Acute effect of breathing exercises on muscle tension and executive function under psychological stress

IntroductionIntensive and long-lasting office work is a common cause of muscular and mental disorders due to workplace stressors. Mindful and slow breathing exercises decrease psychological stress and improve mental health, whereas fast breathing increases neuronal excitability. This study aimed to explore the influence of 5 min of mindful breathing (MINDFUL), slow breathing (SLOW), fast breathing (FAST), and listening to music (MUSIC) on muscle tension and executive function during an intensive psychological task.MethodsForty-eight participants (24 men and 24 women) were enrolled. Muscle tension was recorded using surface electromyography, and executive function was assessed using the Stroop Color and Word Test (Stroop Test). The respiration rate (RR), oxygen saturation (SpO2), end-tidal carbon dioxide (EtCO2), and the subjects' preferred method were also recorded. During the experiment, participants performed a one-time baseline test (watching a neutral video for 5 min) and then completed 5 min of MUSIC, MINDFUL, SLOW, and FAST in a random sequence. The Stroop Test was performed after each intervention, including the baseline test, and was followed by a 5 min rest before performing the next intervention.ResultsNone of the methods significantly influenced muscular activity and performance of the Stroop Test in both men and women, based on the average 5 min values. However, at the fifth minute, men's accuracy rate in the Stroop Test was significantly higher after SLOW than after MUSIC and FAST, and the reaction time after the SLOW was the shortest. SpO2 was significantly higher during SLOW than during MUSIC, and RR was relatively lower after SLOW than after MUSIC. Most men preferred SLOW, and most women preferred MUSIC, whereas FAST was the most unfavorable method for both men and women.ConclusionBrief breathing exercises did not substantially affect muscle tension under psychological stress. SLOW demonstrated greater potential for sustaining executive function in men, possibly via its superior respiration efficiency on SpO2 and inhibition of RR

Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome could be an underestimated variant of “reversible neurological deficits” in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

BACKGROUND: Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) has been increasingly identified in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) owing to the advance in neuroimaging techniques. Prompt diagnosis is pivotal to improve its outcome. To analyze the clinical and radiographic profile of PRES in patients with SLE and search for the appropriate treatment strategy PRES in SLE. METHODS: SLE patients who fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for PRES from August 2008 to January 2011 were evaluated at baseline, and followed to determine clinical outcomes. Data were analysis on clinical characteristics, laboratory abnormalities, treatment details, and outcomes. RESULTS: Ten episodes of PRES in patients with SLE were identified. All patients were female, mean age of onset was 22.93 ± 2.48 years, and SLEDAI at the onset of PRES were 25.8 ± 5.7. All cases had acute onset of headache, altered mental status, stupor, vomiting, cortical blindness and seizures. Neurological symptoms were the initial manifestation of SLE in three cases. Head magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated posterior white matter edema involving the parietal, temporal and occipital lobes, which were more conspicuous on T2 weighted spin echo and diffusion-weighted MR imaging (DWI) than on computed tomography (CT) scan. Complete clinical and radiographic recovery was observed in 8 patients after prompt treatment with corticosteroids. CONCLUSIONS: PRES might be due to lupus per se besides other traditional causative factors such as hypertension. PRES might be an underestimated variant of “reversible neurological deficits” in SLE. Prompt recognition and timely management is important to prevent permanent neurological deficits

Isostructural Phase Transition of TiN Under High Pressure

In situ high-pressure energy dispersive x-ray diffraction experiments on polycrystalline powder TiN with NaCl-type structure have been conducted with the pressure up to 30.1 GPa by using the diamond anvil cell instrument with synchrotron radiation at room tempearture. The experimental results suggested that an isostructural phase transition might exist at about 7 GPa as revealed by the discontinuity of V/V0 with pressure.Comment: submitte

Odabir sojeva bakterija mliječne kiseline sa sposobnošću proizvodnje egzopolisaharida izoliranih iz tradicionalnog jogurta regije Inner-Mongolija

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from Inner Mongolian traditional yoghurt were evaluated for the production of exopolysaccharides (EPS) by phenol-sulphuric acid method after ethanol precipitation and dialysis. Total polysaccharide was extracted from sucrose-containing MRS broth cultures of the selected LAB strains. Comparison of the EPS yields revealed that among tested LAB, strain 37 exhibited the highest production of 536.904 mg/L. The strain was identified as Leuconostoc citreum with carbohydrate assimilation profiling, 16S rRNA and pheS gene sequencing. The Ln. citreum 37 was found to be a novel EPS producing strain. It was found that there was no direct linear relation between the colony size and EPS yield, so the colony size could not to be used to screen EPS-producing strains.U ovom radu ispitivana je sposobnost proizvodnje egzoplisaharida (EPS) u bakterija mliječne kiseline (BMK) izoliranih iz tradicionalnog jogurta regije Inner-Mongolija. Pri tom je nakon taloženja i dijalize etanola korištena metoda fenol-sumporne kiseline. Ukupni polisaharidi izolirani su iz MRS hranjivog bujona u kojemu su uz dodatak saharoze uzgajani odabrani sojevi BMK. Usporedba prinosa egzopolisaharida pokazala je da je među analiziranim sojevima BMK, soj označen brojem 37 imao najvišu sposobnost proizvodnje EPS i to u koncentraciji od 536.904 mg/L. Na temelju analize asimilacije različitih ugljikohidrata te sekvenciranja regije 16S rRNA i gena pheS soj je identificiran kao Leuconostoc citreum. Time je otkriven novi soj (Ln. citreum 37) sa sposobnošću proizvodnje EPS. Također je utvrđeno kako veličina kolonija nije u linearnoj korelaciji s prinosom EPS te se stoga ne može koristiti za nadzor sojeva sa sposobnošću proizvodnje EPS

Micro- and nano-fluidics around HAB cells

Have you ever wondered how algae stay so clean? Most flowering-plant leaves also stay clean. Under air, films of water and “dirt” are repelled. Repulsion forces the water into droplets that easily roll off because these leaves are covered in hydrophobic nm- to µm- sized grooves and pillars, producing superhydrophobicity (SH) at the surface. Similarly, most algal cells bear a glycocalyx of organic fibrils that give surface structure, and are often hydrophobic. Glycocalyxes serve many functions, but whether they produce SH is poorly known. SH coatings are being developed to prevent fouling of ships and aquaculture structures without using toxins, so this technology could help understand how algae defeat fouling. Glycocalyxes are composed of exopolymeric secretions (EPS), and algae sometimes make the water more viscous using this tightly and more loosely bound EPS. EPS is also sometimes sticky. SH cuticles on copepods may change ambient fluid microdynamics by allowing slip at their surfaces, and facilitate filter feeding. By managing ambient viscosity and surface properties including slipping and sticking, algae may have the tools to engineer ambient fluidics and stay clean and unfouled

Reduction of foodborne pathogens during cattle manure composting with addition of calcium cyanamide

Inactivation of four species of foodborne pathogens (E. coli, Salmonella, E. faecalis, and S. aureus) was investigated during laboratory-scale composting of fresh cow manure with addition of calcium cyanamide (CaCN2) at constant temperature conditions, and the effects of temperature and additive content of CaCN2 on the efficacy of inactivation were evaluated. At different composting temperatures (20, 30, 37 and 50 °C), a significant inhibition or quick inactivation of pathogens were observed during 10 d composting with addition of 2.0% CaCN2, and the effect was more obvious at mesophilic temperatures compared to thermophilic temperature. Therefore, the ideal additive content of CaCN2 was determined at 30 °C through mixing 2.0%, 2.5%, and 3.0% CaCN2 with manure. With increase in additive content of CaCN2, the efficacies of pathogen inactivation also increased. However, the result indicates that, no less than 2.5% CaCN2 should be mixed with the manure to entirely eliminate the pathogens during composting

Induction of Apoptosis by Luteolin Involving Akt Inactivation in Human 786-O Renal Cell Carcinoma Cells

There is a growing interest in the health-promoting effects of natural substances obtained from plants. Although luteolin has been identified as a potential therapeutic and preventive agent for cancer because of its potent cancer cell-killing activity, the molecular mechanisms have not been well elucidated. This study provides evidence of an alternative target for luteolin and sheds light on the mechanism of its physiological benefits. Treatment of 786-O renal cell carcinoma (RCC) cells (as well as A498 and ACHN) with luteolin caused cell apoptosis and death. This cytotoxicity was caused by the downregulation of Akt and resultant upregulation of apoptosis signal-regulating kinase-1 (Ask1), p38, and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) activities, probably via protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) activation. In addition to being a concurrent substrate of caspases and event of cell death, heat shock protein-90 (HSP90) cleavage might also play a role in driving further cellular alterations and cell death, at least in part, involving an Akt-related mechanism. Due to the high expression of HSP90 and Akt-related molecules in RCC and other cancer cells, our findings suggest that PP2A activation might work in concert with HSP90 cleavage to inactivate Akt and lead to a vicious caspase-dependent apoptotic cycle in luteolin-treated 786-O cells

Exploring the common pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus via microarray data analysis

BackgroundAlzheimer’s Disease (AD) and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM) have an increased incidence in modern society. Although more and more evidence has supported that DM is prone to AD, the interrelational mechanisms remain fully elucidated.PurposeThe primary purpose of this study is to explore the shared pathophysiological mechanisms of AD and DM.MethodsDownload the expression matrix of AD and DM from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database with sequence numbers GSE97760 and GSE95849, respectively. The common differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by limma package analysis. Then we analyzed the six kinds of module analysis: gene functional annotation, protein–protein interaction (PPI) network, potential drug screening, immune cell infiltration, hub genes identification and validation, and prediction of transcription factors (TFs).ResultsThe subsequent analyses included 339 common DEGs, and the importance of immunity, hormone, cytokines, neurotransmitters, and insulin in these diseases was underscored by functional analysis. In addition, serotonergic synapse, ovarian steroidogenesis, estrogen signaling pathway, and regulation of lipolysis are closely related to both. DEGs were input into the CMap database to screen small molecule compounds with the potential to reverse AD and DM pathological functions. L-690488, exemestane, and BMS-345541 ranked top three among the screened small molecule compounds. Finally, 10 essential hub genes were identified using cytoHubba, including PTGS2, RAB10, LRRK2, SOS1, EEA1, NF1, RAB14, ADCY5, RAPGEF3, and PRKACG. For the characteristic Aβ and Tau pathology of AD, RAPGEF3 was associated significantly positively with AD and NF1 significantly negatively with AD. In addition, we also found ADCY5 and NF1 significant correlations with DM phenotypes. Other datasets verified that NF1, RAB14, ADCY5, and RAPGEF3 could be used as key markers of DM complicated with AD. Meanwhile, the immune cell infiltration score reflects the different cellular immune microenvironments of the two diseases.ConclusionThe common pathogenesis of AD and DM was revealed in our research. These common pathways and hub genes directions for further exploration of the pathogenesis or treatment of these two diseases