妇为研究对象。采集每例受试者肘静脉血3 mL，肝素钠抗凝，取0.3 mL进行血细胞培养、标本制备，采用常规G显带技术进行染色体核型分析。对于染色体异常核型检出率、不同类型染色体异常核型占染色体异常核型总例数的比例等计数资料，采用率(%)表示。本研究遵循的程序符合2013年修订的《世界医学协会赫尔辛基宣言》要求。 结果①本组10 330对(20 660例)不良孕产史育龄夫妇中，共计检出染色体异常核型为1 119例(不含染色体多态性)，染色体异常核型检出率为5.42%(1 119/20 660)。其中，常染色体异常者为658例，占染色体异常核型的58.80%(658/1 119)，包括354例染色体平衡易位、205例染色体倒位、83例染色体罗伯逊易位、11例染色体插入、5例染色体重复，分别占染色体异常核型的31.64%、18.32%、7.41%、0.98%、0.45%。染色体倒位者中，以9号染色体倒位居多，偶见于1、4、7、11、12号染色体，并且多合并自然流产。性染色体异常者为440例，占染色体异常核型的39.32%(440/1 119)，包括365例性染色体数目异常(占染色体异常核型的32.62%)。其中，男性多表现为无精子症，以47，XXY染色体异常核型居多(144例)，女性多表现为原发性不孕，以45，X染色体异常核型居多(103例); 61例为性染色体结构异常、14例为性别反转，分别占染色体异常核型的5.45%、1.25%。其他罕见染色体异常核型者为21例，占染色体异常核型的1.88%(21/1 119)，如环状染色体、mar染色体等。②本组10 330对(20 660例)不良孕产史育龄夫妇中，11例为常染色体插入，5例为常染色体重复，54例为性染色体缺失，其主要临床表现为原发性不孕不育、胚胎停止发育、无精子症或重度少精子症。 结论染色体异常核型是导致育龄期夫妇不良孕产史的重要原因之一。对于不良孕产史夫妇，建议进行染色体核型分析和遗传咨询。临床为这类患者进行优生优育指导，可提高出生人口质量。     

【原创论文】不育夫妇中男方的代谢综合征与前列腺异常的情况

目前尚无年轻男性不育症患者代谢综合征与前列腺相关的症状和体征之间关系的系统研究。我们研究了171对不育夫妇中的男性（36．5±8．3岁），代谢综合征是根据国家胆固醇教育计划成人治疗专题小组第三次报告确定。所有人接受了激素（包括总睾酮和胰岛素）、精液f包括白细胞介素8，精浆中白细胞介素8（SIL-8））、阴囊及经直肠超声评估。因为我们此前已有大样本队列研究了不育男性代谢综合征和阴囊检测指标之间的相关性，这里我们重点研究代谢综合征与经直肠前列腺B超资料的相关性。前列腺相关症状采用美国国立卫生研究院评估慢性前列腺炎症状指数（NIH-CPSI）和国际前列腺症状评分（iPSS）。22位受试者符合代谢综合征的诊断标准。经年龄调整后的有序多项Logistic回归模型分析显示：胰岛素水平增加是代谢综合征的一个组分（Wald=29．5，P〈0．0001）并与TT负相关（调整后的r=0．359，P〈O．0001）。未观察到代谢综合征和NIH．CPSI或IPSS评分之间有相关性。经年龄、睾酮、胰岛素校正后有序多项Logistic回归模型显示：代谢综合征组分数目的增加与正常精子形态负相关（Wald=5．59，P〈0．02）、与前列腺炎症的分子标志物血清sIL-8水平正相关（Wald=4．32，P〈0．05），与前列腺总体积和移行带体积（Wald=17．6和12．5，P〈0．0001）、动脉收缩期峰值流速（Wald=9．57，P=0．002）、质地不均匀性（HR=8711．05—3．33]，P〈0．05）、钙化灶大小（Wald=3．11，P〈0．05）正相关，但不与精囊体积或功能指标正相关。总之，不育夫妇中的男性代谢综合征与前列腺增大、生化指标（sIL8）和前列腺炎症的超声指标呈正相关，而与前列腺相关症状无正相关，表明代谢综合征可能是良性前列腺增生症的早期亚临床表现的触发点。     

A Problem-Solving Strategy and Self-Esteem in Recovering Chemically Dependent Women

The primary purpose of the study was to determine the effectiveness of a problem-solving strategy intervention in raising the self-esteem of recovering women. An A-B-A single subject design was employed in the investigation. Self-esteem was measured by: pre-intervention and post-intervention administrations of the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, the percentage of positive self-statements recorded in journal entries, and self-ratings of decision-making ability. Of the four subjects who participated in the study, three experienced an increase in self-esteem.     

Promoting Resilience Following Traumatic Brain Injury: Application of an Interdisciplinary,Evidence‐Based Model for Intervention

With an increasing instance of traumatic brain injury and little advancement over recent decades in the rehabilitation of brain injury survivors and their family members, focus has shifted toward the establishment of effective whole‐family resilience promotion interventions. Using the Brain Injury Family Intervention as a model, clinicians constructed two curriculum‐based interventions grounded in resilience theory and drawing from the interdisciplinary approaches of neuropsychology and marriage and family therapy: (a) the Resilience and Adjustment Intervention, for individual survivors of traumatic brain jury, and (b) the Therapeutic Couples Intervention, designed to increase relational satisfaction in couples following a traumatic brain injury. The present study outlines the need for the integration of resilience tenets into rehabilitation techniques, summarizes the empirical justification for the use of an interdisciplinary approach, and offers an overview with implementation specifics regarding these two newly designed interventions.     

惠州市同型α地中海贫血夫妇的胎儿产前地贫基因诊断分析

目的研究惠州市同型α地贫夫妇的胎儿地贫发生率、基因突变类型和分布特点,为制订本地区地贫的防治工作计划提供科学依据。方法 154对夫妇均为轻型α地中海贫血基因携带者,在孕早期取胎儿绒毛组织,孕中期取脐血或羊水,孕晚期取脐血;对羊水细胞和绒毛组织进行原位培养,脐血进行血液学和血红蛋白分析,分别采用培养前后的组织或脐血进行α地中海贫血基因检测。结果在154例胎儿中,检出重型α地中海贫血胎儿18例,检出率为11.69%;检出α地贫携带者75例,检出率为48.70%;检出缺失型HbH病9例,检出率为5.84%;检出正常胎儿50例,检出率为32.47%;检出纯合子和双重杂合子各1例。结论本研究描述了惠州市同型α地贫夫妇的胎儿α地贫的发生率,基因突变类型和分布特点,为制订本地区地贫的防治工作计划提供科学依据。