Association between polyunsaturated fatty acid intake and infertility among American women aged 20-44 years.

Background: Infertility is a nationwide public health priority in the U.S. However, few studies have investigated the effects of dietary intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) on female infertility. This study explored the association between PUFA intake and risk of infertility. Methods: A total of 1,785 women aged 20-44 years from three National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey cycles (2013-2018) were included in this cross-sectional study. The intake of PUFAs was obtained from a 24-h dietary interview on two separate days with a 3-10-day interval, and nutrient residue models were used. Fertility status was assessed by positive response to two relative questions via a questionnaire. Logistic regression models were used and some covariates were adjusted. Results: Among all the participants, 340 (19.05%) women suffered from infertility. The intake of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) (OR = 0.998, 95% CI 0.998, 0.009) was slightly related to the risk of infertility. In contrast, women with higher α-linolenic acid (ALA) (OR = 1.416, 95% CI 1.138, 1.763) and linoleic acid (LA) intake (OR = 1.020, 95% CI 1.002, 1.038) presented with a relatively higher risk of primary infertility. Furthermore, in 20-34-year-old women, higher omega-6/omega-3 was significant associated with the risk of infertility (OR = 1.002, 95%CI 1.000, 1.005). Conclusions: Our results suggest that PUFA intake is only slightly associated with infertility. The higher the DHA intake, the lower the risk of infertility regardless of age. In women with primary infertility, ALA and LA has negative effect.

Real-time monitoring in vivo behaviors of theranostic nanoparticles by contrast-enhanced T1 imaging.

The innovative applications of engineered nanoparticles (NPs) in medicine, such as diagnosis and therapy, have attracted considerable attention. It is highly important to predict the interactions between engineered NPs and the complex biological system as well as the impacts on the subsequent behaviors in living subjects. Herein, we report the use of T1 contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to monitor the in vivo behaviors of NPs in a real-time manner. We chose ultrasmall Pd nanosheets (SPNSs) as the object of NPs because of their promise in theranostics and fitness for diverse surface chemistry. SPNSs were modified with different surface coating ligands (e.g., polyethylene glycol, zwitterionic ligands, polyethylenimine) and functionalized with Gd-chelates to render T1 contrast-enhanced capability. MRI real-time monitoring recorded the location and accumulation of SPNSs in small animals and revealed the prominent roles of surface coating ligands in pharmacokinetics. These results highlighted the significance of selecting proper surface coating for particular biomedical assignment. Moreover, we demonstrated a powerful and noninvasive means to predict and detect the behaviors of NPs in living subjects, which may be helpful for rational design and screening of engineered NPs in biomedical applications.

Facile integration of multiple magnetite nanoparticles for theranostics combining efficient MRI and thermal therapy.

Multifunctional nanostructures with both diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities have attracted considerable attention in biomedical research because they can offer great advantages in disease management and prognosis. In this work, a facile way to transfer the hydrophobic iron oxide (IO) nanoparticles into aqueous media by employing carboxylic graphene oxide (GO-COOH) as the transferring agent has been reported. In this one-step process, IO nanoparticles adhere to GO-COOH and form water-dispersible clusters via hydrophobic interactions between the hydrophobic ligands of IO nanoparticles and the basal plane of GO-COOH. The multiple IO nanoparticles on GO-COOH sheets (IO/GO-COOH) present a significant increase in T2 contrast enhancement. Moreover, the IO/GO-COOH nanoclusters also display a high photothermal conversion efficiency and can effectively inhibit tumor growth through the photothermal effects. It is envisioned that such IO/GO-COOH nanocomposites combining efficient MRI and photothermal therapy hold great promise in theranostic applications.