Biomechanical differences in landing with and without shoe wear after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Objective: To determine biomechanical differences during single limb landing performed with and without shoe wear in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction subjects.

Design: Barefoot and shod conditions were compared for both operated and contralateral limbs.

Background: Biomechanical analysis has been used to better understand the functional changes associated with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

The phosphoprotein (P) and L binding sites reside in the N-terminus of the L subunit of the measles virus RNA polymerase.

Measles virus encodes an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase composed of the L and P proteins. Recent studies have shown that the L proteins of both Sendai virus and parainfluenza virus 3 form an L-L complex [Cevik, B., Smallwood, S.

Abnormal tenocyte morphology is more prevalent than collagen disruption in asymptomatic athletes' patellar tendons.

This study investigated the prevalence of each of the four features of patellar tendinosis in asymptomatic athletic subjects undergoing patellar tendon anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. Fifty subjects (39 males and 11 females) undergoing ACL reconstruction using a patellar tendon graft were screened for previous tendon symptoms, training and playing history and had their patellar tendons examined with ultrasound prior to surgery. During surgery, a small piece of proximal posterocentral tendon was harvested, fixed and examined under light microscopy.

Rheological properties of silica dispersions stabilized by stereoregular poly(methyl methacrylate).

The adsorption of stereoregular polymers and its effect on the conformation and dynamics of the polymer at interfaces are only poorly understood. 1H NMR has revealed a lowering of the peaks assigned to isotactic sequences whatever the PMMA tacticity, which provides evidence of stereospecific adsorption of the isotactic segments on silica. Entropic factors are therefore assumed to control the configuration of the adsorbed layer.

Effect of physiotherapy attendance on outcome after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a pilot study.

Background: In many centres patients are routinely referred for physiotherapy after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. However, to date the role and amount of supervised physiotherapy required has not been clearly established.

Objective: To establish whether there was any difference in outcome between a group of patients who attended physiotherapy regularly after ACL reconstruction and a group who attended only infrequently.

An investigation of a possible role for mitochondrial nuclease in apoptosis.

Since mitochondrial factors have been implicated in apoptosis, experiments were designed to assess whether or not the potent mitochondrial nuclease could be one of these factors. Nuclei isolated by two different methods were found to contain mitochondrial nuclease in masked form. This nuclease was released by treatment with the non-ionic detergent NP-40 and rendered trypsin-sensitive.

Expression of Zfhep/deltaEF1 protein in palate, neural progenitors, and differentiated neurons.

Zfhep/deltaEF1 is essential for embryonic development. We have investigated the expression pattern of Zfhep protein during mouse embryogenesis. We show expression of Zfhep in the mesenchyme of the palatal shelves, establishing concordance of expression with the reported cleft palate of the deltaEF1-null mice.

Quantitative gait analysis after medial unicompartmental knee arthroplasty for osteoarthritis.

This study characterized the footstep pattern and knee kinematics during walking in 12 patients who had undergone unicompartmental knee arthroplasty for unilateral medial compartment osteoarthritis. Patients had all achieved a successful recovery and were tested at least 1 year after surgery. Gait analysis was conducted during self-selected comfortable and fast walking conditions using a 3-dimensional motion analysis system and electronic walkway.

Dynamic joint loading following hamstring and patellar tendon anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

This study compared lower limb dynamic joint loading after hamstring (HS) and patellar tendon (PT) anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. A three-dimensional motion analysis and force plate system were used to determine sagittal plane kinematics and kinetics in 20 subjects who had undergone ACL reconstruction (10 HS, 10 PT) whilst they performed both horizontal and vertical hopping tasks. Results for both activities showed significantly smaller knee flexion angles and external flexion moments in the operated than the non-operated limbs in PT subjects but no difference between limbs in HS subjects.

A randomized comparison of patellar tendon and hamstring tendon anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Background: Patellar and hamstring tendon autografts are the most frequently used graft types for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, but few direct comparisons of outcomes have been published.

Hypothesis: There is no difference in outcome between the two types of reconstruction.

Study Design: Prospective randomized clinical trial.

Effects of hydrogen bonding within a damaged base pair on the activity of wild type and DNA-intercalating mutants of human alkyladenine DNA glycosylase.

Human alkyladenine DNA glycosylase "flips" damaged DNA bases into its active site where excision occurs. Tyrosine 162 is inserted into the DNA helix in place of the damaged base and may assist in nucleotide flipping by "pushing" it. Mutating this DNA-intercalating Tyr to Ser reduces the DNA binding and base excision activities of alkyladenine DNA glycosylase to undetectable levels demonstrating that Tyr-162 is critical for both activities.

Evidence of electromagnetic absorption by collective modes in the heavy fermion superconductor UBe(13).

We present results of a microwave surface impedance study of the heavy fermion superconductor UBe(13). We clearly observe an absorption peak whose frequency and temperature dependence scales with the BCS gap function Delta(T). Resonant absorption into a collective mode, with energy approximately proportional to the superconducting gap, is proposed as a possible explanation.

Current Australian trends in rehabilitation following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

This study documented the current approaches to rehabilitation following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction by Australian orthopaedic surgeons. A two-page questionnaire was mailed to the 40 members of the Australian Knee Society to obtain information regarding (1) pre-operative requirements; (2) immediate post-operative requirements; and (3) the timing of the introduction of rehabilitation phases and return to sport following ACL reconstruction. The response rate of practising surgeons was 95%.

Early post-operative morbidity following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: patellar tendon versus hamstring graft.

This study documented postoperative morbidity during the first 4 months following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction using either patellar tendon or hamstring tendon autograft. Sixty-five patients undergoing primary arthroscopically assisted single-incision ACL reconstruction were randomized to have a central third bone patellar tendon bone autograft (PT) or a doubled semitendinosus/doubled gracilis autograft (HS). Postoperatively patients undertook a standard 'accelerated' rehabilitation protocol.

Clinical value of magnetic resonance imaging of the knee.

Background: Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is an accurate imaging modality of the knee. The role of MR in clinical practice has not been precisely defined, largely due to the relative expense of the technique.

Methods: For each new patient with a knee problem who was referred for MR, a provisional diagnosis was made together with a level of certainty regarding the diagnosis.

Coordinated outpatient care of the narcotic-dependent infant.

Objective: Concern regarding parental capacity to manage their infant's drug withdrawal traditionally leads to prolonged hospitalization for both mother and infant. This study examines the impact of a multidisciplinary follow-up clinic for infants discharged home on morphine.

Methodology: Records of full-term infants born to mothers with narcotic dependency were reviewed retrospectively.

Bone tunnel enlargement following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: a randomised comparison of hamstring and patellar tendon grafts with 2-year follow-up.

Radiographic tibial and femoral bone tunnel enlargement has been demonstrated following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. This study investigated whether bone tunnel enlargement differs between four-strand hamstring (HS) and patellar tendon (PT) ACL reconstructions over the course of a 2-year follow-up. Patients undergoing primary ACL reconstruction (n = 65) were randomised to receive either a PT or HS autograft.

Caspase-3-dependent and caspase-3-independent pathways leading to chromatin DNA fragmentation in HL-60 cells.

Apoptosis induced by etoposide (VP-16) in HL-60 cells was confirmed to be caspase-dependent. It was fully inhibited by the broad-spectrum caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-fmk. However, the caspase-3-specific inhibitor Z-DEVDfmk only partially inhibited apoptosis.

Caspase-3 activates endo-exonuclease: further evidence for a role of the nuclease in apoptosis.

Single-strand DNase and poly rAase, activities characteristic of endo-exonuclease, were co-activated in nuclear fractions of HL-60 cells by caspase-3. Activation was accompanied by cleavages of large soluble polypeptides (130-185 kDa) and a 65 kDa inactive chromatin-associated polypeptide related to the endo-exonuclease of Neurospora crassa as detected on immunoblots. The major products seen in vitro were a 77 kDa soluble polypeptide and an active chromatin-associated 34 kDa polypeptide.

Mutations in conserved domains IV and VI of the large (L) subunit of the sendai virus RNA polymerase give a spectrum of defective RNA synthesis phenotypes.

The Sendai virus RNA polymerase is a complex of two virus-encoded proteins, the phosphoprotein (P) and the large (L) protein. When aligned with amino acid sequences of L proteins from other negative-sense RNA viruses, the Sendai L protein contains six regions of good conservation, designated domains I-VI, which have been postulated to be important for the various enzymatic activities of the polymerase. To directly address the roles of domains IV and VI, 14 site-directed mutations were constructed either by changing clustered charged amino acids to ala or by substituting selected Sendai L amino acids with the corresponding sequence from measles virus L.