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Sexually active African American females are at increased risk for acquiring HIV or STIs. However, some reduce their risk by abstaining from sex for various periods of time following initiation, a practice known as secondary abstinence. Although this may be a valuable mechanism for reducing HIV or STI rates in this population, little is known about those interested in secondary abstinence. Baseline data were obtained from a sample of African American adolescent females, ages 14-20 years, prior to participation in an HIV-risk reduction intervention trial (N = 701). Differences in individual-level and interpersonal-level factors, as well as sociodemographic variables were examined between participants who reported strong interest in secondary abstinence and those who did not. 144 (20.5%) participants reported strong interest in secondary abstinence. Young women with strong interest in abstinence had higher odds of reporting a history of STIs and feeling negative emotions following sex because of their religious beliefs. They also had higher odds of believing their partner may be interested in abstaining and being less invested in their relationship with their main partner. Additionally, adolescents reported less interpersonal stress and more social support. African American females who are interested in practicing secondary abstinence and those who are not differ in their sexual health education needs. Findings from this study characterizing young women interested in secondary abstinence can help researchers provide more targeted health education by identifying those who may be more responsive to abstinence-promoting messages.

The volatile compounds released by orthodox (desiccation-tolerant) seeds during ageing can be analysed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Comparison of three legume species (Pisum sativum, Lathyrus pratensis, and Cytisus scoparius) during artificial ageing at 60% relative humidity and 50 °C revealed variation in the seed volatile fingerprint between species, although in all species the overall volatile concentration increased with storage period, and changes could be detected prior to the onset of viability loss. The volatile compounds are proposed to derive from three main sources: alcoholic fermentation, lipid peroxidation, and Maillard reactions. Lipid peroxidation was confirmed in P. sativum seeds through analysis of malondialdehyde and 4-hydroxynonenal. Volatile production by ageing orthodox seeds was compared with that of recalcitrant (desiccation-sensitive) seeds of Quercus robur during desiccation. Many of the volatiles were common to both ageing orthodox seeds and desiccating recalcitrant seeds, with alcoholic fermentation forming the major source of volatiles. Finally, comparison was made between two methods of analysis; the first used a Tenax adsorbent to trap volatiles, whilst the second used solid phase microextraction to extract volatiles from the headspace of vials containing powdered seeds. Solid phase microextraction was found to be more sensitive, detecting a far greater number of compounds. Seed volatile analysis provides a non-invasive means of characterizing the processes involved in seed deterioration, and potentially identifying volatile marker compounds for the diagnosis of seed viability loss.

This study sought to determine the perspective taken toward understanding adolescent sexual risk behaviors and related biological outcomes (i.e. pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases) since 1990. We content analyzed 324 abstracts representing observational research published between January 1990 and December 2007 for inclusion of ecological (environmental) factors, level of analysis, sample composition and type of behavioral and biological outcomes. A majority (95%) of studies included individual characteristics; half were void of any environmental factors. Of those including environmental factors, 27% included familial, 23% community, 13% relational and 3% societal factors. Most (80%) were positioned at the individual level of analysis. Samples were diverse (43%) and of mixed gender (71%). Biomarkers of sexually transmitted diseases (7.5%) or pregnancy outcomes (2%) were rare. Ecological inclusion was not related to year of publication. Despite the rhetoric highlighting, the importance of an ecological perspective in understanding adolescent sexual risk behavior, much published research, excludes environmental influences.

The administration of long-acting GnRH analogs (GnRH-a) results in gonadotropin and androgen suppression in hyperandrogenic women. Nonetheless, no randomized studies are available comparing GnRH-a with currently used treatments for hirsutism. We have hypothesized that the greater degrees of androgen suppression achieved with GnRH-a therapy could result in a more rapid improvement in hirsutism compared to oral contraceptive (OCP) administration. To test this hypothesis, we studied 17 hirsute women before and during 6 months of randomized treatment with 1) leuprolide depot (3.75 mg/month) plus conjugated estrogen (0.625 mg/day) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (10 mg; days 1-12; n = 9; leuprolide+ERT), or 2) an OCP containing ethynodiol diacetate (1 mg) and ethinyl estradiol (35 micrograms; n = 8). LH, FSH, estradiol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, androstenedione (A4), sex steroid-binding globulin, and total and free testosterone (T) were measured at weeks 0, 2, 4, 8, 12, and 28. At 0 and 28 weeks of treatment, hirsutism was evaluated subjectively by patient self-evaluation and by the Ferriman-Gallwey score, and objectively by determination of facial hair density, outer hair shaft diameter, and growth rate, determined both photographically and in plucked hairs. In the leuprolide+ERT, but not OCP, groups, there was a significant decrease in the circulating LH and FSH levels. In both groups, T and A4 decreased with treatment, although the decrease in A4 levels did not reach significance in OCP-treated women. The circulating sex steroid-binding globulin level increased in both treatment groups, but the changes in the OCP-treated women was greater. Consequently, although the calculated percent free T decreased significantly in both treatment groups, the decrease was greater in the OCP-treated women. The dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate level did not change with either therapy. A significant percent decrease in the Ferriman-Gallwey score was noted in the leuprolide+ERT, but not OCP, patients, and by self-evaluation, seven (78%) and five (55%) of leuprolide+ERT patients, compared to two (25%) and two (25%) OCP-treated women, noted an improvement in hair growth and texture, respectively. No significant difference in mean facial hair density or outer hair diameter was noted with either therapy. Patients treated with leuprolide+ERT demonstrated a decrease in the actual hair growth rate, using the photographic method, or percent decrease in growth rate, using plucked hair. In conclusion, treatment with leuprolide plus cyclic estrogen/progestin appears to provide a more rapid, and possibly greater, improvement in hirsutism, compared to a standard OCP regimen.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Some investigators have suggested that "dysregulation" of cytochrome P450c17 alpha may result in the exaggerated secretion of ovarian androgens in hyperandrogenism. Although the majority of hyperandrogenic (HA) patients demonstrate an ovarian source for their androgens, approximately 50% also display adrenocortical hyperactivity and adrenal androgen excess. To determine whether 17-hydroxylase (17-OH) and/or 17,20-lyase dysregulation is responsible for the adrenocortical abnormalities noted in many HA patients, we studied 92 consecutive women with hirsutism and/or HA oligomenorrhea; 26 healthy eumenorrheic nonhirsute women served as controls. The basal levels of total and free testosterone (T), sex hormone-binding globulin, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate were measured, and pregnenolone, 17-hydroxypregnenolone, progesterone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, dehydroepiandrosterone, and androstenedione were measured 0 and 60 min after the acute iv administration of ACTH-(1-24). Controls and HA patients did not differ in mean age or body mass, but HA women had higher basal T, free T, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, androstenedione, and LH/FSH and lower sex hormone-binding globulin levels. The mean estimated basal 17-OH activity was higher among HA patients than in controls. Although 52 HA patients demonstrated solely an exaggerated basal delta 5-17-OH activity estimate, few HA patients had an exaggerated estimate for either basal delta 4-17-OH or ACTH-stimulated 17-OH activity. No HA patient demonstrated an exaggerated 17,20-lyase basal activity, whereas 14 demonstrated an exaggerated delta 4-17,20-lyase ACTH-stimulated activity only. There was no association between these estimates of 17-OH and 17,20-lyase activities and the circulating adrenal androgen levels in HA women. Importantly, none of the patients demonstrated an increase in the basal activities of both 17-OH and 17,20-lyase, and only 4 patients demonstrated an exaggerated ACTH-stimulated activity of both 17-OH and 17,20-lyase. In conclusion, the steroidogenic profile observed in this population of HA women before and after ACTH-(1-24) stimulation is not consistent with dysregulation of cytochrome P450c17 alpha and probably represents a generalized alteration of adrenocortical control or biosynthesis.

Hyperandrogenic women appear to demonstrate an exaggerated 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17-HP) response to adrenal stimulation which is not due to the marked 21-hydroxylase deficiency of late-onset adrenal hyperplasia (LOAH). Furthermore, in hyperandrogenism the ovary also appears to secrete excessive amounts of 17-HP. It is not clear to what extent the elevated 17-HP levels after ACTH stimulation are due to extraadrenal production of the steroid. This investigation was undertaken to assess the adrenal contribution to the elevated 17-HP levels after ACTH stimulation observed in non-LOAH hyperandrogenism. One hundred and sixty consecutive unselected women with hirsutism and/or hyperandrogenic oligomenorrhea formed the clinical population. Excluded were 4 women with LOAH and all patients with hyperprolactinemia. For the purpose of investigating the relationship between adrenal response and clinical symptoms, hyperandrogenic patients were divided into 3 subgroups: hirsute only (n = 23), hirsute oligomenorrheic (n = 84), and oligomenorrheic only (n = 24). Subclassification for an additional 29 patients (18%) with hyperandrogenemia was not possible, since their symptomatology was not clearly stated in the record. However, these individuals were included in the patient group as a whole. Controls consisted of 21 healthy, regularly menstruating, nonhirsute female volunteers. Both patients and controls underwent acute adrenal stimulation with 1 mg ACTH-(1-24), and serum was obtained before and 30 min after ACTH administration. Hyperandrogenic patients had higher mean basal total testosterone (T), androstenedione (A), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHS), 17-HP, and LH/FSH levels, but not cortisol (F), compared to normal subjects (P less than 0.02). Oligomenorrheic only women had higher mean A and progesterone (P) levels than other hyperandrogenic patients (P less than 0.02). No correlation was noted between body mass index (BMI) and the levels of DHS, P, or A, while a weak positive association was noted between the BMI and the mean T (r = 0.31; P less than 0.002) and a weak negative correlation between the mean F and BMI (r = -0.21; P less than 0.05). The mean 17-HP level 30 min after ACTH administration (17-HP30) was significantly higher in hyperandrogenic women than in normal subjects whether analyzed in separate subgroups or together and was due to the higher basal 17-HP levels. Basal 17-HP correlated with the circulating levels of T, A, and P, steroids largely of ovarian origin. Alternatively, the net increment in 17-HP from 0-30 min after ACTH (delta 17-HP30) was not significantly higher in hyperandrogenic women than normal subjects and did not correlate with the basal levels of T, A, and P. Neither the basal level of 17-HP nor its response to ACTH correlated with circulating DHS levels.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Radioimmunoassay (RIA) of prolactin in the prairie deermouse was established and validated. Serum samples were taken from reproductively inhibited animals grown in experimental populations and compared with reproductively capable control animals of both sexes. At the time of assay, serum prolactin concentrations was unaffected by the length of time a control female was exposed to the olfactory stimulation of bedding soiled by her mate or the stage of the estrous cycle as indicated by vaginal cytology. The reproductively inhibited males and females had significantly reduced reproductive organ weights, body weights, and serum prolactin concentrations compared with their respective controls. Also, the relative mean adenohypophysial weight was greater in the inhibited males. Several significant correlations between prolactin and various gravimetric measures are reported for both males and females. Possible relationships between prolactin and other endocrine systems are discussed.

Several thyroid function parameters were compared between reproductively inhibited prairie deer mice of both sexes taken from laboratory populations and corresponding reproductively capable controls. The results of these experiments indicated the following: 1) prairie deer mice females had a statistically significant daily variation in mean serum thyroxine concentration and males displayed a similar trend; 2) total serum thyroxine and triiodothyronine were significantly lower in both male and female reproductively inhibited population animals compared with reproductively capable controls; 3) several morphometric characteristics of the thyroid of male and female population prairie deer mice were significantly different from that of control males and females, suggesting functional hypothyroidism in both sexes; 4) thyroid histology of male population deer mice was different from that of female population animals. In males, the data suggested that thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) stimulation was deficient due to some undetermined secondary hypothyroidism. In females, reduced serum thyroxine and triiodothyronine concentrations were observed due to primary hypothyroidism of unknown origin. The interrelationship between thyroid and adrenal function is discussed here and it is concluded that each of the systems may contribute to the observed reproductive inhibition. In particular, it was noted that the mechanism of response between population males and females may be quite different. No conclusive data are available to suggest whether one or the other system is the primary controller of the reproductive inhibition.