Action for Rehabilitation from Neurological Injury (ARNI): A pragmatic study of functional training for stroke survivors

This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund. Copyright @ 2013 Cherry Kilbride et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.This study evaluated the effectiveness of a twelve-week community-based functional training on measures of impairment, activity and participation in a group of stroke survivors. Isometric strength of the knee musculature, Centre-Of-Pressure (COP) based measures of balance, Berg Balance Scale (BBS), 10 m walk test, and the Subjective Index of Physical and Social Out come (SIPSO), were recorded at baseline, post-intervention, and after twelve weeks (follow-up). Exercise instructors delivered training once a week in a group format at a community centre. Significant improvement was noted in the BBS (p < 0.002), and 10 m walk speed (p = 0.03) post intervention which remained unchanged at follow-up. Total SIPSO score improved significantly post-intervention (p = 0.044). No other significant differences and no adverse effects were observed. It is possible that functional training provided more opportunity for the improvement of dynamic aspects of balance control that could be captured by the BBS but not with the traditional measures of balance using COP data. Results also suggest positive effects on the level of participation, and lack of association between measures of impairment and activity. Community based functional training could be effective and used to extend access to rehabilitation services beyond the acute and sub-acute stages after stroke.London Borough of Hillingdo

ECO AND RESOLVE: GALAXY DISK GROWTH IN ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT

We study the relationships between galaxy environments and galaxy properties related to disk (re)growth, considering two highly complete samples that are approximately baryonic mass limited into the high-mass dwarf galaxy regime, the Environmental COntext catalog (data release herein) and the B-semester region of the REsolved Spectroscopy Of a Local VolumE survey. We quantify galaxy environments using both group identification and smoothed galaxy density field methods. We use by-eye and quantitative morphological classifications plus atomic gas content measurements and estimates. We find that blue early-type (E/S0) galaxies, gas-dominated galaxies, and UV-bright disk host galaxies all become distinctly more common below group halo mass $\sim {10}^{11.5}\;{M}_{\odot }$, implying that this low group halo mass regime may be a preferred regime for significant disk growth activity. We also find that blue early-type and blue late-type galaxies inhabit environments of similar group halo mass at fixed baryonic mass, consistent with a scenario in which blue early-types can regrow late-type disks. In fact, we find that the only significant difference in the typical group halo mass inhabited by different galaxy classes is for satellite galaxies with different colors, where at fixed baryonic mass red early- and late-types have higher typical group halo masses than blue early- and late-types. More generally, we argue that the traditional morphology–environment relation (i.e., that denser environments tend to have more early-types) can be largely attributed to the morphology-galaxy mass relation for centrals and the color–environment relation for satellites

The auditory anatomy of the minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) : a potential fatty sound reception pathway in a baleen whale

Author Posting. © John Wiley & Sons, 2012. This article is posted here under terms and conditions set forth in the Wiley Online Library. The definitive version was published in The Anatomical Record: Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology 295 (2012): 991-998, doi:10.1002/ar.22459.Cetaceans possess highly derived auditory systems adapted for underwater hearing. Odontoceti (toothed whales) are thought to receive sound through specialized fat bodies that contact the tympanoperiotic complex, the bones housing the middle and inner ears. However, sound reception pathways remain unknown in Mysticeti (baleen whales), which have very different cranial anatomies compared to odontocetes. Here, we report a potential fatty sound reception pathway in the minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), a mysticete of the balaenopterid family. The cephalic anatomy of seven minke whales was investigated using computerized tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, verified through dissections. Findings include a large, well-formed fat body lateral, dorsal, and posterior to the mandibular ramus and lateral to the tympanoperiotic complex. This fat body inserts into the tympanoperiotic complex at the lateral aperture between the tympanic and periotic bones and is in contact with the ossicles. There is also a second, smaller body of fat found within the tympanic bone, which contacts the ossicles as well. This is the first analysis of these fatty tissues' association with the auditory structures in a mysticete, providing anatomical evidence that fatty sound reception pathways may not be a unique feature of odontocete cetaceans

Environmental and Parental Influences on Offspring Health and Growth in Great Tits (Parus major)

PMCID: PMC3728352This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Neonatal scrotal wall necrotizing fasciitis (Fournier gangrene): a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Necrotizing fasciitis in neonates is rare and is associated with almost 50% mortality. Although more than 80 cases of neonates (under one month of age) with necrotizing fasciitis have been reported in the literature, only six of them are identified as originating in the scrotum.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report the case of a four-week-old, full-term, otherwise-healthy Caucasian baby boy who presented with an ulcerating lesion of his scrotal wall. His scrotum was explored because of a provisional diagnosis of missed torsion of the testis. He was found to have necrotizing fasciitis of the scrotum. We were able to preserve the testis and excise the necrotic tissue, and with intravenous antibiotics there was a successful outcome.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Fournier gangrene is rarely considered as part of the differential diagnosis in the clinical management of the acute scrotum. However, all doctors who care for small babies must be aware of this serious condition and, if it is suspected, should not hesitate in referring the babies to a specialist pediatric surgical center immediately.</p

Evaluating Trade-Offs Between Sustainability, Performance, and Cost of Green Machining Technologies

The growing demand to reduce environmental impacts has encouraged manufacturers to pursue various green manufacturing technologies and strategies. These solutions, though, may have a direct impact on several productivity metrics including availability, quality, service life, and cost. This study presents an approach to evaluate the trade-offs between the environmental, performance, and financial impacts of green machining technologies by combining green manufacturing principles into life cycle performance evaluation. The approach is validated by investigating the implications of reducing the processing time by increasing the cutting speed and chip load to green a horizontal milling process

Accounting fraud, business failure and creative auditing: A microanalysis of the strange case of the Sunbeam Corporation

This article closely examines the Sunbeam Corporation’s path to failure and explores the reasons for its singularity. From the analysis of US fraud cases included in the UCLA-LoPucki Bankruptcy Research Database, this corporate case appears as an outlier. For Sunbeam, the time-lapse between fraud disclosure and its final bankruptcy is the longest of the entire sample; it is unique because of its length. This article uses a historical microanalysis to evaluate different hypotheses about the Sunbeam Corporation’s path to failure. The relationships between acquisitions and fraud, ‘scapegoat dynamics’ and ‘creative auditing’ are identified as the most relevant issues to be examined against a changing institutional context. The resulting reconstruction of the events provides unexpected insights and recommendations for future research on auditing and accounting fraud

Inhibiting androgen receptor nuclear entry in castration-resistant prostate cancer

Clinical resistance to the second-generation antiandrogen enzalutamide in castration resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), despite persistent androgen receptor (AR) activity in tumors, highlights the unmet medical need for next generation antagonists. We have identified and characterized tetra-aryl cyclobutanes (CBs) as a new class of competitive AR antagonists that exhibit a unique mechanism of action. These CBs are structurally distinct from current antiandrogens (hydroxyflutamide, bicalutamide, and enzalutamide), and inhibit AR-mediated gene expression, cell proliferation, and tumor growth in several models of CRPC. Conformational profiling revealed that CBs stabilize an AR conformation resembling an unliganded receptor. Using a variety of techniques, it was determined that the AR:CB complex was not recruited to AR-regulated promoters and, like apo AR, remains sequestered in the cytoplasm bound to heat shock proteins. Thus, we have identified third generation AR antagonists whose unique mechanism of action suggests that they may have therapeutic potential in CRPC

Neural circuits controlling behavior and autonomic functions in medicinal leeches

In the study of the neural circuits underlying behavior and autonomic functions, the stereotyped and accessible nervous system of medicinal leeches, Hirudo sp., has been particularly informative. These leeches express well-defined behaviors and autonomic movements which are amenable to investigation at the circuit and neuronal levels. In this review, we discuss some of the best understood of these movements and the circuits which underlie them, focusing on swimming, crawling and heartbeat. We also discuss the rudiments of decision-making: the selection between generally mutually exclusive behaviors at the neuronal level