S100B and NSE serum concentrations after simulated diving in rats

The purpose of this study was to assess whether one could detect S100 calcium‐binding protein B (S100B) and neuron‐specific enolase (NSE) in serum of rats after a simulated dive breathing air, with the main hypothesis that the serum concentrations of S100B and NSE in rats will increase above pre‐exposure levels following severe decompression stress measured as venous gas emboli (VGE). The dive group was exposed to a simulated air dive to 700 kPa for 45 min. Pulmonary artery was monitored for vascular gas bubbles by ultrasound. Pre‐ and postdive blood samples were analyzed for S100B and NSE using commercially available Elisa kits. There was no increase in serum S100B or NSE after simulated diving and few of the animals were showing high bubble grades after the dives. The present study examined whether the protein biomarkers S100B and NSE could be found in serum from rats after exposure to a simulated dive to 700 kPa for 45 min breathing air. There were no differences in serum concentrations before versus after the dive exposure. This may be explained by the lack of vascular gas bubbles after the dives.(c) 2015 The Authors. Physiological Reports published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American Physiological Society and The Physiological Society. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Eccentric exercise 48 h prior to simulated diving has no effect on vascular bubble formation in rats

PURPOSE: Decompression sickness (DCS) caused by vascular bubble formation is a major risk when diving. Prior studies have shown that physical exercise has a significant impact in both reducing and increasing bubble formation. There is limited knowledge about the mechanisms, but there are indications that exercise-induced muscle injury prior to diving may cause increased bubble formation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of exercise-induced muscle injury as a possible mechanism of bubble formation during diving. METHODS: Muscle injury was induced by exposing female Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 30) to a single bout of eccentric exercise, 100 min intermittent, downhill (-16°) treadmill running. Forty-eight hours later, the animals were exposed to a 50-min simulated saturation dive (709 kPa) in a pressure chamber, when the degree of muscle injury and inflammation would be the most pronounced. Bubble formation after the dive was observed by ultrasonic imaging for 4 h. RESULTS: No difference in bubble loads was found between the groups at any time despite evident muscle injury. Maximum bubble loads (bubbles cm-2 heart cycle-1) were not different, exercise: 1.6 ± 3.5 SD vs control: 2.2 ± 4.1 SD, P = 0.90, n = 15 in each group. CONCLUSIONS: Eccentric exercise performed 48 h prior to diving causes skeletal muscle injury but does not increase the amount of vascular bubbles in rats. The prevailing recommendation is that physical activity prior to diving is a risk factor of DCS. However, present and previous studies implicate that pre-dive physical activity does not increase the DCS risk

Brain adiponectin signaling controls peripheral insulin response in Drosophila.

International audienceThe brain plays a key role in energy homeostasis, detecting nutrients, metabolites and circulating hormones from peripheral organs and integrating this information to control food intake and energy expenditure. Here, we show that a group of neurons in the Drosophila larval brain expresses the adiponectin receptor (AdipoR) and controls systemic growth and metabolism through insulin signaling. We identify glucose-regulated protein 78 (Grp78) as a circulating antagonist of AdipoR function produced by fat cells in response to dietary sugar. We further show that central AdipoR signaling inhibits peripheral Juvenile Hormone (JH) response, promoting insulin signaling. In conclusion, we identify a neuroendocrine axis whereby AdipoR-positive neurons control systemic insulin response

Concentration of circulating autoantibodies against HSP 60 is lowered through diving when compared to non-diving rats

Objective: Skin and ear infections, primarily caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa), are recurrent problems for saturation divers, whereas infections caused by P. aeruginosa are seldom observed in healthy people outside saturation chambers. Cystic fibrosis (CF) patients suffer from pulmonary infections by P. aeruginosa, and it has been demonstrated that CF patients have high levels of autoantibodies against Heat shock protein 60 (HSP60) compared to controls, probably due to cross-reacting antibodies induced by P. aeruginosa. The present study investigated whether rats immunised with P. aeruginosa produced autoantibodies against their own HSP60 and whether diving influenced the level of circulating anti-HSP60 antibodies. Methods: A total of 24 rats were randomly assigned to one of three groups (‘immunised’, ‘dived’ and ‘immunised and dived’).The rats in group 1 and 3 were immunised with the bacteria P. aeruginosa, every other week. Groups 2 and 3 were exposed to simulated air dives to 400 kPa (4 ata) with 45 min bottom time, every week for 7 weeks. Immediately after surfacing, the rats were anaesthetised and blood was collected from the saphenous vein. The amount of anti-HSP60 rat antibodies in the serum was analysed by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The immunised rats (group 1) showed a significant increase in the level of autoantibodies against HSP60, whereas no autoantibodies were detected in the dived rats (group 2). The rats both immunised and dived (group 3) show no significant increase in circulating autoantibodies against HSP60. A possible explanation may be that HSP60 is expressed during diving and that cross-reacting antibodies are bound

Characteristics and implications of attrition in health-related quality of life studies in palliative care.

In a longitudinal study of 297 palliative care patients, 280 patients were followed from inclusion to death. Characteristics and health-related quality of life (HRQL) of the participants and those who later dropped out were compared at inclusion, and 3 and 2 months before their death. At inclusion, the dropouts were older (P = 0.001), had reduced Karnofsky performance score (P < 0.001), received more help from the local authority (P = 0.004) and had reduced HRQL compared with patients who continued in the study and completed the next questionnaire. There were no differences in any of the HRQL parameters between participants and dropouts 3 months before death. Two months before death, differences in HRQL were found, but in favour of the dropouts. Data from patients close to death may be representative of a larger group of patients, whereas initial dropouts may lead to a positive bias of reported HRQL

«Registrering av flom- og skredsikringstiltak i NVE, Statens vegvesen og Jernbaneverket»

Denne rapporten beskriver hvordan NVE, Jernbaneverket og Statens vegvesen i dag registrerer tiltak for flom- og skredsikring, og hvordan disse dataene forvaltes og kan utveksles mellom etatene. Rapporten kommer videre med anbefalinger til hvordan data bør registreres, forvaltes og utveksles i fremtiden, og inneholder et forslag til en ny SOSIstandard for registrering av sikringstilta

Health-related quality of life during the last three months of life in patients with advanced cancer

The aim of the study was to explore the development of functioning impairments and symptom occurrence during the last months of life of advanced cancer patients. Self-reported data from 116 patients who all completed the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at 3, 2 and 1 month before death were analysed. All functioning aspects deteriorated. For physical, cognitive and social function, the most marked changes occurred between 2 and 1 month before death. The proportion reporting serious difficulties with self-care activities increased from 14% to 43%. The most seriously affected activity could not be distinguished from the EORTC QLQ-C30 scores. Levels of fatigue, dyspnoea and appetite loss increased significantly. More than 50% of the patients had severe pain at all assessments, and only a minor number (8%) reported any improvement. The findings have implications for the planning of care and indicate that further research is required to improve assessment, treatment and follow-up procedures. Adequate pain treatment seems still to be a challenge. Anorexia, fatigue as well as dyspnoea are all symptoms that need further focus

Characteristics and Quality of Life of Patients Who Choose Home Care at the End of Life.

Cancer patients with advanced disease and short-survival expectancy were given hospital-based advanced home care (AHC) or conventional care (CC), according to their preference. The two groups were compared at baseline to investigate whether there were differences between the AHC and the CC patients that may help explain their choice of care. The patients were consecutively recruited over 2(1/2) years. Sociodemographic and medical data, and the health-related quality of life (HRQL) of the two groups were compared. HRQL was assessed using a self-reporting questionnaire, including the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30), the Impact of Event Scale (IES), five questions about social support, and two items concerning general well-being. The AHC group showed significantly poorer functioning on all the EORTC QLQ-C30 scales and an overall higher symptom burden than the CC patients. Fewer of the AHC patients were receiving cancer treatment. The AHC patients had lived longer with their cancer diagnosis, had a significantly shorter survival after study enrollment, and a significantly poorer performance status. The major differences between the two groups seemed to be related to being at different stages in their disease. The results indicate that patients are reluctant to accept home care until absolutely necessary due to severity of functioning impairments and symptom burden. These findings should be taken into consideration in planning palliative care services

Health-related quality of life during the last three months

Goals of work The aim of the study was to explore the development of functioning impairments and symptom occurrence during the last months of life of advanced cancer patients. Materials and methods Self-reported data from 116 patients who all completed the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire—Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) at 3, 2 and 1 month before death were analysed. Main results All functioning aspects deteriorated. For physical, cognitive and social function, the most marked changes occurred between 2 and 1 month before death. The proportion reporting serious difficulties with self-care activities increased from 14% to 43%. The most seriously affected activity could not be distinguished from the EORTC QLQ-C30 scores. Levels of fatigue, dyspnoea and appetite loss increased significantly. More than 50% of the patients had severe pain at all assessments, and only a minor number (8%) reported any improvement. Conclusions The findings have implications for the planning of care and indicate that further research is required to improve assessment, treatment and follow-up procedures. Adequate pain treatment seems still to be a challenge. Anorexia, fatigue as well as dyspnoea are all symptoms that need further focus