Clavicular stress fracture in a cricket fast bowler: A case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Whilst rare, stress fractures of the clavicle have been described in other sports. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of a stress fracture of the clavicle occurring in a cricket fast bowler.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 23-year-old professional cricket fast bowler presented with activity related shoulder pain. Imaging demonstrated a stress fracture of the lateral third of the clavicle. This healed with rest and rehabilitation allowing a full return to professional sport.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This injury is treated with activity modification and technique adaptation. In a professional sportsman, this needs to be recognised early so that return to play can be as quick as possible.</p

Atmospheric Evolution

Earth's atmosphere has evolved as volatile species cycle between the atmosphere, ocean, biomass and the solid Earth. The geochemical, biological and astrophysical processes that control atmospheric evolution are reviewed from an "Earth Systems" perspective, with a view not only to understanding the history of Earth, but also to generalizing to other solar system planets and exoplanets.Comment: 34 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables. Accepted as a chapter in "Encyclopaedia of Geochemistry", Editor Bill White, Springer-Nature, 201

Genome-Wide Functional Divergence after the Symbiosis of Proteobacteria with Insects Unraveled through a Novel Computational Approach

Symbiosis has been among the most important evolutionary steps to generate biological complexity. The establishment of symbiosis required an intimate metabolic link between biological systems with different complexity levels. The strict endo-cellular symbiotic bacteria of insects are beautiful examples of the metabolic coupling between organisms belonging to different kingdoms, a eukaryote and a prokaryote. The host (eukaryote) provides the endosymbiont (prokaryote) with a stable cellular environment while the endosymbiont supplements the host's diet with essential metabolites. For such communication to take place, endosymbionts' genomes have suffered dramatic modifications and reconfigurations of proteins' functions. Two of the main modifications, loss of genes redundant for endosymbiotic bacteria or the host and bacterial genome streamlining, have been extensively studied. However, no studies have accounted for possible functional shifts in the endosymbiotic proteomes. Here, we develop a simple method to screen genomes for evidence of functional divergence between two species clusters, and we apply it to identify functional shifts in the endosymbiotic proteomes. Despite the strong effects of genetic drift in the endosymbiotic systems, we unexpectedly identified genes to be under stronger selective constraints in endosymbionts of aphids and ants than in their free-living bacterial relatives. These genes are directly involved in supplementing the host's diet with essential metabolites. A test of functional divergence supports a strong relationship between the endosymbiosis and the functional shifts of proteins involved in the metabolic communication with the insect host. The correlation between functional divergence in the endosymbiotic bacterium and the ecological requirements of the host uncovers their intimate biochemical and metabolic communication and provides insights on the role of symbiosis in generating species diversity

Effect of the anti-retroviral drug, rilpivirine, on human subcutaneous adipose cells and its nutritional management using quercetin

Rilpivirine, a recently developed drug of choice for initial treatment of HIV-1 infection, can greatly reduce HIV-related inflammation, but in turn, may be associated with adverse secondary effects, including disturbances in lipid metabolism and ultimately in adipose tissue distribution and function. In recent years, research findings on the benefits of anti-oxidant foods and supplements have been employed in counter-acting both oxidative stress as well as inflammation in order to reduce the adverse side effects of anti-retroviral therapy. One such natural flavonoid which possesses anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative properties is quercetin. This study investigated the effect of quercetin in overcoming the side effects incurred due to rilpivirine administration. The results show substantial reduction in the accumulation of triglyceride levels in a dose- and time- dependent manner for adipose cells treated with either rilpivirine or quercetin alone and in combination, as evidenced by morphological pictures and quantitative measurement of triglycerides throughout the differentiation process. Levels of inflammatory markers such as resistin and IL-8 were increased as compared to the untreated cells. No significant changes in leptin were observed on treatment of adipose cells with rilpivirine alone and its levels were almost comparable to control. Levels of oxidative markers like superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione were also decreased. Treatment with quercetin showed a decrease in the inflammatory status and an increase in the oxidative status of adipose cells, thereby, exhibiting its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative properties. However, further assessment of lipid metabolism and adipose tissue function in patients administered with rilpivirine-based regimes is advisable considering that totally neutral effects of rilpivirine on lipid homeostasis cannot be anticipated from the current study in vitro. It is concluded that rilpivirine causes an anti-adipogenic and pro-inflammatory response pattern but only at high concentrations, whereas quercetin has been observed to decrease inflammation and restore the levels of anti-oxidant enzyme

Challenges in modelling complexity of fungal entomopathogens in semi-natural populations of insects

The use of fungal entomopathogens as microbial control agents has driven studies into their ecology in crop ecosystems. Yet, there is still a lack of understanding of the ecology of these insect pathogens in semi-natural habitats and communities. We review the literature on prevalence of fungal entomopathogens in insect populations and highlight the difficulties in making such measurements. We then describe the theoretical host-pathogen models available to examine the role that fungal entomopathogens could play in regulating insect populations in semi-natural habitats, much of the inspiration for which has been drawn from managed systems, particularly forests. We further emphasise the need to consider the complexity, and particularly the heterogeneity, of semi-natural habitats within the context of theoretical models and as a framework for empirical studies. We acknowledge that fundamental gaps in understanding fungal entomopathogens from an ecological perspective coupled with a lack of empirical data to test theoretical predictions is impeding progress. There is an increasing need, especially under current rapid environmental change, to improve our understanding of the role of fungi in insect population dynamics beyond the context of forestry and agriculture