Background: Previous studies have demonstrated that analysing whisker movements and locomotion allows us to quantify the behavioural consequences of sensory, motor and cognitive deficits in rodents. Independent whisker and feet trackers exist but there is no fully-automated, open-source software and hardware solution, that measures both whisker movements and gait. New Method: We present the LocoWhisk arena and new accompanying software (ARTv2) that allows the automatic detection and measurement of both whisker and gait information from highspeed video footage. Results: We demonstrate the new whisker and foot detector algorithms on high-speed video footage of freely moving small mammals, and show that whisker movement and gait measurements collected in the LocoWhisk arena are similar to previously reported values in the literature. Comparison with existing method(s):We demonstrate that the whisker and foot detector algorithms, are comparable in accuracy, and in some cases significantly better, than readily available software and manual trackers. Conclusion:The LocoWhisk system enables the collection of quantitative data from whisker movements and locomotion in freely behaving rodents. The software automatically records both whisker and gait information and provides added statistical tools to analyse the data. We hope the LocoWhisk system and software will serve as a solid foundation from which to support future research in whisker and gait analysis.
http://shura.shu.ac.uk Development of a test method for assessing laceration injury risk of individual cleats during game-relevant loading conditions Professional rugby union players experience an injury once every 10 matches, and up to 23% of these injuries are skin lacerations. Current regulations to assess laceration injury risk of cleated footwear involve two optional mechanical tests for manufacturers; a drop test and a pendulum test. However, there is limited rationale for these tests and associated impact parameters. A questionnaire among 191 rugby players showed that the ruck is the most prevalent game scenario in which skin laceration injuries occur. During the ruck, laceration injuries result from stamping movements by players wearing cleated footwear. A biomechanical study was conducted to obtain game-relevant impact parameters of stamping in the ruck. Eight participants were asked to perform ten stamps on an anthropomorphic test device. Kinetic and kinematic data were clusteredidentifying two distinct phases of the stamp motion-providing test parameters for mechanical assessment of skin laceration risk. A two-phase mechanical test was designed to quantify laceration injury risk of individual cleats. Phase one represents initial impact and phase two represents the subsequent raking motion as observed in the biomechanical study. Each phase is based on the impact parameters of observed stamping impacts. The developed test method has the potential to be adapted as an international standard for assessing laceration injury risk of cleated footwear. Future research is required to assess the repeatability of this method and its sensitivity to laceration injury.
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