Evaluating the short term effects of kinesiology taping and stretching of gastrocnemius on postural control: A randomized clinical trial

Introduction: The ability to maintain balance is essential for both remaining in the standing position and preventing falls. Physical therapy techniques such as kinesiology taping (KT) and stretching are considered to be effective measures in ameliorating balance issues. However, there is no available study comparing the effects of these two methods on postural control. Thus, the current study aims to investigate and compare the efficacy of interventions accomplished through these methods on young and elderly subjects. Method: In a single-blind randomized clinical trial, 40 young subjects (60 years) were randomly assigned to two groups of KT and stretching. In the first group, inhibitory tape was applied to the gastrocnemius muscle. In the second group, 60 s of stretch was repeated 4 times. The static balance was evaluated before and after the interventions using the single-leg standing (SLS) test along with measurements of the velocity and displacement of the center of pressure by the force plate. Results: Based on the Mann-Whitney test, there were no significant differences between the tape and stretching techniques in the study variables of either group of participants, before and after the interventions (p > 0.05). However, the results of the Wilcoxon test showed a significant increase in single-leg stance time in the stretching group in the elderly subjects (p = 0.03). MANOVA results demonstrated significant group and time effects only in the SLS parameter (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Stretching the gastrocnemius seems to be more efficacious than KT for improving balance problems in older adults. Level of evidence: II. © 2019 Elsevier Lt

Combination of gold nanoparticles with low-LET irradiation: an approach to enhance DNA DSB induction in HT29 colorectal cancer stem-like cells

Purpose: High-linear energy transfer (high LET) irradiation has significant cytotoxic effects on different cancerous stem-like cells (CSLCs) such as colorectal CSLCs. A review of the literature has indicated that the presence of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) enables low-LET irradiation to produce highly non-homogeneous dose distributions like high-LET irradiation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the radioresponsiveness of HT29 colorectal CSLCs under low-LET irradiation (X-ray) and in the presence of GNPs. Methods: Radioresponsiveness was evaluated using the ϒ-H2AX foci formation assay, the clonogenic assay, the cell cycle progression assay and analyses of radiobiological parameters. Results: In the presence of GNPs, the survival fraction of HT29 CSLCs was significantly reduced and caused significant changes in the radiobiological parameters after irradiation. In addition, ϒ-H2AX assay showed that in the presence of GNPs, the persistent DNA double-strand breaks were significantly increased in irradiated HT29 CSLCs. The relative biological effectiveness value of GNPs with X-rays was about 1.6 for HT-29 CSLCs at the 10 of cell survival fraction (D10 level) when compared to X-rays alone. Conclusion: Therefore, the combination of GNPs with X-ray irradiation has the potential to kill HT29 CSLCs greater than the X-ray alone, and may be considered as an alternative for high-LET irradiation. © 2018, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature

Gold nanoparticles in combination with megavoltage radiation energy increased radiosensitization and apoptosis in colon cancer HT-29 cells

Purpose: Gold nanoparticles (GNP) act as a radiosensitizer in radiation therapy. However, recent studies have shown contradictory evidence in terms of radiosensitization in the presence of GNP combined with X-ray megavoltage energy (MV) on different cell types. In this study, the effect of GNP on radiosensitization enhancement of HT-29 human colorectal cancer cells at MV X-ray energy was evaluated. Materials and methods: The cytotoxicity and radiosensitization of GNP were evaluated in HT-29 human colorectal cancer cells by MTS-assay and multiple MTS-assay, respectively. Cellular uptake was assayed using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS). Apoptosis and cell cycle progression were determined by an Annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide (PI) kit and PI/RNase solution with flow cytometry, respectively. Results: Results showed that the cell viability of the HT-29 cells was not influenced by exposure to different concentrations of GNP (10–100 μM). GNP alone did not affect the cell cycle progression and apoptosis. In contrast, GNP, in combination with radiation (9 MV), induced more apoptosis. The interaction of GNP with MV energy resulted in a significant radiosensitization enhancement compared with irradiation alone. Conclusion: It was concluded that GNP may work as bio-inert material on HT-29 cancer cells and their enhancement of radiosensitization may be due to increase in the absorbed irradiation dose. © 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group