AN OVERVIEW OF OBSERVATIONAL SLEEP RESEARCH WITH APPLICATION TO SLEEP STAGE TRANSITIONING

In this manuscript we give an overview of observational sleep research with a particular emphasis on sleep stage transitions. Sleep states represent a categorization of sleep electroencephalogram behavior over the night. We postulate that the rate of transitioning between sleep states is an important predictor of health. This claim is evaluated by comparing subjects with sleep disordered breathing to matched controls

20 Years of Progress in Intestinal Parasitic Diseases Research

Since 1968 investigators from U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit No. 2 Detachment (NAMRU-2) and the National Institute of Health Research and Development (NIHRD) have conducted parasitological/biomedical surveys in every major island in the Indonesian archipelago. Even smaller islands such as Nasi and Beras off of Sumatra and Beeuw off of Irian Jaya are represented in these studies. These activities were aimed to update and provide new information on the prevalence and distribution of intestinal parasites as well as other infectious agents. These surveys were done in collaboration with the Directorate General of Communicable Disease Control and Environmental Health (CDC&EH), universities and other health institutions such as the Indonesian Armed Forces Health Services, Provincial Health Services, and others. Stool specimens, blood smears, and venous blood examined in these studies showed that most of the population surveyed were infected with one to 7 different species of parasites. Between 50% to 95% of the population had multiple infections

Nucleon electroweak form factors in a meson-cloud model

The meson-cloud model of the nucleon consisting of a system of three valence quarks surrounded by a meson cloud is applied to study the electroweak structure of the proton and neutron. The electroweak nucleon form factors are calculated within a light-front approach, by obtaining an overall good description of the experimental data. Charge densities as a function of the transverse distance with respect to the direction of the three-momentum transfer are also discussed.Comment: Prepared for Proceedings of NSTAR2007, Workshop on the physics of excited nucleons, Bonn (Germany), 5-8 September 200

Determination of two-photon exchange amplitudes from elastic electron-proton scattering data

Using the available cross section and polarization data for elastic electron-proton scattering, we provide an extraction of the two-photon exchange amplitudes at a common value of four-momentum transfer, around Q^2 = 2.5 GeV^2. This analysis also predicts the e^+ p / e^- p elastic scattering cross section ratio, which will be measured by forthcoming experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, updated error analysi

Digital communication platforms in cardiothoracic surgery during COVID-19 pandemic: keeping us connected or isolated?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, performing a surgeon’s duties has become challenging while adhering to social distancing mandates. To aid in the continuity of healthcare services, rapid implementation of digital communication tools became a necessity. This is an account of experiences using digital communication platforms, namely Microsoft Teams and Zoom, for clinical and educative purposes in the field of Cardiothoracic Surgery in the UK. While enabling ongoing virtual clinical meetings, conferences and learning opportunities for residents with little face-to-face contact, are these digital communication platforms keeping us connected or isolated

Association between monosodium glutamate intake and sleep-disordered breathing among Chinese adults with normal body weight

ObjectiveTo assess whether monosodium glutamate (MSG) intake is associated with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB).MethodsData from 1227 Chinese subjects who participated in the Jiangsu Nutrition Study were analyzed. All the participants were examined at two time points (baseline in 2002 and follow-up in 2007). The MSG intake was assessed quantitatively in 2002 and a sleep questionnaire was used to assess snoring and to construct an SDB probability score in 2007. Those within the fifth quintile of the score (highest) were defined as having a high probability of SDB.ResultsThe MSG intake was positively associated with snoring and a high probability of SDB in participants who had a normal body weight but in those who were overweight. A comparison of the extreme quartiles of MSG intake in subjects with a body mass index lower than 23 kg/m² showed an odds ratio of 2.02 (95% confidence interval 1.02-4.00) for snoring and an odds ratio of 3.11 (95% confidence interval 1.10-8.84) for a high probability of SDB. There was a joint effect between MSG and overweight in relation to SDB.ConclusionThe intake of MSG may increase the risk of SDB in Chinese adults with a normal body weight.Zumin Shi, Gary A. Wittert, Baojun Yuan, Yue Dai, Tiffany K. Gill, Gang Hu, Robert Adams, Hui Zuo, Anne W. Taylo

The p(d,p)d and p(d,p)pn reactions as a tool for the study of the short range internal structure of the deuteron

In recent time the deuteron structure at short distances is often treated from the point of view nonnucleonic degrees of freedom. In this paper the measurements of T-odd polarization observables using tensor polarized deuteron beam and polarized proton target or proton polarimeter are proposed to search the quark configurations inside the deuteron.Comment: 12 pages, 8 Postscript figures, submitted in Phys.Atom.Nuc

Impact of Sleep and Circadian Disruption on Energy Balance and Diabetes: A Summary of Workshop Discussions

A workshop was held at the National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases with a focus on the impact of sleep and circadian disruption on energy balance and diabetes. The workshop identified a number of key principles for research in this area and a number of specific opportunities. Studies in this area would be facilitated by active collaboration between investigators in sleep/circadian research and investigators in metabolism/diabetes. There is a need to translate the elegant findings from basic research into improving the metabolic health of the American public. There is also a need for investigators studying the impact of sleep/circadian disruption in humans to move beyond measurements of insulin and glucose and conduct more in-depth phenotyping. There is also a need for the assessments of sleep and circadian rhythms as well as assessments for sleep-disordered breathing to be incorporated into all ongoing cohort studies related to diabetes risk. Studies in humans need to complement the elegant short-term laboratory-based human studies of simulated short sleep and shift work etc. with studies in subjects in the general population with these disorders. It is conceivable that chronic adaptations occur, and if so, the mechanisms by which they occur needs to be identified and understood. Particular areas of opportunity that are ready for translation are studies to address whether CPAP treatment of patients with pre-diabetes and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) prevents or delays the onset of diabetes and whether temporal restricted feeding has the same impact on obesity rates in humans as it does in mice