A clinical nomogram for predicting recurrence after percutaneous radiofrequency ablation in the management of primary hemifacial spasm.

Animal displays are often limited by the properties of the muscles that generate them. Here, using in situ muscle stimulation, we investigated the twitch properties of the longus colli ventralis (LCv), a primary muscle used to protract the head and neck during territorial drumming displays in woodpeckers. Specifically, we tested LCv twitch kinetics and endurance in a manner that simulates drum speed (beatss-1) and length (total beats), two signal features that can evolve independently of each other. We identified a maximum muscle contraction rate that may represent a physiological constraint relevant to drumming speed, but no relevant constraint on the repetition of contractions that might affect drum length. This suggests that twitch properties may differentially affect display components. Broadly, our findings highlight how certain display features may freely diversify independent of others owing to physiological limits, while pointing to the way complex signals can evolve under partial performance constraints.

Although the hamstring muscles play an important role in running, very little is known about the individual contributions of each hamstring muscle (biceps femorislong head, biceps femorisshort head, semitendinosus, and semimembranosus) toward running economy. As such, our study examined all the muscles in the hamstring to provide insight into which muscles contribute the most to running economy. Such information can provide insight in designing precise exercise training programs for enhancing running performance. Secondary analysis from our cross-sectional study conducted on 23 male recreational runners examined the relationships between stretch shortening cycle potentiation (via leg press throw), running net VO2 (inverse of running economy) (at 11.3 km/h), and maximum cross-sectional area of biceps femorislong head, biceps femorisshort head, semitendinosus, and semimembranosus was assessed via magnetic resonance imaging. We obtained significant correlations between the maximum cross-sectional area of the biceps femorislong head and log10running net VO2 (r = −0.52; p < 0.05). Our multiple regression model showed that the maximum cross-sectional area of biceps femorislong head but not stretch shortening cycle potentiation predicted log10running net VO2 (r = −0.52; p < 0.01). We found no other relationship between any other hamstring muscles and log10running net VO2. Our findings provide preliminary evidence of the importance of the biceps femorislong head toward running economy. This may be due to the preferential activation of efficient slow twitch muscle fibers of the biceps femorislong head. Additionally, we noted that the biceps femorisshort head, semitendinosus, and semimembranosus muscles were not related to running economy in recreational male runners.

Electrocutaneous stimulation can be used to warn workers in hazardous situations. To determine parameters for the operating ranges of such warning systems we investigated the influences of vibrations, temperature, and humidity on the perception, attention, muscle twitch, and intolerance thresholds of healthy volunteers in a multi-center study. In a study on 94 participants, vibrations with amplitudes of 2 mm, 5 mm, and 8 mm and at frequencies of 8 Hz and 9.5 Hz were applied to the right arm. In a second study, 52 participants experienced temperature and humidity variations within a climate chamber in four conditions: dry cold (13.8 ± 1.6 ^{circ }C, 33.9 ± 9.2% relative humidity (RH)), dry warm (41.3 ± 1.7 ^{circ }C, 24.6 ± 5.8% RH), wet cold (12.0 ± 1.6 ^{circ }C, 88.5 ± 8.2% RH), and wet warm (41.3 ± 2.1 ^{circ }C, 65.5 ± 9.0% RH). In both studies, the upper right arm was electrically stimulated with electrodes of size 25 mmtimes40 mm, and thresholds were determined. Perception, attention, and intolerance thresholds increased with vibration amplitude and frequency from median values of 5 mA, 9.9 mA and 19.3 mA for perception, attention and intolerance thresholds during rest to 14.6 mA, 20 mA and 21 mA during vibration amplitude of 8 mm and frequency of 9.5 Hz. Perception thresholds slightly increased with decreasing temperature with median values of 4.1 mA during dry cold vs. 3.8 mA during dry warm condition and 4.0 mA during wet cold vs. 3.8 mA during wet warm condition for an electrode pair at a lateral position. Muscle twitch thresholds slightly increased with increasing temperature at the lateral electrode pair with median values of 17.4 mA during dry cold vs. 18.8 mA during dry warm condition and 17.5 mA during wet cold vs. 18.7 mA during wet warm condition. For both studies, women showed smaller perception and attention thresholds. For illustration, in study 1, the median values of the perception threshold during rest were 4.1 mA for women and 5.7 mA for men, whereas the median values for the attention threshold were 9.1 mA for women and 11.4 mA for men, respectively. Additionally, women experienced less muscle twitching. To exemplify this, 50% of the women experienced muscle twitches compared to 66% of the men at a lateral electrode pair in study 2. We conclude that the operating range of future electrical warning systems needs to be flexibly adjusted to the working conditions. The influence of the climate conditions was minor, suggesting that electrocutaneous warning systems can operate robustly across diverse environments. This supports their practical applicability and motivates future research on optimized dry or textile-based electrodes to enhance usability in real-world settings.

Fast skeletal muscle fibers from zebrafish share a number of functional properties with mammalian twitch muscle fibers, making this vertebrate a precious model to investigate the pathophysiology of neuromuscular disorders. We previously reported that action potentials (APs) from zebrafish fast fibers exhibit low amplitude and require unusually strong negative resting membrane voltage levels to be elicited. In this study, using voltage-clamp and current-clamp techniques, we explored the properties of voltage-gated Na+ channels (NaV) responsible for initiation and propagation of AP in isolated adult zebrafish fast skeletal muscle fibers and compared them to mouse fast-twitch muscle fibers using the same experimental conditions. We found that kinetics of activation and inactivation of NaV were faster in zebrafish fibers and, overall, that the voltage-dependence of inactivation was shifted by 25 mV toward negative voltages as compared to mouse fibers, yielding a mean half-inactivation potential of −90 mV. In agreement with these findings, recording of APs at various resting membrane potentials indicated that APs vanished for resting membrane potentials less negative than −80 mV in zebrafish, whereas APs could still be elicited from resting membrane potentials as low as −60 mV in mice. In addition, Ca2+ transients induced by field stimulation were insensitive to Na+ current blockade in zebrafish but not in mouse fibers. Fluorescence labeling of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors showed that zebrafish fast fibers were multi-innervated with a mean distance between extra-synaptic sarcolemma and motor endplates of 14 µm, expected to lead to negligible attenuation of depolarization propagated from endplates. Finally, knock out of the two genes encoding pore-forming NaV subunits in zebrafish muscles did not induce any change in locomotion and escape behavior of the animals. Taken together, these data question the role of NaV and the occurrence of APs in zebrafish fast muscle.

Fast skeletal muscle fibers from zebrafish share a number of functional properties with mammalian twitch muscle fibers, making this vertebrate a precious model to investigate the pathophysiology of neuromuscular disorders. We previously reported that action potentials (APs) from zebrafish fast fibers exhibit low amplitude and require unusually strong negative resting membrane voltage levels to be elicited. In this study, using voltage-clamp and current-clamp techniques, we explored the properties of voltage-gated Na+ channels (NaV) responsible for initiation and propagation of AP in isolated adult zebrafish fast skeletal muscle fibers and compared them to mouse fast-twitch muscle fibers using the same experimental conditions. We found that kinetics of activation and inactivation of NaV were faster in zebrafish fibers and, overall, that the voltage-dependence of inactivation was shifted by 25 mV toward negative voltages as compared to mouse fibers, yielding a mean half-inactivation potential of -90 mV. In agreement with these findings, recording of APs at various resting membrane potentials indicated that APs vanished for resting membrane potentials less negative than -80 mV in zebrafish, whereas APs could still be elicited from resting membrane potentials as low as -60 mV in mice. In addition, Ca2+ transients induced by field stimulation were insensitive to Na+ current blockade in zebrafish but not in mouse fibers. Fluorescence labeling of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors showed that zebrafish fast fibers were multi-innervated with a mean distance between extra-synaptic sarcolemma and motor endplates of 14 µm, expected to lead to negligible attenuation of depolarization propagated from endplates. Finally, knock out of the two genes encoding pore-forming NaV subunits in zebrafish muscles did not induce any change in locomotion and escape behavior of the animals. Taken together, these data question the role of NaV and the occurrence of APs in zebrafish fast muscle.

Phasic events, cyclic alternating pattern (CAP) and sleep disorders.

Musculoskeletal dysfunction in chronic kidney disease-mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD) is associated with morbidity and mortality. Disease alterations in bone and muscle, and among muscle fiber types, have largely been tested by candidate gene analysis in individual tissues. We undertook a multi-tissue spatial transcriptomics (ST) approach to identify and differentiate tissue-specific and -common genomic reprogramming occurring simultaneously in cortical bone, muscle, and marrow during CKD-MBD. Visium ST was used on femur-muscle histological cross sections from male mice with adenine diet-induced CKD-MBD (0.2%; 4 wk), or casein control diet. The spatial sequencing datasets were analyzed for differential gene expression and pathway analyses. Transcriptional changes were validated using qPCR in the contralateral tissues as well as in the original sections. Uniform manifold approximation and projection analyses paired with hallmark transcript mapping distinguished cortical bone and bone marrow, slow vs. fast twitch muscle fiber cell populations, including 3 fast twitch muscle subtypes (IIa, IIx, and IIb). Upregulation of apoptosis and oxidative stress pathways, including genes P4hb, known to induce apoptosis, and S100a9, associated with responses to inflammation, occurred across all CKD-MBD tissues. Specifically in muscle, atrophy-associated genes (Trim63, Fbxo32) were upregulated by 3-4-fold, and a novel 2-5-fold increase was observed in the mRNA encoding the structural gene Nrap in both CKD-MBD fast and slow twitch skeletal muscle. Fiber subtypes manifested specific disturbances, including a slow-twitch increase in Car3 (3-fold), and fast-twitch muscle enrichment of ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis and RUNX1-driven transcriptional pathways. In bone, CKD-MBD differentially increased pre-osteoblast markers Tnc and Mmp13 but markedly decreased Bglap and Col3a1 (96.6%; 95.3%), whereas marrow downregulated heme biosynthetic pathways along with ~90% suppression of histone gene Hist1h1b, supporting wider genomic changes. Unbiased ST identified transcriptional alterations involving pan-tissue oxidative stress and apoptosis caused by CKD-MBD. Tissue-unique phenotypes were also found, potentially providing novel targets for improvement of musculoskeletal function during CKD-MBD.

A case of Meige syndrome treated by acupuncture was reported. The main symptoms of this patient were involuntary and persistent twitching of muscles around the eyes, lips and jaws. The syndrome belongs to hyperactivity of liver yang. The treatment is dispelling wind and dredging collaterals, soothing liver and relieving spasm. Acupuncture treatment was given at bilateral Dadun (LR1), Sanjian (LI3), Shaoshang (LU11), Zulinqi (GB41), Yuyao (EX-HN4), Sibai (ST2), Jiachengjiang (Extra), Fengchi (GB20), Yifeng (TE17), once every other day. After 10 times of treatment, the twitching frequency of facial muscles decreased significantly, and basically did not twitch without emotional fluctuations; the acupuncture treatment was changed to once a week, and the consolidation treatment was 4 times. After 1 month of follow-up, there was no twitching of facial muscles.

To explore the abnormal changes and localization of never fiber bundles on magnetic resonance imaging diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in children with Tourette syndrome, children with Tourette syndrome were retrospectively enrolled to undergo three-dimensional (3D) T1 + DTI sequence scanning, raw data collection of 1 to 15 year old head, and cross-sectional spacing of 0.5 mm on DTI scanning. The specific software was used to display relevant nerve fiber bundles on DTI. In total, 7 children with Tourette syndrome were enrolled including 6 boys and 1 girl aged 3 to 10 (5.6 ± 2.3) years. The symptoms included paroxysmal shoulder convulsions, facial muscle twitching, involuntary blinking, right hand twitching, epilepsy, involuntary shrug, and attention deficit. On DTI, the morphology and course of the corticospinal tracts were damaged or abnormal, the inferior frontal occipital tracts were damaged or abnormal, the fiber bundles in the compression part of the corpus callosum were reduced in the number and abnormal in the morphology, and the brain nerve fiber bundle connection was reduced. In conclusion, the nerve fiber bundle connection and damage and abnormality of the morphology and course of the corticospinal tract, fiber bundles of the compression part of the corpus callosum, and the inferior frontal occipital tract in children with the Tourette syndrome can be clearly observed on DTI, and the DTI technique can provide valuable imaging support for revealing the neuropathological mechanism of the Tourette syndrome in children.

The mechanical functions of skeletal and cardiac muscles are fundamentally defined by their contractile and passive properties, reflecting their unique physiological roles and operational dynamics. Contractile properties, which include the generation of force during muscle contraction, the duration required to reach peak force, and the subsequent relaxation period, are pivotal in assessing muscle performance, strength, injury, fatigue resistance, and overall health. These properties are crucial for understanding muscle function across various physiological and pathological conditions, including muscular dystrophies, myopathies, and during recovery post-injury or therapy. Muscular disorders, such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), significantly impair several of these mechanical properties, causing a progressive decline in muscle strength, loss of mobility, respiratory muscle weakness, and early mortality most commonly due to respiratory failure. DMD also adversely affects cardiac muscle, leading to progressive deterioration and complications like dilated cardiomyopathy with congestive heart failure or arrhythmias, significant contributors to mortality in affected individuals.Here we detail the methodologies and experimental techniques used for ex vivo assessment of contractile and kinetic properties in multicellular preparations from mouse models, specifically focusing on the extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscle, the diaphragm, and cardiac trabeculae and papillary muscles. We describe protocols for measuring EDL muscle force output and twitch characteristics, tetanic contractions and eccentric contractions, and the force-frequency and length-tension relationships, as well as temperature effects. We elaborate on protocols assessing diaphragm muscle strength, including fatigue resistance evaluations. Additionally, we detail the experimental techniques used to investigate the three main mechanisms regulating cardiac contractility: the Frank-Starling mechanism, the force-frequency relationship, and ß-adrenergic stimulation through the use of isolated trabeculae and papillary muscles from mouse hearts. These techniques enable researchers and clinicians to quantify the effects of diseases, drugs, training regimens, and genetic modifications on muscle function, contributing to the development of treatments and interventions for muscle-related conditions, offering hope for improved patient outcomes in conditions like DMD.

The total work completed during an exercise session is often assumed to be the primary factor influencing the kinetics of post-exercise recovery. However, the duration of work and rest periods during high intensity interval training (HIIT) have been shown to impact the magnitude of physiological stress and could also impact post-exercise recovery. The aim of this study was to characterize the recovery time course of neuromuscular function following work-to-rest matched HIIT protocols with different work interval durations and conducted to task failure. Participants (n=12, n=6 females) completed a ramp incremental exercise test to determine peak power output (PPO). In a randomized order, participants completed 3 cycling protocols at 90% PPO: (i) 3 min work, 3 min passive rest HIIT (HIIT3min), (ii) 1 min work, 1 min passive rest HIIT (HIIT1min), and (iii) constant load (CL) cycling. Femoral nerve electrical stimuli during maximal voluntary contractions (MVC) of isometric knee extension were performed at baseline, task failure (TF), and TF+1min, TF+4min, and TF+8min to delineate the time course of neuromuscular function recovery. MVC force declined to the same level following the three conditions at TF and demonstrated a partial recovery within TF+8min (time effect: P<0.001). The evoked muscle twitch force declined more following the CL compared to HIIT1min at TF (P = 0.013) and showed a faster recovery within TF+8min (P<0.024). Voluntary activation decreased at TF in the HIIT1min but not in HIIT3min or CL (interaction effect: P<0.023) and fully recovered within TF+8min. Central and peripheral components of neuromuscular function demonstrate distinct time courses of recovery between CL exercise and work:rest matched HIIT protocols with different work interval durations.

Effects of dopaminergic medication on upper limb motor function, strength and hand dexterity in people with Parkinson’s disease

IntroductionNon-weight-bearing hind limb joint fixation causes severe joint contracture, and neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) can prevent this. However, the effective frequency of NMES for preventing joint contractures caused by joint fixation with non-weight-bearing hind limbs is unclear. Thus, we aimed to examine the effective frequency of NMES for joint contracture.MethodsRight ankle joint fixation and hind limb suspension were performed on 60 rats for one week. The rats were divided into four groups: no NMES (NS group), NMES with a stimulation frequency of 1-50 Hz (1 Hz electrical stimulation (ES) group, 10 Hz ES group (artificial twitch muscle contraction), and 50 Hz ES group (artificial tetanic muscle contraction)). We measured the ankle dorsiflexion angle, the extensibility, and the amount of type I and III collagen of the soleus muscle.ResultsThe decreases in the ankle dorsiflexion angle and extensibility of the soleus muscle of the 1-50 Hz ES groups on the last day of the experiment were lower than those in the NS group. The decreases in the ankle dorsiflexion angle and extensibility of the soleus muscle of the 1 Hz and 10 Hz ES groups on the last day of the experiment were lower than those of the 50 Hz ES group. There was no significant difference in the amount of type I and III collagen between the groups.ConclusionArtificial twitch muscle contractions induced by NMES were more effective than artificial tetanic muscle contractions caused by NMES in preventing joint contracture.

We have previously introduced a long-acting, nondepolarising, neuromuscular blocking agent, p NMB ( para -neuromuscular blocker). However, its neuromuscular, haemodynamic and autonomic effects as well as reversibility were not fully characterized. We compared p NMB to rocuronium and tested the hypotheses that p NMB has a fast-onset, is long-acting, and its effects are reversed by sugammadex. Animal study. Laboratory from January 2021 to February 2025. Thirty-three adult male Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats were anesthetised and mechanically ventilated. Stimulating electrodes were attached to the sciatic and vagus nerves. Parasympathetic nerve activity was measured by vagal-induced bradycardia and sympathetic nerve activity by the nicotine pressor response. Mechanomyography, mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR). Rocuronium and p NMB inhibited muscle twitch dose-dependently with effective dose (ED)50s (50% inhibition) of 0.28 (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.25 to 0.31) mg/kg, n = 6, and 1.05 (95% CI, 0.93 to 1.20) mg/kg, n = 6, respectively. Rocuronium and p NMB, at doses up to 3 mg/kg, had no effect on HR. Rocuronium 0.7 mg/kg and p NMB 6 mg/kg had no effect on MAP, mean ± SD, 153 ± 12 vs. 154 ± 14 mmHg, n = 4, P = 0.61, or decreased MAP 147 ± 9 vs. 72 ± 9 mmHg, n = 4, P < 0.01, respectively. Both rocuronium and p NMB were parasympatholytic with ED50s of 0.08 (95% CI, 0.06 to 0.09) mg/kg, n = 5, and 0.18 (95% CI, 0.14 to 0.22) mg/kg, n = 7, respectively. Rocuronium 0.7 mg/kg was not sympatholytic whereas p NMB 6 mg/kg was. Both rocuronium 0.7 mg/kg and p NMB 6 mg/kg decreased MAP in the presence of nicotine. Onset times of rocuronium 0.7 mg/kg and p NMB 6 mg/kg did not differ ( P = 0.22). Rocuronium 0.7 mg/kg inhibited twitch for approximately 8 min, whereas p NMB 6 mg/kg inhibited twitch at a steady 80% for 60 min after administration. Sugammadex 10.9 mg/kg reversed the p NMB 3 mg/kg twitch blockade of 92.5% (95% CI, 85.9% to 99%), n = 6. The nondepolarising NMBA, p NMB, had a fast-onset similar to rocuronium and was long-acting and reversible by sugammadex. Both rocuronium and p NMB had autonomic effects that were apparent at subparalytic doses and decreased blood pressure in the presence of nicotine. When administered alone, rocuronium did not decrease MAP whereas p NMB caused a marked hypotension. Neither NMBA affected HR. These findings are limited to rats, and generalisability to other animal species and humans is unknown. University of Missouri IACUC (#9750, #40189), Columbia, Missouri, USA.

ObjectiveAs an old drug with a new application in rare diseases with epileptic symptoms, fenfluramine may have potential unrecognized adverse events. Because limited real-world data exist on Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) and Dravet syndrome (DS) populations, some rare adverse events (AEs) are easily overlooked. The purpose of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the characteristics of adverse events of fenfluramine.MethodsThe data were extracted from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database from the third quarter of 2020 to the fourth quarter of 2024 for data cleaning and analysis. To ensure the accuracy and reliability of the study, adverse events of fenfluramine were analyzed using the Reporting Odds Ratio (ROR), Bayesian Confidence Propagation Neural Network (BCPNN), Proportional Reporting Ratio (PRR), and Multi-Item Gamma Poisson Shrinker (MGPS) methods.ResultsFollowing data deduplication and screening, a total of 9,868 fenfluramine-related adverse event reports were included in this study. The analysis showed that fenfluramine-induced AEs occurred across 24 system organ classes (SOCs). In addition to the typical side effects such as seizure, somnolence, lethargy, status epilepticus, balance disorder and sedation, it is important to pay attention to emerging risks such as pericardial effusion, crying, pneumonia, oxygen saturation decreased, muscle twitching, insomnia, aggression, agitation, mood swings, urinary retention and aortic dilatation. It is notable that aortic valve incompetence and epilepsy are more likely to occur in males and females are more prone to encountering nervous system adverse reactions after fenfluramine treatment. LGS had higher risk after fenfluramine treatment in mitral valve incompetence, constipation, urinary tract infection, fall, lethargy and atonic seizures, while DS had higher risk in pyrexia, illness, nasopharyngitis, influenza, decreased appetite, seizure, generalized tonic-clonic seizure, status epilepticus, myoclonic epilepsy, aggression.ConclusionThis study provided valuable evidence on the real-world safety of fenfluramine, suggesting that clinicians should place greater emphasis on monitoring its adverse effects during use. Medical staff should pay more attention to cardiac AEs on LGS patients and nervous system AEs on DS patients throughout the entire duration of fenfluramine treatment.

IntroductionPost-activation potentiation (PAP), a transient increase in muscle twitch force after conditioning stimuli, may influence performance. Traditional discrete metrics often fail to resolve PAP’s time-dependent contractility changes. We introduce Total Potentiation Level (TPL)—the integrated area of significant potentiation over time derived from statistical parametric mapping (SPM) of tensiomyography (TMG) data in the rectus femoris—to quantify PAP holistically. We hypothesized that this romisingSPM-based TPL approach would more sensitively capture PAP’s temporal dynamics than traditional discrete measures.MethodsFifty-eight physically active adults (36M/22F; 28.4 ± 11.0 years; normalized knee torque 1.395 ± 0.158Nm/kg) performed four sets of eight incline squats (ISQ) with individualized loads (10RM-based) and 150-s inter-set rest. TMG assessed rectus femoris twitch responses pre/post-ISQ. SPM analyzed potentiation profiles, with TPL derived from supra-threshold SPM t-continuum. TPL’s sensitivity to PAP dynamics was compared to traditional discrete metrics.ResultsSPM analysis indicated that potentiation was maximized following the second ISQ set (TPL = 636.5; p < 0.0001), then plateaued with a slight decline by the fourth set. Statistically significant temporal changes in PAP were observed between 11.3 m and 62.6 m, a detail not discernible through conventional discrete measures. This suggests that TPL may offer enhanced sensitivity in identifying peak potentiation and early fatigue onset.DiscussionThe findings suggest that TMG combined with SPM provides an approach for PAP quantification, with TPL potentially offering a comprehensive view of potentiation dynamics. TPL captures nuanced, continuous temporal changes not readily apparent in traditional discrete analyses and may inform more precise conditioning strategies. Further research is warranted to confirm these preliminary observations and explore broader applications.ConclusionWe developed TPL by combining tensiomyography TMG and statistical parametric mapping SPM. TPL uses SPM’s dynamic time-amplitude analysis to detect subtle, transient PAP shifts, enabling precise neuromuscular adaptation quantification. Its applications may span training, rehabilitation, and aging-related interventions by potentially optimizing conditioning parameters to enhance muscle contractility with minimal fatigue. TPL could also help identify optimal individualized loads to maximize contractile performance, with potential benefits for athletic and therapeutic outcomes and load management. Further studies are needed to validate TPL across various exercise modalities and populations, thereby increasing its applicability to tailored applications.

The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the relaxation, stress reduction and behavioral changes observed after manual therapy applied to horses exposed to racing and physical training stimulus. This descriptive approach is aimed at veterinary clinicians to evaluate the therapy process more effectively with behavioral feedback. For this purpose, the study was conducted in two different equestrian clubs in Adana (Adana Mediterranean and Suvari Equestrian Clubs) between 2023 and 2024. A total of 32 racehorses (16 Thoroughbred, 16 Arabian; 16 female, 16 male) of different ages, genders and breeds were included in the study. Five minutes of manual therapy was applied for each of 7 different muscle groups. After the massage, behavioral observations were made for 10 min by moving 2 m away from the animals, and no separate baseline assessment was performed prior to the intervention. The application was carried out by a veterinarian with 15 years of experience. Importantly, no separate baseline assessment or control group was performed, and only behavioral responses were evaluated, which represents a major limitation of this pilot study. Among the observed behaviors in all horses, blinking, muscle twitching, respiratory changes, lip relaxation, licking and chewing were recorded for all horses. Relaxation signs such as head dropping (78.1%), yawning (34.4%), and ears falling to the side (62.5%) were frequently observed. Behaviors such as the appearance of the third eyelid (3.1%), grunting (12.5%) and sneezing (15.6%) were observed at a low percentage. Individual variables such as gender and breed did not have a statistically significant effect on the percentage of behavior (Chi-square test, p > 0.05). In conclusion, these preliminary findings suggest that manual therapy applications might be effective in reducing stress by triggering relaxation behaviors in riding horses, as these behaviors have been previously reported in the literature as reliable indicators of relaxation. Evaluation of behavioral responses after massage could be an important tool in determining physiotherapeutic effects. The fact that the application is performed by experienced people is an important factor that increases the success of the therapy and shows that manual therapy provides relaxation regardless of individual differences. Future controlled studies integrating physiological stress biomarkers are warranted to confirm these observations.

Tubular aggregate myopathy (TAM) is an inherited skeletal muscle disease associated with progressive muscle weakness, cramps, and myalgia. Tubular aggregates (TAs) are regular arrays of highly ordered and densely packed straight-tubules observed in muscle biopsies; the extensive presence of TAs represent a key histopathological hallmark of this disease in TAM patients. TAM is caused by gain-of-function mutations in proteins that coordinate store-operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE): STIM1 Ca2+ sensor proteins in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) and Ca2+-permeable ORAI1 channels in the surface membrane. Here, we assessed the therapeutic potential of endurance exercise in the form of voluntary wheel running (VWR) in mitigating TAs and muscle weakness in Orai1G100S/+ (GS) mice harboring a gain-of-function mutation in the ORAI1 pore. Six months of VWR exercise significantly increased specific force production, upregulated biosynthetic and protein translation pathways, and normalized both mitochondrial protein expression and morphology in the soleus of GS mice. VWR also restored Ca2+ store content, reduced the incidence of TAs, and normalized pathways involving the formation of supramolecular complexes in fast twitch muscles of GS mice. In summary, sustained voluntary endurance exercise improved multiple skeletal muscle phenotypes observed in the GS mouse model of TAM.

There are a few therapeutic approaches for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) which can only slow down or stop the disease progression for a limited period of time. Since it has been proven that Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSCs) produce neurotrophic factors and have some neuroprotective effects, stem cell therapy has been proposed as an alternative or add-on treatment for ALS patients. In this open-label clinical trial, two-repeated dose of 60 million GMP compliant Wharton's Jelly-derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (WJ-MSCs) were transplanted intrathecally (#6 patients) or intravenously (#6 patients) twice with a 3-month interval. No adverse events related to the intervention or injected cells were reported. While no significant improvement in the total revised amyotrophic lateral sclerosis functional rating scale (ALSFRS-R) score or overall clinical efficacy was achieved, patients reported improvements in specific sub-items such as salivation, swallowing, and their speech. Additionally, reductions in muscle tremors and fasciculations, as well as increased muscle strength were observed. In conclusion, using WJ-MSCs is safe and feasible in ALS patients, but the efficacy of these cells should be assessed in future studies with more patients, different routes of cell administration, and maybe with higher doses of the injected cells.