The principal finding was that the

stretch response of a chemically permeabilized rabbit psoas fiber could be reproduced with a framework consisting of 300 half-sarcomeres arranged in 6 parallel myofibrils without requiring titin filaments to stiffen in activating solutions. Ablation of inter-myofibrillar links in the computer simulations lowered isometric force values and lowered energy absorption during a stretch. This computed behavior mimics effects learn more previously observed in experiments using muscles from desmin-deficient mice in which the connections between Z-disks in adjacent myofibrils are presumably compromised. The current simulations suggest that muscle fibers exhibit emergent properties that reflect interactions between half-sarcomeres and are not properties of a single half-sarcomere in isolation. It is therefore likely that full quantitative understanding of a fiber’s mechanical properties requires detailed analysis of a complete fiber system and cannot be achieved by focusing solely on the properties of a single half-sarcomere.”
“Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is an effective treatment for depression. Increased

GSK2126458 order metabolism in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is a known predictor for antidepressant response. The authors assessed whether increased theta power within the ACC predicts rTMS response in participants with vascular depression. Sixty-five participants were randomized to active or sham rTMS. Outcome was assessed Selleckchem VX-661 using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Electroencephalography

was obtained, and comparisons were made among each group with a normative database using low-resolution electromagnetic tomography. Results suggest that vascular depression participants respond well to rTMS and that increased low-theta power in the subgenual ACC predicts response to rTMS. (The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences 2010; 22:75-84)”
“We present computational simulation and experimental results of ambient air atomic force microscopy (AFM) characterization with simultaneous excitation and control of three eigenmodes of a rectangular microcantilever beam. Trimodal characterization combining amplitude and frequency modulation is an enhancement of the capabilities of the AFM technique, which could allow the rapid acquisition of topographical, phase, and frequency shift contrast with a single surface scan at normal scan rates. The results suggest that, in general, the phase and frequency shift contrast are affected similarly but in opposite directions by the tip-sample interactions, although deviations from this trend are often observed in the experiments, such that all available sources of contrast could provide complementary information on surface properties. (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.