The Role of Pelvic Neurophysiology Testing in the Assessment of Patients with Voiding Dysfunction

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The role of pelvic neurophysiology testing in the evaluation of patients with lower urinary tract (LUT) symptoms is explored in this review. RECENT FINDINGS: Different neurophysiology tests such as sphincter EMG and pudendal somatosensory evoked potentials are useful in evaluating the sacral somatic afferent and efferent innervation. S2 and S3 dermatomal evoked potentials assess individual sacral roots and are feasible to perform using standard neurophysiology machines. SUMMARY: The innervation of the LUT has a substantial contribution from splanchnic and somatic nerves arising from the sacral segments. Pelvic neurophysiology tests, which assess somatic nerve functions, are therefore a useful tool in assessing sacral nerve functions in patients presenting with unexplained voiding dysfunction. In this review, the commonly performed neurophysiology studies that assess the S2, S3 and S4 sacral afferent and efferent pathways are outlined, and their clinical applications reviewed

Selective suppression of local interneuron circuits in human motor cortex contributes to movement preparation.

Changes in neural activity occur in the motor cortex prior to movement, but the nature and purpose of this preparatory activity is unclear. To investigate this in the human (male and female) brain non-invasively, we used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to probe the excitability of distinct sets of excitatory inputs to corticospinal neurones during the warning period of various reaction time tasks. Using two separate methods (H-reflex conditioning and directional effects of TMS), we show that a specific set of excitatory inputs to corticospinal neurones are suppressed during motor preparation, whilst another set of inputs remain unaffected. To probe the behavioural relevance of this suppression, we examined whether the strength of the selective preparatory inhibition in each trial was related to reaction time. Surprisingly, the greater the amount of selective preparatory inhibition, the faster the reaction time was. This suggests that the inhibition of inputs to corticospinal neurones is not involved in preventing release of movement but may in fact facilitate rapid reactions. Thus, selective suppression of a specific set of motor cortical neurones may be a key aspect of successful movement preparation.Significance statementMovement preparation evokes substantial activity in the motor cortex despite no apparent movement. One explanation for the lack of movement is that motor cortical output in this period is gated by an inhibitory mechanism. This notion was supported by previous non-invasive TMS studies of human motor cortex indicating a reduction of corticospinal excitability. On the contrary, our data supports the idea that there is a coordinated balance of activity upstream of the corticospinal output neurones. This includes a suppression of specific local circuits that supports, rather than inhibits, the rapid generation of prepared movements. Thus, the selective suppression of local circuits appears to be an essential part of successful movement preparation, instead of an external control mechanism

Probing bulk viscosity in relativistic flows

We derive an analytical connection between kinetic relaxation rate and bulk viscosity of a relativistic fluid in d spatial dimensions, all the way from the ultra-relativistic down to the near non-relativistic regime. Our derivation is based on both Chapman-Enskog asymptotic expansion and Grad's method of moments. We validate our theoretical results against a benchmark flow, providing further evidence of the correctness of the Chapman-Enskog approach; we define the range of validity of this approach and provide evidence of mounting departures at increasing Knudsen number. Finally, we present numerical simulations of transport processes in quark gluon plasmas, with special focus on the effects of bulk viscosity which might prove amenable to future experimental verification

Evaluating the environmental and economic impact of fruit and vegetable waste valorisation: The lettuce waste study-case

The fruit and vegetable sector generates large amounts of waste, which poses both environmental and economic issues. Different strategies can be applied to valorise fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) by turning it into value-added products. However, the economic and environmental impact of such strategies is largely unknown. In this paper, the environmental and economic impact of FVW valorisation on an industrial scale was evaluated by developing a Decision Support System (DSS). To this aim, the lettuce waste study-case was considered, since different innovative laboratory-scale strategies have been recently proposed for its valorisation. Investment and running costs, energetic demand and yields of lettuce waste valorisation processes were collected based on laboratory tests and industrial surveys. The application of the DSS estimated that if 30% of lettuce waste annually produced by a large company was valorised by using a system configuration that involves not only anaerobic digestion and composting, but also high pressure homogenisation to produce fresh juices, and ultrasound-assisted extraction to produce antioxidant extracts, this configuration would lead to an investment lower than 10 million \u20ac, a 1 year-pay-back time and a 72 tons-reduction of carbon dioxide emissions, thus representing a rational compromise between economic returns and environmental advantage. The developed multi-objective DSS is a valuable tool to identify the most sustainable and investment-worthy processes for the valorisation of FVW

Exploratory pilot study exploring clinical effects of exogenous sustained-release Melatonin on nocturia in Parkinson’s Disease

Introduction: Nocturia is one of the commonest non‐motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Nocturia has evolved from being understood as a symptom of urological disorders or neurogenic bladder dysfunction to being considered as a form of circadian dysregulation. Exogenous melatonin is known to help circadian function and can be an effective strategy for nocturia in PD. Methods: In this open label single‐site exploratory phase 2 pilot study, adults with PD and nocturia underwent assessments using standardised questionnaires, urodynamics studies and a bladder scan. This was followed by completion of a frequency volume charts (FVC) and two weeks sleep diary. Sustained‐release melatonin 2mg was then administered once nightly for six weeks. A repeat assessment using questionnaires, the FVC and sleep diary was performed whilst on treatment with melatonin. Companion or bed partners filled in sleep questionnaires to assess their sleep during the intervention. Results: 20 patients (12 males; mean 68.2 (SD=7.8) years; mean PD duration 8.0 (±5.5) years with PD reporting nocturia were included. Administration of melatonin was associated with a significant reduction in the primary outcome bother related to nocturia measured using the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Nocturia (ICIQ‐N) (p=0.01), number of episodes of nocturia per night (p=0.013) and average urine volume voided at night (p=0.013). No serious adverse events were reported. No significant improvement was noted in bed‐partner sleep scores. Conclusion: In this preliminary open‐label study, administration of sustained‐release melatonin 2mg was found to be safe for clinical use and was associated with significant improvements in night‐time frequency and nocturnal voided volumes in PD patients

Introduction to radar scattering application in remote sensing and diagnostics: Review

The manuscript reviews the current literature on scattering applications of RADAR (Radio Detecting And Ranging) in remote sensing and diagnostics. This paper gives prime features for a variety of RADAR applications ranging from forest and climate monitoring to weather forecast, sea status, planetary information, and mapping of natural disasters such as the ones caused by earthquakes. Both the fundamental parameters involved in scattering mechanisms of RADAR applications and the factors affecting RADAR performances are also discusse

Relativistic dissipation obeys Chapman-Enskog asymptotics: analytical and numerical evidence as a basis for accurate kinetic simulations

We present an analytical derivation of the transport coefficients of a relativistic gas in (2+1) dimensions for both Chapman-Enskog (CE) asymptotics and Grad's expansion methods. Moreover, we develop a systematic calibration method, connecting the relaxation time of relativistic kinetic theory to the transport parameters of the associated dissipative hydrodynamic equations. Comparison between the analytical results and numerical simulations, shows that the CE method correctly captures dissipative effects, while Grad's method does not. The resulting calibration procedure based on the CE method opens the way to the quantitative kinetic description of dissipative relativistic fluid dynamics under fairly general conditions, namely flows with strongly non-linearities, in non-ideal geometries, across both ultra-relativistic and near-non-relativistic regimes

Changes in the Excitability of Corticobulbar Projections Due to Intraoral Cooling with Ice

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of ice applied to the oral cavity on the excitability of corticobulbar projections to the swallowing muscles. The subjects were 8 healthy adult volunteers (mean age 29.0 ± 4.9 years). Motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) were recorded from the suprahyoid muscle complex using surface electrodes. Two blocks of 20 MEPs with a test stimulus intensity of 120% of the resting motor threshold were recorded at rest (baseline). Subjects then underwent 5-min thermal stimulation by either of 3 different types: (1) "ice-stick inside mouth," (2) "ice-stick on neck," and (3) "room temperature inside mouth." Blocks of 20 MEPs were then recorded immediately and at 5-min intervals for the following 15 min. There was a significant difference in the effects of the 3 interventions on the amplitude of the MEPs following stimulation (two-way ANOVA: INTERVENTION × TIME; F8,84 = 3.76, p < 0.01). One-way ANOVA was used to evaluate the changes over time for each intervention type. Only "ice-stick inside mouth" caused an increase in the MEPs (one-way ANOVA main effect of TIME: F4,28 = 4.04, p = 0.010) with significant differences between baseline and P10 (mean difference 0.050; confidence interval (CI) 95% 0.019-0.079; p = 0.004). There were no significant effects of either "ice-stick on neck" or "room temperature inside mouth" (F4,28 = 1.13, p = 0.36; F4,28 = 1.36, p = 0.27, respectively). Ice stimulation within the oral cavity increases the excitability of the cortical swallowing motor pathway

A methodology for the structural and functional analysis of signaling and regulatory networks

BACKGROUND: Structural analysis of cellular interaction networks contributes to a deeper understanding of network-wide interdependencies, causal relationships, and basic functional capabilities. While the structural analysis of metabolic networks is a well-established field, similar methodologies have been scarcely developed and applied to signaling and regulatory networks. RESULTS: We propose formalisms and methods, relying on adapted and partially newly introduced approaches, which facilitate a structural analysis of signaling and regulatory networks with focus on functional aspects. We use two different formalisms to represent and analyze interaction networks: interaction graphs and (logical) interaction hypergraphs. We show that, in interaction graphs, the determination of feedback cycles and of all the signaling paths between any pair of species is equivalent to the computation of elementary modes known from metabolic networks. Knowledge on the set of signaling paths and feedback loops facilitates the computation of intervention strategies and the classification of compounds into activators, inhibitors, ambivalent factors, and non-affecting factors with respect to a certain species. In some cases, qualitative effects induced by perturbations can be unambiguously predicted from the network scheme. Interaction graphs however, are not able to capture AND relationships which do frequently occur in interaction networks. The consequent logical concatenation of all the arcs pointing into a species leads to Boolean networks. For a Boolean representation of cellular interaction networks we propose a formalism based on logical (or signed) interaction hypergraphs, which facilitates in particular a logical steady state analysis (LSSA). LSSA enables studies on the logical processing of signals and the identification of optimal intervention points (targets) in cellular networks. LSSA also reveals network regions whose parametrization and initial states are crucial for the dynamic behavior. We have implemented these methods in our software tool CellNetAnalyzer (successor of FluxAnalyzer) and illustrate their applicability using a logical model of T-Cell receptor signaling providing non-intuitive results regarding feedback loops, essential elements, and (logical) signal processing upon different stimuli. CONCLUSION: The methods and formalisms we propose herein are another step towards the comprehensive functional analysis of cellular interaction networks. Their potential, shown on a realistic T-cell signaling model, makes them a promising tool

A review of wildland fire spread modelling, 1990-present, 1: Physical and quasi-physical models

In recent years, advances in computational power and spatial data analysis (GIS, remote sensing, etc) have led to an increase in attempts to model the spread and behaviour of wildland fires across the landscape. This series of review papers endeavours to critically and comprehensively review all types of surface fire spread models developed since 1990. This paper reviews models of a physical or quasi-physical nature. These models are based on the fundamental chemistry and/or physics of combustion and fire spread. Other papers in the series review models of an empirical or quasi-empirical nature, and mathematical analogues and simulation models. Many models are extensions or refinements of models developed before 1990. Where this is the case, these models are also discussed but much less comprehensively.Comment: 31 pages + 8 pages references + 2 figures + 5 tables. Submitted to International Journal of Wildland Fir