Preload maintenance protects against a depression in left ventricular systolic, but not diastolic, function immediately after ultraendurance exercise

This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund and is available from the specified link - Copyright © 2006 BMJ Publishing Group.Objective: To investigate indices of left ventricular (LV) function before and after a 224 km Ironman triathlon, specifically in the presence of unaltered haemodynamic loading. Method: LV loading and function were assessed before and after the race using M mode and Doppler echocardiography in 39 (mean (SD) age 33 (8) years, body mass 77.6 (8.6) kg; 36 male) triathletes in the Trendelenburg position. Specifically left ventricular end diastolic volume (LVEDV) was assessed to estimate preload, and systolic blood pressure to estimate afterload as well as heart rate (HR). Systolic functional indices included ejection fraction (EF) and the end systolic pressure/volume ratio (ESPV), and diastolic functional indices included peak mitral flow velocity in early (E) and atrial (A) filling as well as the ratio E/A. Data obtained before and after the race were compared by t tests, and delta LV functional indices were correlated with delta heart rate. Results: Preload (LVEDV: 143 (34) ml before v 147 (34) ml after) and afterload (systolic blood pressure 121 (13) v 115 (20) mm Hg) were not significantly altered after the race (p>0.05), nor were EF (61 (8)% v 58 (10)%) and ESPV (2.4 (0.9) v 2.1 (0.8) mm Hg/cm3). The diastolic filling ratio E/A was significantly reduced after the race (1.73 (0.25) v 1.54 (0.23); p0.05). Conclusion: When preload and afterload are unaltered after the race, because of the adoption of a unique assessment posture, LV systolic function is not depressed. A depression in LV diastolic function persists which is not explained by an increase in heart rate after the race

Analyse de la relation entre ouverture et croissance économique dans les pays en développement

Le présent article analyse l’impact de l’ouverture sur la croissance économique dans les pays en développement entre 2000 et 2010. Intégrant plusieurs mesures de l’ouverture et corrigeant les biais liés à l’hétérogénéité individuelle non observée, les tests montrent que l’ouverture commerciale a un effet positif sur la croissance contrairement à l’investissement direct étranger. L’absence d’impact de ce dernier facteur pourrait être expliquée par la faiblesse du niveau du capital humain des pays arabes, nécessaire pour assimiler la technologie apportée par les firmes étrangères

Studies on some morphological characters and yield attributes of synthetic Brassica hexaploids and their parents

Allopolyploidy plays an important role in plant evolution and confers better advantages on crop growth and breeding compared to low ploidy levels. The present investigation aimed to study the synthetic hexaploid Brassica (AABBCC genome) developed from Brassica cainata (BBCC genome) and Brassica rapa (AA genome) compared to their parental genotypes considering some morphological characters, yield attributes and yield. Increased vegetative growth in hexaploids over their parents was observed. Hexaploids exhibited wider ranges with higher coefficients of variations compared to the parents for all characters studied. Hexaploids had taller plants, higher number of siliqua and larger flowers than those of both parents. Though average pollen fertility in the hexaploids was lower than both parents but out of 420 hexaploids, seventeen had comparatively higher percentages of pollen fertility as well as siliqua setting. Number of seeds per siliqua and siliqua length were found to be lower than their parents. Mean seed weight per plant in the hexaploids was lower than the parents though the hexaploids had higher number of siliquae along with higher seed weight. Days to flowering and maturity in the hexaploids were in between the parents and closer to the B. carinata parent. Five hexaploid plants from BARIBatishak-1 × Carinata-1 and two from each of Carinata-1 × BARIBatishak-1 and Agrani × Carinata-1 were found to be promising because they have higher seed yield per plant than their parents. Those nine selected high yielding hexaploid plants could be evaluated in the subsequent generations to select the stable and desirable Brassica hexaploids.Keywords: Brassica hexaploid, morphological characters, yield attribute

Carcass-waste yields and nutritional composition of strains of Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) as index traits for selective breeding

The role of carcass evaluation techniques in aquaculture genetics and breeding cannot be over-emphasized. Knowledge of growth potentials concerning carcass quality has improved genetic selection techniques and management. Therefore, this study was conducted on the carcass yields, by-yields, anatomical separation, and nutritional quality of Clarias gariepinus strains collected from river Rima and two other population groups from two different fish farms with records of a pure cultured strain of C. gariepinus and another farm with a pedigree of artificial crosses. The flesh weight (FW) of the river Rima (55.50±2.97) population strain was higher (p<0.05) than the two cultured population strains. Population strain C (47.79±1.17) recorded the lowest significant (p<0.05) flesh weight (FW). In comparison, B (49.12±2.68) population strain had an intermediately significant (p<0.05) flesh weight. The coefficients of variations (CV) were almost the same for all the three population groups except the gutted weight, where the river Rima (wild) population strains had the highest CV. This study recommended that attention be given to improving the cultured stock/strains in terms of resistance to diseases, heritability for improving healthy growth rate, feed conversion efficiency, and general hardiness, harnessing the diverse wild strains. In addition, this study recommended further investigation, including the amino acid profile and organoleptic characteristics of the wild fish population groups from river Rima for additional knowledge to the interest of Fish Nutritionists

Kyste géant para-urétral feminine

Le kyste géant para-urétral féminin infecté est rarement rapporté dans la littérature. Ce kyste est différent du diverticule sous urétral sur le plan clinique, diagnostique et thérapeutique. Sa pathogénie se confond avec celle  des diverticules sous urétraux. Son traitement n’est pas bien codifié, vu sa rareté. Nous rapportons un cas atypique de kyste géant para urétral infecté chez une jeune femme de 26 ans. Le kyste était  symptomatique et la patiente a eu un traitement chirurgical. Nous discutons les aspects cliniques,  diagnostiques et thérapeutiques de cette entité rare à travers une revue de la littérature.Key words: Kyste géant, para urétral, féminin, chirurgi

Mutation Symmetries in BPS Quiver Theories: Building the BPS Spectra

We study the basic features of BPS quiver mutations in 4D $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric quantum field theory with $G=ADE$ gauge symmetries.\ We show, for these gauge symmetries, that there is an isotropy group $\mathcal{G}_{Mut}^{G}$ associated to a set of quiver mutations capturing information about the BPS spectra. In the strong coupling limit, it is shown that BPS chambers correspond to finite and closed groupoid orbits with an isotropy symmetry group $\mathcal{G}_{strong}^{G}$ isomorphic to the discrete dihedral groups $Dih_{2h_{G}}$ contained in Coxeter$(G)$ with $$ the Coxeter number of G. These isotropy symmetries allow to determine the BPS spectrum of the strong coupling chamber; and give another way to count the total number of BPS and anti-BPS states of $\mathcal{N}=2$ gauge theories. We also build the matrix realization of these mutation groups $\mathcal{G}_{strong}^{G}$ from which we read directly the electric-magnetic charges of the BPS and anti-BPS states of $\mathcal{N}=2$ QFT$_{4}$ as well as their matrix intersections. We study as well the quiver mutation symmetries in the weak coupling limit and give their links with infinite Coxeter groups. We show amongst others that $\mathcal{G}_{weak}^{su_{2}}$ is contained in ${GL}({2,}\mathbb{Z})$; and isomorphic to the infinite Coxeter ${I_{2}^{\infty}}$. Other issues such as building $\mathcal{G}$ and $\mathcal{G}_{weak}^{su_{3}}$ are also studied.Comment: LaTeX, 98 pages, 18 figures, Appendix I on groupoids adde

Cure of post Kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis with paromomycin/sodium stibogluconate combination: a proof of concept

Background: Post kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL) is  a  recognized  dermatologic  complication  of  successfully  treated  visceral  leishmaniasis  (VL). PKDL lesions are suspected to be important reservoirs for VL transmission in Sudan. Prolonged treatment schedules, feeling of general well-being and the social stigmata of PKDL prevent most patients seeking treatment. The mainstay of treatment is cardiotoxic sodium stibogluconate (SSG) for 60-120 days. Recently, liposomal amphotericin B (Ambisome®) and immunochemotherapy gave promising results. Ambisome® is expensive and difficult to prepare under field conditions. Paromomycin/SSG combination has been shown to be safe, efficacious and can save time in VL treatment. This study aims to prove that Paromomycin/SSG combination can cure and reduce PKDL treatment duration.Methods:We are reporting nine cases of patients with PKDL lesions of ≥6 months duration who were diagnosed by clinical signs, histopathological/immunohistochemical and PCR.Results: Patients’ mean age was 11.7 ± 4.3 years. A third of the patients (3/9; 33.3%) who failed previous SSG treatment of 2-3 months duration responded completely to 40 days of paromomycin/SSG combination. The majority of patients (5/9; 55.6%) responded completely to 30 days of the combination. One patient (1/9; 11.1%) relapsed following 30 days paromomycin/SSG combination.Conclusion:It was concluded that paromomycin/SSG combination for 30 days is time-saving, safe and efficacious for PKDL treatment.

Urachal Sinus Presenting with Abscess Formation

Urachal affections are rare. Their variable ways of presentation may represent a diagnostic challenge. Urachal sinuses are a rare type of these abnormalities. They are usually incidental findings and remain asymptomatic unless a complication (most commonly the infection) occurs. Infection of the urachal sinus would clinically present as purulent umbilical discharge, abdominal pain, and periumbilical mass. We report herein a case of infected urachal sinus in male adult. The diagnosis was suspected clinically and confirmed with ultrasonography and computed tomography scan. A preoperative cysto-fibroscopy showed normal aspect of the bladder and excluded sinus communication. An initial broad spectrum antibiotic therapy followed by complete excision of the sinus and fibrous tract without cuff of bladder has been therefore performed. The postoperative course was uneventful. No recurrence was observed after 18 months of followup. Histological examination did not reveal any sign of malignancy

Development of polymeric nanocomposite (Xyloglucan-co-Methacrylic acid/Hydroxyapatite/SiO 2 ) scaffold for bone tissue engineering applications—In-vitro antibacterial, cytotoxicity and cell culture evaluation

Advancement and innovation in bone regeneration, specifically polymeric composite scaffolds, are of high significance for the treatment of bone defects. Xyloglucan (XG) is a polysaccharide biopolymer having a wide variety of regenerative tissue therapeutic applications due to its biocompatibility, in-vitro degradation and cytocompatibility. Current research is focused on the fabrication of polymeric bioactive scaffolds by freeze drying method for nanocomposite materials. The nanocomposite materials have been synthesized from free radical polymerization using n-SiO2 and n-HAp XG and Methacrylic acid (MAAc). Functional group analysis, crystallinity and surface morphology were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques, respectively. These bioactive polymeric scaffolds presented interconnected and well-organized porous morphology, controlled precisely by substantial ratios of n-SiO2. The swelling analysis was also performed in different media at varying temperatures (27, 37 and 47 °C) and the mechanical behavior of the dried scaffolds is also investigated. Antibacterial activities of these scaffolds were conducted against pathogenic gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. Besides, the biological behavior of these scaffolds was evaluated by the Neutral Red dye assay against the MC3T3-E1 cell line. The scaffolds showed interesting properties for bone tissue engineering, including porosity with substantial mechanical strength, biodegradability, biocompatibility and cytocompatibility behavior. The reported polymeric bioactive scaffolds can be aspirant biomaterials for bone tissue engineering to regenerate defecated bone

6G White Paper on Machine Learning in Wireless Communication Networks

The focus of this white paper is on machine learning (ML) in wireless communications. 6G wireless communication networks will be the backbone of the digital transformation of societies by providing ubiquitous, reliable, and near-instant wireless connectivity for humans and machines. Recent advances in ML research has led enable a wide range of novel technologies such as self-driving vehicles and voice assistants. Such innovation is possible as a result of the availability of advanced ML models, large datasets, and high computational power. On the other hand, the ever-increasing demand for connectivity will require a lot of innovation in 6G wireless networks, and ML tools will play a major role in solving problems in the wireless domain. In this paper, we provide an overview of the vision of how ML will impact the wireless communication systems. We first give an overview of the ML methods that have the highest potential to be used in wireless networks. Then, we discuss the problems that can be solved by using ML in various layers of the network such as the physical layer, medium access layer, and application layer. Zero-touch optimization of wireless networks using ML is another interesting aspect that is discussed in this paper. Finally, at the end of each section, important research questions that the section aims to answer are presented