Body density and diving gas volume of the northern bottlenose whale (Hyperoodon ampullatus)

Funding for fieldwork and data analysis was provided by the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), project RC-2337Diving lung volume and tissue density, reflecting lipid store volume, are important physiological parameters that have only been estimated for a few breath-hold diving species. We fitted 12 northern bottlenose whales with data loggers that recorded depth, 3-axis acceleration and speed either with a fly-wheel or from change of depth corrected by pitch angle.We fitted measured values of the change in speed during 5 s descent and ascent glides to a hydrodynamic model of drag and buoyancy forces using a Bayesian estimation framework. The resulting estimate of diving gas volume was 27.4±4.2 (95% credible interval, CI) ml kg−1, closely matching the measured lung capacity of the species. Dive-by-dive variation in gas volume did not correlate with dive depth or duration. Estimated body densities of individuals ranged from 1028.4 to 1033.9 kg m−3 at the sea surface, indicating overall negative tissue buoyancy of this species in seawater. Body density estimates were highly precise with ±95% CI ranging from 0.1to 0.4 kg m−3, which would equate to a precision of <0.5% of lipid content based upon extrapolation from the elephant seal. Six whales tagged near Jan Mayen (Norway, 71°N) had lower body density and were closer to neutral buoyancy than six whales tagged in the Gully (Nova Scotia, Canada, 44°N), a difference that was consistent with the amount of gliding observed during ascent versus descent phases in these animals. Implementation of this approach using longer duration tags could be used to track longitudinal changes in body density and lipid store body condition of free-ranging cetaceans.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Bioenergetics and time-motion analysis of competitive basketball

Basketball has been considered to require players to employ extensive amount of energy throughout games. However, research findings regarding bioenergetic traits and demands of actual basketball performance has been considerably limited. The purpose of this study was to describe and assess bioenergetic traits of actual basketball performance in collegiate female and male players by measuring oxygen consumption (V02), heart rate (HR), blood lactate concentration (BLC), as well as rating of perceived exertion (RPE), and performing a time-motion analysis in team scrimmages. Six female and six male collegiate basketball players (20,0 ±1.2 and 20.8 ± 0.9 years old, respectively) were asked to play team basketball scrimmages while wearing portable measurement systems. V 02 and HR were measured by the portable systems during play, and BLC and RPE were measured during alternate resting periods. Additionally, the subject’s performance was videotaped throughout the scrimmage to conduct time-motion analysis. The female and male players demonstrated mean V 02 values of 33.4 ± 3.6 and 37.0 ± 2.4 ml/kg/min, respectively during play; while mean BLC values were 3.2 ± 0.8 and 4.1 ± 1.2 mmol/L, respectively. They spent 34.1 % of play time performing active movements while 56.9 % o f time walking and 9.0 % standing. No significant differences were observed between the females and males in the variables measured (p \u3e 0.05), except that the males expended significantly greater energy through the scrimmages (49.2 %; p \u3c 0.05). V 02max values obtained from a preliminary testing were significantly correlated to V 02 during play (r = 0.673 for all subjects; p \u3c 0.05) and percent of duration for active movements during play (r = 0.936 and 0.962 for the females and males, respectively; p \u3c 0.05). These results suggest that female and male collegiate basketball require extensive utilization of aerobic metabolism during play and enhancement of aerobic capacity may be beneficial to improve the quality of performance in basketball. In conclusion, this study revealed greater oxygen cost playing basketball than previously expected and demonstrated other specific bioenergetic traits of female and male collegiate basketball

Two dimensional exterior mixed problem for semilinear damped wave equations

AbstractWe consider two dimensional exterior mixed problems for a semilinear damped wave equation with a power type nonlinearity |u|p. For compactly supported initial data, which have a small energy we shall derive global in time existence results in the case when the power of the nonlinearity satisfies 2<p<+∞. This generalizes a previous result of [J. Differential Equations 200 (2004) 53–68], which dealt with a radially symmetric solution

Alternative to Rituximab Therapy for a Patient with Ankylosing Spondylitis Who Was Unable to Continue Anti-TNF Therapy

We herein present a case of a 38-year-old man who had bamboo spine and severe sacroiliitis and who was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Infliximab (IFX) markedly improved the axial symptom but was discontinued due to the side effect of peripheral neuropathy. Switching from IFX to etanercept worsened the side effect. Rituximab (RTX) administration elicited a good response without side effects. RTX might be a suitable option for AS therapy when TNF inhibitors are difficult to use

Body density of humpback whales (Megaptera novaengliae) in feeding aggregations estimated from hydrodynamic gliding performance

Many baleen whales undertake annual fasting and feeding cycles, resulting in substantial changes in their body condition, an important factor affecting fitness. As a measure of lipid store body condition, tissue density of a few deep diving marine mammals has been estimated using a hydrodynamic glide model of drag and buoyancy forces. Here, we applied the method to shallow-diving humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in North Atlantic and Antarctic feeding aggregations. High-resolution 3-axis acceleration, depth and speed data were collected from 24 whales. Measured values of acceleration during 5 s glides were fitted to a hydrodynamic glide model to estimate unknown parameters (tissue density, drag term and diving gas volume) in a Bayesian framework. Estimated species-average tissue density (1031.6 ± 2.1 kg m-3, ±95% credible interval) indicates that humpback whale tissue is typically negatively buoyant although there was a large inter-individual variation ranging from 1025.2 to 1043.1 kg m-3. The precision of the individual estimates was substantially finer than the variation across different individual whales, demonstrating a progressive decrease in tissue density throughout the feeding season and comparably high lipid-store in pregnant females. The drag term (CDAm-1) was estimated to be relatively high, indicating a large effect of lift-related induced drag for humpback whales. Our results show that tissue density of shallow diving baleen whales can be estimated using the hydrodynamic gliding model, although cross-validation with other techniques is an essential next step. This method for estimating body condition is likely to be broadly applicable across a range of aquatic animals and environments

Comparison of the Quick Mild Cognitive Impairment (Qmci) screen to the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) in an Australian geriatrics clinic

Introduction: The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) accurately differentiates mild cognitive impairment (MCI) from mild dementia and normal controls (NC). While the MoCA is validated in multiple clinical settings, few studies compare it with similar tests also designed to detect MCI. We sought to investigate how the shorter Quick Mild Cognitive Impairment (Qmci) screen compares with the MoCA. Methods: Consecutive referrals presenting with cognitive complaints to a teaching hospital geriatric clinic (Fremantle, Western Australia) underwent a comprehensive assessment and were classified as MCI (n = 72) or dementia (n = 109). NC (n = 41) were a sample of convenience. The Qmci and MoCA were scored by trained geriatricians, in random order, blind to the diagnosis. Results: Median Qmci scores for NC, MCI and dementia were 69 (+/−19), 52.5 (+/−12) and 36 (+/−14), respectively, compared with 27 (+/−5), 22 (+/−4) and 15 (+/−7) for the MoCA. The Qmci more accurately identified cognitive impairment (MCI or dementia), area under the curve (AUC) 0.97, than the MoCA (AUC 0.92), p = 0.04. The Qmci was non-significantly more accurate in distinguishing MCI from controls (AUC 0.91 vs 0.84, respectively = 0.16). Both instruments had similar accuracy for differentiating MCI from dementia (AUC of 0.91 vs 0.88, p = 0.35). At the optimal cut-offs, calculated from receiver operating characteristic curves, the Qmci (≤57) had a sensitivity of 91% and specificity of 93% for cognitive impairment, compared with 87% sensitivity and 80% specificity for the MoCA (≤23). Conclusion: While both instruments are accurate in detecting MCI, the Qmci is shorter and arguably easier to complete, suggesting that it is a useful instrument in an Australian geriatric outpatient population

Robotic surgery training and performance

Background: To understand the process of skill acquisition in robotic surgery and to allow useful real-time feedback to surgeons and trainees in future generations of robotic surgical systems, robotic surgical skills should be determined with objective variables. The aim of this study was to assess skill acquisition through a training protocol, and to identify variables for the quantification of proficiency. Methods: Seven novice users of the da Vinci Surgical System engaged in 4 weeks of training that involved practicing three bimanual tasks with the system. Seven variables were determined for assessing speed of performance, bimanual coordination, and muscular activation. These values were compared before and after training. Results: Significant improvements were observed through training in five variables. Bimanual coordination showed differences between the surgical tasks used, whereas muscular activation patterns showed better muscle use through training. The subjects also performed the surgical tasks considerably faster within the first two to three training sessions. Conclusions: The study objectively demonstrated that the novice users could learn to perform surgical tasks faster and with more consistency, better bimanual dexterity, and better muscular activity utilization. The variables examined showed great promise as objective indicators of proficiency and skill acquisition in robotic surgery