Effects of textured compression socks on postural control in physically active elderly individuals

The aim of this investigation was to analyze the role of textured compression socks on somatosensory function in a sample of physically active elderly individuals when performing a static balancing task. Both textured insoles and athletic tape are deemed to be beneficial for enhancing proprioception because of the capacity for exploiting availability of “sensorimotor system noise”, which enhances movement control and individuals’ joint position perception. It was hypothesized that the compression feature in knee length socks would provide greater stimulation to lower leg mechanoreceptors, and help participants achieve better balance control. Participants (N=8) performed a 30-s Romberg static balance test protocol under three conditions (barefoot; wearing commercial socks; wearing textured compression socks), in a counterbalanced order, with four levels of performance difficulty: (1) standing on a stable surface with open eyes (SO); (2) a stable surface with closed eyes (SC); (3) a foam surface with open eyes (FO); and (4) a foam surface with closed eyes (FC). Two commonly investigated recurrence quantification analysis (RQA) measures (% Det and entropy) were extracted from the recurrence plot for multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). There were no significant interactions between the levels of performance difficulty and the sock treatments, p> 0.05 for both % Det and entropy in both Anterior-posterior (AP) and medial-lateral (ML) directions. There was no significant main effect of sock treatments, P> 0.05). However, a main effect for performance difficulty on % Det and entropy was observed in both AP and ML directions. The RQA measures demonstrated that the sensory systems in elderly individuals are able to aid the adaptive re-organization of postural behaviour in response to changing task constraints (performance difficulty levels)

Ground-state electric quadrupole moment of 31Al

Ground-state electric quadrupole moment of 31Al (I =5/2+, T_1/2 = 644(25) ms) has been measured by means of the beta-NMR spectroscopy using a spin-polarized 31Al beam produced in the projectile fragmentation reaction. The obtained Q moment, |Q_exp(31Al)| = 112(32)emb, are in agreement with conventional shell model calculations within the sd valence space. Previous result on the magnetic moment also supports the validity of the sd model in this isotope, and thus it is concluded that 31Al is located outside of the island of inversion.Comment: 5 page

Preformed lymphocytotoxic antibodies: The effects of class, titer and specificity on liver vs. heart allografts

The effect on liver and heart allograft survival (ACI rats to Lewis rats) was studied after three methods of recipient presensitization and after different intervals between sensitization and transplantation. With comparable lymphocytotoxic antibody titers, liver allografts always survived longer than heart grafts. The titer, class and specificity of the antibodies varied with the method of sensitization. Four skin grafts produced IgG and IgM lymphocytotoxic antibody titers of 1:2,000 to 4,000. The IgG fraction was shown to have hepatic vascular endothelial specificity by indirect immunofluorescence. These primed recipients hyperacutely rejected both heart and liver allografts, which showed vascular deposition of IgG antibodies. Survival of either kind of graft was inversely proportional to the lymphocytotoxic antibody titer and length of time after placement of the last skin graft. Presensitization with a single heterotopic heart graft produced an even higher mixed IgG and IgM lymphocytotoxic antibody titer of 1:8,000 but with less IgG vascular endothelial specificity. These animals also hyperacutely rejected heart or liver grafts with tissue deposition of IgG but less consistently and with a weaker correlation with lymphocytotoxic antibody titers and time after sensitization. Sensitization with two pretransplant blood transfusions produced the lowest titer (1:500 to 1,000) and the least IgG vascular endothelial specificity. Liver allograft survival was routinely enhanced in these animals, and little effect was seen on heart grafts. Collectively, the experiments showed that the liver is not only resistant to antibody‐mediated rejection relative to the heart but is more easily enhanced. A more precise characterization of preformed antibodies may increase the ability to predict the outcome of liver transplantation in sensitized recipients or guide pretransplant strategies to foster enhancing antibodies. Copyright © 1992 American Association for the Study of Liver Disease

Long-lived neutral-kaon flux measurement for the KOTO experiment

The KOTO ($K^0$ at Tokai) experiment aims to observe the CP-violating rare decay $K_L \rightarrow \pi^0 \nu \bar{\nu}$ by using a long-lived neutral-kaon beam produced by the 30 GeV proton beam at the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex. The $K_L$ flux is an essential parameter for the measurement of the branching fraction. Three $K_L$ neutral decay modes, $K_L \rightarrow 3\pi^0$, $K_L \rightarrow 2\pi^0$, and $K_L \rightarrow 2\gamma$ were used to measure the $K_L$ flux in the beam line in the 2013 KOTO engineering run. A Monte Carlo simulation was used to estimate the detector acceptance for these decays. Agreement was found between the simulation model and the experimental data, and the remaining systematic uncertainty was estimated at the 1.4\% level. The $K_L$ flux was measured as $(4.183 \pm 0.017_{\mathrm{stat.}} \pm 0.059_{\mathrm{sys.}}) \times 10^7$ $K_L$ per $2\times 10^{14}$ protons on a 66-mm-long Au target.Comment: 27 pages, 16 figures. To be appeared in Progress of Theoretical and Experimental Physic

Influence of FK 506 (tacrolimus) on circulating CD4 ⁺ t cells expressing cd25 and cd45ra antigens in 19 patients with chronic progressive multiple sclerosis participating in an open label drug safety trial

We have taken the opportunity of a clinical trial of the potential efficacy and safety of FK 506 (tacrolimus) in chronic progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) to examine the influence of this potent new immunosuppressant on circulating T-lymphocytes in an otherwise healthy non-transplant population. Peripheral blood levels of subsets of CD4+ T lymphocytes expressing the activation molecule interleukin-2 receptor (p55 α chain; CD25) or the CD45RA isoform were determined sequentially in 19 patients that were treated continuously with oral FK 506 (starting dose 0.15 mg/kg/day) for 12 months. No significant change in the proportion of circulating CD25 + CD4+ cells was observed over the study period in which the mean trough plasma FK 506 level rose from 0.3 ±0.2 to 0.5 ±0.4 ng/ml. There was also no significant effect of FK 506 on the percentage of CD45RA + CD4 + cells in the peripheral blood at 12 months compared with pretreatment values. Analysis of a subgroup of 7 patients, who showed a sustained reduction in CD25 + CD4+ cells and a reciprocal increase in CD45RA* CD4 * cells for at least 6 months after start of treatment, did not reveal any difference in disability at one year compared with the treatment group as a whole. The side effects of FK 506 were mild and the overall degree of disability estimated by the mean Kurtzke expanded disability status scale (EDSS) score or the ambulation index did not deteriorate significantly in the 19 patients studied over the 12 months of FK 506 administration. © 1994 Informa UK Ltd All rights reserved: reproduction in whole or part not permitted

Evidence of metallic clustering in annealed Ga1-xMnxAs from atypical scaling behavior of the anomalous Hall coefficient

We report on the anomalous Hall coefficient and longitudinal resistivity scaling relationships on a series of annealed Ga1-xMnxAs epilayers (x~0.055). As-grown samples exhibit scaling parameter n of ~ 1. Near the optimal annealing temperature, we find n ~ 2 to be consistent with recent theories on the intrinsic origins of anomalous Hall Effect in Ga1-xMnxAs. For annealing temperatures far above the optimum, we note n > 3, similar behavior to certain inhomogeneous systems. This observation of atypical behavior agrees well with characteristic features attributable to spherical resonance from metallic inclusions from optical spectroscopy measurements.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figure