Self-reported Sexual Response in Transgender Women to Audiovisual Stimulation Protocol / Autoinforme de Respuesta Sexual en Mujeres Transgénero ante un Protocolo de Estimulación Audiovisual

Abstract Sexuality changes associated with the medical transition in transgender women are not well known; the few studies present discrepancies in labeling their sexual orientation and controlling surgery conditions. This study aimed to evaluate the self-reported sexual response to audiovisual sexual stimulation protocol in androsexual transgender women on hormone replacement therapy. This study also evaluated their sexual functioning to support the empirical protocol. Participated androsexual transgender women with (n = 16) and without hormone therapy (n = 15) in a non-sex reassignment surgery condition. Androsexual cisgender men (n = 25) and women (n = 24) also were included as contrast groups. All participants were assessed with the Short Form of the Changes in Sexual Functioning Questionnaire; then watched video clips with neutral and sexual content and informed their sexual responses through two self-report scales adapted from the Film Scale. The results showed trans women with hormone therapy, compared to trans women without treatment, experienced a less selective sexual response to sexual stimuli. Also, they registered the lowest scores for every sexual functioning except for pleasure. In conclusion, transgender women on hormone therapy without sex reassignment surgery showed fluidity in their self-reported sexual response and reduced sexual functioning.

Resumen Poco se conoce de los cambios en la sexualidad de las mujeres transgénero que se encuentran bajo un proceso de transición médica. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar el autoinforme de la respuesta sexual de las mujeres transgénero bajo terapia hormonal y sin cirugía de reasignación de sexo ante un protocolo de estimulación sexual audiovisual, así como el funcionamiento sexual general para robustecer los resultados del protocolo. Participaron mujeres transgénero sin cirugía de reasignación de sexo con (n = 16) y sin terapia hormonal (n = 15), así como hombres (n = 25) y mujeres (n = 24) cisgénero como grupos de contraste. Todas las personas que participaron reportaron una atracción androsexual. Se evaluaron con la Versión Abreviada del Cuestionario de Cambios en el Funcionamiento Sexual, posteriormente observaron videos con contenido neutro y actividad sexual entre dos mujeres, dos hombres y entre mujer y hombre, y reportaron su respuesta sexual a través de dos escalas de autoinforme adaptadas de la Film Scale. Los resultados mostraron que las mujeres trans bajo terapia hormonal, a comparación de las mujeres trans sin tratamiento, tuvieron una respuesta sexual menos selectiva, aunque esta fue similar a la de las mujeres cisgénero, además puntuaron más bajo para todos los rubros del cuestionario de funcionamiento sexual, excepto para el placer. En conclusión, las mujeres transgénero en terapia hormonal muestran fluidez en su respuesta sexual autoinformada, así como una disminución en el funcionamiento sexual. Estos datos pueden ofrecer un entendimiento más amplio del tratamiento médico y psicológico, con la finalidad de mejorar la atención a la población trans.

The relationship between sleep arousal, ambulatory blood pressure and heart failure in elderly patients with obstructive sleep apnea / 中华老年医学杂志

Objective:To evaluate the relationship between sleep arousal, ambulatory blood pressure and new-onset heart failure(NOHF)in elderly patients with obstructive sleep apnea(OSA).Methods:A total of 584 elderly patients with OSA who were diagnosed and treated in our hospital between March 2015 and March 2019 were prospectively and consecutively selected, with a mean age of(70.1±7.2)years.Polysomnography(PSG)results were obtained at baseline, and the arousal index(AI)was calculated.Based on the quartiles of AI, patients were divided into 4 groups: a low-level group(AI<18.4/h, 186 cases), a low-medium level group(18.4-29.1/h, 177 cases), a medium-high level group(29.2-41.2/h, 137 cases)and a high-level group(>41.2 /h, 84 cases). Participants were followed up for 18 months, the results of ambulatory blood pressure were recorded and compared, and the relationship between AI and the risk of NOHF was analyzed.Results:Compared with the low-level group, patients in the low-medium, medium-high, and high-level groups were older(70.1, 70.3, 73.3 vs.68.7 years, F=2.726, P=0.043)and had more smokers(43.8%, 49.6%, 54.8% vs.38.2%, χ2=8.809, P=0.032), a larger body mass index(26.3, 26.7, 27.6 vs.25.4 kg/m 2, F=2.731, P=0.042), a higher Epworth sleepiness scale score(7.83, 8.50, 9.91 vs.7.64, F=5.124, P=0.018), a higher apnea hypopnea index(23.5, 34.8, 52.7 vs.17.6, F=5.632, P=0.007), lower nocturnal oxygen saturation(80.2, 75.3, 72.1 vs.83.7 mmHg, F=4.811, P=0.024), and higher N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide(NT-proBNP)levels(317.5, 337.5, 359.2 vs.267.5 pg/L, F=4.307, P=0.033). At the median follow-up(18 months, 14-24 months), the results of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring showed that 24-hour systolic blood pressure(24 h SBP)(147.3, 148.6, 156.2 vs.143.8 mmHg, F=5.4311, P=0.013), 24-hour diastolic blood pressure(24 h DBP)(80.1, 79.5, 83.7 vs.76.5 mmHg, F=5.679, P=0.011)in the low-medium, medium-high and high-level groups were higher than those in the low-level group.The results of survival analysis showed that there were 75(12.8%)cases of NOHF, mostly with preserved ejection fraction(47 cases)or mid-range ejection fraction heart failure(20 cases). The incidences of NOHF were 6.5%, 12.4%, 16.1% and 22.4%, respectively for the low level, low-medium, medium-high and high-level groups, and the risk of NOHF in the low-medium, medium-high and high-level groups was significantly higher than in the low level group(log-rank χ2=11.624, P=0.007). Variables with P<0.2 in the univariate analysis, age and sex were included in the multivariate Cox regression analysis.The results showed that age( HR=1.724, 95% CI: 1.216-3.135), diabetes( HR=1.514, 95% CI: 1.127-3.058), NT proBNP( HR=1.517, 95% CI: 1.232-2.366), nocturnal diastolic blood pressure( HR=2.004, 95% CI: 1.332-4.638), and middle-high AI level( HR=1.611, 95% CI: 1.204-2.967)and high AI level( HR=1.863, 95% CI: 1.272-3.538)were independent factors of NOHF in elderly OSA patients. Conclusions:Sleep arousal in elderly patients with OSA increases blood pressure levels and the risk of NOHF.

Automated detection of sleep-arousal using multi-scale convolution and self-attention mechanism / 生物医学工程学杂志

In clinical, manually scoring by technician is the major method for sleep arousal detection. This method is time-consuming and subjective. This study aimed to achieve an end-to-end sleep-arousal events detection by constructing a convolutional neural network based on multi-scale convolutional layers and self-attention mechanism, and using 1 min single-channel electroencephalogram (EEG) signals as its input. Compared with the performance of the baseline model, the results of the proposed method showed that the mean area under the precision-recall curve and area under the receiver operating characteristic were both improved by 7%. Furthermore, we also compared the effects of single modality and multi-modality on the performance of the proposed model. The results revealed the power of single-channel EEG signals in automatic sleep arousal detection. However, the simple combination of multi-modality signals may be counterproductive to the improvement of model performance. Finally, we also explored the scalability of the proposed model and transferred the model into the automated sleep staging task in the same dataset. The average accuracy of 73% also suggested the power of the proposed method in task transferring. This study provides a potential solution for the development of portable sleep monitoring and paves a way for the automatic sleep data analysis using the transfer learning method.

Procesamiento emocional en niños y adolescentes según sexo / Emotional Processing in Children and Adolescents According to Sex

Resumen Objetivo: analizar el procesamiento emocional en niños, niñas y adolescentes argentinos de edad escolar según sexo. Método: estudio descriptivo-comparativo con un diseño ex post facto, transversal. Participaron en la investigación 67 mujeres y 74 varones escolarizados de entre 7 y 14 años dividido en tres franjas etarias. Para evaluar el procesamiento emocional se utilizaron las 60 imágenes específicas para niños y adolescentes del International Affective Picture System (IAPS), y para medir los juicios evaluativos se utilizó el Self Assessment Manikin (SAM). Resultados: la distribución de las imágenes muestra una correlación moderada negativa entre dos dimensiones afectivas básicas del procesamiento emocional, la valencia afectiva y la activación fisiológica, con valores similares en ambos sexos. Las mujeres puntuaron más bajo que los varones en valencia y arousal, aunque sin diferencias estadísticamente significativas. Los varones evaluaron los estímulos aversivos con menor grado de activación y los estímulos agradables con mayor activación. En general, se observa mayor agrupamiento de las imágenes desagradables y neutras en las mujeres respecto de las de los varones. Conclusión: en ambos sexos se presentó una relación inversa entre valencia y arousal, evidenciada en mayor activación ante imágenes desagradables, lo cual demostraría una tendencia reaccionaron a las imágenes desagradables con mayor intensidad mientras que los varones, valoraron las imágenes agradables con mayor intensidad.

Abstract Objective: to analyze emotional processing in Argentine school-age children and adolescents according to sex. Method: descriptive-comparative study with an ex post facto, cross-sectional design. 67 girls and 74 schooled boys aged between 7 and 14, participated in the research divided into three age ranges. The 60 specific images for children and adolescents from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS) were used to assess emotional processing, and the Self-Assessment Manikin (SAM) was used to measure evaluative judgments. Results: the distribution of the images shows a moderate negative correlation between valence and arousal, with similar values in both sexes. Women scored lower in valence and arousal compared to men, although without statistically significant differences. The men evaluated the aversive stimuli with a lower degree of activation and the pleasant stimuli with greater activation. In general, a greater grouping of unpleasant and neutral images is observed in women compared to those of men. Conclusion: in both sexes there was an inverse relationship between valence and arousal, evidenced in greater activation in the face of unpleasant images, which would demonstrate an avoidance trend when arousal levels are high. Females reacted to unpleasant images with greater intensity while males rated pleasant images with higher degree.

Memory bias and personality characteristics in college students with social anxiety disorder

Abstract Introduction Some individuals are more susceptible to recalling false information about events that never happened in their life. Nevertheless, there are several factors, such as personality characteristics, that appear to be related to memory performance. Social anxiety also provokes memory deficits for events that happen to other people, because these individuals tend to focus on their own inner selves rather than on external signs. Objective To investigate the influence of the personality characteristics of individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) on memory performance. Methods In this study, 183 university students had their memory tested using a complex emotional story about a mother and her son. Only subjects without clinical symptoms of depression and general anxiety (N = 148; 61 with SAD) were included in the study. Participants were compared for differences in personality characteristics using the Factorial Inventory of Personality and for SAD using the Social Phobia Inventory. Results The main results showed that memory performance of individuals with low percentile ranks in the personality characteristic dominance, i.e., those with low self-esteem, remembered more true information about the story than those with high scores when they did not have SAD. Conclusion The results are helpful to foster better understanding of the personality characteristics related to SAD, such as low dominance, which implies low self-esteem and difficulties with trust and with imposing themselves on others. The results could help development and improvement of techniques for therapeutic intervention.

The effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on awakening and neural function in patients with brain injury / 中国医师进修杂志

Objective:To investigate the effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on awakening of cerebrum frontal lobe area and neural function in the patients with brain injury.Methods:The clinical data of 70 patients with brain injury in Zhejiang Xin′an International Hospital from March 2020 to July 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, 34 cases were treated with conventional awakening rehabilitation (control group), and 36 cases were treated with rTMS combined with conventional awakening rehabilitation (observation group). The efficacy was evaluated after treatment, the cure and effective were taken as total effective. The Glasgow coma scale (GCS) was used to evaluate the conscious state; the modified coma recovery scale (CRS-R) was used to evaluate the neural function; the brainstem auditory evoked potential (BAEP) classification criteria was used to evaluate the conscious state, the electroencephalogram powers of five channels FP1, F3, C3, F7 and T3 were measured; and the adverse reactions were recorded.Results:The total effective rate in observation group was significantly higher than that in control group: 94.44% (34/36) vs. 76.47% (26/34), and there was statistical difference ( χ2 = 4.61, P<0.05). The eye opening response, motor response, language response and total score of GCS after treatment in observation group were significantly higher than those in control group: (4.28 ± 0.57) scores vs. (3.03 ± 0.59) scores, (4.57 ± 0.85) scores vs. (3.24 ± 0.67) scores, (3.99 ± 0.92) scores vs. (3.01±0.48) scores and (12.85 ± 2.01) scores vs. (10.47 ± 1.95) scores, and there were statistical differences ( P<0.01). The CRS-R score after treatment in observation group was significantly higher than that in control group: (15.28 ± 3.17) scores vs. (12.33 ± 3.09) scores, and there was statistical difference ( P<0.01). The BAEP classification after treatment in observation group was significantly better than that in control group, and there was statistical difference ( P<0.05). The powers of F3, C3, F7 and T3 after treatment in observation group were significantly lower than those in control group: (41.25 ± 6.35) μV 2/Hz vs. (53.19 ± 10.37) μV 2/Hz, (39.17 ± 5.61) μV 2/Hz vs. (48.94 ± 6.63) μV 2/Hz, (63.94 ± 7.57) μV 2/Hz vs. (69.85 ± 7.35) μV 2/Hz and (51.76 ± 6.84) μV 2/Hz vs. (62.47 ± 7.62) μV 2/Hz, and there were statistical differences ( P<0.01); there was no statistical difference in power of Fp1 after treatment between two groups ( P>0.05). No serious complications such as epilepsy occurred in two groups. There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between two groups ( P>0.05). Conclusions:The rTMS can improve the excitability of brain cells and the degree of brain injury in patients with brain injury, improve the CRS-R score, promote waking up and the recovery of cognitive functions, with safety and efficiency.

Electrophysiological characteristics of emotion arousal difference between stereoscopic and non-stereoscopic virtual reality films / 生物医学工程学杂志

There are two modes to display panoramic movies in virtual reality (VR) environment: non-stereoscopic mode (2D) and stereoscopic mode (3D). It has not been fully studied whether there are differences in the activation effect between these two continuous display modes on emotional arousal and what characteristics of the related neural activity are. In this paper, we designed a cognitive psychology experiment in order to compare the effects of VR-2D and VR-3D on emotional arousal by analyzing synchronously collected scalp electroencephalogram signals. We used support vector machine (SVM) to verify the neurophysiological differences between the two modes in VR environment. The results showed that compared with VR-2D films, VR-3D films evoked significantly higher electroencephalogram (EEG) power (mainly reflected in α and β activities). The significantly improved β wave power in VR-3D mode showed that 3D vision brought more intense cortical activity, which might lead to higher arousal. At the same time, the more intense α activity in the occipital region of the brain also suggested that VR-3D films might cause higher visual fatigue. By the means of neurocinematics, this paper demonstrates that EEG activity can well reflect the effects of different vision modes on the characteristics of the viewers' neural activities. The current study provides theoretical support not only for the future exploration of the image language under the VR perspective, but for future VR film shooting methods and human emotion research.

The strategy of physiological arousal of athletes in sports competition based on drug intervention / A estratégia da excitação fisiológica de atletas em competições esportivas com base em intervenção medicamentosa / Deportistas basados en intervenciones farmacéuticas, estrategia fisiológica de despertar

ABSTRACT Generally speaking, the physiological index of the human body is in a relatively stable state, which refers to the function of various organ systems with the characteristics of high-tide period, low-tide period and critical period. However, for competitive athletes, it is necessary to maintain physiological activation in both training and competition. In view of this, this study will analyze the physiological arousal degree of aspirin and acetaminophen in order to provide a reference for athletes to take analgesic drugs. In this study, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), principal component analysis and factor analysis, were used to construct a scientific evaluation system of physiological arousal level, and the medication and non-medication status of 90 athletes were evaluated. The results showed that aspirin was better than acetaminophen in blood urea and serum creatine kinase, and the comprehensive score of some athletes was higher than 0.95. Aspirin is better in arousing athletes' physiology. The research results will provide scientific guidance for athletes to take antipyretic and analgesic drugs.

RESUMO Em termos gerais, o índice fisiológico do corpo humano encontra-se num estado relativamente estável, que se refere à função de vários sistemas de órgãos no corpo humano, com as características do período de altas, período de baixas e período crítico. No entanto, para atletas competitivos, é necessário manter a ativação fisiológica em treinamento e competição. Em vista disso, este estudo irá analisar o grau fisiológico de excitação de aspirina e acetaminofeno, a fim de fornecer referência para os atletas a tomar medicamentos analgésicos. Neste estudo, o Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), análise de componentes principal e análise de fatores foram usados para construir um sistema de avaliação científica de nível de excitação fisiológica, e o estado de medicação e de não medicação de 90 atletas foram avaliados. Os resultados mostraram que a aspirina foi melhor do que o acetaminofeno na ureia sanguínea e na creatina quinase sérica, e o escore abrangente de alguns atletas foi maior do que 0.95. A aspirina é melhor no despertar da fisiologia dos atletas. Os resultados da pesquisa fornecerão orientação científica para os atletas tomarem medicamentos antipiréticos e analgésicos.

RESUMEN En términos generales, el índice fisiológico del cuerpo humano se encuentra en un estado relativamente estable, que se refiere a la función de varios sistemas de órganos en el cuerpo humano, con las características del período de altas, período de bajas y período crítico. Mientras tanto, para atletas competitivos, es necesario mantener la activación fisiológica en entrenamiento y competición. En vista de eso, este estudio analizará el grado fisiológico de excitación de aspirina y acetaminofeno, a fin de proveer referencia para los atletas para tomar medicamentos analgésicos. En este estudio, el Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), análisis de componentes principal y análisis de fatores fueron usados para construir un sistema de evaluación científica de nivel de excitación fisiológica, y el estado de medicación y de no medicación de 90 atletas fueron evaluados. Los resultados mostraron que la aspirina fue mejor que el acetaminofeno en la urea sanguínea y en la creatina quinasa sérica, y el escore abarcador de algunos atletas fue mayor de 0.95. La aspirina es mejor en el despertar de la fisiología de los atletas. Los resultados de la investigación proveerán orientación científica para que los atletas tomen medicamentos antipiréticos y analgésicos.

The role of androgen in male sexual arousal / 中华男科学杂志

Sexual arousal is an important factor for the success of sexual behavior, and regulated by the central nervous system, its underlying mechanism is very complicated. Androgen is the most important endocrine hormone in men, which is deeply involved in the whole process of male sexual response, but how it regulates male sexual arousal has not been fully clarified and remains one of the hotspots in current andrological research. Therefore, this paper presents an overview of the advances in the studies of the related role and mechanism of androgen in male sexual arousal. In the central nervous system, androgen regulates the release of dopamine neurotransmitters by binding androgen receptors or metabolizing neurosteroids, thus activating the brain reward system. Besides, androgen regulates the neuronal plasticity and spinous process formation in the neural circuit of sexual arousal to ensure successful activation and conduction of the neural circuit. However, the specific regulating mechanism of sexual arousal remains to be further explored.

Relationship between lateral hypothalamus and melatonin-induced reduction of wakefulness in rats and the receptor mechanism / 中华麻醉学杂志

Objective:To investigate the relationship between lateral hypothalamus and melatonin-induced reduction of wakefulness in rats and the receptor mechanism.Methods:Forty clean-grade adult male Sprague-Dawley rats, weighing 250-300 g, were divided into 4 groups ( n=10 each) using a random number table method: control group (group C), melatonin group (group M), melatonin type-1/2 receptor (MT 1R) antagonist luzindole plus melatonin group (group L+ M), and melatonin type-2 receptor (MT 2R) antagonist 4P-PDOT plus melatonin group (P+ M group). In group C, 0.5 μl of 0.9% NaCl solution was microinjected into the lateral hypothalamus.In group M, 1 μmol/L melatonin 0.5 μl was microinjected into the lateral hypothalamus.In group L+ M, 1 μmol/L MT 1/2R and 1 μmol/L melatonin (0.5 μl in total) was microinjected into the lateral hypothalamus.The microinjection time was from 19: 30 to 20: 00.The changes in sleep-wake duration and the oscillating energy in different frequency bands of electroencephalogram were detected by using electroencephalogram and electromyogram recording technology. Results:Compared with group C, the percentage of wakefulness time was significantly decreased, the percentage of non-rapid eye movement sleep and rapid eye movement sleep time was increased, the energy for delta oscillation was increased, the energy for theta oscillation was decreased, and no significant change was found in the energy for alpha oscillation in M and P+ M groups ( P<0.01), and no significant change was found in the parameters mentioned above in group L+ M ( P>0.05). Compared with group M, the percentage of wakefulness time was significantly increased, the percentage of non-rapid eye movement sleep and rapid eye movement sleep time was decreased, the energy for delta oscillation was decreased, and the energy for theta oscillation was increased in group L+ M ( P<0.01), and no significant change was found in the parameters mentioned above in group P+ M ( P>0.05). Conclusion:The lateral hypothalamus may be involved in melatonin-induced reduction of wakefulness in rats, and the mechanism may be related to activating MT 1R in the lateral hypothalamus.

O Efeito de Carga Emocional e Intervalo de Retenção na Memória de Testemunhas Oculares / The Role of Arousal and Retention Interval on Eyewitness Memory

Resumo Presenciar um crime é uma situação de grande estresse e com forte carga emocional, fatores diretamente relacionados à qualidade do relato de testemunhas oculares. Em dois experimentos, participantes assistiram a eventos com diferentes cargas emocionais (neutro, assalto ou assassinato) e forneceram seus relatos após diferentes intervalos de retenção (teste imediato, 7 dias, 14 dias ou 21 dias). Os resultados mostraram que a carga emocional não teve efeito na memória de testemunhas para aspectos do crime e características do criminoso. O evento com maior carga emocional teve um efeito benéfico na memória após um intervalo de 7 dias, mas tal efeito não ocorreu em intervalos mais longos. Implicações teóricas e práticas relacionadas à interpretação do relato de testemunhas são discutidas.

Abstract Witnessing a crime can be a highly stressful situation, eliciting arousal levels that may affect eyewitness memory performance. In two experiments, participants watched a mock crime with varying arousal intensities (neutral, robbery, and murder), and provided reports after varying retention intervals (immediate testing, 7 days, 14 days or 21 days). Results showed that arousal did not have a significant main effect on eyewitness memory recall. Eyewitness memory performance was stronger for the event with higher arousal only after a 7 days retention interval, but performance was comparable across all arousal conditions in longer retention intervals. Theoretical and practical implications related to the evaluation of eyewitness testimony are discussed.

Tradução, adaptação e avaliação das propriedades psicométricas da Arousal Predisposition Scale em crianças e adolescentes / Translation, adaptation and evaluation of the psychometric properties of the Arousal Predisposition Scale in children and adolescents / Traducción, adaptación y evaluación de las propiedades psicométricas de la Arousal Predisposition Scale en niños y adolescentes

A Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS) é um instrumento com 12 itens, elaborado para mensurar o nível de arousal de um indivíduo. O termo arousal, traduzido para o português falado no Brasil, significa excitação, isto é, a resposta do organismo frente a um estímulo externo ou estresse ambiental. A escala visa abordar o arousal como uma predisposição ou característica individual de excitação diante de um estressor ambiental. O objetivo deste estudo foi realizar tradução, adaptação e avaliação das propriedades psicométricas da APS para crianças e adolescentes. O estudo foi realizado com 189 alunos, de ambos os sexos, de escolas públicas, com idade entre 10 e 17 anos. A pesquisa foi dividida em duas etapas: a primeira foi a adaptação transcultural e a segunda etapa envolveu a avaliação das propriedades psicométricas da versão final. Os resultados apresentaram uma consistência interna dos itens aceitável para os grupos pré-adolescentes e adolescentes (alfa de Cronbach > 0,700). Não houve diferença significativa entre a escala total em médias de teste-reteste e uma correlação significativa de moderada a forte de validade de critério. A APS foi traduzida, adaptada e validada no Brasil para o grupo etário de 11 anos de idade. Destaca-se ainda a importância da utilização dessa escala por diferentes setores de saúde e da educação, em escolas de ensino fundamental e médio, contribuindo para identificar precocemente problemas de comportamento.

Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS) is a 12-item instrument designed to measure the arousal level of an individual. Translated into Brazilian Portuguese arousal means excitement, that is, the body's response to an external stimulus or environmental stress. The scale aims to address arousal as a predisposition or individual characteristic of excitement when facing an environmental stressor. Hence, this study sought to translate, adapt, and evaluate the psychometric properties of the APS for children and adolescents. Data was collected from 189 students, of all genders, from public schools, aged 10 to 17 years. The research was divided into two stages: first, the cross-cultural adaptation, followed by the evaluation of the psychometric properties in the final version. Results showed an acceptable internal consistency of the items for the pre-adolescent and adolescent groups (Cronbach's alpha > 0.700). The findings presented no significant difference between full-scale test-retest means and a significant moderate to strong correlation of criterion validity. The APS was translated, adapted and validated in Brazil for the 11-year-old age group. APS should be used by different health and education sectors in primary and secondary schools to help identify early behavioral problems.

La Arousal Predisposition Scale (APS) es un instrumento que consta de 12 ítems para estimar el nivel de arousal de un individuo. El término arousal significa excitación en portugués de Brasil, es decir, una respuesta del organismo frente a un estímulo externo o estrés ambiental. La escala pretende abordar el arousal como una predisposición o característica individual de excitación frente a un estrés ambiental. El objetivo de este estudio fue realizar la traducción, la adaptación, la evaluación y la valoración de las propiedades psicométricas de la APS para niños y adolescentes. Se realizó un estudio con 189 alumnos, de ambos sexos, de escuelas públicas, con edades de entre los 10 y 17 años. La investigación constó de dos etapas: la primera realizó la adaptación transcultural; y la segunda, la evaluación de las propiedades psicométricas de la versión final. Los resultados mostraron una consistencia interna de los ítems aceptable para los grupos de preadolescentes y adolescentes (alfa de Cronbach > 0,700). No hubo diferencias significativas entre la escala total en las medias de prueba-reprueba y una correlación significativa de moderada a fuerte como validez de criterio. Se realizó la traducción, la adaptación y la validación de la APS en Brasil para el grupo de edad de los 11 años. Se señala la importancia de la utilización de esta escala para los diferentes sectores de salud y de la educación, en la primaria y la secundaria, al contribuir a la identificación de problemas de comportamiento.

O papel da emoção na percepção de tempo: uma revisão sistemática / The role of emotion in time perception: a systematic review / El papel de la emoción en la percepción del tiempo: una revisión sistemática

O objetivo desta revisão sistemática foi avaliar estudos empíricos publicados entre 2015 e 2019, que investigaram os efeitos da emoção sobre a percepção de tempo. Foram utilizados os descritores time perception e emotion nas bases de dados PubMed, BVS, PsycINFO e Science Direct. A análise de 31 artigos revelou a prevalência: (1) da tarefa de bissecção temporal, (2) da utilização de cenas visuais com emoções negativas, (3) da atenção e do nível de alerta presentes no Modelo Oscilador-Acumulador (MOA) para explicar os dados. A revisão revelou também a proposição de novos modelos teóricos, que necessitam ser investigados em pesquisas futuras.

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate empirical studies published between 2015 and 2019, which investigated the effects of emotion on time perception. The descriptors "time perception" and "emotion" were used in the databases PubMed, BVS, PsycINFO and Science Direct. The analysis of 31 papers showed the prevalence of the (1) temporal bisection task, (2) use of visual scenes with negative emoticons, and (3) arousal and attention as components of Pacemaker-Accumulator (PA) model to explain the data. The review also revealed the proposition of new theoretical models, which need to be verified in future research.

El objetivo de esta revisión sistemática fue evaluar los estudios empíricos publicados entre 2015 y 2019, que investigaron los efectos de la emoción en la percepción del tiempo. Se utilizaron los descriptores time perception y emotion en las bases de datos PubMed, BVS, PsycINFO y Science Direct. El análisis de 31 artículos enseñó la prevalencia (1) tarea de bisección temporal, (2) uso de escenas visuales con emociones negativas, (3) el arousal y la atención como componentes del Modelo Oscilador-Acumulador para explicar los datos. La revisión también reveló la propuesta de nuevos modelos teóricos, que deben testarse en futuras investigaciones.

Persistent genital arousal disorder it’s etiology, treatment guideline and management strategy

Persistent genital arousal disorder is a recently recognized disorder. Its first case was reported in 2001, since then many cases have been diagnosed and treated with various methods, yet no FDA approved treatment guidelines have been proposed. Although it is a cause of not only sexual, but also psychological impairment to the patients of the disorder, Persistent genital arousal disorder is not well recognized currently due to the social stigma attached to it  This study is important for the physicians treating a case of PGAD, as it has all the published data about the disorder.The review of literature was done by using all the research articles and case reports of PGAD using keywords like ‘persistent’, ‘genital’, ‘arousal’, ‘disorder’ on platforms like google scholar and pubmed. Various research articles and case reports were reviewed and grouped into different levels of intervention; at the female genital system, at the spinal cord and the brain. This study has evaluated all the possible etiologies and suggested the possible treatments and management strategies for the disorder. This study has thrown striking limelight on all the potential causes leading to PGAD, its potential line of treatment, and the management strategy. This study is based on the case reports found till date, but there is still a paucity in data, the number of reported cases is less due to a possible social stigma associated with the disease. The present investigation demands extensive research in the topic as this is a cause of social concern leading to psychological, emotional and nervous breakdown.

Advances in research on the role of nitric oxide in regulating sleep and arousal / 药学学报

Nitric oxide (NO) is widely present in peripheral and central nervous system and regulates many physiological functions. Sleep-arousal is an advanced physiological activity. Studies have shown that NO is involved in the regulation of sleep and arousal. Nitric oxide synthases (NOSs) are a family of enzymes that catalyze the production of NO from L-arginine. Through guanylate cyclase or S-nitrosation of protein, NO can affect the activity of the ascending reticular activating system to regulate the sleep-arousal process. This paper summarizes the production of NO, its effect on sleep-arousal and its mechanism in the ascending reticular activating system, and provides new ideas and directions for the study of sleep and arousal.

Endothelial dysfunction in children with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome / 中华儿科杂志

Objective@#To evaluate the endothelial function in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome(OSAS) children and to identify related factors of endothelial dysfunction.@*Methods@#This was a cross-sectional study. Children with habitual snoring (snoring ≥3 nights per week) admitted to the ward of otolaryngology, head and neck surgery, Beijing Children′s Hospital were recruited to this study between 1st June 2015 and 1st March 2016. All children aged 3 to 11 years and of them 245 were boys and 110 were girls. All subjects underwent an overnight polysomnography (PSG), as well as endothelial function testing. All subjects were grouped into primary snoring (PS) and OSAS group according to the obstructive apnea hypopnea index (OAHI). T test or Wilcoxon test were used to compare the differences in PSG results between the two groups, and univariate and multivariate correlation analyses were used to explore the relevant factors affecting the endothelial function.@*Results@#A total of 355 subjects were enrolled and 248 had OSAS, and 107 had PS. There were no significant differences in age, gender and body mass index (BMI) Z-score between the two groups (all P>0.05). OSAS group had higher OAHI, oxgen desaturation index and respiratory related arousal index (5.2 (2.2, 13.2) vs. 0.4 (0.1, 0.7), 4.1 (2.0, 13.1) vs. 0.5 (0.1, 1.0), 2.5 (1.0, 4.8) vs. 0.4 (0.1, 0.9), Z=-14.957, -11.790, -10.378, all P<0.01), and lower minimum oxygen saturation and reactive hyperemia index (RHI) than those of PS (0.89 (0.85, 0.92) vs. 0.94 (0.91, 0.95), 1.2±0.2 vs. 1.1±0.1, Z=-9.337, t=5.354, P<0.01). Univariate regression analysis showed that RHI was linearly correlated with age (parameter estimate=0.017, P<0.01), gender (parameter estimate=0.065, P<0.01), OAHI (parameter estimate=-0.023, P<0.01), oxygen desaturation index (parameter estimate=-0.019, P<0.01), respiratory related arousal index (parameter estimate=-0.031, P<0.01), and oxygen saturation nadir (parameter estimate=0.067, P=0.045). The relationship between BMI Z-score and RHI was quadratic. Multivariate regression analysis showed that age (parameter estimate=0.015, P<0.01), BMI Z-score (parameter estimate=0.040, P<0.01), BMI Z-score quadratic form (parameter estimate=-0.010, P<0.01), respiratory related arousal index (parameter estimate=-0.020, P<0.01) were independently correlated with RHI.@*Conclusions@#Children with OSAS have significant endothelial dysfunction compared with PS. Frequent arousals due to obstructive respiratory events during sleep may be a candidate risk factor for endothelial dysfunction in children with OSAS.

Parkinson's disease and sleep disorders / 中国实用内科杂志

Sleep disorders are very common non-motor symptoms in Parkinson disease(PD) related to the life quality of patients, mainly including insomnia, arousal disorders, restless legs syndrome(RLS), REM sleep behavior disorder(RBD) and sleep disorders breathing(SDB). In this article, the author discusses the causes and the current state of the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders in PD, aiming to increase clinical doctors' attention to it.

Different neurons in the basal forebrain regulate sleep-wake / 中华神经科杂志

The basal forebrain is a heterogeneous structure at the base of the brain that participates in the regulation of sleep-wake, cognition, consciousness, and attention. Previous studies have suggested that these functions are mainly mediated by cholinergic neurons in the basal forebrain. With advances in research techniques, the understanding of basal forebrain cholinergic neurons, as well as GABAergic neurons and glutamatergic neurons, is deepened. The role of different neurons in the basal forebrain in the regulation of sleep-wake is summarized in this article. GABAergic neurons play a key role in promoting wakefulness, cholinergic neurons play an important role in sleep-wake homeostasis, and glutamatergic neurons provide excitation signals to other neurons.

Adult Stem Cells in Hibernation: Future Perspectives of Space Travel

Space traveling is imperative for mankind in the future. Expectedly, hibernation will become an option for space traveler to overcome the endless voyage. With regard to some of the studies pointed out that during hibernation, muscle will undergo atrophy and meantime neurogenesis will reduce, these obstacles were frequently related with stem cell regeneration. Thus, investigation on whether hibernation will lead to dysfunction of stem cell becomes an important issue. By going through four main systems in this article, such as, hematopoietic system, skeletal muscle system, central nervous system and orthopedic system, we are expecting that stem cells regeneration capacity will be affected by hibernation. To date, these researches are majorly the read-out from short term or seasonal hibernating mammals. Proposing and creating a simulated long-term hibernation animal model is turning essential for the further investigation on the effect of longer period of hibernation to human stem cells.

Spatiotemporal Analysis of Event-related Current Density Reveals Dissociable Effects of Arousal and Valence on Emotional Picture Processing

BACKGROUND: The processing of emotional visual stimulation involves the processing of emotional and visuoperceptual information. It is not completely revealed how the valence and arousal affect these two aspects. The objective was to investigate the effects of valence and arousal on spatiotemporal characteristics of cortical information processing using distributed source imaging of event-related current density (ERCD). METHODS: Electroencephalograms (64 channels) were recorded from 19 healthy men while presenting affective pictures. Distributed source localization analysis was adopted to obtain the spatiotemporal pattern of ERCD on cortical surface in response to emotional visual stimulation. A nonparametric cluster-based permutation test was used to find meaningful time and space without prior knowledge. RESULTS: Significant changes of ERCD in 400–800 ms among positive, negative, and neutral emotional conditions were found in left posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and right inferior temporal cortex (ITC). In the PCC, the stimuli with higher arousal levels showed more negative ERCD than neutral stimuli. In the ITC, the ERCD for negative stimuli was significantly more negative than those of positive and neutral ones. CONCLUSION: Arousal and valence had strong influence on memory encoding and visual analysis at late period. The location and time showing significant change in neural activity according to arousal and valence would provide valuable information for understanding the changes of cortical function by neuropsychiatric disorders.