Capacity and Maximal Inspiratory Pressure in Healthy Adults

Introduction Diaphragmatic fatigue during maximal exercise causes decreased blood flow to exercising limbs. Inspiratory muscle strength training (IMST) may decrease diaphragm fatigue. Current studies use 50% of maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP) for IMST, but optimal dosing at higher intensities has not been well explored. Objective Investigate the impact of high intensity IMST on aerobic capacity and maximal inspiratory pressure in healthy adults. Methods This study was IRB approved by the university. All participants provided informed consent, and demographic information was collected. Results VO2 max did not change significantly in either intervention group after intervention period (p=0.143). Groups demonstrated significant improvement in MIP (p=0.011), but there was no significant difference between groups (p\u3c0.638). Conclusion VO2 max did not significantly change in the control or intervention groups. Post-intervention MIP measurements were significantly improved in both groups, but there was no significant difference between either group. High intensity IMST may not improve aerobic capacity in young, healthy adults after an 8-week intervention period. Clinical Relevance Maintaining diaphragmatic strength with IMST may help minimize respiratory fatigue and be useful for healthy adults with injuries limiting their mobility. Further research is needed to evaluate optimal IMST intensity for maximal benefit as 80% may be too intense

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)1.

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field

The transcriptional landscape of the mammalian genome

This study describes comprehensive polling of transcription start and termination sites and analysis of previously unidentified full-length complementary DNAs derived from the mouse genome. We identify the 5' and 3' boundaries of 181,047 transcripts with extensive variation in transcripts arising from alternative promoter usage, splicing, and polyadenylation. There are 16,247 new mouse protein-coding transcripts, including 5154 encoding previously unidentified proteins. Genomic mapping of the transcriptome reveals transcriptional forests, with overlapping transcription on both strands, separated by deserts in which few transcripts are observed. The data provide a comprehensive platform for the comparative analysis of mammalian transcriptional regulation in differentiation and development