Search results for "Test"

2020

In midlife, women experience hormonal changes due to menopausal transition. A decrease especially in estradiol has been hypothesized to cause loss of muscle mass. This study investigated the effect of menopausal transition on changes in lean and muscle mass, from the total body to the muscle fiber level, among 47–55-year-old women. Data were used from the Estrogenic Regulation of Muscle Apoptosis (ERMA) study, where 234 women were followed from perimenopause to early postmenopause. Hormone levels (estradiol and follicle stimulating hormone), total and regional body composition (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and computed tomography (CT) scans), physical activity level (self-reported…

2019

During speech perception listeners rely on multimodal input and make use of both auditory and visual information. When presented with speech, for example syllables, the differences in brain responses to distinct stimuli are not, however, caused merely by the acoustic or visual features of the stimuli. The congruency of the auditory and visual information and the familiarity of a syllable, that is, whether it appears in the listener’s native language or not, also modulates brain responses. We investigated how the congruency and familiarity of the presented stimuli affect brain responses to audio-visual (AV) speech in 12 adult Finnish native speakers and 12 adult Chinese native speakers. They…

SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence trends in healthy blood donors during the COVID-19 Milan outbreak

2020

Objectives: The Milan metropolitan area in Northern Italy was among the most severely hit by the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. The epidemiological trends of mild COVID-19 are however still unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in healthy asymptomatic adults, the risk factors, and laboratory correlates. Design: We conducted a cross-sectional study during the outbreak. Presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgM/IgG antibodies against the Nucleocapsid protein was assessed by a lateral flow immunoassay. Setting: Blood center at a leading academic hospital serving as COVID-19 referral center. Participants: We considered a random sample of blood donors since the sta…

2020

Background: An adequate level of muscular fitness is related to occupational performance in military personnel, including pilots flying high performance aircraft. The aim of this study was to describe the baseline level and the change in muscular fitness between the first and the second years of the Air Force Academy among fighter pilot cadets. Methods: The muscular strength and endurance test results of 182 male fighter pilot cadets were analyzed during their first year in the Air Force Academy and one year after. Maximal isometric strength tests included trunk flexion, trunk extension and bilateral leg extension tests, whereas muscle endurance was measured with modified a sit-up test and …

Intestinal CD36. A lipid-sensor involved in the processing of chylomicrons in rodents

2011

International audience; CD36 is a multifunctional glycoprotein which binds nanomolar concentrations of long-chain fatty acids (LCFA) and is highly expressed on the luminal surface of enterocytes. Despite of its implication in oleoylethanolamide (OEA) and chylomicron synthesis, CD36 function in small intestine remains incompletely understood. Our in vivo data demonstrated that CD36 gene deletion in mice did not affect intestinal LCFA uptake. CD36 protein disappeared early from the luminal side of intestinal villi during the post-prandial period but only when the diet contained lipids. This drop was significant 1 h after a lipid supply and was associated with ubiquitination of CD36. Using CHO…

A comparison between nine laboratories performing triangle tests

2012

WOS: 000299451400001; International audience; Fifteen groups of participants in nine laboratories performed triangle tests with two pairs of soft drinks. Groups differed in practice level with triangle tests: eight groups of 60 consumers who were not used to triangle test, three groups of qualified assessors who have already performed a few triangle tests, and four groups of trained assessors with a more extensive practice of triangle tests; qualified and trained groups included 9 or 18 assessors. The soft drinks were made from syrups at two levels of dilution in order to achieve about 55% of correct responses to test for difference and about 40% of correct responses to test for similarity.…

Double validation of translated questionnaires in international studies

2018

Background Study questionnaires developed in one country can be translated and used for similar studies in other countries. The main problem of this process is that people speaking different languages can understand the meaning of some questions differently due to disparate mentalities and backgrounds. To avoid a misunderstanding, to perform correct conclusions in accordance to the mentality of each country, and to permit the comparison of results in different countries, the intellectual validation of questionnaires is widely used. The main problem of such a validation is its qualitative nature that can be biased by the subjective approach of the investigator. Therefore, there is a necessit…

In the shadow of threatening norms: How students with visual impairment contest and reproduce institutional positions

2020

This article focuses on semi-narrative guided interviews with students with visual impairment (VI) who attend a state-approved special school for students with VI at the time of the interview, although they had different previous experiences in both segregated and inclusive schools. We are conducting a qualitative analysis from the perspective of teenagers concerning how they negotiate institutional ascriptions of (dis)abilities. We have selected interview sequences of two young people: (a) Kai: self-confidence and internalized self-doubt and (b) Felix: between fighting and claiming ableist divides. Our analyses reveal the different ways of how Kai and Felix each contest the ableist divide…

Enhancement of Anticipatory Postural Adjustments by Virtual Reality in Older Adults with Cognitive and Motor Deficits: A Randomised Trial.

2021

Background: Postural activities involved in balance control integrate the anticipatory postural adjustments (APA) that stabilize balance and posture, facilitating arm movements and walking initiation and allowing an optimal coordination between posture and movement. Several studies reported the significant benefits of virtual reality (VR) exercises in frail older adults to decrease the anxiety of falling and to induce improvements in behavioural and cognitive abilities in rehabilitation processes. The aim of this study was thus to test the efficiency of a VR system on the enhancement of the APA period, compared to the use of a Nintendo Wii system. Methods: Frail older adults (n = 37) were i…

Does mindfulness affect participants’ response to a vocational rehabilitation program?

2016

Objective: The study aims were to investigate whether mindfulness predicts improved work ability after a multifactorial vocational rehabilitation program in Norway and to examine the mediating influence of mindfulness in the relationship between personal health factors and changes in work ability in response to the program. Methods: Seventy-four participants on long-term sick leave completed questionnaires assessing mindfulness, work ability, functional health, psychological functioning, and demographics before and after a 4–6-week multidisciplinary vocational rehabilitation program. In addition to a standard logistic regression analysis, a bias-corrected bootstrapping technique was used to…