Relationship between foot strike pattern, running speed, and footwear condition in recreational distance runners.

Compared to competitive runners, recreational runners appear to be more prone to injuries, which have been associated with foot strike patterns. Surprisingly, only few studies had examined the foot strike patterns outside laboratories. Therefore, this study compared the foot strike patterns in recreational runners at outdoor tracks with previously reported data. We also investigated the relationship between foot strike pattern, speed, and footwear in this cohort. Among 434 recreational runners analysed, 89.6% of them landed with rearfoot strike (RFS). Only 6.9 and 3.5% landed with midfoot and forefoot, respectively. A significant shift towards non-RFS was observed in our cohort, when compared with previously reported data. When speed increased by 1 m/s, the odds of having forefoot strike and midfoot strike relative to RFS increased by 2.3 times and 2.6 times, respectively. Runners were 9.2 times more likely to run with a forefoot strike in minimalists compared to regular running shoes, although 70% of runners in minimalists continued to use a RFS. These findings suggest that foot strike pattern may differ across running conditions and runners should consider these factors in order to mitigate potential injury.

The thromboxane A2 and K(ATP) channel antagonist actions of a series of sulphonylurea derivatives in the pig coronary artery.

The ability of a series of sulphonylurea derivatives to antagonise the vasorelaxant actions of the ATP-dependent K+ channel (K(ATP)) opener, levcromakalim, and the vasoconstrictor responses of the thromboxane A2 mimetic, U46619, were assessed in the pig coronary artery. The sulphonylurea derivatives of glibenclamide caused a rightward shift in the concentration-vasorelaxant response curve obtained to levcromakalim in arterial segments pre-constricted with acetylcholine (0.5 microM). From these shifts pK(B) were calculated to estimate the potency of these compounds as levcromakalim antagonists. Similarly U46619 concentration-vasoconstrictor responses curves were constructed in the absence and in the presence of a sulphonylurea derivative and pK(B) values calculated. Regression analysis of pK(B) values showed that there was a significant correlation between the potency of these compounds in the two systems studied indicating similar structure-activity relationships apply in both cases. That sulphonylureas regulate K(ATP) channel opening is well known and they do so through a specific receptor associated with the channel. The results obtained in this study may indicate that a sulphonylurea receptor may also be associated with thromboxane A2 excitation-contraction coupling.

Embryonic disruption of the candidate dyslexia susceptibility gene homolog Kiaa0319-like results in neuronal migration disorders.

Developmental dyslexia, the most common childhood learning disorder, is highly heritable, and recent studies have identified KIAA0319-Like (KIAA0319L) as a candidate dyslexia susceptibility gene at the 1p36-34 (DYX8) locus. In this experiment, we investigated the anatomical effects of knocking down this gene during rat corticogenesis. Cortical progenitor cells were transfected using in utero electroporation on embryonic day (E) 15.5 with plasmids encoding either: (1) Kiaa0319l small hairpin RNA (shRNA), (2) an expression construct for human KIAA0319L, (3) Kiaa0319l shRNA+KIAA0319L expression construct (rescue), or (4) controls (scrambled Kiaa0319l shRNA or empty expression vector). Mothers were injected with 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU) at either E13.5, E15.5, or E17.5. Disruption of Kiaa0319l function (by knockdown, overexpression, or rescue) resulted in the formation of large nodular periventricular heterotopia in approximately 25% of the rats, which can be seen as early as postnatal day 1. Only a small subset of heterotopic neurons had been transfected, indicating non-cell autonomous effects of the transfection. Most heterotopic neurons were generated in mid- to late-gestation, and laminar markers suggest that they were destined for upper cortical laminae. Finally, we found that transfected neurons in the cerebral cortex were located in their expected laminae. These results indicate that KIAA0319L is the fourth of four candidate dyslexia susceptibility genes that is involved in neuronal migration, which supports the association of abnormal neuronal migration with developmental dyslexia.