UNASSIGNED: Sexual pleasure is central to current understandings of sexual function, health, and wellbeing. In this article, we suggest that we lack a sufficiently specific, yet encompassing, definition of sexual pleasure and that we therefore lack comprehensive assessments of sexual pleasure. We introduce a definition of sexual pleasure and position it centrally in an adapted framework of the sexual response. In the framework, we include a taxonomy of rewards which can be retrieved from sex and thereby aim to capture the multifaceted nature of sexual pleasure.
UNASSIGNED: Through narrative review, we arrive at the definition, framework, and taxonomy by integrating theories of sexual motivation and response with the literature on sexual pleasure and basic rewards. We position this literature within theories of affect and personality which allows us to differentiate between the experience of and the tendency to experience sexual pleasure (i.e., state versus trait sexual pleasure). We discuss how this conceptualization of sexual pleasure could be reflected in self-report assessments to quantitatively assess sexual pleasure.
UNASSIGNED: The framework may aid to understand the role of the diverse facets of sexual pleasure in sexual function, health, and wellbeing and contribute to giving sexual pleasure the center position it deserves in sex research and therapy.

BACKGROUND: The pelvic floor muscles (PFMs) have been suggested to play a key role in sexual function and response in women. However, syntheses of the evidence thus far have been limited to interventional studies in women with pelvic pain or pelvic floor disorders, and these studies have failed to fully capture the involvement of the PFMs in a broader population.
OBJECTIVE: We sought to appraise the evidence regarding the role of the PFMs in sexual function/response in women without pelvic pain or pelvic floor disorders. More specifically, we examined the following: (1) effects of treatment modalities targeting the PFMs on sexual function/response, (2) associations between PFM function and sexual function/response, and (3) differences in PFM function between women with and those without sexual dysfunction.
METHODS: We searched for all available studies in eight electronic databases. We included interventional studies evaluating the effects of PFM modalities on sexual outcomes, as well as observational studies investigating the association between PFM function and sexual outcomes or the differences in PFM function in women with and those without sexual dysfunction. The quality of each study was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Estimates were pooled using random-effects meta-analyses whenever possible, or a narrative synthesis of the results was provided.
RESULTS: The main outcomes were sexual function (based on a questionnaire)/sexual response (based on physiological test), and PFM function (assessment of the PFM parameters such as strength and tone based on various methods).
RESULTS: A total of 33 studies were selected, including 14 interventional and 19 observational studies, most of which (31/33) were deemed of moderate or high quality. Ten out of 14 interventional studies in women with and without sexual dysfunctions showed that PFM modalities had a significant effect on sexual function. Regarding the observational studies, a meta-analysis revealed a significant moderate association between PFM strength and sexual function (r = 0.41; 95% CI, 0.08-066). Of the 7 observational studies performed to assess sexual response, all showed that the PFMs were involved in arousal or orgasm. Conflicting results were found in the 3 studies that evaluated differences in PFM function in women with and those without sexual dysfunction.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlight the contribution of the PFMs in sexual function/response.
UNASSIGNED: One strength of this review is the inclusion of a broad range of study designs and outcomes, allowing a thorough synthesis of evidence. However, interpretations of these data should consider risk of bias in the studies, small sample sizes, and the absence of control/comparison groups.
CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this review support the involvement of the PFMs in sexual function/response in women without pelvic pain or pelvic dysfunction. Well-designed studies should be performed to further investigate PFM modalities as part of the management of sexual dysfunction.

UNASSIGNED: Sexual stimuli, such as sexual videos, images, and narratives describing sexual interactions, are one of many tools used by clinicians and researchers to elicit or augment sexual response. Given the wide variability within sexual stimuli and their effects on sexual response, we provide guidance on when and how to use sexual stimuli, selecting sexual stimuli, and standardizing the use and reporting of sexual stimuli in research and clinical practice.
UNASSIGNED: This expert opinion review article discusses standard operating procedures when using sexual stimuli in clinical and research applications, addressing 3 broad areas: settings in which sexual stimuli are used, characteristics and contexts of the stimuli, and practical and ethical considerations when using the stimuli.
UNASSIGNED: This article is based on an expert opinion review of the sexual psychophysiology literature.
UNASSIGNED: First, we discuss the settings in which sexual stimuli are typically used and evaluate the ecological validity of each setting. Second, we review the types of sexual stimuli used in sexual response research, including physical characteristics, depicted sexual activity, and context, and the impacts of these characteristics on sexual response. Last, we discuss the practical and ethical considerations that come with the choice and use of sexual stimuli in clinical and research settings. We address potential limitations of certain sexual stimuli, including practical and ethical considerations such as participant vs experimenter choice, diversity and representation, and proper sourcing of sexual stimuli for use in clinical and research applications. Discussions on the future applications of sexual stimuli, such as the use of virtual reality, and ethical considerations in terms of user-generated Internet sexual stimuli are also explored.
UNASSIGNED: We provide an expert opinion review of the literature regarding use of sexual stimuli for clinical and research applications and offer best use practices and recommendations.

Laser Doppler imaging is a valid method of assessing genital response, detecting increases in genital blood flow to sexual, but not nonsexual stimuli. Although laser Doppler imaging provides a direct measure of genital blood flow, its discrete perfusion images provide a discontinuous assessment of genital response, limiting some study designs. The aims of this study were to investigate the measurement properties of laser Doppler flowmetry, a direct and continuous measure of blood flow, as well as examine the time course of genital response using flowmetry. A sample of 45 cisgender women attended two experimental sessions wherein they viewed sexual and nonsexual stimuli (e.g., neutral, anxiety, humor) while their genital responses were assessed using laser Doppler flowmetry. As expected, laser Doppler flowmetry was a valid measure of genital response-detecting increases in genital blood flow elicited by the sexual stimuli only-and was sensitive to varying degrees of genital response elicited by low, moderate, and high-intensity sexual stimuli. The measure also exhibited convergent validity with genital response assessed via laser Doppler imaging, test-retest reliability across testing sessions, and internal consistency as well as high sexual concordance with self-reported sexual arousal. Descriptive analyses showed that genital blood flow assessed using laser Doppler flowmetry was highly responsive, with initial, peak, and return to baseline responses occurring within timeframes appropriate for repeated measurement within a single session. Laser Doppler flowmetry is a valid, reliable, and sensitive measure of women\'s genital response that can be usefully applied in sexual psychophysiology research.

The improvement of reproductive capacity of poultry is important for the poultry industry. The existing studies on reproductive capacity mainly focus on the testis tissue, but few reports on regulationary effect of brain neuroendocrime on reproductive capacity have been available. The hypothalamus-pituitarium-gonad (HPG) axis is an important pathway regulating spermatogenesis and sexual behavior. This study analyzed the gene expression in the hypothalamus and pituitary tissues of male ducks in high-semen-quality group (DH), low-semen-quality group (DL), and non-response group (DN) by RNA-sequencing. A total of 1980 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, and significantly less DEGs were found in pituitary gland than in hypothalamus. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses showed that these DEGs were mainly enriched in nerve-related and synapse-related biological processes, mitochondrial inner membrane formation pathway, and ribosome structure pathway. Notably, the neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction pathway significantly enriched in all three comparisons (DH vs. DL, DH vs. DN, and DL vs. DN) was related to different reproductive performance such as semen quality and sexual response. Furthermore, six genes, including POMC, CPLX2, HAPLN2, EGR4, TOX3, and MSH4, were identified as candidate genes regulating reproductive capacity. Our findings provide new insights into the regulation mechanisms underlying the reproductive performance of male poultry, and offer a valuable reference for duck breeding programs aimed at promoting reproductive capacity.
Individual reproductive capacity is crucial to poultry breeding and reproduction. The hypothalamus–pituitarium–gonad (HPG) axis is an important pathway regulating animal spermatogenesis and sexual behavior. This study identified the neuroactive ligand–receptor interaction pathway as the potential biological pathway regulating the semen quality and sexual behavior by differential transcriptome analysis of the hypothalamus and pituitarium of male ducks. Genes including proopiomelanocortin (POMC), complexin 2 (CPLX2), hyaluronan and proteoglycan link protein 2 (HAPLN2), early growth response 4 (EGR4), tox high mobility group box family member 3 (TOX3), and muts homolog 4 (MSH4) were identified as key candidate genes affecting the HPG axis. Our findings provide new insights into the regulatory mechanisms underlying reproductive performance in male poultry and offer a reference for breeding programs aimed to improve reproductive performance in ducks.

Women display a wide range of subjective (self-reported), physiological (genital response), and emotional responses to sexual stimuli. Sexual responses are often assessed using quantitative methodologies; qualitative data can corroborate quantitative data and reveal novel information and avenues for discovery for understanding variations in patterns of sexual response. The current study examined women\'s (n = 148) responses to various sexual and non-sexual stimuli through open-ended, free response thought journals immediately after watching various neutral (nature themed) and sexually explicit video clips (e.g., solitary masturbation, intercourse). A qualitative content analysis of 842 responses was conducted by five independent coders to determine participants\' thoughts immediately after viewing stimuli. Prominent themes included: (1) stimulus appraisals; (2) emotional expressions; and (3) self-reflections and disclosures, which further included participants\' sexual-self-disclosures; (4) various degrees of sexual arousal (or lack thereof); and (5) sexual and non-sexual desires. Additional analyses include frequencies and comparisons of specific themes between stimulus types. Findings contribute to understanding cognitive and emotional components of sexual response.

Previous event-related potential (ERP) studies reported larger N170, P3, and late positive potential (LPP) amplitudes to sexual than nonsexual stimuli. These ERPs may not be specifically sensitive to processing sexual cues, however, because the sexual stimuli included information beyond sexual cues (e.g., faces, bodies, social interaction) to a greater extent than comparison stimuli. We investigated ERPs to stimuli that focused on sexual and nonsexual body regions, in different states of readiness for activity, to elucidate neural responses involved in processing sexual cues. Forty cisgender, primarily white, undergraduate women who were attracted to men (Mage  = 18.6, SD = 0.9) viewed images that varied by male body part (penis, arm) and activity state (rest, poised for activity). Participants viewed 40 images per category (flaccid penises, erect penises, outstretched arms, bent arms). Electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded using a 128-channel net, time-locked to the onset of each image. Using a whole-head cluster-mass approach, we found that the P3 was sensitive to sexual readiness-P3 amplitudes were larger to erect than flaccid penises, but not to bent than outstretched arms. The N170 and LPP components did not show evidence of similarly specific responses to sexual readiness, revealing potential dissociation of different neural processes commonly elicited in response to more complex sexual stimuli. An additional novel finding was that an anterior N270-400 was sensitive to sexual readiness. Findings clarify the brain\'s rapid responses to sexual stimuli, setting the stage for future research aimed at better understanding the neurocognitive processes that contribute to the coordination of sexual arousal.

The eukaryotic translation elongation factor 1 alpha (eef1a) gene has a well-defined role in protein synthesis. However, its role in external temperature perception and internal sex differentiation and development is still unclear. In this study, eef1a1 was identified and functionally analyzed in Chinese tongue sole (Cynoglossus semilaevis). The eef1a1 cDNA, 1809 bp in length, had a 1386 bp open reading frame (ORF) that encoded a 461 amino acid polypeptide containing one EF-1_alpha domain. eef1a1 expression levels were investigated across different tissues and during gonadal development. In the gonad, eef1a1 showed a sexually dimorphic expression pattern with a statistically higher expression level in the ovary than in the testis from 6 months postfertilization to 3 years postfertilization. Under high temperature (28 °C) treatment during C. semilaevis sex differentiation (from 30 days postfertilization to 3 months postfertilization), eef1a1 was statistically down-regulated in males, while the difference was not detected in females. In addition, the dual-luciferase assay exhibited that eef1a1 can respond to high temperature rapidly. Based on these results, C. semilaevis eef1a1 might have a dual role in the perception of external temperature changes and sex differentiation regulation.

Depression greatly affects sexuality. Theoretical and empirical evidence account for the existence of attention bias to sex-related stimuli. This attention bias might be impaired in depression, resulting in sexual problems. A sample of 13 patients with depression and 13 matched healthy controls were tested using the dot-probe and picture recognition task to measure attention to erotic images. No difference in attention to sex-related stimuli (ω2 = 0, p = 0.22) and in memory bias (ω2 = 0, p = 0.72) was found between the two groups. Explorative analyses were conducted to identify the sexual content-induced delay effect in the data, assess variability differences, and compare trial-level bias score-based indexes between groups. Across all analyses, there was little evidence for depression affecting sexual-related cognitive processing, and even this might be explained by other means. Our results suggest that restrained attention is probably not the main factor behind sexual problems in depression.

While previous research has argued that neuroticism is a vulnerability factor for the experience of sexual difficulties, the basic cognitive processes associated with the impact of such a personality trait on the processing of sexually explicit stimuli are less understood. The current study examined the influence of neuroticism on the attentional processes and its neurophysiological correlates during the perception of sexual and non-sexual images. Event-related potentials from 30 women and 28 men were recorded during a modified oddball paradigm in which participants of both sexes visualized stimuli from three different categories (sexual, non-sexual positive, and non-sexual negative), and two arousal levels (high and low arousal). A P1 latency effect was found for female participants, in which high neuroticism was associated with longer latencies for pornographic compared to romantic sexual images. Higher levels of neuroticism were also associated with higher P3 amplitudes for highly arousing images, with both sexual and non-sexual content. Results were interpreted in light of the information processing model of sexual arousal and showed that neuroticism seems to impact both automatic and conscious pathways of processing of sexual stimuli.