Adult-Acquired Flatfoot Deformity and Age-Related Differences in Foot and Ankle Kinematics During the Single-Limb Heel-Rise Test

STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional laboratory study. OBJECTIVE: To compare single-limb heel-rise performance and foot-ankle kinematics between persons with stage 2 adult-acquired flatfoot deformity (AAFD) and healthy controls. BACKGROUND: The inability to perform a single-limb heel rise is considered a positive functional diagnostic test for AAFD. However, which foot motions contribute to poor performance of this task are not known. METHODS: Fifty individuals participated in this study, 20 with stage 2 AAFD (mean +/- SD age, 57.6 +/- 11.3 years), and 15 older participants (age, 56.8 +/- 5.3 years) and 15 younger participants (age, 22.2 +/- 2.4 years) without AAFD as control groups. Forefoot (sagittal plane) and rearfoot (sagittal and frontal planes) kinematics were collected using a 3-D motion analysis system. Heel-rise performance (heel height) and kinematics (joint angles, excursions) were evaluated. One-way and 2-way analyses of variance were used to examine differences in heel-rise performance and kinematics between groups. RESULTS: Individuals with AAFD and older controls demonstrated lower heel-rise height than those in the younger control group (P\u3c.001). Persons with AAFD demonstrated higher degrees of first metatarsal dorsiflexion (P\u3c.001), lower ankle plantar flexion (P\u3c.001), and higher subtalar eversion (P = .027) than those in the older control group. Persons with AAFD demonstrated lower ankle excursion (P\u3c.001) and first metatarsal excursion (P\u3c.001) than those in the older control group, but no difference in subtalar excursion (P = .771). CONCLUSION: Persons with stage 2 AAFD did not achieve sufficient heel height during a single-leg heel rise. Both forefoot and rearfoot kinematics in the sagittal plane, as opposed to the frontal plane, contributed to the lower heel height in participants with stage 2 AAFD. Older controls demonstrated lower heel-rise height than younger controls, indicating that clinical expectations of heel-rise performance may need to be adjusted for age

Dietary soy and meat proteins induce distinct physiological and gene expression changes in rats

This study reports on a comprehensive comparison of the effects of soy and meat proteins given at the recommended level on physiological markers of metabolic syndrome and the hepatic transcriptome. Male rats were fed semi-synthetic diets for 1 wk that differed only regarding protein source, with casein serving as reference. Body weight gain and adipose tissue mass were significantly reduced by soy but not meat proteins. The insulin resistance index was improved by soy, and to a lesser extent by meat proteins. Liver triacylglycerol contents were reduced by both protein sources, which coincided with increased plasma triacylglycerol concentrations. Both soy and meat proteins changed plasma amino acid patterns. The expression of 1571 and 1369 genes were altered by soy and meat proteins respectively. Functional classification revealed that lipid, energy and amino acid metabolic pathways, as well as insulin signaling pathways were regulated differently by soy and meat proteins. Several transcriptional regulators, including NFE2L2, ATF4, Srebf1 and Rictor were identified as potential key upstream regulators. These results suggest that soy and meat proteins induce distinct physiological and gene expression responses in rats and provide novel evidence and suggestions for the health effects of different protein sources in human diets

Detection of the Cherenkov light diffused by Sea Water with the ULTRA Experiment

The study of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays represents one of the most challenging topic in the Cosmic Rays and in the Astroparticle Physics fields. The interaction of primary particles with atmospheric nuclei produces a huge Extensive Air Shower together with isotropic emission of UV fluorescence light and highly directional Cherenkov photons, that are reflected/diffused isotropically by the impact on the Earth's surface or on high optical depth clouds. For space-based observations, detecting the reflected Cherenkov signal in a delayed coincidence with the fluorescence light improves the accuracy of the shower reconstruction in space and in particular the measurement of the shower maximum, giving a strong signature for discriminating hadrons and neutrinos, and helping to estimate the primary chemical composition. Since the Earth's surface is mostly covered by water, the ULTRA (UV Light Transmission and Reflection in the Atmosphere)experiment has been designed to provide the diffusing properties of sea water, overcoming the lack of information in this specific field. A small EAS array, made up of 5 particle detectors, and an UV optical device, have been coupled to detect in coincidence both electromagnetic and UV components. The detector was in operation from May to December, 2005, in a small private harbor in Capo Granitola (Italy); the results of these measurements in terms of diffusion coefficient and threshold energy are presented here.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, PDF format, Proceedings of 30th ICRC, International Cosmic Ray Conference 2007, Merida, Yucatan, Mexico, 3-11 July 200

Modelagem de funções no cálculo dos índices DRIS.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi modelar o fator k e as funções DRIS para a diagnose foliar de mangueirascultivadas. Dez pomares comerciais, no estágio de produção, localizados no vale do Rio São Francisco, forammonitorados, mensalmente, durante dois anos, por meio da coleta de amostras foliares para determinação dosteores de N, P, K, Ca, Mg, B, Fe, Mn, Zn e Cu. Os dados foram testados quanto à normalidade e as relações entreas concentrações dos nutrientes foram usadas para calcular as normas DRIS, obtendo-se média, variância elimites máximo e mínimo de cada relação dentro da população amostrada. Os nutrientes foram classificadoscomo macronutrientes de resposta freqüente (MAF) (N, P e K), macronutrientes de resposta rara (MAR) (Ca eMg); micronutrientes de resposta freqüente (MIF) (B, Fe, Mn e Zn) e, micronutrientes de resposta rara (MIR)(Cu). Funções DRIS foram desenvolvidas para cada classe de nutrientes. O modelo desenvolvido expressa obalanço nutricional das plantas cultivadas ajustado a cada nutriente e reflete o comportamento biológico dasplantas como resultado da variação da disponibilidade dos nutrientes

Modelagem de funções no cálculo dos índices DRIS.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi modelar o fator k e as funções DRIS para a diagnose foliar de mangueiras cultivadas. Dez pomares comerciais, no estágio de produção, localizados no vale do Rio São Francisco, foram monitorados, mensalmente, durante dois anos, por meio da coleta de amostras foliares para determinação dos teores de N, P, K, Ca, Mg, B, Fe, Mn, Zn e Cu. Os dados foram testados quanto à normalidade e as relações entre as concentrações dos nutrientes foram usadas para calcular as normas DRIS, obtendo-se média, variância e limites máximo e mínimo de cada relação dentro da população amostrada. Os nutrientes foram classificados como macronutrientes de resposta freqüente (MAF) (N, P e K), macronutrientes de resposta rara (MAR) (Ca e Mg); micronutrientes de resposta freqüente (MIF) (B, Fe, Mn e Zn) e, micronutrientes de resposta rara (MIR) (Cu). Funções DRIS foram desenvolvidas para cada classe de nutrientes. O modelo desenvolvido expressa o balanço nutricional das plantas cultivadas ajustado a cada nutriente e reflete o comportamento biológico das plantas como resultado da variação da disponibilidade dos nutrientes

Consumo e conversão alimentar aparente de juvenis de tilápia alimentados com torta de pinhão-manso destoxificada.

JIPE 2013