Search results for "Balance"
showing 10 items of 1379 documents
Rate of deleterious mutation and the distribution of its effects on fitness in vesicular stomatitis virus
1999
Despite their importance, the parameters describing the spontaneous deleterious mutation process have not been well described in many organisms. If mutations are important for the evolution of every living organism, their importance becomes critical in the case of RNA-based viruses, in which the frequency of mutation is orders of magnitude larger than in DNA-based organisms. The present work reports minimum estimates of the deleterious mutation rate, as well as the characterization of the distribution of deleterious mutational effects on the total fitness of the vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV). The estimates are based on mutation-accumulation experiments in which selection against deleteri…
Epistasis and the Adaptability of an RNA Virus
2005
Abstract We have explored the patterns of fitness recovery in the vesicular stomatitis RNA virus. We show that, in our experimental setting, reversions to the wild-type genotype were rare and fitness recovery was at least partially driven by compensatory mutations. We compared compensatory adaptation for genotypes carrying (1) mutations with varying deleterious fitness effects, (2) one or two deleterious mutations, and (3) pairs of mutations showing differences in the strength and sign of epistasis. In all cases, we found that the rate of fitness recovery and the proportion of reversions were positively affected by population size. Additionally, we observed that mutations with large fitness…
Social Insurance Accounting for a Notional Defined Contribution Scheme Combining Retirement and Long-Term Care Benefits
2018
This paper develops a social insurance accounting model for a notional defined contribution (NDC) scheme combining retirement and long-term care (LTC) contingencies. The procedure relies on standard double-entry bookkeeping and enables us to compile a “Swedish” type actuarial balance sheet (ABS) following a framework equivalent to an open group approach. This methodology is suitable for reporting the system’s solvency status and can show periodical changes in the system’s financial position by means of an income statement. The information underpinning the actuarial valuation is based on events and transactions that are verifiable at the valuation date, without consid…
Modelling the appearance of chromatic environment using hyperspectral imaging
2013
Color of objects is a spectral composition of incident light source, reflection properties of the object itself, and spectral tuning of the eye. Light sources with different spectral characteristics can produce metameric representation of color; however most variable in this regard is vision. Pigments of color vision are continuously bleached by different stimuli and optical density of the pigment is changed, while continuous conditions provide an adaptation and perception of white. Special cases are color vision deficiencies which cover almost 8 % of male population in Europe. Hyperspectral imaging allows obtaining the spectra of the environment and modelling the performance of the dichrom…
Understanding the Effects of Fires on Surface Evapotranspiration Patterns Using Satellite Remote Sensing in Combination with an Energy Balance Model
2011
Forest fires are highly destructive for nature, affecting the landscape, the natural cicle of the vegetation, and the structure and functioning of ecosystems. Beyond that, they also provoke changes in the local and regional meteorology, and particularly in the surface energy flux patterns. In a fire-affected area, changes in the ecosystem structure and species composition modify the evapotranspiration (LE) and the rest of the terms involved in the energy balance equation. Besides, these changes in the local energy balance may persist for decades (Randerson et al., 2006). There is an increasing concern among the scientific community about the effect of forest fires on climate change at this …
Physical balance of 12-13 year old adolescents in Latvia: problems and solutions
2016
The paper is prepared within the framework of the National science programme “Innovative solutions for social telerahabilitation in the schools of Latvia in the context of inclusive education (INOSOCTEREHI)”. The paper focuses on the adolescents’ balance disorders. Equipment for balance testing BIOSWAY was used in the case study. It showed that almost every fourth adolescent of the age 12-13 years has the total postural stability index below the norm. Only 9.4% of adolescents have normal overall balance control results. It is necessary to find ways how to reduce the identified problem within the context of inclusive education.
Factors associated with fear of falling among frail older adults
2021
Some factors increase the fear of falling in frail older adults. Our aim is to quantify the influence of these factors. This cross-sectional study involved 229 community-dwelling prefrail and frail older adults aged 70 years and older. Fear of falling was moderate in 38.9% of our sample and high in 12.2%. Higher values were observed in women, those living alone, and those meeting criteria for slowness and feelings of exhaustion. A linear regression showed that being a woman, a history of falls, and depressive symptoms were related to higher fear of falling, while high levels of independence in basic and instrumental activities of daily living, along with good gait and balance, were associat…
Effect of diet composition on acid–base balance in adolescents, young adults and elderly at rest and during exercise
2014
Diets rich in animal protein and cereal grains and deficient in vegetables and fruits may cause low-grade metabolic acidosis, which may impact exercise and health. We hypothesized that (1) a normal-protein diet with high amount of vegetables and fruits (HV) induces more alkaline acid-base balance compared with a high-protein diet with no vegetables and fruits (HP) and (2) diet composition has a greater impact on acid-base balance in the elderly (ELD).In all, 12-15 (adolescents (ADO)), 25-35 (young adults (YAD)) and 60-75 (ELD)-year-old male and female subjects (n=88) followed a 7-day HV and a 7-day HP in a randomized order and at the end performed incremental cycle ergometer tests. We inves…
Fall incidence in frail older women after individualized visual feedback-based balance training.
2003
<i>Background:</i> The knowledge concerning balance training actually lowering fall rates among frail older persons is limited. <i>Objective:</i> The aim of this study was to examine the effects of a 4-week individualized visual feedback-based balance training on the fall incidence during 1-year follow-up among frail older women living in residential care. <i>Methods:</i> Twenty-seven older women from 2 residential care homes were randomized into exercise (n = 20) and control (n = 7) groups. Balance measurements were carried out before and after a 4-week training period and falls were monitored by monthly diaries for 1 year. An interview about fear of fal…
Benefits of a dance group intervention on institutionalized elder people: A Bayesian network approach
2018
[EN] The present study aims to explore the effects of an adapted classical dance intervention on the psychological and functional status of institutionalized elder people using a Bayesian network. All participants were assessed at baseline and after the 9 weeks period of the intervention. Measures included balance and gait, psychological well-being, depression, and emotional distress. According to the Bayesian network obtained, the dance intervention increased the likelihood of presenting better psychological well-being, balance, and gait. Besides, it also decreased the probabilities of presenting emotional distress and depression. These findings demonstrate that dancing has functional and …