Occurrence of BMAA Isomers in Bloom-Impacted Lakes and Reservoirs of Brazil,Canada, France,Mexico, and the United Kingdom

The neurotoxic alkaloid β-N-methyl-amino-l-alanine (BMAA) and related isomers, including N-(2-aminoethyl glycine) (AEG), β-amino-N-methyl alanine (BAMA), and 2,4-diaminobutyric acid (DAB), have been reported previously in cyanobacterial samples. However, there are conflicting reports regarding their occurrence in surface waters. In this study, we evaluated the impact of amending lake water samples with trichloroacetic acid (0.1 M TCA) on the detection of BMAA isomers, compared with pre-existing protocols. A sensitive instrumental method was enlisted for the survey, with limits of detection in the range of 5–10 ng L⁻¹. Higher detection rates and significantly greater levels (paired Wilcoxon’s signed-rank tests, p < 0.001) of BMAA isomers were observed in TCA-amended samples (method B) compared to samples without TCA (method A). The overall range of B/A ratios was 0.67–8.25 for AEG (up to +725%) and 0.69–15.5 for DAB (up to +1450%), with absolute concentration increases in TCA-amended samples of up to +15,000 ng L⁻¹ for AEG and +650 ng L⁻¹ for DAB. We also documented the trends in the occurrence of BMAA isomers for a large breadth of field-collected lakes from Brazil, Canada, France, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. Data gathered during this overarching campaign (overall, n = 390 within 45 lake sampling sites) indicated frequent detections of AEG and DAB isomers, with detection rates of 30% and 43% and maximum levels of 19,000 ng L⁻¹ and 1100 ng L⁻¹, respectively. In contrast, BAMA was found in less than 8% of the water samples, and BMAA was not found in any sample. These results support the analyses of free-living cyanobacteria, wherein BMAA was often reported at concentrations of 2–4 orders of magnitude lower than AEG and DAB. Seasonal measurements conducted at two bloom-impacted lakes indicated limited correlations of BMAA isomers with total microcystins or chlorophyll-a, which deserves further investigation.     

Physical therapists’ self-perceived adequacy of entry-level education and their current confidence levels with respect to temporomandibular disorders: A pilot study

ABSTRACT

Objective

Physical therapy (PT) has been shown to be one of the most effective conservative treatments for temporomandibular disorders (TMD). The objectives of this pilot study are to determine the self-perceived knowledge, adequacy of entry-level education, and the current confidence levels of PTs in Florida regarding TMD treatment.     

Individuality of breathing patterns in adults assessed over time

Sixteen healthy adult subjects underwent two studies separated by 4-5 years to test whether their resting pattern of breathing was reproducible over time. From breath-by-breath analysis of airflow, measured with a pneumotachometer, the pattern of breathing was quantified in terms of individual respiratory variables; inspiratory time (TI), expiratory time (TE), total breath duration (TTOT), tidal volume (VT), VT/TI, TI/TTOT, and by taking TI, TE and VT all together (TRIAD). Also, the shape of the entire airflow profile was quantified by harmonic analysis (ASTER). A statistical analysis was designed to compare differences between the 1st and the 2nd recording within individuals with those differences observed between random pairs of recordings from the two studies in the same 16 individuals. It was found that all variables were significantly more similar within-individuals than between-individuals; this is best demonstrated when considering the ASTER and/or the TRIAD. It was concluded that the individuality of breathing pattern is maintained over a long period despite changes in smoking habit, weight, mild respiratory diseases, and other changes which occurred between the two studies in our subjects.     

The predictive value of intraoperative KT-1000 arthrometer measurements in single incision anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction

We reviewed 28 patients who underwent anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with immediate, 1-, 2-, and 3-year postreconstruction KT-1000 manual maximum testing. Arthrometer measurements were correlated with functional knee criteria to evaluate the ability of the KT-1000 to predict postreconstruction functional results. Despite a range of immediate postreconstruction arthrometer injured-minus-normal (I - N) differences, there was no association with I - N difference at last follow-up. Patients followed-up for 1 year were not different from those who were followed-up for longer with respect to intraoperative or 1-year I - N difference or functional performance scores. Furthermore, excellent functional knee scores were the norm at all stages of follow-up despite a wide range of arthrometric laxity changes. The results suggest that functional knee criteria, although partially subjective, are more useful indicators of outcome than intrareconstruction and postreconstruction arthrometric measures.