Symptom presentation and evolution in the first 48 hours after injury are associated with return to play after concussion in elite Rugby Union

Background:Return to play(RTP)in elite rugby is managed using a 6-stage graduated RTP protocol,which can result in clearance to play within 1 week of injury.We aimed to explore how symptom,cognitive,and balance presentation and evolution during concussion screens 2 h(head injury assessment(HIA2)and 48 h(HIA3)after injury were associated with time to RTP)to identify whether a more conservative graduated RTP may be appropriate.Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted in 380 concussed rugby players from elite men’s rugby over 3 consecutive seasons.Players were classified as shorter or longer returns,depending on whether RTP occurred within 7 days(allowing them to be considered to play the match 1 week after injury)or longer than 8 days,respectively.Symptom,cognitive,and balance performance during screens was assessed relative to baseline(normal or abnormal)and to the preceding screen(improving or worsening).Associations between sub-test abnormalities and RTP time were explored using odds ratios(OR,longer vs.shorter).Median day absence was compared between players with abnormal or worsening results and those whose results were normal or improving.Results:Abnormal symptom results during screens 2 h and 48 h after concussion were associated with longer return time(HIA2:OR=2.21,95%confidence interval(95%CI):1.39-3.50;HIA3:OR=3.30,95%CI:1.89-5.75).Worsening symptom number or severity from the time of injury to 2 h and 48 h post-injury was associated with longer return(HIA2:OR=2.49,95%CI:1.36-4.58;HIA3:OR=3.34,95%CI:1.10-10.15).Median days absence was greater in players with abnormal symptom results at both HIA2 and HIA3.Cognitive and balance performance were not associated with longer return and did not affect median days absence.Conclusion:Symptom presentation and evolution within 48 h of concussion were associated with longer RTP times.This may guide a more conservative approach to RTP,while still adhering to individualized concussion management principles.

Measurement and significance of sperm morphology

The measurement or evaluation and clinical significance of human sperm morphology has always been and still is a controversial aspect of the semen analysis for the determination of a male＇s fertility potential. In this review the background of the development of the evaluation criteria for sperm morphology will be discussed. Aspects of criticism on the strict criteria definition and use of the criteria for sperm morphology evaluation will be discussed as well as possible reasons for the decline in normal sperm morphology values and how we can compromise for this phenomenon resulting in the very low normal reference value as published in the 2010 WHO manual for the Examination and Processing of Human Semen. One of the possible solutions may be to give more attention to a limited number of abnormal sperm morphology categories and the inclusion of sperm morphology patterns. It is concluded in this review that if done correctly and with care and with strict application of existing guidelines as outlined in the 2010 WHO manual, sperm morphology measurement still has a very important role to play in the clinical evaluation of male fertility potential.

Climate change effects in the Western Himalayan ecosystems of India: evidence and strategies

Background： The fragile landscapes of the Himalayan region are highly susceptible to natural hazards, and there is ongoing concern about current and potential climate change impacts. This study provides background information on India＇s Western Himalayas and reviews evidence of warming as well as variability in precipitation and extreme events.Methods： Understanding and anticipating the impacts of climate change on Himalayan forest ecosystems and the services they provide to people are critical. Efforts to develop and implement effective policies and management strategies for climate change mitigation and adaptation requires particular new research initiatives. The various studies initiated and conducted in the region are compiled here.Results： Several new initiatives taken by the Himalayan Forest Research Institute in Shimla are described. This includes new permanent observational field studies, some with mapped trees, in high altitude transitional zones for continuous monitoring of vegetation response. We have also presented new strategies for mitigating potential climate change effects in Himalayan forest ecosystems.Conclusions： Assessment of the ecological and genetic diversity of the Himalayan conifers is required to evaluate potential responses to changing climatic conditions. Conservation strategies for the important temperate medicinal plants need to be developed. The impact of climate change on insects and pathogens in the Himalayas also need to be assessed. Coordinated efforts are necessary to develop effective strategies for adaptation and mitigation.

Microscopic colitis as a missed cause of chronic diarrhea

AIM: To determine the prevalence of increased intraepithelial lymphocytes, using immunohistochemistry in patients with normal colonoscopy and near normal biopsy. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed all non-malignant colon mucosal biopsies between 2005 and 2007, reported as normal, chronic inflammation or melanosis coli in patients who were undergoing routine colonoscopy. Immunohistochemistry using CD3 was performed on all mucosal biopsies and an intraepithelial lymphocyte count (IEL) was determined. Cases with an IEL count of ≥ 20 IELs per 100 surface epithelial cells were correlated with demographic, clinical and follow-up data. A further subgroup was evaluated for lymphocytic colitis.RESULTS: Twenty (8.3%) of 241 cases revealed an IEL count ≥ 20. Six (2.5%) patients were identified as having lymphocytic colitis (P < 0.001), of whom, five were missed on initial evaluation (P = 0.01). Four of these five patients were labeled with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). On follow-up, three of the remaining 20 cases were diagnosed with malignancy (renal cell carcinoma and myelodysplastic syndrome) and one had an unknown primary tumor with multiple liver metastases. Two cases of collagenous colitis with an IEL count < 10 were included in this study. Increased IELs were not confined to patients with diarrhea as a primary presenting symptom, but were also present in patients with abdominal pain (n = 7), constipation (n = 3) and loss of weight (n = 1). CONCLUSION: Immunohistochemistry using CD3 is of value in identifying and quantifying IELs for the presence of microscopic colitis in patients with diarrheapredominant IBS.

Evidence for Mesoproterozoic collision,deep burial and rapid exhumation of garbenschiefer in the Namaqua Front,South Africa

Metamorphic provinces such as the^1 Ga Grenvillian,~400 Ma Caledonide and Triassic Qinling Provinces often contain rocks with high-pressure assemblages such as eclogites,which formed at mantle depths in subduction zones.These are evidence of the accretion of terranes by subduction of oceans and collision to form large tectonostratigraphic provinces.The Mesoproterozoic Namaqua-Natal Province comprises a number of terranes thought to have been assembled by plate-tectonic processes,but they have generally yielded metamorphic pressures below 5 kbar,corresponding to<20 km,crustal depths,lacking evidence for subduction processes.The Kaaien Terrane in the Namaqua Front contains two large garbenschiefer units with the unusual paragenesis garnet-hornblende-epidote-white mica-plagioclase-ilmenite-quartz.Their protoliths are graywackes influenced by andesitic volcanism during their deposition at^1870 Ma,in a passive margin of the Rehoboth Province or Kaapvaal Craton.Prograde garnet growth dated at 1165
5 Ma culminated in peak metamorphic conditions of 645
30C and 10.4
0.7 kbar,corresponding to 40 km depth.This is attributed to subduction of these rocks before collision between the overriding arc-related Areachap Terrane,the Kaaien Terrane and the Kaapvaal-Rehoboth cratonic block during the Namaqua orogeny.Exhumation of the garbenschiefer slabs was followed by rapid cooling,as the 1143
5 Ma argon dates of hornblende and white mica,with closure temperatures^540C and^440C respectively,are the same within error.This was probably due to tectonic juxtaposition of the garbenschiefer slab with much cooler rock units.The exhumation was accommodated along the Trooilapspan-Brakbosch Shear Zone due to ongoing transpression.Other components of the Namaqua Front have distinctly different P-T-t paths,exemplified by greenschist metamorphism in the 1300 Ma Wilgenhoutsdrift Group,and medium-pressure metamorphism in the Areachap Terrane.They were juxtaposed by late-tectonic uplift and transpressional movements.The^40 km depth of garbenschiefer peak metamorphism is the deepest yet found in the Namaqua-Natal Province and strengthens the plate tectonic model of accretion by collision of terranes at the end of a Wilson cycle.The high pressure paragenesis of the garbenschiefer was preserved due to its location in the Namaqua Front,whereas most other parts of the Namaqua-Natal Province were overprinted by 1100–1020 Ma thermal events after the collision events.

Effects of impeller speed and aeration rate on flotation performance of sulphide ore

The effects of aeration rate and impeller speed on the concentrate sulfur grade and recovery for batch flotation of a complex sulphide ore were investigated. The relationships between the water recovery and solid entrainment were discussed. It is found that the solid entrainment is linearly related to the water recovery regardless of aeration rate and impeller speed, and the higher sulfur recovery at the aeration rate of 2 and 4 L/min for the impeller speed of 1 500 r/min is considered to be the contribution of true flotation. Finally, the sulfur recovery flux is correlated with the bubble surface area flux based on the froth image at the different aeration rates and impeller speeds.

Relationship between solids flux and froth features in batch flotation of sulphide ore

The froth features in the batch flotation of a sulphide ore were investigated by using the digital image parameters of the froth, the small number emphasis(Nsne), the average grey level(Dagl) and the instability number(Nins), under different conditions of impeller speeds and aeration rates. It is found that the value of Nsne is strongly dependent on the average bubble size of the froth and Dagl on the volume fraction of solid in the froth, and the froth features during the batch flotation are influenced by impeller speed and aeration rate. A kinetic model of the concentrate solid flux was developed which relates the flotation process to the image parameters, Nsne and Dagl of the froth and predictions are well consistent with the experimental data.

Structure complexity is the primary driver of functional diversity in the temperate forests of northeastern China

Background:Assessing functional diversity to identify its spatial patterns and drivers is an important step towards understanding the adaptive capacity of ecosystems to environmental change. However, until now, these mechanisms were poorly understood in the temperate forests of northeastern China, which prevented the development of new management methods aimed at increasing functional trait diversity and thus ecological resilience.Methods:In this study, we mapped functional diversity distributions using a Kriging Interpolation Method. A specific random forest model approach was adopted to test the importance ranking of 18 variables in explaining the spatial variation of functional diversity. Three piecewise structural equation models (pSEMs) with forest types as random effects were constructed for testing the direct effects of climate, and the indirect effects of stand structure on functional diversity across the large study region. Specific causal relationships in each forest type were also examined using 15 linear structural equation models.Results:Although environmental filtering by climate is important, stand structure explains most of the functional variation of the forest ecosystems in northeastern China. Our study thus only partially supports the stressdominance hypothesis. Several abundant species determine most of the functional diversity, which supports the mass ratio hypothesis.Conclusions:Our results suggest that forest management aimed at increasing structural complexity can contribute to increased functional diversity, especially regarding the mixing of coniferous and broad-leaved tree species.

Effect of rapamycin on hepatic osteodystrophy in rats with portasystemic shunting

瞄准：如果与推延的 portasystemic 有关的 T 房间激活通过 RANKL 依赖的小径引起调停骨破折的骨头损失，学习。如果用 rapamycin 的 T 房间抑制将在老鼠免于骨头损失，我们也调查了。方法：推延的 Portasystemic 在男 Sprague-Dawley 老鼠和 rapamycin 被执行 0.1 mg/kg 被管饲法为 15 wk 管理。老鼠收到了 powderized 食物并且补加喂在骨头作文上阻止营养不良的效果。重量获得和生长在推延的动物在外科以后被恢复。在结束，骨头周转和量的骨头组织学的生物化学的参数被估计。T 房间激活，煽动性的 cytokine 生产，和 RANKL 依赖的小径的标记被测量。另外， IGF-1 和性腺机能减退的角色被调查。结果：推延的 Portasystemic 引起了是 RANKL 独立人士的低周转骨质疏松症。包括 IL-1， IL-6 和 TNFalpha，骨头再吞 cytokine 层次没在浆液和 TNFalpha 被增加， RANKL 表示不起来在 PBMC 调整了。推延的 Portasystemic 增加了传播 CD8+T 房间人口。Rapamycin 减少了传播 CD8+T 房间人口，增加了 CD8+CD25+T 规章的房间人口并且改进了骨头周转的所有参数。结论：推延的 portasystemic 引起的骨质疏松症可以被 rapamycin 部分在肝的骨营养不良的老鼠模型改善。

Apple Peel Biochemical Changes after Foliar Application of Combined Boron and Calcium I. Phenolics and Physico-Chemical Attributes

Post-full bloom foliar applications of boron in combination with calcium (B+Ca) suppress fruit sunburn-browning incidence in apples (Malus domestica). However, the mode-of-action is not yet explained and hence, protocols to exploit this seemingly cost-effective peel physiology augmenting approach compared to usual methods (shade-netting, overhead cooling and kaolin application which attenuate excess fruit heat-load), cannot be fully developed or promoted justifiably among growers. Apple fruit sunburn-browning disorders are rampant worldwide, partly because of climate change as well as high cost and inefficacy of the established methods. However, knowledge of B+Ca effect on apple peel physiology may unravel the mode-of-action, paving the way for commercialization of this novel approach. In this study, B+Ca effect on apple peel phenolics and selected fruit physico-chemical attributes was investigated, using studies conducted at two farms for two seasons in Western Cape, South Africa. Four foliar treatments varying in B, Ca and inclusion of zinc (Zn), were applied on ‘Cripps Pink’, ‘Golden Delicious’ and ‘Granny Smith’ apples in 2014/15 (only ‘Cripps Pink’) and 2015/16 (all cultivars) in randomized complete block design experiments with five replications. Fruit peel samples for quantitative determination of total phenolics and total flavonoids analyses were collected at different fruit maturity stages. Significant (p < 0.05) interaction (treatments and fruit maturity stages) effect was observed for total phenolics (‘Golden Delicious’ and ‘Granny Smith’ only) and total flavonoids (all cultivars). Physico-chemical attributes (fruit diameter, size and total soluble solids) were only evaluated in ‘Golden Delicious’ and ‘Granny Smith’, and no significant differences among treatments occurred. Since no clear treatment differences in apple peel phenolic patterns were observed, other appropriate biochemical aspects like photosynthetic pigments should be investigated among such foliar B+Ca treatments.

Safety Properties and Probiotic Potential of Bacillus subtilis KATMIRA1933 and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens B-1895

This study reports on the safety and putative probiotic properties of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens B-1895 and Bacillus subtilis KATMIRA1933. According to the bacterial reverse mutation (Ames) test, cell-free supernatants of B. amyloliquefaciens B-1895 and B. subtilis KATMIRA1933 were not mutagenic. The two strains co-aggregated with Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and cell-free supernatants inhibited the growth of Streptococcus intermedius and Porphyromonas gingivalis. Endospores of B. amyloliquefaciens B-1895 and B. subtilis KATMIRA1933 were tolerant to 0.3% (w/v) bile salts and survived incubation for 4 h in MRS broth at pH 2.0 to 3.0. The ability of the two strains to produce antimicrobial compounds potentiates their application in health care formulations, personal care products, food and animal feed.

The Haematological Profile of Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Background: Patients with multiple sclerosis experience various disabilities, depending on the number and placement of lesions in the brain. Red blood cells with impaired membrane fluidity, as has been reported in patients with multiple sclerosis are known to be further targeted by phospholipase A2 during inflammatory activation. Objectives: The objective of the present study was therefore to investigate the haematological profile of patients with multiple sclerosis and to correlate this with their functional disability and inflammatory status. Methods: Differential full blood counts of 31 patients with multiple sclerosis and 30 age- and gender-matched control subjects were determined on a Beckman Coulter. The functional disability status of each patient was measured using the Kurtzke Expanded Disability Status Scale. C-reactive protein was determined on a Beckman auto-analyser. Results: The haemoglobin was significantly decreased in patients: 13.9 ± 1.40 g/dl, controls: 14.7 ± 1.60 g/dl, P = 0.01, while platelets were increased in patients: 292 ± 133 × 109/l, controls: 258 ± 88.0 × 109/l, P = 0.04. The number of red blood cells correlated inversely with the Kurtzke Expanded Disability Status Scale (R = –0.41;P = 0.02). Platelets correlated inversely with the haemoglobin (P = 0.04) and positively with Visual and Brainstem Scores (P < 0.01, P = 0.07 respectively), but inversely with the Sensory Score (P = 0.02). Conclusions: It is not clear from the results whether the compromised red blood cell profile in patients was due to unknown agents involved in the disease aetiology or from the resulting inflammatory responses, but the inverse correlation between the red blood cell count and the Kurtzke Expanded Disability Status Scale, a measure of neuronal function, suggested a relationship between red blood cell count and disease outcome. Furthermore, the inverse correlation of platelets with the haemoglobin suggested immunological involvement. Platelets, similar to white blood cells, supply fatty acids for pro-inflammatory eicosanoid synthesis.

Nutraceutical with Anti-Inflammatory Activity for the Management of Airway Remodeling in Bronchial Asthma: <i>Kalanchoe integra</i>Var. Crenata (Andr.) Cuf Leaf Extract

Background: Kalanchoe integra is widely used in folklore medicine as an antiasthmatic agent. Previous studies have shown the ameliorating effect of Kalanchoe integra leaf extract [KILE] on bronchial hyperesponsiveness and inflammation. Further, the stabilizing effect of Kalanchoe sp on mast cell degranulation, suggests that Kalanchoe species are suitable candidates for allergic asthma therapy. This study is designed to investigate the anti-asthmatic potential of KILE and monitor the accompanying histopathological and immunobiochemical changes that occur in an animal model of bronchial asthma using ovalbumin sensitized guinea pigs. Method: Thirty male guinea pigs were divided into five groups of six animals each. Bronchial asthma was simulated in guinea pigs using ovalbumin. Both low dose (300 mg/kg) and high dose extract (900 mg/kg) were administered daily for 42 days. Prednisolone (2.5 mg/kg) was the standard drug used. Results: Guinea pigs in all KILE treated groups maintained the integrity of their airway structures: bronchial folds and walls, alveoli, alveolar ducts and sacs. KILE and prednisolone caused a reduction in immune parameters (p 0.001), extent of bronchoconstriction, bronchial wall thickness and goblet cell accumulation in the sensitized guinea pigs. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the anti-asthmatic potential of KILE during prolonged administration by the oral route.

Deformation Effect on the Center-of-Mass Correction Energy in Nuclei Ranging from Oxygen to Calcium

The microscopic c.m. correction energies for nuclei ranging from oxygen to calcium are systematically calculated by both spherical and axially deformed relativistic mean-field （RMF） models with the effective interaction PK1. The microscopic c.m. correction energies strongly depend on the isospin as well as deformation and deviate from the phenomenological ones. The deformation effect is discussed in detail by comparing the deformed with the spherical RMF calculation. It is found that the direct and exchange terms of the c.m. correction energies are strongly correlated with the density distribution of nuclei and are suppressed in the deformed case.

Petrogenesis of the Ambohiby Complex Madagascar and the Role of the Marion Hotspot

The Cretaceous Ambohiby Complex is an alkaline ring complex located in the west central part of Madagascar and covers a mountainous area of approximate 225 km^2.The complex intrudes into Precambrian basement gneisses and is dominated by alkaline mafic to felsic rocks with sodic mineralogies. Pyroxenes are generally aegirine,aegirine-augite,and hedenbergite and commonly occur in granites,

Mineral Chemistry of Scheelite as An Indicator of Multi-stage Fluid Evolution Associated with the Riviera W-REE-Mo Deposit South Africa

The Neoproterozoic Riviera W-REE-Mo deposit is one of the largest unmined tungsten resources in the world and is associated with pervasively altered A-type granites of the Neoproterozoic Cape Granite Suite Western Cape, South Africa. The present study investigated the mineral chemistry of scheelite, the principal ore mineral with the aim to record the variation of solid solution molybdenum for geometallurgical purposes and also as an indicator of changing redox conditions of the mineralizing hydrothermal fluids. Methodology included UV-fluorescence studies and micro-analyses by LA-ICP-MS. Results have shown that at least four phases of scheelite are hosted by the endoskarn zone, potassic alteration zone and various quartz-carbonate veins. This reflects hydrothermal fluid evolution from early stage reduced to late stage, vein associated and more oxidized. The molybdenum content of the dominant early phase scheelite is low and renders the deposit amenable to low penalty mineral recovery.

Stability of Strutinsky Shell Correction Energy in Relativistic Mean Field Theory

The single-particle spectrum obtained from the relativistic mean field （RMF） theory is used to extract the shell correction energy with the Strutinsky method. Considering the delicate balance between the plateau condition in the Strutinsky smoothing procedure and the convergence for the total binding energy, the proper space sizes used in solving the RMF equations are investigated in detail by taking ^208 Pb as an example. With the proper space sizes, almost the same shell correction energies are obtained by solving the RMF equations either on basis space or in coordinate space.

Forest observational studies-an essential infrastructure for sustainable use of natural resources

This contribution complements Forest Ecosystems＇ Thematic Series on ＂Forest Observational Studies＂. We provide essential clarification regarding the definition and purpose of long-term field studies, review some of the extensive literature and discuss different approaches to collecting field data. We also describe two newly established forest observational networks that serve to illustrate the scope and diversity of forest field studies. The first is a large-scale network of forest observational studies in prominent natural forest ecosystems in China. The second example demonstrates observational studies in mixed and uneven-aged pine-oak forests which are selectively managed by local communities in Mexico. We summarize the potential for analysing and modeling forest ecosystems within interdisciplinary projects and provide argumentation in favour of long-term institutional commitment to maintaining forest observational field studies.

Facilitative Institutional Infrastructure to Optimise Productive Participation of Rural People in Local Development Processes: South Africa

Pervasive low levels of education and weak civil society activism in poor rural communities are cited as constraining factors for participatory development (PD), resulting in technical capacity for participation being skewed against the community participants. This paper highlights the outcomes of a research study that examined the applicability of the participatory development concept in conditions characterised by low levels of education and weak civil society. The research was undertaken in two rural villages in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, utilising both quantitative and qualitative approaches entailing interviews with 18 key informants followed by two focus group discussions each with seven participants respectively. The research found that rural communities were not aware of the government policy placing people participation at the centre of rural development interventions;and that they would not support it as they believed it was government's role to champion their development. The research also found that the government officials that lead the implementation effort of the rural development programmes did not believe that the participation policy was practical, citing capacity limitations among rural communities. The researcher recommends a moderated rural people participation process, which features creation of a facilitative institutional infrastructure to optimise productive participation of rural people in local development processes.