Objectives: To determine whether age, body mass index (BMI), hand length and forearm circumference were predictive of hand grip strength in healthy Saudi Arabian adult males. Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive study recruited healthy adult male volunteers. Their anthropometric characteristics including age, BMI, hand length and forearm circumference were measured using routine techniques. Hand grip strength was assessed using a Jamar® Hydraulic Hand Dynamometer. The data were analysed using Pearson correlation coefficient ( r) as well as by a stepwise multiple linear regression analysis. Results: The study included 116 healthy males who satisfied the inclusion criteria. A Pearson correlation coefficient matrix demonstrated that all the four measures, age, BMI, hand length and forearm circumference, were significantly correlated with hand grip strength. Age had an inverse correlation with hand grip strength. The anthropometric measures of hand length, age and forearm circumference accounted for 44.2% (R² 0.442) of the variation of the hand grip strength. Conclusion: Hand length, age and forearm circumference significantly impacted on hand grip strength in Saudi Arabian healthy adult males.

Chest wall circumference measurements are common evaluation methods in clinical settings by therapists in order to obtain chest wall mobility. Previous published results have been conflicting, and there is a lot of variability in the method of testing, which needs testing in different conditions. Seventy subjects (25 healthy nonsmokers, 25 healthy smokers, and 20 COPD) aged between 18 and 70 years participated in the study. Upper and lower chest expansion (CE) measurements (2 levels) are performed with cloth inch tape. Intrarater (between day) and interrater (within-day) reliability of CE measurements was evaluated by two examiners. Lung function parameters, forced expiratory volume in first second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), FEV1/FVC, and vital capacity (VC) were measured using a computerized spirometer (Spiro lab 3). The intrarater reliability for upper and lower CE showed very good agreement with intraclass correlation (ICC) values between 0.90 and 0.93 for upper CE and 0.85 to 0.86 for lower CE. The interrater reliability for upper CE showed good to very good agreement with ICC values ranging between 0.78 and 0.83, and lower CE showed very good agreement with ICC values ranging between 0.82 and 0.84. Upper and lower CE showed a significant and positive correlation with all lung function parameters, with strong correlation with FEV1/FVC (r = 0.68). Upper and lower CE measurements with inch tape showed good intra- and interrater reliability and reproducibility in healthy nonsmokers, healthy smokers, and COPD subjects. Compared to upper, lower CE correlated well with the lung function parameters. Upper and lower CE may be more useful in clinical practice to evaluate chest mobility and to give indirect information on lung function but interpretation with caution is required when considering implementation into clinical setting.

B-cell lymphoma/leukemia gene-2 (Bcl-2) is the primary proto-oncogene that has been shown to work by preventing apoptosis/programmed cell death. Bcl-2 combines a variety of cell-generated signals associated to the survival and death of cells. In glioma, lung, and breast cancer, Bcl-2 over-expression has been linked to an increase in invasion and migration. Many treatment regimens that target Bcl2 have been established and approved, and thus increasing the survival rates of the patients. The primary goal of this research was to recognize new therapeutic compounds that target Bcl2 and assess Bcl2 expression pattern in BC patients. We used various bioinformatic tools as well as several in vitro assays to look out the expression and inhibition of Bcl2 in BC. Our study depicted that Bcl2 had a strong connection with tumour stroma, notably with suppressor cells originating from myeloid tissues. Moreover, in vitro and in silico research identified Paclitaxel as a promising natural substance that targets Bcl2. Overall, this work shows that Bcl2 overexpression accelerates the development of BC, and that targeting Bcl2 in combination with other drugs will dramatically improve BC patient's response to treatment and prevent the emergence of drug resistance.

Cervical proprioception is a common term used in neck rehabilitation, and it is examined using neutral head position (NHP) and target head position (THP) tests. To investigate intra- and inter-rater reliability of the NHP and THP tests in patients with neck pain and in healthy controls. The intra-rater (between-day) and inter-rater (within-day) reliability of the NHP and THP tests were assessed in 36 patients with neck pain and 33 healthy subjects. NHP testing was evaluated in cervical extension, while THP testing was evaluated in six directions of cervical motion: cervical flexion, extension, side bending right, side bending left, rotation right, and rotation left. The intra-rater reliability for the NHP tests had intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) values of 0.74-0.78 and a standard error of measurement (SEM) of 1.78-1.88; the THP tests had ICC values of 0.70-0.83 and SEM of 1.45-2.45. Likewise, inter-rater reliability for NHP had ICC values of 0.74-0.79 and SEM of 1.79-1.87. For the THP test, the inter-rater reliability had ICC values of 0.62-0.84 and SEM of 1.50-2.23. Intra- and inter-rater reliability ranged from good to very good agreement both for NHP and for THP tests of cervical proprioception.

This study quantitatively assesses the association between age and cervical joint position error (JPE) and compares JPE between young and older asymptomatic subjects. Subjects (n = 230) ranging in age from 17 to 70 years volunteered to participate in the study. Cervical JPE was measured for all subjects with the active movement angle reproduction test in degrees using a digital inclinometer; testing was done in all cervical movement directions (flexion, extension, side-bending right and left, rotation right and left). Subjects were divided into two groups: young (n = 169, mean age: 32.4 years; range 17-49 years) and older (n = 61, mean age: 61.9 years; range 50-70 years) and JPE was compared. Pearson's product-moment correlation coefficients were significant and positive for the association of age on cervical JPE in flexion (r = 0.71), extension (r = 0.81), side-bending right (r = 0.77), side-bending left (r = 0.84), rotation right (r = 0.84), and rotation left (r = 0.84). JPE was significantly larger (for all movement directions) in the older subject group (P < 0.001). Advancing age was significantly associated with the increasing cervical JPE and older subjects showed greater errors when compared to younger subjects.