Muscular Strength and Body Composition Comparison Between the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fire and Police Departments

Firefighters and police have different physical job requirements and selection processes. Firefighters have on-duty exercise time and police do not. This could affect body composition and strength. The purpose of this investigation was to compare body composition and bench press strength between firefighters and police officers in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg departments. Current 2006 fitness records were analyzed to compare firefighters and police (N = 2330). Variables included: gender, age, body mass, percent body-fat, fat mass, lean mass, bench press strength, bench press/lean mass, bench press/body mass, and percent that were obese. Significant (p ≤ 0.05) differences were found between male firefighters and police in age (37.7 vs. 36.9 yrs), body mass (91.5 vs. 93.2 kg), percent body-fat (17.8% vs.18.5%), fat mass (16.9 vs. 18.0 kg), bench press strength (93.4 vs. 96.3 kg), bench press/body mass (1.03 vs.1.05) and percent that were obese (10% vs.17%), respectively. Significant differences between female firefighters and police were found in age (42.4 vs. 37.4 yrs), body mass (77.5 vs. 71.8 kg), lean mass (54.4 vs. 51.2 kg), bench press strength (52.3 vs. 43.9 kg), bench press/lean mass (0.99 vs. 0.86) and bench press/body mass (0.69 vs. 0.62), respectively. Male police were younger, weighed more, had higher percent body fat, higher percent of obesity, and had greater upper body strength than firefighters. Female police were younger, weighed less, had less lean mass and less upper body strength than their firefighter counterparts. Contributing factors might include pre-employment selection, recruit training, in-service physical fitness testing, and counseling provided by departments

Chronologic distribution of stroke after minimally invasive versus conventional coronary artery bypass

AbstractObjectivesWe sought to investigate whether the chronologic distribution of the onset of stroke occurring after coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) without cardiopulmonary bypass (off-pump CABG) is different from the conventional on-pump approach (CABG with cardiopulmonary bypass).BackgroundOff-pump CABG has been associated with a lower stroke rate, compared with conventional on-pump CABG. However, it is unknown whether the chronologic distribution of the onset of stroke is different between the two approaches.MethodsWe evaluated the chronologic distribution of postoperative stroke in patients undergoing CABG from June 1996 to August 2001 (n = 10,573). Preoperative risk factors for stroke were identified using the Northern New England preoperative estimate of stroke risk. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the independent predictors of early stroke and to delineate the association between the surgical approach and the chronologic distribution of the onset of stroke.ResultsStroke occurred in 217 patients (2%, n = 10,573). A total of 44 (20%) and 173 (80%) of these patients had stroke after off-pump CABG and on-pump CABG, respectively. The median time for the onset of stroke was two days (range 0 to 11 days) after on-pump CABG versus four days (range 0 to 14 days) after off-pump CABG (p < 0.01). On-pump CABG was associated with a higher risk of early stroke (odds ratio 5.3, 95% confidence interval 2.6 to 10.9; p < 0.01) compared with off-pump CABG.ConclusionsCompared with off-pump CABG, on-pump CABG is associated with an earlier onset of postoperative stroke during the recovery phase, suggesting different mechanisms in the pathogenesis of stroke between the two surgical approaches

Staphylococcus aureus Protein A Binds to Osteoblasts and Triggers Signals That Weaken Bone in Osteomyelitis

Osteomyelitis is a debilitating infectious disease of the bone. It is predominantly caused by S. aureus and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. It is characterised by weakened bones associated with progressive bone loss. Currently the mechanism through which either bone loss or bone destruction occurs in osteomyelitis patients is poorly understood. We describe here for the first time that the major virulence factor of S. aureus, protein A (SpA) binds directly to osteoblasts. This interaction prevents proliferation, induces apoptosis and inhibits mineralisation of cultured osteoblasts. Infected osteoblasts also increase the expression of RANKL, a key protein involved in initiating bone resorption. None of these effects was seen in a mutant of S. aureus lacking SpA. Complementing the SpA-defective mutant with a plasmid expressing spa or using purified protein A resulted in attachment to osteoblasts, inhibited proliferation and induced apoptosis to a similar extent as wildtype S. aureus. These events demonstrate mechanisms through which loss of bone formation and bone weakening may occur in osteomyelitis patients. This new information may pave the way for the development of new and improved therapeutic agents to treat this disease

Insights from the genome of the biotrophic fungal plant pathogen Ustilago maydis

Ustilago maydis is a ubiquitous pathogen of maize and a well-established model organism for the study of plant-microbe interactions. This basidiomycete fungus does not use aggressive virulence strategies to kill its host. U. maydis belongs to the group of biotrophic parasites (the smuts) that depend on living tissue for proliferation and development. Here we report the genome sequence for a member of this economically important group of biotrophic fungi. The 20.5-million-base U. maydis genome assembly contains 6,902 predicted protein-encoding genes and lacks pathogenicity signatures found in the genomes of aggressive pathogenic fungi, for example a battery of cell-wall-degrading enzymes. However, we detected unexpected genomic features responsible for the pathogenicity of this organism. Specifically, we found 12 clusters of genes encoding small secreted proteins with unknown function. A significant fraction of these genes exists in small gene families. Expression analysis showed that most of the genes contained in these clusters are regulated together and induced in infected tissue. Deletion of individual clusters altered the virulence of U. maydis in five cases, ranging from a complete lack of symptoms to hypervirulence. Despite years of research into the mechanism of pathogenicity in U. maydis, no 'true' virulence factors had been previously identified. Thus, the discovery of the secreted protein gene clusters and the functional demonstration of their decisive role in the infection process illuminate previously unknown mechanisms of pathogenicity operating in biotrophic fungi. Genomic analysis is, similarly, likely to open up new avenues for the discovery of virulence determinants in other pathogens. ©2006 Nature Publishing Group.J.K., M. B. and R.K. thank G. Sawers and U. Kämper for critical reading of the manuscript. The genome sequencing of Ustilago maydis strain 521 is part of the fungal genome initiative and was funded by National Human Genome Research Institute (USA) and BayerCropScience AG (Germany). F.B. was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health (USA). J.K. and R.K. thank the German Ministry of Education and Science (BMBF) for financing the DNA array setup and the Max Planck Society for their support of the manual genome annotation. F.B. was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, B.J.S. was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canada Foundation for Innovation, J.W.K. received funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, J.R.-H. received funding from CONACYT, México, A.M.-M. was supported by a fellowship from the Humboldt Foundation, and L.M. was supported by an EU grant. Author Contributions All authors were involved in planning and executing the genome sequencing project. B.W.B., J.G., L.-J.M., E.W.M., D.D., C.M.W., J.B., S.Y., D.B.J., S.C., C.N., E.K., G.F., P.H.S., I.H.-H., M. Vaupel, H.V., T.S., J.M., D.P., C.S., A.G., F.C. and V. Vysotskaia contributed to the three independent sequencing projects; M.M., G.M., U.G., D.H., M.O. and H.-W.M. were responsible for gene model refinement, database design and database maintenance; G.M., J. Kämper, R.K., G.S., M. Feldbrügge, J.S., C.W.B., U.F., M.B., B.S., B.J.S., M.J.C., E.C.H.H., S.M., F.B., J.W.K., K.J.B., J. Klose, S.E.G., S.J.K., M.H.P., H.A.B.W., R.deV., H.J.D., J.R.-H., C.G.R.-P., L.O.-C., M.McC., K.S., J.P.-M., J.I.I., W.H., P.G., P.S.-A., M. Farman, J.E.S., R.S., J.M.G.-P., J.C.K., W.L. and D.H. were involved in functional annotation and interpretation; T.B., O.M., L.M., A.M.-M., D.G., K.M., N.R., V. Vincon, M. VraneŠ, M.S. and O.L. performed experiments. J. Kämper, R.K. and M.B. wrote and edited the paper with input from L.-J.M., J.G., F.B., J.W.K., B.J.S. and S.E.G. Individual contributions of authors can be found as Supplementary Notes

Mammal responses to global changes in human activity vary by trophic group and landscape

Wildlife must adapt to human presence to survive in the Anthropocene, so it is critical to understand species responses to humans in different contexts. We used camera trapping as a lens to view mammal responses to changes in human activity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Across 163 species sampled in 102 projects around the world, changes in the amount and timing of animal activity varied widely. Under higher human activity, mammals were less active in undeveloped areas but unexpectedly more active in developed areas while exhibiting greater nocturnality. Carnivores were most sensitive, showing the strongest decreases in activity and greatest increases in nocturnality. Wildlife managers must consider how habituation and uneven sensitivity across species may cause fundamental differences in human–wildlife interactions along gradients of human influence.Peer reviewe

Quantitative diagnostics of soft tissue through viscoelastic characterization using time-based instrumented palpation

AbstractAlthough palpation has been successfully employed for centuries to assess soft tissue quality, it is a subjective test, and is therefore qualitative and depends on the experience of the practitioner. To reproduce what the medical practitioner feels needs more than a simple quasi-static stiffness measurement. This paper assesses the capacity of dynamic mechanical palpation to measure the changes in viscoelastic properties that soft tissue can exhibit under certain pathological conditions. A diagnostic framework is proposed to measure elastic and viscous behaviors simultaneously using a reduced set of viscoelastic parameters, giving a reliable index for quantitative assessment of tissue quality. The approach is illustrated on prostate models reconstructed from prostate MRI scans. The examples show that the change in viscoelastic time constant between healthy and cancerous tissue is a key index for quantitative diagnostics using point probing. The method is not limited to any particular tissue or material and is therefore useful for tissue where defining a unique time constant is not trivial. The proposed framework of quantitative assessment could become a useful tool in clinical diagnostics for soft tissue

Hitomi (ASTRO-H) X-ray Astronomy Satellite

The Hitomi (ASTRO-H) mission is the sixth Japanese x-ray astronomy satellite developed by a large international collaboration, including Japan, USA, Canada, and Europe. The mission aimed to provide the highest energy resolution ever achieved at E  >  2  keV, using a microcalorimeter instrument, and to cover a wide energy range spanning four decades in energy from soft x-rays to gamma rays. After a successful launch on February 17, 2016, the spacecraft lost its function on March 26, 2016, but the commissioning phase for about a month provided valuable information on the onboard instruments and the spacecraft system, including astrophysical results obtained from first light observations. The paper describes the Hitomi (ASTRO-H) mission, its capabilities, the initial operation, and the instruments/spacecraft performances confirmed during the commissioning operations for about a month