Where are all the female participants in sports and exercise medicine research?

The aim of this study is to estimate the ratio of male and female participants in Sports and Exercise Medicine research. Original research articles published in three major Sports and Exercise Medicine journals (Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise, British Journal of Sports Medicine and American Journal of Sports Medicine) over a three year period were examined. Each article was screened to determine the following: total number of participants, the number of female participants and the number of male participants. The percentage of females and males per article in each of the journals was also calculated. Cross tabulations and Chi square analysis were used to compare the gender representation of participants within each of the journals. Data were extracted from 1, 382 articles involving a total of 6, 076, 705 participants. 2, 366, 998 (39%) participants were female and 3, 709, 707 (61%) male. The average percentage of female participants per article across the journals ranged from 35-37%. Females were significantly under-represented across all of the journals (X2 =23566, df=2, p<0.00001). There were no significant differences between the three journals. In conclusion, Sports and Exercise Medicine practitioners should be cognisant of sexual dimorphism and gender disparity in the current literature.

Comparison of three generations of ActiGraph (TM) activity monitors in children and adolescents

In this study, we evaluated agreement among three generations of ActiGraph (TM) accelerometers in children and adolescents. Twenty-nine participants (mean age = 14.2 +/- 3.0 years) completed two laboratory-based activity sessions, each lasting 60 min. During each session, participants concurrently wore three different models of the ActiGraph (TM) accelerometers (GT1M, GT3X, GT3X+). Agreement among the three models for vertical axis counts, vector magnitude counts, and time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical exercise (MVPA) was evaluated by calculating intraclass correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plots. The intraclass correlation coefficient for total vertical axis counts, total vector magnitude counts, and estimated MVPA was 0.994 (95% CI = 0.989-0.996), 0.981 (95% CI = 0.969-0.989), and 0.996 (95% CI = 0.989-0.998), respectively. Inter-monitor differences for total vertical axis and vector magnitude counts ranged from 0.3% to 1.5%, while inter-monitor differences for estimated MVPA were equal to or close to zero. On the basis of these findings, we conclude that there is strong agreement between the GT1M, GT3X, and GT3X+ activity monitors, thus making it acceptable for researchers and practitioners to use different ActiGraph (TM) models within a given study.

Satisfaction with emergency department service among non-English-speaking background patients

Objective: The present study aims to investigate non-English-speaking background (NESB) patients’ satisfaction with hospital ED service and compare it with that of English-speaking background (ESB) patients. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted at the ED of an adult tertiary referral hospital in Queensland, Australia. Patients assigned an Australasian Triage Scale score of 3, 4 or 5 were surveyed in the ED, before and after their ED service. Pearson χ2- test and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the differences between the ESB and NESB groups in terms of patient-reported satisfaction. Results: In total, 828 patients participated in the present study. Although the overall satisfaction with the service was high – 95.1% (ESB) and 90.5% (NESB) – the NESB patients who did not use an interpreter were less satisfied with their ED service than the ESB patients (odds ratio 0.5, 95% confidence interval 0.3–0.8, P = 0.013). The promptness of service received the lowest satisfaction rates (ESB 85.4% [82.4–88.0], NESB 74.5% [68.5– 79.7], P < 0.001), whereas courtesy and friendliness received the highest satisfaction rates (ESB 98.8 [97.6–99.4], NESB 97.0 [93.9–98.5], P = 0.063). All participants reported the promptness of service (33.5%), quality and professional care (18.5%) and communication (17.6%) as the most important elements of ED service. Conclusion: The NESB patients were significantly less satisfied than the ESB patients with the ED service. Use of an interpreter improved the NESB patients’ level of satisfaction. Further research is required to examine what NESB patients’ expectations of ED service are.

A vibrational spectroscopic study of the silicate mineral pectolite – NaCa2Si3O8(OH)

The mineral pectolite NaCa2Si3O8(OH) is a crystalline sodium calcium silicate which has the potential to be used in plaster boards and in other industrial applications. Raman bands at 974 and 1026 cm−1 are assigned to the SiO stretching vibrations of linked units of Si3O8 units. Raman bands at 974 and 998 cm−1 serve to identify Si3O8 units. The broad Raman band at around 936 cm−1 is attributed to hydroxyl deformation modes. Intense Raman band at 653 cm−1 is assigned to OSiO bending vibration. Intense Raman bands in the 2700–3000 cm−1 spectral range are assigned to OH stretching vibrations of the OH units in pectolite. Infrared spectra are in harmony with the Raman spectra. Raman spectroscopy with complimentary infrared spectroscopy enables the characterisation of the silicate mineral pectolite.

Structure and ultrastructure of the silk glands and spinneret of Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

This study provides comprehensive documentation of silk production in the pest moth Helicoverpa armigera from gland secretion to extrusion of silk thread. The structure of the silk glands, accessory structures and extrusion apparatus are reported. The general schema of the paired silk glands follows that found for Lepidoptera. Morphology of the duct, silk press, muscle attachments and spigot are presented as a three-dimensional reconstruction and the cuticular crescent-shaped profile of the silk press is demonstrated in both open and closed forms with attendant muscle blocks, allowing advances in our knowledge of how the silk press functions to regulate the extrusion of silk. Growth of the spigot across instars is documented showing a distinctive developmental pattern for this extrusion device. Its shape and structure are related to use and load-bearing activity.

Subsoil constraints in Vertosols: Crop water use nutrient concentration, and grain yields of bread wheat, durum wheat, barley, chickpea and canola

Single or multiple factors implicated in subsoil constraints including salinity, sodicity, and phytotoxic concentrations of chloride (Cl) are present in many Vertosols including those occurring in Queensland, Australia. The variable distribution and the complex interactions that exist between these constraints limit the agronomic or management options available to manage the soil with these subsoil constraints. The identification of crops and cultivars adapted to these adverse subsoil conditions and/or able to exploit subsoil water may be an option to maintain productivity of these soils. We evaluated relative performance of 5 winter crop species, in terms of grain yields, nutrient concentration, and ability to extract soil water, grown on soils with various levels and combinations of subsoil constraints in 19 field experiments over 2 years. Subsoil constraints were measured by levels of soil Cl, electrical conductivity of the saturation extract (ECse), and exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP). Increasing levels of subsoil constraints significantly decreased maximum depth of water extraction, grain yield, and plant-available water capacity for all the 5 crops and more so for chickpea and durum wheat than bread wheat, barley, or canola. Increasing soil Cl levels had a greater restricting effect on water availability than did ECse and ESP. We developed empirical relationships between soil Cl, ECse, and ESP and crop lower limit (CLL) for estimating subsoil water extraction by 5 winter crops. However, the presence of gypsum influenced the ability to predict CLL based on the levels of ECse. Stronger relationships between apparent unused plant-available water (CLL - LL15; LL15 is lower limit at -1.5 MPa) and soil Cl concentrations than ESP or ECse suggested that the presence of high Cl in these soils most likely inhibited the subsoil water extraction by the crops. This was supported by increased sodium (Na) and Cl concentration with a corresponding decrease in calcium (Ca) and potassium (K) in young mature leaf of bread wheat, durum wheat, and chickpea with increasing levels of subsoil constraints. Of the 2 ions, Na and Cl, the latter appears to be more damaging than the former, resulting in plant dieback and reduced grain yields.

Behaviour of methylmethacrylate-acrylonitrile random copolymers in dilute solution

Studies on the dilute solution properties of methylmethacrylate-acrylonitrile random copolymers of three different compositions, 0.236, 0.5 and 0.74 mole fraction (m.f.) of acrylonitrile (AN) designated as MAa, MAb and MAc, respectively, have been made in good solvents and theta solvents. MAa has been studied in benzene (Bz) and ethylacetate (EAc). MAb in acetonitrile (MeCN), dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) and a binary solvent mixture of Bz and dimentyl formamide (DMF) in the volume ratio 6.5:1 designated as BM1 and MAc in MeCN, DMSO and Bz + DMF in the volume ratio 1.667:1 designated as BM2. The Mark-Houwink exponent ‘a’ reveals that Bz is a theta solvent for MAa at 20°C. For MAb and MAc, BM1 and BM2, respectively have ‘a’ values of 0.5 at all three temperatures studied (30°, 40° and 50°C). It is not clear whether they represent theta states or preferential adsorption plays a role complicating the behaviour in solution. The values of A2 are very low in MeCN considering that it is a very good solvent for the copolymer, ‘a’ values for MAb and MAc being 0.75 and 0.7, respectively.

Independent replication and meta-analysis for endometriosis risk loci

Endometriosis is a complex disease that affects 6-10% of women in their reproductive years and 20-50% of women with infertility. Genome-wide and candidate-gene association studies for endometriosis have identified 10 independent risk loci, and of these, nine (rs7521902, rs13394619, rs4141819, rs6542095, rs1519761, rs7739264, rs12700667, rs1537377, and rs10859871) are polymorphic in European populations. Here we investigate the replication of nine SNP loci in 998 laparoscopically and histologically confirmed endometriosis cases and 783 disease-free controls from Belgium. SNPs rs7521902, rs13394619, and rs6542095 show nominally significant (p <.05) associations with endometriosis, while the directions of effect for seven SNPs are consistent with the original reports. Association of rs6542095 at the IL1A locus with 'All' (p =.066) and 'Grade-B' (p =.01) endometriosis is noteworthy because this is the first successful replication in an independent population. Meta-analysis with the published results yields genome-wide significant evidence for rs7521902, rs13394619, rs6542095, rs12700667, rs7739264, and rs1537377. Notably, three coding variants in GREB1 (near rs13394619) and CDKN2B-AS1 (near rs1537377) also showed nominally significant associations with endometriosis. Overall, this study provides important replication in a uniquely characterized independent population, and indicates that the majority of the original genome-wide association findings are not due to chance alone. © The Author(s) 2015.

Vibration of generally orthotropic skew plates

Vibration problem of generally orthotropic plates with particular attention to plates of skew geometry is studied. The formulation is based on orthotropic plate theory with arbitrary orientation of the principal axes of orthotropy. The boundary conditions considered are combinations of simply supported, clamped, and free-edge conditions. Approximate solution for frequencies and modes is obtained by the Ritz method using products of appropriate beam characteristic functions as admissible functions. The variation of frequencies and modes with orientation of the axes of orthotropy is examined for different skew angles and boundary conditions. Features such as "crossings" and "quasi-degeneracies" of the frequency curves are found to occur with variation of the orientation of the axes of orthotropy for a given geometry of the skew plate. It is also found that for each combination of skew angle and side ratio, a particular orientation of the axes gives the highest value for the fundamental frequency of the plate.

Two-temperature accretion around rotating black holes: a description of the general advective flow paradigm in the presence of various cooling processes to explain low to high luminous sources

We investigate viscous two-temperature accretion disc flows around rotating black holes. We describe the global solution of accretion flows with a sub-Keplerian angular momentum profile, by solving the underlying conservation equations including explicit cooling processes self-consistently. Bremsstrahlung, synchrotron and inverse Comptonization of soft photons are considered as possible cooling mechanisms. We focus on the set of solutions for sub-Eddington, Eddington and super-Eddington mass accretion rates around Schwarzschild and Kerr black holes with a Kerr parameter of 0.998. It is found that the flow, during its infall from the Keplerian to sub-Kepleria transition region to the black hole event horizon, passes through various phases of advection: the general advective paradigm to the radiatively inefficient phase, and vice versa. Hence, the flow governs a much lower electron temperature similar to 10(8)-10(9.5) K, in the range of accretion rate in Eddington units 0.01 less than or similar to (M) over dot less than or similar to 100, compared to the hot protons of temperature similar to 10(10.2)-10(11.8) K. Therefore, the solution may potentially explain the hard X-rays and gamma-rays emitted from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and X-ray binaries. We then compare the solutions for two different regimes of viscosity. We conclude that a weakly viscous flow is expected to be cooling dominated, particularly at the inner region of the disc, compared to its highly viscous counterpart, which is radiatively inefficient. With all the solutions in hand, we finally reproduce the observed luminosities of the underfed AGNs and quasars (e. g. Sgr A*) to ultraluminous X-ray sources (e. g. SS433), at different combinations of input parameters, such as the mass accretion rate and the ratio of specific heats. The set of solutions also predicts appropriately the luminosity observed in highly luminous AGNs and ultraluminous quasars (e. g. PKS 0743-67).

Crystal structures of a nonapeptide helix containing alpha,alpha-di-n-butylglycine (Dbg), Boc-Gly-Dbg-Ala-Val-Ala-Leu-Aib-Val-Leu-OMe

Two crystals structures of a nonapeptide (anhydrous and hydrated) containing the amino acid residue alpha, alpha-di-n-butylglycyl, reveal a mixed 3(10)/alpha-helical conformation. Residues 1-7 adopt phi, psi values in the helical region, with Val(8) being appreciably distorted. The Dbg residue has phi, psi values of -40, -37 degrees and -46, -40 degrees in two crystals with the two butyl side chains mostly extended in each. Peptide molecules in the crystals pack into helical columns. The crystal parameters are C50H91N9O12, space group P2(1), with a = 9.789(1) Angstrom, b = 20.240(2) Angstrom, c = 15.998(3) Angstrom, beta = 103.27(1); Z = 2, R = 10.3% for 1945 data observed >3 sigma(F) and C50H91N9O12. 3H(2)O, space group P2(1), with a = 9.747(3) Angstrom, b = 21.002(8) Angstrom, c = 15.885(6) Angstrom, beta = 102.22(3)degrees, Z = 2, R = 13.6% for 2535 data observed >3 sigma(F). The observation of a helical conformation at Dbg suggests that the higher homologs in the alpha, alpha-dialkylated glycine series also have a tendency to stabilize peptide helices. (C) Munksgaard 1996.

Reliability Analysis of Earth Dams

In the present study, results of reliability analyses of four selected rehabilitated earth dam sections, i.e., Chang, Tapar, Rudramata, and Kaswati, under pseudostatic loading conditions, are presented. Using the response surface methodology, in combination with first order reliability method and numerical analysis, the reliability index (beta) values are obtained and results are interpreted in conjunction with conventional factor of safety values. The influence of considering variability in the input soil shear strength parameters, horizontal seismic coefficient (alpha(h)), and location of reservoir full level on the stability assessment of the earth dam sections is discussed in the probabilistic framework. A comparison of results with those obtained from other method of reliability analysis, viz., Monte Carlo simulations combined with limit equilibrium approach, provided a basis for discussing the stability of earth dams in probabilistic terms, and the results of the analysis suggest that the considered earth dam sections are reliable and are expected to perform satisfactorily.

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray studies of a galactose-specific lectin from the seeds of Spatholobus parviflorus

A galactose-specific seed lectin was purified from the legume Spatholobus parviflorus and crystallized using the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique. The crystals belonged to space group P1, with unit-cell parameters a = 60.998, b = 60.792, c = 78.179 angstrom, alpha = 101.32, beta = 91.38, gamma = 104.32 degrees. X-ray diffraction data were collected under cryoconditions (100 K) to a resolution of 2.04 angstrom using a MAR image-plate detector system mounted on a rotating-anode X-ray (Cu K alpha) generator. Molecular replacement using legume-lectin coordinates as a search model gave a tetrameric structure.

X-ray structure of a galactose-specific lectin from Spatholobous parviflorous

A galactose-specific seed lectin from Spatholobous parviflorus (SPL) has been purified, crystallized and its X-ray structure solved. It is the first lectin purified and crystallized from the genus Spatholobus (family: Fabaceae). The crystals belong to the space group P1, with a = 60.792 angstrom, b = 60.998 angstrom, c = 78.179 angstrom, alpha = 78.68 degrees, beta = 88.62 degrees, gamma = 104.32 degrees. The data were collected at 2.04 angstrom resolution under cryocondition, on a MAR image-plate detector system, mounted on a rotating anode X-ray generator. The coordinates of Dolichos biflorus lectin (1lu1) were successfully used for the structure solution by molecular replacement method. The primary structure of the SPL was not known earlier and it was unambiguously visible in the electron density. S. parviflorus lectin is a hetero-dimeric-tetramer with two alpha and two beta chains of 251 and 239 residues respectively. SPL has two metal ions, Ca(2+) and Mn(2+), bound to a loop region of each chain. The SPL monomers are in jelly roll form. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nonlinear dielectric response of BaBi4Ti4O15 ceramics

Nonlinear dielectric response of BaBi4Ti4O15 ceramics synthesized via the conventional solid-state reaction route has been monitored over a wide range of electric field strengths (E-0 = 0.5 - 5 kV/cm). Dielectric permittivity was found to increase linearly within the range of applied field. Rayleigh relations were employed to interpret the nonlinear dielectric response and the contribution of irreversible domain wall motion to the macroscopic permittivity was separated. The values of room temperature Rayleigh dielectric coefficient (alpha) and relative initial permittivity (epsilon'(init)) were found to be 2.28 +/- 0.02 cm/kV and 146.10 +/- 0.07, respectively. A reasonable agreement between the simulated and measured polarization-electric field (P-E) hysteresis loops was observed at an applied electric field of 5 kV/cm.