Biomechanics associated with tibial stress fracture in runners: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Tibial stress fracture (TSF) is an overuse running injury with a long recovery period. While many running studies refer to biomechanical risk factors for TSF, only a few have compared biomechanics in runners with TSF to controls. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate biomechanics in runners with TSF compared to controls. Methods Electronic databases PubMed, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus, Scopus, Cochrane, and CINAHL were searched. Risk of bias was assessed and meta-analysis conducted for variables reported in 3 or more studies. Results The search retrieved 359 unique records, but only the 14 that compared runners with TSF to controls were included in the review. Most studies were retrospective, 2 were prospective, and most had a small sample size (5–30 per group). Many variables were not significantly different between groups. Meta-analysis of peak impact, active, and braking ground reaction forces found no significant differences between groups. Individual studies found larger tibial peak anterior tensile stress, peak posterior compressive stress, peak axial acceleration, peak rearfoot eversion and hip adduction in the TSF group. Conclusion Meta-analysis indicated that discrete ground reaction force variables were not statistically significantly different in runners with TSF compared to controls. In individual included studies, many biomechanical variables were not statistically significantly different between groups. However, many were reported by only a single study, and sample sizes were small. We encourage additional studies with larger sample sizes of runners with TSF and controls and adequate statistical power to confirm or refute these findings

The HIV positive selection mutation database

The HIV positive selection mutation database is a large-scale database available at that provides detailed selection pressure maps of HIV protease and reverse transcriptase, both of which are molecular targets of antiretroviral therapy. This database makes available for the first time a very large HIV sequence dataset (sequences from ∼50 000 clinical AIDS samples, generously contributed by Specialty Laboratories, Inc.), which makes possible high-resolution selection pressure mapping. It provides information about not only the selection pressure on individual sites but also how selection pressure at one site is affected by mutations on other sites. It also includes datasets from other public databases, namely the Stanford HIV database [S. Y. Rhee, M. J. Gonzales, R. Kantor, B. J. Betts, J. Ravela and R. W. Shafer (2003) Nucleic Acids Res., 31, 298–303]. Comparison between these datasets in the database enables cross-validation with independent datasets and also specific evaluation of the effect of drug treatment

The Influences of Reproductive Status and Acute Stress on the Levels of Phosphorylated Mu Opioid Receptor Immunoreactivity in Rat Hippocampus

Opioids play a critical role in hippocampally dependent behavior and plasticity. In the hippocampal formation, mu opioid receptors (MOR) are prominent in parvalbumin (PARV) containing interneurons. Previously we found that gonadal hormones modulate the trafficking of MORs in PARV interneurons. Although sex differences in response to stress are well documented, the point at which opioids, sex, and stress interact to influence hippocampal function remains elusive. Thus, we used quantitative immunocytochemistry in combination with light and electron microscopy for the phosphorylated MOR (pMOR) at the SER375 carboxy-terminal residue in male and female rats to assess these interactions. In both sexes, pMOR-immunoreactivity (ir) was prominent in axons and terminals and in a few neuronal somata and dendrites, some of which contained PARV in the mossy fiber pathway region of the dentate gyrus (DG) hilus and CA3 stratum lucidum. In unstressed rats, the levels of pMOR-ir in the DG or CA3 were not affected by sex or estrous cycle stage. However, immediately following 30 min of acute immobilization stress (AIS), males had higher levels of pMOR-ir whereas females at proestrus and estrus (high estrogen stages) had lower levels of pMOR-ir within the DG. In contrast, the number and types of neuronal profiles with pMOR-ir were not altered by AIS in either males or proestrus females. These data demonstrate that although gonadal steroids do not affect pMOR levels at resting conditions, they are differentially activated both pre and postsynaptic MORs following stress. These interactions may contribute to the reported sex differences in hippocampally dependent behaviors in stressed animals

University Educator and Staff Well-being and Common Mental Health Symptoms during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Philippines

Educators and staff adapted to work-from-home setup amidst the covid-19 pandemic.  The transition to full-online classes and services leads to poor mental health. The current study explored the association of educator and staff personal characteristics, well-being, and mental health.  326 university employees completed the demographic profile, mental health, and well-being scales. Various hierarchical regression was conducted to determine if personal characteristics and well-being predict common mental health symptoms (depression, anxiety, and stress). Series of multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to determine the difference between the levels of mental health symptoms according to mental health category, and personal characteristics. The results support the hypothesis with psychological and emotional well-being inversely predicting depression, anxiety, and stress. However, social well-being failed to serve as a significant determinant of common mental health symptoms. MANOVA obtained a significant difference with common mental health symptoms and mental health category and personal characteristics

Final NOMAD results on nu_mu->nu_tau and nu_e->nu_tau oscillations including a new search for nu_tau appearance using hadronic tau decays

Results from the nu_tau appearance search in a neutrino beam using the full NOMAD data sample are reported. A new analysis unifies all the hadronic tau decays, significantly improving the overall sensitivity of the experiment to oscillations. The "blind analysis" of all topologies yields no evidence for an oscillation signal. In the two-family oscillation scenario, this sets a 90% C.L. allowed region in the sin^2(2theta)-Delta m^2 plane which includes sin^2(2theta)<3.3 x 10^{-4} at large Delta m^2 and Delta m^2 < 0.7 eV^2/c^4 at sin^2(2theta)=1. The corresponding contour in the nu_e->nu_tau oscillation hypothesis results in sin^2(2theta)<1.5 x 10^{-2} at large Delta m^2 and Delta m^2 < 5.9 eV^2/c^4 at sin^2(2theta)=1. We also derive limits on effective couplings of the tau lepton to nu_mu or nu_e.Comment: 46 pages, 16 figures, Latex, to appear on Nucl. Phys.

Enhancement of Notch receptor maturation and signaling sensitivity by Cripto-1

Cripto-1 associates with Notch1 in the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi to enhance Notch1 localization to lipid rafts and its maturation

An Asymmetric Eclipse Seen toward the Pre-main-sequence Binary System V928 Tau

K2 observations of the weak-lined T Tauri binary V928 Tau A and B show the detection of a single, asymmetric eclipse, which may be due to a previously unknown substellar companion eclipsing one component of the binary with an orbital period >66 days. Over an interval of about 9 hr, one component of the binary dims by around 60%, returning to its normal brightness about 5 hr later. From modeling of the eclipse shape, we find evidence that the eclipsing companion may be surrounded by a disk or a vast ring system. The modeled disk has a radius of 0.9923 ± 0.0005 R*, with an inclination of 56 78 ± 0 03, a tilt of 41 22 ± 0 05, an impact parameter of −0.2506 ± 0.0002 R*, and an opacity of 1.00. The occulting disk must also move at a transverse velocity of 6.637 ± 0.002 R* day⁻¹, which, depending on whether it orbits V928 Tau A or B, corresponds to approximately 73.53 or 69.26 km s⁻¹. A search in ground-based archival data reveals additional dimming events, some of which suggest periodicity, but no unambiguous period associated with the eclipse observed by K2. We present a new epoch of astrometry that is used to further refine the orbit of the binary, presenting a new lower bound of 67 yr, and constraints on the possible orbital periods of the eclipsing companion. The binary is also separated by 18'' (~2250 au) from the lower-mass CFHT-BD-Tau 7, which is likely associated with V928 Tau A and B. We also present new high-dispersion optical spectroscopy that we use to characterize the unresolved stellar binary