A menthol-enhanced “cooling” energy gel does not influence laboratory time trial performance in trained runners

l-menthol (menthol) is an organic compound derived from peppermint which imparts a refreshing mint flavor and aroma to oral hygiene products, chewing gum, and topical analgesics. Menthol has been identified as a non-thermal sensory cooling strategy for athletes when ingested or mouth-rinsed during exercise in hot environments. Therefore, sports nutrition products delivering a controlled concentration of menthol could be beneficial for athletes exercising in the heat. We sought to test the performance and perceptual outcomes of a novel menthol energy gel during treadmill running in the heat (33 °C, 49% RH). Fourteen trained runners (mean ± SD; age: 31 ± 6 years, VO2max: 56.5 ± 10.1 mL·kg−1·min−1, BMI: 23.2 ± 2.4 kg/m2; six female) participated in a randomized, crossover, double-blind, and placebo-controlled study. A menthol-enhanced energy gel (0.5% concentration; MEN) or flavor-matched placebo (PLA) was ingested 5 min before and again at 20 and 40 min of a 40 min treadmill exercise preload at 60% VO2max, followed by a 20 min self-paced time trial. The total distance, vertical distance, perceptual measures (thermal comfort, thermal sensation, rating of perceived exertion, and affect), and cognitive performance via computerized neurocognitive assessment were measured. No difference between 20 min self-paced time trial total distance (MEN: 4.22 ± 0.54 km, PLA: 4.22 ± 0.55 km, p = 0.867), vertical distance (MEN: 49.2 ± 24.6 m, PLA: 44.4 ± 11.4 m, p = 0.516), or any perceptual measures was observed (all p > 0.05). Cognitive performance was not different between the trials (all p > 0.05). These results suggest that a menthol energy gel is not superior to a non-menthol gel in terms of performance or perception during treadmill running in the heat. More research is needed to confirm whether these findings translate to ecologically valid settings, including outdoor exercise in ambient heat and during competition

Impact of bariatric surgery on hypertensive disorders in pregnancy: retrospective analysis of insurance claims data

Objective To determine whether women who had a delivery after bariatric surgery have lower rates of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy compared with women who had a delivery before bariatric surgery

Spin-orbit coupled spin-polarised hole gas at the CrSe2-terminated surface of AgCrSe2

Funding: We gratefully acknowledge support from the European Research Council (through the QUESTDO project, 714193), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (Grant No. EP/T02108X/1), and the Leverhulme Trust (Grant No. RL-2016-006). S.-J.K., E.A.M., A.Z., and I.M. gratefully acknowledge studentship support from the International Max-Planck Research School for Chemistry and Physics of Quantum Materials. The research leading to this result has been supported by the project CALIPSOplus under the Grant Agreement 730872 from the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation HORIZON 2020.In half-metallic systems, electronic conduction is mediated by a single spin species, offering enormous potential for spintronic devices. Here, using microscopic-area angle-resolved photoemission, we show that a spin-polarised two-dimensional hole gas is naturally realised in the polar magnetic semiconductor AgCrSe2 by an intrinsic self-doping at its CrSe2-terminated surface. Through comparison with first-principles calculations, we unveil a striking role of spin-orbit coupling for the surface hole gas, unlocked by both bulk and surface inversion symmetry breaking, suggesting routes for stabilising complex magnetic textures in the surface layer of AgCrSe2.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Gene Expression Profile Identifies Tyrosine Kinase c-Met as a Targetable Mediator of Antiangiogenic Therapy Resistance

PURPOSE: To identify mediators of glioblastoma anti-angiogenic therapy resistance and target these mediators in xenografts. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: We performed microarray analysis comparing bevacizumab-resistant glioblastomas (BRGs) to pre-treatment tumors from the same patients. We established novel xenograft models of anti-angiogenic therapy resistance to target candidate resistance mediator(s). RESULTS: BRG microarray analysis revealed upregulation versus pre-treatment of receptor tyrosine kinase c-Met, which underwent further investigation because of its prior biologic plausibility as a bevacizumab resistance mediator. BRGs exhibited increased hypoxia versus pre-treatment in a manner correlating with their c-Met upregulation, increased c-Met phosphorylation, and increased phosphorylation of c-Met-activated focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and STAT3. We developed two novel xenograft models of anti-angiogenic therapy resistance. In the first model, serial bevacizumab treatment of an initially responsive xenograft generated a xenograft with acquired bevacizumab resistance, which exhibited upregulated c-Met expression versus pre-treatment. In the second model, a BRG-derived xenograft maintained refractoriness to the MRI tumor vasculature alterations and survival-promoting effects of bevacizumab. Growth of this BRG-derived xenograft was inhibited by a c-Met inhibitor. Transducing these xenograft cells with c-Met shRNA inhibited their invasion and survival in hypoxia, disrupted their mesenchymal morphology, and converted them from bevacizumab-resistant to bevacizumab-responsive. Engineering bevacizumab-responsive cells to express constitutively active c-Met caused these cells to form bevacizumab-resistant xenografts. CONCLUSION: These findings support the role of c-Met in survival in hypoxia and invasion, features associated with anti-angiogenic therapy resistance; and growth and therapeutic resistance of xenografts resistant to anti-angiogenic therapy. Therapeutically targeting c-Met could prevent or overcome anti-angiogenic therapy resistance

Ancient Origin of the New Developmental Superfamily DANGER

Developmental proteins play a pivotal role in the origin of animal complexity and diversity. We report here the identification of a highly divergent developmental protein superfamily (DANGER), which originated before the emergence of animals (∼850 million years ago) and experienced major expansion-contraction events during metazoan evolution. Sequence analysis demonstrates that DANGER proteins diverged via multiple mechanisms, including amino acid substitution, intron gain and/or loss, and recombination. Divergence for DANGER proteins is substantially greater than for the prototypic member of the superfamily (Mab-21 family) and other developmental protein families (e.g., WNT proteins). DANGER proteins are widely expressed and display species-dependent tissue expression patterns, with many members having roles in development. DANGER1A, which regulates the inositol trisphosphate receptor, promotes the differentiation and outgrowth of neuronal processes. Regulation of development may be a universal function of DANGER family members. This family provides a model system to investigate how rapid protein divergence contributes to morphological complexity