The efficacy of manual versus local vibratory massage in promoting recovery from post-exercise muscle damage - a systematic review.

Master of Medical Science in Sports Medicine. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville 2016.Background. It is well established that unaccustomed activity/exercise with a large eccentric component causes the development of muscle damage which results in soreness and a decline in the functional capacity of muscle. Although this usually subsides after 3-4 days of relative inactivity, it temporarily impedes the level of performance in sports by preventing training and leading to greater susceptibility to injuries. Manual massage (MM) is a therapeutic modality that has been utilised in management of this condition for centuries with most of its accepted benefits being based on anecdotal reports and its functional benefits remaining contentious. Vibration therapy (VT) has on the other hand, recently gained popularity and replaced more time consuming manual massage. Its effectiveness is however also still in question as there is not enough clear scientific evidence regarding its efficacy in overcoming the consequences of exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) when compared to those of MM. Aims. To conduct a systematic review examining the efficacy of MM as compared to the local vibration therapy (LVT) modalities on recovery from EIMD and to determine its efficacy in attenuating the negative effects of EIMD on measures of joint flexibility, muscle strength/power output, muscle soreness/DOMS, systemic markers of inflammation and blood lactate concentration and / or markers of fatigue. Method. Following extensive computerised literature searches carried out using PubMed/MEDLINE, ResearchGate, EBSCOhost, Google Scholar and Science Direct, and a comprehensive literature review, randomized controlled trials and counter balance trials focusing on the beneficial effects of MM and LVT, were located. Criteria required for inclusion of trials in a systematic review were determined. After screening of the 63 initial studies located, articles that did not meet the inclusion criteria were excluded. The findings in terms of the effects of MM and LVT in terms of measures of joint flexibility, muscle strength/power output, muscle soreness/DOMS, systemic markers of inflammation and blood lactate concentration and /or markers of fatigue, were presented in tabular format, differentiating between the MM and LVT. A binary outcome summary for the trials in each category in which similar methodology was used, was created. Fisher’s Exact test was conducted to establish whether the difference between MM and LVT for each outcome measure was statistically significant or not. Finally, the findings of the systematic review were compared to those of Imityaz et al. (2014). Results: No trials reported a positive effect of MM on joint flexibility, while 50% (n=2) showed a beneficial effect of LVT. Of the 11 trials located investigating the effects of MM on strength, 4 (36%) revealed an attenuation of force deficit, while 50% (n=2) of the 4 trials on the effects of LVT showed a positive effects. DOMS was attenuated following EIMD in 75% (n=9) of the trials following MM and 100% (n=4) following LVT. Blood creatine kinase concentration was reduced in 50% of trials following MM (n=2) and LVT (n=1). No reduction in blood lactate concentration or markers of fatigue was shown following MM or LVT. Fisher’s Exact test showed no significant difference in the efficacy of MM and LVT in attenuating the effects of EIMD (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: A systematic review of the literature confirmed that MM is no more effective in controlling functional declines and physiological response to EIMD than LVT. However, most studies had limitations and methodological flaws and frequently reported conflicting results. The number of randomized controlled studies qualifying for review was also small (n=28)

An analysis of the financial viability of municipalities in Freestate Province: the case of Mangaung Metro Municipality

Local authorities’ independence level largely depends on the adequacy of the revenue part of local self-government budgets. One of the sources of income of local authorities is the payment of the population and business entities for services. Along with this, there is the issue of insufficient accumulation of revenues to the provincial budget due to non-payment of remuneration for services rendered. Municipalities are responsible for providing, regulating and managing essential services such as water supply, domestic wastewater treatment, electricity distribution, sewage systems and health services. This article summarizes the arguments and counter-arguments of the scientific discussion regarding municipalities’ problem in filling the revenue part of the local budget. The study’s primary purpose is to analyse municipalities’ financial capacity in the province of the Free State (Republic of South Africa). The systematization of literary sources and approaches to solving the problem shows that most municipalities in the Republic of South Africa face financial issues. Municipalities have liquidity problems or cannot fulfil their obligations on time. Despite these problems, municipalities must provide services at an acceptable level. The relevance of this scientific problem-solving is that it focuses on analyzing the financial difficulties faced by the Mangaung Metro Municipality. The primary data source for this study was the questionnaire results. The sample consisted of 24 employees and financial statements of municipalities and auditors’ conclusions. The municipality’s financing structure consists on average of 65% from internal revenues, 29.5% from state transfers and 10% from external borrowings. The financial capacity of the municipality is impaired due to an increase in the number of debtors, problems with cash flows, rising costs, unstable revenues to the revenue part of the budget, and an increase in short- and long-term debt. According to the survey results, 63% of respondents reported that the water supply sector is the largest source of debt among consumers, and the debt collection system could be more effective. The results may be helpful in municipalities with similar governance architectures. Thus, the municipality is recommended to develop and implement a strategy for increasing revenues, a cash flow plan, review the tariff policy, and implement an effective system of debt collection and cost reduction measures

Modern African nuclear detector laboratory: Development of state-of-the-art in-house detector facility at the University of the Western Cape

The upcoming detector facility aims at developing new state-of-the-art particle detectors as well as providing hands-on training to postgraduate students using both analog and digital signal processing from nuclear radiation detectors. The project is two-fold and aims at developing: 1) ancillary detectors to be coupled with the new GAMKA array at iThemba LABS. Of particular interest to our group is the determination of nuclear shapes, which depend on the hyperfine splitting of magnetic substates; 2) PET scanners for cancer imaging using a cheaper technology. Performance of NaI(Tl) inorganic scintillator detectors has been evaluated using PIXIE-16 modules from XIA digital electronics. Gamma-ray energy spectra were acquired from 60Co and 137Cs radioactive sources to calculate the detector resolution as well as to optimize the digital parameters. The present study focuses on improving and optimizing the slow and fast filter parameters for NaI(Tl) detectors which can eventually be used in the list mode of data aquisition

Hybridisation and chloroplast capture between distinct Themeda triandra lineages in Australia

Ecotypes are distinct populations within a species that are adapted to specific environmental conditions. Understanding how these ecotypes become established, and how they interact when reunited, is fundamental to elucidating how ecological adaptations are maintained. This study focuses on Themeda triandra, a dominant grassland species across Asia, Africa and Australia. It is the most widespread plant in Australia, where it has distinct ecotypes that are usually restricted to either wetter and cooler coastal regions or the drier and hotter interior. We generate a reference genome for T. triandra and use whole genome sequencing for over 80 Themeda accessions to reconstruct the evolutionary history of T. triandra and related taxa. Organelle phylogenies confirm that Australia was colonized by T. triandra twice, with the division between ecotypes predating their arrival in Australia. The nuclear genome provides evidence of differences in the dominant ploidal level and gene-flow among the ecotypes. In northern Queensland there appears to be a hybrid zone between ecotypes with admixed nuclear genomes and shared chloroplast haplotypes. Conversely, in the cracking claypans of Western Australia, there is cytonuclear discordance with individuals possessing the coastal chloroplast and interior clade nuclear genome. This chloroplast capture is potentially a result of adaptive introgression, with selection detected in the rpoC2 gene which is associated with water use efficiency. The reason that T. triandra is the most widespread plant in Australia appears to be a result of distinct ecotypic genetic variation and genome duplication, with the importance of each depending on the geographic scale considered

Observation of the 0+ 2 and γ bands in 98Ru, and shape coexistence in the Ru isotopes

Excited states in 98Ru were investigated using γ-ray spectroscopy following the β-decay of 98Rh, and via the 100Ru(p,t) reaction. Combining the results from the two experiments, two states were revised to have spin-parity of 4+ and subsequently assigned to the 02+ and “γ” bands, respectively. The observed structures in 98Ru are suggested to be deformed and rotational, rather than spherical and vibrational, and fit well into the systematics of these excitations in the Ru isotopes. The 02+ excitation is suggested as a shape coexisting configuration. This observation eliminates some of the last remaining candidates for nearly harmonic vibrational nuclei in the Z≈50 region. Beyond-mean-field calculations are presented that support shape coexistence throughout the Ru isotopes with N=52–62, and suggest a smooth evolution of the shape

Recent experimental results in sub- and near-barrier heavy ion fusion reactions

Recent advances obtained in the field of near and sub-barrier heavy-ion fusion reactions are reviewed. Emphasis is given to the results obtained in the last decade, and focus will be mainly on the experimental work performed concerning the influence of transfer channels on fusion cross sections and the hindrance phenomenon far below the barrier. Indeed, early data of sub-barrier fusion taught us that cross sections may strongly depend on the low-energy collective modes of the colliding nuclei, and, possibly, on couplings to transfer channels. The coupled-channels (CC) model has been quite successful in the interpretation of the experimental evidences. Fusion barrier distributions often yield the fingerprint of the relevant coupled channels. Recent results obtained by using radioactive beams are reported. At deep sub-barrier energies, the slope of the excitation function in a semi-logarithmic plot keeps increasing in many cases and standard CC calculations over-predict the cross sections. This was named a hindrance phenomenon, and its physical origin is still a matter of debate. Recent theoretical developments suggest that this effect, at least partially, may be a consequence of the Pauli exclusion principle. The hindrance may have far-reaching consequences in astrophysics where fusion of light systems determines stellar evolution during the carbon and oxygen burning stages, and yields important information for exotic reactions that take place in the inner crust of accreting neutron stars.Comment: 40 pages, 63 figures, review paper accepted for EPJ

β and γ bands in N = 88 , 90, and 92 isotones investigated with a five-dimensional collective Hamiltonian based on covariant density functional theory : vibrations, shape coexistence, and superdeformation

CITATION: Majola, S. N. T. et al. 2019. β and γ bands in N=88, 90, and 92 isotones investigated with a five-dimensional collective Hamiltonian based on covariant density functional theory: Vibrations, shape coexistence, and superdeformation. Physical Review C, 100(4). doi:10.1103/PhysRevC.100.044324.The original publication is available at https://journals.aps.org/prc/A comprehensive systematic study is made for the collective β and γ bands in even-even isotopes with neutron numbers N = 88 to 92 and proton numbers Z = 62 (Sm) to 70 (Yb). Data, including excitation energies, B(E0) and B(E2) values, and branching ratios from previously published experiments are collated with new data presented for the first time in this study. The experimental data are compared to calculations using a five-dimensional collective Hamiltonian (5DCH) based on the covariant density functional theory (CDFT). A realistic potential in the quadrupole shape parameters V (β,γ ) is determined from potential energy surfaces (PES) calculated using the CDFT. The parameters of the 5DCH are fixed and contained within the CDFT. Overall, a satisfactory agreement is found between the data and the calculations. In line with the energy staggering S(I) of the levels in the 2γ + bands, the potential energy surfaces of the CDFT calculations indicate γ -soft shapes in the N = 88 nuclides, which become γ rigid for N = 90 and N = 92. The nature of the 02 + bands changes with atomic number. In the isotopes of Sm to Dy, they can be understood as β vibrations, but in the Er and Yb isotopes the 02 + bands have wave functions with large components in a triaxial superdeformed minimum. In the vicinity of 152Sm, the present calculations predict a soft potential in the β direction but do not find two coexisting minima. This is reminiscent of 152Sm exhibiting an X(5) behavior. The model also predicts that the 03 + bands are of two-phonon nature, having an energy twice that of the 02 + band. This is in contradiction with the data and implies that other excitation modes must be invoked to explain their origin.https://journals.aps.org/prc/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevC.100.044324Publisher’s versio

Coulomb excitation of and a change in structure approaching N = Z = 40

Background: Nuclei approaching are known to exhibit strongly deformed structures and are thought to be candidates for shape coexistence. In the krypton isotopes, are poorly characterized, preventing an understanding of evolving deformation approaching . Purpose: The present work aims to determine electric quadrupole transition strengths and quadrupole moments of in order to better characterize their deformation. Conclusions: Comparison of measured and values indicates that neutron-deficient () isotopes of krypton are closer to axial deformation than other isotopic chains in the mass region. A continuation of this trend to higher may result in Sr and Zr isotopes exhibiting near-axial prolate deformation. Methods: Sub-barrier Coulomb excitation was employed, impinging the isotopes of krypton on and targets. Utilizing a semiclassical description of the safe Coulomb-excitation process matrix elements could then be determined. Results: Eleven new or improved matrix elements are determined in and seven in . The new value in disagrees with the evaluated value by , which can be explained in terms of deficiencies in a previous Coulomb-excitation analysis

Spectroscopy of low-spin states in 157Dy : Search for evidence of enhanced octupole correlations

CITATION: Majola, S. N. T., et al. 2019. Spectroscopy of low-spin states in 157Dy : Search for evidence of enhanced octupole correlations. Physical Review C, 100(6):034322, doi:10.1103/PhysRevC.100.034322.The original publication is available at https://journals.aps.org/prcLow-spin states of ¹⁵⁷Dy have been studied using the JUROGAM II array, following the ¹⁵⁵Gd (α, 2n) reaction at a beam energy of 25 MeV. The level scheme of ¹⁵⁷Dy has been expanded with four new bands. Rotational structures built on the [523]5/2⁻ and [402]3/2⁺ neutron orbitals constitute new additions to the level scheme as do many of the inter- and intraband transitions. This manuscript also reports the observation of cross I⁺ →(I–1) ⁻ and I⁻ →(I–1)⁺ E1 dipole transitions interlinking structures built on the [523]5/2⁻ (band 5) and [402]3/2⁺ (band 7) neutron orbitals. These interlacing band structures are interpreted as the bands of parity doublets with simplex quantum number s=–i related to possible octupole correlations.https://journals.aps.org/prc/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevC.100.034322Publisher's versio