Serving to win: exploring serve-reception effectiveness in high-level male and female sitting volleyball players.

Introduction: This study was planned to assess the association between serve efficacy and match outcome, and to investigate which factors are associated with serve efficacy in high-level male and female Sitting Volleyball players.

Methods: The study sample was comprised of a total of 3,664 serving actions, performed during the 2020 Paralympic Games and the 2022 Sitting Volleyball World Championship. For each serving action, we considered serve efficacy (i.

Development of chitosan/hydrolyzed collagen interaction product-based microparticles for the treatment of respiratory tract infections.

Respiratory tract infections (RTIs) represent a significant global health issue, particularly for vulnerable population, such as children, the elderly, or patients with immunosuppression. In this context, the aim of the present work was the development of Chitosan/Hydrolyzed Collagen-based microparticles (Mps) as a pulmonary drug delivery system (PDDS) for the treatment of RTIs. Mps were produced via spray-drying and composed of chitosan (Cs), one of the most widely used polysaccharides in PDDS, and hydrolyzed collagen (HC), another promising material for the development of PDDS that has not yet been fully explored.

Chemically Crosslinked Alginate Hydrogel with Polyaziridine: Effects on Physicochemical Properties and Promising Applications.

Alginate biopolymer is widely employed in many industrial fields thanks to its pleasing features of biodegradability, biocompatibility, low toxicity, and relatively low cost. The gelling process of alginate with divalent cations is fairly simple and thus it is used as a versatile biomaterial to tailor the desired mechanical and moisture properties. This study focused on developing new gel formulations to enhance the properties of calcium-alginate hydrogel (CA).

Assessing the Muscle-Bone Unit in Girls Exposed to Different Amounts of Impact-Loading Physical Activity-A Cross-Sectional Association Study.

Background/objectives: In children, an association exists between muscle and bone, as well as between physical activity and osteogenesis. Impact loading is a factor in increasing bone accrual during growth. In this work, we explored the muscle-bone association in girls exposed to long-term physical activity at different levels of impact loading.

Synthesis of Carbon Nitride Polymorphs by Sacrificial Template Method: Correlation between Physicochemical Properties and Photocatalytic Performance.

Carbon nitride compounds (CNCs) in the form of graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) and poly(heptazine imide) were synthesized using different metal chloride salts (MCl), i. e., NaCl, KCl and CaCl, as sacrificial templates and by varying the MCl to melamine molar ratios.

Feasibility and effectiveness of a 6-month, home-based, resistance exercise delivered by a remote technological solution in healthy older adults.

Background: Aging is characterized by a physiological decline in physical function, muscle mass, strength, and power. Home-based resistance training interventions have gained increasing attention from scientists and healthcare system operators, but their efficacy is yet to be fully determined.

Aims: to verify the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of a home-based resistance training program delivered by innovative technological solution in healthy older adults.

Thiolated Cyanines Appended to Partially Pegylated Gold Nanoparticles for Fluorescence Quenching of Two-Channel Photothermal Inks.

Following a new approach, we prepared a nanoink with two separate photothermally responsive absorption bands. One is the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) absorption of gold nanoparticles (AuNP, d=17 nm), the second is the absorption band of two cyanine (Cy) dyes, Cy7-C6 or Cy7-C11, grafted to the AuNP surface through thiolated bridges of different lengths: the close proximity to the Au surface induces full quenching of the Cy fluorescence, resulting in thermal relaxation on irradiation. Attempts to full coat AuNP with the lipophilic Cy7-C6 and Cy7-C11 lead to precipitation from aqueous solutions.

Optimizing wheelchair basketball lineups: A statistical approach to coaching strategies.

This study was designed to support the tactical decisions of wheelchair basketball (WB) coaches in identifying the best players to form winning lineups. Data related to a complete regular season of a top-level WB Championship were examined. By analyzing game-related statistics from the first round, two clusters were identified that accounted for approximately 35% of the total variance.

Design of NaMnZr(PO)/Carbon Nanofiber Free-Standing Cathodes for Sodium-Ion Batteries with Enhanced Electrochemical Performances through Different Electrospinning Approaches.

The NASICON-structured NaMnZr(PO) compound is a promising high-voltage cathode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). In this study, an easy and scalable electrospinning approach was used to synthesize self-standing cathodes based on NaMnZr(PO) loaded into carbon nanofibers (CNFs). Different strategies were applied to load the active material.

Orthogonal analysis of mitochondrial function in Parkinson's disease patients.

The etiopathology of Parkinson's disease has been associated with mitochondrial defects at genetic, laboratory, epidemiological, and clinical levels. These converging lines of evidence suggest that mitochondrial defects are systemic and causative factors in the pathophysiology of PD, rather than being mere correlates. Understanding mitochondrial biology in PD at a granular level is therefore crucial from both basic science and translational perspectives.

Sex differences in neuromuscular and biological determinants of isometric maximal force.

Aim: Force expression is characterized by an interplay of biological and molecular determinants that are expected to differentiate males and females in terms of maximal performance. These include muscle characteristics (muscle size, fiber type, contractility), neuromuscular regulation (central and peripheral factors of force expression), and individual genetic factors (miRNAs and gene/protein expression). This research aims to comprehensively assess these physiological variables and their role as determinants of maximal force difference between sexes.

Ligand-Induced Chirality in ClMBA SnI 2D Perovskite.

Chiral perovskites possess a huge applicative potential in several areas of optoelectronics and spintronics. The development of novel lead-free perovskites with tunable properties is a key topic of current research. Herein, we report a novel lead-free chiral perovskite, namely (R/S-)ClMBA SnI (ClMBA=1-(4-chlorophenyl)ethanamine) and the corresponding racemic system.

Randomised controlled trial combining vitamin E-functionalised chocolate with physical exercise to reduce the risk of protein-energy malnutrition in predementia aged people: study protocol for Choko-Age.

Objective: Protein-energy malnutrition and the subsequent muscle wasting (sarcopenia) are common ageing complications. It is knowing to be also associated with dementia. Our programme will test the cytoprotective functions of vitamin E combined with the cortisol-lowering effect of chocolate polyphenols (PP), in combination with muscle anabolic effect of adequate dietary protein intake and physical exercise to prevent the age-dependent decline of muscle mass and its key underpinning mechanisms including mitochondrial function, and nutrient metabolism in muscle in the elderly.

Personalized Physical Activity Programs for the Management of Knee Osteoarthritis in Individuals with Obesity: A Patient-Centered Approach.

Physical activity (PA) plays a vital role in knee osteoarthritis (KOA) management. However, engaging individuals with KOA in regular exercise is challenging, especially when they are affected by obesity. The aim of the current review is to elucidate how to increase adherence to exercise in this population.

Temperature and pH Stimuli-Responsive System Delivers Location-Specific Antimicrobial Activity with Natural Products.

Smart materials with controlled stimuli-responsive functions are at the forefront of technological development. In this work, we present a generic strategy that combines simple components, physicochemical responses, and easy fabrication methods to achieve a dual stimuli-responsive system capable of location-specific antimicrobial cargo delivery. The encapsulated system is fabricated by combining a biocompatible inert polymeric matrix of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) and a bioactive cargo of saturated fatty acids.

Evaluating field-goal shooting effectiveness in wheelchair basketball players across a competitive season: a preliminary study.

Background: Information about non-elite wheelchair basketball (WB) players across national competitive seasons are still missing. This study aimed at identifying which situational-related variables were associated with shooting effectiveness in non-elite WB players.

Methods: All the matches played by one WB team across one national competitive season were video-recorded and analysed; 333 shooting attempts from high-point players and several situational-related variables were considered.

Stradivari's Varnish Revisited: Feature Improvements Using Chemical Modification.

The most widespread varnish formulations used by master violin-makers of the "Italian Golden Age", including Antonio Stradivari, were based on mixtures of siccative oils (e.g., linseed oil) and natural resins (e.

Skeletal calcification patterns of batoid, teleost, and mammalian models: Calcified cartilage versus bone matrix.

This study compares the skeletal calcification pattern of batoid Raja asterias with the endochondral ossification model of mammalians Homo sapiens and teleost Xiphias gladius. Skeletal mineralization serves to stiffen the mobile elements for locomotion. Histology, histochemistry, heat deproteination, scanning electron microscopy (SEM)/EDAX analysis, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) have been applied in the study.

Gas Permeation through Mechanically Resistant Self-Standing Membranes of a Neat Amorphous Organic Cage.

The synthesis and characterization of a novel film-forming organic cage and of its smaller analogue are here described. While the small cage produced single crystals suitable for X-ray diffraction studies, the large one was isolated as a dense film. Due to its remarkable film-forming properties, this latter cage could be solution processed into transparent thin-layer films and mechanically stable dense self-standing membranes of controllable thickness.

Prussian Blue nanoparticles: An FDA-approved substance that may quickly degrade at physiological pH.

Prussian blue (PB) is a coordination polymer based on the FeCNFe sequence. It is an FDA-approved drug, intended for oral use at the acidic pH of the stomach and of most of the intestine track. However, based on FDA approval, a huge number of papers proposed the use of PB nanoparticles (PBnp) under "physiological conditions", meaning pH buffered at 7.

Nanoparticle-Imprinted Silica Gel for the Size-Selective Capture of Silver Ultrafine Nanoparticles from Water.

A synthetic approach has been developed to prepare silica gel monoliths that embed well separated silver or gold spherical nanoparticles (NP), with diameters of 8, 18 and 115 nm. Fe, O/cysteine and HNO were all successfully used to oxidize and remove silver NP from silica, while aqua regia was necessary for gold NP. In all cases, NP-imprinted silica gel materials were obtained, with spherical voids of the same dimensions of the dissolved particles.