Excited and Ionized States of p-Benzoquinone and Its Anion Radical: SAC-CI Theoretical Study

Excited and ionized states of p-benzoquinone (p-BQ) and the ground and excited states of its anion radical were studied by the SAC (symmetry adapted cluster)/SAC-CI (configuration interaction) method. Calculated ionization energies were in good agreement with the experimental ionization spectra, and the ionization peaks up to ca. 20 eV were assigned. The lowest four ionized states were calculated to be n

Voluntary Elbow Extension-Flexion Using Single Joint Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL) for Patients of Spastic Cerebral Palsy: Two Cases Report

Cerebral palsy (CP) patients with spastic diplegia struggle to perform activities of daily life (ADL) using their upper arms. The single-joint-type Hybrid Assistive limb (HAL) for upper limbs is a new portable robot that can provide elbow motion support in accordance with bioelectric activation of patient's biceps and triceps brachii muscles. The purpose of this study is to assess the feasibility and efficacy of the use of HAL for CP patients. Two patients were enrolled in this study. (Case 1: a 19-years-old male, at the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) level IV, Case 2: a 17-years-old male at GMFCS level III). Both these patients experienced difficulty in voluntary elbow extension in ADLs. The HAL intervention (eight sessions; voluntary extension-flexion training of the elbow with HAL and clinical evaluation) was conducted for both sides in Case 1 and for the right side in Case 2. Clinical assessments were conducted as follows: Surface electromyography was used to evaluate the muscle activities of the biceps, triceps brachii, trapezius, and pectoralis major during elbow extension-flexion. The voluntary extension-flexion angles of the elbow, the coactivation index of the biceps and triceps brachii muscles, synergy analysis, and the Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) scores were assessed before and after the HAL sessions; the FIM score was evaluated before and after the entire intervention. In Case 1, the voluntary extension angle tended to increase after the HAL sessions. In both cases, the ARAT scores improved after the sessions. The FIM scores improved after HAL intervention. The voluntary extension-flexion of the elbow using the HAL may be a feasible option for rehabilitation of CP patients

Robot-assisted voluntary initiation reduces control-related difficulties of initiating joint movement: A phenomenal questionnaire study on shaping and compensation of forward gait

金沢大学国際基幹教育部Humans employ various control strategies to initiate and maintain bodily movement. In case that the normal gait function is impaired, exoskeleton robots provide motor assistance during therapy. While the robotic control system builds on kinematic gait functions, the patient’s voluntary efforts to initiate motion also contribute to the effectiveness of the therapy process. However, it is currently not well understood how voluntary initiation as a subjective capacity affects the physiological level of motor control. In order to understand the functional nexus between voluntary initiation and motor control, we interviewed patients undergoing robotic gait rehabilitation with the HAL exoskeleton robot about their experience and command of voluntarily initiating forward gait while using the HAL system. Their reports provide phenomenal evidence for voluntary initiation as a distinct cognitive act that comes as phenomenal performance. Furthermore, phenomenal evidence about the functional relation of intention and initiation correlates with FIM-M gait scores. Based on the assumption that HAL reduces control-related difficulties of voluntarily initiating joint movement, we identified two cognitive control strategies, shaping and compensation of gait, that imply a heterarchic organization of the human system of action control. © 2018 Grüneberg et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Relationship between Response to Interferon Therapy and Detection of Hepatitis C Virus RNA by Differential Flotation Centrifugation

We purified an apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) endonuclease from mouse ascites sarcoma (SR-C3H/He) cells. The enzyme showed nicking activity on acid-depurinated DNA but not on untreated, intact DNA. It also showed priming activity for DNA polymerase on both acid-depurinated and bleomycin-damaged DNA. The priming activity on bleomycin-damaged DNA was two times higher than that on an acid-depurinated DNA. The enzymatic properties indicate that the enzyme is a class II AP endonuclease having DNA 3' repair diesterase activity. The purified enzyme has a molecular weight of 39,000 as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The optimal pH for AP endonuclease activity was 8.0 in 50 mM Tris-HCl buffer. The AP endonuclease activity depended on divalent cation such as Mg2+ and Co2+ ions, and was inhibited by 2 mM EDTA with no addition of the divalent cation. An appropriate concentration of sodium or potassium salt stimulated the activity. Partial digestion of the AP endonuclease with Staphylococcus aureus V8 protease produced 4 major peptide fragments which may be used for protein sequencing.</p

Robotic rehabilitation training with a newly developed upper limb single-joint Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL-SJ) for elbow flexor reconstruction after brachial plexus injury: A report of two cases

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of using the upper limb single-joint Hybrid Assistive Limb (upper limb HAL-SJ) during elbow flexion training following elbow flexor reconstruction for brachial plexus injury (BPI). We present the cases of two patients in whom the upper limb HAL-SJ was implemented 5 and 7 months postoperatively following elbow flexor reconstruction for BPI. They underwent elbow flexor reconstruction with intercostal nerve crossing-to-musculocutaneous nerve (ICN-MCN crossing) after BPI. Postoperative training using the upper limb HAL-SJ was started from the Medical Research Council (MRC) grade 1 elbow flexion power to MRC grade 3 once every week or every 2 weeks. Both patients could implement elbow training using the upper limb HAL-SJ even in MRC grade 1 of their elbow flexion power. Training with the upper limb HAL-SJ was performed safely and effectively in two patients with elbow flexor reconstruction with ICN crossing after BPI

Robot-assisted voluntary initiation reduces control-related difficulties of initiating joint movement: A phenomenal questionnaire study on shaping and compensation of forward gait

Humans employ various control strategies to initiate and maintain bodily movement. In case that the normal gait function is impaired, exoskeleton robots provide motor assistance during therapy. While the robotic control system builds on kinematic gait functions, the patient’s voluntary efforts to initiate motion also contribute to the effectiveness of the therapy process. However, it is currently not well understood how voluntary initiation as a subjective capacity affects the physiological level of motor control. In order to understand the functional nexus between voluntary initiation and motor control, we interviewed patients undergoing robotic gait rehabilitation with the HAL exoskeleton robot about their experience and command of voluntarily initiating forward gait while using the HAL system. Their reports provide phenomenal evidence for voluntary initiation as a distinct cognitive act that comes as phenomenal performance. Furthermore, phenomenal evidence about the functional relation of intention and initiation correlates with FIM-M gait scores. Based on the assumption that HAL reduces control-related difficulties of voluntarily initiating joint movement, we identified two cognitive control strategies, shaping and compensation of gait, that imply a heterarchic organization of the human system of action control