Physical activity levels and determinants of change in young adults: a longitudinal panel study

Background: There is growing concern about physical inactivity in adolescents and young adults. Identifying determinants that are associated with low levels of physical activity and with changes in physical activity levels will help to develop specific prevention strategies. The present study describes the prevalence and potential determinants of physical activity behavior and behavior changes of young adults. The study is based on the Swiss Household Panel (SHP), a longitudinal study assessing social changes in a representative sample of Swiss households since 1999. Methods: Data is collected yearly using computer-assisted telephone interviews. Information is obtained from each household member over 14 years of age. Participants between 14 and 24 years entering the SHP between 1999 and 2006 were included (N = 3,068). “Inactive” was defined as less than 1 day/week of at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity, “no sport” as exercising less than once a week. Age, gender, nationality, linguistic region, household income, education, membership in a sport club, reading, and Internet use were included as potential determinants of physical activity behavior and behavior change. Results: In both young men and young women, the prevalence of inactivity, “no sport”, and non-membership in a sport club was increasing with age. Women were less active than men of the same age. From one wave to the following, 11.1% of young men and 12.1% of young women became active, and 11.9% of men and 13.7% of women became inactive, respectively (pooled data over all eight waves). Non-membership in a sport club was the strongest predictor for “no sport” (ORmen 6.7 [4.9-8.9]; ORwomen 8.1 [5.7-11.4]), but also for being inactive (OR 4.6 [3.5-6.0]; 4.6 [3.3-6.4]). Leaving a sport club (OR 7.8 [4.4-14.0]; 11.9 [5.9-24.1]) and remaining non-member (OR 7.8 [4.7-12.9]; 12.4 [6.4-24.1]) were the strongest predictors of becoming “no sport”. Effects for becoming inactive were similar, though smaller (OR 5.9 [3.4-10.5] and 5.1 [2.7-9.6] for leaving a club, OR 5.1 [3.1-8.4] and 6.9 [4.0-11.8] for remaining non-member). Conclusions: The most important findings were the strong effects of sport club membership on general physical activity. The correlation between sport club membership and exercise was not surprising in its nature, but in its strength

The Swiss Household Panel 1999-2003: data for research on micro-social change

"Die Umfrage Leben in der Schweiz des Schweizer Haushalt Panels (SHP) bietet eine einzigartige longitudinale Datenbasis an. 1999 wurden 7.799 Personen von 5.074 Haushalten über ihre Lebensbedingungen befragt. Sämtliche 14-jährigen und älteren Personen, die in diesen Haushalten wohnen, sollen fortan während zehn bis fünfzehn Jahren in jährlichem Abstand befragt werden. Die Erhebung wird mittels computerunterstützten Telefoninterviews (CATI: Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing) durchgeführt. Mittlerweile konnten die ersten zwei Befragungswellen erfolgreich realisiert werden. Anders als bei den vorwiegend auf sozioökonomischen Bedingungen ausgerichteten Panels - wie dem SOEP in Deutschland und dem BHPS in England - deckt das SHP ein breites Spektrum von Themen und sozialwissenschaftlichen Forschungsansätzen ab. Das Faktenmaterial wird ergänzt durch 'subjektive' Beurteilungen. Die Trägerschaft des SHPs besteht aus dem Schwerpunktprogramm SPP 'Zukunft Schweiz', dem Bundesamt für Statistik und der Universität Neuchâtel." (Autorenreferat)"The Living in Switzerland survey of the Swiss Household Panel (SHP) provides a unique longitudinal database in Switzerland. In 1999, 7,799 members of 5,074 households – from a stratified random sample of the permanent resident population of Switzerland – were interviewed about their living conditions. All household members aged 14 years and older are to be interviewed annually for 10 to 15 years. The SHP survey is conducted using computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI). To date, the first two waves have been carried out successfully. In comparison with panels such as the SOEP in Germany and the BHPS in Britain concentrating on socio-economic conditions, the SHP covers a broader range of topics and approaches in the social sciences. Subjective assessments complement the factual information. The SHP is a joint project run by the Swiss Priority Programme (SPP) 'Switzerland towards the Future', the Swiss Federal Statistical Office and the University of Neuchâtel." (author's abstract

Injuries, Sequelae, and Treatment of Lightning-Induced Injuries: 10 Years of Experience at a Swiss Trauma Center

Principals. Lightning is one of the most powerful and spectacular natural phenomena. Lightning strikes to humans are uncommon but can cause devastating injuries. We analyzed lightning-related admissions to our emergency department from January 2000 to December 2010 to review and highlight the main features of lightning-related injuries. Methods. All data were collected prospectively and entered in the emergency department' database (Qualicare Switzerland) and retrospectively analyzed. Results. Nine patients with lightning-related injuries presented to our emergency department. Four were female, and five were male. The most common site of injury was the nervous system (6 out of 9 patients) followed by the cardiovascular system (5 out of 9 patients). The third most common injuries occurred to the skin (3 out of 9 patients). Four of the patients had to be hospitalized for further observation. Conclusion. Reports of lightning strikes and related injuries are scarce. The establishment of an international register would therefore benefit the understanding of their injury patterns and facilitate specific treatment

3D spectroscopy of merger Seyfert galaxy Mrk 334: nuclear starburst, superwind and the circumnuclear cavern

We are presenting new results on kinematics and structure of the Mrk 334 Seyfert galaxy. Panoramic (3D) spectroscopy is performed at the 6-m telescope of the Special Astrophysical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences using the MPFS integral-field spectrograph and scanning Fabry--Perot interferometer. The deep images have revealed that Mrk 334 is observed during the final stage of its merging with a massive companion. A possible mass ratio ranges from 1/5 to 1/3. The merger has triggered mass redistribution in the disk resulting in an intensification of nuclear activity and in a burst of star formation in the inner region of the galaxy. The circumnuclear starburst is so intense that its contribution to the gas ionization exceeds that contribution of the AGN. We interpret the nuclear gas outflow with velocities of ~200 km/s as a galactic superwind that accompanies the violent star formation. This suggestion is consistent with the asymmetric X-ray brightness distribution in Mrk 334. The trajectory of the fragments of the disrupted satellite in the vicinity of the main galaxy nucleus can be traced. In the galaxy disk a cavern is found that is filled with a low-density ionized gas. We consider this region to be the place where the remnants of the companion have recently penetrated through the gaseous disk of the main galaxy.Comment: 13 pages, 13 figures, 2 table; accepted for publication by MNRA

Independent freezing of charge and spin dynamics in La1.5Sr0.5CoO4

We present elastic and quasielastic neutron scattering measurements characterizing peculiar short-range charge-orbital and spin order in the layered perovskite material La1.5Sr0.5CoO4. We find that below Tc~750 K holes introduced by Sr doping lose mobility and enter a statically ordered {\it charge glass} phase with loosely correlated checkerboard arrangement of empty and occupied d{3z2-r2} orbitals (Co3+ and Co2+). The dynamics of the resultant mixed spin system is governed by the anisotropic nature of the crystal-field Hamiltonian and the peculiar exchange pattern produced by the orbital order. It undergoes a {\it spin freezing} transition at much a lower temperature, Ts~30 K.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, Latex. Submitted to PR

Coordinated optimization of visual cortical maps (II) Numerical studies

It is an attractive hypothesis that the spatial structure of visual cortical architecture can be explained by the coordinated optimization of multiple visual cortical maps representing orientation preference (OP), ocular dominance (OD), spatial frequency, or direction preference. In part (I) of this study we defined a class of analytically tractable coordinated optimization models and solved representative examples in which a spatially complex organization of the orientation preference map is induced by inter-map interactions. We found that attractor solutions near symmetry breaking threshold predict a highly ordered map layout and require a substantial OD bias for OP pinwheel stabilization. Here we examine in numerical simulations whether such models exhibit biologically more realistic spatially irregular solutions at a finite distance from threshold and when transients towards attractor states are considered. We also examine whether model behavior qualitatively changes when the spatial periodicities of the two maps are detuned and when considering more than 2 feature dimensions. Our numerical results support the view that neither minimal energy states nor intermediate transient states of our coordinated optimization models successfully explain the spatially irregular architecture of the visual cortex. We discuss several alternative scenarios and additional factors that may improve the agreement between model solutions and biological observations.Comment: 55 pages, 11 figures. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1102.335

Neutron Scattering Study of Spin Density Wave Order in the Superconducting State of Excess-Oxygen-Doped La2CuO4+y

We report neutron scattering measurements of spin density wave order within the superconducting state of a single crystal of predominately stage-4 La2CuO4+y with a Tc(onset) of 42 K. The low temperature elastic magnetic scattering is incommensurate with the lattice and is characterized by long-range order in the copper-oxide plane with the spin direction identical to that in the insulator. Between neighboring planes, the spins exhibit short-range correlations with a stacking arrangement reminiscent of that in the undoped antiferromagnetic insulator. The elastic magnetic peak intensity appears at the same temperature within the errors as the superconductivity, suggesting that the two phenomena are strongly correlated. These observations directly reveal the persistent influence of the antiferromagnetic order as the doping level increases from the insulator to the superconductor. In addition, our results confirm that spin density wave order for incommensurabilities near 1/8 is a robust feature of the La2CuO4-based superconductors.Comment: 14 pages, LaTeX, includes 8 figure

Metabolic Profiling as Well as Stable Isotope Assisted Metabolic and Proteomic Analysis of RAW 264.7 Macrophages Exposed to Ship Engine Aerosol Emissions: Different Effects of Heavy Fuel Oil and Refined Diesel Fuel

Exposure to air pollution resulting from fossil fuel combustion has been linked to multiple short-term and long term health effects. In a previous study, exposure of lung epithelial cells to engine exhaust from heavy fuel oil (HFO) and diesel fuel (DF), two of the main fuels used in marine engines, led to an increased regulation of several pathways associated with adverse cellular effects, including pro-inflammatory pathways. In addition, DF exhaust exposure was shown to have a wider response on multiple cellular regulatory levels compared to HFO emissions, suggesting a potentially higher toxicity of DF emissions over HFO. In order to further understand these effects, as well as to validate these findings in another cell line, we investigated macrophages under the same conditions as a more inflammationrelevant model. An air-liquid interface aerosol exposure system was used to provide a more biologically relevant exposure system compared to submerged experiments, with cells exposed to either the complete aerosol (particle and gas phase), or the gas phase only (with particles filtered out). Data from cytotoxicity assays were integrated with metabolomics and proteomics analyses, including stable isotope-assisted metabolomics, in order to uncover pathways affected by combustion aerosol exposure in macrophages. Through this approach, we determined differing phenotypic effects associated with the different components of aerosol. The particle phase of diluted combustion aerosols was found to induce increased cell death in macrophages, while the gas phase was found more to affect the metabolic profile. In particular, a higher cytotoxicity of DF aerosol emission was observed in relation to the HFO aerosol. Furthermore, macrophage exposure to the gas phase of HFO leads to an induction of a pro-inflammatory metabolic and proteomic phenotype. These results validate the effects found in lung epithelial cells, confirming the role of inflammation and cellular stress in the response to combustion aerosols

Exposure and harm to combustion-derived particles: Searching for biomarkers

The physicochemical properties of size, surface area and presence of transition metals have been implicated as drivers of the oxidative capacity of CDPM. However, the precise role of reactive organic compounds (ROC) in ambient aerosols, present either in the gas phase or the particle phase or in both phases, have not been fully-investigated for their relevance in the induction of the observed adverse health effects. Oxidation of fatty acids linked to the cell membrane phospholipids leads to many metabolites that have been used as markers of the process. Such metabolites have long been considered to be involved in two possibly inter-related processes: cell/tissue damage and signalling. As one approach to resolve the role played by ROCs, their effects on fatty acid and lipid metabolism in human lung tissues will be studied in detail by using the standard biochemical techniques and lipidomics