Selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs) are compounds with specific androgenic properties investigated for the treatment of conditions such as muscle wasting diseases. The reported androgenic properties have resulted in their use by athletes, and consequently they have been on the World Anti-Doping Agency prohibited list for more than a decade. SARMs have been investigated by pharmaceutical companies as potential drug candidates, but to date no SARM has demonstrated sufficient safety and efficacy to gain clinical approval by either the European Medicines Agency or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Despite their lack of safety approval, SARMs are often illegally marketed as dietary supplements, available for consumers to buy online. In this study, a range of supplement products marketed as SARMs were purchased and analyzed using high resolution accurate massmass spectrometry to evaluate the accuracy of product claims and content labeling. This study found discrepancies ranging from a supplement in which no active ingredients were found, to supplements containing undeclared prohibited analytes. Where SARMs were detected, discrepancies were observed between the concentrations measured and those detailed on the product packaging. The outcome of this experiment highlights the high risk of such supplement products to consumers. The inaccurate product claims give rise to uncertainty over both the dose taken and the identity of any of these unapproved drugs. Even for supplements for which the product labeling is correct, the lack of complete toxicity data, especially for combinations of SARMs taken as stacks, means that the safety of these supplements is unknown.

SUMMARY Sera from 91 patients with hereditary angioedema were screened for thyroid antibodies. The results for the 77 patients more than 17 years old were compared with previously published data for the prevalence of thyroid disease in a large community (Whickham). Of the female patients with hereditary angioedema, the prevalence of thyroglobulin antibodies (TGA) was 14-0%, higher than the expected 3% (p < 0 001). The prevalence of thyroid microsomal antibodies (TMA) was 20%, also higher than the expected 7-6% (p < 0-01). The age distributions of the females in both groups differed: in the group with hereditary angioedema there was a greater proportion of younger patients which should have resulted in a lower prevalence of thyroid antibodies. Adjusting for related patients with hereditary angioedema, there was still an increased prevalence of TGA (p < 0 01) and TMA (p < 0 01).

Hereditary angioedema is an autosomal dominant disorder of the complement system in which there is a deficiency of the inhibitor of the activated first component of complement. We have previously reported on three generations of a family with classic hereditary angioedema. Three members of this family have now developed IgA nephropathy. The association of hereditary angioedema with various immunoregulatory disorders has been previously reported but this is the first report of IgA nephropathy in association with this condition.

Although acoustic emission (AE) techniques have been extensively studied in concrete engineering and been applied to monitoring structures in service, there has been very little research in relating AE parameters, such as energy, to physical properties such as crack area and crack depth. In this paper a study is performed using mortar specimens to investigate the relationship between AE energy and fracture area and depth.A series of notched mortar specimens of known fracture area and depth, grouted into concrete beams, were loaded to produce instantaneous failure by a shear force. The waveforms created by the failure were monitored by AE sensors attached to the concrete beam.Examination of the waveforms produced by a range of sensors with different frequency responses reveals that the fracture depth affects the AE energy detected during failure. No meaningful relationship between fracture area and AE energy was detected. These results can be used to aid the quantification of crack size based on energy release from concrete structures in the field.

Concrete hinge joints are present in over 100 bridges in Wales and England, they were introduced into bridge decks as a means of simplifying the design and standardising details on bridges having a range of span and functional requirements. Hinged joints are not easily accessible for inspection or maintenance due to their form and their location over or under live traffic lanes. They are vulnerable to deterioration in the event of bridge deck waterproofing failure, which can cause steel reinforcement bar corrosion. This reinforcement is crucial to the integrity of the joint, and the loss of reinforcement section can induce higher stresses leading to eventual failure by yielding.The aim of these investigations was to determine the effectiveness of the Acoustic Emission (AE) technique in detecting defects in reinforced concrete bridge hinge joints. A laboratory investigation was completed on a 1m length of reinforcement bar. Sensors were attached to the bar during fatigue loading and a fatigue crack monitored. The tests showed that it was possible to locate fatigue cracks within reinforcement bars. A field trial was completed on one hinge joint on the M4 River Usk Crossing. Sensors were attached to the reinforcement steel using wave-guides and onto the concrete face of the joint. Monitoring was undertaken during a one-day period of normal traffic loading and via a series of controlled load tests. Located AE emissions associated with the steel work were low in energy level and activity which suggested that there was no active damage associated with this particular hinge joint, this result was confirmed by X-ray monitoring.