Increase In Latency Research Articles

Effects of Satureja Bachtiarica Essential Oil in Preventing Seizure in Pentylenetetrazol-Kindled Mice.

Epilepsy is a group of chronic neurological disorders characterized by seizures. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of Satureja bachtiarica essential oil in preventing epilepsy. In this experimental study, 50 mice were randomly assigned to five groups of 10 each. The control group received normal saline plus tween-80 and after 30 min pentylenetetrazol (PTZ). Groups 2 and 3 were treated first with S. bachtiarica essential oil at 50 and 100 mg/kg, respectively and then after 30 min received PTZ. Group 4 received diazepam and 30 min later PTZ. Group 5 received flumazenil and 30 min later PTZ. After the last injection of PTZ, the time of seizure onset, seizure severity and score, the completion time of each seizure (attack episode), and mortality rate in different groups were recorded and compared. The administration of S. bachtiarica essential oil at 50 and 100 mg/kg to PTZ-treated mice caused a significant increase in latency to the first seizure and survival of mice, as well as a significant decrease in the frequency of the head and upper limbs seizure, total body seizures, tonic seizures, and jumping. S. bachtiarica essential oil at 100 mg/kg caused a significant decrease in the head tic frequency. The administration of flumazenil significantly inhibited S. bachtiarica essential oil-induced effects and increased the head and upper limbs seizures, tonic seizures, and jumping. The present study demonstrated that S. bachtiarica essential oil could prevent PTZ-induced seizure and these findings authenticate the traditional claims about the use of S. bachtiarica in treating epilepsy. The administration of S. bachtiarica essential oil at 50 and 100 mg/kg to pentylenetetrazol PTZ-treated mice caused a significant increase in latency to the first seizure.• The administration of S. bachtiarica essential oil at 50 and 100 mg/kg to PTZ-treated mice caused a significant decrease in the frequency of the head and upper limbs seizures, total body seizures, tonic seizures, and spin and jump.• The administration of flumazenil significantly inhibited S. bachtiarica essential oil-induced effects and increased the head and upper limbs seizures, tonic seizures, and jumping. Epilepsy is one of the most common disorders of the central nervous system, so that one in every 100 people is suffering from epilepsy globally. Despite the development of antiepileptic drugs, novel strategies are sought out because of drug resistance and the side effects resulting from these drugs at high concentrations. Researchers have focused on plants for certain reasons such as availability, the history of long-term use, being nature-based, and relative safety. In the current study, the effect of the pretreatment with S. bachtiarica essential oil in preventing seizure was studied in the pentylenetetrazol-kindled mice. The injection of 50 and 100 mg/kg of S. bachtiarica essential oil caused a significant increase in latency to the first seizure and survival duration, and a significant decrease in the frequency of the head and upper limbs seizures, tonic seizures, and spin and jump in the pentylenetetrazol-receiving mice.

Exploiting Wireless Technology for Energy-Efficient Accelerators With Multiple Dataflows and Precision

As model size and the number of layers increase, Deep Neural Networks (DNNs) demand enormous computational power and throughput to meet exceedingly high prediction accuracy’s of today’s machine learning (ML) applications. Spatial hardware accelerators have been proposed that optimize the dataflow and exploit sparsity to provide a significant decrease in power consumption. As spatial architectures are traditionally designed with metallic interconnects, significant power is expended for data movement for different dataflows. In this paper, we exploit extended wireless technology to design a power-efficient and high-throughput DNN accelerator, e-WiNN, that can be configured for all representative dataflows and arithmetic precisions. We leverage novel circuit design by utilizing Dadda-algorithm based Multiply-and-Accumulate (MAC) circuits for 4-bit, 8-bit and 16-bit inputs to reduce area, power and delay constraints in 14 nm predictive technology. Our novel wireless transmitter integrates on- off keying (OOK) modulator with power amplifier that results in significant energy savings. To reduce the area overhead, we cluster wireless transceivers into groups of four such that both weights and input features can be effectively multicast to reduce the data movement. The energy efficient transceiver circuit is implemented in state-of-the-art BSIM 32 nm FinFET technology model and our link budget considers required RF power for different frequencies and inter-PE distance at three different antenna directivities including isotropic. Our detailed RTL modeling and cycle-accurate simulation results show that e-WiNN achieves 36.3% latency reduction and 76.1% energy saving when compared to state-of-art wire interconnected accelerators; 70.3% area reduction and 41.6% energy saving at the cost of 11% latency increase when compared to prior wireless accelerators on various neural networks (AlexNet, VGG16, and ResNet-9/50).

Study of the latency of transcranial motor evoked potentials in spinal cord monitoring during surgery for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis

ObjectiveAn increase in the latency of a motor evoked potential might be as significant as a decrease in amplitude to predict a significant and clinically symptomatic neurological injury in spinal surgery for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of monitoring of latency of motor evoked potentials during spinal surgery for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis by describing intraoperative data. MethodsPreoperative recordings of 50 patients undergoing posterior spinal fusion for idiopathic scoliosis were studied. Latencies of appearance of the motor evoked potential curves on the right and left side were recorded for each group of muscles at several key moments during the procedure (basal, before the first implant, before and after corrective maneuvers). ResultsMean latencies were approximately the same in each muscle group on the right and the left side, before and after correction. There was no significant increase in latency during surgery. Overall results showed that the measured latency did not differ significantly between the two age groups (p=0.07). Negative correlation between height and the means of latencies was recorded in the abductor pollicis brevis and abductor digiti minimi (r=0.4; p=0.009), rectus femoris (r=0.4; p=0.01), tibialis anterior (r=0.4; p=0.007), and abductor hallucis (r=0.5; p=0.0004). No significant correlation was found between age and intraoperative parameters. ConclusionIntraoperative latency could be a reliable intraoperative monitoring criteria with low variability, that might be used to predict postoperative motor deficits in surgery for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

Mind Wandering Impedes Response Inhibition by Affecting the Triggering of the Inhibitory Process

Mind wandering is a state in which our mental focus shifts toward task-unrelated thoughts. Although it is known that mind wandering has a detrimental effect on concurrent task performance (e.g., decreased accuracy), its effect on executive functions is poorly studied. Yet the latter question is relevant to many real-world situations, such as rapid stopping during driving. Here, we studied how mind wandering would affect the requirement to subsequently stop an incipient motor response. In healthy adults, we tested whether mind wandering affected stopping and, if so, which component of stopping was affected: the triggering of the inhibitory brake or the implementation of the brake following triggering. We observed that during mind wandering, stopping latency increased, as did the percentage of trials with failed triggering. Indeed, 67% of the variance of the increase in stopping latency was explained by increased trigger failures. Thus, mind wandering primarily affects stopping by affecting the triggering of the brake.

An Efficient Opportunistic Routing Based on Prediction for Nautical Wireless Ad Hoc Networks

Nautical wireless ad hoc networks are becoming increasingly popular in oceans due to their easy deployment and self-curing capability. They may alternate frequently between connected mobile ad hoc networks and partitioned opportunistic networks due to mobility in large spaces. Traditional mobile ad hoc network routing is used to find the shortest route for connected networks. However, for opportunistic networks, routing schemes with a broadcast nature mainly exploit the reduction in message duplication and the local relaying technologies described in the literature, which may lead to unnecessary resource waste and low packet delivery ratios. To solve the problem, we propose an efficient opportunistic routing scheme based on prediction for nautical wireless ad hoc networks. The scheme first develops an effective candidate intermediate region to recognize the unavailability of some apparently qualified intermediate nodes, and then takes into account the packet reception ratio between nodes and relay advancement prediction, to improve packet delivery. The proposed scheme achieves performance improvements regarding packet loss ratio and throughput with a tolerable latency increase, compared to other schemes.

ADC-PIM: Accelerating Convolution on the GPU via In-Memory Approximate Data Comparison

Recently, convolutional neural networks (CNN) have been widely used in image processing and computer vision. GPUs are often used to accelerate the CNN, but performance is limited by high computational costs and memory usage of the convolution. Prior studies exploited approximate computing to reduce the computational costs. However, they only reduced the amount of the computation, thereby its performance is bottlenecked by the memory bandwidth due to an increased memory intensity. In addition, load imbalance between warps caused by approximation also inhibits the performance improvement. In this paper, we propose a processing-in-memory (PIM) solution that reduces the amount of data movement and computation through the <underline xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">A</u> pproximate <underline xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">D</u> ata <underline xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">C</u> omparison (ADC-PIM). Instead of determining the value similarity after loading the data to the GPU, the ADC-PIM unit located on 3D-stacked memory compares the similarity and transfers only the selected representative data to the GPU. The GPU performs convolution on the representative data transferred from the ADC-PIM, and reuses the calculated results based on the similarity information. To reduce the increase in memory latency caused by the in-memory data comparison, we propose a <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">two-level</i> PIM architecture that exploits both the DRAM bank and TSV stage. By dividing the comparisons into multiple banks and then merging the results on the TSV stage, the ADC-PIM effectively hides the delay caused by the comparisons. To ease the load balancing on the GPU, the ADC-PIM performs <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">data reorganization</i> by assigning the representative data to addresses that are computed based on the comparison result. Experimental results show that the proposed ADC-PIM provides a 43% speedup and 32% energy saving with less than a 1% accuracy drop.

Monitoring Platform Evolution Toward Serverless Computing for 5G and Beyond Systems

Fifth generation (5G) and beyond systems require flexible and efficient monitoring platforms to guarantee optimal key performance indicators (KPIs) in various scenarios. Their applicability in Edge computing environments requires lightweight monitoring solutions. This work evaluates different candidate technologies to implement a monitoring platform for 5G and beyond systems in these environments. For monitoring data plane technologies, we evaluate different virtualization technologies, including bare metal servers, virtual machines, and orchestrated containers. We show that containers not only offer superior flexibility and deployment agility, but also allow obtaining better throughput and latency. In addition, we explore the suitability of the Function-as-a-Service (FaaS) serverless paradigm for deploying the functions used to manage the monitoring platform. This is motivated by the event oriented nature of those functions, designed to set up the monitoring infrastructure for newly created services. When the FaaS warm start mode is used, the platform gives users the perception of resources that are always available. When a cold start mode is used, containers running the application’s modules are automatically destroyed when the application is not in use. Our analysis compares both of them with the standard deployment of microservices. The experimental results show that the cold start mode produces a significant latency increase, along with potential instabilities. For this reason, its usage is not recommended despite the potential savings of computing resources. Conversely, when the warm start mode is used for executing configuration tasks of monitoring infrastructure, it can provide similar execution times to a microservice-based deployment. In addition, the FaaS approach significantly simplifies the code logic in comparison with microservices, reducing lines of code to less than 38%, thus reducing development time. Thus, FaaS in warm start mode represents the best candidate technology to implements such management functions.

0563 Association between actigraphic sleep measures and lymphocyte subsets in people with chronic HIV infection

Abstract Introduction While inadequate sleep is known to increase inflammation in immunocompetent individuals, it is unknown if poor sleep worsens inflammation in people living with HIV. The ratio of CD4+/CD8+ T cells is a readily derived measure of chronic inflammation in people living with HIV. We sought to investigate the association between lymphocyte subsets and actigraphy-derived sleep measures in a cohort of HIV seropositive men. Methods HIV seropositive men on antiretroviral therapy for &amp;gt; 1 year and with undetectable (&amp;lt; 20 copies/mL) plasma HIV-1 RNA participating in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study underwent a sleep evaluation with 1 week of wrist actigraphy. Data from 287 participants with ≥ 5 days of actigraphy were analyzed. We evaluated three dimensions of sleep: mean nocturnal sleep duration, sleep onset latency, and sleep maintenance efficiency. Linear regression was used to assess the association between each sleep dimension with CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell counts. Because of a U-shaped association, nocturnal sleep duration was also modelled dichotomously as a normal (6-8 hrs) vs. abnormal duration (&amp;lt;6 or &amp;gt;8 hrs). Results Participants had a mean (±SD) age of 55 ± 12 years, mean CD4+ count of 723 ± 293 cells/ml, and 7.0 ± 1.7 days of actigraphy data. None of the sleep measures were associated with CD4+ counts. However, participants with abnormal sleep duration had 129 ± 31 cells/mL higher CD8+ counts compared to those with normal sleep duration (p=0.01). There were also nonsignificant trends whereby every 30-minute increase in sleep latency was associated with a 138 cells/ml increase in CD8+ count (p=0.07) while every 10% reduction in sleep efficiency was associated with a 56 cells/ml increase in CD8+ count (p=0.12). These findings were unchanged after adjusting for age and body mass index. Conclusion Among men with treated HIV infection, abnormal sleep duration (both short and long) is associated with increased circulating CD8+ T cell count, suggesting increased chronic inflammation. Support (If Any) NIH AI0355041, HL082610 and American Thoracic Society ASPIRE Fellowship

The Acute Pharmacological Manipulation of Dopamine Receptors Modulates Judgment Bias in Japanese Quail.

We have studied the effects of dopamine antagonists and agonists on Japanese quail behavior in the spatial judgment task. Twenty-four Japanese quail hens were trained in the spatial discrimination task to approach the feeder placed in the rewarded location (Go response, feeder containing mealworms) and to not approach the punished location (No-Go response, empty feeder plus aversive sound). In a subsequent spatial judgment task, the proportion of Go responses as well as approach latencies to rewarded, punished, and three ambiguous locations (near-positive, middle, near-negative, all neither rewarded nor punished) were assessed in 20 quail hens that successfully mastered the discrimination task. In Experiment 1, each bird received five treatments (0.1 and 1.0 mg/kg of dopamine D1 receptor antagonist SCH 23390, 0.05 and 0.5 mg/kg of dopamine D2 receptor antagonist haloperidol, and saline control) in a different order, according to a Latin square design. All drugs were administered intramuscularly 15 min before the spatial judgment test, with 2 days break between the treatments. Both antagonists caused a significant dose-dependent increase in the approach latencies as well as a decrease in the proportion of Go responses. In Experiment 2, with the design analogous to Experiment 1, the hens received again five treatments (1.0 and 10.0 mg/kg of dopamine D1 receptor agonist SKF 38393, 1.0 and 10.0 mg/kg of dopamine D2 receptor agonist bromocriptine, and saline control), applied intramuscularly 2 h before the test. The agonists did not have any significant effect on approach latencies and the proportion of Go responses in the spatial judgment task, as compared to the saline control, except for 10.0 mg/kg SKF 38393, which caused a decrease in the proportion of Go responses. The approach latency and the proportion of Go responses were affected by the cue location in both experiments. Our data suggest that the dopamine D1 and D2 receptor blockade leads to a decrease in the reward expectation and the negative judgment of stimuli. The effect of dopamine receptor activation is less clear. The results reveal that dopamine receptor manipulation alters the evaluation of the reward and punishment in the spatial judgment task.

Effects of scalp cluster needling on cognition and oxidative stress in a rat model of schizophrenia☆头穴丛刺对精神分裂症模型大鼠认知功能及氧化应激系统的影响

ObjectiveTo analyze the effects of cluster needling at scalp acupoints (CNSA) on behavioral performance and expression of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) in the hippocampus of rats with schizophrenia, and therefore, to shed light on the mechanism of action of CNSA in attenuating schizophrenia. MethodsThirty-six Wistar rats were randomly divided into the control, model, risperidone, and CNSA groups (9 rats per group). The schizophrenia model was prepared by injecting 0.1 mg/mL dizocilpine maleate (MK-801) for 14 consecutive days. Subsequently, rats in the risperidone and CNSA groups were subjected to the following therapy for 14 consecutive days: (1) Risperidone group: intragastric administration of risperidone suspension (0.4 mg/kg); (2) CNSA group: the “GV 20″ “Qiándĭng (前顶GV 21) ” “Shéntíng (神庭GV 24) ” “Xìnhuì (囟会 GV 22) ” “Tōngtiān (通天BL 7) ” “Luòquè (络却BL 8) ” “Qūchā (曲差BL 4) ” and “Wŭchù (五处 BL 5) ” acupoints were selected for needle positioning. Following 14-day intervention period, the Morris water maze experiment and open field experiment were performed. Finally, hippocampal tissue specimens were collected and SOD, CAT, and GSH-Px expression levels were measured by ELISA. Results(1) Morris water maze experiment: Following the 14-day model construction period, the model, risperidone, and CNSA groups showed a significant increase in escape latency (all P < 0.05) and a significant decrease in the number of platform crossings (all P < 0.05) compared with the control group, indicating successful induction of schizophrenia in the rat model. At the end of the intervention period (28d), the risperidone and CNSA groups showed a significant decrease in escape latency (both P < 0.05), and the CNSA group showed a significant increase in the number of platform crossings (P < 0.05) compared with the model group. (2) Open field experiment: At 14d, the model, risperidone and CNSA groups exhibited a significant decrease in the travelled distance and amount of time spent in the central zone (all P < 0.05) compared with the control group (all P < 0.05). At 28d, the risperidone and CNSA groups showed a significant increase in the travelled distance and percentage of time spent in the central zone (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). (3) Antioxidant enzyme expression: At 28d, the model group exhibited significant decreases in the hippocampal SOD, CAT, and GSH-Px levels, compared with the control group (P < 0.01 or P < 0.001). ConclusionCNSA enabled the attenuation of cognitive impairment and enhancement of memory and learning abilities in the rat model of schizophrenia, plausibly through inhibition of the expression of oxidative stress factors in the hippocampus.

The impact of COVID-19 on the daily lives and study habits of the MBBS students

Introduction: COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the academic and personal life of all college students.However, it has had a more profound impact on medical undergraduates. Objectives: 1) Survey of changes in the daily routine,views about their career and study habits of the MBBS students 2) To document changes in eating habits, other health-related habits, and self-perception of body image Methods: Permission of Institutional Ethics Committee (IEC) was obtained. An online observational cross-sectional study was conducted, using an online Google Docs-based questionnaire; circulated among MBBS students of all years, studying in 12 medical colleges both government and private medical institutions of India via WhatsApp. Results: We observed an increase in sleeping hours in 75.1% of students, an increase in sleep onset latency (62.6%),and difficulty maintaining sleep (38.3%). About 67.1% of students reported dedicating more hours to their hobbies, and 71.1% reported a decrease in time spent studying throughout the lockdown. We even observed contrasting responses towards the pandemic wherein 50.3% of the students wanted to volunteer and join the workforce while 37% were worried about the situation becoming worse. The frequency of meals and snacking in between meals had increased. Binge eating habits were noticed in around 13% on a daily basis. As a means to cope with this overeating, around 11% of students used laxatives and induced vomiting. Students also reported medical problems like fluctuations in weight, stomach cramps, syncope, and fatigue. Conclusion: Significant disturbances were observed in the daily routine, eating habits, and study habits of medical students, which had perhaps led to bigger perplexities of career-related uncertainty and improper coping techniques of varying degrees.These can have a nationwide impact on our health care system, stressing the need to strengthen its budding doctors to make them healthier and more resilient for the future

Pharmacological Preconditioning by Corticotropin Releasing Factor (CRF) or ACTH Protects the Gastric Mucosa against Ulcerogenic Action of Indomethacin through Involvement of Glucocorticoids

Non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are widely used as analgesic and anti‐inflammatory drugs. However, adverse effects, including gastrointestinal, renal, cardiovascular side effects, seriously complicate NSAIDs use. Their gastrointestinal side effects are the most known serious complications in patients taking these drugs. Previously we have shown that preconditioning stress attenuates the ulcerogenic action of indomethacin (IM) on the gastric mucosa. According our findings glucocorticoids, released in response to stressor, are gastroprotective hormones and involved in stress preconditioning protective effects. Corticotropin releasing factor (CRF), a major mediator of stress response, stimulates ACTH release through CRF receptors of subtype 1 and ACTH, in turn, stimulates glucocorticoid production. Here we verify the hypothesis that pharmacological preconditioning by CRF or ACTH can protect the gastric mucosa against ulcerogenic action of IM in rats through mechanism associated with glucocorticoids. For this, preliminary fasted (24 h) rats were administered by CRF (2.5 or 5 µg/ kg, ip) or ACTH (1U/kg, ip) 30 min before IM injection (35 mg/kg, sc). Gastric lesions were examined 4 h after IM administration. Plasma corticosterone levels were measured before and 4 h after IM injection. Since the gastrointestinal injury is accompanied by changes in somatic pain sensitivity, we also measured tail flick latencies (tail flick test) before and 4 h after IM. Both CRF and ACTH by itself caused an elevation of plasma corticosterone levels, which was accompanied by an increase of tail flick latencies (analgesic effect). IM administration resulted in the gastric erosion 4 h later. Pretreatment with CRF or ACTH reduced an area of gastric lesions caused by IM (gastroprotective effect). IM‐induced gastric injury was accompanied by an increase of tail flick latencies, which was prevented by CRF (normalization of somatic pain sensitivity). To estimate the role of glucocorticoids in CRF‐induced gastroprotection an inhibitor of corticosterone synthesis metyrapone (30 mg/kg) or CRF receptor type 1 antagonist NBI 27914 (10 mg/kg) or glucocorticoid receptor antagonist RU‐38486 (20 mg/kg) was administered before CRF. Both metyrapone and NBI 27914 injected before CRF administration caused an inhibition of CRF‐induced corticosterone response and prevented protective effect of CRF on the gastric mucosa against the IM‐induced injury. The gastroprotective effect of CRF was also eliminated by the pretreatment with RU‐38486. Thus, CRF as well as ACTH can protect the gastric mucosa against ulcerogenic action of IM. Gastroprotective action of CRF accompanied by normalization of somatic pain sensitivity is provided by mechanism associated with glucocorticoids.

Pharmacodynamics and Pharmacokinetics of the Non‐Fentanyl Synthetic Opioid, Isotonitazene, in Male Rats

Illicitly manufactured fentanyl is fueling the current overdose epidemic, and non‐fentanyl mu‐opioid receptor (MOR) agonists are emerging in street drug markets worldwide. The etonitazene analog, isotonitazene, is one example of a non‐fentanyl MOR agonist linked to overdose deaths. Little is known about the biological effects of isotonitazene in humans or animal models. To this end, we examined the pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics, and metabolism of isotonitazene in rats. Male rats were fitted with surgically implanted intravenous (i.v.) catheters and subcutaneous (s.c.) temperature transponders under ketamine/xylazine anesthesia. One week later, rats received s.c. isotonitazene (3, 10, or 30 μg/kg) or its vehicle, and blood samples (0.3 mL) were collected via catheters at 15, 30, 60, 120, 240 min post‐injection. Plasma was assayed for isotonitazene and its metabolites by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Pharmacodynamic effects ‐ including hot plate latency, catalepsy score, and body temperature ‐ were assessed at each blood withdrawal. Isotonitazene produced dose‐dependent increases in hot plate latency (ED50=4.2 μg/kg) and catalepsy (ED50=8.7 μg/kg), while 30 μg/kg produced marked hypothermia. Isotonitazene concentrations in plasma rose linearly with increasing dose, Cmax (0.5 to 6.6 ng/mL) was achieved within 15 min, and drug half‐life ranged from 40 to 60 min. Isotonitazene metabolites were detectable but below the level of quantification. Analgesia, catalepsy, and hypothermia were correlated with mean isotonitazene concentrations. Radioligand binding assays revealed that N‐desethyl isotonitazene displays higher affinity at MOR (Ki=2.2 nM) than the parent compound (Ki=15.8 nM). Our findings reveal that isotonitazene is a MOR agonist that is ~1000‐fold more potent than morphine (ED50=4.2 mg/kg) as an analgesic agent. Plasma concentrations of isotonitazene are in the low ng/mL range, whereas metabolites are found in even lesser amounts. Although the N‐desethyl metabolite of isotonitazene displays high affinity at MOR, extremely low levels are formed in vivo. The ultra‐high potency of isotonitazene presents challenges for forensic detection and likely poses grave risk to users who are inadvertently exposed to the drug.

Morphine Aggravates Inflammatory, Behavioral, and Hippocampal Structural Deficits in Septic Rats

Although pain and sepsis are standard comorbidities of intensive care units, reported data on whether pain control by opioid analgesics could alter inflammatory and end‐organ damage caused by sepsis remain contradictory and inconclusive. Here, we tested the hypothesis that morphine, the gold standard narcotic analgesic, modifies behavioral and hippocampal structural defects induced by sepsis in rats. Sepsis was induced with cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) and behavioral studies were undertaken 24 hr later in septic and/or morphine‐treated animals. The induction of sepsis or exposure to morphine (7 mg/kg) elicited similar: (i) falls in systolic blood pressure, (ii) alterations in spatial memory and learning tested by the Morris water maze (increases in escape latency, and decreases in time spent on quadrant plate, distance travelled, and number of crossings), and (iii) depression of exploratory behavior measured by the new object recognition test. These hemodynamic and cognitive defects were significantly exaggerated in septic rats treated with morphine compared with individual interventions. Similar patterns of amplified inflammatory (IL‐1β) and histopathological signs of hippocampal damage (neuronal degeneration, satellitosis, and neuronophagia) were noted in morphine‐treated septic rats. We also show that the presence of intact opioid receptors is mandatory for the elicitation of behavioral and hemodynamic effects of morphine because no such effects were observed after simultaneous blockade of these receptors by naloxone. Together, these findings suggest that morphine acts probably via opioid receptors to provoke sepsis manifestations of inflammation, and behavioral and hippocampal deficits.

Examining the Relationship Between Reactive Stepping Outcomes and Falls in People With Multiple Sclerosis.

Reactive stepping is critical for preventing falls and is impaired in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS); however, which aspects of stepping relate to falls remains poorly understood. Identifying outcomes most related to falls is a first step toward improving rehabilitation for fall prevention. The purpose of this study was to assess whether reactive step latency or length during forward and backward losses of balance were related to a history of falls in PwMS. Of the 111 PwMS who participated in this study, 76 reported no falls in the previous 6months, whereas 36 reported 1 or more falls. Participants completed 3 forward and 3 backward treadmill-induced reactive steps from stance. Step length (centimeters) and step latency (milliseconds) were measured using motion capture and analyzed via MATLAB. Participants with a history of falls had significantly slower step latencies during backward stepping, but not forward stepping, than those without a history of falls. Step length did not differ between groups. Slower step latencies during backward stepping significantly increased the odds of having experienced a fall (β = .908, SE = 0.403, odds ratio = 2.479, 95% CI = 1.125 to 5.464). PwMS and a history of falling show delayed step onsets during backward reactive stepping. Specifically, for every 10-millisecond increase in step latency, PwMS were 2.5 times more likely to have a fall history. Although clinical trials are necessary to determine whether interventions targeting reactive stepping reduce falls in PwMS, the current work indicates that the latency of steps may be a relevant target for this work. Subsequent fall prevention clinical trials should consider targeting backward reactive step latency to further assess its relevance for rehabilitation in PwMS. If you have MS and a history of falls, you may be more likely to have delayed reactive step latencies.

Energy-Efficient Cluster Formation in IoT-Enabled Wireless Body Area Network.

Wireless sensor network is widely used in different IoT-enabled applications such as health care, underwater sensor networks, body area networks, and various offices. A sensor node may face operational difficulties due to low computing capacity. Moreover, mobility has become an open challenge in the healthcare wireless body area network that is highly affected by message loss due to topological manipulation. In this article, an enhanced version of the well-known algorithm MT-MAC is proposed, namely DT-MAC, to ensure successful message delivery. It considers node handover mechanism among virtual clusters to ensure network integrity and also uses the concept of minimum connected dominating set for network formation to achieve efficient energy utilization. It is then compared with well-known algorithms such as MT-MAC. The simulation results show that an increase in little latency of roughly 3 percent in using the proposed protocol improves the MT-MAC's packet delivery by 13–17 percent and the response time by around 15 percent. Therefore, the algorithm is best fitted for real-time applications where the high packet delivery and response time are required.

Evaluation of Auditory Brainstem Response in Chicken Hatchlings.

The auditory brainstem response (ABR) is an invaluable assay in clinical audiology, non-human animals, and human research. Despite the widespread use of ABRs in measuring auditory neural synchrony and estimating hearing sensitivity in other vertebrate model systems, methods for recording ABRs in the chicken have not been reported in nearly four decades. Chickens provide a robust animal research model because their auditory system is near functional maturation during late embryonic and early hatchling stages. We have demonstrated methods used to elicit one or two-channel ABR recordings using subdermal needle electrode arrays in chicken hatchlings. Regardless of electrode recording configuration (i.e., montage), ABR recordings included 3-4 positive-going peak waveforms within the first 6 ms of a suprathreshold click stimulus. Peak-to-trough waveform amplitudes ranged from 2-11 µV at high-intensity levels, with positive peaks exhibiting expected latency-intensity functions (i.e., increase in latency as a function of decreased intensity). Standardized earphone position was critical for optimal recordings as loose skin can occlude the ear canal, and animal movement can dislodge the stimulus transducer. Peak amplitudes were smaller, and latencies were longer as animal body temperature lowered, supporting the need for maintaining physiological body temperature. For young hatchlings (<3 h post-hatch day 1), thresholds were elevated by ~5 dB, peak latencies increased ~1-2 ms, and peak to trough amplitudes were decreased ~1 µV compared to older hatchlings. This suggests a potential conductive-related issue (i.e., fluid in the middle ear cavity) and should be considered for young hatchlings. Overall, the ABR methods outlined here permit accurate and reproducible recording of in-vivo auditory function in chicken hatchlings that could be applied to different stages of development. Such findings are easily compared to human and mammalian models of hearing loss, aging, or other auditory-related manipulations.

Evaluation of Auditory Brainstem Response in Chicken Hatchlings

The auditory brainstem response (ABR) is an invaluable assay in clinical audiology, non-human animals, and human research. Despite the widespread use of ABRs in measuring auditory neural synchrony and estimating hearing sensitivity in other vertebrate model systems, methods for recording ABRs in the chicken have not been reported in nearly four decades. Chickens provide a robust animal research model because their auditory system is near functional maturation during late embryonic and early hatchling stages. We have demonstrated methods used to elicit one or two-channel ABR recordings using subdermal needle electrode arrays in chicken hatchlings. Regardless of electrode recording configuration (i.e., montage), ABR recordings included 3-4 positive-going peak waveforms within the first 6 ms of a suprathreshold click stimulus. Peak-to-trough waveform amplitudes ranged from 2-11 µV at high-intensity levels, with positive peaks exhibiting expected latency-intensity functions (i.e., increase in latency as a function of decreased intensity). Standardized earphone position was critical for optimal recordings as loose skin can occlude the ear canal, and animal movement can dislodge the stimulus transducer. Peak amplitudes were smaller, and latencies were longer as animal body temperature lowered, supporting the need for maintaining physiological body temperature. For young hatchlings (<3 h post-hatch day 1), thresholds were elevated by ~5 dB, peak latencies increased ~1-2 ms, and peak to trough amplitudes were decreased ~1 µV compared to older hatchlings. This suggests a potential conductive-related issue (i.e., fluid in the middle ear cavity) and should be considered for young hatchlings. Overall, the ABR methods outlined here permit accurate and reproducible recording of in-vivo auditory function in chicken hatchlings that could be applied to different stages of development. Such findings are easily compared to human and mammalian models of hearing loss, aging, or other auditory-related manipulations.

Impact of Lockdown on Physical Activity, Sleep and Eating Habits in Central India

Context: India, in its strategy to reduce the spread of COVID-19 pandemic, imposed a nation-wide lockdown. Social restriction measures, when imposed legally, could change behavioural patterns among population groups. The changes in key behavioural patterns including exercise, sleep and eating habits are influenced during lockdown &amp; can have implications on health of individual for a long duration.&#x0D; Aim: To assess the effect of lockdown on physical activity, sleep and eating habits among adults in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India&#x0D; Settings and Design: A web-based cross-sectional survey&#x0D; Methods and Material: After obtaining ethics clearance, the was conducted among volunteers ≥18 years of age in Nagpur district. A self-reported retrospective pre-post questionnaire was disseminated through multiple platforms as an online survey form. A modified Global Physical activity questionnaire was used to assess level of physical activity. Sleep pattern was assessed using selected components of Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Diet pattern was assessed by using food frequency questionnaire for specific food groups.&#x0D; Statistical analysis used:. Most of the quantitative parameters followed a non-normal distribution. The Wilcoxon Signed-rank test, McNemar's test and a binomial test were used to study difference between quantitative parameters, paired proportions and difference in proportions respectively using SPSS v 24.0.&#x0D; Results: A total of 586 responses were received through the online survey. The prevalence of physical inactivity increased from 47.6 % to 51.3% during the lockdown. The change in physical activity pattern from adequate to inadequate was 63% less likely compared to the converse (OR (95%CI) – 0.37 (0.18 -0.74)).The increase in sleep latency was at least 9 (OR (95%CI) = 9.33 (5.73 - 15.19)) times more likely during lockdown compared to a reduction. There was a significant increase in frequency intake of Green leafy vegetables, fresh fruits and fried foods during lockdown. But there was a significant decline in intake of eggs and non-vegetarian foods during lockdown.&#x0D; Conclusions: The levels of physical inactivity and duration of sleep latency increased during lockdown in central India. Leafy vegetables and fresh fruits were preferred over non-vegetarian foods. The impact of these behavioural changes needs to be further explored.

Cloud-gaming: Analysis of Google Stadia traffic

Interactive, real-time, and high-quality cloud video games pose a serious challenge to the Internet due to simultaneous high-throughput and low round trip delay requirements. In this paper, we investigate the traffic characteristics of Stadia, the cloud-gaming solution from Google, which is likely to become one of the dominant players in the gaming sector. To do that, we design several experiments, and perform an extensive traffic measurement campaign to obtain all required data. Our first goal is to gather a deep understanding of Stadia traffic characteristics by identifying the different protocols involved for both signaling and video/audio contents, the traffic generation patterns, and the packet size and inter-packet time probability distributions. Then, our second goal is to understand how different Stadia games and configurations, such as the video codec and the video resolution selected, impact on the characteristics of the generated traffic. We also evaluate the ability of Stadia to adapt to different link capacity conditions, including cases where the capacity drops suddenly, as well as sudden increases in the network latency. Our results and findings, besides illustrating the characteristics of Stadia traffic, are also valuable for planning and dimensioning future networks, as well as for designing new resource management strategies. Finally, we compare Stadia traffic to other video streaming applications, showcasing the main differences between them, and introduce a traffic model using our captures. We show that this model can be used in simulations to further investigate the network performance in presence of Stadia traffic.