Manchester Metropolitan University

About: Manchester Metropolitan University is a education organization based out in Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 5435 authors who have published 16202 publications receiving 442561 citations. The organization is also known as: Manchester Polytechnic & MMU.

More than a feeling: Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) is characterized by reliable changes in affect and physiology.

Abstract: Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) describes the experience of tingling sensations in the crown of the head, in response to a range of audio-visual triggers such as whispering, tapping, and hand movements. Public interest in ASMR has risen dramatically and ASMR experiencers watch ASMR videos to promote relaxation and sleep. Unlike ostensibly similar emotional experiences such as “aesthetic chills” from music and awe-inspiring scenarios, the psychological basis of ASMR has not yet been established. We present two studies (one large-scale online experiment; one laboratory study) that test the emotional and physiological correlates of the ASMR response. Both studies showed that watching ASMR videos increased pleasant affect only in people who experienced ASMR. Study 2 showed that ASMR was associated with reduced heart rate and increased skin conductance levels. Findings indicate that ASMR is a reliable and physiologically-rooted experience that may have therapeutic benefits for mental and physical health.

Prior Heavy Exercise Enhances Performance during Subsequent Perimaximal Exercise

Abstract: Purpose: To test the hypothesis that prior heavy exercise increases the time to exhaustion during subsequent perimaximal exercise. Methods: Seven healthy males (mean +/- SD 27 +/- 3 yr; 78.4 +/- 0.7 kg) completed square-wave transitions from unloaded cycling to work rates equivalent to 100, 110, and 120% of the work rate at [latin capital V with dot above]O2peak (W-[latin capital V with dot above]O2peak) after no prior exercise (control, C) and 10 min after a 6-min bout of heavy exercise at 50% Δ (HE; half-way between the gas exchange threshold (GET) and [latin capital V with dot above]O2peak), in a counterbalanced design. Results: Blood [lactate] was significantly elevated before the onset of the perimaximal exercise bouts after prior HE (2.5 vs 1.1 mM; P < 0.05). Prior HE increased time to exhaustion at 100% (mean +/- SEM. C: 386 +/- 92 vs HE: 613 +/- 161 s), 110% (C: 218 +/- 26 vs HE: 284 +/- 47 s), and 120% (C: 139 +/- 18 vs HE: 180 +/- 29 s) of W-[latin capital V with dot above]O2peak, (all P < 0.01). [latin capital V with dot above]O2 was significantly higher at 1 min into exercise after prior HE at 110% W-[latin capital V with dot above]O2peak (C: 3.11 +/- 0.14 vs HE: 3.42 +/- 0.16 L[middle dot]min-1; P < 0.05), and at 1 min into exercise (C: 3.25 +/- 0.12 vs HE: 3.67 +/- 0.15; P < 0.01) and at exhaustion (C: 3.60 +/- 0.08 vs HE: 3.95 +/- 0.12 L[middle dot]min-1; P < 0.01) at 120% of W-[latin capital V with dot above]O2peak. Conclusions: This study demonstrate that prior HE, which caused a significant elevation of blood [lactate], resulted in an increased time to exhaustion during subsequent perimaximal exercise presumably by enabling a greater aerobic contribution to the energy requirement of exercise.

Effect of ageing on the electrical and mechanical properties of human soleus motor units activated by the H reflex and M wave

Abstract: This study was designed to investigate the effect of ageing on the mechanical and electromyographic (EMG) characteristics of the soleus motor units (MUs) activated by the maximal Hoffmann reflex (Hmax) and by the direct muscle compound action potential (Mmax). Eleven young (mean age 25 ± 4 years) and ten elderly (mean age 73 ± 5 years) males took part in this investigation. The senior group presented lower amplitudes of Mmax (−57 %, P < 0.001) and Hmax (−68 %, P < 0.001) waves compared to the younger population. These were associated with a depression of relative twitch torque of the plantar flexors. The average values of the Hmax/Mmax ratio did not statistically differ between the two populations, despite a tendency for lower values (∼23 %) in the senior group. However, the older adults showed a greater relative amplitude of the sub-maximal M wave evoked at Hmax (MatHmax) than did the younger males (young 5 % vs. elderly 29 % of the Mmax, P < 0.01). This finding suggests an increased homogeneity between the excitability threshold of sensory and motor axons. The twitch torque at Hmax (PtH–M) was subsequently calculated by subtraction from the total twitch torque of the mechanical contamination associated with MatHmax. The resulting PtH–M was significantly lower in the elderly (−59 %, P < 0.001). Despite a discrepancy of 20 % between the two groups, the mechanical ratio (PtH–M/PtM; PtM, twitch tension related to the Mmax compound action potential), like the EMG ratio, did not statistically differ between the young and older individuals. Nevertheless, the senior subjects exhibited a higher twitch/EMG ratio for the reflexively activated MUs (PtH–M/Hmax) than the younger individuals (+40 %, P < 0.05). This finding suggests an on-going neuromuscular remodelling, resulting in an increased innervation ratio. The neural rearrangement may be viewed as a compensatory adaptation of the motor system to preserve the mechanical efficiency of the surviving MUs, despite the age-related impairment of the segmental reflex system. This phenomenon is confirmed by the maintenance, with senescence, of the approximately constant values of the twitch/EMG ratio for the entire motor pool (PtM/Mmax).

A field study of age and gender differences in habitual adult sleep

Abstract: The sleep of 52 healthy paid subjects (23 male) divided into three age-bands (20–34, 35–49 and 50–70 y) were recorded at night in their homes for a total of 190 subject-nights while following their normal daily activities and habitual sleep-wake schedule. There was a shortening in both nocturnal total sleep period and total sleep time (TST) with age, the oldest group sleeping 46 min less than the youngest. Also, the mid-point of sleep occurred 32 min earlier in the oldest group compared with the youngest group. The reduction in TST with age was due, in part, to increased wake periods within sleep. The youngest subjects showed more Movement Time which progressively decreased with age while the amount of stage 1 increased with age. The amount of slow-wave sleep (SWS, stages 3+4) was reduced, stage 4 was more than halved, while REM was slightly reduced with age. There were far fewer significant gender differences in the sleep variables: males, particularly in the middle and oldest age bands, had more stage 1 than females, while females had more SWS, particularly stage 3, than males. In general, despite relatively limited subject selection criteria, there was good agreement with previous laboratory-based normative sleep values for the effect of age and gender.