Influence of Footwear on Posture and Comfort in Elite Rugby Players.

Influence of footwear on posture in athletes is poorly documented despite its potential impact on biomechanics and injury risk. The aim of this study was to investigate effects of different footwear geometries on comfort and posture on a cohort of 48 elite rugby players. Spine posture was characterized by photogrammetry, while center of pressure was measured by means of a force platform.

Biogenesis of a Bacteriophage Long Non-Contractile Tail.

Siphoviruses are main killers of bacteria. They use a long non-contractile tail to recognize the host cell and to deliver the genome from the viral capsid to the bacterial cytoplasm. Here, we define the molecular organization of the Bacillus subtilis bacteriophage SPP1 ~ 6.

Variations in the TRPV1 gene are associated to exertional heat stroke.

Objectives: Exertional Heat Stroke (EHS) is one of the top three causes of sudden death in athletes. Extrinsic and intrinsic risk factors have been identified but the genetic causes still remain unclear. Our aim was to identify genes responsible for EHS, which is a necessary step to identify patients at risk and prevent crises.

Management of low blood pressure in ambulatory heart failure with reduced ejection fraction patients.

Low blood pressure is common in patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). While spontaneous hypotension predicts risk in HFrEF, there is only limited evidence regarding the relationship between hypotension observed during heart failure (HF) drug titration and outcome. Nevertheless, hypotension (especially orthostatic hypotension) is an important factor limiting the titration of HFrEF treatments in routine practice.

High incidence of atrial fibrillation in patients treated with ibrutinib.

Objective: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one of the most common side effects of ibrutinib, a drug that has dramatically improved the prognosis of chronic B-cell malignancies such as chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). The true incidence of ibrutinib-related AF (IRAF) is not well known and its therapeutic management poses unique challenges especially due to the inherent risk of bleeding. We aimed to determine the incidence and predictors of IRAF, and to analyse its management and outcome.

Structural insights into marine carbohydrate degradation by family GH16 κ-carrageenases.

Carrageenans are sulfated α-1,3-β-1,4-galactans found in the cell wall of some red algae that are practically valuable for their gelation and biomimetic properties but also serve as a potential carbon source for marine bacteria. Carbohydrate degradation has been studied extensively for terrestrial plant/bacterial systems, but sulfation is not present in these cases, meaning the marine enzymes used to degrade carrageenans must possess unique features to recognize these modifications. To gain insights into these features, we have focused on κ-carrageenases from two distant bacterial phyla, which belong to glycoside hydrolase family 16 and cleave the β-1,4 linkage of κ-carrageenan.

Genome and Transcriptome of Clostridium phytofermentans, Catalyst for the Direct Conversion of Plant Feedstocks to Fuels.

Clostridium phytofermentans was isolated from forest soil and is distinguished by its capacity to directly ferment plant cell wall polysaccharides into ethanol as the primary product, suggesting that it possesses unusual catabolic pathways. The objective of the present study was to understand the molecular mechanisms of biomass conversion to ethanol in a single organism, Clostridium phytofermentans, by analyzing its complete genome and transcriptome during growth on plant carbohydrates. The saccharolytic versatility of C.

Carbohydrate-related enzymes of important Phytophthora plant pathogens.

Carbohydrate-Active enZymes (CAZymes) form particularly interesting targets to study in plant pathogens. Despite the fact that many CAZymes are pathogenicity factors, oomycete CAZymes have received significantly less attention than effectors in the literature. Here we present an analysis of the CAZymes present in the Phytophthora infestans, Ph.

Les protéines non structurales des Alphavirus : rôle dans la réplication et l'interaction du virus avec la cellule hôte.

Alphaviruses (genus of the family Togaviridae) are emergent arthropod borne viruses. They can cause mild to severe diseases including fever, arthritis, and in certain cases encephalitis leading to neurological sequels. Alphaviruses are enveloped, single-stranded and positive-sense RNA viruses.

Evaluation of Adamantane Derivatives as Inhibitors of Dengue Virus mRNA Cap Methyltransferase by Docking and Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

Binding of the Dengue virus S-adenosyl-L-methionine (AdoMet)-dependent mRNA cap methyltransferase (NS5MTaseDV ) with adamantane derivatives was explored using molecular modeling methods and (nucleoside-2'O)-methyltransferase bioassay. The studied compounds include urea derivatives of adamantane and the antiviral drugs amantadine and rimantadine. The urea derivatives of adamantanes had previously been identified as inhibitors of NS5MTaseDV .

The Spin-Foam Approach to Quantum Gravity.

This article reviews the present status of the to the quantization of gravity. Special attention is payed to the pedagogical presentation of the recently-introduced new models for four-dimensional quantum gravity. The models are motivated by a suitable implementation of the path integral quantization of the Plebanski formulation of gravity on a simplicial regularization.

DNA binding, antioxidant, cytotoxicity (MTT, lactate dehydrogenase, NO), and cellular uptake studies of structurally different nickel(II) thiosemicarbazone complexes: synthesis, spectroscopy, electrochemistry, and X-ray crystallography.

Three new nickel(II) thiosemicarbazone complexes have been synthesized and characterized by analytical, spectral, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies. In complex 1, the ligand 2-hydroxy-1-naphthaldehydethiosemicarbazone coordinated as a monobasic tridentate donor, whereas in complexes 2 and 3, the ligands salicylaldehyde-4(N)-ethylthiosemicarbazone and 2-hydroxy-1-naphthaldehyde-4(N)-ethylthiosemicarbazone coordinated as a dibasic tridentate donor. The DNA binding ability of the complexes in calf thymus DNA was explored by absorption and emission titration experiments.

The measles virus N(TAIL)-XD complex: an illustrative example of fuzziness.

In this chapter, I focus on the biochemical and structural characterization of the complex between the intrinsically disordered C-terminal domain of the measles virus nucleoprotein (N(TAIL)) and the C-terminal X domain (XD) of the viral phosphoprotein (P). I summarize the main experimental data available so far pointing out the prevalently disordered nature of N(TAIL) even after complex formation and the role of the flexible C-terminal appendage in the binding reaction. I finally discuss the possible functional role of these residual disordered regions within the complex in terms of their ability to capture other regulatory, binding partners.

Organic glues or fibrin glues from pooled plasma: efficacy, safety and potential as scaffold delivery systems.

Since 1976, fibrin glues have been attracting medical interest, spreading from their initial use as a hemostatic agent in cardiovascular surgery to other fields of surgery. Studies have compared the efficacy of fibrin glues vs sutures in surgery. However, few comparisons have been made of the efficacy and safety of the different fibrin glues commercially available.

Characterisation and calibration of active sampling Solid Phase Microextraction applied to sensitive determination of gaseous carbonyls.

A characterisation of a system designed for active sampling of gaseous compounds with Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) fibres is described. This form of sampling is useful to automate sampling while considerably reducing the sampling times. However, the efficiency of this form of sampling is also prone to be affected by certain undesirable effects such as fibre saturation, competition or displacement effects between analytes, to which particular attention should be paid especially at high flow rates.

Characterization of insoluble calcium alginates by solid-state NMR.

Three series of 9 insoluble calcium alginate powders with different average calcium contents (1.5, 3.5 and 8%, w/w) are investigated by means of C solid-state NMR spectroscopy.

Adult attachment and emotional awareness impairment: a multimethod assessment.

Our objective was to explore the relationships between adult attachment and various aspects of emotional awareness, including alexithymia and level of emotional awareness. Participants were 112 university students who completed the Attachment Style Questionnaire, the Bermond-Vorst Alexithymia Questionnaire (BVAQ), and the Level of Emotional Awareness Scale. We found that alexithymia was positively related to the avoidant attachment style and negatively with the anxious attachment style.

Influence of the modified Becke-Johnson exchange potential on thermoelectric properties: application to Mg2Si.

The electronic and transport properties of Mg(2)Si are calculated using the density-functional and semi-classical Boltzmann transport theories. A detailed comparison of the efficiency of the Perdew, Burke, and Ernzerhof (PBE) and the modified Becke-Johnson (m-BJ) exchange potentials on the prediction of these properties is presented. We show that the m-BJ potential is able to predict the Mg(2)Si thermoelectric properties with better agreement with the experimental data than the PBE potential.

Chemiluminescence and Fluorescence States of a Small Model for Coelenteramide and Cypridina Oxyluciferin: A CASSCF/CASPT2 Study.

Fluorescence and chemiluminescence phenomena are often confused in experimental and theoretical studies on the luminescent properties of chemical systems. To establish the patterns that distinguish both processes, the fluorescent and chemiluminescent states of 2-acetamido-3-methylpyrazine, which is a small model of the coelenterazine/coelenteramide and Cypridina luciferin/oxyluciferin bioluminescent systems, were characterized by using the complete active space second-order perturbation (CASPT2) method. Differences in geometries and electronic structures among the states responsible for light emission were found.

An evaluation of UiO-66 for gas-based applications.

In addition to its high thermal stability, repetitive hydration/dehydration tests have revealed that the porous zirconium terephthalate UiO-66 switches reversibly between its dehydroxylated and hydroxylated versions. The structure of its dehydroxylated form has thus been elucidated by coupling molecular simulations and X-ray powder diffraction data. Infrared measurements have shown that relatively weak acid sites are available while microcalorimetry combined with Monte Carlo simulations emphasize moderate interactions between the UiO-66 surface and a wide range of guest molecules including CH(4), CO, and CO(2).

Isomeric distinction of small oligosaccharides: a bottom-up approach using the kinetic method.

Isomeric distinction of di- and tri-saccharides could be efficiently achieved by using data previously obtained while performing experiments aimed at discriminating monosaccharides using trimeric ion dissociation with data analysis by the kinetic method. This study shows that effects observed for lower homologues when one of the partners is changed in the metal/reference system (typically a transition metal divalent cation associated to amino acids) can be extrapolated to upper homologues, at least for the tested analyte series. Systems allowing galactose, glucose, and fructose distinction were used as starting conditions to resolve cellobiose, lactose, maltose, and saccharose disaccharides.

A common evolutionary origin for tailed-bacteriophage functional modules and bacterial machineries.

Bacteriophages belonging to the order Caudovirales possess a tail acting as a molecular nanomachine used during infection to recognize the host cell wall, attach to it, pierce it, and ensure the high-efficiency delivery of the genomic DNA to the host cytoplasm. In this review, we provide a comprehensive analysis of the various proteins constituting tailed bacteriophages from a structural viewpoint. To this end, we had in mind to pinpoint the resemblances within and between functional modules such as capsid/tail connectors, the tails themselves, or the tail distal host recognition devices, termed baseplates.

4-Thiophenoxy-2-trichloromethyquinazolines display in vitro selective antiplasmodial activity against the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum.

A series of original quinazolines bearing a 4-thiophenoxy and a 2-trichloromethyl group was synthesized in a convenient and efficient way and was evaluated toward its in vitro antiplasmodial potential. The series revealed global good activity against the K1-multi-resistant Plasmodium falciparum strain, especially with hit compound 5 (IC(50)=0.9 μM), in comparison with chloroquine and doxycycline chosen as reference-drugs.