Effects of sport massage on limb girth and discomfort associated with eccentric exercise

Context: Sport massage is often used to help prepare for exercise, expedite recovery from muscle soreness, and enhance athletic performance. However, the effect of sport massage on recovery from delayed-onset muscle soreness is unknown.Objective: To determine the effect of a short sport massage treatment on intramuscular swelling and pain in response to eccentric exercise.Design: We used a 2 × 8 (treatment × time) repeated-measures design to compare triceps surae muscle girth and pain ratings over the 72 hours after eccentric exercise.Setting: University research laboratory.Patients or Other Participants: Nineteen healthy, college-aged subjects.Intervention(s): Delayed-onset muscle soreness was induced with several sets of eccentric triceps surae contractions at 90% of the estimated concentric, 1-repetition maximum weight. Subjects returned on 3 consecutive days after eccentric exercise with a cycle ergometer for active rest treatments. In addition, 1 leg received the sport massage.Main Outcome Measure(s): Girth measurements were taken at 5.08 cm (2 in), 10.16 cm (4 in), 15.24 cm (6 in), and 20.32 cm (8 in) below the knee joint line, and pain was assessed with a visual analog scale before and after all 4 sessions.Results: No interaction was noted between treatment and time for any girth or pain measurements, and no main effect was seen for treatment.Conclusions: Sport massage did not reduce girth or pain in the lower leg after eccentric exercise within 72 hours.     

Reversible regulation of chymotrypsin activity using negatively charged gold nanoparticles featuring malonic acid termini

Negatively charged gold nanoparticles featuring 2-(10-mercapto-decyl)-malonic acid were synthesized using the Murray place-displacement reaction. These water-soluble malonate gold mixed monolayer protected clusters (MMPCs) effectively bind and inhibit chymotrypsin based on complementary electrostatic surface recognition. The effect of increasing ionic strength on inhibition was also studied. It was observed that addition of high ionic strength solutions to protein-nanoparticle complexes show almost complete restoration of protein activity. The conformational change of chymotrypsin upon binding to the MMPC was investigated using fluorescence spectrometry and circular dichroism, thus correlating structural changes with enzyme activity.     

Transient striatal gamma local field potentials signal movement initiation in rats

Transient coherent neural oscillations, as indicated by local field potentials, are thought to underlie key perceptual and cognitive events. We report a transient, state-dependent 50 Hz oscillation recorded from electrodes placed in the striatum of awake, behaving rats. These coherent oscillations, which we term gamma(50), occurred in brief (150 ms) events co-incident with the initiation of movement. On navigation tasks, the animal's speed increased dramatically at the precise moment of the gamma(50) event. This synchronous oscillation may provide a key to understanding striatal function, as well as basal ganglia pathology, which often impairs the control of voluntary movements.     

Emerging treatments for child and adolescent social phobia: a review

Social anxiety disorder, or social phobia (SP), is an anxiety disorder characterized by excessive fear of exposure to situations that involve potential scrutiny by others. SP is a common psychiatric problem in children and adolescents, often presenting with comorbid anxiety and mood disorders. Although the onset of SP is typically in late childhood or early adolescence, most afflicted individuals go undiagnosed for years, not seeking treatment until adulthood. First-line treatments for SP in adults support the use of pharmacotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy. There is new and emerging data in youths with SP to support the use of similar treatments. This paper will review the clinical characteristics, epidemiology, and treatment of SP in youths. Current investigations using selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, benzodiazepines, and monoamine oxidase inhibitors in youths will be reviewed. Several studies on the use of cognitive behavioral therapy in youths will also be examined. Practical guidelines for clinicians who treat children and adolescents are also presented.     

Design strengths and issues of SAMHSA's Women, Co-occurring Disorders, and Violence Study

In 1998 the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration launched the Women, Co-occurring Disorders, and Violence Study (WCDVS). The WCDVS developed, implemented, and evaluated the outcomes and costs of comprehensive, trauma-informed treatment programs for women with a history of violence and trauma who have substance use and mental health disorders. This article discusses the overall design features of the study, issues related to such a design, results of the outcomes and cost evaluations, and suggestions for future research. The nine WCDVS sites were located across the continental United States, with six sites on the East Coast, two on the West Coast, and one in Colorado. A total of 2,729 women (1,415 in the intervention condition and 1,314 in the comparison condition) were enrolled over the 13.5-month baseline accrual period (January 2001 through February 2002). Follow-up interviews were conducted with all participants at three, six, nine and 12 months post-baseline. Women in the intervention and the comparison groups showed improvement in outcomes in four areas: alcohol use, drug use, mental health, and trauma. At six months women in the intervention group scored modestly better than women in the usual-care group for outcome measures for drug use, trauma, and mental health. At 12 months women in the intervention group maintained their improvement in drug use outcomes and continued to improve in mental health and trauma outcomes. After a start-up period, costs for services were not significantly different between the intervention and comparison groups at both follow-up points. Despite their very modest nature, the WCDVS results are promising.     

Strategies to investigate gene expression and function in granule cells

Studying gene expression in granule cells is a major route to understanding the factors required for many key cellular processes such as specification, proliferation, migration, differentiation, apoptosis, tumour formation and neurodegeneration. A greater understanding of these processes will not only provide insight into cerebellum development, but also diseases of the cerebellum. Granule cells can be readily grown in culture and both viral and non-viral strategies have been optimised to allow gene transfer and expression in cultured cells. However, granule cell migration and maturation are inherent parts of cerebellum development and these rely on interactions with other cells. Hence, a true picture of gene function in these cells can only be obtained when tissue context is maintained. Studies of gene function in this context can be achieved by creation of mouse models. Conditional mouse models, where loss of gene expression is restricted as far as possible to granule cells, are by far the most informative resource in this respect. Despite their obvious benefits, the production of mouse models is both costly and time-consuming and this may be further compounded by a potential lack of phenotype due to redundancy of gene function. Organotypic slice cultures, on the other hand, are a comparatively cheap and accessible model for studies of gene function where tissue context is maintained. Recent technologies have provided the means to manipulate gene expression in such systems and are beginning to yield valuable insights into the molecular regulation of cerebellum development.