1,720,988 research outputs found
Haemodynamic effect of metaboreflex activation in men after running above and below the velocity of the anaerobic threshold
Natural Killer cells responsiveness to physical esercise: a brief review
Natural killer cells (NK) are a group of peripheral blood lymphocytes which display cytotoxic ac- tivity against a wide range of tumour cells. They are a consistent part of the inflammatory re- sponse that is activated when either internal or external injuries occur as they are able to syn- thesize perforins. An important role is played by NK cells in the host defence against tumours without expressing any antigen-binding recap- tor in their membrane which, however, distin- guish T and B lymphocytes. NK activity appears early in the immune response, thus providing immediate protection during the time required for the activation and proliferation of cytotoxic T lymphocytes and for their differentiation into functional cells. Even though much research regarding the effects of aerobic training exercise on NK cell numbers and function, there appears to be much controversy regarding its effect. NK cells are rapidly mobilized into circulation in response to acute exercise, most likely by in- creased shear stress and catecholamine-in- duced down-regulation of adhesion molecule expression. However, tissue injury and inflam- mation which often accompanies strenuous ex- ercise have been associated to post-exercise NK cell suppression. Scientific evidence indicates exercise-induced changes in NK cell redistribu- tion and function should be strongly influenced by stress hormones including catecholamines, cortisol and prolactin as well as by soluble me- diators such as cytokines and prostaglandins. The role of exercise therapy in cancer patients and survivors rehabilitation is becoming increasingly important as it is thought to modulate immunity and inflammation. However, more knowledge about the effects of exercise on im-mune function in these patients is needed
A portable device to assess underwater changes of cardio dynamic variables by impedance cardiography
Data concerning heart rate (HR), stroke volume (SV), and cardiac output (CO) during dynamic apnoea (DA) were collected from 10 healthy male, elite divers by means of an impedance cardiograph adapted to the underwater environment (C. O. Re., from 2C Technologies Inc, Italy). Three trials were performed by the divers in a 3-m-deep pool with a water temperature of 25°C: 3-minute head-out immersion during normal breathing (A), till exhaustion immersed at the surface (B) and at 3m depth (C). Both B and C conditions did not led to changes in HR, SV and CO compared to A. Data indicate that typical diving response consisting in a reduction of HR, SV and CO was not present during DA, probably due to sympathetic activation induced by exercise during DA, which partially obscured the effects of the diving response. Moreover, this study highlights the innovative role of our portable, impedance cardiography device, i.e. the C. O. Re., in easily assessing cardiodynamic changes in subjects engaged in exercise schedules including phases of underwater, dynamic apnoea
Hemodynamic responses to metaboreflex activation: Insights from spinal cord-injured humans
This investigation was conducted to study the hemodynamic consequences of spinal cord injury (SCI) during post-exercise muscle metaboreflex activation in SCI subjects. The hemodynamic response to metaboreflex recruitment was assessed in ten SCI patients and nine healthy controls (CTL) by means of impedance cardiography. The main results were (1) the metaboreflex-induced blood pressure rise was blunted in SCI subjects compared with normals, (2) the CTL group achieved the blood pressure response via cardiac output increase, while the SCI subjects could not use this mechanism, (3) the CTL group was able to enhance stroke volume and ventricular filling rate in response to the metaboreflex, whereas the SCI group could not. It was concluded that in healthy individuals, the hemodynamic response to the metaboreflex is an integrated phenomenon that depends mainly on a flow-mediated mechanism, whereas in SCI individuals the reduced venous return impairs this mechanism
Hemodynamic response to muscle reflex is abnormal in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction
The aim of the present investigation was to assess the role of cardiac diastole on the hemodynamic response to metaboreflex activation. We wanted to determine whether patients with diastolic function impairment showed a different hemodynamic response compared with normal subjects during this reflex. Hemodynamics during activation of the metaboreflex obtained by postexercise muscle ischemia (PEMI) was assessed in 10 patients with diagnosed heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and in 12 age-matched healthy controls (CTL). Subjects also performed a control exercise-recovery test to compare data from the PEMI test. The main results were that patients with HFpEF achieved a similar mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) response as the CTL group during the PEMI test. However, the mechanism by which this response was achieved was markedly different between the two groups. Patients with HFpEF achieved the target MAP via an increase in systemic vascular resistance (+389.5 ± 402.9 vs. +80 ± 201.9 dynes·s-1·cm-5 for HFpEF and CTL groups respectively), whereas MAP response in the CTL group was the result of an increase in cardiac preload (-1.3 ± 5.2 vs. 6.1 ± 10 ml in end-diastolic volume for HFpEF and CTL groups, respectively), which led to a rise in stroke volume and cardiac output. Moreover, early filling peak velocities showed a higher response in the CTL group than in the HFpEF group. This study demonstrates that diastolic function is important for normal hemodynamic adjustment to the metaboreflex. Moreover, it provides evidence that HFpEF causes hemodynamic impairment similar to that observed in systolic heart failure.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This study provides evidence that diastolic function is important for normal hemodynamic responses during the activation of the muscle metaboreflex in humans. Moreover, it demonstrates that diastolic impairment leads to hemodynamic consequences similar to those provoked by systolic heart failure. In both cases the target blood pressure is obtained mainly by means of exaggerated vasoconstriction than by a flow-mediated mechanis
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
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