Pollen analysis as a part of palynology deals with the morphological determination of pollen and spores. Different technologies with different resolutions varying from simple light microscopy to highly elaborate electron microscopy are used for the examination, depending on the area of application (e.g. sedimentology, melissopalynology, forensic palynology, etc.). To answer the question of whether laser scanning microscopy (LSM) can replace scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for the determination of pollen species, 168 species were examined using LSM. It was concluded that LSM is both efficient and easy to handle. After preparing the fresh pollen, a 3D laser scan takes 5-10 minutes and unlike using SEM, the pollen does not have to be sputtered or processed. The 3D scans can be measured quickly and easily with the integrated software and there were no observable artifacts. At magnifications up to 8545x, the image quality is comparable to that of a sputtered SEM sample whereas at higher magnifications, the SEM method is superior. Overall, pollen display by LSM is much less time consuming and more cost effective than with the SEM method.

An attractive option for realizing applications in radiation environments is to employ All-Programmable System-on-Chips (APSoCs) thanks to their high-performance computing and power efficiency merits. Despite APSoC's advantages, like any other electronic device, they are prone to radiation effects. Processors found in APSoCs must, therefore, be adequately hardened against ionizing-radiation to become a viable alternative for harsh environments. This paper proposes a novel triple-core lockstep (TCLS) approach to secure the Xilinx Zynq-7000 APSoC dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 processor against radiation-induced soft errors by coupling it with a MicroBlaze TMR subsystem in Zynq's programmable logic (PL) layer. The proposed strategy uses software-level checkpointing principles along with roll-back and roll-forward mechanisms (i.e. software redundancy), and hardware-level processor replication as well as checker circuits (i.e. hardware redundancy). Results of fault injection experiments show that the proposed solution achieved high soft error security by mitigating about 99% of bit-flips injected into both ARM cores' register data.

Radiolabelled tracers targeting the prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) have become important radiopharmaceuticals for the PET-imaging of prostate cancer. In this connection we recently developed the fluorine-18 labelled PSMA-ligand [¹⁸F]PSMA-1007 as next generation radiofluorinated Glu-ureido PSMA inhibitor after [¹⁸F]DCFPyL and [¹⁸F]DCFBC. Since radiosynthesis so far was suffering for rather poor yields novel procedures for the automated radiosyntheses of [¹⁸F]PSMA-1007 have been developed. We herein report on both the two-step and the novel one-step procedures, which have been performed on different commonly used radiosynthesisers. Using the novel one-step procedure the [¹⁸F]PSMA-1007 was produced in good radiochemical yields ranging from 30-70 % and synthesis times less than 55 minutes. Furthermore, upscaling to product activities up to 50 GBq per batch was successfully conducted. All batches passed quality control according to European Pharmacopoeia standards. Therefore, we were able to disclose a new, simple and at the same time high yielding production pathway for the next generation PSMA radioligand [¹⁸F]PSMA-1007. Actually it turned out that the radiosynthesis is as easily realised as the well-known [¹⁸F]FDG synthesis and thus transferable onto all currently available radiosynthesisers. Using the new procedures, clinical daily routine can be sustainably supported in-house even in larger hospitals by a single production batch.

In this article, we investigate limitations of importing methods based on algorithmic information theory from monoplex networks into multidimensional networks (such as multilayer networks) that have a large number of extra dimensions (i.e., aspects). In the worst-case scenario, it has been previously shown that node-aligned multidimensional networks with non-uniform multidimensional spaces can display exponentially larger algorithmic information (or lossless compressibility) distortions with respect to their isomorphic monoplex networks, so that these distortions grow at least linearly with the number of extra dimensions. In the present article, we demonstrate that node-unaligned multidimensional networks, either with uniform or non-uniform multidimensional spaces, can also display exponentially larger algorithmic information distortions with respect to their isomorphic monoplex networks. However, unlike the node-aligned non-uniform case studied in previous work, these distortions in the node-unaligned case grow at least exponentially with the number of extra dimensions. On the other hand, for node-aligned multidimensional networks with uniform multidimensional spaces, we demonstrate that any distortion can only grow up to a logarithmic order of the number of extra dimensions. Thus, these results establish that isomorphisms between finite multidimensional networks and finite monoplex networks do not preserve algorithmic information in general and highlight that the algorithmic information of the multidimensional space itself needs to be taken into account in multidimensional network complexity analysis.

MnSi has played a major role since the late 1970s in developing the theory of helical magnets in non-centro symmetric materials showing Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya interaction (DMI). With a long helimagnetic pitch of 175 \AA~as compared to the lattice d-spacing of 4.55\AA, it was ideal for performing neutron studies especially as large single crystals could be grown. In these studies under the application of a field of 180 mT perpendicular to Q, a so-called A-phase in the B-T phase diagram was found and interpreted as a rotation of the alignment of the magnetic helix away from the pinning axis. After the surprising discovery of the skyrmion lattice in the A-phase in 2009 much interest arose as it could be shown that the magnetic skyrmion lattice is topologically protected. Due to the rigidity of the skyrmionic lattice it is only loosely bound to the crystal lattice and therefore only relatively small current densities can already induce a motion of this lattice. Another very interesting aspect are the excitations in the spin system of MnSi. As the helimagnetic state is characterized by a long pitch of about 175 \AA, the associated characteristic excitations form a band structure due to Umklapp scattering and can only be observed at very small q with energies below 1 meV. We have investigated the the magnons in MnSi in the whole (B,T)-phase diagram starting in the single-k helimagnetic state by applying a small magnetic field B = 100 mT. This way, the complexity of the magnon spectrum is significantly reduced allowing a detailed comparison of the data with theory resulting in a full theoretical understanding of the spin system of MnSi in all its different magnetic phases.

When phenomena in quantum mechanics are interpreted from the perspective of bio-psychology, wave function collapse from several to a single eigenstate must be plausibly explained. Quantum mechanics requires a context, yet the context of an observer is rarely considered. On the other hand, in bio-psychology, the observer context is examined to explain superposition and collapse by different mental functions used in everyday life. Three mental functions are described, one of which is responsible for observation, and the others for conservation and treatment of information in mental representation. Whereas observation produces information with certainty, the subsequent processes result in uncertain potentiality. In order to encompass uncertainty, multiple possibilities are simultaneously considered in mental superposition, one of which should represent the unknown future outcome. During observation, all suggested potentialities necessarily collapse to one real outcome. The collapse of superposition does not occur in observable physical reality, but in its mental representation. Some physical principles—such as superposition, infinity and nothingness before the Big Bang—are pure phenomena of mental representation, which will always remain unverifiable by observation. This argument proves that mental representation brought about by the observer context participates in the production of mental models for the best approximation of physical reality.

Synergy, emerges from synchronized reciprocal positive feedback loops between a network of diverse actors. For this process to proceed, compatible information from different sources synchronically coordinates the actions of the actors resulting in a nonlinear increase in the useful work or potential energy the system can manage. In contrast noise is produced when incompatible information is mixed. This synergy produced from the coordination of different agents achieves non-linear gains in free energy and in information (negentropy) that are greater than the sum of the parts. The final product of new synergies is an increase in individual autonomy of an organism that achieves increased emancipation from the environment with increases in productivity, efficiency, capacity for flexibility, self-regulation and self-control of behavior through a synchronized division of ever more specialized labor. Examples that provide quantitative data for this phenomenon are presented. Results show that increases in free energy density require decreases in entropy density. This is proposed as a law of thermodynamics.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has resulted in the generation of evolutionary-related variants. The S-protein of the B.1.1.7 variant (deletion N-terminal domain (NTD) His69Val70Tyr144) may contribute to altered infectivity. These mutations may have been presaged by animal mutations in minks housed in mink farms that according to the present analysis by modelling of protein ligand docking altered a high affinity binding site in the S-protein NTD. These mutants likely occurred only sporadically in humans. Tissue-adaptations and the size of the mink relative to the infected human population size back then may have comparatively increased the relative mutation rate. Simple, multi-threaded automated docking that is widely available, assigns increased binding of the blood type II A antigen to the SARS-Cov-2 S-protein NTD of B.1.1.7 with an overall increased docking interaction of blood group A harbouring glycolipids relative to group B or H (H, p=0.04). The top scoring glycan is identified as a DSGG (also classified as sialosyl-MSGG or disialosyl-Gb5) that may compete with heparin, which is similar to heparan sulfate linked to proteinaceous receptors on the tissue surface. Other glycolipids are found to interact with lower affinity, except long ligands that have suitable ligand binding poses to match the curved binding pocket.

Little theoretically-informed research investigates how non-standard eyewitness identification tasks or metacognitive instructions might improve identification accuracy. We used a continuous dual-process model of recognition to explain familiarity-based identification errors and design modified lineup tasks and metacognitive instructions that increased eyewitness recollection and discriminability. In four studies we examined identification performance across lineups (standard simultaneous, elimination, delayed-choice) and instructions (task-related, phenomenological, standard). Participants viewed photos of targets and made identification decisions about a lineup for each target. Instructions about memory phenomenology improved discriminability in delayed-choice lineups, while task-related instructions were ineffective. Metacognitive instructions about how to better evaluate memory quality in modified lineup tasks could improve recollection for greater identification accuracy even when memory is poor. While immediate post-decision confidence is a good predictor of identification accuracy, lineup modifications that improve eyewitness memory use would provide better evidence of suspect guilt or innocence. We discuss implications for lineup theory and design.

We use a random gap model to describe a metal-insulator transition in three-dimensional semiconductors due to doping and find a conventional phase transition, where the effective scattering rate is the order parameter. Spontaneous symmetry breaking results in metallic behavior, whereas the insulating regime is characterized by the absence of spontaneous symmetry breaking. The transition is continuous for the average conductivity with critical exponent equal to 1. Away from the critical point the exponent is roughly 0.6, which may explain experimental observations of a crossover of the exponent from 1 to 0.5 by going away from the critical point.

Non-rigid registration presents a significant challenge in the domain of point cloud processing. The general objective is to model complex non-rigid deformations between two or more overlapping point clouds. Applications are diverse and span multiple research fields, including registration of topographic data, scene flow estimation, and dynamic shape reconstruction. To provide context, we begin with a general introduction to the topic of point cloud registration, including a categorization of methods. Next, we introduce a general mathematical formulation for point cloud registration and extend it to address non-rigid registration. A detailed discussion and categorization of existing approaches to non-rigid registration follows. We then introduce our own method where the usage of piece-wise tricubic polynomials for modeling non-rigid deformations is proposed. Our method offers several advantages over existing methods. These advantages include easy control of flexibility through a small number of intuitive tuning parameters, a closed-form optimization solution, and an efficient transformation of huge point clouds. We demonstrate our method through multiple examples that cover a broad range of applications, with a focus on remote sensing applications - namely, the registration of Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS), Mobile Laser Scanning (MLS), and Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) point clouds. The implementation of our algorithms is open source and can be found on GitHub.

Steel structures, such as bridges, must be continuously maintained. Due to increasing trac loads, design and execution shortcomings, many steel bridges are subject to various types of damage, such as cracks. The bridges must be maintained by crack removal and re-welding the cracks. During this work, the bridge is closed for trac in order to suppress the crack ank movement during welding. As a result, trac loads on other routes are higher, which increases further damage on detour routes and subsequently additional welding work and costs on theses structures. Therefore, the aim is to provide a method that allows welding work on steel structures under running trac, respectively under cyclic loads. First, measurements at a representative steel bridge were conducted to derive gap opening parameters of amplitude and frequency for welding tests under cyclic loads. In a test setup for reproducible and comparable welding tests, specimen were welded under cyclic loads. Deep grinding of the root layer allowed defect-free welding within the range of 0.1 mm amplitude at a frequency of 2 Hz loadings. For such welds, the weld quality and the fatigue strength was comparable to the standard requirements.

Tight junctions (TJ) are cell-cell adhesive structures that define the permeability of barrier-forming epithelia and endothelia. In contrast to this seemingly static function, TJs display a surprisingly high molecular complexity and an unexpected dynamic regulation, which allows the TJs to maintain a barrier in the presence of physiological forces and in response to perturbations. Cell-cell adhesion receptors play key roles during the dynamic regulation of TJs. They connect individual cells within cellular sheets and link sites of cell-cell contacts to the underlying actin cytoskeleton. Recent findings support roles of adhesion receptors in transmitting mechanical forces and promoting phase separation. In this review, we discuss newly discovered functions of cell adhesion receptors localized at the TJs and their role in the regulation of the barrier function.

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a frequent, debilitating and still enigmatic disease. There is a broad overlap in the symptomatology of ME/CFS and the Post-COVID Syndrome (PCS). A fraction of the PCS patients develops the full clinical picture of ME/CFS. New observations in microvessels and blood from patients suffering from PCS have appeared and include microclots and malformed pathological blood cells. Capillary blood flow is impaired not only by pathological blood components but also by prothrombotic changes in the vascular wall, endothelial dysfunction, and expression of adhesion molecules in the capillaries. These disturbances can finally cause a low capillary flow and even capillary stasis. A low cardiac stroke volume due to hypovolemia and the inability of the capacitance vessels to adequately constrict to deliver the necessary cardiac preload generate an unfavorable low precapillary perfusion pressure. Furthermore, a predominance of vasoconstrictor over vasodilator influences exists, in which sympathetic hyperactivity and endothelial dysfunction play a strong role, causing constriction of resistance vessels and of precapillary sphincters which leads to a fall in capillary pressure behind the sphincters. The interaction of these two precapillary cardiovascular mechanisms causing a low capillary perfusion pressure is hemodynamically highly unfavorable in the presence of a primary capillary stasis already caused by the pathological blood components and their interaction with the capillary wall, to severely impair organ perfusion. The detrimental coincidence of the microcirculatory with the precapillary cardiovascular disturbances may constitute the key disturbance of the Post-COVID-19 syndrome and finally lead to ME/CFS in pre-disposed patients because the interaction causes a particular kind of perfusion disturbance - capillary ischemia-reperfusion - which has a high potential of causing mitochondrial dysfunction by inducing sodium- and calcium-overload in skeletal muscles. The latter in turns worsens the vascular situation by the generation of reactive oxygen species to close a vicious cycle from which the patient can hardly escape.

This paper develops the mathematical modeling and deflection control of a textile-reinforced composite integrated with shape memory actuators. The model of the system is derived using identification method and unstructured uncertainty approach. Based on this model and robust stability analysis a robust proportional-integral controller is designed for controlling the deflection of the composite. The performance of the proposed controller is compared with a classical one through experimental analysis.

Optical fiber measurement systems have recently gained popularity following a multitude of intensive investigations. A new technique has been developed for these measurement systems that uses Rayleigh backscatter to determine the distributed strain measurement over the total length of a fiber. These measurement systems have great potential in civil engineering and structural health monitoring. This paper addresses some preliminary comparisons between three different fiber coatings and six different adhesives on steel structures. The results are based on a bending test with specimens made of precision flat steel; optical fiber strain measurements were compared with photogrammetric strain measurements. Analysis of the test data showed a strong correlation between the optical measurement system’s results and the theoretical results up to the yielding point of the steel. Furthermore, the results indicate that fibers with the Ormocer® and polyimide coatings have almost no loss in the strain measurements. The main results of this investigation are a guideline describing how to attach optical fibers to steel surfaces for distributed fiber optical strain measurements and recommendations for coatings to obtain realistic strain values. Additionally, the advantages of distributed strain measurements were revealed, which illustrates the potential of Rayleigh backscattering applications.

A multilevel factorial design of 23 with 12 experiments was developed for the preparation of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from Agave tequilana Weber var. Azul bagasse. The studied parameters were acid type (H2SO4 and HCl), acid concentration (60 and 65 wt% for H2SO4, 2 and 8N for HCl) temperature (40 and 60°C for H2SO4, 50 and 90°C for HCl), and hydrolysis time (40, 55 and 70 min for H2SO4, 30, 115 and 200 min for HCl). The obtained CNC were physical and chemically characterized using dynamic light scattering (DLS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and X-ray diffraction (XDR) techniques. The size and morphology of A. tequilana CNC strongly depend on the acid type and hydrolysis parameters. The shortest CNC were obtained with H2SO4 (65 wt%, 40 °C, and 70 min) had a length of 137 ± 68 nm, width 33 ± 7 nm, and height 9.1 nm, whereas the shortest CNC obtained with HCl (2 N, 50 °C and 30 min) had a length of 216 ± 73 nm, width 69 ± 17 nm, and height 8.9 nm. CNC prepared from H2SO4 resulted shorter and thinner than those obtained with HCl. The total sulfate groups content in CNC obtained with H2SO4 increase with time agree to CSG=aebt, and increases with temperature and acid concentration.

Oxidation reactions on semiconducting metal oxides (SMOs) surfaces have been extensively worked on in catalysis, fuel cells, and sensors. SMOs engaged powerfully in energy-related applications such as batteries, supercapacitors, solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), and chemical gas sensors. The deep understanding of SMO surface and oxygen interactions and defect engineering has become significant because all those mentioned applications are based on the adsorption/absorption and consumption/transportation of adsorbed (physisorbed-chemisorbed) oxygen. More understanding of adsorbed oxygen and oxygen vacancies (〖V_O^•,V〗_O^(••)) is needed, as the former is the vital requirement for sensing chemical reactions, while the latter facilitates the replenishment of adsorbed oxygen ions on the surface. We determined the relation between sensor response (sensitivity) and the amounts of adsorbed oxygen ions (O_(2(ads))^-,O_((ads),)^- O_2(ads)^(2-),O_((ads))^(2-)), water/hydroxide groups (H2O/OH^-), oxygen vacancies (〖V_O^•,V〗_O^(••)), and ordinary lattice oxygen ions (O_lattice^(2-)) as a function of temperature. During hydrogen (H2) testing, the different oxidation states (W6+, W5+, and W4+) of WO3 were quantified and correlated with oxygen vacancy formation (〖V_O^•,V〗_O^(••)). We used a combined application of XPS, UPS, XPEEM-LEEM, and chemical, electrical and sensory analysis for H2 sensing. We established a correlation between the H2 sensing mechanism of WO3, sensor signal magnitude, the amount of adsorbed oxygen ions, and sensor testing temperature. This paper also provides a review of the detection, quantification, and identification of different adsorbed oxygen species. The different surface and bulk-sensitive characterization techniques relevant to analyzing the SMOs-based sensor are tabulated, providing the sensor designer with the chemical, physical, and electronic information extracted from each technique.

Addressing non-unions involves stabilizing the affected area through osteosynthesis and improving bone biology using bone grafts. However, there is no consensus on the optimal treatment method. This study aims to compare outcomes of non-union revision using conventional treatment methods (metal hardware ± graft) versus osteosynthesis with the human, allogeneic cortical bone screw (Shark Screw®). Thirty-four patients underwent conventional treatment, while 28 cases received Shark Screws®. Patient demographics, bone healing, time to bone healing, and complications were assessed. Results revealed a healing rate of 96.4% for the Shark Screw® group, compared to 82.3% for the conventionally treated group. The Shark Screw® group exhibited a tendency for faster bone healing (9.4±3.2 vs. 12.9±8.5 weeks, p=0.05061). Hardware irritations led to six metal removals in the conventional group versus two in the Shark Screw® group. The Shark Screw® emerges as a promising option for personalized non-union treatment in the foot, ankle, and select lower leg cases, facilitating effective osteosynthesis and grafting within a single construct, promoting high union rates, low complications, and a rapid healing process.

The design of curved surface sliders (CSS) based on the elastic response spectrum is done by iteration to find the combination of friction coefficient and displacement capacity which satisfies the condition that the maximum horizontal CSS force is equal to the horizontal force of the structure. Although this CSS design is valid it does not necessarily minimize structural acceleration. This paper therefore describes the optimum CSS design for minimum structural acceleration. All valid CSS designs and the optimum CSS design are represented by their associated trajectory in the elastic response spectrum plane which visualizes the optimization problem. The results demonstrate that the optimum CSS design is not obtained at maximum tolerated effective damping ratio. The subsequent sensitivity analysis describes how much the structural acceleration increases if the actual friction coefficient of the real CSS deviates from its optimum design value. The analysis points out that the increase in structural acceleration is approximately one order of magnitude smaller than the deviation in friction. The sensitivity data may be used by structural engineer to determine tolerable deviations in friction coefficient which still results in acceptable structural accelerations.

Additive manufacturing enables the realization of complex component designs that can not be achieved with conventional processes, such as the integration of lattice structures for weight reduction. To include lattice structures in component designs, an automated algorithm compatible to conventional CAD is required that is able to handle various lattice topologies as well as variable local shape parameters such as strut radii. Furthermore, smooth node transitions are desired since previous studies indicate advantages regarding reduced stress concentrations and the structural response to loadings such as fatigue performance. The surface patch-based algorithm developed in this work is able to solidify given lattice frames to smooth lattice structures without manual construction steps. The algorithm requires only a few seconds of sketching time for each node and favours paralellization. Automated special case workarounds as well as fallback mechanisms are considered for non-standard inputs. It is demonstrated on irregular lattice topologies and applied for the construction of a lattice infill of an aircraft component that was additively manufactured.

This review article deals with the pathways of cellular and global molybdate distribution in plants, especially with a full overview for the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. In its oxidized state as bioavailable molybdate, molybdenum can be absorbed from the environment. Especially in higher plants, molybdenum is indispensable as part of the molybdenum cofactor (Moco), which is responsible for functionality as a prosthetic group in a variety of essential enzymes like nitrate reductase and sulfite oxidase. Therefore, plants need mechanisms for molybdate import and transport within the organism, which is accomplished via high-affinity molybdate transporter (MOT) localized in different cells and membranes. Two different MOT-families were identified. Especially legumes like Glycine max or Medicago truncatula have an increased numbers of MOT1-family members for supplying their symbionts with molybdate for nitrogenase activity. In Arabidopsis thaliana especially, the complete way of molybdate through the plant is traceable. Not only the uptake from soil by MOT1.1 and its distribution to leaves, flowers and seeds by MOT2-family members was identified, but also inside the cell the transport trough the cytoplasm and the vacuolar storage mechanisms depending on glutathione were described. Finally, supplying the Moco biosynthesis complex by MOT1.2 and MOT2.1 was demonstrated.

Extreme value analysis (EVA) is well-established to derive hydrometeorological design values for infrastructure that has to withstand extreme events. Since there is evidence of increased extremes with higher hazard potential under climate change, alterations of EVA are introduced for which statistical properties are no longer assumed to be constant but vary over time. In this study, both stationary and non-stationary EVA models are used to derive design life levels (DLLs) of daily precipitation in the pre-alpine Oberland region of Southern Germany, an orographically complex region characterized by heavy precipitation events and climate change. As EVA is fraught with uncertainties, it is crucial to quantify its methodological impacts: two theoretical distributions (i.e., Generalized Extreme Value (GEV) and Generalized Pareto (GP) distribution), four different parameter estimation techniques, (i.e., Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE), L-moments, Generalized Maximum Likelihood Estimation (GMLE), and Bayesian estimation method) are compared. Discrepancies due to the parameter estimation methods may reach up to 45 % of the mean absolute value, while differences between stationary and non-stationary models are of the same magnitude (differences in design levels up to 40%). Despite the underlying large methodological uncertainties, there is a robust tendency for increased DLLs in the Oberland region towards the end of this century based on the (non-)stationary models.

Distributed fiber optic strain measurement techniques have become increasingly important in recent years, especially in the field of structural health monitoring of reinforced concrete structures. Numerous publications show the various monitoring possibilities from bridges to special heavy structures. The present study is intended to demonstrate the possibilities, but also the challenges, of distributed fiber optic strain measurement in reinforced concrete structures. For this purpose, concrete beams for 3-point bending tests were equipped with optical fibers on the reinforcement and concrete surface as well as in the concrete matrix in order to record the strains in the compression and tension zone. In parallel, an analytical approach based on the maximum strains in the uncracked and cracked states was performed using the Eurocode~2 interpolation coefficient. In principle, the structural design correlates with the measured values, but the strains are underestimated, especially in the cracked zone. During load increase, structural distortions in the compression zone affected the strain signal, making reliable evaluation in this zone difficult. The information content of distributed fiber optic strain measurement in reinforced concrete structures can offer tremendous opportunities. Future research should consider all aspects of the bond, sensor selection and positioning. In addition, there is a lack of information on the long-term stability of the joint and the fiber coating, as well as the effects of dynamic loading.

The energy efficiency of ice hockey arenas is a central concern for the administrations, as these buildings are well known to consume a large amount of energy. Since they are composite, complex systems, solutions to such a problem can be approached from many different areas, from managerial to technological to more strictly physical. In this paper we consider heat transfer processes in an ice hockey hall, during operating conditions, with a bottom-up approach based upon on-site measurements. Detailed heat flux, relative humidity and temperature data for the ice pad and the indoor air are used for a heat balance calculation in the steady-state regime, which quantifies the impact of each single heat source. We then solve the heat conduction equation for the ice pad in transient regime, and obtain a generic analytical formula for the temperature profile that can be used in practical applications. We then apply this formula to the resurfacing process for validation, and find good agreement with an analogous numerical solution. Since it is given with implicit initial condition and boundary conditions, it can be used not only in ice hockey halls, but in a large variety of engineering applications.

The population dynamics of Hazel Grouse was studied by presence/ absence recording at stationary sites along fixed routes (110 km) during 1972-2019 in the central part of the Bohemian Forest (Šumava, Czech Republic). The 100-km² study area covered altitudes between 600 m (Rejstejn) and 1,253 m a.s.l., (mount Sokol). Our data base contained indices of Hazel Grouse occupancy: positive sites/ controlled sites for a yearly increasing number of Hazel Grouse occurrence sites (N = 134) for 48 years. We used a loglinear Poisson-regression method to analyze the long-term population trend for Hazel Grouse in the study area. In the period 1972 to 2006 we found a stable Hazel Grouse population (p = 0.83). From 2006-2007 to 2019, the population index dropped (-3.8% per year, p < 0.05) for the last 13 years. This decline is assumed to be influenced by habitat loss due to succession resulting in older, more open forest stands, by strongly increasing forestry and windstorm “Kyrill” followed by clear cutting, bark-beetle damage, and removal of pioneer trees in spruce plantations, which diminished buds and catkins, the dominant winter food. The influence of disturbance by increasing touristic activities and/or predation is discussed. Our results could help to optimize conservation efforts for Hazel Grouse in the Bohemian Forest.

Trypanosome brucei, the causative agent of African sleeping sickness, harbours a highly ordered, subpellicular microtubule cytoskeleton that defines many aspects of morphology, motility and virulence. This array of microtubules is associated with a large number of proteins involved in its regulation. Employing proximity-dependent biotinylation assay (BioID) using the well characterized cytoskeleton-associated protein CAP5.5 as a probe we identified CAP50 (Tb927.11.2610). This protein colocalizes with the subpellicular cytoskeleton microtubules but not with the flagellum. Depletion by RNAi results in defects in cytokinesis, morphology and partial disorganization of microtubule arrays. Published proteomics data indicate a possible association of CAP50 with two other, yet uncharacterized, cytoskeletal proteins, CAP52 (Tb927.6.5070) and CAP42 (Tb927.4.1300), which were therefore included in our analysis. We show that their depletion causes phenotypes similar to those described for CAP50 and that they are essential for cellular integrity.

Reinforced concrete (RC) columns are often placed under confinement to increase their strength and ductility. Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) materials have recently been recognized as favorable confinement systems. At present, a number of national standards and codes dedicated to the design of concrete components strengthened with CFRP in general and CFRP confinement in particular are available. These sets of rules provide design equations for confined reinforced concrete columns with circular and rectangular cross sections. Most of the standards and codes exhibit significant differences, including the used predictive models limitations, observed effects, and covered loading conditions. In this paper, five international standards and design guidelines are introduced and discussed. The purpose is to present a constructive and critical assessment of the state-of-the-art design methodologies available for CFRP confined RC columns and to discuss effects not previously considered properly. Therefore, some recent research efforts and findings from the Leipzig University of Applied Sciences are also introduced. The obtained data is used for a comparative study of the guideline predictive equations. Furthermore, it is shown that some new findings concerning the rupture strength and the maximum strength plus accompanying axial strain of a CFRP confined column are suitable to improve the current guidelines.

Addressing the impacts of climate change requires, first of all, understanding the mechanisms driving changes, especially at regional scale. In particular, policymakers and other stakeholders need physically robust climate change information to drive societal responses to a changing climate. In this study, we analyse the late 21st century precipitation projections (2071-2100) over the Congo Basin under Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 8.5, from the Rossby Centre Regional Climate Model (RCM) RCA4. In particular, we examine the impact of the RCM formulation (reduction of turbulent mixing) on future projections, by comparing the results of the modified version (RCA4-v4) with those of the standard version (RCA4-v1) used in CORDEX (Coordinated Regional climate Downscaling EXperiment). The two RCM versions are driven by two global climate models participating in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 (CMIP5). Results show that seasonal precipitation is largely affected by modifications in the atmospheric column moisture convergence or divergence, in turn, associated with dynamic and thermodynamic effects. Projected decreased precipitation in the dry seasons is associated with an increased moisture divergence, driven by dynamic effects (changes in circulation). Precipitation is projected to overall increase in the wet seasons, related to both dynamic and thermodynamic effects, but with larger thermodynamic contribution (changes in specific humidity). By comparing the two model versions, we found that the formulation strongly influences precipitation projections as well as the boundary conditions (driving GCM). This result could be very informative in view to ensure models fitness for the purpose of future projections for decision-makers.

Soil hydraulic properties are often derived indirectly, i.e. computed from easily available soil properties with pedotransfer functions (PTFs), when those are needed for catchment, regional or continental scale applications. When predicted soil hydraulic parameters are used for the modelling of the state and flux of water in soils, uncertainty of the computed values can provide more detailed information when drawing conclusions. The aim of this study was to update the previously published European PTFs (Tóth et al., 2015, euptf v1.4.0) by providing prediction uncertainty calculation built into the transfer functions. The new set of algorithms was derived for point predictions of soil water content at saturation (0 cm matric potential head), field capacity (both -100 and -330 cm matric potential head), wilting point (-15.000 cm matric potential head), plant available water, and saturated hydraulic conductivity, as well as the Mualem-van Genuchten model parameters of the moisture retention and hydraulic conductivity curve. The minimum set of input properties for the prediction is soil depth and sand, silt and clay content. The effect of including additional information like soil organic carbon content, bulk density, calcium carbonate content, pH and cation exchange capacity were extensively analysed. The PTFs were derived adopting the random forest method. The advantage of the new PTFs is that they i) provide information about prediction uncertainty, ii) are significantly more accurate than the euptfv1, iii) can be applied for more predictor variable combinations than the euptfv1, 32 instead of 5, and iv) are now also derived for the prediction of water content at -100 cm matric potential head and plant available water content.

This article presents a buck converter in which the inductor has been replaced by a transmission line. This approach would be practically conceivable if the power supply and load have a greater spatial distance. In the time domain, this new converter can be described by a system of coupled partial and ordinary differential equations. In the frequency domain, a transcendental transfer function is obtained. For comparison with an equivalently parameterized conventional converter, Padé approximants are derived. A linear controller is designed for the converter topology under consideration.

Optimal use of Hierarchical Bayesian Model (HBM) assembled aerosol optical depth (AOD)-PM2.5 fused surfaces in epidemiologic studies requires homogeneous temporal and spatial fused surfaces. No analytical method is available to evaluate spatial heterogeneity. The temporal case-crossover design was modified to assess the spatial association between four experimental AOD-PM2.5 fused surfaces and four respiratory-cardiovascular hospital events in 12 km2 grids. The maximum number of adjacent lag grids with significant odds ratios (ORs) identified homogeneous spatial areas (HOSAs). The largest HOSA included 5 grids (lag grids 04; 720 km2) and the smallest HOSA contained 2 grids (lag grids 01; 288 km2). Emergency department asthma and inpatient asthma, myocardial infarction, and heart failure ORs were significantly higher in rural grids without air monitors than in urban grids with air monitors at lag grids 0, 1, and 01. Rural grids had higher AOD-PM2.5 concentration levels, population density, and poverty percent than urban grids. Warm season ORs were significantly higher than cold season ORs for all health outcomes at lag grids 0, 1, 01, and 04. The possibility of elevated fine and ultrafine PM and other demographic and environmental risk factors synergistically contributing to elevated respiratory-cardiovascular chronic diseases in persons residing in rural areas was discussed

Machine learning is an established and frequently used technique in industry and academia but a standard process model to improve success and efficiency of machine learning applications is still missing. Project organizations and machine learning practitioners have a need for guidance throughout the life cycle of a machine learning application to meet business expectations. We therefore propose a process model for the development of machine learning applications, that covers six phases from defining the scope to maintaining the deployed machine learning application. The first phase combines business and data understanding as data availability oftentimes affects the feasibility of the project. The sixth phase covers state-of-the-art approaches for monitoring and maintenance of a machine learning applications, as the risk of model degradation in a changing environment is eminent. With each task of the process, we propose quality assurance methodology that is suitable to address challenges in machine learning development that we identify in form of risks. The methodology is drawn from practical experience and scientific literature and has proven to be general and stable. The process model expands on CRISP-DM, a data mining process model that enjoys strong industry support but lacks to address machine learning specific tasks. Our work proposes an industry and application neutral process model tailored for machine learning applications with focus on technical tasks for quality assurance.

We utilize how Weber in 1961 initiated the process of quantization of early universe fields to the problem of what may be emitted at the mouth of a wormhole. While the wormhole models are well developed, there is as of yet no consensus as to how, say GW or other signals from a wormhole mouth could be quantized, or made to be in adherence to a procedure Weber cribbed from Feynman, in 1961. In addition, we utilize an approximation for the Hubble parameter parameterized from Temperature using Sarkar’s H ~ Temperature relations, as given in the text . Finally after doing this we go to the Energy as E also ~ Temperature, and from there use E (energy) as ~ signal frequency. This gives us an idea of how to estimate frequency generated at the mouth of a wormhole.

In the history of high-performance polymer composite parts with continuous in-plane fibre reinforcement, the comparatively moderate structural-mechanical properties in their out-of- plane-z-direction and the limited load carrying capability between individual reinforcement layers within the laminated structures have always been one of the greatest challenges. Plenty of research work has been carried out to improve load transfer capability as well as fracture toughness for crack opening events between the reinforcement layers by means of out-of-plane fibre reinforcement implementation, for example by sewing or z-pinning technologies. However, the results have not become established across a wide range of applications so far, because the technologies used have led to considerable losses of in-plane strength properties. In this paper first results are presented for a new method of a low fraction z-fibre reinforcement by means of very thin diameter laser drilled holes filled with short carbon fibres, demonstrating potential to improve Mode II fracture toughness.

Freezing/thawing indices are important indicators of dynamics of frozen ground on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP), especially for areas with limited observations. Based on the numerical outputs of Community Land Surface Model version 4.5 (CLM4.5) from 1961 to 2010, this study compared the spatial and temporal variations between air freezing/thawing indices (2 m above the ground) and ground surface freezing/thawing indices in permafrost and seasonally frozen ground (SFG) across the QTP, after presenting changes of frozen ground distribution in each decade in the context of warming and wetting. The results indicate that an area of 0.60×106 km2 permafrost of QTP degraded to SFG in 1960s-2000s, and the primary shrinkage period occurred in 2000s. The air freezing index (AFI) and ground freezing index (GFI) decreased dramatically at the rates of 71.00℃·d/decade and 34.33℃·d/decade from 1961 to 2010, respectively. In contrast, the air thawing index (ATI) and ground thawing index (GTI) increased strikingly with the values of 48.13℃·d/decade and 40.37℃·d/decade in the past five decades. Permafrost showed more pronounced changes in freezing/thawing indices since 1990s compared to SFG. The changes of thermal regimes in frozen ground shows closely relations to air warming until the late 1990s, especially in 1998 when the QTP has undergone the most progressively warming. However, a sharp increase in the annual precipitation from 1998 seems to take a stronger control role on thermal degradation in frozen ground than the air warming in 2000s. Meanwhile, the prominent vegetation expansion further promotes thermally unstable of frozen ground in this highly wetting period.

This study delves into Personal Narratives (PN), which encompass both oral and written recounting of individual experiences, encompassing facts, events, people, and thoughts. Traditional emotion recognition and sentiment analysis primarily focus on broader categories like utterances or documents. Our research, however, centers on identifying Emotion Carriers (EC), which are specific segments within speech or text that elucidate the narrator's emotional state (e.g.,"losing a parent", "decision-making moments"). Extracting these ECs enriches the representation of a user's emotional state, thereby enhancing natural language understanding and the sophistication of dialogue models. While previous studies have utilized lexical attributes to identify ECs, we argue that incorporating spoken narratives offers a more nuanced view of the context and emotional state. This paper explores the integration of speech and textual embeddings at the word level, alongside both early and late fusion techniques, for improved EC detection in spoken narratives. We employ Residual Neural Networks (ResNet), initially pre-trained on diverse speech emotion datasets and subsequently fine-tuned for EC detection. Our experimental findings demonstrate that late fusion, in particular, significantly enhances EC detection capabilities.

The accurate prediction of heat load profiles with a daily resolution is required for a broad range of applications such as potential studies, design, or predictive operation of heating systems. If the heat demand of a consumer is mainly caused by (production) processes independent of the ambient temperature, existing load profile prediction methods fail. To close this gap, this study develops two ex post machine learning models for the prediction of the heat demand with a daily resolution. The selected input features are commonly available to each consumer connected to public natural gas and electricity grids or operating an energy monitoring system: Ambient temperature, weekday, electricity consumption, and heat consumption of the last seven days directly before the predicted day. The study’s database covers electricity and natural gas consumption load profiles from 82 German consumers over a period of two years. Electricity and heat consumption correlate strongly with individual patterns for many consumers. Both, shallow and deep learning algorithms are evaluated. The highest accuracy is achieved by a Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) model with a median of R² of 0.94. The ex post model architecture makes the model suitable for automated anomaly detection in energy monitoring systems.

Since its initial development in the 1970’s by Phil Burke and his collaborators, the R-matrix theory and associated computer codes have become the de facto approach for the calculation of accurate data for general electron-atom/ion/molecule collision and photoionization processes. The use of a non-orthonormal set of orbitals based on B-splines, now called the B-spline R-matrix (BSR) approach, was pioneered by Zatsarinny. It has considerably extended the flexibility of the approach and improved particularly the treatment of complex many-electron atomic and ionic targets, for which accurate data are needed in many modelling applications for processes involving low-temperature plasmas. Both the original R-matrix approach and the BSR method have been extended to the interaction of short, intense electromagnetic (EM) radiation with atoms and molecules. Here we provide an overview of the theoretical tools that were required to facilitate the extension of the theory to the time domain. As an example of a practical application, we show results for two-photon ionization of argon by intense short-pulse extreme ultraviolet radiation

We study a conformation of an albumin protein in the temperature range of 300K-315K, i.e. in the physiological range of temperature. Using simulations we calculate values of two backbone angles, that carry most of information about positioning of the protein chain in a conformational space. Given these, we calculate energy components of such protein. Further, using the Flory theory we determine the temperature in which investigated albumin chain model is closest to the free joined chain model. Near the Flory temperature, we study energy components and the conformational entropy, both derived from two angles that reflect most of the chain dynamics in a conformational space. We show that the conformational entropy is an oscillating function of time in considered range of temperature. Our finding is that, the only regular oscillation pattern appears near the Flory temperature.

Volcanism powered by tidal forces inside celestial bodies can provide enough energy to keep important solvents for living systems in the liquid phase. Moreover, tidal forces and their environmental consequences may strongly influence habitability of planets and other celestial bodies and may result in special forms of live and living conditions. A prerequisite to calculate such tidal interactions and consequences is depending on simulations for tidal accelerations in a multi-body system. Unfortunately, from measurements in many extrasolar planetary systems only few physical and orbital parameters are well enough known for investigated celestial bodies. For calculating tidal acceleration vectors under missing most orbital parameter exactly, a simulation method is developed that is only based on a few basic parameters, easily measurable even in extrasolar planetary systems. Such a method as being presented here, allows finding a relation between the tidal acceleration vectors and potential heating inside celestial objects. Using values and results of our model approach to our solar system as a “gold standard” for feasibility allowed us to classify this heating in relation to different forms of volcanism. This “gold standard” approach gave us a classification measure for the relevance of tidal heating in other extrasolar systems with a reduced availability of exact physical parameters. We would help to estimate conditions for the identification of potential candidates for further sophisticated investigations by more complex established methods like viscoelastic multi-body theories. As a first example, we applied the procedures developed here to the extrasolar planetary system TRAPPIST-1 as an example to check our working hypothesis.

The non-therapeutic use of antimicrobials in poultry production contribute to the spread of drug-resistant pathogens in both birds and humans. Antibiotics are known to enhance feed effi-ciency and promote growth and weight gain of poultry. New regulatory requirements and con-sumer preferences have led to a reduced use of antibiotics in poultry production and discover natural alternatives to the antibiotic growth promoters. This interest is not just focused on the di-rect removal or inhibition of the causative microorganisms but also the prevention diseases caused by enteric pathogens using a range of feed additives. A group of promising feed additives is short- and medium-chain fatty acids and their derivatives. MCFAs possess antibacterial, anticoccidial and antiviral effects. Also, it has been proven that these acids act synergistically if they are used together with organic acids, essential oils, or probiotics. These fatty acids also benefit intestinal health integrity and homeostasis in broilers. Other effects have also been documented, including increases in intestinal angiogenesis and gene expression of tight junctions. The aim of this review is to give an overview of SCFA, MCFA as alternatives of antibiotic growth promoters and by sum-marizing the current finding in the literature, to show their possible benefits on production, meat quality and gut health in poultry.

Concrete is the most commonly used construction material due to its various advantages, such as versatility, familiarity, strength and durability and it will continue to be in demand far into the future. However, with today’s sensitivity to the environmental protection, this material is facing unprecedented challenges due to its high greenhouse gas emission mainly during cement production. This paper investigates one of the promising cement replacement materials, alkali activated cement (AAC) concrete. Being produced mainly from byproduct materials and having a comparable structural performance to conventional concrete, AAC concrete has a potential to transform the construction industry. Mechanical properties such as compressive and flexural strength and the relationship between them are studied. Different source materials such as fly ash (FA), ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), silica fume (SF) and Metakaolin (MK) are used. The effect of the source materials and the activator solutions on the concrete performance is studied. Furthermore, the freeze-thaw resistance of the concrete is studied. The results of the study showed that the behavior of AAC depends highly on the source material combinations as well as type used. The effect of the alkaline solution is also dependent on the source material used. Mixes with higher GGBS content in general showed the highest strength while mixes with MK showed the highest flexural strength. The results from the freeze-thaw test showed that proper design of AAC concrete with a lower water content is critical to achieve a good resistance.

The distributed fiber optic strain measurement based on Rayleigh scattering has recently become increasingly popular in automotive or mechanical engineering for strain monitoring and in the construction industry, especially structural health monitoring. This technology enables the monitoring of strain along the entire fiber length. This article addresses integrating optical fibers of different coatings into the concrete matrix to measure the shrinkage deformations. However, previous studies do not give a clear statement about the strain transfer losses of fiber optic sensors in this application. In this context, three different coating types were investigated regarding their strain transfer. The fibers were integrated into fine-grained concrete prisms, and the shrinkage strain was compared with a precise dial gauge. The analysis shows a high correlation between the reference method and the fiber measurement, especially with the Ormocer coating. The used acrylate coating is also consistent in the middle area of the specimen but requires a certain strain introduction length to indicate the actual strain. The main result of this study is a recommendation for fiber coatings for shrinkage measurement in fine-grain concretes using the distributed fiber optic strain measurement. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of the measurement method are presented.

Wheat dwarf disease (WDD) is an important disease of monocotyledonous species, including economically important cereals. The causative pathogen, the wheat dwarf virus (WDV), is a monopartite Mastrevirus that has a circular single-stranded (ss)DNA genome and is transmitted persistently and propagatively mainly by the leafhopper Psammotettix alienus. The disease can induce high yield losses in many European countries in a range of 20-100%. Due to climate change the periods of vector activity increased and the vectors spread to new habitats, leading to an increased importance of WDV in large parts of Europe. In the light of integrated pest management approaches cultivation practices and the use of resistant/tolerant host plants are currently the only effective methods for controlling WDV. To date, there is limited knowledge of the pathosystem and epidemiology of the disease. The few sources of genetic tolerance, indicate the need for further research. Considering the economic importance of the disease, and its likely increasing relevance in the coming decades, this review was prepared to compile and update knowledge on aspects of WDV.

This paper investigates the feasibility of a backend design for real-time, multiple-channel processing digital phased array system, particularly for high-performance embedded computing platforms constructed of using general purpose digital signal processors. Frist, we obtained the lab-scale backend performance benchmark from simulating beamforming, pulse compression, and Doppler filtering based on MicroTCA chassis using Serial RapidIO protocol in backplane communication. Next, a field-scale demonstrator of a multifunctional phased array radar is emulated by using the similar configuration. Interestingly, the performance of a barebone design is compared to that of emerging tools that systematically take advantage of parallelism and multicore capabilities, including Open Computing Language.

Lung transplantation offers patients with end stage lung disease an opportunity for a better quality of life, but with limited organ availability it is paramount that selected patients have the best opportunity for successful outcomes. Nutrition plays a central role in post-surgical outcomes and historically, body mass index (BMI) has been used as the de facto method of assessing a lung transplant candidate’s nutritional status. Here we review the historical origins of BMI in lung transplantation, summarize the current BMI literature, and review studies of alternative/complementary body composition assessment tools, including lean psoas area, creatinine-height index, leptin, and dual x-ray absorptometry. These body composition measures quantify lean body mass versus fat mass and may provide a more comprehensive analysis of a patient’s nutritional state than BMI alone.

As the first time, 0D-1D-3D and fully 3D steady-state aero-thermo-fluid simulations of a structural oil-to-air Fan Outlet Guide Vane Cooler (FOGVC) in a jet engine are presented. Using the commercial softwares Ansys Fluent, the thermo-mechanical module of Ansys and the 1D fluid solver Flownex, 5 simulation types (3D fully conjugate heat transfer with and without a thin wall model, 3D with a thin wall model, 1D-3D coupled, 1D and 0D) corresponding to 4 levels of simplification in 3 possible domains (oil, oil-metal and oil-metal-air) have been compared to provide selection criteria when a determined level of accuracy in the simulations without prohibited computational times is desired. The methodologies are applied to two different oil internal cavities: an inverted U with rectangular cross section and a coil internal cavity with a circular cross section. The obtained results show that depending on the scope of the research (outlet oil temperature, dissipated heat rate or oil pressure drop) and the accuracy of the results, one method or the other may be used. Experimental data would be needed to validate the numerical results by all employed methodologies and geometries.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the functional load capacity of the periodontal ligament (PDL) in a full arch maxilla and mandible model using numerical simulation. The goal of was to determine the functional load pattern in multi- and single rooted teeth with full and reduced periodontal support. CBCT data were used to create 3D-models of a maxilla and mandible. The DICOM dataset was used to create a CAD-model. For a precise description of the surfaces of each structure (enamel, dentin, cementum, pulp, PDL, gingiva, bone), each tooth was segmented separately, and the biomechanical characteristics were considered. A Finite-Element-Analysis (FEA) software computed the biomechanical behavior of stepwise increased force of 700N in cranial and 350N in ventral direction of the muscle approach of the Masseter muscle. The periodontal attachment (cementum-PDL-bone contact) was subsequently reduced in 1mm increments and the simulation repeated. Quantitative (pressure, tension, and deformation) and qualitative (color-coded images) data were recorded and descriptively analyzed. The teeth with the highest load capacities were the upper and lower molars (0.4-0.6MPa), followed by the premolars (0.4-0.5MPa) and canines (0.3-0.4MPa) when vertically loaded. Qualitative data showed that the area with the highest stress in the PDL were for single rooted teeth the cervical and apical area and for molars additionally the furcation roof. In both, single- and multi rooted teeth the gradual reduction of the bone levels caused an increase of the load on the remaining PDL. Cervical and apical areas as well as the furcation roof are the zones with the highest functional stress. The more bone loss, the higher the mechanical load on the residual periodontal supporting structures.

Far too often, one meets patients who went for years or even decades from doctor to doctor, without getting a valid diagnosis. This brings pain to millions of patients and their families, not to speak of the enormous costs. Often patients cannot tell precisely enough which factors (or combinations thereof) trigger their problems. If conventional methods fail, we propose the use of statistics and algebra to give doctors much more useful inputs from patients. We use statistical regression for independent triggering factors for medical problems, and “balanced incomplete block designs” for non-independent factors. These methods can supply doctors with much more valuable inputs, and can also detect combinations of multiple factors by incredibly few tests. In order to show that these methods do work, we briefly describe a case in which these methods helped to solve a 60 year old problem in a patient, and give some more examples where these methods might be very useful. As a conclusion, while regression is used in clinical medicine, it seems to be widely unknown in diagnosing. Statistics and algebra can save the health systems much money, and the patients also a lot of pain.

Chipless radio frequency identification (RFID) technology is expected to replace barcode technology due to its ability to read in non-line-of-sight (NLOS) situations, long reading range, and low cost. Currently, there is extensive research being conducted on frequency-coded (FC) co-polarized radar cross-section (RCS)-based tags, which are widely used. However, detecting co-polarized chipless RFID tags in cluttered environments is still a challenge, as confirmed by measuring two co-polarized tags in front of a perfect metal reflector (30.5cm×22.5cm). To address this challenge, a realistic mathematical model for a chipless RFID system has been developed that takes into account the characteristics of the reader and the tag, as well as reflections from cluttered objects. This model has been simulated and verified with measurement results by placing a single flat metal reflector behind two co-polarized one-bit designs: a dipole array tag and a square patch tag. The results showed that the interfering signal completely overlaps the ID of the co-polarized tag, severely limiting its detectability. To solve this issue, the proposed solution involves reading the tag in cross-polarization mode by etching a diagonal slot in the square patch tag. This proposed tag provides high immunity to the environment and can be detected in front of both dielectric and metallic objects.

In a two-year field trial, the effect of nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) fertilization was investigated on grain yield, grain quality parameters, formation of acrylamide (AA), and the precursor free asparagine (Asn) in organically and conventionally produced winter wheat cultivars. In both production systems, different types, amounts, and temporal distributions of N were tested. While the effect of S fertilizer types and amounts on free Asn was only tested in the conventional farming system. Within both cropping systems, grain yield and baking quality were significantly influenced by N treatment while the effect on free Asn was only minor. Especially within the organic farming system, increasing N fertilization levels did not increase free Asn significantly. A slight trend of increasing free Asn levels with an intensified N supply was observed, especially in the presence of crude protein contents of 14% or higher. But only N amounts of 180 kg N ha⁻¹ or higher increased the probability of high free Asn contents considerably, while N supply below that amount led to free Asn values similar to the unfertilized controls. The results indicated that good baking quality can be achieved without significantly increasing free Asn levels. In addition, cultivars affected the levels of free Asn significantly. Compared to cv. “Bussard” and “Naturastar”, cv. “Capo” exhibited the lowest AA formation potential at an N supply of 180 kg N ha⁻¹ while simultaneously reaching a crude protein content > 15% (conventional) and > 12% (organic). Thus, it seems that cultivars differ in their ability to store and incorporate free Asn into proteins. Over all trials, a correlation of free Asn and AA was shown by R² = 0.77, while a relation of free Asn and protein was only R² = 0.36. Thus, lowering free Asn by adjusting N treatments should not necessarily affect baking quality. S nutrition within conventional farming did not change free Asn amount or crude protein significantly, probably due to the fact that soil was not sulfate-deficient. In summary, it was evident that free Asn amounts in wheat varied widely both within cultivars and between cropping systems. In order to clearly unravel genotypic differences and their interaction with environmental factors and especially N fertilization, further research is needed.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcome of patients suffering from chronic limb threatening ischemia (CLTI) and tissue loss treated with primary isolated femoral bifurcation endarterectomy (FBE) or with FBE combined with bypass surgery. Methods: This retrospective study was performed in a tertiary university based care center. Between January 2008 and December 2019 a prospectively collected database of patients suffering from CLTI and tissue loss and undergoing either primary FBE (group A) or FBE in combination with bypass surgery (group B) was analysed. Study endpoints were ulcer healing, primary and secondary patency rate, limb salvage and survival. Results: In total, FBE was performed in 73 and FBE with bypass in 60 patients. Between both groups there were no significant differences regarding demographic data or the Global Limb Anatomic Staging System (GLASS) grade III and IV of femoropopliteal lesions. After 3 years, ulcer healing could be achieved in 72% of FBE and in 75% of FBE with bypass patients. The primary patency rate was 95% and 91% for FBE and 83% and 80% for FBE with bypass after one and three years, respectively. The 3-year limb salvage rate was 78% for FBE and 84% for FBE with bypass. The secondary patency rate after one and three years was 99% and 97% for FBE and 93% and 88% for FBE with bypass. Conclusion: FBE and FBE with bypass are equally effective for ulcer healing in cases of combined CFA and superficial femoral artery lesions. There was no significant difference between both groups regarding primary and secondary patency

We recently reported that refocusing attention between temporal and spatial tasks becomes more difficult with increasing age, which could impair daily activities such as driving (Callaghan et al., 2017). Here we investigated the extent to which difficulties in refocusing attention extend to naturalistic settings such as simulated driving. 118 participants in five age groups (18-30; 40-49; 50-59; 60-69; 70-91 years) were compared during simulated driving, where they switched from a spatially focal yet temporally complex task (braking due to traffic ahead) to a spatially more distributed task (reading a motorway road sign). Sequential-Task (switching) performance was compared to Single-Task performance (road sign only) to calculate age-related switch-costs. Electroencephalography was recorded in 34 participants (17 in the 18-30 and 17 in the 60+ years groups) to explore age-related changes in the neural oscillatory signatures of refocusing attention while driving. We indeed observed age-related impairments in attentional refocusing, evidenced by increased switch-costs in response times and by deficient modulation of theta and alpha frequencies. Our findings highlight virtual reality (VR) and Neuro-VR as important methodologies for future psychological and gerontological research.

Sepsis is defined as life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to an infection. Recent in-vitro studies have investigated the effects of CytoSorb hemoadsorption on endothelial function in sepsis showing a reduction in markers of endothelial dysfunction, but to this day there is a lack of clinical studies showing whether this approach could actually positively influence the disturbed vascular barrier function in septic conditions. We analyzed the data on administered fluid volumes and catecholamines to determine the potential benefit of CytoSorb hemoadsorption therapy on endothelial function in a clinical scenario. We performed a retrospective analysis of 124 septic shock patients who had undergone adjunctive treatment with CytoSorb hemadsorption therapy. We collected volume requirements, and calculated the volume balance within different time periods to obtain an assumption on the stability of the vascular barrier. We also calculated catecholamine requirements. With regard to the entire study cohort our findings revealed a significant reduction in fluid balance at 72 hours (T72) compared to both baseline (T0) and the 24-hour mark (T24). Fluid balances from T72 – T0 were significantly lower in hospital survivors compared to non-survivors. Patients who received a second catecholamine had a significantly lower in-hospital mortality. Our findings showed that use of hemoadsorption therapy results in a reduced positive fluid balance paralleled by reductions in vasopressor needs suggesting a positive effect on endothelial integrity. These results, derived from a large cohort of patients, provide valuable insights that may greatly improve our understanding of the multiple effects of hemoadsorption treatment in septic shock patients.

Rift valley fever virus (RVFV) is a mosquito-borne bunyavirus that causes an important disease in ruminants, with great economic losses. The infection can be also transmitted to humans; therefore it is considered a major threat to both human and animal health. In a previous work, we described a novel RVFV variant selected in cell culture in the presence of the antiviral agent favipiravir that was highly attenuated in vivo. This variant displayed 24 amino acid substitutions in different viral proteins when compared to its parental viral strain, two of them located in the NSs protein that is known to be the major virulence factor of RVFV. By means of a reverse genetics system, in this work we have analyzed the effect that one of these substitutions, P82L, has in viral attenuation in vivo. Rescued viruses carrying this single amino acid change were clearly attenuated in BALB/c mice while their growth in an IFN-competent cell line as well as the production of IFN-β did not seem to be affected. However, the pattern of nuclear NSs accumulation was modified in cells infected with the mutant viruses. These results unveil a new RVFV virulence marker highlighting the multiple ways of NSs protein to modulate viral infectivity.

As bakery products contribute considerably to the daily intake of the carcinogen acting substance acrylamide (AA), the aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the cropping system (conventional vs. organic farming) on AA precursor levels of free asparagine (Asn) across different cultivars of the cereal species, namely winter wheat (Triticum aestivum), winter spelt (Triticum aestivum ssp. spelta) and winter rye (Secale cereale) with simultaneous consideration of gained grain yields and flour qualities. For this purpose, orthogonal field trials were established at two sites in Southwest Germany over two growing seasons (2006-2007 and 2007-2008). The results indicated a significant impact of the cropping system on free Asn contents. Across all species, free Asn contents in the flour were 26 % lower under organic compared to conventional farming. The impact of the cropping system on individual cultivars was obvious with a maximum reduction in free Asn contents of 50 % (e.g. for cultivars Ludwig, Privileg, Capo) if organically produced. For spelt, a significant impact of the cropping system was only found in 2008 with a reduction in free Asn of up to 25 % if organically produced. Across both cropping systems, cultivar Franckenkorn reached the lowest levels of free Asn. For rye, a significant impact of the cropping system was observed only in 2007 with 33 % higher Asn amounts in the conventional cropping system. Independent of the cropping system, rye reached the highest levels of free Asn followed by wheat and spelt. Across both cropping systems, species and cultivars, the amount of free Asn correlated with the AA content in heated flour with R2=0.63***. Furthermore, the results indicated that lower AA contents in bakery products can be achieved by proper selection of species (e.g. 66 % lower if rye is replaced by wheat) and cultivars. With an appropriate choice of the cultivar, a reduction of up to 65 % was possible within wheat, along with a reduction of 44 % within spelt and 12.5 % within rye. In summary, the results indicated that organically produced wheat especially offers the opportunity to significantly lower the AA potential of bread and bread rolls by the choice of raw materials low in free Asn.

The double burden of malnutrition (DBM) is escalating in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), including in Rwanda, most notably in urbanizing areas. The 2019-2020 Rwanda Demographic Health Survey (DHS) revealed 33% of children under 5 are stunted while 42% of women in urban areas are overweight or obese. This coexistence has contributed to a surge in non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly in secondary cities. Using the World Health Organization’s (WHOs) “double-duty action” (DDA) concept, this study aims to identify and evaluate interventions with double-duty potential in Rwanda, focusing on the districts of Rusizi and Rubavu. Guided by Hawkes et al.’s conceptual framework for identifying DDA entry points, a desk review of national policies pinpointed 4 programs with DDA potential: early childhood development (ECD) centers, the school feeding program, farmer field schools (FFS), and the provision of nutrition-sensitive direct support. In-person interviews with key stakeholders assessed their implementation and a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis informed context-specific recommendations for their improvement. Recommendations include targeting beliefs surrounding nutrition, improving trainings for community educators, enhancing parent – particularly father – involvement, and close follow-up. These findings offer actionable strategies for governments and nutrition stakeholders and may benefit similar interventions in other rapidly urbanizing LMICs.

Photoacoustic spectroscopy allows the identification of specific molecules in gases. We evaluate the spectral resolution and detection limits for a PAS system in the broadband infrared wavelength region 3270 nm ≲ λ ≲ 3530 nm driven by a continuous wave optical parametric oscillator with P ≈ 1.26 W by measuring the absorption of diluted propane, ethane and methane test gases at low concentrations c ~ 100 ppm for ~1350 discrete wavelengths λ_i. The resulting spectra I_PAS(λ_i) were compared to the high resolution cross section data σ_FTIR obtained by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy from the HITRAN database. Deviations as little as 7.1(6)% for propane, 8.7(11)% for ethane and 15.0(14)% for methane with regard to the average uncertainty between I_PAS(λ_i) and the expected reference values based on σ_FTIR were recorded. The wavelengths λ_res of the characteristic absorption lines can be pinpointed with a high relative accuracy <5 × 10⁻⁵ corresponding to a resolution of λ_res ~ 0.16 nm. Detection limits range between 7.1 ppb (ethane) to 13.6 ppb (methane) coinciding with high experimental signal-to-noise ratios. Moreover, using EUREQA, an artificial intelligence program, simulated mixed gas samples at low limits of detection could be deconvoluted. These results justify a further development of PAS technology to support, e.g., biomedical research.

Optical remote sensing can contribute to biodiversity monitoring and species composition mapping in tropical forests. Inferring ecological information from canopy reflectance is complex and data availability suitable to such a task is limiting, which makes simulation tools particularly important in this context. We explored the capability of the 3D radiative transfer model DART to simulate top of canopy reflectance acquired with airborne imaging spectroscopy in complex tropical forest, and to reproduce spectral dissimilarity within and among species, as well as species discrimination based on spectral information. We focused on two factors contributing to these canopy reflectance properties: the horizontal variability in leaf optical properties (LOP) and the fraction of non-photosynthetic vegetation (NPVf). The variability in LOP was induced by changes in leaf pigment content, and defined for each pixel based on a hybrid approach combining radiative transfer modeling and spectral indices. The influence of LOP variability on simulated reflectance was tested by considering variability at species, individual tree crown and pixel level. We incorporated NPVf into simulations following two approaches, either considering NPVf as a part of wood area density in each voxel or using leaf brown pigments. We validated the different scenarios by comparing simulated scenes with experimental airborne imaging spectroscopy using statistical metrics, spectral dissimilarity (within crowns, within species, and among species dissimilarity) and supervised classification for species discrimination. The simulation of NPVf based on leaf brown pigments resulted in the closest match between measured and simulated canopy reflectance. The definition of LOP at pixel level resulted in conservation of the spectral dissimilarity and expected performances for species discrimination. Our simulation framework could contribute to better understand performances for species discrimination and relationship between spectral variations and taxonomic and functional dimensions of biodiversity.

The α-synucleinopathies are a group of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by the deposition of α-synuclein aggregates (α-syn) in the brain. Currently, there is no suitable tracer to enable a definitive early diagnosis of these diseases. We reported candidates based on 4,4'-disarylbisthiazole (DABTA) scaffold with a high affinity towards α-syn and excellent selectivity over Aβ and tau fibrils. Based on prior in silico studies a focused library of 23 halide-containing and O-methylated DABTAs was prepared. The DABTAs were synthesized via a modified two-step Hantzsch thiazole synthesis, characterized, and used in competitive binding assays against [3H]PiB, and [3H]DCVJ. The DABTAs gave an overall chemical yield of 15 – 71%, with a calculated lipophilicity of 2.5 – 5.7. The ligands demonstrated an excellent affinity to α-syn with both [3H]PiB and [3H]DCVJ: Ki 0.1 – 4.9 nM and up to 20 – 3900-fold selectivity over Aβ and tau fibrils. It could be concluded that in-silico simulation is useful for the rational design of a new generation of DABTAs. Further investigation of the leads in the next step is encouraged: radiolabeling of the ligands with radioisotopes such as fluorine-18 or carbon-11 for in vivo, ex vivo and translational research and for further in vitro experiments on human-derived protein aggregates.

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 is a neurodegenerative disease caused by an abnormal expansion of CAG repeats in the disease gene ATXN3, leading to prolonged polyglutamine (polyQ) tracts in the respective protein ataxin-3. The polyQ-expanded protein forms polyQ-containing aggregates in several brain regions which leads to neuronal cell loss. Autophagy is thought to play a significant role in clearing these polyQ-containing protein aggregates. Therefore, the autophagy mechanism was investigated in SCA3 with focus on the autophagic protein p62/sequestosome-1. Human and mouse RNA sequencing data were analyzed to determine RNA expression level of autophagic genes. Additionally, autophagy was studied in the SCA3 304Q knock-in mouse model and through several cell culture experiments using HEK-293T cells transfected with ATXN3 of differ-ent polyQ lengths. For cell culture experiments, autophagy was induced with rapamycin treat-ment, proteasomal degradation was blocked with MG132 and degradation of autophagic pro-teins was investigated using cycloheximide treatment. Here, we report an increased autophagy impairment with SCA3 disease progression seen in HEK-293T cells transfected with ATXN3 plasmid with expanded polyQ tracts, higher aged 304Q-knock-in mice, or human post-mortem brain material. Furthermore, co-localized aggregation of the autophagic protein p62 and the dis-ease protein ATXN3 was observed in the course of SCA3 disease. Therefore, we suggest a signifi-cant role for p62 in aggregate formation seen in the neurodegenerative disease SCA3.

Fish schooling implies an awareness of the swimmers for their companions. In flow mediated environments, in addition to visual cues, pressure and shear sensors on the fish body are critical for providing quantitative information that assists the quantification of proximity to other swimmers. Here we examine the distribution of sensors on the surface of an artificial swimmer so that it can optimally identify a leading group of swimmers. We employ Bayesian experimental design coupled with two-dimensional Navier Stokes equations for multiple self-propelled swimmers. The follower tracks the school using information from its own surface pressure and shear stress. We demonstrate that the optimal sensor distribution of the follower is qualitatively similar to the distribution of neuromasts on fish. Our results show that it is possible to identify accurately the center of mass and even the number of the leading swimmers using surface only information.

New innovative green concepts in electrified vertical take-off and landing vehicles currently emerge as a revolution to urban mobility going into the third dimension (vertically). The high population density of cities makes the market share highly attractive while posing an extraordinary challenge for community acceptance due to the increasing and possibly noisier commuter traffic. In addition to passenger transport, package deliveries to customers by drones may enter the market. The new challenges associated with this increasing transportation need in urban, rural and populated areas pose challenges for established companies and startups to deliver low-noise emission products. The article's objective is to revisit the benefits and drawbacks of an affordable acoustic measurement campaign focused on early prototyping. In the very early phase of product development, often considerably limited resources are available. With this in mind, the article discusses the sound power results using the enveloping surface method in a typically available low-reflection room with a reflecting floor according to DIN EN ISO 3744:2011-02. The method is applied to a subsonic electric ducted fan (EDF) unit of a 1:2 scaled electrified vertical take-off and landing vehicle. The results show that considerable information at low costs can be gained for the early prototyping stage, despite this easy-to-use, easy-to-realize, and not fine-tuned measurement setup. Furthermore, the limitations and improvements to a possible experimental setup are presented to discuss a potentially more ideal measurement environment. Measurements at discrete operating points and transient measurements across the total operating range were conducted to provide complete information on the EDF's acoustic behavior. The rotor-self noise and the rotor-stator interaction were identified as primary tonal sound sources, along with the highest broadband noise sources located on the rotor. Based on engineering experience, a first acoustic improvement treatment is also quantified with a sound power level reduction of 4dB(A). In conclusion, the presented method is a beneficial first measurement campaign to quantify the acoustic properties of an electric ducted fan unit at minimal resources in a reasonable time of several weeks when starting from scratch.

Job satisfaction has a strong impact on the intention to stay which is an important aspect to counter skills shortage in academic medicine. In an interview study combining qualitative and quantitative methods we investigated how the mental representation of working conditions influences job satisfaction and its impact on the intention to stay. In a first study chief physicians participated in interviews about job satisfaction in academic hospitals. Answers were segmented into statements, ordered by topics and rated according to their valence. In a second study assistant physicians (residents) during and after their training period talked about strength, weaknesses and potential improvements of working conditions. Again, answers were segmented, ordered, rated and used to develop a ‘job satisfaction scale’. In a third study, assistant physicians participated in a computer-led repertory grid procedure composing ‘mental maps’ of job satisfaction factors, filled in the job satisfaction scale and rated if they would recommend work and training in their clinic as well as their intention to stay. Comparing the interview results with recommendation rates and intention to stay show that a negative attitude is linked to high workload and poor career perspectives. A positive attitude towards work environment and high intention to stay are linked to sufficient personnel and technical capacities, reliable duty scheduling and fair salaries. The third study using repertory grids showed that the perception of current teamwork and future developments concerning work environment were the main aspects to improve job satisfaction and the intention to stay. The results of the interview studies were used to develop an array of adaptive improvement measure. The results support prior findings that job dissatisfaction is mostly based on generally known “hygiene factors” and whereas job satisfaction is due to individual aspects.

Understanding the complex interactions between metabolism and the immune system (“meta-flammation”) is crucial for the identification of key immunomodulatory factors as potential therapeutic targets in obesity and in cardiovascular diseases. Cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide (CAMP) is an important factor of innate immunity and is expressed in adipocytes. CAMP therefore might play a role as an adipokine in metaflammation and adipose inflammation. Toll-like receptor (TLR) 9 is another component of the innate immune system that is expressed and functionally active in adipocytes. The aim of the present study was to investigate the impact of TLR9 signaling on CAMP expression in adipocytes and in adipose tissue. CAMP gene expression in murine 3T3-L1 and human SGBS adipocytes and in murine and human adipose tissues was quantified by real-time PCR. TLR9 knockdown was applied in murine 3T3-L1 adipocytes via siRNA transfection. Adipocyte inflammation was induced in vitro by TNFα stimulation. Serum CAMP concentrations in TLR9 knockout (KO) and in wildtype mice were quantified by ELISA. CAMP gene expression was considerably increased in 3T3-L1 adipocytes during differentiation. TNFα significantly induced CAMP gene expression in mature adipocytes, which was antagonized by inhibitors of NF-κB and PI3K signaling. Cell-free nucleic acids (cfDNA) as endogenous TLR9 ligand significantly impaired CAMP gene expression, whereas synthetic agonistic and antagonistic TLR9 ligands had no effect. Cellular TLR9 knockdown reduced adipocyte CAMP gene expression in vitro and male TLR9 knockout mice exhibited lower systemic CAMP concentrations than wildtype mice. CAMP and TLR9 gene expression were correlated positively in murine and human subcutaneous but not in intraabdominal/visceral adipose tissues. These findings suggest a regulatory role of TRL9 in adipocytic CAMP expression as a novel putative molecular mechanism in adipose tissue innate immunity.

The global carbon neutrality challenge places a spotlight on forests as carbon sinks. However, greenhouse gas (GHG) balances of wood for material and energy use often reveal GHG emission savings in comparison with a non-wood reference. Is it thus better to increase wood production and use, or to conserve and expand the carbon stock in forests? GHG balances of wood products mostly ignore the dynamics of carbon storage in forests, which can be expressed as the carbon storage balance in forests (CSBF). For Germany, a CSBF of 0.25 to 1.15 t CO2/m³ wood can be assumed. When the CSBF is integrated into the GHG balance, GHG mitigation substantially deteriorates and wood products may even turn into a GHG source, e.g. in the case of energy wood. Here, building up the forest carbon sink would be the better option. We conclude that it is vital to include the CSBF in GHG balances of wood products if the wood is extracted from forests. Only then can GHG balances provide political decision-makers and stakeholders in the wood sector with a complete picture of GHG emissions.

Mobile health technologies enable continuous, quantitative assessment of mobility and gait in real-world environments, facilitating early diagnosis of gait disorders, disease progression monitoring, and prediction of adverse events like falls. Traditionally, mobile gait assessment predominantly relied on body-fixed sensors positioned at the feet or lower trunk. Here, we investigate the potential of an algorithm utilizing an ear-worn motion sensor for spatiotemporal segmentation of gait patterns. We collected 3D acceleration profiles from the ear-worn sensor during varied walking speeds in 53 healthy adults. Temporal convolutional networks were trained to detect stepping sequences and predict spatial relations between steps. The resulting algorithm, mEar, accurately detects initial and final ground contacts (F1 score of 99% and 91%, respectively). It enables determination of temporal and spatial gait cycle characteristics (among others stride time and stride length) with good to excellent validity at a precision sufficient to monitor clinically relevant changes in walking speed, stride-to-stride variability, and side asymmetry. This study highlights the ear as a viable site for monitoring gait and proposes its potential integration with in-ear vital sign monitoring. Such integration offers a practical approach to comprehensive health monitoring and telemedical applications, by integrating multiple sensors in a single anatomical location.

Modern drugs have changed epilepsy, which affects people of all ages. But for young people with epilepsy, the framework of drug development has stalled. In the wake of the thalidomide catastrophe, the misconception emerged that for people <18y antiseizure medications (ASMs) need separate proof of efficacy and safety (E&S), overall called “pediatric drug development.” This has been corrected to some extent. Authorities accept that ASMs are effective in <18y as well, but they still require "extrapolation of efficacy," as if minors were another species. In our view, the real problem is less that relevant parts of pediatric clinical epilepsy research over the past decades were useless, but that this has hampered research on meaningful challenges. We do not need to show that ASMs work also before the 18th birthday. But we need to learn how to best use ASMs to prevent brain damage in young patients and optimize ASMs use considering a broader range of aspects

Proximal tubular epithelial cells (PTEC) are constantly exposed to potentially toxic metabolites and xenobiotics. The regenerative potential of the kidney enables the replacement of damaged cells either via the differentiation of stem cells or the regain of proliferative properties of the PTEC. Nevertheless, it is known that renal function declines, suggesting that the deteriorated cells are not replaced by fully functional cells. To understand the possible causes of this loss of kidney cell function, it would be beneficial to understand the role of toxins during the regeneration process. Therefore, we investigated the sensitivity and function of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC), hiPSC differentiating, and hiPSC differentiated into proximal tubular epithelial-like cells (PTELC) to known nephrotoxins. hiPSC were differentiated into PTELC, exhibiting a similar morphology to PTEC, expressing prototypical PTEC markers and performing albumin endocytosis. When treated with two nephrotoxins, hiPSC and differentiating hiPSC were more sensitive to cisplatin than differentiated PTELC, whereas all stages were equally sensitive to cyclosporin A. Both toxins also had an inhibitory effect on albumin uptake. Our results suggest a high sensitivity of differentiating cells towards toxins, which could have an unfavorable effect on regenerative processes. To study this, our model of hiPSC differentiating into PTELC appears suitable.

The use of antibiotics grown promoter has been banned, due led problems with drug residues in animal products and increased bacterial resistance. For several reasons there is a growing interest in the scientific community in immunoglobulin Y as antibiotic alternative and their oral administration in the polyclonal antibody (pAb) format, to maintain animal health and performance, do not require IgY purification for large-scale production, resulting in protein impurities and high concentration of biotin in the samples. The signal amplification through non-covalent interaction of biotin with streptavidin has been extensionally used by many laboratories for several diagnosis diseases and scientific research in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). However, the riches sources of biotin as egg yolk, leading to high biotin concentrations in samples, harming the accuracy of diagnostic and proteins concentrations tests. This study aimed to evaluate the biotin influence on measurement of Immunoglobulin Y in egg yolk freeze dried samples from immunized laying hens by immunoassays using biotin-avidin/streptavidin. The IgY concentration changed down in immunoassays using biotin-avidin/streptavidin. The detection of IgY in yolk samples by ELISA using streptavidin–biotin binding as part of the assay methodology requires some technology to neutralize high concentration of biotin on sample or more steps beyond delipidation to isolate the target protein. Otherwise, an ELISA without the use of streptavidin-biotin binding would be more advisable to avoid biotin and targets protein relationship and prevent biotin interference on results.

Footprints are powerful indicators for evaluating the impact of the bioeconomy of a country on environmental goods, domestically and abroad. In this study, we apply a hybrid approach combining a Multi-Regional Input-Output model and land use modelling to compute the agricultural land footprint (aLF). Furthermore, we added information on land-use change to the analysis and allocated land conversion to specific commodities. The German case study shows that the aLF abroad is larger by a factor of 2.5 to 3 than the aLF in Germany. In 2005 and 2010, conversion of natural and semi-natural land-cover types abroad allocated to Germany due to import increases was 2.5 times higher than the global average. Import increases to Germany slowed down in 2015 and 2020, reducing land conversion attributed to the German bioeconomy to the global average. The case study shows that the applied land footprint provides clear and meaningful information for policymakers and other stakeholders. The presented methodological approach can be applied to other countries and regions covered in the underlying database EXIOBASE. It can be adapted, also for an assessment of other ecosystem functions, such as water or soil fertility.

Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) is the key regulator of human DNA metabolism. One important interaction partner is p15, involved in DNA replication and repair. Targeting the PCNA-p15 interaction is a promising therapeutic strategy against cancer. Here, a Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based assay for the analysis of PCNA-p15 interaction was developed. Next to the application as screening tool for the identification and characterization of PCNA-p15 interaction inhibitors, the assay is also suitable for the investigation of mutation-induced changes in their affinity. This is particularly useful for analysing disease associated PCNA or p15 variants at the molecular level. Recently, the PCNA variant C148S has been associated with Ataxia-telangiectasia-like disorder type 2 (ATLD2). ATLD2 is a neurodegenerative disease based on defects in DNA repair due to an impaired PCNA. Incubation time dependent FRET measurements indicated no effect on PCNAC148S-p15 affinity, but on PCNA stability. The impaired stability and increased aggregation behaviour of PCNAC148S was confirmed by intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence, DSF and AF4 measurements. The analysis of the disease associated PCNA variant demonstrated the versatility of the interaction assay as developed.

Background: Interventions with the performance of sessions with sprints in different intensity manipulations, can be a great alternative to improve physical performance. Objective: To verify the influence of different break times between sprints on the performance of amateur futsal athletes Methods: 10 individuals, men, amateur futsal athletes (Age: 21.5 ± 1.6; Weight: 72.4 ± 6.88; Height: 1.72 ± 0.05; BMI: 24.3 ± 1.2; Fat%: 13.7 ± 3.3, VO2peak: 49.1 ± 10.5) participated in the study. For the intervention, individuals were randomly selected to perform sessions with sprints (10 sets 20 meters) with different pause times, being 15 (S15), 30 (S30) and 60 (S60) seconds. For performance analysis, the speed (km / h) applied to each sprint was used, monitored by a device with a photocell (CEFISE Biotecnologia Esportiva®, Nova Odessa, São Paulo) and the statistical treatment of all data was through the software Statistica 7.0 (Statsoft ™, Tulsa, OK, USA) using a significance level of p≤0.05. Results: There was an interaction between speed and interval time (p = 0.000). For condition S15, a greater reduction in performance was observed (p≤0.05), while for S30 and S60, no significant reduction in performance was observed (p> 0.05). The data for the area under the curve showed a significant difference (p = 0.000), where the interval of 60 seconds (S60) was longer compared to the values of 30 (S30) (p = 0.000) and 15 seconds (S15) (p = 0.000). However, there were no significant differences between the 30 and 15 second data (p = 0.248). Conclusion: Shorter time (15 seconds) of interval between repeated sprints can significantly affect performance when compared to longer breaks (30 and 60 seconds). But, all the conditions tested here, can be positive for the improvement of the performance, mainly in sports that demand fast and efficient motor actions, as for example, futsal.

An increased risk of multiple sclerosis (MS) had been found when individuals had consumed large amounts of processed meat and sausages at young age (Lauer, 2014). Furthermore it was found in many studies that MS patients had acquired a number of common childhood infections at higher ages than controls. Therefore, MS patients from an epidemiological long-term investigation in Germany and different hospital controls, were evaluated for a statistical interaction of these two factors. 324 MS patients and 242 hospital controls were inquired. The study focussed on age 0 - 16. Subjects were tested for additive interaction by multiple linear regression analysis (Knol et al., 2007). There was an additive interaction of the age at any common childhood infection with the consumption of scalded sausages (regression estimate = 0.1370; standard error = 0.0603; p = 0.0239). In contrast, no such interaction could be shown for: animal fats; smoked meat (e.g. ham and bacon); and cold - smoked German salami. Thus there was a synergy of the intake of scalded sausages (e.g. frankfurters, bolognas, etc.) and age at common childhood infections, for the later risk of MS.

Low temperature cofired ceramics (LTCC) have conquered a niche segment in biological microelectromechanical systems (BioMEMS) during the last two decades. Since 3-dimensional assembly and rapid prototyping capability are outstanding features of the technology, bioreactors with complex geometry can easily be produced. Particularly needed functions are working electrodes, e.g. for impedance measurements and reference electrodes consisting in platinum or silver-silver chloride. Although the distinct grainy surface of thick film materials influences the double layer properties, data describing the bioelectronic interface and biocompatibility of common thick film materials are rarely published up to now. This works aims to fill this gap by studying the surface properties, composition, electrochemical properties and biocompatibility of commercially available thick film materials. It was found that thick film gold is suitable as electrode material in direct cell contact since an appropriate proliferation of the cell culture was observed. Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) coating decreases the absolute value of the zeta potential of thick film gold from 16.55 V to 11.78 mV without any change in vitality of the cells. Thick film platinum layers have a porous structure entailing an enlargement of the effective surface by a factor of 21.6 and can be used as reference instead of silver/silver chloride, which was identified to be incompatible with cell culture. The investigations show that some commercially available cost-effective thick film materials are compatible with cell culture and the here presented data give an orientation for the use of the same in LTCC bioreactors.

Powder and SLM additively manufactured parts of X5CrNiCuNb17-4 maraging steel were systematically investigated by electron microscopy to understand the relationship between the properties of the powder grains and the microstructure of the printed parts. We prove that satellites, irregularities and superficial oxidation of powder particles can be transformed into an advantage through the formation of nanoscale (AlMnSiTiCr)-oxides in the matrix during the printing process. The nano-oxides showed extensive stability in terms of size, spherical morphology, chemical composition and crystallographic disorder upon in situ heating up to 950°C in the scanning transmission electron microscope. Their presence thus indicates a potential for oxide-dispersive strengthening of this steel, which may be beneficial for creep resistance at elevated temperatures. The nucleation of copper clusters and their evolution into nanoparticles as well as the precipitation of Ni and Cr particles upon in situ heating have as well been systematically documented.

While some research supports utilizing plain radiography for measuring biomechanical alignment of the spine for prognosis and treatment, there are contrasting viewpoints regarding both the value and utilization of these procedures in conservative care. Evaluation of both conservative and non-conservative approaches to spinal care revealed vast differences in radiographic utilization and interpretation between orthopedic surgeons, primary care physicians, chiropractic physicians, and physical therapists, which may account for the different viewpoints and rationale in the literature. A research summary is provided regarding the various methods of spinal analysis utilized by these professions to help determine if there is any unique diagnostic or prognostic value associated with radiographic utilization that could assist in advancing conservative spinal assessment and treatment. Understanding any unique value provided through biomechanical assessment utilizing plain radiography of the spine established in the literature may help chiropractic physicians determine the appropriate use of radiographic procedures in clinical practice and how to coordinate efforts with other conservative and non-conservative professions to improve spinal healthcare.

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition caused by the body's overwhelming response to an infection, such as pneumonia or urinary tract infection. It occurs when the immune system releases cytokines into the bloodstream, triggering widespread inflammation. If not treated, it can lead to organ failure and death. Unfortunately, sepsis has a high mortality rate, with studies reporting rates ranging from 20% to over 50%, depending on the severity and promptness of treatment. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the annual death toll in the world is about 11 million. One of the main toxins responsible for inflammation induction are lipopolysaccharides (LPS, endotoxin) from Gram-negative bacteria, which ranks among the most potent immunostimulants found in nature. Antibiotics are consistently prescribed as a part of anti-sepsis-therapy. However, antibiotic therapy (i) is increasingly ineffective due to resistance development and (ii) most antibiotics are unable to bind and neutralize LPS, a prerequisite to inhibit the interaction of endotoxin with its cellular receptor complex, namely Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)/MD-2, responsible for the intracellular cascade leading to pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion. The pandemic virus SARS-CoV-2 has infected hundreds of millions of humans worldwide since its emergence in 2019. The COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease-19) caused by this virus is associated with high lethality, particularly for elderly and immunocompromised people. As of August 2023, nearly 7 million deaths were reported worldwide due to this disease. According to some reported studies, upregulation of TLR4 and the subsequent inflammatory signaling detected in COVID-19 patients “mimics bacterial sepsis”. Furthermore, the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 was described by others as “mirror image of sepsis”. Similarly, the cytokine profile in sera from severe COVID-19 patients was very similar to those suffering from the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and sepsis. Finally, the severe COVID-19 infection was frequently accompanied by bacterial co-infections, as well as by the presence of significant LPS concentrations. These data indicate similarity and interdependences of both syndromes, but also significant differences which will be discussed in the present review.

The production of lithium-ion battery cells is characterized by a high degree of complexit due to numerous cause-effect relationships between process characteristics. Knowledge about the multi-stage production is spread among several experts, rendering tasks such as failure analysis challenging. In this paper, a method is presented, which includes expert knowledge acquisition in production ramp-up by combining Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) with a Bayesian Network. We show the effectiveness of this holistic method by building up a large scale, cross-process Bayesian Failure Network in lithium-ion battery production. Using this model, we are able to conduct root cause analyses as well as analyses of failure propagation. The former support operators in identifying root causes once a cell possesses a specific failure by calculating most-probable explanations matched to the individual battery cell data. The latter enable us to analyze propagation of failures and deviations in the production chain and thus provide support for placement of quality gates, leading to a significant reduction in scrap rate. Moreover, it gives an insight into which process steps are key drivers for which final product characteristics.

Background: Tele-emergency physicians (TEPs) take an increasingly important role in the need-oriented provision of emergency patient care. To improve emergency medicine in rural areas, we set up the project Land|Rettung (English: Rural|Rescue), which uses TEPs to restructure professional rescue services using information and communication technologies (ICTs) in order to reduce the therapy-free interval. Successful implementation of ICTs relies on user acceptance and knowledge sharing behavior. Methods and findings: We conducted a factorial design with active knowledge transfer and technology acceptance as a function of work satisfaction (high vs. low), workload (high vs. low) and point in time (prior to vs. after digitalization). Data were collected via machine readable questionnaires issued to 755 persons (411 pre, 344 post), of which 304 or 40.3% of these persons responded (194 pre, 115 post).Technology acceptance was higher after the implementation of TEP for nurses but not for other professional groups, and it was higher when the workload was high. Regarding active communication and knowledge sharing, employees with low work satisfaction are more likely to share their digital knowledge as compared to employees with high work satisfaction. Additional and more detailed analyses reveal that this is an effect of previous knowledge concerning digitalization. After implementing the new technology, work satisfaction increased for the more experienced employees, but not for the less experienced ones. Results are discussed considering the Dunning-Kruger effect. The Dunning-Kruger effect describes a cognitive bias. People with high expertise often underestimate their actual skill level. They have a more critical attitude towards their performance and feel the urgent need to fill possible knowledge gaps they notice. Conclusions: Our research illustrates that employees’ workload has an impact on the intention of using digital applications. The higher the workload, the more people are willing to use TEPs. Regarding active knowledge sharing, we see that employees with low work satisfaction are more likely to share their digital knowledge compared to employees with high work satisfaction. This might be attributed to the Dunning-Kruger effect. Highly knowledgeable employees initially feel uncertain about the change, which translates into temporarily lower work satisfaction. They feel the urge to fill even small knowledge gaps, which in return leads to higher work satisfaction. Those responsible need to acknowledge that digital change affects their employees’ workflow and work satisfaction. During such times, employees need time and support to gather information and knowledge in order to cope with digitally changed tasks.

For cereals grown under organic conditions, information on levels of free asparagine (free Asn) as a precursor to acrylamide (AA) formation, is almost completely lacking. This study investigated the impact of organically grown cereal species and cultivars of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum), winter spelt (Triticum aestivum ssp. spelta), winter rye (Secale cereale), winter einkorn (Triticum monococcum) and winter emmer (Triticum dicoccum) on the level of free Asn with simultaneous consideration of grain yields and flour qualities over three growing seasons (2005–2006, 2006–2007 and 2007–2008) in Southwest Germany. Additionally, the relation of free Asn and AA was investigated. Heritability revealed how strongly the level of free Asn was linked to the genotype. In this context free Asn of species and cultivars grown at a second location in Southern Germany were analysed. The level of free Asn was significantly influenced by species and within species by cultivars. Rye was found to exhibit the highest free Asn amount (52 mg 100 g⁻¹), followed by einkorn (32 mg 100 g⁻¹), emmer (16 mg 100 g⁻¹) wheat (10 mg 100 g⁻¹) and spelt (8 mg 100 g⁻¹), which showed the overall lowest free Asn content. Hence, replacing rye with spelt in food products would lead to an 85% reduction of free Asn in raw material. Within species, cultivars differed in their levels of free Asn by up to 67% for wheat, 55% for spelt and 33% for rye. Year also had a significant impact as almost all samples were significantly higher in their level of free Asn in 2008 compared to 2006 and 2007. Rye was most significantly affected by year as the level of free Asn varied by up to 32% between years. In contrast, wheat and spelt were only affected minimally by year. A high heritability was found for wheat (0.79) and spelt (0.91) concerning locations in 2008, meaning that the level of free Asn is mainly determined by the genotype and less influenced by environmental conditions. In contrast, heritability was low for wheat (0.23) but high for spelt (0.71) and rye (0.67) regarding years. As for organically grown cereals the relation between free Asn and AA formation was never investigated before. Correlation of both parameters was calculated. There was also a close correlation between free Asn and AA. Across species and years, the amount of free Asn correlated with the AA content in heated flour with R² = 0.69***. Thus, free Asn can serve as an indicator for AA formation during processing. In conclusion, the level of free Asn can be highly influenced by proper selection of species and cultivars under organic growing conditions.

Submerged aquatic vegetation, also referred to as submerged macrophytes, provides important habitats and serves as a significant ecological indicator for assessing the condition of water bodies and for gaining insights into the impacts of climate change. In this study, we introduce a novel approach for the extensive monitoring of submerged vegetation, validated against established monitoring techniques. Employing full waveform airborne laser scanning, frequently used for topographic mapping and forestry applications on dry land, we extend its application to the detection of underwater vegetation in Lake Constance. The primary focus of this research lies in the automatic classification of LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) point clouds, distinguishing the three vegetation classes (i) Low Vegetation, (ii) High Vegetation, and (iii) Vegetation Canopy based on their height. The results reveal detailed three-dimensional representation of submerged vegetation, enabling the identification of vegetation structures and inference of vegetation types with reference to pre-existing knowledge. While the results within training areas demonstrate high precision and alignment with comparative data, the findings in test areas exhibit comprehensible deficiencies that are likely addressable through corrective measures in the future.

In eukaryotes, the Dph1•Dph2 dimer is a non-canonical radical SAM enzyme. Using iron-sulfur (FeS) clusters, it cleaves the cosubstrate S-adenosyl-methionine (SAM) to form a 3-amino-3-carboxy-propyl (ACP) radical for synthesis of diphthamide. The latter decorates a histidine residue on elongation factor 2 (EF2) conserved from archaea to yeast and humans and is important for accurate mRNA translation and protein synthesis. Guided by evidence from archaeal orthologues, we searched for a putative SAM binding pocket in Dph1•Dph2 from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We predict a SAM binding pocket near the FeS cluster domain that is conserved across eukaryotes in Dph1 but not Dph2. Site-directed DPH1 mutagenesis and functional characterization by assays diagnostic for loss of diphthamide reveal the SAM pocket is essential for synthesis of the décor on EF2 in vivo. Further evidence from structural modeling suggests particularly critical residues close to the methionine moiety of SAM. Presumably, they facilitate a geometry specific for SAM cleavage and ACP radical formation that distinguishes Dph1•Dph2 from classical radical SAM enzymes, which generate canonical 5′-deoxyadenosyl (dAdo) radicals.

Using the colloidal method, Au NP’s were deposited onto 6 different supports (TiO2,  and -Al2O3, HFeO2, CeO2, and C), and their catalytic activity and selectivity were compared in the alkylation of aniline by benzyl alcohol. Correlations were made between the nature of the support, the Au NP size and H-binding energy.

Plants respond to drought by major reprogramming of gene expression enabling the plant to survive this threatening environmental condition. One major upstream signal inducing this multifaceted process is the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA). In this report, we investigate the drought response in barley plants (Hordeum vulgare, cv. Morex) at both epigenome and transcriptome levels. Leaves of barley plants after 10 days of drought treatment, when soil water content was decreased by about 40%, were compared to well-watered controls. Due to the drought treatment, chlorophyll content and photosystem II-efficiency were decreased by about 10% and some known drought-related genes were already induced. Global ChIPseq analyses were used to identify genes where histones 3 associated with promoter or gene body were modified with euchromatic K4 trimethylation or K9 acetylation during drought. Using stringent exclusion criteria, 129 genes loaded with H3K4me3 and 2008 genes loaded with H3K9ac in response to drought were identified, indicating that H3K9 acetylation reacts to drought more sensitive than H3K4 trimethylation. Comparison with differentially expressed genes enabled to identify those genes, which are loaded with the euchromatic marks and are induced in response to the drought treatment. The results show that a major part of these genes is involved in ABA-signaling and related pathways. Intriguingly, two members of the protein phosphatase 2C family (PP2Cs), which are involved in the central regulatory machinery of ABA signaling, were also identified by this approach.

Background: Number of joint infections caused by Vancomycin-resistant pathogens is emerging. Currently no PMMA cement is commercially available to cover VRE. Daptomycin shows promising results in infection treatment, offers a good safety profile and reduced risk for resistance development. Purpose of this in vitro study is to investigate the mechanical stability, handling properties, elution behavior and antimicrobial effectiveness of PMMA cement loaded with three different Daptomycin concentrations in comparison to commercially available ALBC; Methods: Mechanical properties and handling characteristics (ISO 5833, DIN 53435), HPLC elution, antimicrobial effectiveness with proliferation assay (DIN 17025) and inhibition zone testing were investigated; Results: All tested Daptomycin concentrations fulfilled ISO and DIN mechanical strength. Dosage of 0.5. g added Daptomycin did not show any antimicrobial effectiveness in contrast to 1.0 g and1.5 g. Cement with 1.5 g Daptomycin was best in elution and effectiveness, showed good mechanical ISO strength, ISO doughing was a little longer sticky and setting was faster as Vancomycin containing reference cement; Conclusion: PMMA cement containing 0.5 g Gentamicin and 1.5 g Daptomycin could be a good alternative to the already established COPAL® G+V for PJI treatment of VRE.

Growing mushrooms is meeting challenges while aiming for sustainability and circularity. Wherever the producer is located, commercial strains are the same originating from several producers. Following the harvest, enormous quantities of spent mushroom substrate containing spores are disposed presenting a type of foreign material pressure on the ecosystem in the form of the loss of genetic diversity in wild mushroom populations. This challenge can be mitigated by bioprospecting local strains and using them to generate commercial inoculum. Accordingly, the mycoceutical potential of five polypore mushroom species from Serbia was evaluated: secondary metabolite composition, oxidative damage prevention, anti-tyrosinase, and anti-angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) properties. The phenolic pattern was comparable in all samples, but the amounts of specific chemicals varied. Hydroxybenzoic acids were the primary components. All samples had varying quantities of ascorbic acid, carotene, and lycopene, and showed a pronounced inhibition of lipid peroxidation (LPx) and ability to scavenge HO•. Extracts were more potent tyrosinase inhibitors but unsuccessful when faced with ACE. Fomitopsis pinicola had the strongest anti-tumor efficacy while Ganoderma lucidum demonstrated strong selectivity in anti-tumor effect in comparison to healthy cells. The evaluated species provided a solid foundation for commercial development while keeping the local ecology in mind.

The etiology of exaggerated fibrous capsule formation around silicone mammary implants (SMI) is multifactorial but primarily induced by immune mechanisms toward the foreign material silicone. The aim of this work was to enlighten the disease progression from implant insertion and immediate tissue damage response reflected in (a) the acute wound proteome, and (b) the adsorption of chronic inflammatory wound proteins at implant surfaces. An intra-individual absolute quantitation TMT-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry approach was applied to profile wound proteome formed around SMI the first five days post-implantation. Compared to plasma, the acute wound profile resembled a more complex composition comprising plasma-derived and locally differentially expressed proteins (DEPs). DEPs were subjected to functional enrichment analysis, which revealed the dysregulation of signaling pathways mainly involved in immediate inflammation response and ECM turnover. Moreover, we found time-course variations in protein enrichment immediately post-implantation and adsorbed to SMI surfaces after 6-8 months. Characterization of the expander-adhesive proteome by label-free approach uncovered a long-term adsorbed acute wound and the fibrosis-associated proteome. Our findings propose a wound biomarker panel for the early detection and diagnosis of excessive fibrosis that could potentially broaden insights into the characteristics of fibrotic implant encapsulation.

The role of hydrogen in a future energy system with a high share of variable renewable energy sources (VRES) is regarded as crucial in order to balance fluctuations in electricity generation. These fluctuations can be compensated for by flexibility measures such as the expansion of transmission, flexible generation, larger back-up capacity and storage. Salt cavern storage is the most promising technology due to its large storage capacity, followed by pumped hydro storage. For the underground storage of chemical energy carriers such as hydrogen, salt caverns offer the most promising option owing to their low investment cost, high sealing potential and low cushion gas requirement. This paper provides a suitability assessment of European subsurface salt structures in terms of size, land eligibility and storage capacity. Two distinct cavern volumes of 500,000 m³ and 750,000 m³ are considered, with preference being given for salt caverns over bedded salt deposits and salt domes. The storage capacities of individual caverns are estimated on the basis of thermodynamic considerations based on site-specific data. The results are analyzed using three different scenarios: onshore and offshore salt caverns, only onshore salt caverns and only onshore caverns within 50 km of the shore. The overall technical storage potential across Europe is estimated at 84.8 PWh_H2, 27% of which constitutes only onshore locations. Furthermore, this capacity decreases to 7.3 PWh_H2 with a limitation of 50 km distance from shore. In all cases, Germany has the highest technical storage potential, with a value of 9.4 PWh_H2, located onshore only in salt domes in the north of the country. Moreover, Norway has 7.5 PWh_H2 of storage potential for offshore caverns, which are all located in the subsurface of the North Sea Basin.

Background: The intrauterine and early extrauterine development represents a “window of opportunity” in the immunological development. The underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood. The aim of this study was to provide reference values B cell subpopulations in cord blood of term newborns, juveniles and in adults to find the spectrum of their physiological age-related variation. Methods: In this study, we used flow cytometry to evaluate human B lymphocytes and subpopulations in cord blood (n = 10), in peripheral blood from healthy juveniles aged 1 to 17 years (n=20) and from donors aged 24 to 62 years (n = 10). Results: Our findings showed increasing frequencies of IgM memory B cells, class-switched memory B cells, marginal zone B cells and plasmablasts, from cord blood to peripheral blood of juveniles and adults. In con-trast, the percentage of naïve B cells was higher in newborns than in juveniles and adults. The frequencies of were similar in cord blood and peripheral blood of adults. Interestingly, transitional B cells frequencies were similar in cord blood and adults but significantly lower in juveniles. Conclusions: The frequencies of circulating B cell subpopulation are subject to considerable changes during on-togeny, reflecting overlying effects of maturation and of the acquisition of an adaptive immune memory.

The Dph1•Dph2 heterodimer from yeast is a radical SAM (RS) enzyme that generates the 3-amino-3-carboxy-propyl (ACP) precursor for diphthamide, a clinically relevant modification on eukaryotic elongation factor 2 (eEF2). ACP formation requires SAM cleavage and atypical Cys-bound Fe-S clusters in each Dph1 and Dph2 subunit. Intriguingly, the first Cys residue in each motif locates next to another, ill-defined cysteine that we show in-here is conserved across eukaryotes. As judged from structural modeling, the orientation of these tandem cysteine motifs (TCM) suggests a candidate Fe-S cluster ligand role. Hence, we generated by site-directed DPH1 and DPH2 mutagenesis, Dph1•Dph2 variants with cysteines from each TCM replaced individually or in combination by serines. Assays diagnostic for diphthamide formation in vivo reveal that while single substitutions in the TCM of Dph2 cause mild defects, double mutations almost entirely inactivate the RS enzyme. Based on enhanced Dph1 and Dph2 subunit instability in response to cycloheximide chases, the variants with Cys substitutions in their cofactor motifs are particularly prone to protein degradation. In sum, we identify a fourth functionally cooperative Cys residue within the Fe-S motif of Dph2 and show that the Cys-based cofactor binding motifs in Dph1 and Dph2 are critical for the structural integrity of the dimeric RS enzyme in vivo.

Localized jawbone invasion is a milestone in the progression of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). The factors that promote this process are not well understood. Sclerostin is known to be involved in bone metabolism and there are preliminary reports of its involvement in bone tumors and metastasis. To identify a possible involvement of sclerostin in the bone invasion process of OSCC, sclerostin expression was analyzed in vitro in two different human OSCC tumor cell lines by qRT-PCR, and the effect of recombinant human (rh)-sclerostin treatment on tumor cell capabil-ities was evaluated using proliferation, migration, and invasion assays. Undifferentiated human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) were osteogenically differentiated and co-cultured with OSCC tumor cells to demonstrate potential interactions on migration characteristics. Sclerostin expres-sion was evaluated in clinical cases by immunohistochemistry at the OSCC jawbone interface in a cohort of 15 patients. Sclerostin expression was detected in both OSCC tumor cell lines in vitro and was also detected at the OSCC jawbone interface in clinical cases. Tumor cell proliferation rate, migration and invasion ability were increased by rh-sclerostin treatment. The migration rate of tumor cells co-cultured with osteogenically differentiated hMSCs was increased. The re-sults presented are the first data suggesting a possible involvement of sclerostin in the bone inva-sion process of OSCC, which needs to be further investigated

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have successfully revealed numerous susceptibility loci for obesity. PREDATORR study (2014) shows that in Romania, 34,6% of adults aged 20-79 y/o are overweight, 31,4% are obese with a high risk of cardiometabolic complications, a number that puts almost 67% of Romania's population in the abnormal weight group. Our study aims to investigate the current staus of genetic foundation in metabolic disease associated with obesity, applied to a pilot group of patients specifically examining the impact of known polymorphisms and their haplotype of six food intake-regulating genes: leptin (LEP), leptin receptor (LEP-R), serotonin receptor (5HTR2A), ghrelin (GHRL), neuropeptide Y (NPY) and fat-mass and obesity-associated (FTO) with the following polymorphisms: LEP A-2548G, LEPR A-223G, 5HTR2A G-1439A, GHRL G-72T, NPY T-29063C, FTO A-T and body mass index (BMI). A notable link between the LEP-2548 rs7799039 gene's AG genotype and the risk of obesity was observed, particularly pronounced in males aged 40-49, with an approximately sevenfold increased likelihood of obesity. The 5HTR2A rs6311 AA genotype was associated with a higher BMI, not statistically significant. The FTO rs9939609 gene's AA genotype emerged as a significant predictor of obesity risk. Besides these significant findings, no substantial associations were observed with the LEPR, 5HTR2A, GHRL and NPY genes. Haplotype association analysis showed a suggestive indication of GRGMLA (rs7799039, rs1137101, rs6311, rs696217, rs16139, rs9939609 sequence) haplotype with susceptibility effect towards obesity predisposition. Linkage disequilibrium (LD) analysis showed statistically significant associations between LEP and LEPR gene (p = 1e-04), LEP and GHRL gene (p = 0.0047), GHRL and FTO gene (p=0.03). The outcomes of this study, to our knowledge, one of the very few on the Romanian population, aimed to be a starting point for further research on the targeted interventional strategies to reduce cardiometabolic risks.

The transition to reproduction is a crucial step in the life cycle of any organism. In Arabidopsis thaliana the establishment of reproductive growth can be divided into two phases: Firstly, cauline leaves with axillary meristems are formed and internode elongation begins. Secondly, lateral meristems develop into flowers with defined organs. Floral shoots are usually determinate and suppress the development of lateral shoots. Here, we describe a transposon insertion mutant in the Nossen accession with defects in floral development and growth. Most strikingly is the outgrowth of stems from the axillary bracts of the primary flower carrying secondary flowers. Therefore, we named this mutant flower-in-flower (fif). However, the transposon insertion in the annotated gene is not the cause for the fif phenotype. By means of classical and genome sequencing-based mapping, the mutation responsible for the fif phenotype was found to be in the LEAFY gene. The mutation, a G-to-A exchange in the second exon of LEAFY, creates a novel lfy allele and results in a cysteine-to-tyrosine exchange in the α1-helix of LEAFY´s DNA-binding domain. This exchange abolishes target DNA-binding, whereas subcellular localization and homomerization are not affected. To explain the strong fif phenotype against this molecular findings, several hypotheses are discussed.

This study applies a cluster analysis to identify typical physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviour (SB) patterns in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) before starting pulmonary rehabilitation (PR). We implemented an observational design which assessed baseline data on objectively measured PA and SB from the STAR (Stay Active after Rehabilitation) study. 355 persons wore a accelerometer (Actigraph wGT3X) for seven days before the start of their PR. Sociodemographic and disease-related parameters were assessed at the start of PR. We applied cluster analysis and compared groups applying univariate variance analyses. Data was available for 326 persons (31.6% women; age ø = 58 yr.). Cluster analysis revealed four movement clusters with distinct PA and SB patterns: sedentary non-movers (28.5%), sedentary occasional movers (41.7%), sedentary movers (19.6%), and sedentary exercisers (10.1%). The four clusters showed very different levels of moderate PA before rehabilitation (Ø daily minutes: 9; 28; 38; 70). Notably, all four clusters displayed considerably long average sitting time per day (Ø daily minutes: 644; 561; 490; 446). The groups differed significantly in disease-related parameters of GOLD severity, FEV1, CAT, and 6-Min-Walk-Test. In addition to PA promotion, PR programs should consider the reduction of sitting time as a valuable goal.

The RNA-binding protein Human antigen R (HuR) regulates stability, translation, and nucleus-to-cytoplasm shuttling of its target mRNAs. The protein has been progressively recognized as a relevant therapeutic target for several pathologies like cancer, neurodegeneration, as well as inflammation. Inhibitors of mRNA binding to HuR might thus be beneficial against a variety of diseases. Here we present the rational identification of structurally novel HuR inhibitors. In particular, by combining chemoinformatics approaches, high throughput virtual screening and RNA–protein pull-down assays, we show that the 4-(2-(2,4,6-trioxotetrahydropyrimidin-5(2H)-ylidene)hydrazineyl)benzoate ligand exhibits dose-dependent HuR inhibition in binding experiments. Importantly, the chemical scaffold is new with respect to the so-far known HuR inhibitors, opening up a new avenue for the design of pharmaceutical agents targeting this important protein.

Fossil-based emissions can be avoided through using wood in place of non-renewable raw materials as energy and materials. However, increasing wood harvest influences forest carbon stocks. This effect may reduce the overall climate benefit of wood use significantly but is widely overlooked. We carried out a systematic review of simulation studies and compared differences in forest carbon and amount of wood harvested between more and less intensive wood harvest scenarios for three different time perspectives; short (1-30 years), mid (31-70 years) and long (71-100 years). Out of more than 450 reviewed studies 44 provided adequate data. Our results show that increased harvesting reduced carbon stocks over 100 years in temperate and boreal forests roughly 1.6 (stdev 0.9) t_C per t_C harvested. The value proved to be robust when outliers explicitly influenced by other factors than change in harvest rate, such as increase in fertilization or forest area, were removed. Interestingly, no significant difference in carbon impacts was found for average values of boreal and temperate forests or between short and long time-horizons. However, impacts tend to be greatest in the mid-term. This carbon balance indicator that we estimated can be interpreted as carbon debit of wood harvest in forests. It is significant compared with the typical GHG credits in technosphere generated by avoiding fossil emissions in substitution and increase in carbon storage in harvested wood products, and should not be ignored. Our estimates provide default values that can directly be included in GHG balances of products or assessment of mitigation policies and measures related to wood use. However, more systematic scenarios and transparent data in which different factors influencing forest carbon stocks are separately studied are clearly required to provide better constrained estimates for specific forest types.

Severe COVID-19 is frequently associated with thromboembolic complications. Increased platelet activation and platelet-leukocyte aggregate formation can amplify thrombotic responses by inducing tissue factor (TF) expression on leukocytes. Here, we characterized TF-positive extracellular vesicles (EVs) and their cellular origin in 12 patients suffering from severe COVID-19 (time course, 134 samples overall) and 25 healthy controls. EVs exposing phosphatidylserine (PS) were characterized by flow cytometry. Their cellular origin was determined by staining with anti-CD41, anti-CD45, anti-CD235a, and anti-CD105 as platelet, leukocyte, red blood cell, and endothelial markers. We further investigated the association of EVs with TF, platelet factor 4 (PF4), C-reactive protein (CRP) and high mobility group box-1 protein (HMGB-1). COVID-19 patients showed higher levels of PS-exposing EVs compared to controls. The majority of these EVs originated from platelets. A higher amount of EVs in patient samples were associated with CRP, HMGB-1, PF4, and TF, as compared to EVs from healthy donors. In COVID-19 samples, 16.5% of all CD41+ EVs displayed the leukocyte marker CD45, and 55.5% of all EV aggregates (CD41+CD45+) co-expressed TF, which reflects the interaction of platelets and leukocytes in COVID-19 on an EV level.

Partially automated driving functions (SAE Level 2) can control a vehicle's longitudinal and lateral movements. However, taking over the driving task involves automation risks that the driver must manage. In severe accidents, the driver's ability to avoid a collision must be assessed, considering their expected reaction behavior. The primary goal of this study is to generate essential data on driver reaction behavior in case of malfunctions in partially automated driving functions for use in legal affairs. A simulator study with two scenarios involving 32 subjects was conducted for this purpose. The first scenario investigated driver reactions to system limitations during cornering. The second scenario examined driver responses to phantom braking caused by the AEBS. As a result, the first scenario shows that none of the subjects could control the situation safely. Due to partial automation, we could also identify a new part of the reaction time, the hands-on time, which leads to increased steering reaction times of 1.18 to 1.74 seconds. In the second scenario, we found that 25 of the 32 subjects could not override the phantom braking by pressing the accelerator pedal, although 16 subjects were informed about the system analog to the actual vehicle manuals. Overall, the study suggests that the current legal perspective on vehicle control and the expected driver reaction behavior for accident avoidance should be reconsidered.