BIOMECHANICAL ANALYSIS A SEQENCE OF ANGULAR VELOCITY AND COORDINATED MUSCLES ACTIVITY DURING BASEBALL HITTING

The purpose of this study was to analyse a sequence of rotations and coordinated muscles activities of upper body. Using kinematic and EMG data from 3 recreational university baseball players participating in this study, we computed the angular velocity of trunk, pelvis, bat and trunk-pelvis rotation angle and PMT of upper body muscles. Trunkpelvis rotation angle was 22 ° before the bat-ball contact. The pelvis, trunk, and bat showed a sequence of angular velocity beginning with the hip, followed by the trunk, and end tip of the bat. Additionally, PMT of upper body muscles generated right pectoralis major(1.03 sec.), right external oblique(1.11 sec.), left thoracloumbar fasci(1.12 sec.), left external oblique(1.13 sec.), right latissimus dorsi(1.15 sec.), left latissimus dorsi(1.16 sec.), right thoracloumbar fascia(1.16 sec.), left pectoralis major(1.25 sec.), on at a time during baseball hitting motion. PMT of upper body muscles were related to the shifting and rotating of body segment and this action can be considered the coordinated muscle activities of upper body

COMPARISON OF PROPRIOCEPTION PERCEPTION TEST BETWEEN GOLFER AND NON-GOLFER USING TILTING PLATFORM

The purpose of this study was to test proprioception perception and compare between collegiate golfers and non-golfers using tilting platform. Sixteen male and fourteen female golfers and fifteen male and thirteen non-golfers were participated. All participants were performed perception test on the tilting platform. Frequency analysis and independent t-test were performed using SPSS 24.0. Alpha set at .05. Most participants were perceived from 1° to 2° of slopes and perceived left-right (target direction) slope than forward-backward slope. Repeated practice such as walking on the uneven ground or standing on sloped ground might help to improve proprioception perception. Further research using a tilting platform will be to develop the training program

Arginyltransferase, Its Specificity, Putative Substrates, Bidirectional Promoter, and Splicing-derived Isoforms

Substrates of the N-end rule pathway include proteins with destabilizing N-terminal residues. Three of them, Asp, Glu, and (oxidized) Cys, function through their conjugation to Arg, one of destabilizing N-terminal residues that are recognized directly by the pathway's ubiquitin ligases. The conjugation of Arg is mediated by arginyltransferase, encoded by ATE1. Through its regulated degradation of specific proteins, the arginylation branch of the N-end rule pathway mediates, in particular, the cardiovascular development, the fidelity of chromosome segregation, and the control of signaling by nitric oxide. We show that mouse ATE1 specifies at least six mRNA isoforms, which are produced through alternative splicing, encode enzymatically active arginyltransferases, and are expressed at varying levels in mouse tissues. We also show that the ATE1 promoter is bidirectional, mediating the expression of both ATE1 and an oppositely oriented, previously uncharacterized gene. In addition, we identified GRP78 (glucose-regulated protein 78) and protein-disulfide isomerase as putative physiological substrates of arginyltransferase. Purified isoforms of arginyltransferase that contain the alternative first exons differentially arginylate these proteins in extract from ATE1-/- embryos, suggesting that specific isoforms may have distinct functions. Although the N-end rule pathway is apparently confined to the cytosol and the nucleus, and although GRP78 and protein-disulfide isomerase are located largely in the endoplasmic reticulum, recent evidence suggests that these proteins are also present in the cytosol and other compartments in vivo, where they may become N-end rule substrates

Broadband Epsilon-Near-Zero Perfect Absorption in the Near-Infrared

Perfect absorption (PA) of incident light is important for both fundamental light-matter interaction studies and practical device applications. PA studies so far have mainly used resonant nanostructures that require delicate structural patterning. Here, we realize tunable and broadband PA in the near-infrared region using relatively simple thin film coatings. We adjust the growth condition of an ITO film and control its epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) wavelength. We show that this results in highly tunable PA in the telecommunication window. Then, using an ITO multilayer of different ENZ wavelengths, we demonstrate broadband PA that covers a wide range of near-infrared wavelengths. The use of ENZ coatings makes PA adjustable during the film growth and does not require any structural patterning afterward. It also facilitates the chip-scale integration of perfect absorbers with other device components. Broadband PA relaxes the single wavelength condition in previous PA studies, and thus it is suitable for many practical device applications, including sensors, photodetectors, and energy harvesting devicesopen0

Dysfunction in Configural Face Processing in Patients With Schizophrenia

Background: Face recognition has important implications for patients with schizophrenia, who exhibit poor interpersonal and social skills. Previous reports have suggested that patients with schizophrenia have deficits in their ability to recognize faces, and because face recognition relies heavily on information about the configuration of faces, we hypothesized that patients with schizophrenia would have specific problems in processing configural information. Methods: We measured the performance of 20 patients with schizophrenia and 20 normal subjects in a face-discrimination task, using upright and inverted pairs of face photographs that differed in featural or configural information. Results: The patients with schizophrenia showed disproportionately poorer performance in discriminating configural compared with featural face sets. Conclusion: The result suggests that the face-recognition deficit in schizophrenic patients is due to specific impairments in configural processing of faces

IDENTIFICATION OF PICK UP NOISE FOR LASER PRINTERS BASED ON PSYCHOACOUSTIC PARAMETERS

ABSTRACT This paper illustrates that a method for identification of pick up noise and an analysis the cause of pick up noise by substituting components of a laser printer. The operating sound radiated from a laser printer includes the tonal noise components caused by the rotating mechanical components such as gear, shaft, motor, fan, etc. A sound operated by laser printers has become important competitiveness in printer industries as the demand of laser printers increases. Especially, a noise between a friction pad and a paper in the process of printing has become an essential issue in an aspect of quality evaluation. However the existing criteria for determining the above noise have solely relied on human's subjective judgments; which highlights the requirement to objectify these criteria. In this paper, the standard of existing pick up noise is established by finding the tonality, which is a psychoacoustic parameter, of noticeable limit sound level. Based on the findings of the method, the study has found factors which cause pick-up noise and suggests the substitution of following components of printers such as: spring constants, spring force, and the quality of friction pads. As a result, it is confirmed that the proposed pick up noise index has usefulness to classify whether existence of pick up noise with an objective evaluation and not to occur the noise based on design optimized combination of laser printer components

Ubiquitin ligase MKRN1 modulates telomere length homeostasis through a proteolysis of hTERT

Telomere homeostasis is regulated by telomerase and a collection of associatedproteins. Telomerase is, in turn, regulated by post-translational modifications of the rate-limiting catalytic subunit hTERT. Here we show that disruption of Hsp90 by geldanamycin promotes efficient ubiquitination and proteasome-mediated degradation of hTERT. Furthermore, we have used the yeast two-hybrid method to identify a novel RING finger gene (MKRN1) encoding an E3 ligase that mediates ubiquitination of hTERT. Overexpression of MKRN1 in telomerase-positive cells promotes the degradation of hTERT and decreases telomerase activity and subsequently telomere length. Our data suggest that MKRN1 plays an important role in modulating telomere length homeostasis through a dynamic balance involving hTERT protein stability

Spinal Nerve Root Swelling Mimicking Intervertebral Disc Herniation in Magnetic Resonance Imaging -A Case Report-

A herniated intervertebral disc is the most common type of soft tissue mass lesion within the lumbar spinal canal. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a useful tool for the assessment of patients with lower back pain and radiating pain, especially intervertebral disc herniation. MRI findings of intervertebral disc herniation are typical. However, from time to time, despite an apparently classic history and typical MRI findings suggestive of disc herniation, surgical exploration fails to reveal any lesion of an intervertebral disc. Our patient underwent lumbar disc surgery with the preoperative diagnosis of lumbar disc herniation; however, nothing could be found during the surgical procedure, except a swollen nerve root