The Effects Of Anodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation On Neural Excitability And Function In Individuals With Chronic Ankle Instability: A Preliminary Investigation

Chronic ankle instability (CAI) is common after ankle sprains, characterized by repeated sensations of giving-way existing in 30% of active individuals; high reinjury rates attributed to changes in brain function, suggest current rehabilitation is insufficient. This study attempted to modify these injury-induced brain changes by using anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (aTDCS) with ankle strengthening among individuals with CAI. We implemented a randomized-controlled trial design. Dependent variables included: neural excitability, dynamic balance with muscle activation, side-hop test, and ankle strength tested at baseline, week-2, week-4, and week-6. Twenty-two individuals completed 10 sessions of ankle strengthening over 4-weeks with aTDCS (21.8±2.7yrs, 5M/6F) or sham (22.3±3.1yrs, 3M/8F) stimulation. The aTDCS group received 1.5mA of cortical stimulation for 18-minutes; the sham group received 1-minute of stimulation. Differences were assessed with group-by-time factorial ANOVA (?=0.05). Four-weeks of aTDCS with eccentric exercise enhanced cortical excitability and dynamic balance (baseline to week-6: p=0.024, p=0.026), and improved muscle activation of ankle stabilizers (p=0.044) within 250-ms after landing, compared to sham stimulation. This is the first study using brain stimulation to treat a musculoskeletal injury. Findings support that aTDCS may reverse maladaptive neuroplasticity and subsequently improve function, warranting further investigation into musculoskeletal rehabilitation

A Constant Bar Fraction out to Redshift z~1 in the Advanced Camera for Surveys Field of the Tadpole Galaxy

Bar-like structures were investigated in a sample of 186 disk galaxies larger than 0.5 arcsec that are in the I-band image of the Tadpole galaxy taken with the HST ACS. We found 22 clear cases of barred galaxies, 21 galaxies with small bars that appear primarily as isophotal twists in a contour plot, and 11 cases of peculiar bars in clump-cluster galaxies, which are face-on versions of chain galaxies. The latter bars are probably young, as the galaxies contain only weak interclump emission. Four of the clearly barred galaxies at z~0.8-1.2 have grand design spirals. The bar fraction was determined as a function of galaxy inclination and compared with the analogous distribution in the local Universe. The bar fraction was also determined as a function of galaxy angular size. These distributions suggest that inclination and resolution effects obscure nearly half of the bars in our sample. The bar fraction was also determined as a function of redshift. We found a nearly constant bar fraction of 0.23+-0.03 from z~0 to z=1.1. When corrected for inclination and size effects, this fraction is comparable to the bar fraction in the local Universe, ~0.4, as tabulated for all bar and Hubble types in the Third Reference Catalogue of Galaxies. The average major axis of a barred galaxy in our sample is ~10 kpc after correcting for redshift with a LambdaCDM cosmology. Galaxy bars were present in normal abundance at least ~8 Gy ago (z~1); bar dissolution cannot be common during a Hubble time unless the bar formation rate is comparable to the dissolution rate.Comment: to appear in ApJ, Sept 1, 2004, Vol 612, 18 pg, 12 figure

Transitions to Agroecological Systems: Farmers’ Experience

The term agroecology is used mainly to describe an approach “emphasising ecological principles and practices in the design and management of agroecosystems, one that integrates the long-term protection of natural resources as an element of food, fuel and fibre production” (Lampkin et al., 2015, P9). Agroecological approaches in farming can make a major contribution to the sustainable intensification of agriculture in the UK but there is no specific policy framework for ‘agroecology’ in the UK. Building on a previous builds on the LUPG report by Lampkin et al. (2015) on the contribution of agroecology to sustainable intensification the report present a short background section, the approach, results and conclusion

FORCE-VELOCITY PROFILES OF DANCERS AND ENDURANCE RUNNERS DURING ANKLE-SPECIFIC STRETCH-SHORTENING CYCLE TASKS

While dance and endurance running drastically differ from one another in an anecdotal context, both modalities of movement necessitate proficient stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) function about the ankle-joint. The purpose of the present study was to compare force-velocity profiles in dancers (n=6) and endurance runners (n=6) during a countermovement hop (CMH) and 30 cm drop hop (DH30) to elucidate differences between groups that would potentially stimulate effective training regimens. Average relative force-time, velocity-time and force-velocity curves were generated for each group’s CMH and DH30. Dancers hopped significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) than endurance runners in both hopping tasks. Data from this investigation indicate that dancers and runners have distinctive temporal patterns and force production characteristics during ankle-joint SSC tasks with respect to the eccentric and concentric phase. This may be due to the unique SSC characteristics of each group’s corresponding training protocols

Dosing regimen of meropenem for adults with severe burns : a population pharmacokinetic study with Monte Carlo simulations

Objectives To develop a population model to describe the pharmacokinetics (PK) of intravenous meropenem in adult patients with severe burns and investigate potential relationships between dosage regimens and antimicrobial efficacy.Patients and methods A dose of 1 g every 8 h was administered to adult patients with total body surface area burns of ≥15%. Doses for subsequent courses were determined using results from the initial course and the patient's clinical condition. Five plasma meropenem concentrations were typically measured over the dosage interval on one to four occasions. An open, two-compartment PK model was fitted to the meropenem concentrations using NONMEM and the effect of covariates on meropenem PK was investigated. Monte Carlo simulations investigated dosage regimens to achieve a target T>MIC for ≥40%, ≥60% or ≥80% of the dose interval.Results Data comprised 113 meropenem concentration measurements from 20 dosage intervals in 12 patients. The parameters were CL (L/h) = 0.196 L/h/kg × [1 − 0.023 × (age − 46)] × [1 − 0.049 × (albumin − 15)], V1 = 0.273 L/kg × [1 − 0.049 × (albumin − 15)], Q = 0.199 L/h/kg and V2 = 0.309 L/kg × [1 – 0.049 × (albumin − 15)]. For a target of ≥80% T>MIC, the breakpoint was 8 mg/L for doses of 1 g every 4 h and 2 g every 8 h given over 3 h, but only 4 mg/L if given over 5 min.Conclusions Although 1 g 8 hourly should be effective against Escherichia coli and CoNS, higher doses, ideally with a longer infusion time, would be more appropriate for empirical therapy, mixed infections and bacteria with MIC values ≥4 mg/L

Erratum:Randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial of perhexiline in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction syndrome (Future Cardiology (2014) 10:6 (693-698))

Following publication of the Clinical Trial Protocol by Satnam Singh, Roger Beadle, Donnie Cameron, Amelia Rudd, Maggie Bruce, Baljit Jagpal, Konstantin Schwarz, Gemma Brindley, Fergus McKiddie, Chim Lang, Dana Dawson and Michael Frenneaux, titled ‘Randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial of perhexiline in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction syndrome’, which appeared in the December 2014 issue of Future Cardiology (Future Oncol. 10[6], 693–698 [2014]), it has been brought to our attention that the author names were presented incorrectly as:Satnam Singh, Roger Beadle, Donnie Cameron, Amelia Rudd, Maggie Bruce, Baljit Jagpal, Konstantin Schwarz, Gemma Brindley, Fergus Mckiddie, Peter Nightingale, Chim Lang, Dana Dawson and Michael Frenneaux.The correct presentation should be:Satnam Singh, Roger Beadle, Donnie Cameron, Amelia Rudd, Maggie Bruce, Baljit Jagpal, Konstantin Schwarz, Gemma Brindley, Fergus Mckiddie, Chim Lang, Dana Dawson and Michael Frenneaux.The authors and editors of Future Cardiology would like to sincerely apologize for any inconvenience or confusion this may have caused our readers.<br/