The effects of two different fatigue protocols on movement quality during anticipated and unanticipated change of directions in female soccer players

OBJECTIVE

This study compared neuromuscular control under two fatigue protocols during anticipated and unanticipated change of direction (COD) maneuvers and evaluated their effects on the risk of non-contact ACL injuries.

METHOD

Forty-five female soccer players (mean age: 22.22 ± 2.24 years; mean height: 166.24 ± 3.33 cm; mean mass: 59.84 ± 5.03 kg) were divided into three groups: functional fatigue (Soccer specific fatigue ptotocol-SOFT90), non-functional fatigue (Bruce protocol), and control group. Before and after the implementation of neuromuscular control fatigue protocols were evaluated using the cutting motion assessment score tool (CMAS). Two-dimensional (2D) videos were recorded during anticipated and unanticipated COD trials for both dominant and non-dominant legs.

RESULTS

Significant time effects (p < 0.05) and group-time interactions (p < 0.05) were observed in both anticipated and unanticipated conditions for both dominant and non-dominant legs after the fatigue protocols. The functional fatigue group exhibited higher CMAS changes, indicating poorer movement quality following fatigue. Notably, the non-dominant leg displayed amplified deficits during unanticipated COD maneuvers following the functional fatigue protocol.

CONCLUSIONS

Fatigue significantly impairs neuromuscular control, particularly in unanticipated COD situations, which increases the risk of non-contact ACL injuries. To mitigate this risk, coaches, trainers, and medical professionals should prioritize targeted training and injury prevention strategies, focusing on the non-dominant leg during unanticipated COD maneuvers.

Spectrophotometric determination of phenol impurity in phenoxyethanol and phenol index of drinking water and municipal wastewater effluent after salting-out assisted liquid phase microextraction (SA-LPME)

In this study, a novel and convenient analytical method based on salting-out-assisted liquid phase microextraction (SA-LPME) has been developed. A spectrophotometric technique was employed to quantify the concentration of phenol in drinking water and treated wastewater, as well as the phenol impurity in 2-phenoxyethanol (PE). To accomplish this, a solution containing dissolved PE was supplemented with 4-aminoantipyrine (4-AAP) and hexacyanoferrate. Subsequently, NaCl was added to induce the formation of a two-phase system, consisting of fine droplets of PE as an extractant phase in the aqueous phase. The resulting red derivative was then extracted into the extractant phase and separated through centrifugation. Finally, the absorbance of the extracted derivative was measured at 520 nm. The Response Surface Methodology (RSM) based on the Box-Behnken Design (BBD) was employed to optimize the influential factors, namely 4-Aminoantipyrine (4-AAP), buffer (pH = 10), hexacyanoferrate, and NaCl. By utilizing the optimal conditions (buffer: 50 μL, 4-AAP (1% w/v): 80 μL, hexacyanoferrate (10% w/v): 65 μL, and NaCl: 0.7 g per 10 mL of the sample), the limit of detection was determined to be 0.7 ng mL-1 and 0.22 μg g-1 for water and PE samples, respectively. The relative standard deviation (RSD) and correlation of determination (r2) obtained fell within the range of 2.4-6.8% and 0.9983-0.9994, respectively. Moreover, an enrichment factor of 65 was achieved for a sample volume of 10 mL. The phenol concentration in two PE samples (PE-1, PE-2), provided by a pharmaceutical company (Pars Sadra Fanavar, Iran), were determined to be 0.83 ± 0.05 μg g-1 and 2.70 ± 0.14 μg g-1, respectively. Additionally, the phenol index in drinking water and treated municipal wastewater was found to be 3.60 ± 1.06 ng mL-1 and 4.60 ± 1.17 ng mL-1, respectively. These mentioned samples were spiked in order to evaluate the potential influence of the matrix. The relative recoveries from PE-1, PE-2 samples, drinking water, and treated municipal wastewater samples were measured as 104.5%, 97.5%, 101.6%, and 107.8%, respectively, indicating no matrix effect.

The Effect on Flexibility and a Variety of Performance Tests of the Addition of 4 Weeks of Soleus Stretching to a Regular Dynamic Stretching Routine in Amateur Female Soccer Players

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of 4 weeks of soleus stretching on ankle flexibility and dynamic balance, as well as selected monitoring and performance tests in soccer. Forty-five healthy female soccer players were randomly divided into a regular stretching group, a regular stretching group with soleus stretching, and a control group. Dynamic stretching protocols were performed for 4 weeks during three sessions per week as part of routine exercises. The regular group stretched three muscle groups (i.e., gastrocnemius, quadriceps, and hamstrings), while the regular + soleus group also stretched the soleus muscle. Before and after the stretching intervention, the ankle range of motion test, Y-balance test, drop jump test, dynamic knee valgus test, and Illinois Agility Running Test were performed. Ankle ROM, Y-balance, and DJ significantly improved in both intervention groups compared to controls. Only the regular + soleus group showed improvement in the Illinois Agility Running Test. Additionally, athletes performing the additional soleus stretching had greater improvements in ankle ROM and DJ but not in DKV or Y-balance. The results showed that adding soleus stretching into regular protocols can provide benefits for female soccer players in terms of performance parameters.

Persian translation and validation of community attitudes toward the mentally ill scale: a tool for assessing social stigma about mental illness

No study, best of our knowledge, has been conducted on assessing the validity and reliability of community attitudes toward the mentally ill (CAMI) inventory in Iran. The questionnaire was translated into Persian and then returned to English. Content validity ratio (CVR), content validity index (CVI), impact score (IS) to assess content validity, Cronbach's alpha, and test-retest reliability was used to prove the internal and external reliabilities, respectively. The questionnaires were distributed to 130 people from different levels of society. Some were in contact with at least one patient with mental illness and some others had no connection. After 2 weeks, the questionnaires were resent to 50 participants to evaluate the reliability using the test-retest method. All questions had CVI (>0.79) and CVR (>0.49) except for three questions (Q 10, 24, and 30), which were excluded from the questionnaire. The questions were relevant, clear, simple, and valid. The IS was more than 1.5. The Cronbach's alpha values of four subscales including authoritarianism, benevolence, social restrictiveness, and community mental health ideology were recorded as 0.61, 0.49, 0.64, and 0.76, respectively. The CAMI scale is a valid and sustainable tool over time to assess the negative attitude toward mental illness.

Comparative QSAR Modeling For Predicting Anticancer Potency of Imidazo[4,5-B]Pyridine Derivatives Using GA-MLR and BP-ANN Techniques

Background:

Prediction of toxicity of imidazo[4,5-b]pyridine derivatives is carried out using GA-MLR and BPANN methods.

Objective:

A quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) was determined based on methods, including genetic algorithm-multiple linear regression (GA-MLR) and backpropagation artificial neural network (BP-ANN). These methods were employed for modeling and predicting the anticancer potency of imidazo[4,5-b]pyridine derivatives.

Materials and Methods:

A dataset of imidazo[4,5-b]pyridine derivatives was randomly divided into two groups, training and test sets consisting of 75% and 25% of data points, respectively. The optimized conformation of compounds was obtained using the DFT-B3LYP method and 6-31G* basis sets level with Gaussian 09 software. A large number of molecular descriptors were calculated using Dragon software. The QSAR models were optimized using multiple linear regressions (MLR).

Results:

The most relevant molecular descriptors were obtained using the genetic algorithm (GA) and backward stepwise regression. The predictive powers of the GA-MLR models were studied using leave-one-out (LOO) cross-validation and an external test set.

Conclusion:

The obtained results of statistical parameters showed the BP-ANN model to have better performance compared to the GA-MLR model. To assess the predictive ability of QSAR models, many statistical terms, such as correlation coefficient (R2), leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOCV), root mean squared error (RMSE), and external and internal validation were used. The results of validation methods demonstrate the QSAR model to be robust and with high predictivity.

In vitro assessment of anti-Trichomonas effects of Zingiber officinale and Lavandula angustifolia alcoholic extracts on Trichomonas gallinae

Trichomonas gallinae is a parasite that acts as a canker-causing agent and leads to significant loss and mortality, especially in young birds. Metronidazole is the approved drug used for the treatment of trichomoniasis. A non-chemical alternativess such as medical plant extracts are also used to treat this disease due to drug resistance. This study aimed to assess in vitro antitrichomonal effects of Lavandula angustifolia and Zingiber officinale extracts on T. gallinae compared with metronidazole. The T. gallinae samples were obtained from infected pigeons. Multi-well plates filled with different concentrations (5.00, 10.00, 25.00, 50.00, and 100 μg mL^-1) were used to perform in vitro analysis. The Z. officinale extract's minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) in the 24-hr period was 25.00 μg mL^-1, while it was 50.00 μg mL^-1 for metronidazole. The MIC value obtained for L. angustifolia extract in 24-hr was 50.00 μg mL^-1. The results indicated that the extracts of Z. officinale and L. angustifolia could act as potential natural agents against trichomoniasis. Furthermore, this study delineated the equal efficiency of L. angustifolia and Z. officinale with that of metronidazole in inhibiting the growth of Trichomonas gallinae trophozoites in culture media.

Massive liver haemangioma causing Kasabach-Merritt syndrome in an adult

Liver haemangiomas are common, but their size very rarely exceeds 40cm. Most people with liver haemangiomas are asymptomatic, and diagnosis is usually made incidentally during imaging for other complaints. When a liver haemangioma is symptomatic or produces complications, surgical intervention may be warranted. Kasabach-Merritt syndrome is an uncommon complication reported in certain rare vascular tumours in children, with only a few cases reported in adults. The syndrome describes a consumptive coagulopathy initiated within a vascular tumour, mainly tufted angiomas and kaposiform haemangioendotheliomas and, less commonly, giant haemangiomas. The process can extend beyond the tumour and become disseminated in certain cases due to trauma or surgery. The definitive treatment for giant liver haemangiomas can include arterial embolisation, surgical excision, hepatectomy or even liver transplantation. We report the case of a 32-year-old woman with a 42 × 32 × 27cm (18,870ml) liver haemangioma associated with Kasabach-Merritt syndrome. The diagnosis was challenging, even with proper imaging, owing to the rarity of the condition. It was achieved with an exploratory laparotomy with biopsy.

Small bowel obstruction due to splenosis 30 years after splenectomy

Splenosis is the autotransplantation of splenic tissue into abnormal locations due to trauma or iatrogenically. Usually, this causes no symptoms, but in rare cases the mass effect of the transplanted nodules can cause small bowel obstruction. Resection of the culprit splenic tissue is recommended, but not more extensive dissection of non-involved nodules. Our patient presented at 43 years of age with abdominal pain, distention and bilious vomiting. He had undergone a splenectomy at the age of 13 years due to splenic rupture after a motor vehicle collision. Computed tomography demonstrated a small bowel obstruction with multiple nodules suspicious of splenosis. The obstructing mass and compromised bowels. were resected. Final pathology confirmed the diagnosis. Splenosis is an uncommon aetiology of small bowel obstruction and must be considered in patients who had previous splenic trauma or surgery.

The effect of tamoxifen on the electrochemical behavior of Bi+3/Bi on the glassy carbon electrode and its determination via differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry

The electrochemical behavior of Bi+3 ions on the surface of a glassy carbon electrode, in acidic media and in the presence of tamoxifen, was investigated. Cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry, differential pulse voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy were used to find the probable mechanism contributing to the reduction of the peak height of bismuth oxidation with an increase in the concentration of tamoxifen. The obtained results show a slight interaction between the bismuth species and tamoxifen which co-deposit on the surface of glassy carbon electrode. Therefore, the reduction in the peak height of bismuth oxidation as a function of tamoxifen concentration was used to develop a new differential pulse anodic striping voltammetry method for determination of trace amount of tamoxifen. The effects of experimental parameters on the in situ DPASV of Bi+3 ions in the presence of tamoxifen shown the optimal conditions as: 2 mol L-1 H2SO4 (1% v v-1 MeOH), a deposition potential of -0.5 V, a deposition time of 60 s, and a glassy carbon electrode rotation rate of 300 rpm. The calibration curve was plotted in the range of 0.5 to 6 µg mL-1 and the limits of detection and quantitation were calculated to be 3.1 × 10-5 µg mL-1 and 1.0 × 10-4 µg mL-1, respectively. The mean, RSD, and relative bias for 0.5 µg mL-1 (n=5) were found to be 0.49 µg mL-1, 0.3%, and 2%, respectively. Finally, the proposed method was successfully used for the determination of tamoxifen in serum and pharmaceutical samples.

Reversed-phase vortex-assisted liquid-liquid microextraction: a new sample preparation method for the determination of amygdalin in oil and kernel samples

A novel, simple, and rapid reversed-phase vortex-assisted liquid-liquid microextraction coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography has been introduced for the extraction, clean-up, and preconcentration of amygdalin in oil and kernel samples. In this technique, deionized water was used as the extracting solvent. Unlike the reversed-phase dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction, dispersive solvent was eliminated in the proposed method. Various parameters that affected the extraction efficiency, such as extracting solvent volume and its pH, vortex, and centrifuging times were evaluated and optimized. The calibration curve shows good linearity (r(2) = 0.9955) and precision (RSD < 5.2%) in the range of 0.07-20 μg/mL. The limit of detection and limit of quantitation were 0.02 and 0.07 μg/mL, respectively. The recoveries were in the range of 96.0-102.0% with relative standard deviation values ranging from 4.0 to 5.1%. Unlike the conventional extraction methods for plant extracts, no evaporative and re-solubilizing operations were needed in the proposed technique.

A novel pH optical sensor using methyl orange based on triacetylcellulose membranes as support

A novel pH optical sensor based on triacetylcellulose membrane as solid support was developed by using immobilization of methyl orange indicator. The prepared optical sensor was fixed into a flow cell for on-line pH monitoring. Variables affecting sensor performance, such as pH of dye bonding to triacetylcellulose membrane and dye concentration have been fully evaluated and optimized. The calibration curve showed good behavior and precision (RSD<0.4%) in the pH range of 4.0-12.0. No significant variation was observed on sensor response with increasing the ionic strength in the range of 0.0-0.5M of sodium chloride. Determination of pH by using the proposed optical sensor is on-line, quick, inexpensive, selective and sensitive in the pH range of 4.0-12.0.

Isolation of keratinophilic fungi from elementary schools and public parks in Isfahan, Iran

A total of 330 dust and soil samples collected from different sites at 13 elementary schools and seven public parks in the province of Isfahan, Iran were examined for the frequency of keratinophilic fungi by the hair-baiting technique. Two hundred and fourteen isolates of keratinophilic fungi belonging to seven species were identified. The most frequent isolate was Chrysosporium keratinophilum (54.2%). The frequency and distribution of these keratinophilic fungi are discussed in relation to the presence of children in these environments.