Dietary Intakes of Elite 14 - 19 Year Old English Academy Rugby Players During a Pre-Season Training Period.

Good nutrition is essential for the physical development of adolescent athletes, however data on dietary intakes of adolescent rugby players are lacking. This study quantified and evaluated dietary intake in 87 elite male English academy rugby league (RL) and rugby union (RU) players by age (under-16 (U16) and under-19 (U19) years old) and code (RL and RU). Relationships of intakes with body mass and composition (sum of 8 skinfolds) were also investigated. Using 4-day diet and physical activity diaries, dietary intake was compared to adolescent sports nutrition recommendations and the UK national food guide. Dietary intake did not differ by code, whereas U19s consumed greater energy (3366 ± 658 vs. 2995 ± 774 kcal.day-1), protein (207 ± 49 vs. 150 ± 53 g.day-1) and fluid (4221 ± 1323 vs. 3137 ± 1015 ml.day-1) than U16s. U19s consumed a better quality diet than U16s (greater intakes of fruit and vegetables; 4.4 ± 1.9 vs. 2.8 ± 1.5 servings.day-1; non-dairy proteins; 3.9 ± 1.1 vs. 2.9 ± 1.1 servings.day-1) and less fats and sugars (2.0 ± 1. vs. 93.6 ± 2.1 servings.day-1). Protein intake vs. body mass was moderate (r = 0.46, p < 0.001), and other relationships were weak. The findings of this study suggest adolescent rugby players consume adequate dietary intakes in relation to current guidelines for energy, macronutrient and fluid intake. Players should improve the quality of their diet by replacing intakes from the fats and sugars food group with healthier choices, while maintaining current energy, and macronutrient intakes

Measuring attitude towards Buddhism and Sikhism : internal consistency reliability for two new instruments

This paper describes and discusses the development and empirical properties of two new 24-item scales – one measuring attitude toward Buddhism and the other measuring attitude toward Sikhism. The scale is designed to facilitate inter-faith comparisons within the psychology of religion alongside the well-established Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity. Data were obtained from a multi-religious sample of 369 school pupils aged between 13 and 15 in London. Application of the two scales demonstrated that adolescents had a more positive attitude to Buddhism than Sikhism. The findings confirm the reliability of the scales and commend them for further use

Human visceral nociception: findings from translational studies in human tissue.

Peripheral sensitization of nociceptors during disease has long been recognized as a leading cause of inflammatory pain. However, a growing body of data generated over the last decade has led to the increased understanding that peripheral sensitization is also an important mechanism driving abdominal pain in highly prevalent functional bowel disorders, in particular, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). As such, the development of drugs that target pain-sensing nerves innervating the bowel has the potential to be a successful analgesic strategy for the treatment of abdominal pain in both organic and functional gastrointestinal diseases. Despite the success of recent peripherally restricted approaches for the treatment of IBS, not all drugs that have shown efficacy in animal models of visceral pain have reduced pain end points in clinical trials of IBS patients, suggesting innate differences in the mechanisms of pain processing between rodents and humans and, in particular, how we model disease states. To address this gap in our understanding of peripheral nociception from the viscera and the body in general, several groups have developed experimental systems to study nociception in isolated human tissue and neurons, the findings of which we discuss in this review. Studies of human tissue identify a repertoire of human primary afferent subtypes comparable to rodent models including a nociceptor population, the targeting of which will shape future analgesic development efforts. Detailed mechanistic studies in human sensory neurons combined with unbiased RNA-sequencing approaches have revealed fundamental differences in not only receptor/channel expression but also peripheral pain pathways.Non

KNDy neurone activation prior to the LH surge of the ewe is disrupted by LPS

In the ewe, steroid hormones act on the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC) to initiate the GnRH/LH surge. Within the ARC, steroid signal transduction may be mediated by estrogen receptive dopamine-, β-endorphin- or neuropeptide Y (NPY)-expressing cells, as well as those co-localising kisspeptin, neurokinin B (NKB) and dynorphin (termed KNDy). We investigated the time during the follicular phase when these cells become activated (i.e., co-localise c-Fos) relative to the timing of the LH surge onset and may therefore be involved in the surge generating mechanism. Furthermore, we aimed to elucidate whether these activation patterns are altered after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administration, which is known to inhibit the LH surge. Follicular phases of ewes were synchronised by progesterone withdrawal and blood samples were collected every 2 h. Hypothalamic tissue was retrieved at various times during the follicular phase with or without the administration of LPS (100 ng/kg). The percentage of activated dopamine cells decreased before the onset of sexual behaviour, whereas activation of β-endorphin decreased and NPY activation tended to increase during the LH surge. These patterns were not disturbed by LPS administration. Maximal co-expression of c-Fos in dynorphin immunoreactive neurons was observed earlier during the follicular phase, compared to kisspeptin and NKB, which were maximally activated during the surge. This indicates a distinct role for ARC dynorphin in the LH surge generation mechanism. Acute LPS decreased the percentage of activated dynorphin and kisspeptin immunoreactive cells. Thus, in the ovary-intact ewe, KNDy neurones are activated prior to the LH surge onset and this pattern is inhibited by the administration of LPS

A case report of lameness in two dairy goat herds: a suspected combination of nutritional factors concurrent with treponeme infection

Background: Two dairy goat farms with high level of lameness in lactating animals were presented for further investigation. Farm 1 and Farm 2 presented with 37 and 67 % morbidity, respectively. Both farms had an all year round indoor system, feeding ad libitum concentrate with forage available at all times. Case presentation: The lameness was found to be based in the foot. Previous treatments consisting of biweekly footbathing with zinc sulphate, spraying lesions with oxytetracycline spray and packing lesions with copper crystals on a single occasion and single injections with long acting oxytetracycline had not been successful. Mild cases had signs of haemorrhaging in the white line or on the sole of the foot. Moderate cases showed under running of the wall horn or small areas of exposed sole corium. Severe cases would consist of horn or wall separation with the corium exposed and infected. In extreme cases only the wall horn of the claw remained, with a large area of necrotic tissue in the centre and no healthy corium visible. Only one animal was seen to have interdigital lesions. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and culture of swabs taken from exposed corium and the interdigital space were negative for Dichelobacter nodosus but PCR for treponemes were positive in both the adults and the youngstock tested. Due to the high level of concentrate in the diet of these goats, nutrition was thought to contribute to the problem. Transcutaneous rumen fluid samples were taken and pH was measured on both farms, with 35 % of the samples below pH value 5.5. Conclusion: No definite diagnosis could be made. However, the results suggest both treponemes and nutrition play a role in the aetiology of the lameness. The initial sole or wall horn lesions were thought to be secondarily infected by treponemes. Further investigation is needed to definitively diagnose the cause and contributing factors for this lamenes

Activation of Cells Containing Estrogen Receptor Alpha or Somatostatin in the Medial Preoptic Area, Arcuate Nucleus, and Ventromedial Nucleus of Intact Ewes During the Follicular Phase, and Alteration after Lipopolysaccharide

Cells in the medial preoptic area (mPOA), arcuate nucleus (ARC), and ventromedial nucleus (VMN) that possess estrogen receptor alpha (ER alpha) mediate estradiol feedback to regulate endocrine and behavioral events during the estrous cycle. A percentage of ER alpha cells located in the ARC and VMN express somatostatin (SST) and are activated in response to estradiol. The aims of the present study were to investigate the location of c-Fos, a marker for activation, in cells containing ER alpha or SST at various times during the follicular phase and to determine whether lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administration, which leads to disruption of the luteinizing hormone (LH) surge, is accompanied by altered ER alpha and/or SST activation patterns. Follicular phases were synchronized with progesterone vaginal pessaries, and control animals were killed at 0, 16, 31, and 40 h (n = 4–6/group) after progesterone withdrawal (PW [time 0]). At 28 h, other animals received LPS (100 ng/kg) and were subsequently killed at 31 h or 40 h (n = 5/group). Hypothalamic sections were immunostained for c-Fos and ER alpha or SST. LH surges occurred only in control ewes with onset at 36.7 ± 1.3 h after PW; these animals had a marked increase in the percentage of ER alpha cells that colocalized c-Fos (%ER alpha/c-Fos) in the ARC and mPOA from 31 h after PW and throughout the LH surge. In the VMN, %ER alpha/c-Fos was higher in animals that expressed sexual behavior than in those that did not. SST cell activation in the ARC and VMN was greater during the LH surge than in other stages in the follicular phase. At 31 or 40 h after PW (i.e., 3 or 12 h after treatment, respectively), LPS decreased %ER alpha/c-Fos in the ARC and the mPOA, but there was no change in the VMN compared to that in controls. The %SST/c-Fos increased in the VMN at 31 h after PW (i.e., 3 h after LPS) with no change in the ARC compared to controls. These results indicate that there is a distinct temporal pattern of ER alpha cell activation in the hypothalamus during the follicular phase, which begins in the ARC and mPOA at least 6–7 h before the LH surge onset and extends to the VMN after the onset of sexual behavior and LH surge. Furthermore, during the surge, some of these ER alpha-activated cells may be SST-secreting cells. This pattern is markedly altered by LPS administered during the late follicular phase, indicating that the disruptive effects of this stressor are mediated by suppressing ER alpha cell activation at the level of the mPOA and ARC and enhancing SST cell activation in the VMN, leading to the attenuation of the LH surge

Kisspeptin, c-Fos and CRFR type 2 expression in the preoptic area and mediobasal hypothalamus during the follicular phase of intact ewes, and alteration after LPS

Increasing estradiol concentrations during the late follicular phase stimulate sexual behavior and the GnRH/LH surge, and it is known that kisspeptin signaling is essential for the latter. Administration of LPS can block these events, but the mechanism involved is unclear. We examined brain tissue from intact ewes to determine: i) which regions are activated with respect to sexual behavior, the LH surge and LPS administration, ii) the location and activation pattern of kisspeptin cells in control and LPS treated animals, and iii) whether CRFR type 2 is involved in such disruptive mechanisms. Follicular phases were synchronized with progesterone vaginal pessaries and control animals were killed at 0 h, 16 h, 31 h or 40 h (n = 4–6/group) after progesterone withdrawal (time zero). At 28 h, other animals received endotoxin (LPS; 100 ng/kg) and were subsequently killed at 31 h or 40 h (n = 5/group). LH surges only occurred in control ewes, during which there was a marked increase in c-Fos expression within the ventromedial nucleus (VMN), arcuate nucleus (ARC), and medial preoptic area (mPOA), as well as an increase in the percentage of kisspeptin cells co-expressing c-Fos in the ARC and mPOA compared to animals sacrificed at all other times. Expression of c-Fos also increased in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) in animals just before the expected onset of sexual behavior. However, LPS treatment increased c-Fos expression within the VMN, ARC, mPOA and diagonal band of broca (dBb), along with CRFR type 2 immunoreactivity in the lower part of the ARC and median eminence (ME), compared to controls. Furthermore, the percentage of kisspeptin cells co-expressing c-Fos was lower in the ARC and mPOA. Thus, we hypothesize that in intact ewes, the BNST is involved in the initiation of sexual behavior while the VMN, ARC, and mPOA as well as kisspeptin cells located in the latter two areas are involved in estradiol positive feedback only during the LH surge. By contrast, disruption of sexual behavior and the LH surge after LPS involves cells located in the VMN, ARC, mPOA and dBb, as well as cells containing CRFR type 2 in the lower part of the ARC and ME, and is accompanied by inhibition of kisspeptin cell activation in both the ARC and mPOA