Tensile properties of the medial patellofemoral ligament: The effect of specimen orientation

For recurrent patellar dislocation, reconstruction of the medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL) with replacement autografts has often been performed but with only little data on the tensile properties of the MPFL to guide graft selection. With its complex anatomy and geometry, these properties are difficult to obtain. In this study, we showed how the orientation of the femur-MPFL-patella complex (FMPC) during uniaxial tensile testing can have a significant effect on its structural properties. Twenty two FMPCs were isolated from porcine stifle joints and randomly assigned to two groups of 11 each. For the first group, the specimens were loaded to failure with the patella oriented 30 degrees away from the direction of the applied load to mimic its orientation in situ, called natural orientation. In the second group, the patella was aligned in the direction of the tensile load, called non-natural orientation. The stiffness for the natural orientation group was 65±13 N/mm, 32% higher than that for the non-natural orientation group (50±17 N/mm; p<0.05). The ultimate loads were 438±128 N and 386±136 N, respectively (p>0.05). Ten out of 11 specimens in the natural orientation group failed at the femoral attachment (the narrowest portion of the MPFL) compared to 6 out of 11 in the non-natural orientation group. Our findings suggest that the specimen orientation that mimics the in-situ loading conditions of the MPFL should be used to obtain more representative data for the structural properties of the FMPC.     

Price Comparisons on the Internet Based on Computational Intelligence

Information-intensive Web services such as price comparison sites have recently been gaining popularity. However, most users including novice shoppers have difficulty in browsing such sites because of the massive amount of information gathered and the uncertainty surrounding Web environments. Even conventional price comparison sites face various problems, which suggests the necessity of a new approach to address these problems. Therefore, for this study, an intelligent product search system was developed that enables price comparisons for online shoppers in a more effective manner. In particular, the developed system adopts linguistic price ratings based on fuzzy logic to accommodate user-defined price ranges, and personalizes product recommendations based on linguistic product clusters, which help online shoppers find desired items in a convenient manner.     

A Novel Psittacine Adenovirus Identified During an Outbreak of Avian Chlamydiosis and Human Psittacosis: Zoonosis Associated with Virus-Bacterium Coinfection in Birds

Chlamydophila psittaci is found worldwide, but is particularly common among psittacine birds in tropical and subtropical regions. While investigating a human psittacosis outbreak that was associated with avian chlamydiosis in Hong Kong, we identified a novel adenovirus in epidemiologically linked Mealy Parrots, which was not present in healthy birds unrelated to the outbreak or in other animals. The novel adenovirus (tentatively named Psittacine adenovirus HKU1) was most closely related to Duck adenovirus A in the Atadenovirus genus. Sequencing showed that the Psittacine adenovirus HKU1 genome consists of 31,735 nucleotides. Comparative genome analysis showed that the Psittacine adenovirus HKU1 genome contains 23 open reading frames (ORFs) with sequence similarity to known adenoviral genes, and six additional ORFs at the 3′ end of the genome. Similar to Duck adenovirus A, the novel adenovirus lacks LH1, LH2 and LH3, which distinguishes it from other viruses in the Atadenovirus genus. Notably, fiber-2 protein, which is present in Aviadenovirus but not Atadenovirus, is also present in Psittacine adenovirus HKU1. Psittacine adenovirus HKU1 had pairwise amino acid sequence identities of 50.3–54.0% for the DNA polymerase, 64.6–70.7% for the penton protein, and 66.1–74.0% for the hexon protein with other Atadenovirus. The C. psittaci bacterial load was positively correlated with adenovirus viral load in the lung. Immunostaining for fiber protein expression was positive in lung and liver tissue cells of affected parrots, confirming active viral replication. No other viruses were found. This is the first documentation of an adenovirus-C. psittaci co-infection in an avian species that was associated with a human outbreak of psittacosis. Viral-bacterial co-infection often increases disease severity in both humans and animals. The role of viral-bacterial co-infection in animal-to-human transmission of infectious agents has not received sufficient attention and should be emphasized in the investigation of disease outbreaks in human and animals.     

The Long-Term Influence of Body Mass Index on the Success Rate of Mid-Urethral Sling Surgery among Women with Stress Urinary Incontinence or Stress-Predominant Mixed Incontinence: Comparisons between Retropubic and Transobturator Approaches

Objectives

Mid-urethral sling (MUS) surgery for the treatment of urinary incontinence has been widespread since the introduction of tension-free vaginal tape in the mid-1990s. The majority of studies with short-term follow-up <2 years found no differences in the surgical outcomes according to body mass index (BMI). However, considering the chronic influence of obesity on pelvic floor musculature, it is cautiously speculated that higher BMI could increase stress on pelvic floor and sub-urethral tape, possibly decreasing the long-term success rate in the obese population. We aimed to compare the long-term effects of BMI on the outcomes of MUS between women with retropubic and transobturator approaches.

Methods

We performed a retrospective analysis on 243 consecutive women who received MUS and were followed up for ≥36 months. The influence of BMI on the success rates was separately estimated and the factors for treatment failure were examined using logistic regression in either approach.

Results

The mean follow-up was 58.4 months, and 30.5% were normal weight, 51.0% overweight, and 18.5% obese. Patients received either the retropubic (30.5%) or transobturator (69.5%) approach. The success rates (%) under the transobturator approach differed according to the BMI groups (94.3, 88.6, and 78.6, respectively; P = 0.037) while those under the retropubic approach were not different according to the BMI groups. However, in multivariate models, only the presence of preoperative mixed urinary incontinence (MUI) was proven to be the risk factor for treatment failure in the transobturator approach (OR 6.39, P = 0.003). The percent of subjects with MUI was higher in obese women than in non-obese women with the transobturator approach.

Conclusions

BMI was not independently associated with failures in either approach. Higher success rates in women with lower BMI in the transobturator approach were attributed to the lower percent of preoperative MUI in those with lower BMI.     

Homozygous mutation of MTPAP causes cellular radiosensitivity and persistent DNA double-strand breaks

The study of rare human syndromes characterized by radiosensitivity has been instrumental in identifying novel proteins and pathways involved in DNA damage responses to ionizing radiation. In the present study, a mutation in mitochondrial poly-A-polymerase (MTPAP), not previously recognized for its role in the DNA damage response, was identified by exome sequencing and subsequently associated with cellular radiosensitivity. Cell lines derived from two patients with the homozygous MTPAP missense mutation were radiosensitive, and this radiosensitivity could be abrogated by transfection of wild-type mtPAP cDNA into mtPAP-deficient cell lines. Further analysis of the cellular phenotype revealed delayed DNA repair, increased levels of DNA double-strand breaks, increased reactive oxygen species (ROS), and increased cell death after irradiation (IR). Pre-IR treatment of cells with the potent anti-oxidants, α-lipoic acid and n-acetylcysteine, was sufficient to abrogate the DNA repair and clonogenic survival defects. Our results firmly establish that mutation of the MTPAP gene results in a cellular phenotype of increased DNA damage, reduced repair kinetics, increased cell death by apoptosis, and reduced clonogenic survival after exposure to ionizing radiation, suggesting a pathogenesis that involves the disruption of ROS homeostasis.     

The effect of exercise training and water extract from propolis intake on the antioxidant enzymes activity of skeletal muscle and liver in rat

[Purpose]

In this study, the authors have intended to investigate the effects that the exercise training and the intake of the water extract from propolis have on the activity of antioxidant enzymes.

[Methods]

For this purpose, the exercise training (70% VO₂max treadmill running exercise for 60min)of 5 times per week for six weeks and the intake (50mg/kg/day) of the water extract from propolis were performed by separating the experimental animals (SD rats, n=32) into CON(n=8) group, CON+Ex(n=8), PA(n=8), and PA+Ex(n=8).

[Results]

As a result, the following conclusions were obtained: The concentration of the blood glucose and insulin of the CON+Ex group and PA+Ex group which are the exercise parallel group were significantly decreased in comparison with the control group, whereas if comparing the glycogen concentration in skeletal muscle and liver tissue between the exercise parallel group and the CON group, the former showed significantly high value in comparison with the latter (p < .05). In the case of the activity of the antioxidant enzyme in the skeletal muscle and the liver tissue, the activities of SOD, GPX and CAT in the gastrocnemius muscle tissue of the experimental animals showed significantly high value in PA+Ex group in comparison with other experimental groups (p < .05). In addition, the SOD activity in the liver tissue showed that only PA+Ex group was significantly increased, whereas GDX activity showed significantly higher value in CON+Ex group and PA group than CON group (p < .05). However, the activity of CAT in the liver tissue showed that there is no difference between the experimental groups. As a result that measured the concentration of MDA in order to evaluate the damage level of the tissue by oxygen free radicals, the difference between the groups in the liver tissue was not shown, while it was shown that only PA+Ex group in the skeletal muscle tissue was significantly decreased in comparison with other experimental groups (p < .05).

[Conclusion]

Taken together the above findings, it is considered that the parallel treatment of the exercise training and the water extract from propolis can not only increase the use of glycogen of the skeletal muscle and liver tissue, but also it can give the effect to suppress the creation of active oxygen by inducing the activity of the antioxidant enzyme in the body, and in the future, the possibility as the exercise supplements and the antioxidant of the water-soluble propolis are expected.     

A survey of overweight,body shape perception and eating attitude of Korean female university students

[Purpose]

We obtained basic data on a proper weight loss training program by considering the relationship between body mass index (BMI), the perception of appearance, and eating attitudes of Korean female university students.

[Methods]

The survey and anthropometry for the perception of appearance and eating attitudes were conducted targeting 657 female university students located in Seoul, Busan, Ulsan, Daejeon, Chungcheongnam-do, and Gangwon-do South Korea who were not specializing in physical education.

[Results]

The underweight group accounted for 21.16% of the population, the normal weight group comprised 69.71%, the overweight group was 6.09%, and the obese group accounted for 3.04%. The satisfaction rate of appearance was 56.16%, the dissatisfaction rate was 43.84%, and normal-weight students who were dissatisfied with their own appearance comprised 48.5%. The More obese students were more dissatisfied with their appearance. As a result of investigating eating attitudes, 37.75% of all subjects had a risk for an eating disorder, and 38.6% were normal weight but showed a risk for an eating disorder. More obese (BMI) subjects were at higher risk for an eating disorder.

[Conclusion]

The BMIs of the Korean female university students were lower than those of European and American Caucasian women students, but the dissatisfaction of Korean female university students with their appearances was greater than that of European and American students, indicating that more Korean female university students were suffering from an eating disorder. It is predicted that the incidence of eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia, will rise in Korean women if there is no accurate understanding and measure to identify the high risk group for an eating disorder.