Behind the Spine: Investigating the Role of Cervical Posture and Range of Motion on Mental Health

This research explores the correlation between abnormal forward head posture, cervical range of motion, and psychiatric disorders. Specifically, the study examines the relationships between the loss of cervical lordosis and anxiety, depression, and ADHD. Previous studies have demonstrated the beneficial effect of manipulative therapy on forward head posture and provided a link between postural alignment and cognitive function. This investigation aims to build on existing literature and enhance understanding of how loss of cervical lordosis impacts cervical and overall range of motion as well as its potential association with psychiatric conditions

Exercise Blocks Ethanol-Induced Kappa Opioid Receptor Sensitization in Nucleus Accumbens and Ventral Tegmental Area

Exercise has been increasingly used as an adjunctive therapy in the treatment of alcohol use disorder (AUD). Despite this, the mechanism by which it influences the mesolimbic circuitry changes underlying alcohol addiction is not well understood. Previous studies have shown alcohol dependence to lead to upregulation of the Dynorphin-Kappa Opioid Receptor (KOR) system, making it a potential target for therapeutics. Thus, gaining a better understanding of these pathways will help develop evidence-based guidelines for integrating exercise into therapies for the treatment of AUD

Non-Traditional Presenting Grade II Brain Meningioma: A Case Study

Meningioma is a relatively common form of cancer, occurring in approximately 97 out of 100,000 individuals. Although it arises from the meninges surrounding the central nervous system (CNS) rather than from neurons, it is classified with CNS tumors due to overlapping symptoms caused by compression of nerves and vessels in the head. Extracranial metastasis is rare, at less than 1%, and correlates with reduced survival rates

Exploring Glucose Dysregulation in Migraine: Insights from Continuous Glucose Monitoring

Despite being associated with hypoglycemia for nearly a century, a definitive relationship between migraines and glucose dysregulation remains elusive. Accumulating evidence suggests that migraines are in part due to a metabolic mismatch between cerebral demand and available energy. Research analyzing plasma glucose levels and migraine activity may further elucidate this interface between metabolic dysregulation and migraine pathophysiology and may potentially open avenues for therapeutic interventions targeting holistic metabolism for migraine management

"Knees" in lithium-ion battery aging trajectories

Lithium-ion batteries can last many years but sometimes exhibit rapid, nonlinear degradation that severely limits battery lifetime. In this work, we review prior work on "knees" in lithium-ion battery aging trajectories. We first review definitions for knees and three classes of "internal state trajectories" (termed snowball, hidden, and threshold trajectories) that can cause a knee. We then discuss six knee "pathways", including lithium plating, electrode saturation, resistance growth, electrolyte and additive depletion, percolation-limited connectivity, and mechanical deformation -- some of which have internal state trajectories with signals that are electrochemically undetectable. We also identify key design and usage sensitivities for knees. Finally, we discuss challenges and opportunities for knee modeling and prediction. Our findings illustrate the complexity and subtlety of lithium-ion battery degradation and can aid both academic and industrial efforts to improve battery lifetime.Comment: Submitted to the Journal of the Electrochemical Societ

DNA Extraction Method Development for Solid Tissues

Although germline variation testing is traditionally performed using DNA obtained from blood or other liquid samples, determining somatic variation in cancer samples requires DNA extraction directly from tissues. Additionally, epigenetic markers, such as 5-methylcytosine (5mC) and 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) are tissue-specific and change in selected disease states. However, several substances present in tissues are known to inhibit downstream reactions, including polymerase chain reaction PCR). For this project, we are assessing the quantity and quality of DNA obtained from extractions of various vital organs using 30 different commercially available DNA extraction kits to determine optimal kits for each tissue