Biomechanical Differences in Knee Valgus Angles in Collegiate Female Athletes Participating in Different Sports

Background: Dynamic knee valgum is a major risk factor in ligamentous injuries of the knee. Different sports have higher rates of knee ligament injury than others and females experience knee non-contact ligament injuries at higher rates than their male counterparts. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the lower extremity biomechanics of genu valgum in female collegiate athletes of various sports while performing a drop jump test. This information may provide those designing individualized prevention programs assistance in reducing risk of knee ligamentous injury during jumping tasks. Methods: Current members of Idaho State University’s women’s basketball, soccer, and softball teams were evaluated for this study. Thirty-seven athletes participated. Motion capture reflective markers were placed bilaterally on the lower extremities to allow for analysis of knee biomechanics during a double-leg drop jump test. The angles of knee valgum in the frontal plane were calculated and analyzed between sport groups. Results: Female athletes of different sports displayed statistically significant differences in knee angles for both right, and left knees. Post hoc analysis with a Bonferroni adjustment revealed that basketball players utilized a more valgus right knee angle compared to both soccer and softball players and a more varus left knee angle compared with softball players. Conclusions: Our study suggests that collegiate-level female basketball players have an increased risk of right leg non-contact knee ligament injury during jump landing maneuvers when compared to collegiate level softball and soccer players due to increased knee valgus movements during the drop jump test. Collegiate-level female basketball players may benefit from biomechanical exercise interventions designed to decrease right knee valgus moments in jumping and landing to decrease their risk of injury

The Influence of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Its Associated Comorbidities on Liver Transplant Outcomes

To define the influence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its associated comorbidities on liver transplant outcomes

Impact of nighttime and weekend liver transplants on graft and patient outcomes

Safety concerns have been raised about nocturnal and weekend patient care, but it is unknown if these issues effect liver transplantation. We sought to identify the impact of nighttime and weekend liver transplants on graft and patient survival. We utilized the United Network of Organ Sharing database to review adult liver transplants from 1987 to 2010. Comparisons were made between nighttime and daytime operations, and weekday and weekend operations. Cox proportional hazard ratios were determined at 30, 90 and 365 days post-transplant after controlling for relevant factors. 94,768 transplants were included in the analysis. Patient survival at 30, 90 and 365 days for nighttime operations was 96%, 93% and 86%. Patient survival at 30, 90 and 365 days for weekend operations was 95%, 92% and 86%. This was no different from daytime or weekday operations, respectively. Graft failure was unchanged at 30 and 90 days for weekend transplants, but was modestly increased at 365 days (HR: 1.05 (1.01-1.11). Graft survival was unaffected by nighttime transplant. Nighttime and weekend operations for liver transplantation do not impact patient or graft survival, testifying to patient safety measures in place

A Novel Tumor-Promoting Function Residing in the 5′ Non-coding Region of vascular endothelial growth factor mRNA

Shigetada Teshima-Kondo and colleagues find that cancer cells have a survival system that is regulated by vegf mRNA and that vegf mRNA and its protein may synergistically promote the malignancy of tumor cells

Does Information Lead to More Active Citizenship? Evidence from an Education Intervention in Rural Kenya

We study a randomized educational intervention in 550 households in 26 matched villages in two Kenyan districts. The intervention provided parents with information about their children's performance on literacy and numeracy tests, and materials about how to become more involved in improving their children's learning. We find the provision of such information had no discernible impact on either private or collective action. In discussing these findings, we articulate a framework linking information provision to changes in citizens' behavior, and assess the present intervention at each step. Future research on information provision should pay greater attention to this framework. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd

c-MYC expression sensitizes medulloblastoma cells to radio- and chemotherapy and has no impact on response in medulloblastoma patients

BACKGROUND: To study whether and how c-MYC expression determines response to radio- and chemotherapy in childhood medulloblastoma (MB). METHODS: We used DAOY and UW228 human MB cells engineered to stably express different levels of c-MYC, and tested whether c-MYC expression has an effect on radio- and chemosensitivity using the colorimetric 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium inner salt (MTS) assay, clonogenic survival, apoptosis assays, cell cycle analysis, and western blot assessment. In an effort to validate our results, we analyzed c-MYC mRNA expression in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor samples from well-documented patients with postoperative residual tumor and compared c-MYC mRNA expression with response to radio- and chemotherapy as examined by neuroradiological imaging. RESULTS: In DAOY - and to a lesser extent in UW228 - cells expressing high levels of c-MYC, the cytotoxicity of cisplatin, and etoposide was significantly higher when compared with DAOY/UW228 cells expressing low levels of c-MYC. Irradiation- and chemotherapy-induced apoptotic cell death was enhanced in DAOY cells expressing high levels of c-MYC. The response of 62 of 66 residual tumors was evaluable and response to postoperative radio- (14 responders (CR, PR) vs. 5 non-responders (SD, PD)) or chemotherapy (23 CR/PR vs. 20 SD/PD) was assessed. c-MYC mRNA expression was similar in primary MB samples of responders and non-responders (Mann-Whitney U test, p = 0.50, ratio 0.49, 95% CI 0.008-30.0 and p = 0.67, ratio 1.8, 95% CI 0.14-23.5, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: c-MYC sensitizes MB cells to some anti-cancer treatments in vitro. As we failed to show evidence for such an effect on postoperative residual tumors when analyzed by imaging, additional investigations in xenografts and larger MB cohorts may help to define the exact function of c-MYC in modulating response to treatment

COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Therapy Decreases Inflammatory Cytokines: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This study examined the role that cytokines may have played in the beneficial outcomes found when outpatient individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2 were transfused with COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) early in their infection. We found that the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 decreased significantly faster in patients treated early with CCP. Participants with COVID-19 treated with CCP later in the infection did not have the same effect. This decrease in IL-6 levels after early CCP treatment suggests a possible role of inflammation in COVID-19 progression. The evidence of IL-6 involvement brings insight into the possible mechanisms involved in CCP treatment mitigating SARS-CoV-2 severity

Dynamics of Inflammatory Responses After SARS-CoV-2 Infection by Vaccination Status in the USA: A Prospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: Cytokines and chemokines play a critical role in the response to infection and vaccination. We aimed to assess the longitudinal association of COVID-19 vaccination with cytokine and chemokine concentrations and trajectories among people with SARS-CoV-2 infection. METHODS: In this longitudinal, prospective cohort study, blood samples were used from participants enrolled in a multi-centre randomised trial assessing the efficacy of convalescent plasma therapy for ambulatory COVID-19. The trial was conducted in 23 outpatient sites in the USA. In this study, participants (aged ≥18 years) were restricted to those with COVID-19 before vaccination or with breakthrough infections who had blood samples and symptom data collected at screening (pre-transfusion), day 14, and day 90 visits. Associations between COVID-19 vaccination status and concentrations of 21 cytokines and chemokines (measured using multiplexed sandwich immunoassays) were examined using multivariate linear mixed-effects regression models, adjusted for age, sex, BMI, hypertension, diabetes, trial group, and COVID-19 waves (pre-alpha or alpha and delta). FINDINGS: Between June 29, 2020, and Sept 30, 2021, 882 participants recently infected with SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled, of whom 506 (57%) were female and 376 (43%) were male. 688 (78%) of 882 participants were unvaccinated, 55 (6%) were partly vaccinated, and 139 (16%) were fully vaccinated at baseline. After adjusting for confounders, geometric mean concentrations of interleukin (IL)-2RA, IL-7, IL-8, IL-15, IL-29 (interferon-λ), inducible protein-10, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and tumour necrosis factor-α were significantly lower among the fully vaccinated group than in the unvaccinated group at screening. On day 90, fully vaccinated participants had approximately 20% lower geometric mean concentrations of IL-7, IL-8, and vascular endothelial growth factor-A than unvaccinated participants. Cytokine and chemokine concentrations decreased over time in the fully and partly vaccinated groups and unvaccinated group. Log INTERPRETATION: Initially and during recovery from symptomatic COVID-19, fully vaccinated participants had lower concentrations of inflammatory markers than unvaccinated participants suggesting vaccination is associated with short-term and long-term reduction in inflammation, which could in part explain the reduced disease severity and mortality in vaccinated individuals. FUNDING: US Department of Defense, National Institutes of Health, Bloomberg Philanthropies, State of Maryland, Mental Wellness Foundation, Moriah Fund, Octapharma, HealthNetwork Foundation, and the Shear Family Foundation