189 research outputs found
The Far-infrared Continuum of Quasars
ISO provides a key new far-infrared window through which to observe the
multi-wavelength spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of quasars and active
galactic nuclei (AGN). It allows us, for the first time, to observe a
substantial fraction of the quasar population in the far-IR, and to obtain
simultaneous, multi-wavelength observations from 5--200 microns. With these
data we can study the behavior of the IR continuum in comparison with
expectations from competing thermal and non-thermal models. A key to
determining which mechanism dominates, is the measurement of the peak
wavelength of the emission and the shape of the far-IR--mm turnover. Turnovers
which are steeper than frequency^2.5 indicate thermal dust emission in the
far-IR.
Preliminary results from our ISO data show broad, fairly smooth, IR continuum
emission with far-IR turnovers generally too steep to be explained by
non-thermal synchrotron emission. Assuming thermal emission throughout leads to
a wide inferred temperature range of 50-1000 K. The hotter material, often
called the AGN component, probably originates in dust close to and heated by
the central source, e.g. the ubiquitous molecular torus. The cooler emission is
too strong to be due purely to cool, host galaxy dust, and so indicates either
the presence of a starburst in addition to the AGN or AGN-heated dust covering
a wider range of temperatures than present in the standard, optically thick
torus models.Comment: 4 pages, to be published in the proceedings of "The Universe as Seen
by ISO," ed. M. Kessler. This and related papers can be found at
http://hea-www.harvard.edu/~ehooper/ISOkp/ISOkp.htm
Infrared Properties of High Redshift and X-ray Selected AGN Samples
The NASA/ISO Key Project on active galactic nuclei (AGN) seeks to better
understand the broad-band spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of these sources
from radio to X-rays, with particular emphasis on infrared properties. The ISO
sample includes a wide variety of AGN types and spans a large redshift range.
Two subsamples are considered herein: 8 high-redshift (1 < z < 4.7) quasars;
and 22 hard X-ray selected sources.
The X-ray selected AGN show a wide range of IR continuum shapes, extending to
cooler colors than the optical/radio sample of Elvis et al. (1994). Where a
far-IR turnover is clearly observed, the slopes are < 2.5 in all but one case
so that non-thermal emission remains a possibility. The highest redshift
quasars show extremely strong, hot IR continua requiring ~ 100 solar masses of
500 - 1000 Kelvin dust with ~ 100 times weaker optical emission. Possible
explanations for these unusual properties include: reflection of the optical
light from material above/below a torus; strong obscuration of the optical
continuum; or an intrinsic deficit of optical emission.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures (2 color), to be published in the Springer Lecture
Notes of Physics Series as part of the proceedings for "ISO Surveys of a
Dusty Universe," a workshop held at Ringberg Castle, Germany, November 8 -
12, 1999. Requires latex style files for this series: cl2emult.cls,
cropmark.sty, lnp.sty, sprmindx.sty, subeqnar.sty (included with submission
Potato Protein Isolate Stimulates Muscle Protein Synthesis at Rest and with Resistance Exercise in Young Women
Skeletal muscle myofibrillar protein synthesis (MPS) increases in response to protein feeding and to resistance exercise (RE), where each stimuli acts synergistically when combined. The efficacy of plant proteins such as potato protein (PP) isolate to stimulate MPS is unknown. We aimed to determine the effects of PP ingestion on daily MPS with and without RE in healthy women. In a single blind, parallel-group design, 24 young women (21 ± 3 years, n = 12/group) consumed a weight-maintaining baseline diet containing 0.8 g/kg/d of protein before being randomized to consume either 25 g of PP twice daily (1.6 g/kg/d total protein) or a control diet (CON) (0.8 g/kg/d total protein) for 2 wks. Unilateral RE (~30% of maximal strength to failure) was performed thrice weekly with the opposite limb serving as a non-exercised control (Rest). MPS was measured by deuterated water ingestion at baseline, following supplementation (Rest), and following supplementation + RE (Exercise). Ingestion of PP stimulated MPS by 0.14 ± 0.09 %/d at Rest, and by 0.32 ± 0.14 %/d in the Exercise limb. MPS was significantly elevated by 0.20 ± 0.11 %/d in the Exercise limb in CON (p = 0.008). Consuming PP to increase protein intake to levels twice the recommended dietary allowance for protein augmented rates of MPS. Performance of RE stimulated MPS regardless of protein intake. PP is a high-quality, plant-based protein supplement that augments MPS at rest and following RE in healthy young women
Recent advances in understanding resistance exercise training-induced skeletal muscle hypertrophy in humans
Skeletal muscle plays a pivotal role in the maintenance of physical and metabolic health and, critically, mobility. Accordingly, strategies focused on increasing the quality and quantity of skeletal muscle are relevant, and resistance exercise is foundational to the process of functional hypertrophy. Much of our current understanding of skeletal muscle hypertrophy can be attributed to the development and utilization of stable isotopically labeled tracers. We know that resistance exercise and sufficient protein intake act synergistically and provide the most effective stimuli to enhance skeletal muscle mass; however, the molecular intricacies that underpin the tremendous response variability to resistance exercise-induced hypertrophy are complex. The purpose of this review is to discuss recent studies with the aim of shedding light on key regulatory mechanisms that dictate hypertrophic gains in skeletal muscle mass. We also aim to provide a brief up-to-date summary of the recent advances in our understanding of skeletal muscle hypertrophy in response to resistance training in humans
Understanding the effects of nutrition and post-exercise nutrition on skeletal muscle protein turnover: insights from stable isotope studies
Skeletal muscle is the largest organ of the human body and plays a pivotal role in whole-body homeostasis through the maintenance of physical and metabolic health. Establishing strategies aimed at increasing the amount, and minimising loss, of muscle mass are of upmost importance. Muscle mass is primarily dictated by the meal-to-meal fluctuations in muscle protein synthesis (MPS) and muscle protein breakdown (MPB), each of which can be quantified through the use of stable isotopically labelled tracers. Importantly, both MPS and MPB can be influenced by external factors such as nutritional manipulation, specifically protein ingestion, and changes in loading via exercise. To date, research involving stable isotopic tracers has focused on determining the optimal dose, timing surrounding bouts of exercise, distribution and composition of protein to maximally stimulate MPS and inhibit MPB, both at rest and following exercise. In this review we focus on the use of these stable isotopically-labeled tracers to unravel the intricacies of skeletal muscle protein turnover in response to specific nutritional interventions
The Far-Infrared Spectral Energy Distributions of X-ray-selected Active Galaxies
[Abridged] We present ISO far-infrared (IR) observations of 21 hard X-ray
selected AGN from the HEAO-1 A2 sample. We compare the far-IR to X-ray spectral
energy distributions (SEDs) of this sample with various radio and optically
selected AGN samples. The hard-X-ray selected sample shows a wider range of
optical/UV shapes extending to redder near-IR colors. The bluer objects are
Seyfert 1s, while the redder AGN are mostly intermediate or type 2 Seyferts.
This is consistent with a modified unification model in which the amount of
obscuring material increases with viewing angle and may be clumpy. Such a
scenario, already suggested by differing optical/near-IR spectroscopic and
X-ray AGN classifications, allows for different amounts of obscuration of the
continuum emission in different wavebands and of the broad emission line region
which results in a mixture of behaviors for AGN with similar optical emission
line classifications. The resulting limits on the column density of obscuring
material through which we are viewing the redder AGN are 100 times lower than
for the standard optically thick torus models. The resulting decrease in
optical depth of the obscuring material allows the AGN to heat more dust at
larger radial distances. We show that an AGN-heated, flared, dusty disk with
mass 10^9 solar and size of few hundred pc is able to generate optical-far-IR
SEDs which reproduce the wide range of SEDs present in our sample with no need
for an additional starburst component to generate the long-wavelength, cooler
part of the IR continuum.Comment: 40 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication in Astrophysical
Journal, V. 590, June 10, 200
Prospective Validation of the Emergency Heart Failure Mortality Risk Grade for Acute Heart Failure: The ACUTE Study
Background: Improved risk stratification of acute heart failure in the emergency department may inform physicians\u27 decisions regarding patient admission or early discharge disposition. We aimed to validate the previously-derived Emergency Heart failure Mortality Risk Grade for 7-day (EHMRG7) and 30-day (EHMRG30-ST) mortality. Methods: We conducted a multicenter, prospective validation study of patients with acute heart failure at 9 hospitals. We surveyed physicians for their estimates of 7-day mortality risk, obtained for each patient before knowledge of the model predictions, and compared these with EHMRG7 for discrimination and net reclassification improvement. We also prospectively examined discrimination of the EHMRG30-ST model, which incorporates all components of EHMRG7 as well as the presence of ST-depression on the 12-lead ECG. Results: We recruited 1983 patients seeking emergency department care for acute heart failure. Mortality rates at 7 days in the 5 risk groups (very low, low, intermediate, high, and very high risk) were 0%, 0%, 0.6%, 1.9%, and 3.9%, respectively. At 30 days, the corresponding mortality rates were 0%, 1.9%, 3.9%, 5.9%, and 14.3%. Compared with physician-estimated risk of 7-day mortality (PER7; c-statistic, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.64-0.78) there was improved discrimination with EHMRG7 (c-statistic, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.75-0.87; P=0.022 versus PER7) and with EHMRG7 combined with physicians\u27 estimates (c-statistic, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.76-0.88; P=0.003 versus PER7). Model discrimination increased nonsignificantly by 0.014 (95% CI, -0.009-0.037) when physicians\u27 estimates combined with EHMRG7 were compared with EHMRG7 alone (P=0.242). The c-statistic for EHMRG30-ST alone was 0.77 (95% CI, 0.73-0.81) and 30-day model discrimination increased nonsignificantly by addition of physician-estimated risk to 0.78 (95% CI, 0.73-0.82; P=0.187). Net reclassification improvement with EHMRG7 was 0.763 (95% CI, 0.465-1.062) when assessed continuously and 0.820 (0.560-1.080) using risk categories compared with PER7. Conclusions: A clinical model allowing simultaneous prediction of mortality at both 7 and 30 days identified acute heart failure patients with a low risk of events. Compared with physicians\u27 estimates, our multivariable model was better able to predict 7-day mortality and may guide clinical decisions. Clinical Trial Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT02634762
Effects of High-Volume Versus High-Load Resistance Training on Skeletal Muscle Growth and Molecular Adaptations
We evaluated the effects of higher-load (HL) versus (lower-load) higher-volume (HV) resistance training on skeletal muscle hypertrophy, strength, and muscle-level molecular adaptations. Trained men (n = 15, age: 23 ± 3 years; training experience: 7 ± 3 years) performed unilateral lower-body training for 6 weeks (3× weekly), where single legs were randomly assigned to HV and HL paradigms. Vastus lateralis (VL) biopsies were obtained prior to study initiation (PRE) as well as 3 days (POST) and 10 days following the last training bout (POSTPR). Body composition and strength tests were performed at each testing session, and biochemical assays were performed on muscle tissue after study completion. Two-way within-subject repeated measures ANOVAs were performed on most dependent variables, and tracer data were compared using dependent samples t-tests. A significant interaction existed for VL muscle cross-sectional area (assessed via magnetic resonance imaging; interaction p = 0.046), where HV increased this metric from PRE to POST (+3.2%, p = 0.018) whereas HL training did not (−0.1%, p = 0.475). Additionally, HL increased leg extensor strength more so than HV training (interaction p = 0.032; HV \u3c HL at POST and POSTPR, p \u3c 0.025 for each). Six-week integrated non-myofibrillar protein synthesis (iNon-MyoPS) rates were also higher in the HV versus HL condition, while no difference between conditions existed for iMyoPS rates. No interactions existed for other strength, VL morphology variables, or the relative abundances of major muscle proteins. Compared to HL training, 6 weeks of HV training in previously trained men optimizes VL hypertrophy in lieu of enhanced iNon-MyoPS rates, and this warrants future research
The challenges faced in the design, conduct and analysis of surgical randomised controlled trials
Randomised evaluations of surgical interventions are rare; some interventions have been widely
adopted without rigorous evaluation. Unlike other medical areas, the randomised controlled trial
(RCT) design has not become the default study design for the evaluation of surgical interventions.
Surgical trials are difficult to successfully undertake and pose particular practical and methodological challenges. However, RCTs have played a role in the assessment of surgical innovations and there is scope and need for greater use. This article will consider the design, conduct and analysis of an RCT of a surgical intervention. The issues will be reviewed under three
headings: the timing of the evaluation, defining the research question and trial design issues.
Recommendations on the conduct of future surgical RCTs are made. Collaboration between
research and surgical communities is needed to address the distinct issues raised by the assessmentof surgical interventions and enable the conduct of appropriate and well-designed trials.The Health Services Research Unit is funded by the Scottish Government Health DirectoratesPeer reviewedPublisher PD
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