Upper respiratory tract symptoms and salivary immunoglobulin A of elite female gymnasts : a full year longitudinal field study

The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of upper respiratory tract symptoms (URS) in elite female gymnasts during a training season. In addition, we aimed to observe the extent to which salivary immunoglobulin A (sIgA) is associated with URS in these athletes, including potential effects of the season and timing of sample collection. Over one year, 18 elite female gymnasts completed URS and fatigue questionnaires weekly and provided 1 mL of saliva after a minimum 36 h of rest (morning or afternoon) to measure relative sIgA concentration (= mean absolute sIgA value of the week divided by the mean absolute sIgA value of the weeks without URS). Mean weekly URS and mean relative sIgA values per gymnast correlated negatively (r = -0.606, P = 0.022). Most URS were noted in the most fatigued gymnasts (7.4 ± 10.1 vs. 2.5 ± 5.6 (P < 0.001) for ‘normal’ and 2.1 ± 3.7 (P = 0.001) for ‘better than normal’ rested). In spring, relative sIgA was higher compared to autumn (112 ± 55 vs. 89 ± 41%, P < 0.001) and winter (92 ± 35%, P = 0.001), while during summer, relative sIgA appeared higher compared to autumn (110 ± 55 vs. 89 ± 41%, P = 0.016). The interaction effect with timing of sample collection showed higher relative sIgA values in morning samples in spring and summer compared to afternoon samples, with the inverse observed in autumn and winter (F = 3.565, P = 0.014). During a gymnastics season, lower relative sIgA values were linked to higher susceptibility to URS in elite gymnasts. However, relative sIgA values were influenced by season and timing of sample collection and thus should be considered when interpreting sIgA data

REM-associated sleep apnoea: prevalence and clinical significance in the HypnoLaus cohort

This study determined the prevalence of rapid eye movement (REM) related sleep-disordered breathing (REM-SDB) in the general population and investigated the associations of REM-SDB with hypertension, metabolic syndrome, diabetes and depression.Home polysomnography (PSG) recordings (n=2074) from the population-based HypnoLaus Sleep Cohort (48.3% men, 57±11 years old) were analysed. The apnoea-hypopnoea index was measured during REM and non-REM sleep (as REM-AHI and NREM-AHI, respectively). Regression models were used to explore the associations between REM-SDB and hypertension, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and depression in the entire cohort and in subgroups with NREM-AHI &lt;10 events·h &lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; and total AHI &lt;10 events·h &lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; The prevalence of REM-AHI ≥20 events·h &lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; was 40.8% in the entire cohort. An association between increasing REM-AHI and metabolic syndrome was found in the entire cohort and in both the NREM-AHI and AHI subgroups (p-trend=0.014, &lt;0.0001 and 0.015, respectively). An association was also found between REM-AHI ≥20 events·h &lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; and diabetes in both the NREM-AHI &lt;10 events·h &lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; (odds ratio (OR) 3.12 (95% CI 1.35-7.20)) and AHI &lt;10 events·h &lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; (OR 2.92 (95% CI 1.12-7.63)) subgroups. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure were positively associated with REM-AHI ≥20 events·h &lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; REM-SDB is highly prevalent in our middle-to-older age sample and is independently associated with metabolic syndrome and diabetes. These findings suggest that an increase in REM-AHI could be clinically relevant

Preserving ovarian function in patients receiving cyclophosphamide

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68327/2/10.1191_096120399678847335.pd

Evidence of an Antimicrobial-Immunomodulatory Role of Atlantic Salmon Cathelicidins during Infection with Yersinia ruckeri

Cathelicidins are a family of antimicrobial peptides that act as effector molecules of the innate immune system with broad-spectrum antimicrobial properties. These evolutionary conserved cationic host-defence peptides are integral components of the immune response of fish, which are generally believed to rely heavily on innate immune defences to invading pathogens. In this study we showed that Atlantic salmon cathelicidin 1 and 2 (asCATH1 and asCATH2) stimulated peripheral blood leukocytes increasing the transcription of the chemokine interleukin-8. Further, functional differences were identified between the two cathelicidins. In the presence of serum, asCATH1 displayed greatly diminished host haemolytic activity, while the constitutively expressed asCATH2 had no haemolytic activity with or without serum. These findings support our hypothesis that fish cathelicidins exert their primary antimicrobial action at the site of pathogen invasion such as epithelial surfaces. Further, we hypothesise that like their mammalian counterparts in the presence of serum they act as mediators of the innate and adaptive immune response via the release of cytokines thus indirectly protecting against a variety of pathogens. We highlight the importance of this immunomodulatory role from the involvement of asCATHs during an infection with the fish pathogen Yersinia ruckeri. While we were able to demonstrate in vitro that asCATH1 and 2, possessed direct microbicidal activity against the fish pathogen, Vibrio anguillarum, and a common gram negative bacterium, Escherichia coli, little or no bactericidal activity was found against Y. ruckeri. The contribution of either asCATH in the immune response or as a potential virulence factor during yersiniosis is highlighted from the increased expression of asCATH1 and 2 mRNA during an in vivo challenge with Y. ruckeri . We propose that Atlantic salmon cathelicidins participate in the interplay between the innate and adaptive immune systems via the release of cytokines enabling a more effective response to invading pathogens

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) : Investigating care practices pointed out to disparities in diagnosis and treatment across European Union

ME/CFS is a chronic, complex, multisystem disease that often limits the health and functioning of the affected patients. Diagnosing patients with ME/CFS is a challenge, and many different case definitions exist and are used in clinical practice and research. Even after diagnosis, medical treatment is very challenging. Symptom relief and coping may affect how patients live with their disease and their quality of life. There is no consensus on which diagnostic criteria should be used and which treatment strategies can be recommended for patients. The purpose of the current project was to map the landscape of the Euromene countries in respect of national guidelines and recommendations for case definition, diagnosis and clinical approaches for ME/CFS patients. A 23 items questionnaire was sent out by email to the members of Euromene. The form contained questions on existing guidelines for case definitions, treatment/management of the disease, tests and questionnaires applied, and the prioritization of information for data sampling in research. We obtained information from 17 countries. Five countries reported having national guidelines for diagnosis, and five countries reported having guidelines for clinical approaches. For diagnostic purposes, the Fukuda criteria were most often recommended, and also the Canadian Consensus criteria, the International Consensus Criteria and the Oxford criteria were used. A mix of diagnostic criteria was applied within those countries having no guidelines. Many different questionnaires and tests were used for symptom registration and diagnostic investigation. For symptom relief, pain and anti-depressive medication were most often recommended. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Graded Exercise treatment were often recommended as disease management and rehabilitative/palliative strategies. The lack of consistency in recommendations across European countries urges the development of regulations, guidance and standards. The results of this study will contribute to the harmonization of diagnostic criteria and treatment for ME/CFS in Europe

Optimizing thermal processes of conduction heated foods: generalized equation for optimal processing temperatures

Optimal sterilization temperatures, for maximum surface quality retention, were calculated as a function of : (I)product propertles (thermal diffusivity and z.value) (II) processlng conditions Igeometry and dlmensions of the food, surface heat transfer coefficient, initial product temperature and retort come up time) and z-value (III) processing criteria (target- Fo.value). From this theoretical study generalized empirical relations relating optimal temperatures and all relevant variables were formulated and presented. Applications in classical canning are lllustrated in detail

Critical evaluation of commonly used objective functions to optimize overall quality and nutrient retention of heat-preserved foods

Two objective functions—volume average retention and volume average cook-value—commonly used to optimize the overall quality and nutrient retention of heat-preserved foods, were studied and optimal processing conditions based on the two approaches were compared. Case studies from the literature were run and tested for the two objective functions. The influence of the decimal reduction time (at the reference temperature, Dref value) of the quality factor on the optimal processing temperature was evaluated. For high Dref values, e.g. for vitamins, the two objective functions give the same results and the Dref value has a minor influence on the optimum processing conditions. For low Dref values, such as for texture and colour, the optimal sterilization temperature is affected by this parameter and the use of volume average cook-value, as objective function, does not take this effect into account, which may result in underestimation of the optimal processing temperature

Generalized (semi)-empirical formulae for optimal sterilization temperatures of conduction-heated foods with infinite surface heat transfer coefficients

A computer program was developed to model heat sterilization of one-dimensional conduction-heated foods with negligible surface resistance to heat transfer. The optimal sterilization temperature, defined as the processing temperature that results in a food product with minimum surface cook-value after achieving the desired degree of sterility, was calculated as a function of food properties (thermal diffusivity, Z-value of the quality factor), processing conditions (dimensions and geometry of the food or container, initial temperature of the product, heating medium come-up-time) and processing criteria (target F0-value). The initial temperature of the food and the heating medium come-up-time have a minor effect on the optimal temperature. Generalized (semi)-empirical formulae relating optimal sterilization temperatures and all relevant variables were developed

Analysis of the Inactivation Kinetics of Freeze-dried alpha-Amylase from Bacillus amyloliquefaciens at Different Moisture Contents

The thermal inactivation kinetics of freeze-dried α-amylase in a solid matrix was studied at water contents ranging from 1.5 to 23.9 g waterper100 g dry solid. These conditions were obtained by equilibration in dry environments, with water activities ranging between 0.11 and 0.88. Isothermal inactivation experiments in the range 135 to 150 °C were performed. Results were analysed with both the Bigelow and Arrhenius models. It was concluded that there was no statistical significance to suggest that the water content influenced the kinetic parameters. An activation energy of 128 kJ/mol and pre-exponential factor with a logarithm of 33.9 described all the results well