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The impact of a rider’s and saddle’s mass on saddle thermal pattern distribution was evaluated using infrared thermography (IRT). Eighteen racehorses were ridden by four riders with their own saddle. Images of the saddle panels were captured at each of six thermographic examinations. On each image, six regions of interest (ROIs) were marked on the saddle panels. The mean temperature for each ROI was extracted. To evaluate the influence of load on saddle fit, 4 indicators were used: ΔTmax (difference between the mean temperature of the warmest and coolest ROI); standard deviation of the mean temperature of the six ROIs; right/left; bridging/rocking and front/back thermal pattern indicator. Incorrect saddle fit was found in 25 measurements (23.1%) with ΔTmax greater than 2°C. The relationships between rider and saddle fit as well as saddle fit and horse were significant (p<0.001). An average ΔTmax in rider A was significantly higher than in other riders (p<0.001). The right/left thermal pattern differed significantly from the optimal value for riders A and B; while the bridging/rocking thermal pattern differed significantly from this value for riders A, C and D (p<0.05). Front saddle thermal pattern was most frequent for rider A (41.5%), whereas back saddle thermal pattern was most frequent for rider C (85.7%). Measurement of the mean temperature in 6 ROIs on saddle panels after training was helpful in assessing the influence of rider and saddle mass on saddle fit. IRT offered a non-invasive, rapid and simple method for assessing load on thermal pattern distribution in race saddles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aim of the study was to determine changes in the magnitude and direction of secular trends in body height, body weight, body mass index (BMI) and fat percentage in university students from a university of technology and a university of physical education in a period of 50 years. Methods: The data were derived from the examinations of male students from the Warsaw University of Technology, conducted four times, in 1959, 1971, 1994, 2011, and male students from the Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw, who were examined in 1963, 1972, 1996, and 2012. Body height, body weight and thickness of 2 skinfolds (triceps skinfold and abdomen skinfold) were measured. Body mass index (BMI) and fat percentage (FAT%) were also calculated. Results: Current university students are taller and heavier than their peers from the previous decades, with BMI remaining within the reference range. A substantial increase in fat percentage was found in both groups. Over the period of fifty years, mean fat percentage in students from the university of technology increased by 6.3% (F1,3 = 116.56, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.3736), whereas this increase in the students from the university of physical education rose by 3.5% (F1,3 = 72.94, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.3181). Conclusion: Changes in secular trends in the students from both universities are likely to be linked to the dynamic economic and systematic transformation in Poland observed in the period of the last 50 years. The period of economic transformations in the last decade was more conducive to physical development of university students than the previous period of economic crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bat wings are characterized by high endurance, and these mammals have developed a number of adaptations that protect them from falling into obstacles and potential injuries. However, in bat populations, there are individuals with visible fresh or healed injuries to the flight–enabling body parts. The aim of this research was to determine the differences in the occurrence of wing membrane damages among species of bats that differ in ecology and behavior. The study was conducted in southern and western Poland in the years 2000–2016 and included 3,525 individuals of six species: lesser horseshoe bat Rhinolopus hipposideros, Daubenton’s bat Myotis daubentonii, Natterer’s bat Myotis nattereri, greater mouse–eared bat Myotis myotis, western barbastelle Barbastella barbastellus, and brown long–eared bat Plecotus auritus. In all, 2.9% of the bats studied showed damage to the flight–enabling body parts. Natterer’s bat was the species with the highest number of injured individuals (21.74%). The lowest number of injured individuals (0.3%) was found in the brown long–eared bat. The most frequently observed type of damage was loss of an edge of the wing membrane (29.3%). The bat species studied differed significantly in the occurrence and location of flight enabling body parts damages. Certain behavioral and ecological factors like foraging mode, foraging habitats and habitat types of bat species determine the number of wing and tail membrane damages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Folate and homocysteine are involved in DNA synthesis and methylation processes, which are deregulated during carcinogenesis. Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between folate/homocysteine concentrations, the functional polymorphisms of folate/homocysteine genes and lung cancer risk among cigarette smokers. Study design: The study included 132 lung cancer patients and 396 controls from northern Poland, matched by sex, age and smoking status. The median cigarette pack-years of smoking among both cases and controls was 30.0. Serum, red blood cell (RBC) folates and serum homocysteine concentrations were measured. The genotypes in selected polymorphic sites of the MTHFR, CBS, SHMT1, MTHFD1, MTRR, MTR, TYMS DHFR, TCN2, and SLC19A1 genes were determined. All study participants underwent scanning with low-dose computed tomography. Results: Serum folate concentrations above the median (> 17.5 nmol/l among the healthy controls) were associated with an increased lung cancer risk (odds ratio [OR], 1.54, 95% confidence intervals [CI], 1.04–2.29, P = 0.031). An analogous trend was observed when the population was analysed after subdivision according to RBC folate concentrations, that is, above a value of 506.5 nmol/l (OR, 1.53; 95% CI, 0.95–2.47; P = 0.084). Additionally, in a subset of women, an increased risk of lung cancer development was associated with the SLC19A1 c.80AA genotype (c.80AA versus GG OR, 3.14; 95% CI, 1.32–7.46; P = P = 0.010). Conclusion: These results suggest that, in the population consisting of heavy smokers, high folate levels add to the cancerogenic effect of smoking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Encephalitis is a severe neurological syndrome associated with high morbidity and mortality as well as long-term neurological sequelae. Despite being an important public health problem, very few extensive population-based studies were conducted so far in the world and none in Central Europe. Altogether 114 consecutive patients meeting the initial criteria for encephalitis were enrolled at the Warsaw Hospital for Infectious Diseases between June 2012 and July 2015. Eighteen patients were secondarily excluded from the analysis due to incomplete data or noinfectious cause. Potential pathogen sequences were searched for by molecular methods in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and specific antibodies were detected in CSF and sera. An infectious agent was identified in 41 patients (42.7%). The most frequently diagnosed infections were Human herpesvirus 1 (HHV-1) (22 cases, 24%) followed by Enterovirus (6 cases, 6.3%), Varicella zoster virus (VZV) (5 cases, 5.2%), Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) (6 cases, 6.3%) and Cytomegalovirus (CMV) (2 cases, 2.1%). There were no cases of human adenovirus, Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) or West Nile virus (WNV) infection identified. In 55 cases (57.3%) the cause of encephalitis remained unknown. Compared to patients in whom the diagnosis was determined the latter group contained more women, was less likely to manifest fever and had lower CSF pleocytosis (p < 0.05) In summary, we identified HHV-1 followed by Enterovirus, VZV and TBEV as the most common causes of encephalitis among adult patients in Poland. In a large proportion of patients the cause of encephalitis remained unknown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was conducted on the mouflon-derived horned sheep of the preserved Polish Heath Sheep breed. In this study, basic skull measurements of 24 skulls of the rams of different age: 1 day, 90 days, 210 days, 270 days, 3 and 6 years, were analyzed. The weight of each skull was determined, as well as 43 craniometric characteristics were measured, and cranial cavity volume and viscerocranial and neurocranial indices were calculated. From birth to the age of 6 years, the greatest length of the skull, the condylobasal length and the length of the cheek-tooth row increased two-fold. To day 210 of age, the bony housing for eyeball and its organs grew intensively. To day 270 of age, the largest increase was characteristic of the elements of the angular length of the neurocranium and its breadth. The structural elements characterizing both the breadth and the length of the viscerocranium developed to the age of 6 years. A significant (P£0.05), decreasing with age, value of the cephalic index was observed, being mostly affected by development of the squamous part of the frontal bone with its orbital part and the orbital margin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. This study presents a clinical and histological evaluation of human pulp tissue responses after direct capping using a new dentin adhesive system. Methods. Twenty-eight caries-free third molar teeth scheduled for extraction were evaluated. The pulps of 22 teeth were mechanically exposed and randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups: Single Bond Universal or calcium hydroxide. Another group of 6 teeth acted as the intact control group. The periapical response was assayed, and a clinical examination was performed. The teeth were extracted after 6 weeks, and a histological analysis was performed. The pulp status was assessed, and the thickness of the dentin bridge was measured and categorized using a histological scoring system. Results. The clinical phase was asymptomatic for Single Bond Universal patients. Patients in the calcium hydroxide group reported mild symptoms of pain, although the histological examination revealed that dentin bridges with or without limited pulpitis had begun forming in each tooth. The universal adhesive system exhibited nonsignificantly increased histological signs of pulpitis (P>0.05) and a significantly weaker thin mineralized tissue layer (P<0.001) compared with the calcium hydroxide group. Conclusion. The results suggest that Single Bond Universal is inappropriate for human pulp capping; however, further long-term studies are needed to determine the biocompatibility of this agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of current study was to examine clonal structure and genetic profile of invasive Staphylococcus aureus isolates recovered from infants and children treated at the Jagiellonian University Children’s Hospital of Krakow, Poland. The 107 invasive S. aureus isolates, collected between February 2012 and August 2014, were analysed retrospectively. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing, spa typing and DNA microarray analysis were performed to determine clonal distribution, diversity and gene content in regard to patients characteristics. In total, 107 isolates were recovered from 88 patients with clinical symptoms of invasive bacterial infection. The final set of 92 non-duplicate samples included 38 MRSA isolates. Additionally, a set of 54 S. aureus isolates collected during epidemiological screening was genotyped and analysed. There were 72 healthcare-associated (HCA) and 20 community-onset (CO) infection events caused by 33 and 5 MRSA isolates, respectively. The majority of isolates were affiliated with the major European clonal complexes CC5 (t003, spa-CC 002), CC45 (spa-CC 015), CC7 or CC15 (t084, t091, spa-CC 084). Two epidemic clones (CC5-MRSA-II or CC45-MRSA-IV) dominated among MRSA isolates, while MSSA population contained 15 different CCs. The epidemiological screening isolates belonged to similar genetic lineages as those collected from invasive infection cases. The HCA infection events, spa types t003, t2642 or CC5 were significantly associated with infections occurring in neonates and children under 5 years of age. Moreover, carriage of several genetic markers, including erm(A), sea (N315), egc-cluster, chp was significantly higher in isolates obtained from children in this age group. The spa types t091 and t008 were underrepresented among patients aged 5 years or younger, whereas spa type t008, CC8 and presence of splE was associated with infection in children aged 10 years or older. The HCA-MRSA strains were most frequently found in children under 5 years, although the majority of invasive infections was associated with MSSA strains. Moreover, an association between age group of children from the study population and a specific strain genotype (spa type, clonal complex or genetic content) was observed among the patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]