Condition and optimisation of children athletes protein-energy metabolism

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the use of additional nutritional components in the diet of children of athletes in order to ensure an adequate balance of the protein-energy component against the background of increased energy and formative consumption, which is associated with training and competitive activities

Optimization of Muscle Activity for Task-Level Goals Predicts Complex Changes in Limb Forces across Biomechanical Contexts

Optimality principles have been proposed as a general framework for understanding motor control in animals and humans largely based on their ability to predict general features movement in idealized motor tasks. However, generalizing these concepts past proof-of-principle to understand the neuromechanical transformation from task-level control to detailed execution-level muscle activity and forces during behaviorally-relevant motor tasks has proved difficult. In an unrestrained balance task in cats, we demonstrate that achieving task-level constraints center of mass forces and moments while minimizing control effort predicts detailed patterns of muscle activity and ground reaction forces in an anatomically-realistic musculoskeletal model. Whereas optimization is typically used to resolve redundancy at a single level of the motor hierarchy, we simultaneously resolved redundancy across both muscles and limbs and directly compared predictions to experimental measures across multiple perturbation directions that elicit different intra- and interlimb coordination patterns. Further, although some candidate task-level variables and cost functions generated indistinguishable predictions in a single biomechanical context, we identified a common optimization framework that could predict up to 48 experimental conditions per animal (n = 3) across both perturbation directions and different biomechanical contexts created by altering animals' postural configuration. Predictions were further improved by imposing experimentally-derived muscle synergy constraints, suggesting additional task variables or costs that may be relevant to the neural control of balance. These results suggested that reduced-dimension neural control mechanisms such as muscle synergies can achieve similar kinetics to the optimal solution, but with increased control effort (≈2×) compared to individual muscle control. Our results are consistent with the idea that hierarchical, task-level neural control mechanisms previously associated with voluntary tasks may also be used in automatic brainstem-mediated pathways for balance

Modeling psychiatric disorders: from genomic findings to cellular phenotypes

Major programs in psychiatric genetics have identified 4150 risk loci for psychiatric disorders. These loci converge on a small number of functional pathways, which span conventional diagnostic criteria, suggesting a partly common biology underlying schizophrenia, autism and other psychiatric disorders. Nevertheless, the cellular phenotypes that capture the fundamental features of psychiatric disorders have not yet been determined. Recent advances in genetics and stem cell biology offer new prospects for cell-based modeling of psychiatric disorders. The advent of cell reprogramming and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) provides an opportunity to translate genetic findings into patient-specific in vitro models. iPSC technology is less than a decade old but holds great promise for bridging the gaps between patients, genetics and biology. Despite many obvious advantages, iPSC studies still present multiple challenges. In this expert review, we critically review the challenges for modeling of psychiatric disorders, potential solutions and how iPSC technology can be used to develop an analytical framework for the evaluation and therapeutic manipulation of fundamental disease processes

Modelling human choices: MADeM and decision‑making

Research supported by FAPESP 2015/50122-0 and DFG-GRTK 1740/2. RP and AR are also part of the Research, Innovation and Dissemination Center for Neuromathematics FAPESP grant (2013/07699-0). RP is supported by a FAPESP scholarship (2013/25667-8). ACR is partially supported by a CNPq fellowship (grant 306251/2014-0)

Глобальне моделювання процесів сталого розвитку в контексті якості та безпеки життя людей

A system of factors (indices and indicators) and a new method named «Sustainable Development Gauging Matrix» (SDGM) culminated in a Global Simulation regarding the quality of life and security of the world population are developed. The initial data for this simulation were presented by reliable international organizations. Specifically, this study focuses on applying SDGM to analysis of the Systematic Regularity of World Conflicts over the Course of Time. A prognosis is detailed of the next world conflict, labeled the «Conflict of XXI Century», and an analysis is provided of its nature and main characteristics suck as duration, main phases and intensity. This prognosis details a set of basic global threats that spawn this conflict. With using cluster analysis, their influence on different countries of the world is accurately defined. Inferences are drawn from specific hypotheses as to possible scenarios occurring during the system conflict and after its conclusion.Предложена система измерений (индексов и индикаторов) и разработана новая метрика для измерения процессов устойчивого развития (МИУР) с целью их глобального моделирования с точки зрения качества и безопасности жизни людей. Использованы исходные данные, представленные авторитетными международными организациями. С применением МИУР проведено исследование влияния совокупности глобальних угроз и мирових конфликтов на устойчивое развитие. Сделана попытка предвидения следующего конфликта, названного «конфликтом XXI столетия». Выполнен анализ его природы и главных характеристик: продолжительности, основных фаз его прохождения и интенсивности. Определена система глобальных угроз, порождающих конфликт. С использованием метода кластерного анализа определено влияние этих угроз на различные страны мира. Высказаны предположения о возможных сценариях развития мирового сообщества в процессе системного конфликта и после его завершения.Запропоновано систему вимірів (індексів та індикаторів) і розроблено нову метрику для вимірювання процесів сталого розвитку (МВСР) з метою їх глобального моделювання з точки зору якості і безпеки життя людей. Використано вихідні дані, представлені авторитетними міжнародними організаціями. Із застосуванням МВСР проведено дослідження впливу сукупності глобальних загроз і світових конфліктів на сталий розвиток. Зроблено спробу передбачити наступний конфлікт, названий «конфліктом XXI сторіччя». Виконано аналіз його природи і головних характеристик: тривалості, основних фаз перебігу та інтенсивності. Визначено систему глобальних загроз, які породжують конфлікт, та з використанням методу кластерного аналізу вплив цих загроз на різні країни світу. Висловлено припущення щодо можливих сценаріїв розвитку світової спільноти в процесі системного конфлікту і після його завершення