Force-, power-, and elasticity-velocity relationships in walking,running, and jumping

Summary Ground reaction forces and mechanical power were investigated when the subjects walked normally, while they were racing or running at four speeds, and when they performed the running long jump take-off. In addition, the apparent spring constants of the support leg in eccentric and concentric phases were investigated at the four running speeds, during the running long jump take-off, and in the triple jump. Six club level track and field athletes, four national level long jumpers, and six national level triple jumpers took part in the study. Cinematographic technique and a mathematical model of hopping (Alexander and Vernon 1975) were employed in the analysis. Force and power values were found to vary in the following order (from highest to lowest): long jump take-off, maximal running speed, submaximal running (80, 60, and 40% of maximum speed), racing gait, and normal gait. The data disclosed that the measured parameters had the highest values in the long jump take-off performed by the long jump athletes. Their peak values were: resultant ground reaction force 3270±74 N and mechanical power 160.1±10.5 J×kg^–1×s^–1. For the track and field athletes the values were 2010±80 N and 126.0±12.6 J ×kg^–1×s^–1. The apparent spring constant values of the support leg in the national level jumper group were in eccentric phase 30.54±8.38 N×mm^–1 ×kg^–1 and in concentric phase 0.129±0.012 N×mm^–1×kg^–1. In the track and field athletes the values were 13.97±1.01 N×mm^–1×kg^–1 and 0.093±0.003 N×mm^–1×kg^–1, respectively. In general, the increase in force and mechanical power output was related to the value of the apparent spring constant of the support leg in the eccentric phase. The spring constant in the eccentric phase increased with the velocity of motion in running, the long jump take-off and the triple jump. This suggests that it may be possible to use this parameter as a measure of mechanical performance, as it may reflect the combined elasticity of muscles, tendons, and bones.     

Communication, conflict, and psychological distance in nondistressed, clinic, and divorcing couples

This study compared communication patterns and conflicts over psychological distance in 25 nondistressed couples, 15 clinic couples, and 22 divorcing couples. Data consisted of questionnaire reports completed independently by husbands and wives. The two distressed groups, compared with nondistressed couples, had less mutual constructive communication, more avoidance of communication, more demand/withdraw communication, and more conflict over psychological distance in their relationships. In addition, the divorcing group had less mutual constructive communication than the clinic group and evidenced a trend for more conflict over psychological distance than the clinic group. Consistent with past research, wife demand/husband withdraw communication was more likely across all groups than husband demand/wife withdraw communication. Results are discussed in terms of skills deficits and incompatability models of marital discord.     

Guilt,fear, submission,and empathy in depression

BACKGROUND: This study compares self-focused motivations (fear of negative evaluation, social comparison, and fear of envy) and other-focused motivations (empathy and interpersonal guilt) in submissive behavior and depression. METHODS: The Beck Depression Inventory, Submissive Behavior Scale, Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale, Social Comparison Scale, Interpersonal Guilt Questionnaire, and Interpersonal Reactivity Inventory were administered to 50 patients hospitalized for depression and 52 students. RESULTS: Depressed patients were significantly higher in survivor guilt, omnipotent responsibility guilt, submissive behavior, fear of negative evaluation, fear of envy, and empathic distress, and lower in social comparison. LIMITATIONS: This research was limited in that it was a correlational study. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that altruistic concern about others may be an important factor in depression and submissive behavior. Evolutionary implications of these findings are discussed.     

Triglycerides, cholesterol, and phospholipids in normal heart papillary muscle and in patients suffering from diabetes, cholelithiasis, hypertension, and coronary atheroma

The triglyceride, cholesterol, and phospholipid contents of heart papillary muscle were measured in groups of obviously healthy and diseased females and males on whom either routine or forensic necropsies were performed. In healthy men the triglyceride content was 1.77 +/- 1.30 mg/g of wet weight and in women 1.25 +/- 0.48 mg/g wet weight. The corresponding values for cholesterol were 1.07 +/- 0.24 mg/g and 1.21 +/- 0.22 mg/g and those for phospholipids 17.70 +/- 5.15 mg/g and 19.65 +/- 10.21 mg/g. The differences between the sexes were not significant.The hypertensive or cardiac hypertrophy group had about the same or slightly lower means for lipid content.In the cholelithiasis group, women had significantly high triglyceride values (3.38 +/- 2.36 mg/g). The cholesterol values were not significantly elevated in either men or women.In the diabetic group, triglycerides were significantly increased both in men (mean 8.12 +/- 0.54 mg/g) and in women (6.85 +/- 5.66 mg/g). The cholesterol mean values were also high in both sexes, but the rise was not significant because of the great variation.In the coronary atheroma group, both male and female hospital cases had high triglyceride contents (mean 4.48 +/- 4.25 mg/g and 3.65 +/- 3.94 mg/g) whereas the forensic cases had only slightly elevated or normal values. Cholesterol assays paralleled the triglyceride ones, but phospholipids showed an inverse trend.The results showed that the lipid content of papillary muscle was increased in diseases where disturbances of lipid metabolism are evident, as in diabetes and cholelithiasis. In coronary atheroma only those cases with advanced obstruction of the arteries were associated with abnormal values of papillary lipids. No increase of the lipid content with age alone was found, nor was there any correlation with obesity.     

Intelligence, memory, and handedness in pedophilia

A sample of 473 male patients with pedophilia (assessed by the patients' sexual history and penile response in the laboratory to standardized, erotic stimuli) or other problematic sexual interests or behaviors received brief neuropsychological assessments. Neuropsychological measures included a short form of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale--Revised (D. Wechsler, 1981), the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test--Revised (R. H. B. Benedict, D. Schretlen. L. Groninger. & J. Brandt, 1998), the Brief Visuospatial Memory Test--Revised (R. H. B. Benedict, 1997), and the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (S. M. Williams, 1986). Pedophilia showed significant negative correlations with IQ and immediate and delayed recall memory. Pedophilia was also related to non-right-handedness even after covarying age and IQ. These results suggest that pedophilia is linked to early neurodevelopmental perturbations.     

Lifestyle, genetics, and disease in Sami

Aim

To present a summary of the lifestyle, genetic origin, diet, and disease in the population of Sami, indigenous people of northern Fennoscandia.

Method

A survey of the available scientific literature and preliminary results from our own study of the Swedish Sami population.

Results

The Sami probably have a heterogeneous genetic origin, with a major contribution of continental or Eastern European tribes and a smaller contribution from Asia. The traditional Sami diet, high in animal products, persists in Sami groups still involved with reindeer herding, but others have adopted a diet typical of Western cultures. Early reports indicated a lower prevalence of heart disease and most cancers, except stomach cancer. Recent studies have not found a lower risk of heart disease, but have consistently shown an overall reduced cancer risk. Sami have been reported to share some specific health-related genetic polymorphisms with other European populations, but none that would explain the observed differences in disease risk.

Conclusion

The genetic structure of the Sami population makes it suitable for studies of the genetic and environmental factors influencing the development of common diseases. The difference in incidence of heart disease between studies may reflect the ongoing transition from a traditional to a more Westernized lifestyle. The ability to compare population segments with different lifestyles, combined with the genetic structure of the population, creates unusual possibilities for studies of the genetic and environmental factors involved in the development of common disease.Sami are the indigenous people of the northernmost parts of Sweden, Finland, Norway, and the Kola Peninsula of Russia. The Sami speak a language belonging to the Finno-Ugric branch of the Uralic language family with Finns, Karelians, and Estonians as their closest linguistic neighbors. The Sami languages can be further divided into 10 distinct extant languages. Sami are believed to have been present in the area from soon after glacial ice-sheet retreated. The Sami where initially hunters (mainly of reindeer and moose), but over time they domesticated the reindeer and became reindeer herders. Today, the Sami population is estimated to be less than 100 000 individuals (1). Some of the Sami are still reindeer herders and maintain a traditional lifestyle linked to the annual migration of the reindeer between summer and winter grazing areas, while the rest have other occupations. The Sami population is not known to have experienced any dramatic population changes and until recent, marriages between Sami and non-Sami families have been infrequent.     

Inflammation, endothelium, and coagulation in sepsis

Sepsis is a systemic response to infection, and symptoms are produced by host defense systems rather than by the invading pathogens. Amongst the most prominent features of sepsis, contributing significantly to its outcome, is activation of coagulation with concurrent down-regulation of anticoagulant systems and fibrinolysis. Inflammation-induced coagulation on its turn contributes to inflammation. Another important feature of sepsis, associated with key symptoms such as hypovolemia and hypotension, is endothelial dysfunction. Under normal conditions, the endothelium provides for an anticoagulant surface, a property that is lost in sepsis. In this review, data about the interplay between inflammation and coagulation in sepsis are summarized with a special focus on the influence of the endothelium on inflammation-induced coagulation and vice versa. Possible procoagulant properties of the endothelium are described, such as expression of tissue factor (TF) and von Willebrand factor and interaction with platelets. Possible procoagulant roles of microparticles, circulating endothelial cells and endothelial apoptosis, are also discussed. Moreover, the important roles of the endothelium in down-regulating the anticoagulants TF pathway inhibitor, antithrombin, and the protein C (PC) system and inhibition of fibrinolysis are discussed. The influence of coagulation on its turn on inflammation and the endothelium is described with a special focus on protease-activated receptors (PARs). We conclude that the relationship between endothelium and coagulation in sepsis is tight and that further research is needed, for example, to better understand the role of activated PC signaling via PAR-1, the role of the endothelial PC receptor herein, and the role of the glycocalyx.     

Advances in allergic skin disease, anaphylaxis, and hypersensitivity reactions to foods, drugs, and insects in 2011

This review highlights some of the research advances in anaphylaxis; hypersensitivity reactions to foods, drugs, and insects; and allergic skin diseases that were reported in the Journal in 2011. Food allergy appears to be increasing in prevalence and carries a strong economic burden. Risk factors can include dietary ones, such as deficiency of vitamin D and timing of complementary foods, and genetic factors, such as filaggrin loss-of-function mutations. Novel mechanisms underlying food allergy include the role of invariant natural killer T cells and influences of dietary components, such as isoflavones. Among numerous preclinical and clinical treatment studies, promising observations include the efficacy of sublingual and oral immunotherapy, a Chinese herbal remedy showing promising in vitro results, the potential immunotherapeutic effects of having children ingest foods with baked-in milk if they tolerate it, and the use of anti-IgE with or without concomitant immunotherapy. Studies of allergic skin diseases, anaphylaxis, and hypersensitivity to drugs and insect venom are elucidating cellular mechanisms, improved diagnostics, and potential targets for future treatment. The role of skin barrier abnormalities, as well as the modulatory effects of the innate and adaptive immune responses, are major areas of investigation.     

Advances in allergic skin disease, anaphylaxis, and hypersensitivity reactions to foods, drugs, and insects in 2007

This review highlights some of the research advances in allergic skin disease, anaphylaxis, and hypersensitivity reactions to foods, drugs, and insects that were reported primarily in the Journal in 2007. Advances in diagnosis include possible biomarkers for anaphylaxis, improved understanding of the relevance of food-specific serum IgE tests, identification of possibly discriminatory T-cell responses for drug allergy, and an elucidation of irritant responses for vaccine allergy diagnostic skin tests. Mechanistic studies are discerning T-cell and cytokine responses central to eosinophilic gastroenteropathies and food allergy, including the identification of multiple potential therapeutic targets. Regarding treatment, clinical studies of oral immunotherapy and allergen vaccination strategies show promise, whereas several clinical studies raise questions about whether oral allergen avoidance reduces atopic risks and whether probiotics can prevent or treat atopic disease. The importance of skin barrier dysfunction has been highlighted in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis (AD), particularly as it relates to allergen sensitization and eczema severity. Research has also continued to identify immunologic defects that contribute to the propensity of patients with AD to have viral and bacterial infections. New therapeutic approaches to AD, urticaria, and angioedema have been reported, including use of sublingual immunotherapy, anti-IgE, and a kallikrein inhibitor.     

Effects of nicotine and caffeine, separately and in combination, on EEG topography, mood, heart rate, cortisol, and vigilance

Effects of nicotine and caffeine, separately and in combination, were assessed in 12 male habitual smokers in a repeated-measures design. Caffeine (0-mg vs. two 150-mg doses administered in a decaffeinated/sugar-free cola drink post-baseline and 90 min later) was crossed with nicotine (ad libitum own dosing vs. 1.0-mg machine-delivered dose vs. 0.05-mg machine-delivered dose). Participants smoked a total of five cigarettes at 30-min intervals over a 2-hr period. Caffeine and nicotine had large effect sizes on electroencephalogram (EEG) power; however, these effects were modulated by the eyes open versus closed condition, the other drug, and electrode site. EEG effects of open versus closed eyes tended to be of the same size and direction as those of nicotine and caffeine. However, whereas nicotine increased EEG power in some higher frequency bands in some conditions, caffeine decreased EEG power across almost all conditions. Serum cortisol concentration, vigor, and pleasantness were increased by nicotine, but not by caffeine. Level of depressive mood depended on an interaction of caffeine and nicotine. Vigilance performance was enhanced significantly by caffeine and was increased almost significantly by nicotine. The findings were interpreted in terms of common and differential mechanisms of the two drugs.     

Severity, control, and responsiveness in asthma

Guidelines for asthma management have proposed that initial treatment should be based on assessment of asthma severity. The treatments proposed for different degrees of asthma severity are essentially estimates of the intensity of treatment needed to achieve asthma control. Responsiveness to treatment is heterogeneous, however, even among asthmatic patients with asthma of similar severity. This heterogeneity calls attention to the importance of assessing asthma control and adjusting treatment accordingly. Application of a guidelines-based approach to asthma management thus requires general agreement on what is meant by severity, control, and responsiveness and requires further an awareness of asthma as causing symptoms and functional impairment in the present and also as causing risk of adverse events in the future.