Ricerc@Sapienza

Objectives: To study the effects of a standard acute medication withdrawal program on short-term cortical plasticity mechanisms in patients with medication overuse headache (MOH). Methods: Thirteen patients with MOH and 16 healthy volunteers underwent repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) over the left motor cortex; in patients with MOH, recordings were performed before and after a 3-week medication withdrawal program. Ten trains of 10 stimuli each (120% resting motor threshold) were delivered at 1 Hz or 5 Hz in two separate sessions in a randomised order.

Several morphological phenotypes have been associated to RYR1-recessive myopathies. We recharacterized the RYR1-recessive morphological spectrum by a large monocentric study performed on 54 muscle biopsies from a large cohort of 48 genetically confirmed patients, using histoenzymology, immunohistochemistry, and ultrastructural studies. We also analysed the level of RyR1 expression in patients' muscle biopsies.

The aims of this study were: (i) to determine kinematic, kinetic, and electromyographic characteristics of Junzuki karate punch in professional karate athletes; (ii) to identify biomechanical parameters that correlate with punch force and lead to a higher punching performance; (iii) to verify the presence of muscle co-activation in the upper limb, trunk, and lower limb muscles. Data were collected from nine experienced karatekas from the Accademia Italiana Karate e Arti Marziali during the execution of the specific punch.