Middle finger and ball movements around ball release during baseball fastball pitching.

The objectives of this study were to investigate middle finger movements and dynamics of ball movements around the instant of ball release during baseball pitching. Baseball pitching from an indoor mound among 14 semi-professional pitchers was captured using a motion capture system with 16 high-speed cameras (1,000 Hz). Kinematics of middle finger joints, ball rotation, and force applied to the ball were calculated. The proximal and distal interphalangeal joints continued to extend until the instant of ball release, then abruptly flexed. The abrupt flexion lasted for only several milliseconds, followed by a short extension phase. The finger made a quick double cycle of extension-flexion movement, suggesting that it attained high stiffness resulting from co-contraction. The ball began to roll up to the tip of the finger 8 ± 1 ms before ball release owing to the start of extension or the increased angular velocity of extension for the proximal interphalangeal joint. A mean force of 195 ± 27 N was applied in the proximal direction of the hand at the same time as the beginning of ball rolling, and a mean force of 109 ± 22 N was applied to the throwing direction just before ball release.

Development of the Rope-Climbing Ergometer for Physical Training and Testing.

The purpose of this study was to develop and characterize a rope-climbing ergometer. A custom-made loading device that has an eddy current brake with an electrical current control circuit was developed to impose resistive load on the rope. A calibration test was first performed using a three-phase induction motor to associate the scale of the load-level setting (100 levels) with the resultant traction force. The calibration test yielded criteria values of loads (123 N at Level 0 and 1064 N at Level 100). The human test was carried out by 14 male subjects. The participants performed eight sets of 10-second maximal-effort exercises at different levels. Presumable trajectories of force, velocity, and power were obtained. The mean force increased by 161% (from 147.5 N at Level 0 to 383.7 N at Level 18), whereas the mean velocity decreased by 64.7% (from 1.87 m/s at Level 0 to 0.66 m/s at Level 18). The mean power reached its peak at Level 9 (320 W). The new rope ergometer for physical training and testing was successfully developed and characterized in this study. However, it remains to be seen whether its concurrent validity and reliability are qualifiable.

Muscles used for chest compression under static and transportation conditions.

BACKGROUND: Unstable conditions during ambulance transportation are not conducive to the performance of high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation by emergency medical technicians. OBJECTIVE: The present study was conducted to clarify differences in the quality of chest compression and associated muscle activity between static and ambulance transportation conditions. METHODS: Nine paramedic students performed chest compression for 5 minutes on the floor and during ambulance transportation. Compression rate and depth and success and error rates of chest compression were determined using the Resusci Anne manikin with a PC SkillReporting System (Laerdal Medical). Integrated electromyography (i-EMG) values of eight different muscles were also recorded bilaterally during the first and last 30 seconds of compression. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in compression rate per minute (p = 0.232) and depth of chest compression (p = 0.174) between the two conditions. The success rate was significantly lower under the ambulance transportation condition than under the static condition (p = 0.0161). Compared with those under the static condition, the total i-EMG values were significantly lower for the multifidus (p = 0.0072) and biceps femoris (p < 0.0001) muscles and significantly higher for the deltoid (p = 0.0032), pectoralis major (p = 0.0037), triceps brachii (p = 0.0014), vastus lateralis (p < 0.0001), and gastrocnemius (p = 0.0004) muscles under the ambulance transportation condition. CONCLUSIONS: Chest compression is performed mainly through flexion and extension of the hip joint while kneeling on the floor and through the elbow and shoulder joints while standing in a moving ambulance. Therefore, the low quality of chest compression during ambulance transportation may be attributable to an altered technique of performing the procedure.

Thioglucose-stabilized gold nanoparticles as a novel platform for colorimetric bioassay based on nanoparticle aggregation.

Gold nanoparticles stabilized with thioglucose (TGlu-AuNPs), which have carboxyl groups on the particle surface as anchoring sites for covalent immobilization of biomolecules, were prepared by the chemical reduction of HAuCl4 using 1-thio-ß-D-glucose as a reducing and stabilizing agent, and their application to colorimetric bioassay was demonstrated using the carbohydrate-lectin system. p-Aminophenyl α-D-mannose (Man-NH2) was covalently attached by a conventional method to the activated carboxyl groups on the TGlu-AuNPs. On addition of Con A to the Man-AuNPs, multiple binding events occurred between Con A and the mannoses immobilized on the particle surface. This Con A-induced aggregation resulted in a significant red shift in local surface plasmon resonance. The binding isotherm showed a sigmoidal curve, indicating cooperativity in the binding of Con A and the Man-AuNPs. In addition, Hill plots showed two nonequivalent binding modes, with the Kd values for high- and low-affinity binding of 11.3 and 66.5 pM, respectively, which was significantly lower than that for methyl-α-D-mannose binding to Con A. The enhanced binding affinity between Man-AuNPs and Con A involves the cluster effect of the carbohydrate groups on the AuNPs. A linear correlation curve was obtained in the range 10-100 nM (R2=0.983). The limit of detection (LOD) for Con A was 9.0 nM in aqueous buffer, which is comparable to that of other conventional methods such as ELISA.