The effectiveness and satisfaction of web-based physiotherapy in people with spinal cord injury: a pilot randomised controlled trial

Study Design: Pilot randomised controlled trial. Objectives: The aims of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness and participant satisfaction of web-based physiotherapy for people with Spinal Cord Injury (SCI). Setting: Community patients of a national spinal injury unit in a university teaching hospital, Scotland, UK. Methods: Twenty-four participants were recruited and randomised to receive eight weeks of web-based physiotherapy (intervention), twice per week, or usual care (control). Individual exercise programmes were prescribed based upon participant’s abilities. The intervention was delivered via a website (www.webbasedphysio.com) and monitored and progressed remotely by the physiotherapist. Results: Participants logged on to the website an average of 1.4±0.8 times per week. Between-group differences, although not significant were more pronounced for the 6 minute walk test. Participants were positive about using web-based physiotherapy and stated they would be happy to use it again and would recommend it to others. Overall it was rated as either good or excellent. Conclusions: Web-based physiotherapy was feasible and acceptable for people with SCI. Participants achieved good compliance with the intervention, rated the programme highly and beneficial for health and well-being at various states post injury. The results of this study warrant further work with a more homogenous sample

Visualizing Rank Deficient Models: A Row Equation Geometry of Rank Deficient Matrices and Constrained-Regression

Situations often arise in which the matrix of independent variables is not of full column rank. That is, there are one or more linear dependencies among the independent variables. This paper covers in detail the situation in which the rank is one less than full column rank and extends this coverage to include cases of even greater rank deficiency. The emphasis is on the row geometry of the solutions based on the normal equations. The author shows geometrically how constrained-regression/generalized-inverses work in this situation to provide a solution in the face of rank deficiency

Deoxyribonucleic Acid Encoded and Size-Defined π-Stacking of Perylene Diimides.

Funder: University of CambridgeNatural photosystems use protein scaffolds to control intermolecular interactions that enable exciton flow, charge generation, and long-range charge separation. In contrast, there is limited structural control in current organic electronic devices such as OLEDs and solar cells. We report here the DNA-encoded assembly of π-conjugated perylene diimides (PDIs) with deterministic control over the number of electronically coupled molecules. The PDIs are integrated within DNA chains using phosphoramidite coupling chemistry, allowing selection of the DNA sequence to either side, and specification of intermolecular DNA hybridization. In this way, we have developed a "toolbox" for construction of any stacking sequence of these semiconducting molecules. We have discovered that we need to use a full hierarchy of interactions: DNA guides the semiconductors into specified close proximity, hydrophobic-hydrophilic differentiation drives aggregation of the semiconductor moieties, and local geometry and electrostatic interactions define intermolecular positioning. As a result, the PDIs pack to give substantial intermolecular π wave function overlap, leading to an evolution of singlet excited states from localized excitons in the PDI monomer to excimers with wave functions delocalized over all five PDIs in the pentamer. This is accompanied by a change in the dominant triplet forming mechanism from localized spin-orbit charge transfer mediated intersystem crossing for the monomer toward a delocalized excimer process for the pentamer. Our modular DNA-based assembly reveals real opportunities for the rapid development of bespoke semiconductor architectures with molecule-by-molecule precision.ERC Horizon 2020 (grant agreement No 670405 and No 803326) EPSRC Tier-2 capital grant EP/P020259/1. Winton Advanced Research Programme for the Physics of Sustainability. Simons Foundation (Grant 601946). Swedish research council, Vetenskapsrådet 2018-0023

An analysis of Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase and Glutathione S-transferase omega-1 genes as modifiers of the cerebral response to ischemia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cerebral ischemia involves a series of reactions which ultimately influence the final volume of a brain infarction. We hypothesize that polymorphisms in genes encoding proteins involved in these reactions could act as modifiers of the cerebral response to ischemia and impact the resultant stroke volume. The final volume of a cerebral infarct is important as it correlates with the morbidity and mortality associated with non-lacunar ischemic strokes.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The proteins encoded by the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (<it>MTHFR</it>) and glutathione S-transferase omega-1 (<it>GSTO-1</it>) genes are, through oxidative mechanisms, key participants in the cerebral response to ischemia. On the basis of these biological activities, they were selected as candidate genes for further investigation. We analyzed the C677T polymorphism in the <it>MTHFR </it>gene and the C419A polymorphism in the <it>GSTO-1 </it>gene in 128 patients with non-lacunar ischemic strokes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found no significant association of either the <it>MTHFR </it>(p = 0.72) or <it>GSTO-1 </it>(p = 0.58) polymorphisms with cerebral infarct volume.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our study shows no major gene effect of either the <it>MTHFR </it>or <it>GSTO-1 </it>genes as a modifier of ischemic stroke volume. However, given the relatively small sample size, a minor gene effect is not excluded by this investigation.</p

PISA. The effect of paracetamol (acetaminophen) and ibuprofen on body temperature in acute stroke: Protocol for a phase II double-blind randomised placebo-controlled trial [ISRCTN98608690]

BACKGROUND: During the first days after stroke, one to two fifths of the patients develop fever or subfebrile temperatures. Body temperature is a strong prognostic factor after stroke. Pharmacological reduction of temperature in patients with acute ischaemic stroke may improve their functional outcome. Previously, we studied the effect of high dose (6 g daily) and low dose (3 g daily) paracetamol (acetaminophen) in a randomised placebo-controlled trial of 75 patients with acute ischemic stroke. In the high-dose paracetamol group, mean body temperature at 12 and 24 hours after start of treatment was 0.4°C lower than in the placebo group. The effect of ibuprofen, another potent antipyretic drug, on body-core temperature in normothermic patients has not been studied. AIM: The aim of the present trial is to study the effects of high-dose paracetamol and ibuprofen on body temperature in patients with acute ischaemic stroke, and to study the safety of these treatments. DESIGN: Seventy-five (3 × 25) patients with acute ischaemic stroke confined to the anterior circulation will be randomised to treatment with either: 400 mg ibuprofen, 1000 mg acetaminophen, or with placebo 6 times daily during 5 days. Body-temperatures will be measured with a rectal electronic thermometer at the start of treatment and after 24 hours. An infrared tympanic thermometer will be used to monitor body temperature at 2-hour intervals during the first 24 hours and at 12-hour intervals thereafter. The primary outcome measure will be rectal temperature at 24 hours after the start of treatment. The study results will be analysed on an intent-to-treat basis, but an on-treatment analysis will also be performed. No formal interim analysis will be carried out

Sexual selection predicts the rate and direction of colour divergence in a large avian radiation

Sexual selection is proposed to be a powerful driver of phenotypic evolution in animal systems. At macroevolutionary scales, sexual selection can theoretically drive both the rate and direction of phenotypic evolution, but this hypothesis remains contentious. Here, we find that differences in the rate and direction of plumage colour evolution are predicted by a proxy for sexual selection intensity (plumage dichromatism) in a large radiation of suboscine passerine birds (Tyrannida). We show that rates of plumage evolution are correlated between the sexes, but that sexual selection has a strong positive effect on male, but not female, interspecific divergence rates. Furthermore, we demonstrate that rapid male plumage divergence is biased towards carotenoid-based (red/yellow) colours widely assumed to represent honest sexual signals. Our results highlight the central role of sexual selection in driving avian colour divergence, and reveal the existence of convergent evolutionary responses of animal signalling traits under sexual selection