Faster and slower posttraining recovery in futsal: Multifactorial classification of recovery profiles

© 2019 Human Kinetics, Inc. Purpose: To investigate the existence of faster vs slower recovery profiles in futsal and factors distinguishing them. Methods: 22 male futsal players were evaluated in countermovement jump, 10-m sprint, creatine kinase, total quality of recovery (TQR), and Brunel Mood Scale (fatigue and vigor) before and immediately and 3, 24, and 48 h posttraining. Hierarchical cluster analysis allocated players to different recovery profiles using the area under the curve (AUC) of the percentage differences from baseline. One-way ANOVA compared the time course of each variable and players’ characteristics between clusters. Results: Three clusters were identified and labeled faster recovery (FR), slower physiological recovery (SLphy), and slower perceptual recovery (SLperc). FR presented better AUC in 10-m sprint than SLphy (P = .001) and SLperc (P = .008), as well as better TQR SLphy (P = .018) and SLperc (P = .026). SLperc showed better AUC in countermovement jump than SLphy (P = .014) but presented worse fatigue AUC than SLphy (P = .014) and FR (P = .008). AUC of creatine kinase was worse in SLphy than in FR (P = .001) and SLperc (P < .001). The SLphy players were younger than SLperc players (P = .027), whereas FR were slower 10-m sprinters than SLphy players (P = .003) and SLperc (P = .013) and tended to have higher maximal oxygen consumption than SLphy (effect size = 1.13). Conclusion: Different posttraining recovery profiles exist in futsal players, possibly influenced by their physical abilities and age/experience

Preseason Training Improves Perception of Fatigue and Recovery From a Futsal Training Session.

Purpose: To compare the posttraining recovery timeline of elite Brazilian futsal athletes before (Pre-PS) and after 10 weeks of the preseason (Post-PS) period of high-intensity technical–tactical training. Methods: At the start (n = 13) and at the end of the preseason (n = 7), under-20 male futsal players undertook fitness testing for maximal aerobic power, the countermovement jump (CMJ), and the 10-m sprint with change of direction. Furthermore, at both Pre-PS and Post-PS, the players participated in a training session where performance and psychophysiological measures were recorded before, immediately, 3, 24, and 48 hours postsession. The measures included CMJ, 10-m sprint, creatine kinase, Total Quality Recovery Scale, and Brunel Mood Scale. Effect size (ES) analyses compared fitness and posttraining recovery values for each parameter at Pre-PS versus Post-PS. Results: Only trivial ES (−0.02 to 0.11) was evident in maximal aerobic power, CMJ, and 10-m sprint at Post-PS compared with Pre-PS. For the timeline of recovery, only trivial and small ESs were evident for the 10-m sprint (−0.12 to 0.49), though CMJ recovery was improved at 3 hours (0.87) and 48 hours (1.27) at Post-PS and creatine kinase was lower at 48 hours (−1.33) at Post-PS. Perception of recovery was improved in Post-PS at 3 hours (1.50) and 24 hours postsession (0.92). Furthermore, perception of effort was lower immediately after the session (−0.29), fatigue was lower at 3 hours (−0.63), and vigor responses were improved in all postseason assessments (0.59 to 1.13). Conclusion: Despite minimal changes in fitness, preseason training attenuated players' perception of effort and fatigue and improved their recovery profile following a high-intensity technical–tactical training session

Critical mutation rate has an exponential dependence on population size for eukaryotic-length genomes with crossover

The critical mutation rate (CMR) determines the shift between survival-of-the-fittest and survival of individuals with greater mutational robustness (“flattest”). We identify an inverse relationship between CMR and sequence length in an in silico system with a two-peak fitness landscape; CMR decreases to no more than five orders of magnitude above estimates of eukaryotic per base mutation rate. We confirm the CMR reduces exponentially at low population sizes, irrespective of peak radius and distance, and increases with the number of genetic crossovers. We also identify an inverse relationship between CMR and the number of genes, confirming that, for a similar number of genes to that for the plant Arabidopsis thaliana (25,000), the CMR is close to its known wild-type mutation rate; mutation rates for additional organisms were also found to be within one order of magnitude of the CMR. This is the first time such a simulation model has been assigned input and produced output within range for a given biological organism. The decrease in CMR with population size previously observed is maintained; there is potential for the model to influence understanding of populations undergoing bottleneck, stress, and conservation strategy for populations near extinction

Performance of the CMS Cathode Strip Chambers with Cosmic Rays

The Cathode Strip Chambers (CSCs) constitute the primary muon tracking device in the CMS endcaps. Their performance has been evaluated using data taken during a cosmic ray run in fall 2008. Measured noise levels are low, with the number of noisy channels well below 1%. Coordinate resolution was measured for all types of chambers, and fall in the range 47 microns to 243 microns. The efficiencies for local charged track triggers, for hit and for segments reconstruction were measured, and are above 99%. The timing resolution per layer is approximately 5 ns

Genetic Control of Mosquitoes: population suppression strategies

Over the last two decades, morbidity and mortality from malaria and dengue fever among other pathogens are an increasing Public Health problem. The increase in the geographic distribution of vectors is accompanied by the emergence of viruses and diseases in new areas. There are insufficient specific therapeutic drugs available and there are no reliable vaccines for malaria or dengue, although some progress has been achieved, there is still a long way between its development and actual field use. Most mosquito control measures have failed to achieve their goals, mostly because of the mosquito's great reproductive capacity and genomic flexibility. Chemical control is increasingly restricted due to potential human toxicity, mortality in no target organisms, insecticide resistance, and other environmental impacts. Other strategies for mosquito control are desperately needed. The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is a species-specific and environmentally benign method for insect population suppression, it is based on mass rearing, radiation mediated sterilization, and release of a large number of male insects. Releasing of Insects carrying a dominant lethal gene (RIDL) offers a solution to many of the drawbacks of traditional SIT that have limited its application in mosquitoes while maintaining its environmentally friendly and species-specific utility. The self-limiting nature of sterile mosquitoes tends to make the issues related to field use of these somewhat less challenging than for self-spreading systems characteristic of population replacement strategies. They also are closer to field use, so might be appropriate to consider first. The prospect of genetic control methods against mosquito vectored human diseases is rapidly becoming a reality, many decisions will need to be made on a national, regional and international level regarding the biosafety, social, cultural and ethical aspects of the use and deployment of these vector control methods

Stimulation of osteogenic differentiation in human osteoprogenitor cells by pulsed electromagnetic fields: an in vitro study

Background: Although pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) stimulation may be clinically beneficial during fracture healing and for a wide range of bone disorders, there is still debate on its working mechanism. Mesenchymal stem cells are likely mediators facilitating the observed clinical effects of PEMF. Here, we performed in vitro experiments to investigate the effect of PEMF stimulation on human bone marrow-derived stromal cell (BMSC) metabolism and, specifically, whether PEMF can stimulate their osteogenic differentiation. Methods: BMSCs derived from four different donors were cultured in osteogenic medium, with the PEMF treated group being continuously exposed to a 15 Hz, 1 Gauss EM field, consisting of 5-millisecond bursts with 5-microsecond pulses. On culture day 1, 5, 9, and 14, cells were collected for biochemical analysis (DNA amount, alkaline phosphatase activity, calcium deposition), expression of various osteoblast-relevant genes and activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling. Differences between treated and control groups were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed rank test, and considered significant when p < 0.05. Results: Biochemical analysis revealed significant, differentiation stage-dependent, PEMF-induced differences: PEMF increased mineralization at day 9 and 14, without altering alkaline phosphatase activity. Cell proliferation, as measured by DNA amounts, was not affected by PEMF until day 14. Here, DNA content stagnated in PEMF treated group, resulting in less DNA compared to control. Quantitative RT-PCR revealed that during early culture, up to day 9, PEMF treatment increased mRNA levels of bone morphogenetic protein 2, transforming growth factor-beta 1, osteoprotegerin, matrix metalloproteinase-1 and-3, osteocalcin, and bone sialoprotein. In contrast, receptor activator of NF-B ligand expression was primarily stimulated on day 14. ERK1/2 phosphorylation was not affected by PEMF stimulation. Conclusions: PEMF exposure of differentiating human BMSCs enhanced mineralization and seemed to induce differentiation at the expense of proliferation. The osteogenic stimulus of PEMF was confirmed by the up-regulation of several osteogenic marker genes in the PEMF treated group, which preceded the deposition of mineral itself. These findings indicate that PEMF can directly stimulate osteoprogenitor cells towards osteogenic differentiation. This supports the theory that PEMF treatment may recruit these cells to facilitate an osteogenic response in vivo. © 2010 Jansen et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Follicular Dendritic Cell-Specific Prion Protein (PrPc) Expression Alone Is Sufficient to Sustain Prion Infection in the Spleen

Prion diseases are characterised by the accumulation of PrPSc, an abnormally folded isoform of the cellular prion protein (PrPC), in affected tissues. Following peripheral exposure high levels of prion-specific PrPSc accumulate first upon follicular dendritic cells (FDC) in lymphoid tissues before spreading to the CNS. Expression of PrPC is mandatory for cells to sustain prion infection and FDC appear to express high levels. However, whether FDC actively replicate prions or simply acquire them from other infected cells is uncertain. In the attempts to-date to establish the role of FDC in prion pathogenesis it was not possible to dissociate the Prnp expression of FDC from that of the nervous system and all other non-haematopoietic lineages. This is important as FDC may simply acquire prions after synthesis by other infected cells. To establish the role of FDC in prion pathogenesis transgenic mice were created in which PrPC expression was specifically “switched on” or “off” only on FDC. We show that PrPC-expression only on FDC is sufficient to sustain prion replication in the spleen. Furthermore, prion replication is blocked in the spleen when PrPC-expression is specifically ablated only on FDC. These data definitively demonstrate that FDC are the essential sites of prion replication in lymphoid tissues. The demonstration that Prnp-ablation only on FDC blocked splenic prion accumulation without apparent consequences for FDC status represents a novel opportunity to prevent neuroinvasion by modulation of PrPC expression on FDC

Short-Term Compassion Training Increases Prosocial Behavior in a Newly Developed Prosocial Game

Compassion has been suggested to be a strong motivator for prosocial behavior. While research has demonstrated that compassion training has positive effects on mood and health, we do not know whether it also leads to increases in prosocial behavior. We addressed this question in two experiments. In Experiment 1, we introduce a new prosocial game, the Zurich Prosocial Game (ZPG), which allows for repeated, ecologically valid assessment of prosocial behavior and is sensitive to the influence of reciprocity, helping cost, and distress cues on helping behavior. Experiment 2 shows that helping behavior in the ZPG increased in participants who had received short-term compassion training, but not in participants who had received short-term memory training. Interindividual differences in practice duration were specifically related to changes in the amount of helping under no-reciprocity conditions. Our results provide first evidence for the positive impact of short-term compassion training on prosocial behavior towards strangers in a training-unrelated task

Acoustic Oddball during NREM Sleep: A Combined EEG/fMRI Study

Background: A condition vital for the consolidation and maintenance of sleep is generally reduced responsiveness to external stimuli. Despite this, the sleeper maintains a level of stimulus processing that allows to respond to potentially dangerous environmental signals. The mechanisms that subserve these contradictory functions are only incompletely understood. Methodology/Principal Findings: Using combined EEG/fMRI we investigated the neural substrate of sleep protection by applying an acoustic oddball paradigm during light NREM sleep. Further, we studied the role of evoked K-complexes (KCs), an electroencephalographic hallmark of NREM sleep with a still unknown role for sleep protection. Our main results were: (1) Other than in wakefulness, rare tones did not induce a blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signal increase in the auditory pathway but a strong negative BOLD response in motor areas and the amygdala. (2) Stratification of rare tones by the presence of evoked KCs detected activation of the auditory cortex, hippocampus, superior and middle frontal gyri and posterior cingulate only for rare tones followed by a KC. (3) The typical high frontocentral EEG deflections of KCs were not paralleled by a BOLD equivalent. Conclusions/Significance: We observed that rare tones lead to transient disengagement of motor and amygdala responses during light NREM sleep. We interpret this as a sleep protective mechanism to delimit motor responses and to reduce the sensitivity of the amygdala towards further incoming stimuli. Evoked KCs are suggested to originate from a brain state wit

Pervasive Sign Epistasis between Conjugative Plasmids and Drug-Resistance Chromosomal Mutations

Multidrug-resistant bacteria arise mostly by the accumulation of plasmids and chromosomal mutations. Typically, these resistant determinants are costly to the bacterial cell. Yet, recently, it has been found that, in Escherichia coli bacterial cells, a mutation conferring resistance to an antibiotic can be advantageous to the bacterial cell if another antibiotic-resistance mutation is already present, a phenomenon called sign epistasis. Here we study the interaction between antibiotic-resistance chromosomal mutations and conjugative (i.e., self-transmissible) plasmids and find many cases of sign epistasis (40%)—including one of reciprocal sign epistasis where the strain carrying both resistance determinants is fitter than the two strains carrying only one of the determinants. This implies that the acquisition of an additional resistance plasmid or of a resistance mutation often increases the fitness of a bacterial strain already resistant to antibiotics. We further show that there is an overall antagonistic interaction between mutations and plasmids (52%). These results further complicate expectations of resistance reversal by interdiction of antibiotic use