Does inspiratory muscle training improve lung function and quality of life in people with inclusion body myositis? A pilot study.

Inclusion body myositis is the most common acquired myositis in adults, predominantly weakening forearm flexor and knee extensor muscles. Subclinical respiratory muscle weakness has recently been recognised in people with inclusion body myositis, increasing their risk of respiratory complications. Inspiratory muscle training, a technique which demonstrates efficacy and safety in improving respiratory function in people with neuromuscular disorders, has never been explored in those with inclusion body myositis. In this pilot study, six adults with inclusion body myositis (age range 53 to 81 years) completed eight weeks of inspiratory muscle training. Measures of respiratory function, quality of life, sleep quality and a two-minute walk test were performed pre and post-intervention. All participants improved their respiratory function, with maximal inspiratory pressure, sniff nasal inspiratory pressure and forced vital capacity increasing by an average of 50 % (p = .002), 43 % (p = .018) and 13 % (p = .003) respectively. No significant change was observed in quality of life, sleep quality or two-minute walk test performance. No complications occurred due to inspiratory muscle training This pilot study provides the first evidence that inspiratory muscle training may be safe and effective in people with Inclusion Body Myositis, potentially mitigating the complications of poor respiratory function.

Measurements of variable capacitance using single port radio frequency reflectometry.

A radio frequency (RF) reflectometry technique is presented to measure device capacitances using a probe station. This technique is used to characterize micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) variable capacitor devices that can be connected to create pull-up and pull-down networks used in digital gates for reversible computing. Adiabatic reversible computing is a promising approach to energy-efficient computing that can dramatically reduce heat dissipation by switching circuits at speeds below their RC time constants, introducing a trade-off between energy and speed. The variable capacitors in this study will be measured using single port RF reflectometry achieved with a custom-made RF probe. The RF probe consists of a micromanipulator with an on-board matching network and is calibrated by measuring a capacitive bank that shows a clearly visible frequency shift with the increase in capacitance. The RF probe worked well when measuring static capacitors with no parasitic resistance; however, the frequency shift is masked when measuring the MEMS variable capacitors due to their high in-series parasitic resistance (around 80 kΩ). Therefore, RF reflectometry has the potential to measure MEMS variable capacitors in the range of 0-30 fF when not masked by a high in-series parasitic resistance, creating a fast and versatile method for characterizing variable capacitors that can be used in energy-efficient computing.

An upper-crust lid over the Long Valley magma chamber.

Geophysical characterization of calderas is fundamental in assessing their potential for future catastrophic volcanic eruptions. The mechanism behind the unrest of Long Valley Caldera in California remains highly debated, with recent periods of uplift and seismicity driven either by the release of aqueous fluids from the magma chamber or by the intrusion of magma into the upper crust. We use distributed acoustic sensing data recorded along a 100-kilometer fiber-optic cable traversing the caldera to image its subsurface structure. Our images highlight a definite separation between the shallow hydrothermal system and the large magma chamber located at ~12-kilometer depth. The combination of the geological evidence with our results shows how fluids exsolved through second boiling provide the source of the observed uplift and seismicity.

Large Room Temperature Bulk DNP of 13C via P1 Centers in Diamond.

We use microwave-induced dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) of the substitutional nitrogen defects (P1 centers) in diamond to hyperpolarize bulk 13C nuclei in both single crystal and powder samples at room temperature at 3.34 T. The large (>100-fold) enhancements demonstrated correspond to a greater than 10 000-fold improvement in terms of signal averaging of the 1% abundant 13C spins. The DNP was performed using low-power solid state sources under static (nonspinning) conditions. The DNP spectrum (DNP enhancement as a function of microwave frequency) of diamond powder shows features that broadly correlate with the EPR spectrum. A well-defined negative Overhauser peak and two solid effect peaks are observed for the central (m I = 0) manifold of the 14N spins. Previous low temperature measurements in diamond had measured a positive Overhauser enhancement in this manifold. Frequency-chirped millimeter-wave excitation of the electron spins is seen to significantly improve the enhancements for the two outer nuclear spin manifolds (mI = ±1) and to blur some of the sharper features associated with the central manifold. The outer lines are best fit using a combination of the cross effect and the truncated cross effect, which is known to mimic features of an Overhauser effect. Similar features are also observed in experiments on single crystal samples. The observation of all of these mechanisms in a single material system under the same experimental conditions is likely due to the significant heterogeneity of the high pressure, high temperature (HPHT) type Ib diamond samples used. Large room temperature DNP enhancements at fields above a few tesla enable spectroscopic studies with better chemical shift resolution under ambient conditions.

Cytotoxicity of NiO and Ni(OH)2 Nanoparticles Is Mediated by Oxidative Stress-Induced Cell Death and Suppression of Cell Proliferation.

The use of nanomaterial-based products continues to grow with advancing technology. Understanding the potential toxicity of nanoparticles (NPs) is important to ensure that products containing them do not impose harmful effects to human or environmental health. In this study, we evaluated the comparative cytotoxicity between nickel oxide (NiO) and nickel hydroxide (Ni(OH)2) in human bronchoalveolar carcinoma (A549) and human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cell lines. Cellular viability studies revealed cell line-specific cytotoxicity in which nickel NPs were toxic to A549 cells but relatively nontoxic to HepG2 cells. Time-, concentration-, and particle-specific cytotoxicity was observed in A549 cells. NP-induced oxidative stress triggered dissipation of mitochondrial membrane potential and induction of caspase-3 enzyme activity. The subsequent apoptotic events led to reduction in cell number. In addition to cell death, suppression of cell proliferation played an essential role in regulating cell number. Collectively, the observed cell viability is a function of cell death and suppression of proliferation. Physical and chemical properties of NPs such as total surface area and metal dissolution are in agreement with the observed differential cytotoxicity. Understanding the properties of NPs is essential in informing the design of safer materials.

Distributed sensing of microseisms and teleseisms with submarine dark fibers.

Sparse seismic instrumentation in the oceans limits our understanding of deep Earth dynamics and submarine earthquakes. Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS), an emerging technology that converts optical fiber to seismic sensors, allows us to leverage pre-existing submarine telecommunication cables for seismic monitoring. Here we report observations of microseism, local surface gravity waves, and a teleseismic earthquake along a 4192-sensor ocean-bottom DAS array offshore Belgium. We observe in-situ how opposing groups of ocean surface gravity waves generate double-frequency seismic Scholte waves, as described by the Longuet-Higgins theory of microseism generation. We also extract P- and S-wave phases from the 2018-08-19 [Formula: see text] Fiji deep earthquake in the 0.01-1 Hz frequency band, though waveform fidelity is low at high frequencies. These results suggest significant potential of DAS in next-generation submarine seismic networks.

Baseline Neurocognitive Performance and Symptoms in Those With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders and History of Concussion With Previous Loss of Consciousness.

Previous consensus statements on sports concussion have highlighted the importance of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and loss of consciousness (LOC) as risk factors related to concussion management. The present study investigated how self-reported history of either ADHD diagnosis or history of previous concussion resulting in LOC influence baseline neurocognitive performance and self-reported symptoms. This analysis was performed retrospectively on data collected primarily from student-athletes, both Division 1 and club sports athletes. The dataset (n = 1460) is comprised of college students (age = 19.1 ± 1.4 years). Significant differences were found for composite scores on the ImPACT for both history of concussion (p = 0.016) and ADHD (p = 0.014). For concussion history, those with a previous concussion, non-LOC, performed better on the visual motor speed (p = 0.004). Those with diagnosis of ADHD performed worse on verbal memory (p = 0.001) and visual motor speed (p = 0.033). For total symptoms, concussion history (p < 0.001) and ADHD (p = 0.001) had an influence on total symptoms. Those with ADHD reported more symptoms for concussion history; those with previous LOC concussion reported more symptoms than those with non-LOC concussion (p = 0.003) and no history (p < 0.001). These results highlight the importance of baseline measures of neurocognitive function and symptoms in concussion management in order to account for pre-existing conditions such as ADHD and LOC from previous concussion that could influence these measures.