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IntroductionThe impact of sex bias in medical research is a matter of significant relevance and importance especially in the modern age. Despite notable improvements in sex equity across various societal fields, disparities in sex representation persist within clinical and pharmacological research. The objective of this article is to investigate the sex bias within Prospective Follow-up Observational Studies with Drugs authorized by the Advisory Commission on Post-Authorization Studies with Medicines in Catalonia, a southern European region.MethodsA retrospective study that analyses data from final reports of Prospective Follow-up Observational Studies with Drugs authorized by the Advisory Commission on Post-Authorization Studies with Medicines in Catalonia from 2015 to 2021. Disease categories and specific diseases, obtained from the Global Data Exchange, were evaluated for sex bias, comparing female participation to female prevalence.ResultsThere were 1,06,399 participants, including 43,778 female participants (42.5%). A significant underrepresentation of females was observed across various disease categories. Notably, in 12 out of 19 categories (63.2%), a pronounced female underrepresentation (sex bias ≤ 0.05) was evident, particularly in the categories of HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (sex bias = −0.5659). Furthermore, 11 categories (57.9%) also demonstrated significant female underrepresentation, with the same notable categories, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (sex bias = −0.4439). When examining specific diseases, significant female underrepresentation was observed in 13 out of 29 diseases (46.4%), especially in HIV (sex bias = −0.4781). The overall findings indicate that the degree of sex bias was notably less favorable for females in numerous disease categories and specific conditions.ConclusionOur study has demonstrated a significant sex bias within observational studies, mirroring patterns observed in clinical trials. Importantly, our findings highlight a pervasive underrepresentation of women across various disease categories and specific conditions. Despite efforts to promote both sexes inclusivity, our results emphasize the persistent challenges in achieving balanced sex representation in study populations. Furthermore, the absence of categorization of diseases based on male and female prevalence poses a significant challenge in accessing pertinent data, particularly concerning the sex distribution of specific diseases.

Observations are essential to explore and discover the ocean. The rapid advancements in technology have revolutionized our capacity to document the ocean and its diverse array of species, pushing the boundaries of our understanding further than ever before. The central Red Sea was exposed as part of the Red Sea Decade Expedition, which took place from 04 February to 18 June 2022 aboard the R/V OceanXplorer, using underwater submersibles. Here, for the first time in the Red Sea, we reported three observations of living Firoloida desmarestia specimens, one female and two male specimens, a heteropod from the Pterotracheidae family. This shell-less mollusk has been observed in the epipelagic zone of the world’s oceans, with the exception of polar regions, suggesting a global distribution for these observations. The two males were observed swimming in the water column, while the female was close to the seabed. All three observations were detected during the morning, raising the question if these organisms use vertical migrations to reach deep-sea waters during the daytime. However, no ROV or submersible dives were conducted at night. Our results show a depth range expansion for observations of this species in the Red Sea. Furthermore, as far as we know, no adults of F. desmarestia have been reported until now in the Red Sea. During the expedition, all three specimens were found at similar depths (350, 400, and 464.5 m depth), with the female being the deepest, thus confirming the eurybathic distribution of this species. The emerging technology is progressively enhancing our understanding of these enigmatic creatures and expanding our knowledge of their fascinating adaptations and ecological roles. In addition to our fieldwork, a literature search was performed to uncover any pre-existing observational records of this species to understand its global distribution and ecological significance.

Introduction: The impact of sex bias in medical research is a matter of significant relevance and importance especially in the modern age. Despite notable improvements in sex equity across various societal fields, disparities in sex representation persist within clinical and pharmacological research. The objective of this article is to investigate the sex bias within Prospective Follow-up Observational Studies with Drugs authorized by the Advisory Commission on Post-Authorization Studies with Medicines in Catalonia, a southern European region. Methods: A retrospective study that analyses data from final reports of Prospective Follow-up Observational Studies with Drugs authorized by the Advisory Commission on Post-Authorization Studies with Medicines in Catalonia from 2015 to 2021. Disease categories and specific diseases, obtained from the Global Data Exchange, were evaluated for sex bias, comparing female participation to female prevalence. Results: There were 1,06,399 participants, including 43,778 female participants (42.5%). A significant underrepresentation of females was observed across various disease categories. Notably, in 12 out of 19 categories (63.2%), a pronounced female underrepresentation (sex bias ≤ 0.05) was evident, particularly in the categories of HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (sex bias = −0.5659). Furthermore, 11 categories (57.9%) also demonstrated significant female underrepresentation, with the same notable categories, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (sex bias = −0.4439). When examining specific diseases, significant female underrepresentation was observed in 13 out of 29 diseases (46.4%), especially in HIV (sex bias = −0.4781). The overall findings indicate that the degree of sex bias was notably less favorable for females in numerous disease categories and specific conditions. Conclusion: Our study has demonstrated a significant sex bias within observational studies, mirroring patterns observed in clinical trials. Importantly, our findings highlight a pervasive underrepresentation of women across various disease categories and specific conditions. Despite efforts to promote both sexes inclusivity, our results emphasize the persistent challenges in achieving balanced sex representation in study populations. Furthermore, the absence of categorization of diseases based on male and female prevalence poses a significant challenge in accessing pertinent data, particularly concerning the sex distribution of specific diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 1D nanowire arrays and 3D nanowire networks of topological insulators and metals have been fabricated by template-assisted deposition of Bi2Te3 and Ni inside anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates, respectively. Despite the different origins of the plasmon capabilities of the two materials, the results indicate that the optical response is determined by plasmon resonances, whose position depends on the nanowire interactions and material properties. Due to the thermoelectric properties of Bi2Te3 nanowires, these plasmon resonances could be used to develop new ways of enhancing thermal gradients and their associated thermoelectric power.

The 1D nanowire arrays and 3D nanowire networks of topological insulators and metals have been fabricated by template-assisted deposition of Bi2Te3 and Ni inside anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates, respectively. Despite the different origins of the plasmon capabilities of the two materials, the results indicate that the optical response is determined by plasmon resonances, whose position depends on the nanowire interactions and material properties. Due to the thermoelectric properties of Bi2Te3 nanowires, these plasmon resonances could be used to develop new ways of enhancing thermal gradients and their associated thermoelectric power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]