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The interest in whole-body vibration (WBV) for the enhancement of neuromuscular performance has received considerable attention. However, scientific evidence supporting the optimal prescription of WBV settings is lacking. This study investigated the acute eff ect of WBV combining high frequency/high peak-to-peak displacement (HH) or low frequency/low peakto- peak displacement (LL) vs. sham intervention (SHAM) on lower limb muscle power and stiffness. A total of 223 volunteers were randomly assigned to either the HH, LL or SHAM group. Countermovement jump (CMJ) height, maximal and average power, maximal and average lower limbs stiff ness obtained during a hopping test were recorded before and after the respective intervention. After the intervention, the HH group showed an increase of 4.64 % in CMJ height (p < 0.001) whereas the values of both the LL and SHAM groups did not change. In addition, maximal and average power of the lower limbs were signifi cantly increased in all groups (p < 0.001; 10.89 % and 12.82 %, respectively) while no eff ect on lower limbs stiff ness was observed. Our data show that high frequency combined with high peak-to-peak displacement is the most optimal WBV setting for CMJ height enhancement. Further investigation should be undertaken to ascertain the eff ectiveness of WBV on lower limbs stiff ness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Francisella tularensis is pathogenic for many mammalian species including humans, causing a spectrum of diseases called tularemia. The highly virulent Type A strains have associated mortality rates of up to 60% if inhaled. An attenuated live vaccine strain (LVS) is the only vaccine to show efficacy in humans, but suffers several barriers to licensure, including the absence of a correlate of protection. An immunoproteomics approach was used to survey the repertoire of antibodies in sera from individuals who had contracted tularemia during two outbreaks and individuals from two geographical areas who had been vaccinated with NDBR Lot 11 or Lot 17 LVS. These data showed a large overlap in the antibodies generated in response to tularemia infection or LVS vaccination. A total of seven proteins were observed to be reactive with 60% or more sera from vaccinees and convalescents. A further four proteins were recognised by 30–60% of the sera screened. These proteins have the potential to serve as markers of vaccination or candidates for subunit vaccines. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Whether a whole body vibration session can enhance muscle voluntary activation remains debated. This pilot study thus investigated the acute effects of an intervention with whole body vibration versus a "sham" intervention on the voluntary activation of knee extensor muscles. Ten healthy subjects volunteered to participate in two interventions, vibration and sham, in randomized order. Knee extensor muscle voluntary activation, contractile properties and maximal voluntary isometric contraction were assessed before and immediately after each intervention. No significant differences were found for any of the variables. After both interventions, muscle activation remained unchanged, whereas maximal voluntary isometric contraction was significantly reduced (p<0.05). In conclusion, the two interventions induced the same adaptations in the knee extensors. These findings can be useful in conceiving whole body vibration protocols, although future research is warranted to address the influence of vibration on neural adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interest in whole-body vibration (WBV) for the enhancement of neuromuscular performance has received considerable attention. However, scientific evidence supporting the optimal prescription of WBV settings is lacking. This study investigated the acute effect of WBV combining high frequency/high peak-to-peak displacement (HH) or low frequency/low peak-to-peak displacement (LL) vs. sham intervention (SHAM) on lower limb muscle power and stiffness. A total of 223 volunteers were randomly assigned to either the HH, LL or SHAM group. Countermovement jump (CMJ) height, maximal and average power, maximal and average lower limbs stiffness obtained during a hopping test were recorded before and after the respective intervention. After the intervention, the HH group showed an increase of 4.64% in CMJ height (p<0.001) whereas the values of both the LL and SHAM groups did not change. In addition, maximal and average power of the lower limbs were significantly increased in all groups (p<0.001; 10.89% and 12.82%, respectively) while no effect on lower limbs stiffness was observed. Our data show that high frequency combined with high peak-to-peak displacement is the most optimal WBV setting for CMJ height enhancement. Further investigation should be undertaken to ascertain the effectiveness of WBV on lower limbs stiffness., (© Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.)