Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biomechanical and skeletal muscle determinants of maximum running speed with aging.

PURPOSE Aging diminishes the ability to run fast, but the specific mechanisms responsible for this deterioration remain largely unknown. In the present study, we investigated the age-related decline in sprint running ability through a cross-sectional examination of biomechanical and skeletal muscle characteristics in 77 competitive male sprinters aged 17-82 yr. METHODS Ground reaction force (GRF) and kinematic stride cycle parameters were measured during the maximum-velocity phase using a 9.4-m-long force platform. Knee extensor (KE) and ankle plantar flexor (PF) structural characteristics were investigated using ultrasonography and muscle biopsies (vastus lateralis). Force production characteristics of leg extensor muscles were determined by dynamic and isometric contractions. RESULTS The main findings were as follows: 1) the progressive age-related decline in maximum running velocity (Vmax) was mainly related to a reduction in stride length (Lstr) and an increase in ground contact time (tc), whereas stride frequency showed a minor decline and swing time remained unaffected; 2) the magnitude of average braking and push-off resultant GRFs declined with age and associated with Lstr, tc, and Vmax; 3) there was an age-related decline in muscle thickness, Type II fiber area and maximal and rapid force-generating capacity of the lower limb muscles; and 4) muscle thickness (KE + PF) was a significant predictor of braking GRF, whereas the countermovement jump height explained most of the variance in push-off GRF in stepwise regression analysis. CONCLUSIONS Age-related slowing of maximum running speed was characterized by a decline in stride length and an increase in contact time along with a lower magnitude of GRFs. The sprint-trained athletes demonstrated an age-related selective muscular atrophy and reduced force capacity that contributed to the deterioration in sprint running ability with age.
Frailty in Older Age: Concepts and Relevance for Occupational and Physical Therapy

Frailty refers to a state of vulnerability in older persons for adverse outcomes. The recent assumption that frailty, disability, and comorbidity are distinct concepts creates possibilities for interventions that focus on delaying the onset of disabilities. However, disagreement exists on the definition of frailty and the factors contributing to it. This article presents an overview of the discussion about the concept of frailty, of intervention research, and instruments to identify frail elderly, and discusses the implications for the fields of occupational and physical therapy.
Designing event-based context transition in context-oriented programming

This paper proposes a new programming language EventCJ. Its design stems from our observation that, in many context-aware applications, context changes are triggered by external events. Thus, in addition to the current COP language mechanisms, namely the one to activate/deactivate layers in accordance with a flow of control in programs, and the one to dispatch method calls to partial methods on active layers, we propose a mechanism to declaratively switch contexts of the receiver of events. EventCJ can declare events that trigger context transitions, and context transition rules that define how each instance's context changes when it receives a specific event. After the transition, the instance acquires the context dependent behaviors provided by the activated context. Each event is declared in an AspectJ-like pointcut that specifies where the event is fired in the join points of the system. EventCJ separates the specification of when each context is activated and deactivated that may crosscut whole program in the existing COP languages. Furthermore, the declarative nature of the context transition rules help validation of some properties that the contexts should satisfy.
Two bouts of exercise before meals, but not after meals, lower fasting blood glucose.

INTRODUCTION Reduced counterregulatory responses to a next-day hypoglycemic challenge and hypoglycemia result from two spaced episodes of moderate-intensity exercise and have been characterized as exercise-associated autonomic failure. We hypothesized that this phenomenon is caused by postabsorptive state at the time of exercise rather than by autonomic failure. METHODS Participants were nine healthy postmenopausal women in a crossover study. Two hours of treadmill exercise at 43% of maximal effort were performed twice a day, separated by 5 h, either 1 h before (Before-Meals trial) or 1 h after a meal (After-Meals trial). Plasma insulin, counterregulatory hormones (glucagon, growth hormone, cortisol), and metabolites (glucose, free fatty acids, ketones) were measured to evaluate the effects of nutritional timing. Analyses of HR and vagal tone were measured to assess autonomic function. RESULTS Before-Meals exercise, but not After-Meals exercise, reduced postabsorptive plasma glucose by 20.2% during a 16-h period, without a change in counterregulatory response, and elicited postexercise ketosis. A 49% increase in insulin-glucagon ratio during meals, a 1 mM decline in glucagon glycemic threshold, and a reduced vagal tone during exercise were associated with Before-Meals but not with After-Meals trials. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that exercise performed in postabsorptive, but not in postprandial state, lowers glucoregulatory set point and glucagon glycemic threshold and is accompanied by reduced vagal tone, counterregulatory responses, and glucagon glycemic threshold and by increased insulin-glucagon ratio. Reduced counterregulatory response, altered neuroendocrine function, and sustained lowering of blood glucose are most likely the consequences of reduced carbohydrate availability during exercise.
Structure determination of uniformly C-13, N-15 labeled protein using qualitative distance restraints from MAS solid-state C-13-NMR observed paramagnetic relaxation enhancement

Title Structure determination of uniformly C-13, N-15 labeled protein using qualitative distance restraints from MAS solidstate C-13-NMR observed paramagnetic relaxation enhancement Author(s) Tamaki, Hajime; Egawa, Ayako; Kido, Kouki; Kameda, Tomoshi; Kamiya, Masakatsu; Kikukawa, Takashi; Aizawa, Tomoyasu; Fujiwara, Toshimichi; Demura, Makoto Citation Journal of biomolecular NMR, 64(1): 87-101 Issue Date 2016-01 Doc URL http://hdl.handle. net/2115/63937 Rights The final publication is available at www.springerlink. com via http://dx.doi. org/10.1007/s10858-015-0010-0. Type article (author version) File Information e.Proofing. pdf
Bone volumetric density, geometry, and strength in female and male collegiate runners.

PURPOSE To explore differences in tibial bone geometry, volumetric density, and estimates of bone strength in runners and healthy controls. METHODS Male (n = 21) and female (n = 38) runners (49.1 +/- 13.2 miles x wk(-1)) and inactive healthy controls (17 males and 32 females; mean age = 22 +/- 3.3 yr) were recruited to participate. Peripheral quantitative computed tomography was used to assess total volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD, mg x mm(-3)), total bone area (ToA, mm2), and an estimate of compressive bone strength (bone strength index (BSI) = ToA x total bone volumetric density (ToD2)) at the distal (4%) site of the tibia. ToA (mm2) and cortical bone area (CoA, mm2), cortical vBMD (CoD, mg x mm(-3)), cortical thickness (CoTh, mm), and an estimate of bone bending strength (polar strength strain index (SSIp), mm3) were measured at 50% and 66% sites. RESULTS ToA and BSI were significantly greater (+11%-19%, P < 0.05) in female runners than controls at the 4% site. At the proximal sites, female runners had significantly greater ToA, CoA, CoTh, and SSIp (+9%-19%, all P < 0.001) compared with female controls. vBMD was similar at all tibia sites. Compared with controls, male runners had significantly greater CoTh at the 50% and 66% sites (+8% and 14%, respectively, P < 0.05) as well as greater CoA (+11%, P < 0.009) at the 66% site. There were no differences in bone strength or density at any site in the male runners. CONCLUSIONS Greater bone strength in female runners was attributable to greater bone area rather than density. Although male runners did not show greater bone strength, they did exhibit favorable bone geometric properties. These data further document that running has osteogenic potential.
Muscle forces or gravity--what predominates mechanical loading on bone? Introduction.

This article describes the background, rationale, significance, and objective of the recent American College of Sports Medicine symposium entitled "Muscle Forces or Gravity-What Predominates Mechanical Loading on Bone? " (55th Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, IN, May 28, 2008) and introduces a series of papers representing the positions taken by three of the speakers at that symposium. Our goal was to reinvigorate discussion on a topic that will inform many, provoke some, and, most importantly, stimulate ideas that will encourage progress in the field of exercise prescription for bone.
Bone geometry, strength, and muscle size in runners with a history of stress fracture.

PURPOSE Our primary aim was to explore differences in estimates of tibial bone strength, in female runners with and without a history of stress fractures. Our secondary aim was to explore differences in bone geometry, volumetric density, and muscle size that may explain bone strength outcomes. METHODS A total of 39 competitive distance runners aged 18-35 yr, with (SFX, n = 19) or without (NSFX, n = 20) a history of stress fracture were recruited for this cross-sectional study. Peripheral quantitative computed tomography (XCT 3000; Orthometrix, White Plains, NY) was used to assess volumetric bone mineral density (vBMD, mg x mm(-3)), bone area (ToA, mm(2)), and estimated compressive bone strength (bone strength index (BSI) = ToA x total volumetric density (ToD(2))) at the distal tibia (4%). Total (ToA, mm(2)) and cortical (CoA, mm(2)) bone area, cortical vBMD, and estimated bending strength (strength-strain index (SSIp), mm(3)) were measured at the 15%, 25%, 33%, 45%, 50%, and 66% sites. Muscle cross-sectional area (MCSA) was measured at the 50% and 66% sites. RESULTS Participants in the SFX group had significantly smaller (7%-8%) CoA at the 45%, 50%, and 66% sites (P <or= 0.05 for all), significantly lower SSIp (9%-10%) at the 50% and 66% sites, and smaller MCSA (7%-8%) at the 66% site. The remaining bone parameters including vBMD were not significantly different between groups. After adjusting for MCSA, there were no differences between groups for any measured bone outcomes. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that cortical bone strength, cortical area, and MCSA are all lower in runners with a history of stress fracture. However, the lower strength was appropriate for the smaller muscle size, suggesting that interventions to reduce stress fracture risk might be aimed at improving muscle size and strength.
Continuous EEG monitoring in the ICU

Continuous EEG (cEEG) monitoring is one of many available techniques to assess cerebral function in critically ill patients. Detection and treatment of nonconvulsive seizures (NCSZ) and nonconvulsive status epilepticus (NCSE) are the main clinical applications of cEEG. These patterns are common and associated with poor outcome after severe brain injury. Quantitative EEG parameters can be used for early detection of NCSZ and ischemia caused by vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage. Early and aggressive treatment of such complications may prevent secondary brain injury and avoid irreversible damage. Periodic epileptiform discharges (PEDs) are also seen frequently after acute brain injury and may be associated with poor outcome. However, to date, it is uncertain whether NCSZ, NCSE or PEDs cause additional injury or if they are epiphenomena of brain damage. Currently, there are many limitations to the widespread use of cEEG, particularly the lack of high quality studies. In the future, the role of cEEG as p.
UBI-hotspots: sustainable ecosystem infrastructure for real world urban computing research and business

We report a novel deployment of so-called UBI-hotspots in a city center to establish an ecosystem infrastructure for conducting diverse urban computing research and business in authentic urban setting. We focus on the value network of the hotspots where the commercial use of the hotspots generates revenue for covering their operational expenses. The value network has been validated by a 12-month long operation, during which the hotspots and their services have been available to the general public on 24/7 basis.
Influence of mouth rinsing a carbohydrate solution on 1-h running performance.

PURPOSE The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of mouth rinsing a CHO-electrolyte (CHO-E) solution on 1-h running performance. A second study determined whether mouth rinsing a CHO-E solution altered the blood glucose and plasma insulin concentrations at rest. METHODS After a 13-h fast, 10 endurance-trained male runners completed two 1-h performance runs on an automated treadmill while mouth rinsing 25 mL of either a 6.4% CHO-E (C) or placebo (P) solution immediately before and at 15-min intervals during the 1-h run. An additional 10 healthy active males followed the same mouth rinsing procedure during a 1-h resting period. Finger prick blood samples were obtained for the determination of blood glucose and plasma insulin concentrations. RESULTS Runners covered 211 m (90% confidence intervals = 42-380 m, P = 0.048) further during the C trial (14,298 ± 685 m, mean ± SD) in comparison with the P trial (14,086 ± 732 m). There was no change in blood glucose concentrations during the 1-h run (P: pre = 4.3 ± 0.2 mmol·L(-1), post = 4.3 ± 0.3 mmol·L(-1); C: pre = 4.3 ± 0.4 mmol·L(-1), post = 4.3 ± 0.3 mmol·L(-1)). At rest, there was no change in blood glucose (P: 4.3 ± 0.1 mmol·L(-1), C: 4.3 ± 0.2 mmol·L(-1)) or plasma insulin (P: 6.2 ± 1.1 mU·L(-1), CHO: 5.9 ± 1.0 1.1 mU·L(-1)) concentrations (P > 0.10). CONCLUSIONS Mouth rinsing a 6.4% CHO-E solution was associated with increased distance covered during a 1-h performance run in comparison to mouth rinsing a placebo solution. Mouth rinsing a CHO-E was not associated with changes in blood glucose concentration during exercise or at rest.
Inadequate maternal vascular response to placentation in pregnancies complicated by pre‐eclampsia and by small‐for‐gestational age infants

Summary. An examination of the maternal vascular response to placentation shows that physiological changes in the placental bed normally extend from the decidua into the inner myometrium. In pre‐eclampsia and in a proportion of pregnancies with small‐for‐gestational age infants (SGA) the physiological changes are restricted to the decidual segments alone. In addition, complete absence of physiological changes throughout the entire length of some spiral arteries is seen in pre‐eclampsia and SGA. This new observation is confirmed in a study of basal plates of placentas from abnormal pregnancies. Intraluminal endovascular trophoblast may be seen in the placental bed spiral arteries in the third trimester in pre‐eclampsia and SGA, a feature not seen beyond the second trimester in normal pregnancy. These findings point to a defect in the normal interaction between migratory trophoblast and maternal uterine tissues in pre‐eclampsia and in SGA.
UniWise: LetterWise pour Unistroke, la prédiction de texte pour améliorer la reconnaissance de geste

Nowadays, linguistics and language processing represent an important part of the text entry domain. Prediction and/or automatic correction systems are often included in mobile devices with text entry capabilities. However, in gesture based text entry, few such systems are known. We propose UniWise, a system which combines Unistrokes, a gesture alphabet, and LetterWise, a disambiguation system. Our purpose was to study the fusion of the results from the gesture recognizer and results of the prediction system. Our system was tested with several fusion functions. The best function showed a theorical improvement of the recognition error rate of 17,23%. An experiment was conducted to measure the impact on user performance. The result was an improvement of 17,26% in the recognition error rate in the three last sessions and an improvement of 1,04 for the position of the correct character in the recognition result list. According to user feedback, the LetterWise component was transparent to the users.
New research challenges for user interface quality evaluation

Quality assessment of user interface (UI) has been largely studied in the last years. Several methods, tools and quality models have been proposed. On the other hand, with the diversity of computing platforms, interaction devices and styles, the automatic generation of UI with Model Driven Architecture (MDA) paradigm has also gained space. In this context, some questions come out: How to fit the traditional effort of UI quality assessment to this new paradigm? Can we use the existing quality models? Can we monitor the quality produced throughout the UI design in MDA infrastructure? Can we improve this quality? With those questions in mind we start to analyze some quality models and we propose some ideas of how to integrate quality evaluation in MDA structure.
Tri par billes magnétiques Technique et exemple du tri des lymphocytes T régulateurs CD25 + chez le rat

La separation par billes magnetiques est une nouvelle technologie utilisant les phenomenes paramagnetiques. Cette technique permet la purification de types cellulaires, d‘organites intracellulaires mais aussi de composants biologiques tels que les proteines ou les acides nucleiques. De nombreuses techniques de separation par billes magnetiques se sont recemment developpees. Le but de cette revue est de montrer les differentes techniques employees avec leurs avantages et leurs inconvenients. Nous allons decrire les techniques de selections positives et negatives de cellules. Nous allons montrer que le tri par billes magnetiques permet aussi d‘effectuer des tris multiparametriques ou des tris fonctionnels. Ensuite, nous decrirons les technologies nouvelles permettant de trier les cellules transfectees et les macromolecules tels les proteines, l‘ARN et l‘ADN.
Perfil epidemiológico dos casos de tuberculose multirresistente do Espírito Santo

Estudo retrospectivo de perfil dos casos de TBMR do Espirito Santo, entre 2000 e 2004. Identificou-se 61 pacientes com TBMR, sendo a amostra composta por 57 casos, que tiveram seus prontuarios revisados para obtencao das variaveis estudadas. Estimou-se como prevalencia para a TBMR combinada 0,87% (0,66 - 1,13; IC95%). O teste anti-HIV foi feito em 78,9% dos casos, sendo 11,1% positivos. Investigando co-morbidades, destacaram-se etilismo e tabagismo. Encontrou-se 11 casos de resistencia primaria (RI) e 46 de resistencia adquirida (RA), com media de 2,3 ± 1,3 tratamentos anteriores. Em 35,1% dos casos houve relato de contato previo conhecido com doente de tuberculose, enquanto em 67,9% nao houve ou nega-se ter havido. Dez pacientes (17,5%) foram tratados com o esquema de 1a linha, 18 (31,6%) com o de 2a linha e 27 (47,4%) com o de 3a linha. Dezoito (31,6%) tiveram tratamento auto-administrado, e 39 (68,4%) supervisionado. Quanto ao desfecho, houve cura em 33 casos (71,7%), abandono em 7 (15,2%) e obito em 5 (10,9%), 1 caso de falencia e 11 (19,3%) estao em tratamento. Dos 10 casos encerrados de RI, 80% (8/10) foram curados, contra 69,4% (25/36) dos casos de RA. Concluimos que a prevalencia de TBMR e baixa no ES. A cura foi alcancada em 70% dos casos. As co-morbidades podem ser importante fator interveniente para um desfecho satisfatorio do tratamento. Os resultados enfatizam a necessidade de busca, diagnostico e realizacao de TSA para identificacao da RI e a supervisao do tratamento de todos os casos de tuberculose.
HDL/apoA-I infusion for atherosclerosis management: an emerging therapeutic paradigm

Atherothrombotic vascular disease is the leading cause of death in much of the Western world. Therapeutic lifestyle modification, risk factor control and statin-mediated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)-lowering have been shown to significantly reduce atherothrombotic cardiovascular events. However, nearly two-thirds of adverse cardiovascular events continue to occur despite current interventions. In view of the known epidemiological data showing an inverse relationship between coronary heart disease and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), and coupled with experimental observations and proof-of-concept early clinical trials, the focus is now shifting to HDL as a therapeutic strategy for further cardiovascular risk reduction. Direct infusion of recombinant HDL/apolipoprotein A-I is one such promising approach that is reviewed in this paper.
Experience of executing fixed price off-shored agile project

Organizations delivering offshore software development services have traditionally focused on CMMI framework to deliver quality software. With agile methodologies gaining more wide spread acceptance, such organizations cannot stay away from them. There are concerns about combining agile methodologies with offshoring. There are also concerns about mismatch of agile methodologies with CMMI framework. In this paper we have looked at the problem from the perspective of an offshore software development organization and recounted our experience in adopting agile methodology in executing fixed price agile project. The challenges we have faced comes from three different dimensions. First is to address the issue of having an agile team split across two different countries. The second is to execute the agile project within the framework prescribed under CMMI. Here the challenge is not only to address the actual gap between CMMI and agile methodologies but also to address the perceived shortcomings of agile methodologies. The third dimension is to execute the project as a fixed price one where the requirement is not frozen at the beginning of the project. We have listed the challenges that we have faced. They can be categorized under requirements management, contract management, team management, distributed working, when to design, role of a specialist, testing challenges and CMMI adherence. The different solutions tried and the levels of success in overcoming them have also been included. Our experience indicates that agile methodologies can coexist with offshoring and CMMI framework.
Comparison between Carotid Artery Wall Thickness Measured by Multidetector Row Computed Tomography Angiography and Intimae-Media Thickness Measured by Sonography

The increased thickness of the carotid wall >1 mm is a significant predictor of coronary and cerebrovascular diseases. The purpose of our study was to assess the agreement between multidetector row computed tomography angiography (MDCTA) in measuring carotid artery wall thickness (CAWT) and color Doppler ultrasound (CD-US) in measuring intimae-media thickness (IMT). Eighty-nine patients (aged 35–81) were prospectively analyzed using a 64-detector MDCTA and a CD-US scanner. Continuous data were described as the mean value ± standard deviation, and were compared using the Mann–Whitney U test. A p value <0.05 was considered significant. Bland–Altman statistics were employed to measure the agreement between MDCTA and CD-US. CAWT ranged from 0.62 to 1.60 mm, with a mean value of 1.09 mm. IMT ranged from 0.60 to 1.55 mm, with a mean value of 1.06 mm. We observed an excellent agreement between CD-US and MDCTA in the evaluation of the common carotid artery thickness, with a bias between methods of 0.029 mm (which is a highly statistically important difference of absolute values [t = 43.289; p < 0.01] obtained by paired T test), and limits of agreement from 0.04 to 0.104. Pearson correlation coefficient was 0.9997 (95% CI 0.9996–0.9998; p < 0.01). We conclude that there is an excellent correlation between CAWT and IMT measurements obtained with the MDCTA and CD-US.