Search

The introduction of the principles of sustainable development into the world system of higher education began 30 years ago. It is one of the global trends now. The accumulated international experience is quite extensive and could be used in the development of the national concept of sustainable development of Russian higher education. The article is devoted to the analysis of the sustainable development networks interactions in higher education in the world and in Russia. Special attention paid to various stability ratings of universities. The experience of sustainable program implementation has been revealed on the example of the University of Hokkaido, one of the seven national corporations in the system of higher education of Japan. The experience of energy and resource-saving measures in the North-Eastern Federal University (Yakutsk, Russia) including the energy performance contract, is presented. The necessity of actualization of the national project of sustainable development of higher education institutions of Russia and the development of a national rating of the sustainability adapted to the legal framework and budgeting is substantiated.

Abstract Background The DMD gene encoding dystrophin is mutated in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a fatal progressive muscle wasting disease. DMD has also been shown to act as a tumor suppressor gene. Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a mesodermal sarcoma that shares characteristics of skeletal muscle precursors. Products of the DMD gene in RMS have not yet been fully clarified. Here, DMD products were analyzed in CRL-2061 cells established from alveolar RMS. Methods The 14-kb long DMD cDNA was PCR amplified as 20 separated fragments, as were nine short intron regions. Dystrophin was analyzed by Western blotting using an antibody against the C-terminal region of dystrophin. Results Sixteen of the 20 DMD cDNA fragments could be amplified from CRL-2061 cells as muscle cDNA. Three fragments included aberrant gene products, including one in which exon 71 was omitted and one each with retention of introns 40 and 58. In one fragment, extending from exon 70 to 79, no normally spliced product was obtained. Rather, six alternatively spliced products were identified, including a new product deleting exon 73, with the most abundant product showing deletion of exon 78. Although dystrophin expression was expected in CRL-2061 cells, western blotting of cell lysates showed no evidence of dystrophin, suggesting that translation of full-length DMD mRNA was inhibited by intron retention that generated a premature stop codon. Intron specific PCR amplification of nine short introns, showed retention of introns 40, 58, and 70, which constituted about 60, 25 and 9%, respectively, of the total PCR amplified products. The most abundant DMD transcript contained two abnormalities, intron 40 retention and exon 78 skipping. Conclusions Intron-specific PCR amplification showed that DMD transcripts contained high levels of introns 40, 58 and 70. Retention of these introns may have been responsible for the lack of dystrophin expression by CRL-2061 cells, thereby abolishing the tumor suppressor activity of dystrophin.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of heat exposure in the absence of hyperthermia on power output during repeated cycling sprints. Seven males performed four 10-s cycling sprints interspersed by 30 s of active recovery on a cycle ergometer in hot-dry and thermoneutral environments. Changes in rectal temperature were similar under the two ambient conditions. The mean 2-s power output over the 1st–4th sprints was significantly lower under the hot-dry condition than under the thermoneutral condition. The amplitude of the electromyogram was lower under the hot-dry condition than under the thermoneutral condition during the early phase (0–3 s) of each cycling sprint. No significant difference was observed for blood lactate concentration between the two ambient conditions. Power output at the onset of a cycling sprint during repeated cycling sprints is decreased due to heat exposure in the absence of hyperthermia.

Running economy is a key component of distance running performance and is associated with gait parameters. However, there is no consensus of the link between the running economy (RE), ground contact time, and footstrike patterns. Thus, this study aimed to clarify the relationship between RE, ground contact time, and thigh muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) in highly trained distance runners and to compare these parameters between 2 habitual footstrike patterns (midfoot vs. rearfoot). Seventeen male distance runners ran on a treadmill to measure RE and gait parameters. We collected the CSAs of the right thigh muscle using a magnetic resonance imaging scanner. The RE had a significant negative relationship with distance running performance (r = -0.50) and ground contact time (r = -0.51). The ground contact time had a significant negative relationship with the normalized CSAs of the vastus lateralis muscle (r = -0.60) and hamstrings (r = -0.54). No significant differences were found in RE, ground contact time, or normalized CSAs of muscles between midfoot (n = 10) and rearfoot (n = 7) strikers. These results suggest that large CSAs of knee extensor muscles results in short ground contact time and worse RE. The effects of the footstrike pattern on the RE appear insignificant, and the preferred footstrike pattern can be recommended for running in highly trained runners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Increases in maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) and running economy improve performance in long-distance runners. Nevertheless, long-distance runners require sprinting ability to win, especially in the final phase of competitions. The authors determined the relationships between performance and sprinting ability, as well as other abilities in elite long-distance runners. Methods: The subjects were 12 elite long-distance runners. Mean official seasonal best times in 5000-m (5000 m-SB) and 10,000-m (10,000 m-SB) races within 1 year before or after the examination were 13:58.5 (0:18.7) and 28:37.9 (0:25.2) (mean [SD]), respectively. The authors measured 100-m and 400-m sprint times as the index of sprinting ability. They also measured VO2max and running economy (VO2 at 300 m·min-1 of running velocity). They used a single correlation analysis to assess relationships between 5000 m-SB or 10,000 m-SB and other elements. Results: There were significant correlations between 5000 m-SB was significantly correlated with 100-m sprint time (13.3 [0.7] s; r = .68, P = .014), 400-m sprint time (56.6 [2.7] s; r = .69, P = .013), and running economy (55.5 [3.9] mL·kg-1· min-1; r = .59, P = .045). There were significant correlations between 10,000 m-SB and 100-m sprint time (r = .72, P = .009) and 400-m sprint time (r = .85, P < .001). However, there was no significant correlation between 5000 m-SB or 10,000 m-SB and VO2max (72.0 [3.8] mL·kg-1·min-1). Conclusions: The authors' data suggest that sprinting ability is an important indicator of performance in elite long-distance runners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]