Could the bone mineral density (T-score) be correlated with the Raman spectral features of keratin from women's nails and be used to predict osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis is a disease with great importance in current public health due to the associated risk of fracture; therefore, a rapid and accurate diagnosis becomes increasingly important. Recent literature has described a possible relationship between the changes in the organic phase of bone and the changes in nail keratin measured through Raman spectroscopy, aiming at the development of a standard for measuring bone quality and fracture risk both rapid and accurately. This work evaluated the correlation between the bone mineral density (BMD) scores of women with and without osteoporotic disease with the changes in the Raman spectra of the nail keratin, by assessing the intensity of the peak at 510 cm(-1) (S-S bridge) and the scores of principal component analysis (PCA), correlated with the values of BMD measured at the lumbar and hip. Raman spectra of ex vivo fingernails of 213 women were obtained by means of a dispersive Raman spectrometer (830 nm, 300 mW, in the spectral range between 400 and 1,800 cm(-1)). Peak intensities at ∼510 cm(-1) (assigned to the keratin S-S bridge) were measured, and the scores of first principal component loading vectors were calculated. Results showed no differences in the mean Raman spectra of nails of groups with and without osteoporosis. No correlation was found between the BMD scores and both the intensities of the 510 cm(-1) peak and the scores of the first four principal component vectors. Results suggest that BMD and fracture risk could not be assessed by the nail keratin features.

Cardiovascular effects of Zumba(®) performed in a virtual environment using XBOX Kinect.

[Purpose] This study evaluated the acute cardiovascular responses during a session of Zumba(®) Fitness in a virtual reality environment. [Subjects] Eighteen healthy volunteers were recruited. [Methods] The following cardiovascular variables: heart rate, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and double product were assessed before and after the practice of virtual Zumba(®), which was performed as a continuous sequence of five choreographed movements lasting for 22 min. The game Zumba Fitness Core(®), with the Kinect-based virtual reality system for the XBOX 360, was used to create the virtual environment. Comparisons were made among mean delta values (delta=post-Zumba(®) minus pre-Zumba(®) values) for systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and double product using Student's t-test for paired samples. [Results] After a single session, a significant increase was noted in all the analyzed parameters (Systolic blood pressure=18%; Diastolic blood pressure=13%; Heart rate=67%; and Double product=97%). [Conclusion] The results support the feasibility of the use of Zumba Fitness Core(®) with the Kinect-based virtual reality system for the XBOX 360 in physical activity programs and further favor its indication for this purpose.

Low-level light-emitting diode therapy increases mRNA expressions of IL-10 and type I and III collagens on Achilles tendinitis in rats.

The present study investigated the effects of low-level light-emitting diode (LED) therapy (880 ± 10 nm) on interleukin (IL)-10 and type I and III collagen in an experimental model of Achilles tendinitis. Thirty male Wistar rats were separated into six groups (n = 5), three groups in the experimental period of 7 days, control group, tendinitis-induced group, and LED therapy group, and three groups in the experimental period of 14 days, tendinitis group, LED therapy group, and LED group with the therapy starting at the 7th day after tendinitis induction (LEDT delay). Tendinitis was induced in the right Achilles tendon using an intratendinous injection of 100 µL of collagenase. The LED parameters were: optical power of 22 mW, spot area size of 0.5 cm(2), and irradiation time of 170 s, corresponding to 7.5 J/cm(2) of energy density. The therapy was initiated 12 h after the tendinitis induction, with a 48-h interval between irradiations. The IL-10 and type I and III collagen mRNA expression were evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction at the 7th and 14th days after tendinitis induction. The results showed that LED irradiation increased IL-10 (p < 0.001) in treated group on 7-day experimental period and increased type I and III collagen mRNA expression in both treated groups of 7- and 14-day experimental periods (p < 0.05), except by type I collagen mRNA expression in LEDT delay group. LED (880 nm) was effective in increasing mRNA expression of IL-10 and type I and III collagen. Therefore, LED therapy may have potentially therapeutic effects on Achilles tendon injuries.

Raman spectroscopy detection of molecular changes associated with two experimental models of osteoarthritis in rats.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the feasibility of applying Raman spectroscopy in probing the molecular changes in terms of collagen deposition and tissue remodeling associated with two well-established experimental models of osteoarthritis (OA) in knee of rats. In order to evaluate alterations in the articular surface area, the menisci-covered tibial region was assessed into three groups as follows: control (joint preserved) and two models of experimental knee OA: collagenase-induced model (n = 8) and treadmill exercise-induced model (n = 8). Each group was examined for molecular changes using spectral parameters related to cartilage, subchondral bone, and bone tissues. A significant increase of Raman ratios related to mineralization and tissue remodeling was found (p < 0.05), suggesting that both models were successful for inducing OA in rats. The significantly lower phenylalanine content and higher crystallinity in the treadmill exercise-induced model of OA than collagenase-induced model of OA (p < 0.05) indicated that the OA pathogenesis was model-dependent. Thus, this work suggests that the Raman spectroscopy technique has potential for the diagnosis and detection of cartilage damage and monitoring of subchondral bone and bone in OA pathogenesis at the molecular level.

Effects of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) on bone repair in rats: optical densitometry analysis.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the process of bone repair in rats submitted to low-level laser therapy using optical densitometry. A total of 45 rats which underwent femoral osteotomy were randomly distributed into three groups: control (group I) and laser-treated groups using wavelengths in the red (λ, 660-690 nm) and in the infrared (λ, 790-830 nm) spectra (group II and group III, respectively). The animals (five per group) were killed after 7, 14, and 21 days and the femurs were removed for optical densitometry analysis. Optical density showed a significant increase in the degree of mineralization (gray level) in both groups treated with the laser after 7 days. After 14 days, only the group treated with laser therapy in the infrared spectrum showed higher bone density. No differences were observed between groups after 21 days. Such results suggest the positive effect of low-level laser therapy in bone repair is time- and wavelength-dependent. In addition, our results have confirmed that optical densitometry technique can measure bone mineralization status.

Low-level laser therapy combined with platelet-rich plasma on the healing calcaneal tendon: a histological study in a rat model.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) treatment alone (λ = 660 nm and λ = 830 nm) or associated with platelet-rich plasma (PRP). We used 54 male rats divided into six groups, with nine animals each: group 1, partial tenotomy; group 2 (GII), PRP; group 3 (GIII): λ660 nm; group 4 (GIV), λ830 nm; group 5 (GV), PRP + λ660 nm; and group 6 (GVI), PRP + λ830 nm. The protocol used was power density 0.35 W/cm(2), energy 0.2 J, energy density 7.0 J/cm(2), time 20 s per irradiated point, and number of points 3. Animals in groups GII, GV, and GVI received treatment with PRP, consisting of a single dose of 0.2 mL directly into the surgical site, on top of the tenotomy. Animals were killed on the 13th day post-tenotomy and their tendons were surgically removed for a quantitative analysis using polarization microscopy. The percentages of collagen fibers of types I and III were expressed as mean ± SD. Higher values of collagen fibers type I were obtained for groups GV and GVI when compared with all other groups (p < 0.05), whereas groups GIII and GIV showed no significant difference between them (p > 0.05). For collagen type III, a significant difference was observed between GII and all other groups (p < 0.5), but no significant difference was found between GIII and GIV and between GV and GVI. Results showed that the deposition of collagen type I was higher when treatment with PRP and LLLT was combined, suggesting a faster regeneration of the tendon.

Influence of creatine supplementation on bone quality in the ovariectomized rat model: an FT-Raman spectroscopy study.

The influence of creatine (Cr) supplementation on cortical and trabecular bone from ovariectomized rats was studied using FT-Raman spectroscopy. The intensity of organic-phase Raman bands was compared to mineral phase ones. Twenty-one female Wistar rats aged 3 months were divided into three groups (n = 7 per group): ovariectomized (OVX), ovariectomized treated with creatine (CRE) and sham-operated (SHAM) groups. Creatine supplementation (300 mg kg(-1) day(-1)) was provided for 8 weeks, starting 12 weeks after ovariectomy. FT-Raman spectroscopy was performed on the right medial femoral mid-shaft (cortical bone) and third lumbar vertebral body (trabecular bone). The integrated intensities of mineral phase (phosphate and carbonate bands at 959 and 1,071 cm(-1), respectively) and organic phase (amide I band at 1,665 cm(-1)) Raman bands were analyzed. The mineral-to-matrix (phosphate/amide I), carbonate-to-phosphate, and carbonate-to-amide I ratios were analyzed to assess bone quality. The phosphate content on trabecular bone was higher in the CRE group than the OVX group (p < 0.05). No significant changes in mineral or organic phases on cortical bone were observed. A radiographic assessment of bone density was encouraging as the same findings were showed by Raman intensity of phosphate from cortical (r(2) = 0.8037) and trabecular bones (r(2) = 0.915). Severe ovariectomy-induced bone loss was confirmed by FT-Raman spectroscopy. The results suggest that the chemical composition of trabecular bone tissue may be positively influenced by Cr supplementation after ovariectomy.

Proposal of a New Specific Test to Assess the Aerobic Performance in Judo.

Purpose: Judo is an intermittent sport, dependent on anaerobic metabolism as well as aerobic metabolism to generate energy during a match; however, there are few reliable tests to measure specific aerobic performance in judo. Thus, the present study aimed to propose a new specific and indirect method to assess the aerobic performance in judo athletes; it determined the inter-rater and test-retest reliability of this new protocol and correlated the new protocol with a valid laboratory test. Method: The participants included 15 men, athletes of judo (age average: 21.59 ± 4.60 years, weight: 80.71 ± 15.93 kg and height: 173.2 ± 6.84 cm). The participants performed three tests: the first test was a graded exercise test (GXT) and the second and third tests were the Judo Aerobic Test (JAT). Results: The test presented high test-retest and inter-rater reliability, the intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) ranking of 0.68-0.96, the correlation values ranging from .77 to .96, and no statistical differences between means in test and retest (p > .05). The standard error of measurement and the coefficient of variation between raters presented lower than 10%, indicating reproducibility. Moderate and strong correlations were found between JAT and GXT variables. Conclusion: We concluded that the test presents excellent inter-rater and test-retest reliability and a moderate correlation with GXT.

Anti-inflammatory effects of low-level light emitting diode therapy on Achilles tendinitis in rats.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The present study investigated the effects of low-level light emitting diode (LED) therapy (880 +/- 10 nm) on inflammatory process in a experimental model of Achilles tendinitis induced by collagenase. STUDY DESIGN/MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-six male Wistar were separated into seven groups (n = 8), three groups in the experimental period of 7 days and four groups in the experimental period of 14 days, the control group (CONT), tendinitis group (TEND), LED therapy group (LEDT) for both experimental periods, and LED therapy group 7th to 14th day (LEDT delay) for 14 days experimental period. The LED parameters was 22 mW CW of optical output power, distributed in an irradiation area of 0.5 cm(2), with an irradiation time of 170 seconds, the applied energy density was 7.5 J/cm(2) in contact. The therapy was initiated 12 hours after the tendinitis induction, with a 48-hour interval between the irradiations. The histological analysis and inflammatory mediators were quantified. RESULTS: Our results showed that LED decreases the inflammatory cells influx and mRNA expression to IL-1 beta, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) in both phase, and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) just in initial phase (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that the anti-inflammatory therapy with low-power LED (880 nm) enhanced the tissue response in all groups. We can conclude that the LED was able to reduce signs of inflammation in collagenase-induced tendinitis in rats by reducing the number of inflammatory cells and decrease mRNA expression of cytokines.

Using the ICF framework to evaluate the effects of environmental factors on physical disability among people with diabetes mellitus.

Objective: This study aimed to analyze the influence of environmental factors on the ICF activity-participation outcome, controlling for body function and personal factor dimensions of 75 diabetes patients. Method: Outcome measures included questionnaires on musculoskeletal pain (Nordic Questionnaire), physical and environment domains of World Health Organization Quality of Life version BRIEF (WHOQOL-brief) and clinical and personal data. Multiple linear regression with hierarchical entry of variables was used. Results: An assessment of WHOQOL-brief revealed a score of 66.6 (SD = 17.3) to physical domain and 58.8 (DP = 12.1) to environment domain. The factors associated with physical domain were lower limb pain, number of comorbidities, and environment barriers. The highest environmental barriers were financial constraints, availability of health services, deficiency of self-management, and inadequate family and social support. The final model explained 44.0% (F[12.02], p < 0.001) of variability of the physical domain. Conclusions: We confirmed the functional consequences of diabetes mellitus to be complex and multifactorial. An approach that considers the interaction between individual and environmental attributes is necessary due to the disabling nature of this health condition.