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A test of the tau-dot hypothesis of braking control in the real world.

A controlled experiment used instrumented vehicles in a real-world driving task to compare D. N. Lee's (1976) tau-dot hypothesis of braking control with an alternative based on the direct estimation and control of ideal deceleration (T. Yates, M. Harris, & P. Rock, 2004). Drivers braked to stop as closely as possible to a visual target from different starting speeds and times-to-contact. The data provided little support for the tau-dot hypothesis, and analysis suggested that braking in the real world is better explained by a direct deceleration strategy.

Acceleration↗

Conditioning-specific reflex modification of rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) heart rate.

Conditioning-specific reflex modification (CRM) describes changes in rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) nictitating membrane responses (NMR) to an unconditioned stimulus (US) when the US is tested by itself after pairings of tone and electrodermal stimulation. Although CRM has been replicated, it is unclear whether it occurs in response systems other than that of the NMR. The authors report that CRM of rabbit heart rate (HR) can occur following HR conditioning. A US that elicits HR acceleration before conditioning can elicit HR deceleration after conditioning. The rabbits' electrocardiograms showed both HR conditioning and HR CRM were correlated with an increased PQ interval--an index of parasympathetic function mediated by the vagus. The data suggest conditioned HR deceleration can generalize from conditioned stimulus to US as a function of conditioning.

Animals↗

Associative learning in neonatal rats revealed by cardiac response patterns.

Infant rat pups (3-4 days of age) that received a single pairing of a novel odor (CS) with illness later responded to the CS with sustained accelerations in heart rate (HR); a different novel odor evoked deceleratory HR responses. Control pups responded to the CS and the second novel odor with cardiac deceleration. In a second experiment, rat pups that received three pairings of a novel odor with a cold (10 degrees C) temperature reinforcement displayed a similar pattern of HR responses, i.e., acceleration to the CS and deceleration to the novel odor. Cardiac response patterns are a useful measure of learning in infant mammals. The directional modulations of HR found in these experiments compare favorably with previous interpretations of "orienting" and "defensive" reactions derived from studies of HR responses in humans.

Animals↗

Cingulate cortex: its role in Pavlovian conditioning.

Three experiments with New Zealand albino rabbits examined the role of anterior and posterior cingulate cortex in Pavlovian conditioning. Tones served as conditioned stimuli, and paraorbital electric shock served as the unconditioned stimulus. Anterior cingulate lesions attenuated conditioned heart rate (HR) decelerations, relative to posterior cingulate or sham lesions, but enhanced the magnitude of the bradycardiac component of the orienting reflex. Posterior cingulate lesions enhanced the bradycardiac component of the conditioned response, particularly late in training, relative to anterior or sham lesions. Somatomotor eye-blink conditioning, shock thresholds, and HR unconditioned responses were unaffected by cingulate lesions. Electrical stimulation of cingulate cortex revealed effective sites for eliciting heart rate and blood pressure (BP) changes only in anterior cingulate cortex. Relatively large (70-100 beats per minute) HR decelerations accompanied by small (1-5-mm Hg) BP depressor responses were elicited by stimulation of this area; the HR decreases were abolished by atropine methyl nitrate but were unaffected by either propranolol hydrochloride or phentolamine hydrochloride. These results are discussed in terms of cingulate involvement in the mediation of the cardiovascular component of a response pattern related to stimulus processing.

Animals↗

Evidence on human origins from haemoglobins of African apes.

Molecular data have influenced views concerning human origins, first, by supporting the genealogical classification of Pan (chimpanzee) and Gorilla with Homo rather than with Pongo (orangutan) and, second, by suggesting that only a few million years separate humans and chimpanzees from their last common ancestor. Indeed, the cladistic distances in phylogenetic trees constructed from amino acid sequence data, on detecting many superimposed mutations, yielded a 'molecular-clock' divergence date between Homo and Pan of only 1-1.5 Myr BP. This date, which is even more recent than (4.2-5.3 Myr BP) calculated using phenetic distances from immunological and DNA-hybridization comparisons (Table 1), is too near the present considering the existence of 3-4 Myr-old fossils of bipedal human ancestors (and a 5.5 Myr-old jaw fragment assigned to Australopithecus). Perhaps decelerated sequence evolution occurred; alternatively, hominoid distances could have been underestimated, because chimpanzee and gorilla were represented mostly by sequences inferred from peptide amino acid compositions, as was the case for their haemoglobins. To help rectify this situation we report here the rigorously determined alpha- and beta-haemoglobin amino acid sequences not only of chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) and Gorilla gorilla but also pygmy chimpanzee (Pan paniscus). Our findings favour the explanation of decelerated evolution and point to selection preserving perfected haemoglobin molecules.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

An X-ray-emitting blast wave from the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi.

Stellar explosions such as novae and supernovae produce most of the heavy elements in the Universe. The onset of a nova is well understood as driven by runaway thermonuclear fusion reactions on the surface of a white dwarf in a binary star system; but the structure, dynamics and mass of the ejecta are not well known. In rare cases, the white dwarf is embedded in the wind nebula of a red-giant companion, and the explosion products plough through the nebula and produce X-ray emission. Here we report X-ray observations of such an event, from the eruption of the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi. The hard X-ray emission from RS Ophiuchi early in the eruption emanates from behind a blast wave, or outward-moving shock wave, that expanded freely for less than 2 days and then decelerated owing to interaction with the nebula. The X-rays faded rapidly, suggesting that the blast wave deviates from the standard spherical shell structure. The early onset of deceleration indicates that the ejected shell had a low mass, the white dwarf has a high mass, and that RS Ophiuchi is therefore a progenitor of the type of supernova (type Ia) integral to studies of the expansion of the Universe.

Journal Article↗

Are left ventricular mass, geometry and function related to vascular changes and/or insulin resistance in long-standing hypertension? ICARUS: a LIFE substudy.

Vascular hypertrophy and insulin resistance have been associated with abnormal left ventricular (LV) geometry in population studies. We wanted to investigate the influence of vascular hypertrophy and insulin resistance on LV hypertrophy and its function in patients with hypertension. In 89 patients with essential hypertension and electrocardiographic LV hypertrophy, we measured blood pressure; insulin sensitivity by hyperinsulinaemic euglucaemic clamp; minimal forearm vascular resistance (MFVR) by plethysmography; intima-media cross-sectional area of the common carotid arteries (IMA) by ultrasound; and LV mass, relative wall thickness (RWT), systolic function and diastolic filling by echocardiography after two weeks of placebo treatment. LV mass index correlated to IMA/height (r=0.36, P=0.001), serum insulin (r=-0.25, P<0.05), plasma glucose (r=-0.34, P<0.01), and showed a tendency towards a correlation to insulin sensitivity (r=0.21, P=0.051), but was unrelated to MFVR. Deceleration time of early diastolic transmitral flow positively correlated to IMA/height (r=0.30, P<0.01). The ratio between early and atrial LV filling peak flow velocity negatively correlated to MFVR(men) (r=-0.30, P<0.05). Endocardial and midwall systolic LV function were not related to vascular hypertrophy, plasma glucose, serum insulin or insulin sensitivity. In conclusion, insulin resistance was not related to LV hypertrophy or reduced LV function. However, high thickness of the common carotid arteries was associated with LV hypertrophy and high deceleration time of early diastolic transmitral flow. High MFVR was associated with low ratio between early and atrial LV filling peak flow velocity. This may suggest that systemic vascular hypertrophy contributes to abnormal diastolic LV relaxation in patients with hypertension and electrocardiographic LV hypertrophy.

Aged↗

Molecular beams with a tunable velocity.

The merging of molecular beam methods with those of accelerator physics has yielded new tools to manipulate the motion of molecules. Over the last few years, decelerators, lenses, bunchers, traps, and storage rings for neutral molecules have been demonstrated. Molecular beams with a tunable velocity and with a tunable width of the velocity distribution can now be produced, and are expected to become a valuable tool in a variety of physical chemistry and chemical physics experiments. Here we present a compact molecular beam machine, capable of producing 3D spatially focused packets of state-selected accelerated or decelerated molecules.

Chemistry, Physical↗

Comparability of the amniotic fluid index and single deepest pocket measurements in clinical practice.

Two ultrasound techniques, the amniotic fluid index (AFI) and the single deepest pocket (SDP), are currently used to detect oligohydramnios, predict variable decelerations, risk of Caesarean delivery for fetal distress, Apgar scores, umbilical cord artery pH, perinatal mortality, and cerebral palsy. Both techniques poorly identify oligohydramnios. Both techniques identify pregnancies at risk for variable decelerations, low Apgar scores, and Caesarean delivery for fetal distress. Only the SDP is predictive of a compromised fetus-umbilical artery pH, as a stand-alone test, has been correlated with perinatal mortality, and as part of the biophysical profile has been linked to cerebral palsy. This brief communication reviews the comparability of these two techniques and which method, if either, is superior in the identification of oligohydramnios, the predictability of these techniques to identify an adverse pregnancy outcome, and the ability to predict cerebral palsy and perinatal mortality.

Amniotic Fluid↗

Neuronal coordination of arm and leg movements during human locomotion.

We aimed to study the neuronal coordination of lower and upper limb muscles. We therefore evaluated the effect of small leg displacements during gait on leg and arm muscle electromyographic (EMG) activity in walking humans. During walking on a split-belt treadmill (velocity 3.5 km/h), short accelerations or decelerations were randomly applied to the right belt during the mid or end stance phase. Alternatively, trains of electrical stimuli were delivered to the right distal tibial nerve. The EMG activity of the tibialis anterior (TA), gastrocnemius medialis (GM), deltoideus (Delt), triceps (Tric) and biceps brachii (Bic) of both sides was analysed. For comparison, impulses were also applied during standing and sitting. The displacements were followed by specific patterns of right leg and bilateral arm muscle EMG responses. Most arm muscle responses appeared with a short latency (65-80 ms) and were larger in Delt and Tric than in Bic. They were strongest when deceleration impulses were released during mid stance, associated with a right compensatory TA response. A similar response pattern in arm muscles was obtained following tibial nerve stimulation. The arm muscle responses were small or absent when stimuli were applied during standing or sitting. The arm muscle responses correlated more closely with the compensatory TA than with the compensatory GM responses. The amplitude of the responses in most arm muscles correlated closely with the background EMG activity of the respective arm muscle. The observations suggest the existence of a task-dependent, flexible neuronal coupling between lower and upper limb muscles. The stronger impact of leg flexors in this interlimb coordination indicates that the neuronal control of leg flexor and extensor muscles is differentially interconnected during locomotion. The results are compatible with the assumption that the proximal arm muscle responses are associated with the swinging of the arms during gait, as a residual function of quadrupedal locomotion.

Adult↗

Reduced left ventricular relaxation velocity after acute myocardial infarction.

Diastolic left ventricular function is usually described using Doppler recording of the early to atrial (E/A) ratio. However, because of pseudonormalization in patients with moderately impaired diastolic function, the E/A ratio does not allow a meaningful comparison between a group of patients with varying degrees of dysfunction, e.g. after acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and a group of healthy control subjects. In this study, diastolic function was assessed using the E/A ratio, deceleration time of early mitral inflow and maximal longitudinal relaxation velocity. The relaxation velocity was measured using echocardiographic M-mode recording of mitral annulus motion. Mitral annulus motion was recorded in four- and two-chamber views. Relaxation velocities were measured in the septal, lateral, anterior and posterior parts of the mitral annulus and the mean value (RVm) was calculated. Twenty-two consecutive patients were investigated 3-21 days after first transmural AMI. Twenty-two healthy subjects of similar age served as a control group. The group of patients with AMI had an RVm of 40.9 +/- 15.4 mm s-1 compared with 68.5 +/- 12.4 mm s-1 in the control group (P < 0.0001). In contrast, the E/A ratio, deceleration time and heart rate did not differ significantly between the two groups. The results suggest that maximal longitudinal relaxation velocity is a simple and appropriate measure of diastolic function in patients with transmural AMI.

Aged↗

Effects of orchidectomy on levels of the mRNAs encoding gonadotropin-releasing hormone and other hypothalamic peptides in the adult male rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta).

The testicular regulation of luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion in the adult rhesus monkey is mediated by an indirect action of testosterone to decelerate pulsatile gonadotrophin releasing hormone (GnRH) release. Whether this negative feedback action of testosterone involves regulation of GnRH gene expression is unknown. Therefore, the effect of bilateral orchidectomy on hypothalamic levels of the mRNA encoding this hypophysiotropic factor was examined. The feedback action of testosterone is generally considered to be mediated through non-GnRH cells, and the present experiment provided the opportunity to also examine testicular influences on mRNAs encoding putative hypothalamic factors implicated in the testicular regulation of LH secretion. Adult male rhesus monkeys were orchidectomized (n=5) or sham-orchidectomized (n=5) and killed 6 weeks later, after a castration-induced hypersecretion of LH was established. Separate preoptic and mediobasal hypothalamus containing areas were collected, and levels of GnRH mRNA, as well as those of mRNAs encoding pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) synthesizing enzymes (glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 and 67; GAD65 and GAD67, respectively), neuropeptide Y, galanin and transforming growth factor (TGF)alpha, were quantified using RNase protection assay. Values were expressed in terms of optical density relative to that of cyclophilin mRNA levels. Bilateral orchidectomy produced a significant increase in GnRH mRNA levels that was restricted to the mediobasal hypothalamus and that was associated with a significant decrease in POMC, GAD65 and GAD67 mRNA levels in this region of the hypothalamus. In contrast, neuropeptide Y, galanin and TGFalpha mRNA levels were not affected by castration. These results indicate that, in the monkey, the deceleration of pulsatile GnRH release that is imposed by the testis, and presumably mediated by testosterone, is associated with a concomitant down regulation of GnRH gene expression in the mediobasal hypothalamus. They also support the notion that this hypothalamic feedback action may be mediated by POMC-and GABA-producing neurones in the mediobasal hypothalamus.

Age Factors↗

Kinematic and kinetic observations on ballistic depression and elevation of the human mandible.

To study mandibular motions with respect to time (kinematics) and the forces causing and resulting from these motions (kinetics), four subjects generated rapid depression and elevation of the mandible (displacement of 0.224 m; peak velocity of 0.237 m s(-1) during depression and 0.269 m s(-1) during elevation). The motion of depression (duration of 0.195 s; kinetic energy of 2.072 x 10(-3) J) could be divided into a phase of acceleration (2.742 m s(-2); +/- 0.28 gn) and a phase of deceleration (2.264 m s(-2); - 0.23 gn), and the terminal excess kinetic energy of depression was absorbed and dissipated by, primarily, the temporomandibular joint. Similarly, the ensuing motion of elevation (duration of 0.182 s; kinetic energy of 2.948 x 10(-3) J) could be divided into a phase of acceleration (3.498 m s(-2); + 0.36 gn) and a phase of deceleration (2.931 m s(-2); -0.30 gn), and the terminal excess kinetic energy of elevation was absorbed and dissipated by, primarily, the dentitions and, secondarily, by the temporomandibular joint. Rapid depression of the mandible appeared to be under the central control of a preprogrammed motor command, and ensuing rapid elevation of the mandible appeared to be under the peripheral control of a segmental and/or transcortical reflex. During rapid depression and elevation of the mandible, the anterior suprahyoid, anterior temporalis, and sternocleidomastoid muscles were myoelectrically active 56%, 73%, and 71% of the time, respectively, and myomechanically active 42%, 59%, and 57% of the time, respectively. Over a follow-up period of 12 months, the studied mandibular motions did not cause injury to the dentitions and temporomandibular joint.

Biomechanical Phenomena↗

The parAB gene products of Pseudomonas putida exhibit partition activity in both P. putida and Escherichia coli.

The bacteria for which there is evidence that proteins of the ParAB family act in chromosome segregation also undergo developmental transitions that involve the ParAB homologues, raising the question of whether the partition activity is equivalent to that of plasmid partition systems. We have investigated the role in partition of the parAB locus of a free-living bacterium, Pseudomonas putida, not known to pass through developmental phases. A parAB deletion mutant, compared with wild type, showed slightly higher frequencies of anucleate cells in exponentially growing cultures but much higher frequencies in deceleration phase. This increase was growth medium dependent. Oversupply of ParA and ParB proteins also raised anucleate cell levels, specifically in the deceleration phase, in wild-type and mutant strains and regardless of medium, as well as generating abnormal cell morphologies. Absence or oversupply of ParAB function had either slight or considerable effects on growth rate, depending on temperature and medium. The need for the Par proteins in chromosome partition thus appears to be subject to the cell's physiological state. Three sequences similar to cis-acting stabilization sites of Bacillus subtilis are present in the P. putida oriC-parAB region. One was inserted into an unstable mini-F and shown to stabilize it in E. coli in a ParAB-dependent manner.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Influence of automatic word reading on motor control.

We investigated the possible influence of automatic word reading on processes of visuo-motor transformation. Six subjects were required to reach and grasp a rod on whose visible face the word 'long' or 'short' was printed. Word reading was not explicitly required. In order to induce subjects to visually analyse the object trial by trial, object position and size were randomly varied during the experimental session. The kinematics of the reaching component was affected by word presentation. Peak acceleration, peak velocity, and peak deceleration of arm were higher for the word 'long' with respect to the word 'short'. That is, during the initial movement phase subjects automatically associated the meaning of the word with the distance to be covered and activated a motor program for a farther and/or nearer object position. During the final movement phase, subjects modified the braking forces (deceleration) in order to correct the initial error. No effect of the words on the grasp component was observed. These results suggest a possible influence of cognitive functions on motor control and seem to contrast with the notion that the analyses executed in the ventral and dorsal cortical visual streams are different and independent.

Acceleration↗

The myocardial performance index in patients with aortic stenosis.

OBJECTIVES: This study was designed to determine the effect of chronic afterload on a Doppler-derived myocardial performance index (MPI) combining both systolic and diastolic left ventricular dysfunction. METHODS: The study included 36 patients with a diagnosis of aortic stenosis and 36 normal subjects. Doppler-derived myocardial performance index (MPI), defined as the sum of the isovolumic contraction time and isovolumic relaxation time divided by ejection time, was measured from the mitral valve inflow and left ventricular outflow velocity patterns and was then related to the aortic valve area, valve gradient, and other echocardiographic variables. RESULTS: The values of the Doppler-derived MPI in the patients with aortic stenosis were significantly higher than those in the controls (0.54 +/- 0.20 vs 0.38 +/- 0.04, respectively; P < 0.001). Transmitral deceleration time and the E/A ratio ( r = 0.47 and r = 0.35, respectively; P < 0.05) were significant univariate correlates, and mitral deceleration time was the only significant correlate of MPI. However the index did not correlate with aortic valve area, peak and mean valve gradients, left ventricular mass, or age. CONCLUSIONS: Doppler-derived MPI reflects severity of global left ventricular dysfunction in patients with aortic stenosis and may be of clinical value in this patient population.

Aged↗

Hierarchical linear modeling of FIM instrument growth curve characteristics after spinal cord injury.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the recovery of aspects of functional independence as a continuous process using growth curve analysis. DESIGN: Retrospective database review of functional outcome assessment data from inception cohort. SETTING: Inpatient rehabilitation unit; community. PATIENTS: A total of 142 subjects (79.6% men; age range, 18-77yr; mean age +/- standard deviation, 36.2 +/- 15.5yr) who were admitted to a rehabilitation unit between March 1986 and November 1994 with a minimum of 4 postinjury FIM assessments. Neurologic subgroups included 63 individuals with paraplegia, 36 with low tetraplegia, 24 with high tetraplegia, and 19 with incomplete injury. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: FIM instrument. RESULTS: Growth curve analyses with hierarchical linear modeling using a decelerating recovery function yielded a reliable model in which longer rehabilitation length of stay was associated with a more rapid rate of recovery but lower plateau. Neurologic injury category had expected effects on rate and degree of recovery. Level of impairment-specific results included an age effect in which older age was associated with lower level of plateau. In specific neurologic groups there was a significant gender effect, in which men made more rapid recovery than women, and a significant effect of level of education, in which higher education was associated with more rapid rate of recovery. Rate of FIM recovery was reliably modeled in the sample with incomplete injuries, but none of the demographic predictors was significant. CONCLUSIONS: Functional recovery can be modeled as a decelerating rather than simple linear function. The study of predictors of recovery characteristics, including rate of recovery and plateau, offers a valuable way of understanding rehabilitative needs and outcomes. Gender and education effects on the recovery process are intriguing and warrant further investigation.

Adult↗

Current concepts: diffuse axonal injury-associated traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVES: To review the probable physical, physiologic mechanisms that result in the medical and neuropsychologic complications of diffuse axonal injury (DAI)-associated traumatic brain injury (TBI). DATA SOURCES: Various materials were accessed: MEDLINE, textbooks, scientific presentations, and current ongoing research that has been recently reported. STUDY SELECTION: Included were scientific studies involving TBI, particularly direct injury to the axons and glia of the central nervous system (CNS) in both in vitro and in vivo models. These studies include pathologic findings in humans as well as the medical complications and behavioral outcomes of DAI. Studies that addressed animal models of DAI as well as cellular and/or tissue models of neuronal injury were emphasized. The review also covered work on the physical properties of materials involved in the transmission of energy associated with prolonged acceleration-deceleration injuries. DATA EXTRACTION: Studies were selected with regard to those that addressed the mechanism of TBI associated with DAI and direct injury to the axon within the CNS. The material was generally the emphasis of the article and was extracted by multiple observers. Studies that correlate the above findings with the clinical picture of DAI were included. DATA SYNTHESIS: Concepts were developed by the authors based on the current scientific findings and theories of DAI. The synthesis of these concepts involves expertise in physical science, basic science concepts of cellular injury to the CNS, acute medical indicators of DAI, neuropsychologic indicators of DAI, and rehabilitation outcomes from TBI. CONCLUSIONS: The term DAI is a misnomer. It is not a diffuse injury to the whole brain, rather it is predominant in discrete regions of the brain following high-speed, long-duration deceleration injuries. DAI is a consistent feature of TBI from transportation-related injuries as well as some sports injuries. The pathology of DAI in humans is characterized histologically by widespread damage to the axons of the brainstem, parasagittal white matter of the cerebral cortex, corpus callosum, and the gray-white matter junctions of the cerebral cortex. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging scans taken initially after injury are often normal. The deformation of the brain due to plastic flow of the neural structures associated with DAI explains the micropathologic findings, radiologic findings, and medical and neuropsychologic complications from this type of injury mechanism. There is evidence that the types of cellular injury in TBI (DAI, anoxic, contusion, hemorrhagic, perfusion-reperfusion) should be differentiated, as all may involve different receptors and biochemical pathways that impact recovery. These differing mechanisms of cellular injury involving specific biochemical pathways and locations of injury may, in part, explain the lack of success in drug trials to ameliorate TBI.

Animals↗