Walking at speeds close to the preferred transition speed as an approach to obesity treatment

Introduction. Increasing energy expenditure through certain exercise is an important component of effective interventions to enhance initial weight loss and prevent weight regain. Objective. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a 16-week weight loss exercise programme on morpho-functional changes in female adults and to examine the programme effects on two subpopulations with different levels of obesity. Methods. Fifty-six middle-aged women were divided into 2 groups according to their body mass index (BMI): 25-29.9 kg/m2 - overweight (OW) and ≥30 kg/m2 - obese (OB). The exercise protocol included a walking technique based on hip rotation at horizontal plane at speeds close to the preferred transition speed (PTS). At the initiation of the study and after 16 weeks of the programme, anthropometric, morphological and cardiovascular parameters of all subjects were assessed. The main effects of Group (OW and OB) and Time and the interaction effect of Group by Time were tested by time repeated measures General Linear Model (mixed between-within subjects ANOVA). Results. Mean weight loss during the programme was 10.3 kg and 20.1 kg in OW and OB, respectively. The average fat mass (FM) loss was 9.4 kg in OW and 16.9 kg in OB. The Mixed ANOVA revealed a significant Group by Time interaction effects for waist circumference, body weight, body water, fat free mass, FM, %FM and BMI (p<0.05). Conclusion. The applied exercise protocol has proved as beneficial in the treatment of obesity, since it resulted in a significant weight loss and body composition changes. The reduction in body weight was achieved mainly on account of the loss of fat mass. © 2012. Centre for Evaluation in Education and Science

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL AND PATHOGENETIC ASPECTS OF NICKEL POISONING

Nickel is widely distributed in the environment. High consumption of nickel containing products inevitably leads to environmental pollution by nickel and its derivatives at all stages of production, utilization, and disposal.Human exposure to nickel occurs primarily via inhalation and ingestion and is particularly high among nickel metallurgy workers. In addition, implantation of nickel-containing endoprostheses and iatrogenic administration of nickel-contaminated medica-tions leads to significant parenteral exposures. Exposure to nickel compounds can produce a variety of adverse effects on human health. Nickel allergy in the form of contact dermatitis is the most common reaction.A frontal headache, vertigo, nausea, vomiting, insomnia, and irritability are the most common signs of acute poisoning with nickel compounds. The respiratory tract, kidneys and liver suffer the most significant changes like nickel pneumoconiosis, chronic rhinitis and sinonasal tumors and transitory nephropathy. Although the accumulation of nickel in the body through chronic exposure can lead to lung fibrosis, cardiovascular and kidney diseases, the most serious concerns relate to nickel’s carcinogenic activity. Nickel compounds are carcinogenic to humans and metallic nickel is possibly carcinogenic to humans

IMPACT OF BODY COMPOSITION AND VO2 MAX ON THE COMPETITIVE SUCCESS IN TOP-LEVEL HANDBALL PLAYERS

The purpose of the study was to determine the morphological and functional characteristics of 32 Serbian national U20 handball players (age 20.43±1.16y; training experience 8.12±1.89y) before European championship in Switzerland (2006) and to determinate their impact on competitive performance and outstanding success achieved. The results show that wing players differ from other players in morphological characteristics. Values for body height, weight, BMI, muscle mass and fat mass were significantly lower compared to the other playing positions. Extremely low values of maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) were measured in all players (ranged from 2.68 to 4.66 l×min-1). Pivots had the highest VO2 max in absolute values (3.76 l×min-1), and wing players in relative terms (40.83 ml×kg-1×min-1). Handball is characterized by high intensity intermittent play, followed by a number of walking breaks and quick substitutions. This makes possible to retain high playing intensity during whole match, because players can be given rest periods whenever needed. This will result in a high intensity game that does not necessarily require high VO2 max. Competitive success in modern top-level handball might be more reliant on optimal tactical preparation than on the body composition and VO2 max of an individual athlete

FORCE-VELOCITY RELATIONSHIP OF LEG MUSCLES ASSESSED BY MOTORIZED TREADMILL TESTS

We aimed to explore the properties of the F-V relationship of leg muscles exerting the maximum pulling F within a wide range of V set on a standard motorized treadmill. Subjects exerted maximum horizontally pulling F while walking on a treadmill set to 8 different V (1.4 - 3.3 m/s). The obtained F-V relationships proved to be linear and strong (all R \u3e 0.84), while their parameters depicting the leg muscle capacities for producing maximum F, V, and power (i.e., the maximum product of F and V) were highly reliable (0.84 \u3c ICC \u3c 0.97; 6.4 \u3c CV% \u3c 19.3). Moreover, when obtained from only the lowest and highest V the F-V relationships revealed virtually identical outcomes. We conclude that the evaluated procedure could be developed into an ecologically valid and reliable protocol for routine testing of the F, V, and P-producing capacities of leg muscles

The Effects of L-Carnitine Supplementation During Concurrent Training on the Functional Capacities and Body Composition in Obese Men

Background Despite extensive research, the effects of L-carnitine supplementation in treating obesity are still unclear and equivocal. L-carnitine transports fatty acids into mitochondria for oxidation and is marketed as a weight loss supplement. The purpose of the present research is to investigate the efficacy of L-carnitine during concurrent training on the functional capacities and body composition in obese men. Methods Thirty nonactive, obese males (age=37.2±1.5 years; body mass index=33.8±2.5 kg/m2) participated in this research. The participants were randomly divided into three groups: experimental group 1 (EXP1)—concurrent training with L-carnitine supplementation; experimental group 2 (EXP2)—L-carnitine supplementation without training; and control group—without training or L-carnitine supplementation. Concurrent training was performed for 8 weeks, three sessions per week, with a training intensity ranging from 60 to 75% of the maximum heart rate reserve and onerepetition maximum. Both experimental groups were supplemented with 35mg L-carnitine supplement per kilogram body weight. Various functional and body composition variables were collected at three time points (pre-test, mid-test, and post-test). Results A number of variableswere significantly improved in EXP1 after 4 and 8 weeks (systolic blood pressure, maximal oxygen consumption, weight, body mass index, and one-repetition maximum) and only after 8-weeks (diastolic blood pressure, resting heart rate, percentage of body fat, and fat-free mass). No significant changes were observed for EXP2 and the control group. Conclusion L-carnitine supplementation, in conjunction with concurrent training, emerges as a highly effective approach for enhancing body composition and boosting functional capacities in obese adult men. Therefore, it is recommended that over-weight male individuals integrate concurrent training into their regimen while taking L-carnitine

ALWOD: Active Learning for Weakly-Supervised Object Detection

Object detection (OD), a crucial vision task, remains challenged by the lack of large training datasets with precise object localization labels. In this work, we propose ALWOD, a new framework that addresses this problem by fusing active learning (AL) with weakly and semi-supervised object detection paradigms. Because the performance of AL critically depends on the model initialization, we propose a new auxiliary image generator strategy that utilizes an extremely small labeled set, coupled with a large weakly tagged set of images, as a warm-start for AL. We then propose a new AL acquisition function, another critical factor in AL success, that leverages the student-teacher OD pair disagreement and uncertainty to effectively propose the most informative images to annotate. Finally, to complete the AL loop, we introduce a new labeling task delegated to human annotators, based on selection and correction of model-proposed detections, which is both rapid and effective in labeling the informative images. We demonstrate, across several challenging benchmarks, that ALWOD significantly narrows the gap between the ODs trained on few partially labeled but strategically selected image instances and those that rely on the fully-labeled data. Our code is publicly available on https://github.com/seqam-lab/ALWOD.Comment: published in ICCV 202

Complications of chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis: review of published case reports

Chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis (CNPA), a form of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA), affects immunocompetent or mildly immunocompromised persons with underlying pulmonary disease. These conditions are associated with high morbidity and mortality and often require long-term antifungal treatment. The long-term prognosis for patients with CNPA and the potential complications of CNPA have not been well documented. The aim of this study was to review published papers that report cases of CNPA complications and to highlight risk factors for development of CNPA. The complications in conjunction associated with CNPA are as follows: pseudomembranous necrotizing tracheobronchial aspergillosis, ankylosing spondylarthritis, pulmonary silicosis, acute respiratory distress syndrome, pulmonary Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) disease, superinfection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and and pneumothorax. The diagnosis of CNPA is still a challenge. Culture and histologic examinations of bronchoscopically identified tracheobronchial mucus plugs and necrotic material should be performed in all immunocompromised individuals, even when the radiographic findings are unchanged. Early detection of intraluminal growth of Aspergillus and prompt antifungal therapy may facilitate the management of these patients and prevent development of complications

Mortality rate of lip, oral cavity and pharynx malignant tumors in Serbia within a period 1991-2009

Background/Aim. Lip, oral cavity and pharynx malignant tumors account for 3.7% of all cancer deaths worldwide, with significant geographic variations in frequency and distribution. The aim of this descriptive epidemiologic study was to analyze the mortality rate of lip, oral cavity and pharynx malignant tumors in Serbia proper within a period 1991-2009. Methods. Mortality rates standardized directly using the world population as the standard were used in data analysis. Linear trend and regression analyses were used to analyze rate trends in mortality. Results. The Serbian population demonstrated an increase in the mortality of lip, oral cavity and pharynx malignant tumors (y = 3.32 + 0.03×; p = 0.002; average annual percent change = + 0.8). The male population showed a significant increase in mortality trend (y = 5.90 + 0.03×; p = 0.020; % change = + 0.9), while the female population did not show a significant increase in mortality. The male/female cancer mortality ratio was 5.5:1. Mortality rates for lip, oral cavity and pharynx cancer increased with age in both genders, with rates being the highest in the population aged 85 and older. Increasing trends of lip, oral cavity and pharynx cancer mortality were observed in males aged 50-54; the average annual percent change was + 7.4 % (95% CI, 6.2-9.0). The population of both genders aged 55-59 demonstrated an increase in lip, oral cavity and pharynx cancer mortality, the increase being + 1.8% (95% CI, 1.4-2.2) in men and + 34.3% (95% CI, 28.4-40.2) in women. Conclusion. The increasing trend in lip, oral cavity and pharynx cancer mortality points to the necessity to investigate etiology and improve primary and secondary prevention measures

Prevencija i kontrola kompleksa respiratornog oboljenja goveda (BRDC)

BRDC is one of the most expensive health problems in cattle breeding around the world, due to high morbidity and mortality, weight loss, reduced food utilization, reduced quality of carcasses and extensive prophylaxis and therapy. BRDC causes a greater number of pathogens (viruses and bacteria), with predisposing risk factors from the ambient and host. Increasing the production of meat and milk worldwide would be sustainable by improving the prevention and control of BRDC. Management strategies greatly reduce the occurrence of BRDC, and metaphylaxis is useful in high-risk calves when arriving in the feedlot. Control of BRDC requires the application of new technologies to increase resistance, reduce risk factors and exposure to pathogens.BRDC je jedan od najskupljih zdravstvenih problema u govedarstvu širom sveta, usled visokog morbiditeta i smrtnosti, gubitka težine, smanjenog iskorišćenja hrane, smanjenog kvaliteta trupova i obimne profilakse i terapije. BRDC izaziva veći broj patogena (virusa i bakterija), uz predisponirajuće faktore rizika iz ambijenta i domaćina. Povećanje proizvodnje mesa i mleka u celom svetu bilo bi održivo unapređenjem prevencije i kontrole BRDC. Strategije upravljanja značajno smanjuju pojavu BRDC, a metafilaksa je korisna kod „visoko rizične“ teladi na prijemu u tovilišta. Kontrola BRDC zahteva primenu novih tehnologija za povećanje otpornosti, smanjenje faktora rizika i izloženosti patogenima

ANALYSIS OF SERBIAN INNOVATION POTENTIAL IN THE PERIOD 2009-2012

In this paper a review of significance of country’s innovation potential for its economic growth and development is displayed first. Afterwards, positions and values of the global innovation index for the top 25 most innovative economies, for Serbia and for selected countries from its surroundings, for the period from 2009 to 2012 have been displayed. In order to classify selected countries into two or more groups, based on their similarity according to innovation performances, cluster analysis is conducted. The relations between innovation inputs and innovation outputs have been studied on the example of selected groups of countries (the group of European innovative leaders and Serbia with neighboring countries) through the correlation analysis. Key words:  innovation, innovation inputs, innovation outputs, innovation efficiency