Timing and Magnitude of Lumbar Spine Contribution to Trunk Forward Bending and Backward Return in Patients with Acute Low Back Pain

Alterations in the lumbo-pelvic coordination denote changes in neuromuscular control of trunk motion as well as load sharing between passive and active tissues in the lower back. Differences in timing and magnitude aspects of lumbo-pelvic coordination between patients with chronic low back pain (LBP) and asymptomatic individuals have been reported; yet, the literature on lumbo-pelvic coordination in patients with acute LBP is scant. A case-control study was conducted to explore the differences in timing and magnitude aspects of lumbo-pelvic coordination between females with (n=19) and without (n=19) acute LBP. Participants in each group completed one experimental session wherein they performed trunk forward bending and backward return at preferred and fast paces. The amount of lumbar contribution to trunk motion (as the magnitude aspect) as well as the mean absolute relative phase (MARP) and deviation phase (DP) between thoracic and pelvic rotations (as the timing aspect) of lumbo-pelvic coordination were calculated. The lumbar contribution to trunk motion in the 2nd and the 3rd quarters of both forward bending and backward return phases was significantly smaller in the patient than the control group. The MARP and the DP were smaller in the patient vs. the control group during entire motion. The reduced lumbar contribution to trunk motion as well as the more in-phase and less variable lumbo-pelvic coordination in patients with acute LBP compared to the asymptomatic controls is likely the result of a neuromuscular adaptation to reduce painful deformation and to protect injured lower back tissues

Higher-curvature corrections to holographic entanglement with momentum dissipation

Abstract We study the effects of Gauss–Bonnet corrections on some nonlocal probes (entanglement entropy, n-partite information and Wilson loop) in the holographic model with momentum relaxation. Higher-curvature terms as well as scalar fields make in fact nontrivial corrections to the coefficient of the universal term in entanglement entropy. We use holographic methods to study such corrections. Moreover, holographic calculation indicates that mutual and tripartite information undergo a transition beyond which they identically change their values. We find that the behavior of the transition curves depends on the sign of the Gauss–Bonnet coupling $$\lambda$$ λ . The transition for $$\lambda >0$$ λ>0 takes place in larger separation of subsystems than that of $$\lambda <0$$ λ<0 . Finally, we examine the behavior of modified part of the force between external point-like objects as a function of Gauss–Bonnet coupling and its sign

Higher-curvature corrections to holographic entanglement with momentum dissipation

We study the effects of Gauss–Bonnet corrections on some nonlocal probes (entanglement entropy, n-partite information and Wilson loop) in the holographic model with momentum relaxation. Higher-curvature terms as well as scalar fields make in fact nontrivial corrections to the coefficient of the universal term in entanglement entropy. We use holographic methods to study such corrections. Moreover, holographic calculation indicates that mutual and tripartite information undergo a transition beyond which they identically change their values. We find that the behavior of the transition curves depends on the sign of the Gauss–Bonnet coupling $$\lambda$$. The transition for $$\lambda >0$$ takes place in larger separation of subsystems than that of $$\lambda <0$$. Finally, we examine the behavior of modified part of the force between external point-like objects as a function of Gauss–Bonnet coupling and its sign

Weyl-Invariant Extension of the Metric-Affine Gravity

Metric-affine geometry provides a nontrivial extension of the general relativity where the metric and connection are treated as the two independent fundamental quantities in constructing the spacetime (with nonvanishing torsion and nonmetricity). In this paper, we study the generic form of action in this formalism and then construct the Weyl-invariant version of this theory. It is shown that, in Weitzenböck space, the obtained Weyl-invariant action can cover the conformally invariant teleparallel action. Finally, the related field equations are obtained in the general case

Emulsion Transport Through Graphene Oxide Modified Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) Membranes

Graphene oxide (GO) is an exceptionally hydrophilic 2D nanomaterial with an ultrahigh specific area, which has demonstrated exceptional antifouling properties from oil. Coating patent no. WO2019106344A1 by G2O Water Technologies Limited suggests the merit of using GO in relevant applications. However, the benefit of using a hydrophilic polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) microfiltration membrane as backing materials for GO has not been tested. Therefore, 0.22 µm PVDF hydrophilic flat sheet microfiltration membrane substrates were coated by G2O’s patented method producing 7.5 nm, 15 nm and 30 nm GO-coated membranes with a diameter of 40 mm. Hexadecane-Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Water emulsion treated the membranes at 1 bar in a dead-end cell. Scanning electron microscope, KSV pendant drop and attenuated total reflectance infrared spectroscopy characterized the surface morphology, water contact angle, and graphene oxide performance. The performance of an unwetted 7.5 nm GO-PVDF membrane outperformed the wetted modified membranes. Despite GO self-catalyzation, the dissociation of sodium dodecyl sulfate and hexadecane coalescence was of ten times their original size during filtration. The modified membrane exhibited a 33% increase in permeate flux and 73.0% oil rejection. This performance indicated that the coating method is capable of withstanding fouling without regular backflushing or chemical clean-in-place

Antimicrobial effect of cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum J. Presl) bark essential oil in cream-filled cakes and pastries

Background and objectives: Food poisoning has been always a major concern in health system of every community and cream-filled products are one of the most widespread food poisoning causes in humans. In present study, we examined the preservative effect of the cinnamon oil in cream-filled cakes. Methods: Antimicrobial activity of Cinnamomum verum J. Presl (Cinnamon) bark essential oil was examined against five food-borne pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, Bacillus cereus and Salmonella typhimurium) to investigate its potential for use as a natural preservative in cream-filled baked goods. Chemical constituents of the oil were determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. For evaluation of preservative sufficiency of the oil, pathogens were added to cream-filled cakes manually and 1 μL/mL of the essential oil was added to all samples except the blank.  Results: Chemical constituents of the oil were determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and twenty five components were identified where cinnamaldehyde (79.73%), linalool (4.08%), cinnamaldehyde para-methoxy (2.66%), eugenol (2.37%) and trans-caryophyllene (2.05%) were the major constituents. Cinnamon essential oil showed strong antimicrobial activity against selected pathogens in vitro and the minimum inhibitory concentration values against all tested microorganisms were determined as 0.5 μL/disc except for S. aureus for which, the oil was not effective in tested concentrations. After baking, no observable microorganism was observed in all susceptible microorganisms count in 72h stored samples.  Conclusion: It was concluded that by analysing the sensory quality of the preserved food, cinnamon oil may be considered as a natural preservative in food industry, especially for cream-filled cakes and pastries