CHANGE IN SPATIOTEMPORAL CYCLE VARIABLES & MUSCLE ACTIVATION DURING CtASSlC ROLLER SKI DOUBLE POLING TECHNIQUE

The purpose of the study was to assess the effects of distance covered while roller skiing using the double poling technique. Five national team members and college elite cross-country skiers were chosen to participate in this study. EMG system and digital camcorder were used to measure spatiotemporal cycle variables, muscular fatigue, and activation patterns. There were no significant differences on cycle variables. However, the result shows accumulation of fatigue and decrease of muscle activation on triceps brachii and tibialis anterior muscles across skiing distance

Combined Treatment of an Intratumoral Injection of Dendritic Cells and Systemic Chemotherapy (Paclitaxel) for Murine Fibrosarcoma

A novel combined treatment of conventional chemotherapy with an intratumoral injection of syngeneic dendritic cells (DCs) has emerged as a potent cancer treatment strategy. In this study, we evaluated the synergistic effect of an intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of a chemotherapeutic drug, paclitaxel, and an intratumoral (i.t.) injection of syngeneic bone marrow-derived DCs for the treatment of pre-existing fibrosarcoma. Subcutaneous tumors were established using MCA102 fibrosarcoma cells in syngeneic C57BL/6 mice. The results demonstrated that the combined treatment of paclitaxel chemotherapy and the injection of DCs led to complete tumor regression, in contrast to only partial eradication of the tumors with chemotherapy or DCs alone. Furthermore, the tumor-free mice were able to resist a repeat challenge with the same type of tumor. These findings suggest that a combination therapy of systemic chemotherapy along with the intratumoral administration of DCs is a potent treatment strategy for fibrosarcoma

Radical scavenging activitybased and AP-1-targeted anti-inflammatory effects of lutein in macrophage-like and skin keratinocytic cells,”

Lutein is a naturally occurring carotenoid with antioxidative, antitumorigenic, antiangiogenic, photoprotective, hepatoprotective, and neuroprotective properties. Although the anti-inflammatory effects of lutein have previously been described, the mechanism of its anti-inflammatory action has not been fully elucidated. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed to investigate the regulatory activity of lutein in the inflammatory responses of skin-derived keratinocytes or macrophages and to elucidate the mechanism of its inhibitory action. Lutein significantly reduced several skin inflammatory responses, including increased expression of interleukin-(IL-) 6 from LPS-treated macrophages, upregulation of cyclooxygenase-(COX-) 2 from interferon-/tumor necrosis-factor-(TNF-) -treated HaCaT cells, and the enhancement of matrix-metallopeptidase-(MMP-) 9 level in UV-irradiated keratinocytes. By evaluating the intracellular signaling pathway and the nuclear transcription factor levels, we determined that lutein inhibited the activation of redox-sensitive AP-1 pathway by suppressing the activation of p38 and c-Jun-N-terminal kinase (JNK). Evaluation of the radical and ROS scavenging activities further revealed that lutein was able to act as a strong anti-oxidant. Taken together, our findings strongly suggest that lutein-mediated AP-1 suppression and anti-inflammatory activity are the result of its strong antioxidative and p38/JNK inhibitory activities. These findings can be applied for the preparation of anti-inflammatory and cosmetic remedies for inflammatory diseases of the skin

Treatment Outcomes with CHOP Chemotherapy in Adult Patients with Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis

The objective of the current study was to investigate the treatment outcomes for the use of cyclophosphamide, adriamycin, vincristine, and prednisolone (CHOP) chemotherapy in adult patients with hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). Seventeen HLH patients older than 18 yr of age were treated with CHOP chemotherapy. A response evaluation was conducted for every two cycles of chemotherapy. With CHOP chemotherapy, complete response was achieved for 7/17 patients (41.2%), a partial response for 3/17 patients (17.6%), and the overall response rate was 58.8%. The median response duration (RD) was not reached and the 2-yr RD rate was 68.6%, with a median follow-up of 100 weeks. Median overall survival (OS) was 18 weeks (95% CI, 6-30 weeks) and the 2-yr OS rate was 43.9%. Reported grade 3 or 4 non-hematological toxicities were increased serum liver enzyme levels and stomatitis. Grade 3 or 4 hematological toxicities were leukopenia (50.8%), anemia (20%), and thrombocytopenia (33.9%). Neutropenic fever was observed in 21.6% of patients (14/65 cycles), and most of the cases were resolved with supportive care including treatment with broad-spectrum antibiotics. CHOP chemotherapy seems to be effective in adult HLH patients and the toxicities are manageable

Effects of gamma irradiation on the electrical characteristics of trench-gate non-punch-through insulated gate bipolar transistor

We studied the effects of gamma-ray irradiation on the static and dynamic electrical characteristics of a trench-gate non-punch-through insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) device. The threshold voltage and breakdown voltage decreased after irradiation, whereas the collector leakage current increased. Turn-on and turn-off switching times decreased and increased, respectively, with the irradiation dose. The irradiation-induced changes in the electrical characteristics can be attributed to the buildup of the positive oxide-trapped charges in the gate oxide by gamma irradiation. The evaluated characteristics data were compared with the data for gamma-irradiated planar-gate IGBTs reported in the literature. It was found that a significant degradation occurred in the shift of the threshold voltage and switching times for trench-gate IGBTs

Deposition characterization of high-manganese (13Mn) steel built via directed energy deposition and its wear behavior

High-manganese steel (HMS) has high work-hardening and impact toughness as well as excellent wear resistance. In this study, directed energy deposition (DED) was employed to deposit HMS onto the surface of Inconel 718. The deposition characteristics were analyzed according to laser power and powder feed rate. From the results, the lowest amount of pores and lack of fusion were observed when the laser power was 1050 W and the powder feed rate was 4 g/min. In the first layer of the deposited HMS, the Laves phase was formed due to fusion with Inconel 718, while the hardness rapidly decreased to 250 HV because of the low hardness of the Fe–Ni phase. A wear test was conducted according to different loads and RPMs using the ball-on-disc method, with the results indicating that a higher load led to a lower wear rate. When the wear load was high, the surface hardness increased after the wear test, and surface severe plastic deformation (SSPD) thickened. Such phenomena occurred because the grains near the surface underwent refinement and the dislocation density increased as the load increased. An oxide layer was generated on the surface at 300 RPM, but no oxide layer was formed at 100 RPM. As an oxide layer was not formed, the wear rate was the highest at 100 RPM due to direct contact between the ball and matrix. This study demonstrates the industrial applicability of surface coating using HMS as a powder for maximizing wear resistance