Resveratrol is one of the most widely studied polyphenols and it has been assigned a plethora of metabolic effects with potential health benefits. Given its low bioavailability and extensive metabolism, clinical studies using resveratrol have not always replicated in vitro observations. In this review, we discuss human metabolism and biotransformation of resveratrol, and reported molecular mechanisms of action, within the context of metabolic health and obesity. Resveratrol has been described as mimicking caloric restriction, leading to improved exercise performance and insulin sensitivity (increasing energy expenditure), as well as having a body fat-lowering effect by inhibiting adipogenesis, and increasing lipid mobilization in adipose tissue. These multi-organ effects place resveratrol as an anti-obesity bioactive of potential therapeutic use.

Declining muscle mass and function is one of the main drivers of loss of independence in the elderly. Sarcopenia is associated with numerous cellular and endocrine perturbations, and it remains challenging to identify those changes that play a causal role and could serve as targets for therapeutic intervention. In this study, we uncovered a remarkable differential susceptibility of certain muscles to age-related decline. Aging rats specifically lose muscle mass and function in the hindlimbs, but not in the forelimbs. By performing a comprehensive comparative analysis of these muscles, we demonstrate that regional susceptibility to sarcopenia is dependent on neuromuscular junction fragmentation, loss of motoneuron innervation, and reduced excitability. Remarkably, muscle loss in elderly humans also differs in vastus lateralis and tibialis anterior muscles in direct relation to neuromuscular dysfunction. By comparing gene expression in susceptible and non-susceptible muscles, we identified a specific transcriptomic signature of neuromuscular impairment. Importantly, differential molecular profiling of the associated peripheral nerves revealed fundamental changes in cholesterol biosynthetic pathways. Altogether our results provide compelling evidence that susceptibility to sarcopenia is tightly linked to neuromuscular decline in rats and humans, and identify dysregulation of sterol metabolism in the peripheral nervous system as an early event in this process.

Today's industrial robots require expert knowledge and are not profitable for small and medium sized enterprises with their small lot sizes. It is our strong belief that more intuitive robot programming in an augmented reality robot work cell can dramatically simplify re-programming and leverage robotics technology in short production cycles. In this paper, we present a novel augmented reality system for defining virtual obstacles, specifying tool positions, and specifying robot tasks. We evaluate the system in a user study and, more specifically, investigate the input of robot end-effector orientations in general.

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This paper describes a pretravel model for vertically-oriented touch trigger probes with straight styli widely used on coordinate measuring machines (CMMs). Advances in machine accuracy and tighter part tolerances leave probe error as one of the major error sources in dimensional measurement processes. Pretravel accounts for the majority of touch trigger probe errors and is caused by bending deflection of the probe stylus shaft. A trigger force model was first derived and used to model the probing force at the trigger instant. Experimental probing force data were used to validate the trigger force model. The trigger force model was then used to model the bending deflection of the stylus shaft at the trigger instant. Experimental x-y-z coordinate data were used to validate the pretravel model. It is shown that 24 points of equatorial data measured in the probe calibration process can be used to accurately identify the only model parameter. Also, 12 points of equatorial data provides reasonably good results. Model predicted pretravels associated with 1561 probe approach directions were compared with experimental pretravels (range: 16 μm, when using a 50 mm stylus) and the standard deviation of prediction errors can be reduced to around 0.6 μm.

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