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Die Analyse von und die Reflexion über Unterricht sind zentrale Elemente universitärer Lehrkräftebildung. Dabei kann sowohl in der Lehre als auch in der Forschung begriffliche Heterogenität bzgl. Reflexion konstatiert werden. Auch fehlt eine klare Abgrenzung zwischen Analyse und Reflexion von Unterricht. Aufbauend auf der Konzeption des Selbstbezugs als ein zentrales Unterscheidungsmerkmal wird mittels eines quasi-experimentellen Prä-Post-Interventions-Kontrollgruppendesigns geprüft, inwiefern sich Unterrichtsanalysen von Unterrichtsreflexionen in ihren Auswirkungen auf die professionelle Unterrichtswahrnehmung (PUW) und die klassenführungsbezogene Selbstwirksamkeit (SW) unterscheiden. An einer Stichprobe von 194 angehenden Lehrkräften im Master of Education einer Hochschule kann gezeigt werden, dass Unterrichtsanalyse und -reflexion vergleichbar positive Effekte auf die PUW zeigten (besser als eine Kontrollgruppe ohne spezifische Intervention). Allerdings zeigt die Reflexionsgruppe eine stärkere Zunahme klassenführungsbezogener SW im Vergleich zu den anderen beiden Gruppen. Die Ergebnisse deuten somit darauf hin, dass durch den expliziten Selbstbezug selbstgerichtete Kognitionen verstärkt thematisiert werden und damit zusätzliche Aspekte professioneller Kompetenz adressiert werden können.
“Blood for Blood”? Personal Motives and Deterrents for Blood Donation in the German Population
(2021)
‘Chameleonic' Serological Findings Leading to Life-Threatening Hemolytic Transfusion Reactions
(2015)
Background: The phenomena of co-incidence of transfusion-induced allo- and autoantibodies, blockage and/or loss of red blood cell (RBC) antigens are conspicuous and may result in confusion and misdiagnosis. Case Report: A 67-year-old female was transferred to the intensive care unit due to hemolysis which developed 2 days following transfusion of three Rh(D)-negative RBC units in the presence of strongly reactive autoantibodies. Standard serological testing and genotyping were performed. Upon arrival, the patient was typed as Ccddee. Her hemolysis was decompensated, and an immediate blood transfusion was required. In addition, direct and indirect antiglobulin tests (DAT and IAT) as well as the eluate were strongly positive. Emergency transfusion of Rh(D)-negative RBCs resulted in increased hemolysis and renal failure. An exhaustive testing revealed anti-D, anti-c, CCddee phenotype and CCD.ee genotype. Three units of cryopreserved CCddee RBCs were transfused, and the patient's condition immediately improved. The discrepancy between Rh-D phenotyping and genotyping was likely caused by masking of the D-epitopes by the autoantibodies. In fact, further enquiry revealed that the patient had been phenotyped as Rh(D)-positive 6 months ago and had been transfused at that time following hip surgery. Conclusion: The phenomena of transfusion-induced autoantibodies, masked alloantibodies, antigen blockage and/or loss are rare but important features which should be considered in patients presenting with autoimmune hemolytic anemia and/or hemolytic transfusion reactions.
β-Phenylalanine Ester Synthesis from Stable β-Keto Ester Substrate Using Engineered ω-Transaminases
(2018)
Abstract
Background
Toxins are key virulence determinants of pathogens and can impair the function of host immune cells, including platelets. Insights into pathogen toxin interference with platelets will be pivotal to improve treatment of patients with bacterial bloodstream infections.
Materials and Methods
In this study, we deciphered the effects of Staphylococcus aureus toxins α‐hemolysin, LukAB, LukDE, and LukSF on human platelets and compared the effects with the pore forming toxin pneumolysin of Streptococcus pneumoniae. Activation of platelets and loss of platelet function were investigated by flow cytometry, aggregometry, platelet viability, fluorescence microscopy, and intracellular calcium release. Thrombus formation was assessed in whole blood.
Results
α‐hemolysin (Hla) is known to be a pore‐forming toxin. Hla‐induced calcium influx initially activates platelets as indicated by CD62P and αIIbβ3 integrin activation, but also induces finally alterations in the phenotype of platelets. In contrast to Hla and pneumolysin, S. aureus bicomponent pore‐forming leukocidins LukAB, LukED, and LukSF do not bind to platelets and had no significant effect on platelet activation and viability. The presence of small amounts of Hla (0.2 µg/ml) in whole blood abrogates thrombus formation indicating that in systemic infections with S. aureus the stability of formed thrombi is impaired. Damage of platelets by Hla was not neutralized by intravenous immune globulins.
Conclusion
Our findings might be of clinical relevance for S. aureus induced endocarditis. Stabilizing the aortic‐valve thrombi by inhibiting Hla‐induced impairment of platelets might reduce the risk for septic (micro‐)embolization.
Fatty aldehydes (FALs) can be derived from fatty acids (FAs) and related compounds and are frequently used as flavors and fragrances. Although chemical methods have been conventionally used, their selective biotechnological production aiming at more efficient and eco-friendly synthetic routes is in demand. α-Dioxygenases (α-DOXs) are heme-dependent oxidative enzymes biologically involved in the initial step of plant FA α-oxidation during which molecular oxygen is incorporated into the Cα-position of a FA (Cn) to generate the intermediate FA hydroperoxide, which is subsequently converted into the shortened corresponding FAL (Cn-1). α-DOXs are promising biocatalysts for the flavor and fragrance industries, they do not require NAD(P)H as cofactors or redox partner proteins, and they have a broad substrate scope. Here, we highlight recent advances in the biocatalytic utilization of α-DOXs with emphasis on newly discovered cyanobacterial α-DOXs as well as analytical methods to measure α-DOX activity in vitro and in vivo.
Summary
The present article deals with Easy-to-read Russian. It focuses on the level of syntax which is mainly characterized by the avoidance of complex sentence structures. The necessity to write sentences that are as short and simple as possible is intuitively comprehensible, but often difficult to implement in practice since Easy-to-read texts also have to express causal, final or many other relations. Suggestions for avoiding complex syntactic structures in Russian are submitted and put up for discussion by consulting results and important proposals of studies about German “Leichte Sprache”. This includes both clause constructions and complex sentences with their individual subgroups as well as asyndetic compound sentences. On the whole, the study is intended to make a linguistically substantiated contribution to the development of Easy-to-read Russian, for which there are only initial approaches available today.
ZfSl 54 (2009) 2, 224-240 Ulrike Jekutsch Zur Schau gestellte Fiktion: Die Erfindung polnischer Frühgeschichte in Słowackis Tragödien „Balladyna“ und „Lilla Weneda“SummaryJuliusz Słowacki’s tragedies “Balladyna” (1834, publ. 1839) and “Lilla Weneda” (1840) are set in legendary pre-historical times. Reflecting the Polish nation-building process, they outline invented episodes und char-acters in the beginnings of the first Polish state. With these plays, Słowacki wanted to give his people poeti-cally created legends, which would enrich their scanty stock of stories from pre-historical times and fill out the gaps in their national historical knowledge. Słowacki’s foreword to “Balladyna” serves as an introduc-tion to a projected cycle of plays about Polish pre-history. Here, the playwright openly exposes the fictional-ity of both characters and plot, and he draws attention to the many historical inconsistencies and anachro-nisms in the text. At the same time, he claims that the intrinsic truth of poetry ranks higher than mere factual accuracy, and that his plays, despite their historical inaccuracy, may become Polish-pre-history. His inven-tion of new episodes of Polish pre-history is aimed polemically against contemporary historiography – espe-cially against two issues, i. e. first, romantic historiography’s pretension to play the role of universal art (Universalwissenschaft), and secondly, the traditional Polish idealization of known figures of pre-history. The article discusses these two aspects of Słowacki’s plays, focussing on his polemics against contemporary Polish historiography and especially against Joachim Lelewel.
Zur Messqualität des Beck-Depressionsinventars (BDI-II) in
unterschiedlichen klinischen Stichproben
(2022)
Theoretischer Hintergrund: Das BDI-II ist ein Selbstbeurteilungsinstrument zur Erfassung des Schweregrads einer Depression. Es liegen kaum Analysen mit Modellen aus der Item-Response-Theorie (IRT) vor. Fragestellung: Wie hoch ist die Messgenauigkeit des BDI-II über die unterschiedlichen Ausprägungen des latenten Traits (Depressivität) hinweg und sind die Kategorien der Items jeweils aufsteigend geordnet? Methode: Anhand von sechs großen Datensätzen aus verschiedenen klinischen Bereichen wurden psychometrische Analysen mit dem Graded Response Model durchgeführt. Ergebnisse: In allen Stichproben fand sich eine hohe interne Konsistenz. Die Schwellenwerte waren mit Ausnahme von Item 6 („Bestrafungsgefühle“) geordnet. Gemäß Testinformationsfunktion misst das BDI-II im mittleren bis hohen Depressionsbereich sehr gut (Reliabilität > .90) und im unteren Bereich gut. Schlussfolgerung: Für das BDI-II ergibt sich eine hohe und relativ gleichbleibende Messpräzision über einen weiten Bereich des latenten Traits, weshalb es insbesondere im klinischen, aber auch im nicht klinisch relevanten Wertebereich zur Erhebung des Schweregrades einer Depression gut geeignet ist.
Hintergrund
Ein Hauptziel der Versorgung von Patient*innen mit Cochlea-Implantat (CI) ist die Verbesserung des Sprachverstehens. Einer der Zielparameter ist die Sprachverständlichkeit in Ruhe. Die Versorgungsergebnisse lassen jedoch eine sehr große Variabilität erkennen, welche bislang nur unzureichend erklärt werden konnte. Ziel dieser nichtinterventionellen retrospektiven Studie war die Aufklärung dieser Variabilität. Dies erfolgte anhand einer ausgewählten Population von Patient*innen, bei der die Ätiologie keinen negativen Einfluss auf die postoperative Sprachverständlichkeit erwarten ließ.
Material und Methoden
Es wurden die audiometrischen Befunde der CI-Folgetherapie von 28 erwachsenen Patient*innen nach 6 Monaten CI-Erfahrung ausgewertet. Diese wurden in Relation zur präoperativen audiometrischen Untersuchung gesetzt und hinsichtlich eines unlängst publizierten Prädiktionsmodells für das postoperative Einsilberverstehen ausgewertet.
Ergebnisse
Durch Einschluss der postoperativen Hörfeldskalierung und des Hörverlusts für Zahlen in das Modell lassen sich 55 % der Variabilität in den Versorgungsergebnissen bzgl. des Einsilberverstehens erklären.
Schlussfolgerung
Die Ergebnisse dieser Studie legen nahe, dass ein Großteil der Ursachen für die Variabilität der Versorgungsergebnisse durch systematische postoperative audiometrische Kontrollen erfasst werden kann. Aus diesen Ergebnissen können sich unmittelbare Schlussfolgerungen für die Anpassungen der CI-Systeme ziehen lassen. Inwieweit diese jedoch von den einzelnen Patient*innen akzeptiert werden und somit zu einer Verbesserung der Befundlage führen, muss Gegenstand weiterer, möglichst prospektiver Studien sein.
Hintergrund
Die Zertifizierung von Zentren für Beatmungsentwöhnung in der neurologisch-neurochirurgischen Frührehabilitation (NNFR) durch die Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurorehabilitation (DGNR) ist seit dem 01.10.2021 möglich.
Ziel der Arbeit
Die Ergebnisse der Zertifizierung von Einrichtungen im ersten Jahr nach Aufnahme des Verfahrens werden vorgestellt.
Material und Methoden
Im Rahmen der Zertifizierung werden 28 Kriterien geprüft, darunter eine Reihe mandatorisch zu erfüllender Charakteristika der Einrichtung. Die Kriterien gliedern sich in Strukturkriterien (i = 7), Diagnostikkriterien (i = 6), Personalkriterien (i = 3), Kriterien der internen Organisation (i = 7) und Qualitätsmanagementkriterien (i = 5).
Ergebnisse
Insgesamt 13 Zentren wurden im ersten Jahr zertifiziert, die zusammen über 283 Betten zur Beatmungsentwöhnung („weaning“) in der NNFR verfügen und im Jahr vor der Zertifizierung 2278 Personen im Weaning betreuten, im Median pro Einrichtung 134 (Bereich [Min-Max] 44–414). Nur selten war das Weaning nicht erfolgreich, sodass vor Entlassung auf eine Heimbeatmung eingestellt werden musste (invasive Heimbeatmung Median pro Einrichtung 10 Personen, Bereich 2–25; nichtinvasive Heimbeatmung Median 0 Personen, Bereich 0–57). Festgestellt wurde ein hohes Maß an Prozess- und Strukturqualität in den zertifizierten Zentren: Über alle Prüfbereiche hinweg waren die Prüfkriterien zu allermeist erfüllt (Median Erfüllungsgrad 86 %) bzw. erfüllt mit von den Auditor*innen dokumentierten Verbesserungspotenzialhinweisen (Median 11 %).
Schlussfolgerung
Erfolgreiches Weaning in der NNFR und ein hohes Maß an Prozess- und Strukturqualität lassen sich anhand der Zertifizierungsergebnisse der Zentren belegen, die diesen integrativen Ansatz bei der Beatmungsentwöhnung verfolgen.
Zerstückte Laufbahn
(2016)
Karl Philipp Moritz’ Roman Anton Reiser (1785–1790) schildert die Laufbahn
seines Titelhelden.1 Trotz aller Bewegungsmetaphorik, die bereits in dessen Namen eingetragen ist, erscheint diese – der zeitgenössischen Semantik entsprechend2 – dabei zumindest nicht als rein linearer Prozess: Reisers Laufbahn ist
nämlich nicht nur durch progredierende, sondern auch durch zirkuläre, retardie
Zerstückte Laufbahn
(2016)
Abstract
Streptococcus pneumoniae infections are a leading cause of death worldwide. Bacterial membrane vesicles (MVs) are promising vaccine candidates because of the antigenic components of their parent microorganisms. Pneumococcal MVs exhibit low toxicity towards several cell lines, but their clinical translation requires a high yield and strong immunogenic effects without compromising immune cell viability. MVs are isolated during either the stationary phase (24 h) or death phase (48 h), and their yields, immunogenicity and cytotoxicity in human primary macrophages and dendritic cells have been investigated. Death‐phase vesicles showed higher yields than stationary‐phase vesicles. Both vesicle types displayed acceptable compatibility with primary immune cells and several cell lines. Both vesicle types showed comparable uptake and enhanced release of the inflammatory cytokines, tumor necrosis factor and interleukin‐6, from human primary immune cells. Proteomic analysis revealed similarities in vesicular immunogenic proteins such as pneumolysin, pneumococcal surface protein A, and IgA1 protease in both vesicle types, but stationary‐phase MVs showed significantly lower autolysin levels than death‐phase MVs. Although death‐phase vesicles produced higher yields, they lacked superiority to stationary‐phase vesicles as vaccine candidates owing to their similar antigenic protein cargo and comparable uptake into primary human immune cells.
Xylem Anatomical Variability in White Spruce at Treeline Is Largely Driven by Spatial Clustering
(2020)
The ecological function of boreal forests is challenged by drastically changing climate conditions. Although an increasing number of studies are investigating how climate change is influencing growth and distribution of boreal tree species, there is a lack of studies examining the potential of these species to genetically adapt or phenotypically adjust. Here, we sampled clonally and non-clonally growing white spruce trees (Picea glauca [Moench] Voss) to investigate spatial and genetic effects on tree ring width and on six xylem anatomical traits representing growth, water transport, mechanical support, and wood density. We compared different methods for estimating broad sense heritability (H2) of each trait and we evaluated the effects of spatial grouping and genetic grouping on the xylem anatomical traits with linear models. We found that the three different methods used to estimate H2 were quite robust, showing overall consistent patterns, while our analyses were unsuccessful at fully separating genetic from spatial effects. By evaluating the effect size, we found a significant effect of genetic grouping in latewood density and earlywood hydraulic diameter. However, evaluating model performances showed that spatial grouping was a better predictor than genetic grouping for variance in earlywood density, earlywood hydraulic diameter and growth. For cell wall thickness neither spatial nor genetic grouping was significant. Our findings imply that (1) the variance in the investigated xylem anatomical traits and growth is mainly influenced by spatial clustering (most probably caused by microhabitat conditions), which (2) makes it rather difficult to estimate the heritability of these traits in naturally grown trees in situ. Yet, (3) latewood density and earlywood hydraulic diameter qualified for further analysis on the genetic background of xylem traits and (4) cell wall thickness seems a useful trait to investigate large-scale climatic effects, decoupled from microclimatic, edaphic and genetic influences.
Das Zurücktreten der Erzählstimme in der Literatur der Hebräischen Bibel wurde oft benannt. Dies wurde allerdings nur selten mit der erzähltheoretischen Analysekategorie des Modus fundiert. Letzteres gilt besonders für die Darstellung von Figurenrede. Dabei ist umstritten, ob sich neben direkter und indirekter Rede auch erlebte Rede in der Hebräischen Bibel nachweisen lässt. Diese vor allem von Meir Sternberg vertretene Möglichkeit hat Cynthia L. Miller abgelehnt. Millers Einwände lassen sich aber mit einer linguistisch fundierten Erzählanalyse hinterfragen, was die grundsätzliche Möglichkeit erlebter Rede bei wᵉhinne-Phrasen begründet.
Chills are emotional peaks especially in response toward acoustic stimuli. In the present study, we examined facial expressions associated with pleasant and unpleasant chill experiences during music and harsh sounds by measuring electromyographic activity from facial corrugator and zygomatic muscles. A rubber bulb could be pressed by the participants to report chill intensities. During harsh sounds, increased activation of both corrugator and zygomatic muscle was observed. Zygomatic muscle activity was even more pronounced when a chill experience was reported during such sounds. In contrast, pleasant chill experiences during music were associated with slightly increased corrugator activity compared with absent chills. Our data suggest that harsh sounds produce a painful facial expression that is even intensified when a chill experience is reported. Increased corrugator activity during chills toward music might refer to states of being moved. The results are discussed in the light of a proposed role of the chill in regulating social behavior. Our results suggest that recording facial muscle activity can be a valuable method for the examination of pleasant and unpleasant peak emotions induced by acoustic stimuli.
This text is designed to give the reader a helping hand in writing a scientific paper. It provides generic advice on ways that a scientific paper can be improved. The focus is on the following ethical and non-technical issues: (1) when to start writing, and in what language; (2) how to choose a good title; (3) what should be included in the various sections (abstract, introduction, experimental, results, discussion, conclusions, and supporting information (supplementary material); (4) who should be considered as a co-author, and who should be acknowledged for help; (5) which journal should be chosen; and (6) how to respond to reviewers’ comments. Purely technical issues, such as grammar, artwork, reference styles, etc., are not considered.
Abstract
The Tollense valley in northeast Germany is well known for its substantial evidence indicating a violent conflict dated to the early 13th century BC (Period III of the Nordic Bronze Age). This article presents a significant new find from a later Bronze Age context, found in the river at a known Bronze Age valley crossing (site Weltzin 13) by Ronald Borgwardt in 2020. The small bronze figurine (14.7 cm tall) has an egg-shaped head with a prominent nose, looped arms, a neckring, two knobs signifying breasts, a belt, an indication of a female sex and two slightly differently shaped legs. In the 19th century a similar female statuette was found near the village of Klein Zastrow, just a few kilometres from the valley crossing, but mostly these figurines are known from Zealand and Scania. Belts are only present on the statuettes from Zealand and northern Germany, and their presence suggests a close connection between the figures from these areas. Typological evidence places the figure from the Tollense river to the Late Bronze Age (Periods V–VI). Some time ago the figures were discussed as possible balance weights, but their small number does not support this theory. With a mass of 155 g, however, the new figure could be seen as a multiple of 26 g, the previously proposed weight unit of the time. The new find further suggests a connection between the find spots of the statuettes and routes of communication. There is little evidence to support an interpretation as a goddess. The deposition of the new figure at a valley crossing where hundreds of years before a violent conflict happened, might indicate that this was still a place of commemoration.
Winter warming is ecologically more relevant than summer
warming in a cool-temperate grassland
(2019)
This article is the first to show that gender shapes the degree to which legislators use formal mechanisms to oversee government activities. Extensive scholarly work has analysed the use of oversight instruments, especially regarding who monitors whom. Whether, how, and why the conformity of men and women with institutional roles differs, has not yet received scholarly attention. We hypothesise that women become more active than men in overseeing the executive when in opposition while reducing their monitoring activities even more strongly than men when in government because of different social roles ascribed to men and women as well as differences in risk aversity between sexes. We analyse panel data for three oversight tools from the German Bundestag between 1949 and 2013 to test this proposition. Our findings imply that characteristics of political actors influence even a strongly institutionalised process as oversight and further clarify the gender bias in political representation.
Long-chain aliphatic amines such as (S,Z)-hepta- dec-9-en-7-amine and 9-aminoheptadecane were synthesized from ricinoleic acid and oleic acid, respectively, by whole-cell cascade reactions using the combination of an alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) from Micrococcus luteus, an engi- neered amine transaminase from Vibrio fluvialis (Vf-ATA), and a photoactivated decarboxylase from Chlorella variabilis NC64A (Cv-FAP) in a one-pot process. In addition, long chain aliphatic esters such as 10-(heptanoyloxy)dec-8-ene and octyl- nonanoate were prepared from ricinoleic acid and oleic acid, respectively, by using the combination of the ADH, a Baeyer– Villiger monooxygenase variant from Pseudomonas putida KT2440, and the Cv-FAP. The target compounds were produced at rates of up to 37 U g1 dry cells with conversions up to 90 %. Therefore, this study contributes to the preparation of industrially relevant long-chain aliphatic chiral amines and esters from renewable fatty acid resources.
Although serious accidents remain the leading cause of pediatric mortality, protocols to orient diagnostic procedures towards a certain type of initial imaging are widely needed. Since 2007, we have performed whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (WBMR) and whole-body computed tomography (WBCT) for diagnoses of severely injured children. We retrospectively reviewed 134 WBMR and 158 WBCT in patients younger than 16 years that were performed at two trauma centers between 2007 and 2018. A higher Injury Severity Score (ISS) was found in WBCT vs. WBMR (10.6 vs. 5.8; p = 0.001), but without any significant difference in mortality. The WBMR was significantly preferred at younger ages (9.6 vs. 12.8 years; p < 0.001). The time between patient’s arrival until diagnosis was 2.5 times longer for WBCT (92.1 vs. 37.1 min; p < 0.001). More patients in the CT group received analgesic sedation and/or intubation at 37.3% vs. 21.6% in the MRI group. Of these patients, 86.4% (CT) and 27.6% (MRI) were already preclinically sedated (p < 0.001). Correspondingly, 72.4% of the patients were first sedated in-hospital for MRIs. In conclusion, WBMR is an alternative and radiation-free imaging method for high-energy-traumatized children. Although the selected diagnostics seemed appropriate, limitations regarding longer duration or additional analgesic sedation are present, and further studies are needed.
Metabolites are intermediates or end products of biochemical processes involved in both health and disease. Here, we take advantage of the well-characterized Cooperative Health Research in South Tyrol (CHRIS) study to perform an exome-wide association study (ExWAS) on absolute concentrations of 175 metabolites in 3294 individuals. To increase power, we imputed the identified variants into an additional 2211 genotyped individuals of CHRIS. In the resulting dataset of 5505 individuals, we identified 85 single-variant genetic associations, of which 39 have not been reported previously. Fifteen associations emerged at ten variants with >5-fold enrichment in CHRIS compared to non-Finnish Europeans reported in the gnomAD database. For example, the CHRIS-enriched ETFDH stop gain variant p.Trp286Ter (rs1235904433-hexanoylcarnitine) and the MCCC2 stop lost variant p.Ter564GlnextTer3 (rs751970792-carnitine) have been found in patients with glutaric acidemia type II and 3-methylcrotonylglycinuria, respectively, but the loci have not been associated with the respective metabolites in a genome-wide association study (GWAS) previously. We further identified three gene-trait associations, where multiple rare variants contribute to the signal. These results not only provide further evidence for previously described associations, but also describe novel genes and mechanisms for diseases and disease-related traits.
Background
Both vulnerability and integrity represent action-guiding concepts in nursing practice. However, they are primarily discussed regarding patients—not nurses—and considered independently from rather than in relation to each other.
Aim
The aim of this paper is to characterize the moral dimension of nurses' vulnerability and integrity, specify the concepts' relationship in nurses' clinical practice and, ultimately, allow a more fine-grained understanding.
Design
This discursive paper demonstrates how vulnerability and integrity relate to each other in nursing practice and carves out which types of vulnerability pose a threat to nurses' moral integrity. The concept of vulnerability developed by Mackenzie et al. (2014) is applied to the situation of nurses and expanded to include the concept of moral integrity according to Hardingham (2004). Four scenarios are used to demonstrate where and how nurses' vulnerabilities become particularly apparent in clinical practice. This leads to a cross-case discussion, in which the vulnerabilities identified are examined against the background of moral integrity and the relationship between the two concepts is determined in more detail.
Results and Conclusion
Vulnerability and integrity do not only form a conceptual pair but also represent complementary moral concepts. Their joint consideration has both a theoretical and practical added value. It is shown that only specific forms of vulnerability pose a threat to moral integrity and the vulnerability–integrity relationship is mediated via moral distress.
Implications for the Profession and/or Patient Care
The manuscript provides guidance on how the concrete threat(s) to integrity can be buffered and moral resilience can be promoted. Different types of threats also weigh differently and require specific approaches to assess and handle them at the micro-, meso- and macro-level of the healthcare system.
Extensive scholarly work engages with the growing number of women in legislatures around the world and highlights their role as advocates of women’s interests during parliamentary decision-making processes. This article sheds light on the reactions of men MPs (members of parliament) to this trend by uncovering how women's numerical strength in party parliamentary groups shapes the issues that their men colleagues emphasize when speaking about women during plenary debates. I argue that, the higher the share of women in a party parliamentary group, the more will men representatives emphasize women’s interests in the context of issues they can easily relate to—either because the issues lie in men’s area of responsibility according to ideas about traditional role distributions in the society, for example, the financing of gender equality projects, or because they are part of broader patterns of societal inequality, such as poverty or health. I provide empirical evidence for this argument based on original time-series cross-sectional data from plenary debates in six German states between 2005 and 2021 using a structural topic model. These findings shed light on men’s role as critical actors and have implications for gender equality and the functioning of representative democracy more broadly.
Facial expressions play a crucial role in human interactions. Typically, a positive (negative) expression evokes a congruent positive (negative) reaction within the observer. This congruent behavior is inverted, however, when the same positive (negative) expression is displayed by an outgroup member. Two approaches provide an explanation for this phenomenon. The social intentions account proposes underlying social messages within the facial display, whereas the processing conflict account assumes an affective conflict triggered by incongruent combinations of emotion and the affective connotation of group membership. In three experiments, we aimed at further substantiating the processing conflict account by separating the affective conflict from potential social intentions. For this, we created a new paradigm, in which the participant was an outside observer of a social interaction scene between two faces. Participants were required to respond to the emotional target person that could represent an ingroup or outgroup member. In all three experiments, irrespective of any social intention, responses were consistently affected by the group relation between participant and emotional target, i.e., the affective (in)congruency of the target seen by participants. These results further support the processing conflict account. The implications for the two theoretical accounts are discussed.
The anaerobic pathogen Clostridioides difficile is perfectly equipped to survive and persist inside the mammalian intestine. When facing unfavorable conditions C. difficile is able to form highly resistant endospores. Likewise, biofilms are currently discussed as form of persistence. Here a comprehensive proteomics approach was applied to investigate the molecular processes of C. difficile strain 630Δerm underlying biofilm formation. The comparison of the proteome from two different forms of biofilm-like growth, namely aggregate biofilms and colonies on agar plates, revealed major differences in the formation of cell surface proteins, as well as enzymes of its energy and stress metabolism. For instance, while the obtained data suggest that aggregate biofilm cells express both flagella, type IV pili and enzymes required for biosynthesis of cell-surface polysaccharides, the S-layer protein SlpA and most cell wall proteins (CWPs) encoded adjacent to SlpA were detected in significantly lower amounts in aggregate biofilm cells than in colony biofilms. Moreover, the obtained data suggested that aggregate biofilm cells are rather actively growing cells while colony biofilm cells most likely severely suffer from a lack of reductive equivalents what requires induction of the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway and C. difficile’s V-type ATPase to maintain cell homeostasis. In agreement with this, aggregate biofilm cells, in contrast to colony biofilm cells, neither induced toxin nor spore production. Finally, the data revealed that the sigma factor SigL/RpoN and its dependent regulators are noticeably induced in aggregate biofilms suggesting an important role of SigL/RpoN in aggregate biofilm formation.
Abstract
Desulfarculus baarsii and Desulfurivibrio alkaliphilus are strictly anaerobic bacteria existing in marine sediments. D. baarsii gains energy through reducing sulphate and D. alkaliphilus is able to reduce elemental sulphur, thiosulphate and polysulphide in seawater. Both organisms were previously identified as key organisms in sediment derived, bidirectional electroactive biofilms. Here, we investigated the electrochemical performance of these two bacteria in bio‐electrochemical systems and their possible involvement in anodic and cathodic reactions. The results show that D. baarsii was unable to donate or accept electrons to/from an electrode, while D. alkaliphilus was able to catalyse both anodic and cathodic reactions and interact with the electrode through direct or potentially indirect electron transfer. Raman spectra of D. alkaliphilus electrode biofilms showed a high similarity to Geobacter sulfurreducens biofilms, including the specific bands of cytochromes b and c, explaining the electroactivity of D. alkaliphilus in bioelectrochemical reactions.
Abstract
Head motion during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) induces image artifacts that affect virtually every brain measure. In parallel, cross‐sectional observations indicate a correlation of head motion with age, psychiatric disease status and obesity, raising the possibility of a systematic artifact‐induced bias in neuroimaging outcomes in these conditions, due to the differences in head motion. Yet, a causal link between obesity and head motion has not been tested in an experimental design. Here, we show that a change in body mass index (BMI) (i.e., weight loss after bariatric surgery) systematically decreases head motion during MRI. In this setting, reduced imaging artifacts due to lower head motion might result in biased estimates of neural differences induced by changes in BMI. Overall, our finding urges the need to rigorously control for head motion during MRI to enable valid results of neuroimaging outcomes in populations that differ in head motion due to obesity or other conditions.
Water Consumption of Agriculture and Natural Ecosystems along the Ili River in China and Kazakhstan
(2017)
BackgroundIn crisis communication, warning messages are key to informing and galvanizing the public to prevent or mitigate damage. Therefore, this study examines how risk appraisal and individual characteristics influence the intention to comply with behavioral recommendations of a warning message regarding three hazard types: the COVID-19 pandemic, violent acts, and severe weather.
MethodsA cross-sectional survey examined 403 German participants from 18 to 89 years (M = 29.24; 72% female). Participants were allocated to one of three hazard types (COVID-19 pandemic, violent acts, severe weather) and presented with warning messages that were previously issued via an official warning app. Four components of risk appraisal—perceived severity (PS), anticipated negative emotions (AE), anticipatory worry (AW), and risk perception (RP)—were assessed before and after presenting the warning message. Path models were calculated to predict the intention to comply with the warning message, controlling for age, gender, and previous hazard experience.
ResultsFor the COVID-19 pandemic, higher age (β = 0.18) predicted warning compliance (R2 = 0.05). AE (β = 0.20) predicted compliance in the case of violent acts (R2 = 0.09). For severe weather, PS (β = 0.28), age (β = 0.29), and female gender (β = 0.34) lead to higher compliance (R2 = 0.27). Changes across risk appraisal components were not consistent, as some facets decreased after the receipt of a warning message.
DiscussionRisk appraisal has shown a marginal yet differential influence on warning message compliance in different types of hazards. Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of sociodemographic factors on compliance should be studied more intensively. Moreover, integrating intermediary variables, such as self-efficacy, is necessary.
The frequency of sudden, strong warming events is projected to increase in the future. The effects of such events on spring phenology of trees might depend on their timing because spring warming has generally been shown to advance spring budburst while fall and winter warming have been shown to delay spring phenology. To understand the mechanism behind timing-specific warming effects on spring phenology, I simulated warming events during fall, mid-winter and at the end of winter and quantified their effects on bud dormancy depth and subsequently on spring leaf out. The warming events were carried out in climate chambers on tree seedlings of Betula pendula and Fagus sylvatica in October, January, and February. Control seedlings were kept at photoperiod and temperature matching the daily fluctuating field conditions. Warmed seedlings were kept 10°C warmer than the control seedlings for 10 days during the respective warming periods. Warming in October increased bud dormancy depth and decreased spring leaf-out rate only for F. sylvatica, whereas warming in February reduced bud dormancy depth and advanced spring leaf-out rate only for B. pendula. Neither bud dormancy depth nor spring leaf out rate were affected by January warming. The results indicate that warming-induced changes in bud dormancy depth may explain species- and timing-specific warming effects on spring phenology. The extent to which the timing of bud dormancy phases is species-specific will influence among-species variation in future spring leaf out times.
In temperate regions, climate warming alters temperature and precipitation regimes. During winter, a decline in insulating snow cover changes the soil environment, where especially frost exposure can have severe implications for soil microorganisms and subsequently for soil nutrient dynamics. Here, we investigated winter climate change responses in European beech forests soil microbiome. Nine study sites with each three treatments (snow exclusion, insolation, and ambient) were investigated. Long-term adaptation to average climate was explored by comparing across sites. Triplicated treatment plots were used to evaluate short-term (one single winter) responses. Community profiles of bacteria, archaea and fungi were created using amplicon sequencing. Correlations between the microbiome, vegetation and soil physicochemical properties were found. We identify core members of the forest-microbiome and link them to key processes, for example, mycorrhizal symbiont and specialized beech wood degraders (fungi) and nitrogen cycling (bacteria, archaea). For bacteria, the shift of the microbiome composition due to short-term soil temperature manipulations in winter was similar to the community differences observed between long-term relatively cold to warm conditions. The results suggest a strong link between the changes in the microbiomes and changes in environmental processes, for example, nitrogen dynamics, driven by variations in winter climate.
We consider Walsh’s conformal map from the exterior of a compact set E ⊆ C onto a lemniscatic domain. If E is simply connected, the lemniscatic domain is the exterior of a circle, while if E has several components, the lemniscatic domain is the exterior of a generalized lemniscate and is determined by the logarithmic capacity of E and by the exponents and centers of the generalized lemniscate. For general E, we characterize the exponents in terms of the Green’s function of Ec. Under additional symmetry conditions on E, we also locate the centers of the lemniscatic domain. For polynomial pre-images E = P−1(Ω) of a simply-connected infinite compact set Ω, we explicitly determine the exponents in the lemniscatic domain and derive a set of equations to determine the centers of the lemniscatic domain. Finally, we present several examples where we explicitly obtain the exponents and centers of the lemniscatic domain, as well as the conformal map.
Fortbildungen sind zentrale Lerngelegenheiten für die Professionalisierung pädagogischen Personals in Kindertageseinrichtungen. Inwiefern Inhalte von Fortbildungen in der alltäglichen Praxis Anwendung finden, stellt ein zentrales Qualitätskriterium von Fortbildungen dar. Daher existieren vielfältige Vorstellungen und Konzepte darüber, wie diese Anwendung – der Transfer – unterstützt werden kann. Der vorliegende Beitrag greift theoretische und empirische Erkenntnisse aus der Bildungs- und Lehr-Lernforschung auf und stellt ein Modell der Wissenstransformation von der Theorie in Handlungen und von Handlungen in die Theorie vor. Zentral an diesem Modell ist die Vorstellung, dass Wissen durch verschiedene Akteure (Fortbildner_innen sowie pädagogische Fachkräfte) transformiert wird und kontextuelle sowie individuelle Merkmale diesen Transformationsprozess beeinflussen. Implikationen für Forschung und -praxis werden diskutiert.
Complement resistance is an important virulence trait of Yersinia enterocolitica (Ye). The predominant virulence factor expressed by Ye is Yersinia adhesin A (YadA), which enables bacterial attachment to host cells and extracellular matrix and additionally allows the acquisition of soluble serum factors. The serum glycoprotein vitronectin (Vn) acts as an inhibitory regulator of the terminal complement complex by inhibiting the lytic pore formation. Here, we show YadA-mediated direct interaction of Ye with Vn and investigated the role of this Vn binding during mouse infection in vivo. Using different Yersinia strains, we identified a short stretch in the YadA head domain of Ye O:9 E40, similar to the ‘uptake region' of Y. pseudotuberculosis YPIII YadA, as crucial for efficient Vn binding. Using recombinant fragments of Vn, we found the C-terminal part of Vn, including heparin-binding domain 3, to be responsible for binding to YadA. Moreover, we found that Vn bound to the bacterial surface is still functionally active and thus inhibits C5b-9 formation. In a mouse infection model, we demonstrate that Vn reduces complement-mediated killing of Ye O:9 E40 and, thus, improved bacterial survival. Taken together, these findings show that YadA-mediated Vn binding influences Ye pathogenesis.
Vitamin B6 deficiency during pregnancy translates into a severe vitamin B6 deficiency (plasma levels decreased by 97%) in new-born rats. Further, hallmarks are increased (+89%) concentrations of homocysteine, gross changes in gene methylation and expression, and metabolic alterations including lipid metabolism. This study focuses on determining the effects of vitamin B6-deficiency on cardiolipin composition and oxidative phosphorylation in liver. For this purpose, hepatic cardiolipin composition was analyzed by means of LC/MS/MS, and mitochondrial oxygen consumption was determined by using a Clark-type electrode in a rat model of vitamin B6 deficiency. Liver mitochondria from new-born rats with pre-term vitamin B6 deficiency responded with substantial alterations in cardiolipin composition that include the following changes in the amounts of cardiolipin incorporated fatty acids: increase in C16, decrease in C18, decrease in saturated fatty acid, as well as increase in amount of oxidized cardiolipin species. These changes were accompanied by significantly decreased capacity of oxidative phosphorylation. In conclusion, vitamin B6 deficiency in new born rats induces massive alterations of cardiolipin composition and function of liver mitochondria. These findings support the importance of sufficient periconceptional supply of vitamin B6 to prevent vitamin B6 deficiency.
Impact statement
Vitamin B6 (VitB6) is an active co-enzyme for more than 150 enzymes and is required for a great diversity of biosynthesis and metabolic reactions. There is an increased need for VitB6 during pregnancy and sufficient supply of VitB6 is crucial for the prevention of cleft palate and neural tube defects. We show that liver mitochondria from new-born rats with pre-term VitB6 deficiency respond with substantial alterations in cardiolipin (CL) composition and in the amount of oxidized CL species. These changes are associated with a decrease in the efficiency of oxidative phosphorylation. The results of this study support the significance of sufficient supply of VitB6 during pregnancy (and periconceptional) for diminishing the number of early abortions and minimizing malformation. The established link between VitB6 deficiency, CL composition, and mitochondrial respiration/energy production provides mechanistic insight as to how the VitB6 deficiency translates into the known pathophysiological and clinically relevant conditions.
Abstract
(1) Background: Surgery is the most important element of multimodal treatment concepts in oncological patients, especially in the early stages of pancreatic tumours. While the influence of primary tumour resection on the immune status was analysed in several studies, the impact of tumour-unrelated visceral surgery on the tumour-bearing organism and on the primary tumour itself is not yet fully understood. (2) Methods: We combined a murine model of orthotopically implanted adenocarcinoma of the pancreas with the model of surgically-induced immune dysfunction (SID). Mortality and general condition including body weight were observed over a period of 28 days. Tumour growth was analysed by MRI scans on days 8 and 27 following tumour implantation. On day 28, the immune cell populations in the blood and spleen as well as the serum cytokines were quantified. (3) Results: SID results in a significant deterioration of the general condition and a reduced increase in the body weight of tumour-bearing mice compared to the control groups, while mortality and tumour growth rate were not influenced. The numbers of spleen macrophages and neutrophils were increased in tumour-bearing animals following SID. Furthermore, both macrophage and neutrophil levels were increased in the peripheral blood. (4) Conclusions: The presented results might contribute to the basic understanding of the interaction of tumour and immune system and could contribute to new approaches to immunotherapeutic strategies.
Purpose
Mixing with liquids or soft foods is a common procedure to improve acceptability of oral medicines in children but may affect drug stability and the in vivo performance of the administered drug product. The aim of the present study was to obtain an overview of the variability of critical attributes of commonly used vehicles and to identify which vehicle characteristics need to be considered when developing in vitro methods for evaluating product quality.
Methods
One product of each vehicle listed in the FDA draft guidance “Use of Liquids and/or Soft Foods as Vehicles for Drug Administration” was analyzed with regard to composition, calorific content and physicochemical properties.
Results
The studied vehicles show wide variability, both in composition and physicochemical properties. No correlation was observed between vehicle composition and physicochemical properties. Comparison of results of the present study with previously published data also provided variability in physicochemical properties within individual vehicle types.
Conclusions
To identify acceptable (qualified) vehicles for global drug product labeling, it is important that the vehicles selected for in vitro compatibility screening reflect the variability in composition and essential physicochemical properties of the vehicles recommended on the product label, rather than relying on results obtained with a single vehicle of each type. Future activities will focus on the development of standardized dosing vehicles that can represent key vehicle characteristics in all their variability to ensure reliable risk assessment.
This paper presents continuous, high resolution fossil pollen and microcharcoal records from Bo Langvlei, a lake in the Wilderness Embayment on South Africa’s southern Cape coast. Spanning the past ~1300 years and encompassing the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA; c. AD 950–1250) and the Little Ice Age (LIA; c. AD 1300–1850), these records provide a rare southern African perspective on past temperature, moisture and vegetation change during these much debated periods of the recent geological past. Considered together with other records from the Wilderness Embayment, we conclude that conditions in the region during the MCA chronozone were – in the context of the last 1300 years – likely relatively dry (reduced levels of Afrotemperate forest pollen) and perhaps slightly cooler (increased percentages of Stoebe-type pollen) than present. The most significant phase of forest expansion, and more humid conditions, occurred during the transition between the MCA and the most prominent cooling phase of the LIA. The LIA is clearly identified at this locality as a period of cool, dry conditions between c. AD 1600 and 1850. The mechanisms driving the changes observed in the Bo Langvlei pollen record appear to be generally linked to changes in temperature, and changes in the influence of tropical circulation systems. During warmer periods, moisture availability was higher at Bo Langvlei, and rainfall was perhaps less seasonal. During colder periods, precipitation resulting from tropical disturbances was more restricted, resulting in drier conditions. While increased precipitation has been reported during the LIA from Verlorenvlei in the Western Cape as a result of an equatorward displacement of the westerly storm-track at this time, the opposing response at Bo Langvlei suggests that any increased influence of westerlies was insufficient to compensate for the concurrent reduction in tropical/local rainfall in the region.
Variability of Thyroid Measurements from Ultrasound and Laboratory in a Repeated Measurements Study
(2020)
Background: Variability of measurements in medical research can be due to different sources. Quantification of measurement errors facilitates probabilistic sensitivity analyses in future research to minimize potential bias in epidemiological studies. We aimed to investigate the variation of thyroid-related outcomes derived from ultrasound (US) and laboratory analyses in a repeated measurements study. Subjects and Methods: Twenty-five volunteers (13 females, 12 males) aged 22–70 years were examined once a month over 1 year. US measurements included thyroid volume, goiter, and thyroid nodules. Laboratory measurements included urinary iodine concentrations and serum levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free triiodothyronine (fT3), free thyroxine (fT4), and thyroglobulin. Variations in continuous thyroid markers were assessed as coefficient of variation (CV) defined as mean of the individual CVs with bootstrapped confidence intervals and as intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). Variations in dichotomous thyroid markers were assessed by Cohen’s kappa. Results: CV was highest for urinary iodine concentrations (56.9%), followed by TSH (27.2%), thyroglobulin (18.2%), thyroid volume (10.5%), fT3 (8.1%), and fT4 (6.3%). The ICC was lowest for urinary iodine concentrations (0.42), followed by fT3 (0.55), TSH (0.64), fT4 (0.72), thyroid volume (0.87), and thyroglobulin (0.90). Cohen’s kappa values for the presence of goiter or thyroid nodules were 0.64 and 0.70, respectively. Conclusion: Our study provides measures of variation for thyroid outcomes, which can be used for probabilistic sensitivity analyses of epidemiological data. The low intraindividual variation of serum thyroglobulin in comparison to urinary iodine concentrations emphasizes the potential of thyroglobulin as marker for the iodine status of populations.
Thiamine is substrate of the hepatic uptake transporter organic cation transporter 1 (OCT1), and pathological lipid metabolism was associated with OCT1‐dependent thiamine transport. However, it is unknown whether clinical pharmacokinetics of thiamine is modulated by OCT1 genotype. We analyzed thiamine transport in vitro, thiamine blood concentrations after high‐dose and low‐dose (nutritional) intake, and heritability of thiamine and thiamine‐phosphate blood concentrations. The variant OCT1*2 had reduced and OCT1*3 to OCT1*6 had deficient thiamine uptake activity. However, pharmacokinetics of thiamine did not differ depending on OCT1 genotype. Further studies in primary human hepatocytes indicated that several cation transporters, including OCT1, OCT3, and THTR‐2, contribute to hepatic uptake of thiamine. As much as 54% of the variation in thiamine and 75% in variation of thiamine monophosphate plasma concentrations was determined by heritable factors. Apparently, thiamine is not useful as a probe drug for OCT1 activity, but the high heritability, particularly of thiamine monophosphate, may stimulate further genomic research.
Background: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is associated with high rates of comorbidities and non-infectious lung disease mortality. Against this background, we aimed to evaluate the prognostic capacity of lung function and cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) in patients with ILD. Materials and Methods: A total of 183 patients with diverse ILD entities were included in this monocentric analysis. Prediction models were determined using Cox regression models with age, sex, body mass index (BMI), and all parameters from pulmonary function testing and CPET. Kaplan–Meier curves were plotted for selected variables. Results: The median follow-up period was 3.0 ± 2.5 years. Arterial hypertension (57%) and pulmonary hypertension (38%) were the leading comorbidities. The Charlson comorbidity index score was 2 ± 2 points. The 3-year and 5-year survival rates were 68% and 50%, respectively. VO2peak (mL/kg/min or %pred.) was identified as a significant prognostic parameter in patients with ILD. The cut-off value for discriminating mortality was 61%. Conclusion: The present analyses consistently revealed the high prognostic power of VO2peak %pred. and other parameters evaluating breathing efficacy (VÉ/VCO2 @AT und VÉ/VCO2 slope) in ILD patients. VO2peak %pred., in contrast to the established prognostic values FVC %pred., DLCO/KCO %pred., and GAP, showed an even higher prognostic ability in all statistical models.
AbstractArchetype analysis is a promising approach in sustainability science to identify patterns and explain mechanisms shaping the sustainability of social-ecological systems. Although considerable efforts have been devoted to developing quality standards and methodological advances for archetype analysis, archetype validation remains a major challenge. Drawing on the insights from two international workshops on archetype analysis and on broader literature on validity, we propose a framework that identifies and describes six dimensions of validity: conceptual; construct; internal; external; empirical; and application validity. We first discuss the six dimensions in relation to different methodological approaches and purposes of archetype analysis. We then present an operational use of the framework for researchers to assess the validity of archetype analysis and to support sound archetype identification and policy-relevant applications. Finally, we apply our assessment to 18 published archetype analyses, which we use to describe the challenges and insights in validating the different dimensions and suggest ways to holistically improve the validity of identified archetypes. With this, we contribute to more rigorous archetype analyses, helping to develop the potential of the approach for guiding sustainability solutions.
This study investigates the validity and reliability of the German version of the School Burnout Inventory (SBI-G) in 1,570 secondary-school students (Mage = 14.11, SD = 0.78; 51.7 % girls). Results indicate that school burnout consists of two correlated but separate dimensions including (1) exhaustion at school, (2) cynicism toward the meaning of school and sense of inadequacy. The study revealed that school burnout can be measured as a two-factor model, which provided good reliability and validity indices. Further, we verified concurrent validity, finding that students suffering from general stress also reported overall school burnout as well as exhaustion, cynicism, and inadequacy. Students who exhibited cynicism and inadequacy also reported lower levels of behavioral, emotional, and cognitive school engagement, while exhausted students reported lower emotional school engagement but higher cognitive school engagement.
This article provides details on the development of a statistical learning algorithm developed for constructing personalized treatment plans for psychotherapy. The algorithm takes data collected via Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) as an input. From this, it constructs an idiographic disorder model that reflects the latent dimensions of this patient’s psychopathology and their temporal interrelations. The priority of individual problems is derived from this statistical model. Based on this, treatment modules from cognitive-behavioral therapy are ranked so that the problems with the highest priority are dealt with first. A case study is used to illustrate the different analysis steps of the algorithm from data collection to the treatment plan.
Cerebral cavernous malformations are clusters of aberrant vessels that can lead to severe neurological complications. Pathogenic loss-of-function variants in the CCM1, CCM2, or CCM3 gene are associated with the autosomal dominant form of the disease. While interpretation of variants in protein-coding regions of the genes is relatively straightforward, functional analyses are often required to evaluate the impact of non-coding variants. Because of multiple alternatively spliced transcripts and different transcription start points, interpretation of variants in the 5′ untranslated and upstream regions of CCM1 is particularly challenging. Here, we identified a novel deletion of the non-coding exon 1 of CCM1 in a proband with multiple CCMs which was initially classified as a variant of unknown clinical significance. Using CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing in human iPSCs, we show that the deletion leads to loss of CCM1 protein and deregulation of KLF2, THBS1, NOS3, and HEY2 expression in iPSC-derived endothelial cells. Based on these results, the variant could be reclassified as likely pathogenic. Taken together, variants in regulatory regions need to be considered in genetic CCM analyses. Our study also demonstrates that modeling variants of unknown clinical significance in an iPSC-based system can help to come to a final diagnosis.
Urological Complications and BK Virus-Associated Diseases Under Allogenic Stem Cell Transplantation
(2016)
Every year 50,000 patients receive a stem cell transplantation worldwide, but there is lack of data pertaining to urological complications. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of all adult patients undergoing their first allogenic stem cell transplantation from January 2011 to June 2013 in our institution. Statistical tests performed were Pearson's correlation, chi-square testing and logistic regression using SPSS 22.0. Results: We identified 39 patients (22 males, 17 females). Twenty four patients (61.5%) had a urological complication. Most frequent urologic complications were bacterial urinary tract infection (n = 13; 33.3%), acute renal failure (n = 6; 15.4%) and BK virus-associated haemorrhagic cystitis (n = 5; 12.8%). BK viruria was detected in 12 patients (30.8%). We observed an association of creatinine increase (about 20 µmol/l at time of onset of BK viruria) with BK viruria (Pearson's correlation 0.64; p = 0.01), and BK viruria is significantly linked to acute renal failure (Pearson's correlation 0.35; p = 0.029). In univariate regression, BK viruria is significantly linked to urological complication (p = 0.025). Conclusions: We suggest that BK virus infection during stem cell transplantation can lead to BK virus associated nephropathy, which is so far only known from patients after kidney transplantation.
Urm1: A Non-Canonical UBL
(2021)
Context: 3,5-Diiodo-<smlcap>L</smlcap>-thyronine (3,5-T<sub>2</sub>) is a thyroid hormone metabolite which exhibited versatile effects in rodent models, including the prevention of insulin resistance or hepatic steatosis typically forced by a high-fat diet. With respect to euthyroid humans, we recently observed a putative link between serum 3,5-T<sub>2</sub> and glucose but not lipid metabolism. Objective: The aim of the present study was to widely screen the urine metabolome for associations with serum 3,5-T<sub>2</sub> concentrations in healthy individuals. Study Design and Methods: Urine metabolites of 715 euthyroid participants of the population-based Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP-TREND) were analyzed by <sup>1</sup>H-NMR spectroscopy. Multinomial logistic and multivariate linear regression models were used to detect associations between urine metabolites and serum 3,5-T<sub>2</sub> concentrations. Results: Serum 3,5-T<sub>2</sub> concentrations were positively associated with urinary levels of trigonelline, pyroglutamate, acetone and hippurate. In detail, the odds for intermediate or suppressed serum 3,5-T<sub>2</sub> concentrations doubled owing to a 1-standard deviation (SD) decrease in urine trigonelline levels, or increased by 29-50% in relation to a 1-SD decrease in urine pyroglutamate, acetone and hippurate levels. Conclusion: Our findings in humans confirmed the metabolic effects of circulating 3,5-T<sub>2</sub> on glucose and lipid metabolism, oxidative stress and enhanced drug metabolism as postulated before based on interventional pharmacological studies in rodents. Of note, 3,5-T<sub>2</sub> exhibited a unique urinary metabolic profile distinct from previously published results for the classical thyroid hormones.
Enzymatic degradation and recycling can reduce the environmental impact of plastics. Despite decades of research, no enzymes for the efficient hydrolysis of polyurethanes have been reported. Whereas the hydrolysis of the ester bonds in polyester‐polyurethanes by cutinases is known, the urethane bonds in polyether‐polyurethanes have remained inaccessible to biocatalytic hydrolysis. Here we report the discovery of urethanases from a metagenome library constructed from soil that had been exposed to polyurethane waste for many years. We then demonstrate the use of a urethanase in a chemoenzymatic process for polyurethane foam recycling. The urethanase hydrolyses low molecular weight dicarbamates resulting from chemical glycolysis of polyether‐polyurethane foam, making this strategy broadly applicable to diverse polyether‐polyurethane wastes.
Urbanization is a major contributor to the loss of biodiversity. Its rapid progress is mostly at the expense of natural ecosystems and the species inhabiting them. While some species can adjust quickly and thrive in cities, many others cannot. To support biodiversity conservation and guide management decisions in urban areas, it is important to find robust methods to estimate the urban affinity of species (i.e. their tendency to live in urban areas) and understand how it is associated with their traits. Since previous studies mainly relied on discrete classifications of species' urban affinity, often involving inconsistent assessments or variable parameters, their results were difficult to compare. To address this issue, we developed and evaluated a set of continuous indices that quantify species' urban affinity based on publicly available occurrence data. We investigated the extent to which a species' position along the urban affinity gradient depends on the chosen index and how this choice affects inferences about the relationship between urban affinity and a set of morphological, sensory and functional traits. While these indices are applicable to a wide range of taxonomic groups, we examined their performance using a global set of 356 bat species. As bats vary in sensitivity to anthropogenic disturbances, they provide an interesting case study. We found that different types of indices resulted in different rankings of species on the urban affinity spectrum, but this had little effect on the association of traits with urban affinity. Our results suggest that bat species predisposed to urban life are characterized by low echolocation call frequencies, relatively long call durations, small body size and flexibility in the selection of the roost type. We conclude that simple indices are appropriate and practical, and propose to apply them to more taxa to improve our understanding of how urbanization favours or filters species with particular traits.
Unveiling the N-Terminal Homodimerization of BCL11B by Hybrid Solvent Replica-Exchange Simulations
(2021)
Transcription factors play a crucial role in regulating biological processes such as cell
growth, differentiation, organ development and cellular signaling. Within this group, proteins
equipped with zinc finger motifs (ZFs) represent the largest family of sequence-specific DNA-binding
transcription regulators. Numerous studies have proven the fundamental role of BCL11B for a
variety of tissues and organs such as central nervous system, T cells, skin, teeth, and mammary
glands. In a previous work we identified a novel atypical zinc finger domain (CCHC-ZF) which
serves as a dimerization interface of BCL11B. This domain and formation of the dimer were shown
to be critically important for efficient regulation of the BCL11B target genes and could therefore
represent a promising target for novel drug therapies. Here, we report the structural basis for
BCL11B–BCL11B interaction mediated by the N-terminal ZF domain. By combining structure
prediction algorithms, enhanced sampling molecular dynamics and fluorescence resonance energy
transfer (FRET) approaches, we identified amino acid residues indispensable for the formation of
the single ZF domain and directly involved in forming the dimer interface. These findings not only
provide deep insight into how BCL11B acquires its active structure but also represent an important
step towards rational design or selection of potential inhibitors.
Insect migration redistributes enormous quantities of biomass, nutrients and species globally. A subset of insect migrants perform extreme long-distance journeys, requiring specialized morphological, physiological and behavioral adaptations. The migratory globe skimmer dragonfly (Pantala flavescens) is hypothesized to migrate from India across the Indian Ocean to East Africa in the autumn, with a subsequent generation thought to return to India from East Africa the following spring. Using an energetic flight model and wind trajectory analysis, we evaluate the dynamics of this proposed transoceanic migration, which is considered to be the longest regular non-stop migratory flight when accounting for body size. The energetic flight model suggests that a mixed strategy of gliding and active flapping would allow a globe skimmer to stay airborne for up to 230–286 h, assuming that the metabolic rate of gliding flight is close to that of resting. If engaged in continuous active flapping flight only, the flight time is severely reduced to ∼4 h. Relying only on self-powered flight (combining active flapping and gliding), a globe skimmer could cross the Indian Ocean, but the migration would have to occur where the ocean crossing is shortest, at an exceptionally fast gliding speed and with little headwind. Consequently, we deem this scenario unlikely and suggest that wind assistance is essential for the crossing. The wind trajectory analysis reveals intra- and inter-seasonal differences in availability of favorable tailwinds, with only 15.2% of simulated migration trajectories successfully reaching land in autumn but 40.9% in spring, taking on average 127 and 55 h respectively. Thus, there is a pronounced requirement on dragonflies to be able to select favorable winds, especially in autumn. In conclusion, a multi-generational, migratory circuit of the Indian Ocean by the globe skimmer is shown to be achievable, provided that advanced adaptations in physiological endurance, behavior and wind selection ability are present. Given that migration over the Indian Ocean would be heavily dependent on the assistance of favorable winds, occurring during a relatively narrow time window, the proposed flyway is potentially susceptible to disruption, if wind system patterns were to be affected by climatic change.
Abstract
Background
Comorbidities in mental disorders are often understood by assuming a common cause. The network theory of mental disorders offers an alternative to this assumption by understanding comorbidities as mutually reinforced problems. In this study, we used network analysis to examine bridge symptoms between anxiety and depression in a large sample.
Method
Using data from a sample of patients diagnosed with both depression and an anxiety disorder before and after inpatient treatment (N = 5,614, mean age: 42.24, 63.59% female, average treatment duration: 48.12 days), network models of depression and anxiety symptoms are estimated. Topology, the centrality of nodes, stability, and changes in network structure are analyzed. Symptoms that drive comorbidity are determined by bridge node analysis. As an alternative to network communities based on categorical diagnosis, we performed a community analysis and propose empirically derived symptom subsets.
Results
The obtained network models are highly stable. Sad mood and the inability to control worry are the most central. Psychomotor agitation or retardation is the strongest bridge node between anxiety and depression, followed by concentration problems and restlessness. Changes in appetite and suicidality were unique to depression. Community analysis revealed four symptom groups.
Conclusion
The estimated network structure of depression and anxiety symptoms proves to be highly accurate. Results indicate that some symptoms are considerably more influential than others and that only a small number of predominantly physical symptoms are strong candidates for explaining comorbidity. Future studies should include physiological measures in network models to provide a more accurate understanding.
Marine algae produce complex polysaccharides, which can be degraded by marine heterotrophic bacteria utilizing carbohydrate-active enzymes. The red algal polysaccharide porphyran contains the methoxy sugar 6-O-methyl-D-galactose (G6Me). In the degradation of porphyran, oxidative demethylation of this monosaccharide towards D-galactose and formaldehyde occurs, which is catalyzed by a cytochrome P450 monooxygenase and its redox partners. In direct proximity to the genes encoding for the key enzymes of this oxidative demethylation, genes encoding for zinc-dependent alcohol dehydrogenases (ADHs) were identified, which seem to be conserved in porphyran utilizing marine Flavobacteriia. Considering the fact that dehydrogenases could play an auxiliary role in carbohydrate degradation, we aimed to elucidate the physiological role of these marine ADHs. Although our results reveal that the ADHs are not involved in formaldehyde detoxification, a knockout of the ADH gene causes a dramatic growth defect of Zobellia galactanivorans with G6Me as a substrate. This indicates that the ADH is required for G6Me utilization. Complete biochemical characterizations of the ADHs from Formosa agariphila KMM 3901T (FoADH) and Z. galactanivorans DsijT (ZoADH) were performed, and the substrate screening revealed that these enzymes preferentially convert aromatic aldehydes. Additionally, we elucidated the crystal structures of FoADH and ZoADH in complex with NAD+ and showed that the strict substrate specificity of these new auxiliary enzymes is based on a narrow active site.
The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is affecting many areas of life and has led to major changes in undergraduate medical education. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, high mental burden of medical students has frequently been reported in the literature. Additional pandemic-specific stressors could exacerbate this situation. This study aimed to assess mental health outcomes among medical students during the first semester after the COVID-19 outbreak and perception of the students on how the learning environment has changed. In May 2020, we conducted a cross-sectional survey among undergraduate medical students at a large medical school in Germany. The survey included validated mental health instruments (Distress Thermometer, Patient Health Questionnaire 4) and self-developed items to examine the perception of the study situation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Open-ended questions were analyzed by conventional content analyses. The response rate was 59.2% (914/1,545). Overall, 61.9% of the students reported distress levels above the cutoff. Year 1 students reported significantly higher levels of distress, anxiety and depression than students during their second to fourth year of studies. 48.3% of the students indicated a decrease in their study motivation since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic with significant differences between study years. The binary logistic regression model showed that male gender, being in study year 2, higher distress scores and higher symptoms of depression were significantly associated with a higher likelihood for experiencing serious worries. In the open-ended questions on current concerns related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their studies, students most frequently reported concerns about missing relevant practical learning experience, difficulties with self-regulated learning and self motivation as well as study-related worries. Year 4 students reported significantly more worries about the lack of practical training than students from study years 1 to 3. Analysis of gender differences showed that female students reported more frequently diverse worries. In contrast, female students shared more frequently helpful strategies in all the categories compared to male students. Our findings suggest that medical students experience significant levels of distress and mental burden during the COVID-19 pandemic and highlight the need for ongoing psychological and educational support for medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic and after.
Background
Self-reported time-use in relation to health-related quality of life (HRQoL) has been widely studied, yet less is known about the directionality of the association and how it compares across genders when controlling for sociodemographic confounders.
Methods
This study focused on the working population of the most recent waves (2013–2018) of the Core-Study of the German Socio-Economic Panel (N = 30,518, 46.70% female, M = 39.24 years). It examined the relationship between three time-use categories (contracted, committed, & leisure time) and HRQoL (self-rated health & life satisfaction) in men and women via multigroup fixed effects cross-lagged panel models. The models controlled for sociodemographic background (age, household income, number of children living in household, employment status, education, & marital status), which was associated with time-use and psychosocial health in previous research.
Results
Contracted time showed consistent positive relationships with HRQoL across genders while associations with the other types of time use differed significantly between men and women and across indicators of HRQoL.
Conclusions
The way we spend our time directly predicts our health perceptions, but in the same vein our health also predicts how we can spend our time. Contracted time in particular was associated with positive HRQoL, across genders, and beyond sociodemographic predictors, highlighting the important role of employment in health, for men and women alike. The impact of commitments beyond contracted time-use—like household chores and childcare—however, continues to affect mainly women, which ultimately reflects in poorer health outcomes.
Abstract
While chemical communication has been investigated intensively in vertebrates and insects, relatively little is known about the sensory world of spiders despite the fact that chemical cues play a key role in natural and sexual selection in this group. In insects, olfaction is performed with wall–pore and gustation with tip‐pore sensilla. Since spiders possess tip‐pore sensilla only, it is unclear how they accomplish olfaction. We scrutinized the ultrastructure of the trichoid tip‐pore sensilla of the orb weaving spider Argiope bruennichi—a common Palearctic species the males of which are known to be attracted by female sex pheromone. We also investigated the congener Argiope blanda. We examined whether the tip‐pore sensilla differ in ultrastructure depending on sex and their position on the tarsi of walking legs of which only the distal parts are in contact with the substrate. We hypothesized as yet undetected differences in ultrastructure that suggest gustatory versus olfactory functions. All tarsal tip‐pore sensilla of both species exhibit characters typical of contact‐chemoreceptors, such as (a) the presence of a pore at the tip of the sensillum shaft, (b) 2–22 uniciliated chemoreceptive cells with elongated and unbranched dendrites reaching up to the tip‐pore, (c) two integrated mechanoreceptive cells with short dendrites and large tubular bodies attached to the sensillum shaft's base, and (d) a socket structure with suspension fibres that render the sensillum shaft flexible. The newly found third mechanoreceptive cell attached to the proximal end of the peridendritic shaft cylinder by a small tubular body was likely overlooked in previous studies. The organization of tarsal tip‐pore sensilla did not differ depending on the position on the tarsus nor between the sexes. As no wall‐pore sensilla were detected, we discuss the probability that a single type of sensillum performs both gustation and olfaction in spiders.
Abstract
Drainage has turned 650,000 km2 of peatlands worldwide into greenhouse gas sources. To counteract climate change, large‐scale rewetting is necessary while agricultural use of rewetted areas, termed paludiculture, is still possible. However, more information is required on the performance of suitable species, such as cattail, in the range of environmental conditions after rewetting. We investigated productivity and biomass quality (morphological traits and tissue chemical composition) of Typha angustifolia and Typha latifolia along gradients of water table depth (−45 to +40 cm) and nutrient addition (3.6–400 kg N ha−1 a−1) in a six‐month mesocosm experiment with an emphasis on their high‐value utilization, e.g., as building material, paper, or biodegradable packaging. Over a wide range of investigated conditions, T. latifolia was more productive than T. angustifolia. Productivity was remarkably tolerant of low nutrient addition, suggesting that long‐term productive paludiculture is possible. Low water tables were beneficial for T. latifolia productivity and high water tables for T. angustifolia biomass quality. Rewetting will likely create a mosaic of different water table depths. Our findings that the yield of T. angustifolia and tissue chemical composition of T. latifolia were largely unaffected by water table depth are therefore promising. Depending on intended utilization, optimal cultivation conditions and preferable species differ. Considering yield or diameter, e.g., for building materials, T. latifolia is generally preferable over T. angustifolia. A low N, P, K content, high Si content and high C/N‐ratio can be beneficial for processing into disposable tableware, charcoal, or building material. For these utilizations, T. angustifolia is preferable at high water tables, and both species should be cultivated at a low nutrient supply. When cellulose and lignin contents are relevant, e.g., for paper and biodegradable packaging, T. angustifolia is preferable at high water tables and both species should be cultivated at nutrient additions of about 20 kg N ha−1 a−1.
Objective
To evaluate individual and group long-term efficacy and safety of erenumab in individuals with episodic migraine (EM) for whom 2–4 prior preventatives had failed.
Methods
Participants completing the 12-week double-blind treatment phase (DBTP) of the LIBERTY study could continue into an open-label extension phase (OLEP) receiving erenumab 140 mg monthly for up to 3 years. Main outcomes assessed at week 112 were: ≥50%, ≥75% and 100% reduction in monthly migraine days (MMD) as group responder rate and individual responder rates, MMD change from baseline, safety and tolerability.
Results
Overall 240/246 (97.6%) entered the OLEP (118 continuing erenumab, 122 switching from placebo). In total 181/240 (75.4%) reached 112 weeks, 24.6% discontinued, mainly due to lack of efficacy (44.0%), participant decision (37.0%) and adverse events (AEs; 12.0%). The ≥50% responder rate was 57.2% (99/173) at 112 weeks. Of ≥50% responders at the end of the DBTP, 36/52 (69.2%) remained responders at ≥50% and 22/52 (42.3%) at >80% of visits. Of the non-responders at the end of the DBTP, 60/185 (32.4%) converted to ≥50% responders in at least half the visits and 24/185 (13.0%) converted to ≥50% responders in >80% of visits. Change from baseline at 112 weeks in mean (SD) MMD was −4.2 (5.0) days. Common AEs (≥10%) were nasopharyngitis, influenza and back pain.
Conclusions
Efficacy was sustained over 112 weeks in individuals with difficult-to-treat EM for whom 2–4 prior migraine preventives had failed. Erenumab treatment was safe and well tolerated, in-line with previous studies.
Trial registration number NCT03096834
Abstract
This work presents the reactivity and dissolution of an as‐polished and electrochemically pre‐treated polycrystalline Au electrode, which is used as a model system. The effect of the electrochemical pre‐treatment in corrosive 0.37 M HCl solutions on the Au surface roughness and dissolution is investigated by varying the number of pre‐treatment steps at 1.16 V against the reversible hydrogen electrode. It is shown that the first 10 s pre‐treatment of the as‐polished Au results in a higher surface roughness and thus higher electrochemically active surface area (ECSA) than that of the as‐polished Au. With the subsequent pre‐treatments, however, the ECSA is gradually decreasing reaching a steady value. The dissolution rate of the pre‐treated Au electrodes upon potential cycling in 0.1 M H2SO4 is determined by in situ inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. A non‐linear dependence of Au dissolution amount is found with respect to the number of pre‐treatments. The overall total Au dissolution rate follows a similar trend as ECSA/roughness. However, an important difference in the dissolution behavior is identified with respect to dissolution processes during Au oxidation (anodic dissolution) and Au reduction (cathodic dissolution): the former is more sensitive to the surface roughness. Thus, the ratio between Au anodic and cathodic dissolution amounts decreases substantially with decrease in surface roughness. This finding is explained by the slow and fast dissolution kinetics for anodic and cathodic processes, respectively. Current work further advances our understanding of the complex Au dissolution mechanism.
Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy of argon metastable atoms in Ar/C2H2 dusty plasmas
(2009)
The tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy method was used to measure Ar metastable density in order to study the dust growth process in hydrocarbon-containing plasmas. A simple model was proposed that successfully interprets the experimental results of pristine plasmas. The model is also suitable for explaining the influence of dust particle size on metastable density and for examining the dust growth process. The metastable density responded strictly to the formation of dust particles and their growth in processing plasmas. Using metastable density as an indicator is, therefore, a non-intrusive and effective method for the study of the dust growth process in hydrocarbon-containing plasmas.
There is broad scientific consensus that current food systems are neither sustainable nor resilient: many agricultural practices are very resource-intensive and responsible for a large share of global emissions and loss of biodiversity. Consequently, current systems put large pressure on planetary boundaries. According to economic theory, food prices form when there is a balance between supply and demand. Yet, due to the neglect of negative external effects, effective prices are often far from representing the ‘true costs’. Current studies show that especially animal-based foodstuff entails vast external costs that currently stay unaccounted for in market prices. Against this background, we explore how informational campaigning on agricultural externalities can contribute to consumer awareness and tolerance of this matter. Further, we investigate the socially just design of monetary incentives and their implementation potentials and challenges. This study builds on the informational campaign of a German supermarket displaying products with two price tags: one of the current market price and the other displaying the ‘true’ price, which includes several environmental externalities calculated with True Cost Accounting (TCA). Based on interpretations of a consumer survey and a number of expert interviews, in this article we approach the potentials and obstacles of TCA as a communication tool and the challenges of its factual implementation in agri-food networks. Our results show that consumers are generally interested in the topic of true food pricing and would to a certain extent be willing to pay ‘true prices’ of the inquired foods. However, insufficient transparency and unjust distribution of wealth are feared to bring about communication and social justice concerns in the implementation of TCA. When introducing TCA into current discourse, it is therefore important to develop measures that are socially cautious and backed by relevant legal framework conditions. This poses the chance to create a fair playing (‘polluter pays’) with a clear assignment of responsibilities to policy makers, and practitioners in addition to customers.
Background
In the German health care system, parents with an acutely ill child can visit an emergency room (ER) 24 hours a day, seven days a week. At the ER, the patient receives a medical consultation. Many parents use these facilities as they do not know how urgently their child requires medical attention. In recent years, paediatric departments in smaller hospitals have been closed, particularly in rural regions. As a result of this, the distances that patients must travel to paediatric care facilities in these regions are increasing, causing more children to visit an ER for adults. However, paediatric expertise is often required in order to assess how quickly the patient requires treatment and select an adequate treatment. This decision is made by a doctor in German ERs. We have examined whether remote paediatricians can perform a standardised urgency assessment (triage) using a video conferencing system.
Methods
Only acutely ill patients who were brought to a paediatric emergency room (paedER) by their parents or carers, without prior medical consultation, have been included in this study. First, an on-site paediatrician assessed the urgency of each case using a standardised triage. In order to do this, the Paediatric Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale (PaedCTAS) was translated into German and adapted for use in a standardised IT-based data collection tool. After the initial on-site triage, a telemedicine paediatrician, based in a different hospital, repeated the triage using a video conferencing system. Both paediatricians used the same triage procedure. The primary outcome was the degree of concordance and interobserver agreement, measured using Cohen’s kappa, between the two paediatricians. We have also included patient and assessor demographics.
Results
A total of 266 patients were included in the study. Of these, 227 cases were eligible for the concordance analysis. In n = 154 cases (68%), there was concordance between the on-site paediatrician’s and telemedicine paediatrician’s urgency assessments. In n = 50 cases (22%), the telemedicine paediatrician rated the urgency of the patient’s condition higher (overtriage); in 23 cases (10%), the assessment indicated a lower urgency (undertriage). Nineteen medical doctors were included in the study, mostly trained paediatric specialists. Some of them acted as an on-site doctor and telemedicine doctor. Cohen’s weighted kappa was 0.64 (95% CI: 0.49–0.79), indicating a substantial agreement between the specialists.
Conclusions
Telemedical triage can assist in providing acute paediatric care in regions with a low density of paediatric care facilities. The next steps are further developing the triage tool and implementing telemedicine urgency assessment in a larger network of hospitals in order to improve the integration of telemedicine into hospitals’ organisational processes. The processes should include intensive training for the doctors involved in telemedical triage.
Abstract
Objective
This study was undertaken to calculate epilepsy‐related direct, indirect, and total costs in adult patients with active epilepsy (ongoing unprovoked seizures) in Germany and to analyze cost components and dynamics compared to previous studies from 2003, 2008, and 2013. This analysis was part of the Epi2020 study.
Methods
Direct and indirect costs related to epilepsy were calculated with a multicenter survey using an established and validated questionnaire with a bottom‐up design and human capital approach over a 3‐month period in late 2020. Epilepsy‐specific costs in the German health care sector from 2003, 2008, and 2013 were corrected for inflation to allow for a valid comparison.
Results
Data on the disease‐specific costs for 253 patients in 2020 were analyzed. The mean total costs were calculated at €5551 (±€5805, median = €2611, range = €274–€21 667) per 3 months, comprising mean direct costs of €1861 (±€1905, median = €1276, range = €327–€13 158) and mean indirect costs of €3690 (±€5298, median = €0, range = €0–€11 925). The main direct cost components were hospitalization (42.4%), antiseizure medication (42.2%), and outpatient care (6.2%). Productivity losses due to early retirement (53.6%), part‐time work or unemployment (30.8%), and seizure‐related off‐days (15.6%) were the main reasons for indirect costs. However, compared to 2013, there was no significant increase of direct costs (−10.0%), and indirect costs significantly increased (p < .028, +35.1%), resulting in a significant increase in total epilepsy‐related costs (p < .047, +20.2%). Compared to the 2013 study population, a significant increase of cost of illness could be observed (p = .047).
Significance
The present study shows that disease‐related costs in adult patients with active epilepsy increased from 2013 to 2020. As direct costs have remained constant, this increase is attributable to an increase in indirect costs. These findings highlight the impact of productivity loss caused by early retirement, unemployment, working time reduction, and seizure‐related days off.
Background: For years, coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) were not considered a cause of bloodstream infections (BSIs) and were often regarded as contamination. However, the association of CoNS with nosocomial infections is increasingly recognized. The identification of more than 40 different CoNS species has been driven by the introduction of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry. Yet, treatment guidelines consider CoNS as a whole group, despite increasing antibiotic resistance (ABR) in CoNS. This retrospective study provides an in-depth data analysis of CoNS isolates found in human blood culture isolates between 2013 and 2019 in the entire region of the Northern Netherlands. Methods: In total, 10,796 patients were included that were hospitalized in one of the 15 hospitals in the region, leading to 14,992 CoNS isolates for (ABR) data analysis. CoNS accounted for 27.6% of all available 71,632 blood culture isolates. EUCAST Expert rules were applied to correct for errors in antibiotic test results. Results: A total of 27 different CoNS species were found. Major differences were observed in occurrence and ABR profiles. The top five species covered 97.1% of all included isolates: S. epidermidis, S. hominis, S. capitis, S. haemolyticus, and S. warneri. Regarding ABR, methicillin resistance was most frequently detected in S. haemolyticus (72%), S. cohnii (65%), and S. epidermidis (62%). S. epidermidis and S. haemolyticus showed 50–80% resistance to teicoplanin and macrolides while resistance to these agents remained lower than 10% in most other CoNS species. Conclusion: These differences are often neglected in national guideline development, prompting a focus on ‘ABR-safe’ agents such as glycopeptides. In conclusion, this multi-year, full-region approach to extensively assess the trends in both the occurrence and phenotypic resistance of CoNS species could be used for evaluating treatment policies and understanding more about these important but still too often neglected pathogens.
Although the common pathology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and white matter hyperintensities (WMH) is disputed, the gene TREML2 has been implicated in both conditions: its whole-blood gene expression was associated with WMH volume and its missense variant rs3747742 with AD risk. We re-examined those associations within one comprehensive dataset of the general population, additionally searched for cross-relations and illuminated the role of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 status in the associations. For our linear regression and linear mixed effect models, we used 1949 participants from the Study of Health in Pomerania (Germany). AD was assessed using a continuous pre-symptomatic MRI-based score evaluating a participant’s AD-related brain atrophy. In our study, increased whole-blood TREML2 gene expression was significantly associated with reduced WMH volume but not with the AD score. Conversely, rs3747742-C was significantly associated with a reduced AD score but not with WMH volume. The APOE status did not influence the associations. In sum, TREML2 robustly associated with WMH volume and AD-related brain atrophy on different molecular levels. Our results thus underpin TREML2’s role in neurodegeneration, might point to its involvement in AD and WMH via different biological mechanisms, and highlight TREML2 as a worthwhile target for disentangling the two pathologies.
Abstract
The role of future forests in global biogeochemical cycles will depend on how different tree species respond to climate. Interpreting the response of forest growth to climate change requires an understanding of the temporal and spatial patterns of seasonal climatic influences on the growth of common tree species. We constructed a new network of 310 tree‐ring width chronologies from three common tree species (Quercus robur, Pinus sylvestris and Fagus sylvatica) collected for different ecological, management and climate purposes in the south Baltic Sea region at the border of three bioclimatic zones (temperate continental, oceanic, southern boreal). The major climate factors (temperature, precipitation, drought) affecting tree growth at monthly and seasonal scales were identified. Our analysis documents that 20th century Scots pine and deciduous species growth is generally controlled by different climate parameters, and that summer moisture availability is increasingly important for the growth of deciduous species examined. We report changes in the influence of winter climate variables over the last decades, where a decreasing influence of late winter temperature on deciduous tree growth and an increasing influence of winter temperature on Scots pine growth was found. By comparing climate–growth responses for the 1943–1972 and 1973–2002 periods and characterizing site‐level growth response stability, a descriptive application of spatial segregation analysis distinguished sites with stable responses to dominant climate parameters (northeast of the study region), and sites that collectively showed unstable responses to winter climate (southeast of the study region). The findings presented here highlight the temporally unstable and nonuniform responses of tree growth to climate variability, and that there are geographical coherent regions where these changes are similar. Considering continued climate change in the future, our results provide important regional perspectives on recent broad‐scale climate–growth relationships for trees across the temperate to boreal forest transition around the south Baltic Sea.
AbstractUsing measurements from high resolution monitoring of radial tree-growth we present new data of the growth reactions of four widespread broadleaved tree-species to the combined European drought years 2018 and 2019. We can show that, in contrast to field crops, trees could make better use of the winter soil moisture storage in 2018 which buffered them from severe drought stress and growth depressions in this year. Nevertheless, legacy effects of the 2018 drought accompanied by sustained low soil moisture conditions (missing recharge in winter) and again higher than average temperatures and low precipitation in spring/summer 2019 have resulted in severe growth reductions for all studied tree-species in this year. This highlights the pivotal role of soil water recharge in winter. Although short term resistance to hot summers can be high if sufficient winter precipitations buffers forest stands from drought damage, legacy effects will strongly impact tree growth in subsequent years if the drought persists. The two years 2018 and 2019 are extreme with regard to historical instrumental data but, according to regional climate models, resemble rather normal conditions of the climate in the second half of the 21st century. Therefore the observed strongly reduced growth rates can provide an outlook on future forest growth potential in northern Central Europe and beyond.
Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma (OSCC) is the most common malignant cancer affecting the oral cavity. It is characterized by high morbidity and very few therapeutic options. Angiotensin (Ang)-(1-7) is a biologically active heptapeptide, generated predominantly from AngII (Ang-(1-8)) by the enzymatic activity of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE 2). Previous studies have shown that Ang-(1-7) counterbalances AngII pro-tumorigenic actions in different pathophysiological settings, exhibiting antiproliferative and anti-angiogenic properties in cancer cells. However, the prevailing effects of Ang-(1-7) in the oral epithelium have not been established in vivo. Here, we used an inducible oral-specific mouse model, where the expression of a tamoxifen-inducible Cre recombinase (CreERtam), which is under the control of the cytokeratin 14 promoter (K14-CreERtam), induces the expression of the K-ras oncogenic variant KrasG12D (LSLK-rasG12D). These mice develop highly proliferative squamous papilloma in the oral cavity and hyperplasia exclusively in oral mucosa within one month after tamoxifen treatment. Ang-(1-7) treated mice showed a reduced papilloma development accompanied by a significant reduction in cell proliferation and a decrease in pS6 positivity, the most downstream target of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling route in oral papilloma. These results suggest that Ang-(1-7) may be a novel therapeutic target for OSCC.
Because of some disadvantages of chemical disinfection in dental practice (especially denture cleaning), we investigated the effects of physical methods on Candida albicans biofilms. For this purpose, the antifungal efficacy of three different low-temperature plasma devices (an atmospheric pressure plasma jet and two different dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs)) on Candida albicans biofilms grown on titanium discs in vitro was investigated. As positive treatment controls, we used 0.1% chlorhexidine digluconate (CHX) and 0.6% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl). The corresponding gas streams without plasma ignition served as negative treatment controls. The efficacy of the plasma treatment was determined evaluating the number of colony-forming units (CFU) recovered from titanium discs. The plasma treatment reduced the CFU significantly compared to chemical disinfectants. While 10 min CHX or NaOCl exposure led to a CFU log10 reduction factor of 1.5, the log10 reduction factor of DBD plasma was up to 5. In conclusion, the use of low-temperature plasma is a promising physical alternative to chemical antiseptics for dental practice.
Background: Administering intraoperative analgesia in patients undergoing periacetabular osteotomy (PAO) is challenging due to both the relevant surgical approach and osteotomies, which are associated with pain. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of the transversus abdominis plane block (TAPb) on intraoperative opioid consumption and circulation parameters in PAO patients. Patients and Methods: We conducted a two-group randomized-controlled trial involving 42 consecutive patients undergoing PAO for symptomatic developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) in our department. Patients assigned to the study group received an ultrasound-guided TAPb with 0.75% ropivacaine before the beginning of the surgery and after general anesthesia induction. Patients assigned to the control group did not receive a TAPb. General anesthesia was conducted according to a defined study protocol. The primary endpoint of the study was the intraoperative opioid consumption, measured in morphine equivalent dose (MED). Secondary endpoints were the assessment of intraoperative heart rate, mean arterial pressure (MAP), need for hypotension treatment, and length of hospital stay (LOHS). A total of 41 patients (n = 21 TAPb group, n = 20 control group) completed the study; of these, 33 were women (88.5%) and 8 were men (19.5%). The mean age at the time of surgery was 28 years (18–43, SD ± 7.4). All operations were performed by a single high-volume surgeon and all TAPb procedures were performed by a single experienced senior anesthesiologist. Results: We observed a significantly lower intraoperative opioid consumption in the TAPb group compared to the control group (930 vs. 1186 MED per kg bodyweight; p = 0.016). No significant differences were observed in the secondary outcome parameters. We observed no perioperative complications. Conclusion: Ultrasound-guided TAPb significantly reduces intraoperative opioid consumption in patients undergoing PAO.
Abstract
Introduced populations of invasive organisms have to cope with novel environmental challenges, while having reduced genetic variation caused by founder effects. The mechanisms associated with this “genetic paradox of invasive species” has received considerable attention, yet few studies have examined the genomic architecture of invasive species. Populations of the heart node ant Cardiocondyla obscurior belong to two distinct lineages, a New World lineage so far only found in Latin America and a more globally distributed Old World lineage. In the present study, we use population genomic approaches to compare populations of the two lineages with apparent divergent invasive potential. We find that the strong genetic differentiation of the two lineages began at least 40,000 generations ago and that activity of transposable elements (TEs) has contributed significantly to the divergence of both lineages, possibly linked to the very unusual genomic distribution of TEs in this species. Furthermore, we show that introgression from the Old World lineage is a dominant source of genetic diversity in the New World lineage, despite the lineages' strong genetic differentiation. Our study uncovers mechanisms underlying novel genetic variation in introduced populations of C. obscurior that could contribute to the species' adaptive potential.
Abstract
Background and purpose:Diagnosing a patient with headache as a migraineur is critical for state-of-the-art migrainemanagement. Screening tools are imperative means to improve the diagnostic yield in the primary care settings andspecialized clinics. This study aims to translate and assess the diagnostic accuracy of a German version of theID Migraine™as a widely used and efficient screening instrument.
Methods:
The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy translation methodology was used to translate theoriginal three-itemID Migraine™, including a fourth question for aura, from the English language into the German language.Diagnostic accuracy of the GermanID Migraine™and predictors of false screening results were assessed among patientspresenting to a headache outpatient clinic of a tertiary care center in Germany over a 6-month period.
Results:
The translation procedure yielded a harmonized GermanID Migraine™and its diagnostic accuracy was assessedin 105 patients (80 female, 46.5+17.2 years of age), including 79 patients (75.2%) with migraine. The three-item GermanID Migraine™provides a sensitivity of 99%, specificity of 68%, and positive and negative predictive values of 90% and 95%,respectively, using a cutoff of2. Positive and negative predictive values in a general headache population are estimated tobe 74% and 98%, respectively. The aura question identified 18 out of 20 migraineurs with aura.
Conclusions:
The GermanID Migraine™is an accurate screening tool for migraine even in a challenging population of aspecialized outpatient clinic. Its diagnostic accuracy indicates a potential utility for screening in primary health care.
Einleitung/Hintergrund
DC_TRAIN_APHASIA ist eine multizentrische, randomisiert-kontrollierte Studie, die seit November 2019 unter Federführung der Universitätsmedizin Greifswald durchgeführt wird (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03930121). Die Studie untersucht, ob adjuvante transkranielle Gleichstromstimulation („transcranial direct current stimulation“, tDCS) den Erfolg einer 3‑wöchigen intensiven Sprachtherapie bei chronischer Aphasie steigern kann.
Material und Methode
Bis Ende 2024 sollen bundesweit 130 Patient:innen eingeschlossen werden. Die Entwicklung innovativer Rekrutierungsstrategien stellt seit Beginn der Studie eine Herausforderung dar. Neben gängigen Rekrutierungsmethoden wie der direkten Ansprache von Menschen mit Aphasie in Kliniken, Logopädiepraxen, Rehabilitationseinrichtungen und Selbsthilfegruppen wurden Radiowerbespots, Fernsehbeiträge und Auftritte in sozialen Medien erprobt.
Zwischenergebnisse
Bis zum aktuellen Zeitpunkt konnten 110 Patient:innen in die Studie eingeschlossen werden. Zum größten kurzzeitigen Rücklauf führte die Rekrutierung über einen Fernseh- bzw. Radiobeitrag. Den größten langfristigen Rücklauf ergab die Rekrutierung über Logopädie- und Neurologiepraxen, Selbsthilfegruppen und soziale Medien. Teilnehmer:innen berichteten als „Testimonials“ positiv von der Sprachtherapie und der Anwendung von tDCS, die sich als gut verträglich erwies.
Diskussion
Die multizentrische Studie DC_TRAIN_APHASIA prüft die Wirksamkeit von tDCS als adjuvante Applikation für intensive Sprachtherapie bei chronischer Aphasie. Die vorliegende Übersicht soll künftigen Studien als Leitfaden zur Rekrutierung von Stichproben dienen, die Menschen mit eingeschränkten kommunikativen Fähigkeiten umfassen.
Background
Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with chronic conditions face a transfer, defined as an actual shift from paediatric to adult-oriented health care. Transition competence as the self-perceived knowledge, skills and abilities regarding the transition process was considered extremely useful.
Aim
This study was designed to investigate the impact of transition competence before and after the transfer on disease-specific quality of life (QoL) and health care satisfaction of AYAs with diabetes.
Results
In total, a sample of N = 90 AYAs with diabetes self-reported their transition competence, diabetes-specific QoL and satisfaction with care. Multiple linear regressions were used to analyse the impact of transition competence on satisfaction with care and QoL. Transition competence positively influenced the outcomes of satisfaction with care and QoL.
Conclusion
Young adults with diabetes showed higher transition competence scores than adolescents with diabetes.
Transcriptional Basis for Differential Thermosensitivity of Seedlings of Various Tomato Genotypes
(2020)
Background: Intensive speech-language therapy (SLT) can promote recovery from chronic post-stroke aphasia, a major consequence of stroke. However, effect sizes of intensive SLT are moderate, potentially reflecting a physiological limit of training-induced progress. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is an easy-to-use, well-tolerated and low-cost approach that may enhance effectiveness of intensive SLT. In a recent phase-II randomized controlled trial, 26 individuals with chronic post-stroke aphasia received intensive SLT combined with anodal-tDCS of the left primary motor cortex (M1), resulting in improved naming and proxy-rated communication ability, with medium-to-large effect sizes.
Aims: The proposed protocol seeks to establish the incremental benefit from anodal-tDCS of M1 in a phase-III randomized controlled trial with adequate power, ecologically valid outcomes, and evidence-based SLT.
Methods: The planned study is a prospective randomized placebo-controlled (using sham-tDCS), parallel-group, double-blind, multi-center, phase-III superiority trial. A sample of 130 individuals with aphasia at least 6 months post-stroke will be recruited in more than 18 in- and outpatient rehabilitation centers.
Outcomes: The primary outcome focuses on communication ability in chronic post-stroke aphasia, as revealed by changes on the Amsterdam-Nijmegen Everyday Language Test (A-scale; primary endpoint: 6-month follow-up; secondary endpoints: immediately after treatment, and 12-month follow-up). Secondary outcomes include measures assessing linguistic-executive skills, attention, memory, emotional well-being, quality of life, health economic costs, and adverse events (endpoints: 6-month follow-up, immediately after treatment, and 12-month follow-up).
Discussion: Positive results will increase the quality of life for persons with aphasia and their families while reducing societal costs. After trial completion, a workshop with relevant stakeholders will ensure transfer into best-practice guidelines and successful integration within clinical routine.
Clinical Trial Registration: www.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT03930121.
Simple Summary
Active therapeutic options in advanced soft tissue sarcoma (STS), able to induce durable objective responses, are limited beyond first-line chemotherapy. Although results obtained in clinical trials suggest there is a high probability for patients with STS to benefit from treatment with trabectedin (Yondelis®), there is still a paucity of robust real-life data in more diverse patient populations. The prospective, non-interventional phase IV YON-SAR trial (NCT02367924) was designed to evaluate treatment effects of trabectedin in patients with advanced STS in real-life clinical practice across Germany. The efficacy results of this trial, conducted in 128 patients from 19 sites across Germany, further support trabectedin as a standard of care for a second- or further-line treatment of patients with advanced STS in routine clinical practice (median progression-free survival: 5.2 months; median overall survival: 15.2 months). The safety profile of trabectedin was manageable and in line with those observed in previous studies.
Abstract
This non-interventional, prospective phase IV trial evaluated trabectedin in patients with soft tissue sarcoma (STS) in real-life clinical practice across Germany. The primary endpoints were progression-free survival (PFS) rates at 3 and 6 months, as defined by investigators. Overall, 128 patients from 19 German sites were evaluated for efficacy and 130 for safety. Median age was 58.5 years (range: 23–84) and leiomyosarcoma was the most frequent histotype (n = 45; 35.2%). Trabectedin was mostly used as second/third-line treatment (n = 91; 71.1%). Median PFS was 5.2 months (95% CI: 3.3–6.7), with 60.7% and 44.5% of patients free from progression at 3 and 6 months, respectively. Median overall survival was 15.2 months (95% CI: 9.6–21.4). One patient achieved a complete and 14 patients a partial response, conferring an objective response rate of 11.7%. Decreases in white blood cells (27.0% of patients), platelets (16.2%) and neutrophils (13.1%) and increased alanine aminotransferase (10.8%) were the most common trabectedin-related grade 3/4 adverse drug reactions. Two deaths due to pneumonia and sepsis were considered trabectedin-related. Trabectedin confers clinically meaningful activity in patients with multiple STS histotypes, comparable to that previously observed in clinical trials and other non-interventional studies, and with a manageable safety profile.
Life-threatening toxic shock syndrome is often caused by the superantigen toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 (TSST-1) produced by Staphylococcus aureus. A well-known risk factor is the lack of neutralizing antibodies. To identify determinants of the anti-TSST-1 antibody response, we examined 976 participants of the German population-based epidemiological Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP-TREND-0). We measured anti-TSST-1 antibody levels, analyzed the colonization with TSST-1-encoding S. aureus strains, and performed a genome-wide association analysis of genetic risk factors. TSST-1-specific serum IgG levels varied over a range of 4.2 logs and were elevated by a factor of 12.3 upon nasal colonization with TSST-1-encoding S. aureus. Moreover, the anti-TSST-1 antibody levels were strongly associated with HLA class II gene loci. HLA-DRB1*03:01 and HLA-DQB1*02:01 were positively, and HLA-DRB1*01:01 as well as HLA-DQB1*05:01 negatively associated with the anti-TSST-1 antibody levels. Thus, both toxin exposure and HLA alleles affect the human antibody response to TSST-1.
In 2009, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) started its journey towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC). This study examines the evolution of financial risk protection and health outcomes indicators in the context of the commitment of DRC to UHC. To measure the effects of such a commitment on financial risk protection and health outcomes indicators, we analyse whether changes have occurred over the last two decades and, if applicable, when these changes happened. Using five variables as indicators for the measurement of the financial risk protection component, there as well retained three indicators to measure health outcomes. To identify time-related effects, we applied the parametric approach of breakpoint regression to detect whether the UHC journey has brought change and when exactly the change has occurred.
Although there is a slight improvement in the financial risk protection indicators, we found that the adopted strategies have fostered access to healthcare for the wealthiest quantile of the population while neglecting the majority of the poorest. The government did not thrive persistently over the past decade to meet its commitment to allocate adequate funds to health expenditures. In addition, the support from donors appears to be unstable, unpredictable and unsustainable. We found a slight improvement in health outcomes attributable to direct investment in building health centres by the private sector and international organizations. Overall, our findings reveal that the prevention of catastrophic health expenditure is still not sufficiently prioritized by the country, and mostly for the majority of the poorest. Therefore, our work suggests that DRC’s UHC journey has slightly contributed to improve the financial risk protection and health outcomes indicators but much effort should be undertaken.
Abstract
In the RNA world, the exchange of sequence patches between two RNAs is an intriguing evolutionary concept, allowing generation of new RNA molecules with novel functionality. Based on the hairpin ribozyme (HPR) with its unique cleavage‐ligation properties, we here demonstrate RNA supported RNA recombination as a possible scenario for the emergence of larger RNA molecules with more complex functionality. A HPR variant designed for the purpose of recombination is capable of cleaving two different RNA molecules, one being a hammerhead ribozyme (HHR) and the other an aptamer (A), and to subsequently recombine and ligate the resulting fragments to a hammerhead ribozyme that is allosterically controlled (HHA) by a cognate ligand. Two such recombination processes involving aptamers for either theophylline or flavine mononucleotide (FMN) are demonstrated with yields of functional recombination product of up to 34 %.
The benefit of regular physical activity and exercise training for the prevention of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases is undisputed. Many molecular mechanisms mediating exercise effects have been deciphered. Personalised exercise prescription can help patients in achieving their individual greatest benefit from an exercise-based cardiovascular rehabilitation programme. Yet, we still struggle to provide truly personalised exercise prescriptions to our patients. In this position paper, we address novel basic and translational research concepts that can help us understand the principles underlying the inter-individual differences in the response to exercise, and identify early on who would most likely benefit from which exercise intervention. This includes hereditary, non-hereditary and sex-specific concepts. Recent insights have helped us to take on a more holistic view, integrating exercise-mediated molecular mechanisms with those influenced by metabolism and immunity. Unfortunately, while the outline is recognisable, many details are still lacking to turn the understanding of a concept into a roadmap ready to be used in clinical routine. This position paper therefore also investigates perspectives on how the advent of ‘big data’ and the use of animal models could help unravel inter-individual responses to exercise parameters and thus influence hypothesis-building for translational research in exercise-based cardiovascular rehabilitation.
Synopsis
C+60 has been proposed to be responsible for two of the diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs), the absorption features observed in the visible-to-near-infrared spectra of the interstellar medium. However, a confirmation requires laboratory gas-phase spectra, which are so far not available. We plan to develop a novel spectroscopy technique that will allow us to obtain the first gas-phase spectra of C+60, and that will be applicable to other complex organic molecules such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The current status of the experimental setup, the ideas behind the measurement scheme and the preparatory work toward its implementation will be presented.