THE INTERRELATIONSHIP OF JOINT STIFFNESS IN DROP JUMP UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS: A SINGLE-SUBJECT DESIGN

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between leg stiffness and joint stiffness in the various conditions of drop jump. A women’s athlete was recruited as the subject and asked to perform drop jump from different height of box to another box in different horizontal distance between them. The leg stiffness is influenced on the contact time and relates to knee and ankle joint stiffness. The change in leg length is greater at great horizontal distance and peak ground reaction force is greater at higher box of jump off and up. The contact time was also related to the horizontal distance and to the knee and ankle joint stiffness, peak ankle joint torque and minimum knee joint angle. These might suggest that leg stiffness influenced by ankle and knee joint stiffness due to peak ankle joint torque and knee joint angular displacement to adjust the conditions of drop jump

EFFECT OF BIOMECHANICAL FACTORS ON ENERGY COST DURING RUNNING AT VARYING INCLINES

This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of muscular activity of a support leg that affected energy cost at different inclinations of a treadmill while running. Eleven male Japanese distance runners ran on a treadmill at 13.5 km·h��1 for 3 min at five different inclinations���� ��6%, ��3%, 0%, +3%, and +6%. Running kinematics, electromyography (EMG), expired gases, and blood lactate levels were measured. The following results were obtained: 1) the energy cost and integrated EMG (iEMG) of the vastus lateralis (VL) muscle increased with increasing inclination, and 2) iEMG of the VL and gluteus maximus (GM) muscles positively correlated with the vertical displacement of the body’s center of mass and with a maximal angle of the thigh during the contact phase. Thus, the muscular activities of VL and GM might increase the energy cost while running at an inclination

Perchloric acid-soluble protein regulates cell proliferation and differentiation in the spinal cord of chick embryos

AbstractThe role of perchloric acid-soluble protein (PSP) was investigated in chick embryos. Fluorescently labeled anti-chick liver (CL)-PSP IgG was injected into the yolk sac in ovo at embryonic day 3, and became localized in neuroepithelial cells. Within 12h, morphological changes were observed in 37.5% of anti-CL-PSP IgG-injected embryos, and the neuroepithelial cells formed a wavy line. No significant changes were observed in embryos injected with non-immune IgG or PBS. Increased expression of PCNA and decreased expression of neuronal class III β-tubulin were observed in the spinal cord after anti-CL-PSP IgG injection. These results suggest that PSP controls the proliferation and differentiation of neuroepithelial cells in chick embryos

ESTIMATION OF THE CENTER OF MASS AND PELVIS MOVEMENT IN RUNNING USING AN INERTIA SENSOR MOUNTED ON SACRUM

The purpose of this study was to compare the center of mass and pelvis movement measured by the inertia sensor, motion capture, and ground reaction force during running. Linear movements of the center of mass and pelvis rotation were measured by motion capture system and the inertia sensor mounted on sacrum for thirteen distance runners. Vertical movement of the sensor was well coincident with the center of mass but lateral and forward/backward movements were overestimated by the sensor. The forward tilt, tangular displacement and velocity of pelvis in a running cycle were almost same in the values by motion capture and sensor with some variances by the mounted position. It would be suggested that the inertia sensor is useful to evaluate the distance running motion with filtering and modification of offset and parameter relationship for individual

CHANGES IN ANGULAR MOMENTUM DURING 10,000 M RACES

INTRODUCTION: In distance running, many coaches and runners pay attention not only to leg motion but also to arm and trunk motion. Hinrich (1987) studied angular momentum in running and suggested that main role of arm and trunk motion in running was to maintain the balance about vertical axis against leg motion. Unfortunately, there was little biomechanical study about arm and trunk motion for elite distance runners in races. The purpose of this study was to investigate the angular momentum about vertical axis for elite distance runners in the 10000m races

Characterization of gene expression profiles for different types of mast cells pooled from mouse stomach subregions by an RNA amplification method

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Mast cells (MCs) play pivotal roles in allergy and innate immunity and consist of heterogenous subclasses. However, the molecular basis determining the different characteristics of these multiple MC subclasses remains unclear.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To approach this, we developed a method of RNA extraction/amplification for intact <it>in vivo </it>MCs pooled from frozen tissue sections, which enabled us to obtain the global gene expression pattern of pooled MCs belonging to the same subclass. MCs were isolated from the submucosa (sMCs) and mucosa (mMCs) of mouse stomach sections, respectively, 15 cells were pooled, and their RNA was extracted, amplified and subjected to microarray analysis. Known marker genes specific for mMCs and sMCs showed expected expression trends, indicating accuracy of the analysis.</p> <p>We identified 1,272 genes showing significantly different expression levels between sMCs and mMCs, and classified them into clusters on the basis of similarity of their expression profiles compared with bone marrow-derived MCs, which are the cultured MCs with so-called 'immature' properties. Among them, we found that several key genes such as <it>Notch4 </it>had sMC-biased expression and <it>Ptgr1 </it>had mMC-biased expression. Furthermore, there is a difference in the expression of several genes including extracellular matrix protein components, adhesion molecules, and cytoskeletal proteins between the two MC subclasses, which may reflect functional adaptation of each MC to the mucosal or submucosal environment in the stomach.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>By using the method of RNA amplification from pooled intact MCs, we characterized the distinct gene expression profiles of sMCs and mMCs in the mouse stomach. Our findings offer insight into possible unidentified properties specific for each MC subclass.</p

Treatment with Corticosteroid for Pericardial Effusion in a Patient with Advanced Synchronous Esophageal and Gastric Cancers following Chemoradiotherapy

Severe late toxicity following chemoradiotherapy in esophageal cancer, especially cardiac toxicity, is sometimes difficult to treat and is associated with mortality. However there is little published information with regard to patients with delayed pericardial effusion following chemoradiotherapy and its management. We herein report the case of a 63-year-old man with advanced synchronous esophageal and gastric cancers. This patient presented with pericardial effusion with cardiac tamponade after definitive chemoradiotherapy and was successfully treated with corticosteroid after pericardiocentesis. No instances of pericardial and pleural effusions were observed during the 2-year follow-up period until his death from cancer relapses

Inhibitory effects of caffeine on allergic rhinitis symptoms in mice

We examined the effects of caffeine treatment on ovalbumin- and histamine-induced rhinitis mouse models and on corticosterone and catecholamine levels in mouse plasma. Treatment with caffeine decreased sneezing and nasal rubbing in both models, but direct nasal administration had no effect. Plasma levels of corticosterone and catecholamine, which have known anti-allergy effects, were increased by caffeine treatment. The increases in corticosterone and catecholamine may be associated with the suppression of rhinitis symptoms

Antiplatelet antibody may cause delayed transfusion-related acute lung injury

A 61-year-old woman with lung cancer developed delayed transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI) syndrome after transfusion of plasma- and leukoreduced red blood cells (RBCs) for gastrointestinal bleeding due to intestinal metastasis. Acute lung injury (ALI) recurred 31 days after the first ALI episode. Both ALI episodes occurred 48 hours after transfusion. Laboratory examinations revealed the presence of various antileukocyte antibodies including antiplatelet antibody in the recipient’s serum but not in the donors’ serum. The authors speculate that antiplatelet antibodies can have an inhibitory effect in the recipient, which can modulate the bona fide procedure of ALI and lead to a delay in the onset of ALI. This case illustrates the crucial role of a recipient’s platelets in the development of TRALI