Functional electrical stimulation cycling exercise after spinal cord injury: a systematic review of health and fitness-related outcomes.

ObjectivesThe objective of this review was to summarize and appraise evidence on functional electrical stimulation (FES) cycling exercise after spinal cord injury (SCI), in order to inform the development of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines.MethodsPubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, SPORTDiscus, and CINAHL were searched up to April 2021 to identify FES cycling exercise intervention studies including adults with SCI. In order to capture the widest array of evidence available, any outcome measure employed in such studies was considered eligible. Two independent reviewers conducted study eligibility screening, data extraction, and quality appraisal using Cochranes' Risk of Bias or Downs and Black tools. Each study was designated as a Level 1, 2, 3 or 4 study, dependent on study design and quality appraisal scores. The certainty of the evidence for each outcome was assessed using GRADE ratings ('High', 'Moderate', 'Low', or 'Very low').ResultsNinety-two studies met the eligibility criteria, comprising 999 adults with SCI representing all age, sex, time since injury, lesion level and lesion completeness strata. For muscle health (e.g., muscle mass, fiber type composition), significant improvements were found in 3 out of 4 Level 1-2 studies, and 27 out of 32 Level 3-4 studies (GRADE rating: 'High'). Although lacking Level 1-2 studies, significant improvements were also found in nearly all of 35 Level 3-4 studies on power output and aerobic fitness (e.g., peak power and oxygen uptake during an FES cycling test) (GRADE ratings: 'Low').ConclusionCurrent evidence indicates that FES cycling exercise improves lower-body muscle health of adults with SCI, and may increase power output and aerobic fitness. The evidence summarized and appraised in this review can inform the development of the first international, evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for the use of FES cycling exercise in clinical and community settings of adults with SCI. Registration review protocol: CRD42018108940 (PROSPERO)

Measuring neutrino masses with a future galaxy survey

We perform a detailed forecast on how well a Euclid-like photometric galaxy and cosmic shear survey will be able to constrain the absolute neutrino mass scale. Adopting conservative assumptions about the survey specifications and assuming complete ignorance of the galaxy bias, we estimate that the minimum mass sum of sum m_nu ~ 0.06 eV in the normal hierarchy can be detected at 1.5 sigma to 2.5 sigma significance, depending on the model complexity, using a combination of galaxy and cosmic shear power spectrum measurements in conjunction with CMB temperature and polarisation observations from Planck. With better knowledge of the galaxy bias, the significance of the detection could potentially reach 5.4 sigma. Interestingly, neither Planck+shear nor Planck+galaxy alone can achieve this level of sensitivity; it is the combined effect of galaxy and cosmic shear power spectrum measurements that breaks the persistent degeneracies between the neutrino mass, the physical matter density, and the Hubble parameter. Notwithstanding this remarkable sensitivity to sum m_nu, Euclid-like shear and galaxy data will not be sensitive to the exact mass spectrum of the neutrino sector; no significant bias (< 1 sigma) in the parameter estimation is induced by fitting inaccurate models of the neutrino mass splittings to the mock data, nor does the goodness-of-fit of these models suffer any significant degradation relative to the true one (Delta chi_eff ^2< 1).Comment: v1: 29 pages, 10 figures. v2: 33 pages, 12 figures; added sections on shape evolution and constraints in more complex models, accepted for publication in JCA

Religion and HIV in Tanzania: Influence of Religious Beliefs on HIV stigma, Disclosure, and Treatment Attitudes.

Religion shapes everyday beliefs and activities, but few studies have examined its associations with attitudes about HIV. This exploratory study in Tanzania probed associations between religious beliefs and HIV stigma, disclosure, and attitudes toward antiretroviral (ARV) treatment. A self-administered survey was distributed to a convenience sample of parishioners (n = 438) attending Catholic, Lutheran, and Pentecostal churches in both urban and rural areas. The survey included questions about religious beliefs, opinions about HIV, and knowledge and attitudes about ARVs. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to assess how religion was associated with perceptions about HIV, HIV treatment, and people living with HIV/AIDS. Results indicate that shame-related HIV stigma is strongly associated with religious beliefs such as the belief that HIV is a punishment from God (p < 0.01) or that people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) have not followed the Word of God (p < 0.001). Most participants (84.2%) said that they would disclose their HIV status to their pastor or congregation if they became infected. Although the majority of respondents (80.8%) believed that prayer could cure HIV, almost all (93.7%) said that they would begin ARV treatment if they became HIV-infected. The multivariate analysis found that respondents' hypothetical willingness to begin ARV treatme was not significantly associated with the belief that prayer could cure HIV or with other religious factors. Refusal of ARV treatment was instead correlated with lack of secondary schooling and lack of knowledge about ARVs. The decision to start ARVs hinged primarily on education-level and knowledge about ARVs rather than on religious factors. Research results highlight the influence of religious beliefs on HIV-related stigma and willingness to disclose, and should help to inform HIV-education outreach for religious groups

Bariatric Surgery Leads to a Reduction in Antibodies to Apolipoprotein A-1: a Prospective Cohort Study

Purpose: Autoantibodies against apolipoprotein A-1 have been associated with cardiovascular disease, poorer CV outcomes and all-cause mortality in obese individuals. The impact of bariatric surgery (BS) on the presence of circulating anti-apoA-1 IgG antibodies is unknown. This study aimed to determine the effect of bariatric surgery on auto-antibodies titres against Apolipoprotein A-1 (anti-apoA-1 IgG), looking for changes associated with lipid parameters, insulin resistance, inflammatory profile and percentage of excess body mass index loss (%EBMIL).Materials and methods: We assessed 55 patients (40 women) before, 6 and 12 months post-operatively. Baseline and post-operative clinical history and measurements of body mass index (BMI), serum cholesterol, triglycerides, high- and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C and LDL-C), apoA-1, highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP), fasting glucose (FG), glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and HOMA-IR were taken at each point. Human anti-apoA-1 IgG were measured by ELISA.Results: The mean age of participants was 50 years. BS significantly improved BMI, %EBMIL triglycerides, HDL-C, apoA-1, hsCRP, HBA1c, FG and HOMA-IR. Baseline anti-apoA-1 IgG seropositivity was 25% and was associated with lower apoA-1 and higher hsCRP levels. One year after BS, anti-apoA-1 IgG seropositivity decreased to 15% (p = 0.007) and median anti-apoA-1 IgG values decreased from 0.70 (0.56-0.84) to 0.47 (0.37-0.61) AU (p Conclusion: Bariatric surgery results in significant reduction in anti-apoA-1 IgG levels, which may adversely influence weight loss. The exact mechanisms underpinning these results are elusive and require further study before defining any clinical recommendations.</p

Detection of intrinsic source structure at ~3 Schwarzschild radii with Millimeter-VLBI observations of SAGITTARIUS A*

We report results from very long baseline interferometric (VLBI) observations of the supermassive black hole in the Galactic center, Sgr A*, at 1.3 mm (230 GHz). The observations were performed in 2013 March using six VLBI stations in Hawaii, California, Arizona, and Chile. Compared to earlier observations, the addition of the APEX telescope in Chile almost doubles the longest baseline length in the array, provides additional {\it uv} coverage in the N-S direction, and leads to a spatial resolution of $\sim$30 $\mu$as ($\sim$3 Schwarzschild radii) for Sgr A*. The source is detected even at the longest baselines with visibility amplitudes of $\sim$4-13% of the total flux density. We argue that such flux densities cannot result from interstellar refractive scattering alone, but indicate the presence of compact intrinsic source structure on scales of $\sim$3 Schwarzschild radii. The measured nonzero closure phases rule out point-symmetric emission. We discuss our results in the context of simple geometric models that capture the basic characteristics and brightness distributions of disk- and jet-dominated models and show that both can reproduce the observed data. Common to these models are the brightness asymmetry, the orientation, and characteristic sizes, which are comparable to the expected size of the black hole shadow. Future 1.3 mm VLBI observations with an expanded array and better sensitivity will allow a more detailed imaging of the horizon-scale structure and bear the potential for a deep insight into the physical processes at the black hole boundary.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, accepted to Ap

Definition of the σW regulon of Bacillus subtilis in the absence of stress

Bacteria employ extracytoplasmic function (ECF) sigma factors for their responses to environmental stresses. Despite intensive research, the molecular dissection of ECF sigma factor regulons has remained a major challenge due to overlaps in the ECF sigma factor-regulated genes and the stimuli that activate the different ECF sigma factors. Here we have employed tiling arrays to single out the ECF σW regulon of the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis from the overlapping ECF σX, σY, and σM regulons. For this purpose, we profiled the transcriptome of a B. subtilis sigW mutant under non-stress conditions to select candidate genes that are strictly σW-regulated. Under these conditions, σW exhibits a basal level of activity. Subsequently, we verified the σW-dependency of candidate genes by comparing their transcript profiles to transcriptome data obtained with the parental B. subtilis strain 168 grown under 104 different conditions, including relevant stress conditions, such as salt shock. In addition, we investigated the transcriptomes of rasP or prsW mutant strains that lack the proteases involved in the degradation of the σW anti-sigma factor RsiW and subsequent activation of the σW-regulon. Taken together, our studies identify 89 genes as being strictly σW-regulated, including several genes for non-coding RNAs. The effects of rasP or prsW mutations on the expression of σW-dependent genes were relatively mild, which implies that σW-dependent transcription under non-stress conditions is not strictly related to RasP and PrsW. Lastly, we show that the pleiotropic phenotype of rasP mutant cells, which have defects in competence development, protein secretion and membrane protein production, is not mirrored in the transcript profile of these cells. This implies that RasP is not only important for transcriptional regulation via σW, but that this membrane protease also exerts other important post-transcriptional regulatory functions

Global Ocean Science Report: The Current Status of Ocean Science around the World

The IOC-UNESCO Global Ocean Science Report (GOSR) aims to provide a status report on ocean science. It identifies and quantifies the elements that drive the productivity and performance of ocean science, including workforce, infrastructure, resources, networks and outputs. The report is intended to facilitate international ocean science cooperation and collaboration. It helps to identify gaps in science organization and capacity and develop options to optimize the use of scientific resources and advance ocean science and technology by sharing expertise and facilities, promoting capacity-building and transferring marine technology. As the first consolidated assessment of global ocean science, the GOSR assists the science-policy interface and supports managers, policy-makers, governments and donors, as well as scientists beyond the ocean community. The GOSR offers decision-makers an unprecedented tool to identify gaps and opportunities to advance international collaboration in ocean science and technology and harness its potential to meet societal needs, address global challenges and drive sustainable development for all

Induced pseudoscalar coupling of the proton weak interaction

The induced pseudoscalar coupling $g_p$ is the least well known of the weak coupling constants of the proton's charged--current interaction. Its size is dictated by chiral symmetry arguments, and its measurement represents an important test of quantum chromodynamics at low energies. During the past decade a large body of new data relevant to the coupling $g_p$ has been accumulated. This data includes measurements of radiative and non radiative muon capture on targets ranging from hydrogen and few--nucleon systems to complex nuclei. Herein the authors review the theoretical underpinnings of $g_p$, the experimental studies of $g_p$, and the procedures and uncertainties in extracting the coupling from data. Current puzzles are highlighted and future opportunities are discussed.Comment: 58 pages, Latex, Revtex4, prepared for Reviews of Modern Physic