Spinal alignment in low back pain patients and age-related side effects: a multivariate cross-sectional analysis of video rasterstereography back shape reconstruction data.

PURPOSE: Spinal form in the sagittal plane and asymmetries of spinal alignment in the frontal plane were identified earlier to be associated with low back pain. This study was aiming at investigating whether age was influencing the significance of these findings. METHODS: Spinal alignment of 155 older and 58 younger low back pain patients was investigated using non-invasive video rasterstereography and compared to 192 pain free controls. Trunk inclination and imbalance, pelvis tilt and torsion, and the thoracic kyphosis and lumbar lordosis angle served as dependent variables, which were analyzed using multivariate procedures. RESULTS: Frontal plane parameters-trunk imbalance (λ > 0.60) in combination with pelvis tilt (λ > 0.64)-constituted an independent component in a factor analysis model of spine shape parameters in younger and older patients, but not in pain free controls. Trunk imbalance (frontal), trunk inclination (sagittal) and partially thoracic kyphosis angle (sagittal) were extracted to separate patients from controls (discriminant coefficients >0.50). Age could not be excluded as interfering variable for the lumbar lordosis angle. Significant univariate analyses revealed higher effect sizes for trunk imbalance and inclination (η (2) > 0.07) than for lordosis, kyphosis or pelvic parameters (η (2) < 0.06). CONCLUSIONS: In line with corresponding findings trunk imbalance remained a low back pain-associated parameter not depending on age. Over all, sagittal trunk inclination and the thoracic kyphosis angle could not be established as being completely free from age influences, while the lumbar lordosis angle played a minor role and seemed to be influenced more by age than by low back pain in this rasterstereography study.

Chemoreceptors in lepidoptera: stereochemical differentiation of dual receptors for an achiral pheromone.

The racemate and optically pure enantiomers of 9-(2-cyclopenten-1yl)nonyl acetate have been synthesized and shown to mimic certain biological properties of (Z)-11-tetradecenyl acetate. European corn borers and red-banded leaf rollers respond differently to the racemate and to the enantiomers in precopulatory behavior bioassay. The responses demonstrate the presence of two stereospecific chemoreceptors, show the chiral character of these receptors, and define the conformation of carbon atoms 10 to 14 of (Z)-11-tetradecenyl acetate in these receptors.

Insect sex pheromones: minor amount of opposite geometrical isomer critical to attraction.

(Z)-II-Tetradecenyl acetate is the reported sex pheromone of European corn borer and redbanded leafroller moths. However, geometrically pure preparations of the compound are weakly attractive to these species. Presence of the E geometrical isomer in the Z is necessary for maximum sex attraction and these moths are "tuned" to respond optimally to specific proportions of Z to E. This discovery is important to considerations of moth pheromonal specificity, evolution, and in application of knowledge of the pheromones to insect-pest suppression.

[Reproducibility and Bilateral Symmetry of Maximal Isokinetic Trunk Rotation Strength in Healthy and Active Male Adults]. / Die Reproduzierbarkeit und bilaterale Symmetrie der maximalen isokinetischen Rumpfrotationskraft bei gesunden, sportlich aktiven, männlichen Probanden.

Movements with axial trunk rotation are associated with spinal disease and back pain and may lead to several bilateral adaptations of the trunk muscles, which are another risk factor for back pain. To avoid injury and pain, a targeted preventative training should be implemented to preserve symmetrical strength/forces. The effect analysis of such an intervention requires reliable strength tests to document training progress and enable a clinical assessment. This study aimed to determine the reproducibility of an isokinetic test protocol for maximal trunk rotation strength and the verification of left/right differences of the maximum strength of trunk rotation muscles and hand grip strength. 30 healthy and active male adults (BH = 180.1 ±â€Š5.6 cm, BM = 78.5 ±â€Š8.9 kg, age = 26.5 ±â€Š3.5 years) with no history of back pain were examined in a test-retest design. The participants completed an isokinetic maximum strength test on two different test days (two sets of three concentric contractions, three min set break, angle velocity = 120 °/s) with the same test leader. Reproducibility was evaluated with an intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC (3.1)), standard error of measurement (SEM) and coefficient of repeatability (CR). ICC values of 0.94 - 0.98 on the left and 0.97 - 0.98 on the right were identified for torque, power and work. Mean torque, power and work showed CR coefficients of ±â€Š5.1 Nm or ±â€Š4.0 Nm, ±â€Š11.0 W or ±â€Š8.2 W and ±â€Š9.5 J or ±â€Š6.5 J for right or left rotation. The right-handed participants dominated the sample and had greater maximal hand grip strength, but no left/right trunk muscle asymmetry was found. The test protocol provides reliable data and can be used to characterise trunk rotation strength before and after training interventions in patients suffering from back pain or athletes engaging in sports with unilateral trunk rotation patterns.

Influence of a visual-verbal Stroop test on standing and walking performance of older adults.

The dual task (DT) paradigm has been used to investigate decrements in balance performance while walking and standing in fall prevention studies with older adults. However, there are inconsistent findings whether balance performance decreases or increases in DT situations. Following different theoretical models (e.g. limited resource hypothesis or cross domain competition model), these inconsistent findings can be explained by task settings and task complexity. We compared DT performance in an executive control task (Stroop test) while standing and walking to analyze which theoretical model would fit our data best. Twenty-eight persons (>65 years) were examined under single task (ST) and DT conditions for standing (sway length and sway velocity) and walking (step length, step width (SW), peak forces of the heel, mid- and forefoot). SW increased from ST to DT conditions, and step length decreased significantly. Maximum forces of the forefoot were reduced whereas the maximum forces of the midfoot increased. Additionally, correct answers of the Stroop test decreased from the ST baseline condition to DT walking. No correlations were found between DT costs (performance decrements) of standing and walking. For both conditions (standing and walking), the limited resources hypothesis fits best. Moreover, not all modified gait variables could be defined as negative DT costs. Increased SW and decreased step length might be used to compensate influences on lateral stability while demands on motor-cognitive resources increase. Further, drawing conclusions from a standing task for walking conditions might lead to misinterpretations.

Synthesis and antitumor activity of 4-aminomethylthioxanthenone and 5-aminomethylbenzothiopyranoindazole derivatives.

Two new series of antitumor agents, 4-aminomethylthioxanthenones (6-50) and 5-aminomethylbenzothiopyranoindazoles (51-61), are described and compared. Nearly all members of both series display excellent in vivo activity versus murine pancreatic adenocarcinoma 03 (Panc03) although there is little to distinguish the two series from each other. In both series there is no discernible relationship between structure and in vivo efficacy. Selected analogues were evaluated in vitro; all were observed to have moderate to strong DNA binding via intercalation. However, varying degrees of in vitro P388 cytotoxicity and topoisomerase II inhibition were seen. In general, those molecules which exhibited strong topoisomerase II inhibition were significantly more cytotoxic than those which did not. In both series, those derivatives (48-50, 60, and 61) having a phenolic hydroxy substitution exhibited the most potent P388 cytotoxicity and topoisomerase II inhibition.

In vitro and in vivo availability of spironolactone from oral dosage forms.

Tablet formulations of spironolactone with hydrochlorothiazide were studied in vitro and in vivo to evaluate the effect of formulation parameters on the bioavailability of spironolactone. The time required for 50% tablet dissolution (T50) in simulated gastric fluid was linearly correlated with the disintegration times of four experimental formulations and one commercial tablet of spironolactone and hydrochlorothiazide. Bioavailability studies were conducted in four healthy, female beagle dogs. The mean time to peak concentration of canrenone,f cancrenone, the major metabolite of spironolactone, was proportional to the T50 dissolution parameter. A study of spironolactone administered orally with and without hydrochlorothiazide showed that the bioavailability of spironolactone is not affected by hydrochlorothiazide. No significant difference in the bioavailability of spironolactone from one 100-mg and four 25-mg tablets were observed. Estimates of some pharmacokinetic parameters for canrenone closely agreed with those previously reported.

[Psychometric properties of a German version of the Apathy Evaluation Scale]. / Die Apathy Evaluation Scale: Erste Ergebnisse zu den psychometrischen Eigenschaften einer deutschsprachigen Ubersetzung der Skala.

Apathy is a common feature of a variety of different psychiatric, neurological, and medical disorders. It can be defined as lack of motivation affecting cognitive, emotional, and overt behavioural aspects. Despite being associated with other clinical disorders, apathy can also occur as an independent syndrome (e. g., after brain injuries), now depicting a primary loss of motivation. However, apathy is predominantly assessed within the scope of superordinate psychiatric disorders. As a syndrome-independent scale, the Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES) claims to assess levels of apathy in different disorders. The aim of the present study is to provide German speaking researchers with an authorized German translation of the AES (AES (D)). The scale was evaluated in a sample of 217 subjects, consisting of patients suffering from dementia (n=120), remission-phase schizophrenia (n=20), Parkinson's disease (n=12), stroke (n=28), as well as elderly healthy controls (n=37). Preliminary results concerning the factorial structure, item characteristics, reliability, and construct validity demonstrate favourable statistical properties and suggest that the AESD is comparable to its original. The scale seems well-suited to detect apathy in different clinical groups. Differences between informant sources (clinician interview, self-, and informant ratings) seem to be related to the severity of symptoms or expert practice.

[Course studies of spontaneous speech and graphic achievements in 175 aphasics]. / Verlaufsuntersuchungen der Spontansprache und der graphischen Leistungen bei 175 Aphasikern.

In 175 aphasic patients with agraphia the course of the expressive oral and graphic performances was compared. Spontaneous speech and writing and the writing of dictated words and sentences were investigated and evaluated. In addition, several peculiarities of this syndrome were examined. The investigations showed that the relationship between the expressive oral and graphic performances changes in the course of improvement depending on the type of aphasia. In the first period of testing no difference was found in the performances of patients with total aphasia and motor-amnesic aphasia; in the group of mixed aphasics and sensory-amnesic aphasics, however, the oral performance predominated the writing. Investigations at later periods showed that in the cases of total aphasia the improvement of the oral performance was better whereas in the cases of motor-amnesic and sensory-amnesic aphasia the graphic performance was more improved.

[Comparison between the oral and the graphic performance in 175 aphasics (author's transl)]. / Vergleich der oralen mit der graphischen Performanz bei 175 Aphasikern.

In 175 aphasics (50 global, 50 mixed, 50 motor-amnestic and 25 sensory-amnestic) the spontaneous oral and graphic performances were compared. They were quantified by means of a six-graded scale. In the group of global aphasics the same number of patients showed either identical or different results in both performances. Among the global aphasics which obtained different results, the number of patients with a better oral performance was identical with that of those who had a better graphic performance. In the other types of aphasia the results in both performances were mostly different. Mixed and sensory-amnestic aphasics were mostly better in spontaneous speech than in spontaneous writing. The motor-amnestic aphasics did not show such predominance in one performance. Therefore, during the improvement of aphasias the performances in spontaneous speech and in spontaneous writing can improve independently but to the stage of improvement seems to be a related factor.

Monoclonal antibody-mediated, complement-independent binding of human tumor necrosis factor-alpha to primate erythrocytes via complement receptor 1.

Monoclonal antibody (MAb)-based heteropolymers (HP) were used to simulate immune adherence. The HP is constructed by cross-linking MAbs that recognize complement receptor 1 (CR1) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). 125I-labeled TNF-alpha was cocultured with either sheep, monkey, or human erythrocytes in the presence or absence of HP. Human erythrocytes demonstrated 63% +/- 0 (mean +/- SD) binding of 125I-labeled TNF-alpha, while binding of 125I-labeled TNF-alpha in the absence of HP was 4% +/- 1% (P < .001). Monkey erythrocytes showed similar results, while sheep erythrocytes (which lack CR1) demonstrated low binding. The effect of HP binding on biologic activity of TNF-alpha was examined in an assay of stimulated human neutrophils. The HP completely inhibited the ability of TNF-alpha to prime neutrophils, occurring regardless of the presence or absence of erythrocytes but solely dependent on the addition of HP. Thus, the HP facilitated specific, saturable, and significant binding of 125I-labeled TNF-alpha to primate erythrocytes in vitro.

Structural modifications to an N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist result in large differences in trapping block.

Differences in the degree of trapping of initial block by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists may affect their safety and, hence, suitability for clinical trials. In this comparative study, 23 compounds structurally related to the low-affinity, use-dependent NMDA receptor antagonist (S)-alpha-phenyl-2-pyridineethanamine dihydrochloride (AR-R15896AR) were examined to determine the degree of trapping block they exhibit. Compounds were tested at concentrations that produced a comparable initial 80% block of NMDA-mediated whole-cell current in rat cortical cultures. A wide range of values of trapping block was found, indicating that trapping is not an all-or-none event. Fifteen of the compounds trapped significantly more than the 54 +/- 3% of initial block trapped by AR-R15896AR. The off-rates of these compounds were slower than that of AR-R15896AR. Only 2 of the 23 compounds trapped significantly less than AR-R15896AR. AR-R15808, the piperidine analog of AR-R15896AR, appeared to trap only 8 +/- 3% of its initial block, although its fast off-rate confounded accurate quantification of trapping. AR-R26952, which, like AR-R15896AR, contains a pyridine in place of a phenyl group, trapped 40 +/- 5% of its initial block and exhibited kinetics comparable with AR-R15896AR. Structure-activity analysis suggested that the presence of two basic nitrogen atoms and decreased hydrophobicity led to decreased trapping. There was no correlation between trapping and lipophilicity as would be expected if closed-channel egress was due to escape through the lipid bilayer. However, there was a positive correlation between off-rate and degree of trapping. Models that can account for partial trapping are presented.