First Record of Toxorhynchites moctezuma in Sinaloa, Mexico: Notes about its Morphology.

Mosquito larvae were collected in the urban area of the city of Culiacan, Sinaloa, in September of 2020. The immature stages were placed in emergence containers and fed with Aedes aegypti larvae. The adults that emerged from the immature stages were mounted on insect pins and characterized based on their morphology. The species corresponded morphologically to Toxorhynchites moctezuma, making this the first report of the species for the state of Sinaloa, Mexico. Similarities and morphological variations are discussed with previous analysis for this species.

Hip flexibility is the main determinant of the back-saver sit-and-reach test in adolescents.

Although flexibility field tests are commonly used in research, sport, and school settings, there is no conclusive evidence about what they actually assess. The first aim of this study was to assess the contributions of the main joints involved in the back-saver sit-and-reach test using angular kinematic analysis. The second aim was to measure the inter-method agreement between the back-saver sit-and-reach test and the sit-and-reach test. A total of 138 adolescents (57 females, 81 males) aged 14.5 +/- 1.7 years performed the back-saver sit-and-reach test and the sit-and-reach test. Hip, lumbar, and thoracic angles were assessed by angular kinematic analysis while the participants were performing the back-saver sit-and-reach test. Stepwise linear regression models and the Bland-Altman method were used. The hip angle independently explained 42% (P < 0.001) of the variance in the back-saver sit-and-reach test, the lumbar angle explained an additional 30% (P < 0.001) of the variance, and the thoracic angle an additional 4% (P < 0.001). The inter-method mean difference between back-saver sit-and-reach (BSSR) and sit-and-reach (SR) measures (BSSR - SR) was 0.41 cm (P = 0.21). The results suggest that hip flexibility is the main determinant of the back-saver sit-and-reach test score in adolescents, followed by lumbar flexibility. The back-saver sit-and-reach test can therefore be considered an appropriate and valid test for assessing hip and low-back flexibility in this age group. The back-saver sit-and-reach and sit-and-reach tests provide comparable values.

Análisis de los golpeos de empeine y puntera en jugadores de elite de fútbol-sala / Analysis of instep and toe kicks in indoor soccer elite players

El lanzamiento de doble penalti es un elemento técnico determinante en Fútbol Sala que puede determinar el resultado final de un partido y que puede suele ser ejecutado con el empeine o con la puntera según la intencionalidad del jugador (buscando el predominio de la colocación o de la velocidad del balón, respectivamente). Un análisis tridimensional detallado del gesto, realizado en situación precompetitiva delm ás alto nivel - lo caul asegura la excelencia en la realización de los gestos golpeos-, filmado mediante cámaras de alta velocidad y analizado con el software Cyborg 3.0, demuestra que el golpeo de empeine se caractriza por un último paso más largo y una menor velocidad de salida del balón que el golpeo de puntera, aunque permite una mayor precisión en el golpeo. El lanzamiento de empeine, para obtener altas velocidades de lanzamiento, recurre a una mayor fase de armado (retroceso) de la pierna chutadora el centro de gravedad se sitúa más elevado. El lanzamiento de puntera, por su parte, produce mayor velocidad de salida del balón, probablemente debido a una mejor mejor transmisión de la fuerza desde el segmento más distal- pie- hacia el móvil (coeficiente de restitución o "rigidez"). Es sin duda el este segmento final de la cadena cinética, el pie, el que determina las características diferenciadoras entre uno y otro golpeo. Conocer en profundidad los elementos similares y diferentes de ambos estilos de lanzamiento nos permititá ofrecer a nuestros deportistas una metodología de entrenamiento más eficaz en función del objetivo pretendido

Double penalty kick is a determinant skill in Indoor Soccer which can determine the final result of a march and that is usually may be performed with instep or punt toe according to the purpose of the player (looking for the predominance of accuracy or velocity of the ball, respectively). A three dimensional analysis of the movemente, in pre-competitive elite situation - what secure the superior quality of the motions executions-, filmed through high velocity camera and analyzed with Cyborg 3.0 software, let us affirm that instep kick is characterized by a longer last step and slower ball start velocity of the ball than the toe kick, but provide a greater accuracy of the kick. To obtain high velocities of the ball in the instep kick, the backward movement of the kicking leg is greater, and the centre of gravity is located higher. In the other side, to kick produces greater ball start velocity of the ball, probably due to a better transmission of force from the latest limb-foot-to the ball (coeficient of restitution or "stifffness"). Undoubtedly, the final limb of kinetic chain, the foot, determines the discriminatory characteristics between one and other kick. Knowing deeply similar and different elements of these two styles of kicking will let us design a more efective training methodology to our athletes according to the pretended objective

Motoneuron loss associated with chronic locomotion impairments after spinal cord contusion in the rat.

Information on the nature of deficits and adaptive mechanisms occurring after spinal cord injury is essential to the design of strategies for promoting functional recovery. Motor impairments and compensations were quantified by three-dimensional kinematic analysis in freely walking rats, 6 months after mild cervical (C7) or moderate lumbar (L2) spinal cord contusion. After C7 contusion, the animals showed reduced elbow extension and wrist movement, whereas reduced knee extension was the main impairment after L2 contusion. In both cases, the duration of the walking cycle increased and forward velocity was reduced due to a longer stance phase. Histology revealed reproducible lesions extending approximately to one spinal cord segment. In the transverse plane, the lesion involved the central gray matter and adjacent axons, including the dorsal corticospinal tract, but partially spared the ventrolateral tracts. Retrograde motoneuron tracing by nerve exposure to HRP or intramuscular injection of aminostilbamidine demonstrated that C7 contusion caused the loss of approximately 40% of triceps brachii motoneurons, whereas approximately 30% of quadriceps femoris motoneurons were lost after L2 contusion. These results demonstrate permanent deficits after incomplete lesions at the spinal cord enlargements and suggest that motoneuron loss contributes to their production.

Prediction of distance in hammer throwing.

The aim of this study was to determine how much the predicted distance of a hammer throw is affected by (1) ignoring air resistance and (2) assuming that the centre of mass of the hammer coincides with the centre of the ball. Three-dimensional data from actual throws (men: 72.82 +/- 7.43 m; women: 67.78 +/- 4.02 m) were used to calculate the kinematic conditions of the hammer at release. A mathematical model of the hammer was then used to simulate the three-dimensional airborne motion of the hammer and to predict the distance of the throw. The distance predicted for vacuum conditions and using the ball centre to represent the hammer centre of mass was 4.30 +/- 2.64 m longer than the official distance of the throw for the men and 8.82 +/- 3.20 m longer for the women. Predictions using the true centre of mass of the hammer reduced the discrepancy to 2.39 +/- 2.58 m for the men and 5.28 +/- 2.88 m for the women. Predictions using air resistance and the true centre of mass of the hammer further reduced the discrepancy to -0.46 +/- 2.63 m for the men and 1.16 +/- 2.31 m for the women. Approximately half the loss of distance produced by air resistance was due to forces made on the ball and the remainder to forces made on the cable and handle. Equations were derived for calculation of the effects of air resistance and of the assumption that the centre of mass of the hammer coincides with the centre of the ball, on the distance of the throw.