cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
title: The Monster Waves
Creators: name: Allen, Elizabeth
Publisher: name: George Mason University
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Literary fiction
subject: Cleveland OH
subject: Early age of television
subject: Gay fiction
subject: Lake Erie
subject: Missing persons fiction

description: This thesis has been embargoed for 5 years and will not be available until April 2021.
description: “The Monster Waves” starts with the disappearance of Bud Zombrowski, a 4-year-old boy, on the morning of Christmas Eve, 1940, in Euclid, Ohio. Bud’s parents and his 10-year-old brother, David, are devastated by the loss of the child, their pain deepened by the uncertainty about his fate. Was he kidnapped? Did he wander too close to nearby Lake Erie and drown? With no answers, the family suffers. But the passage of time and the impact of some key events—WWII and the birth of a daughter, Josie—eventually allow the Zombrowskis to move on with their lives. David moves on too, but he is still haunted by images of his brother and the guilt that he might have done something to prevent his disappearance. At the same time, he struggles with his sexual identity, frightened by feelings he had for a young man in his past. After high school, David skips college and lands a grunt job at a Cleveland radio station. He falls in love with broadcasting, eventually landing an announcer gig, and then his own show. When his station turns to the next big thing—television—David takes advantage of the opportunities offered by this media juggernaut. He becomes a minor TV celebrity, and befriends Adam, a cameraman at the station. The men become close friends, then become lovers. David must come to terms with his homosexuality in a time when that admission could get a person fired, beat up or worse. David’s career flourishes through these difficulties, but he must make certain compromises and concessions to keep his boss happy. Twenty six years after his brother’s disappearance, on the night of a big party David is hosts as his TV persona, he meets a woman who has startling information about his brother. He sets off on a search for the truth and to come to terms with what happened that day in 1940. What he returns with forces some hard questions: Can we mend the broken parts of our personal histories? How do we know when to leave the past alone?
title: Controlling Seizure-Like Events by Perturbing Ion Concentration Dynamics with Periodic Stimulation
Creators: name: Owen, Jeremy A.
name: Barreto, Ernest
name: Cressman, John R.
Publisher: name: Public Library of Science
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Neurons
subject: Action potential
subject: Epilepsy
subject: Tetanus
subject: Membrane potential
subject: Electrical stimulation
subject: Potassium
subject: Intracellular membranes

description: We investigate the effects of adding periodic stimulation to a generic, conductance-based neuron model that includes ion concentration dynamics of sodium and potassium. Under conditions of high extracellular potassium, the model exhibits repeating, spontaneous, seizure-like bursting events associated with slow modulation of the ion concentrations local to the neuron. We show that for a range of parameter values, depolarizing and hyperpolarizing periodic stimulation pulses (including frequencies lower than 4 Hz) can stop the spontaneous bursting by interacting with the ion concentration dynamics. Stimulation can also control the magnitude of evoked responses to modeled physiological inputs. We develop an understanding of the nonlinear dynamics of this system by a timescale separation procedure that identifies effective nullclines in the ion concentration parameter space. Our results suggest that the manipulation of ion concentration dynamics via external or endogenous stimulation may play an important role in neuronal excitability, seizure dynamics, and control.
Safety of intermittent Pringle maneuver during minimally invasive liver resection in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma with and without cirrhosis
Creators: name: Ortiz Galindo, Santiago A.
name: Haber, Philipp K.
name: Benzing, Christian
name: Krenzien, Felix
name: Riddermann, Anna
name: Frisch, Oliver
name: Schöning, Wenzel
name: Schmelzle, Moritz
name: Pratschke, Johann
name: Feldbrügge, Linda
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Hepatocellular carcinoma
subject: Pringle maneuver
subject: Cirrhosis
subject: Liver resection
subject: Minimally invasive surgery
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Purpose: The aim of this study was to analyze the impact of minimally invasive intermittent Pringle maneuver (IPM) on postoperative outcomes in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and liver cirrhosis. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we evaluated the safety of IPM in patients with HCC who underwent minimally invasive liver resection during five years at our center. Factors influencing the use of IPM were examined in univariate and multivariate regression analysis. Cases with use of IPM (IPM) and those without use of IPM (no IPM) were then compared regarding intraoperative and postoperative outcomes after propensity score matching (PSM) for surgical difficulty. Results: One hundred fifty-one patients underwent liver resection for HCC at our center and met inclusion criteria. Of these, 73 patients (48%) received IPM with a median duration of 18 min (5-78). One hundred patients (66%) had confirmed liver cirrhosis. In multivariate analysis, patients with large tumors (>= 3 cm) and difficult tumor locations (segments VII or VIII) were more likely to undergo IPM (OR 1.176, p = 0.043, and OR 3.243, p = 0.001, respectively). After PSM, there were no differences in intraoperative blood transfusion or postoperative complication rates between the IPM and no IPM groups. Neither did we observe any differences in the subgroup analysis for cirrhotic patients. Postoperative serum liver function tests were not affected by the use of IPM. Conclusions: Based on our findings, we conclude that the use of IPM in minimally invasive liver resection is safe and feasible for patients with HCC, including those with compensated liver cirrhosis.
title: Identity, Values, and the American Tea Party
Creators: name: Wiskin, Alisa
Publisher: name: George Mason University
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Values
subject: Tea Party
subject: American identity
subject: Collective axiology
subject: Threat narratives
subject: Patriotism

description: This thesis examines the value-commitments that drove the activism of fourteen Virginia Tea Party members in 2010. The personal narratives of these fourteen Tea Party members informed a loose "theory" about Tea Party activism, namely that: The Tea Party‘s narrow conception of American identity, Americanism, was the primary value-commitment that drove the group‘s political activism. Aspects of social identity theory help frame the arc of the analysis with particular focus on Tea Party group identity and collective axiology. I argue that freedom and opportunity make up the principle values in the Tea Party‘s collective axiology, or shared value system. The Tea Partiers‘ commitment to these twin values of freedom and opportunity are expressed in one significant way as threat narratives, which I have summarized and coined as: socialism, burgeoning debt crisis, and bleak future (pessimism). The second half of the thesis looks at "Tea Party as religion" with an analysis of those features of Tea Party identity that hint of a fundamentalist-like orientation. I argue that the Tea Party in 2010 displayed a form of political fundamentalism, centered on notions of Constitutional purity, liberty, and the free market system. I also expand on the idea of "Americanism" and posit that for the Tea Partiers, Tea Party identity was simply an extension of their American identity. For the Tea Party members, their American identity was their most salient identity and they were fully invested in their belief of American exceptionalism. The thesis concludes by revisiting the Tea Partiers‘ value-commitment to opportunity by analyzing their chief concern of maintaining a viable American future for their children and grandchildren. The Tea Party phenomenon is emblematic of an intractable values-based conflict that is at once very personal yet far-reaching - with likely national implications.
Modeling clonal hematopoiesis in umbilical cord blood cells by CRISPR/Cas9
Creators: name: Christen, Friederike
name: Hablesreiter, Raphael
name: Hoyer, Kaja
name: Hennch, Cornelius
name: Maluck-Böttcher, Antje
name: Segler, Angela
name: Madadi, Annett
name: Frick, Mareike
name: Bullinger, Lars
name: Briest, Franziska
name: Damm, Frederik
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: clonal hematopoiesis
subject: umbilical cord blood cells
subject: CRISPR/Cas9
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: To investigate clonal hematopoiesis associated gene mutations in vitro and to unravel the direct impact on the human stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) compartment, we targeted healthy, young hematopoietic progenitor cells, derived from umbilical cord blood samples, with CRISPR/Cas9 technology. Site-specific mutations were introduced in defined regions of DNMT3A, TET2, and ASXL1 in CD34(+) progenitor cells that were subsequently analyzed in short-term as well as long-term in vitro culture assays to assess self-renewal and differentiation capacities. Colony-forming unit (CFU) assays revealed enhanced self-renewal of TET2 mutated (TET2(mut)) cells, whereas ASXL1(mut) as well as DNMT3A(mut) cells did not reveal significant changes in short-term culture. Strikingly, enhanced colony formation could be detected in long-term culture experiments in all mutants, indicating increased self-renewal capacities. While we could also demonstrate preferential clonal expansion of distinct cell clones for all mutants, the clonal composition after long-term culture revealed a mutation-specific impact on HSPCs. Thus, by using primary umbilical cord blood cells, we were able to investigate epigenetic driver mutations without confounding factors like age or a complex mutational landscape, and our findings provide evidence for a direct impact of clonal hematopoiesis-associated mutations on self-renewal and clonal composition of human stem and progenitor cells.
Single-cell RNA-seq identifies protracted mouse germline X chromosome reactivation dynamics directed by a PRC2-dependent mechanism.
Creators: name: Liu, Yaqiong
name: Lau, Xianzhong
name: Munusamy, Prabhakaran
name: Sanchez, Carlos M Abascal Sherwell
name: Snell, Daniel
name: Sangrithi, Mahesh
Publisher: name: The Francis Crick Institute
Year: 2025
Subjects: classificationCode: Genetics & Genomics
subject: Genetics & Genomics
classificationCode: Developmental Biology
subject: Developmental Biology

description: Female primordial germ cells (PGCs) undergo X chromosome reactivation (XCR) during genome-wide reprogramming. XCR kinetics and dynamics are poorly understood at a molecular level. Here, we apply single-cell RNA sequencing and chromatin profiling on germ cells from F1 mouse embryos, performing a precise appraisal of XCR spanning from migratory-stage PGCs to gonadal germ cells. Establishment of germ cell sexual dimorphism and X chromosome dosage compensation states in vivo are temporally linked to XCR. Allele-specific analysis evidence that the reactivating X chromosome is minimally active in embryonic day (E)9.5 female PGCs, reactivates gradually, and reaches parity to the active X chromosome in E16.5 oogonia. While Xist is repressed from E10.5 onward, epigenetic memory of X inactivation persists from self-sustained polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) activity. The reactivating X is asymmetrically enriched for histone 3-lysine-27-trimethylation (H3K27me3) at E13.5, which is later reversed, permitting germline gene expression. Our findings relate XCR with PRC2 function in promoting female meiosis.
Significant increase in quantity and quality of knee arthroplasty related research in KSSTA over the past 15 years
Creators: name: Kirschbaum, Stephanie
name: Kakzhad, Thilo
name: Granrath, Fabian
name: Jasina, Andrzej
name: Oronowicz, Jakub
name: Perka, Carsten
name: Kopf, Sebastian
name: Gwinner, Clemens
name: Pumberger, Matthias
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Total knee replacement
subject: Total knee arthroplasty
subject: Authorship characteristics
subject: Publishing characteristics
subject: Trends in research
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate both publication and authorship characteristics in Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy journal (KSSTA) regarding knee arthroplasty over the past 15 years. Methods: PubMed was searched for articles published in KSSTA between January 1, 2006, and December 31st, 2020, utilising the search term 'knee arthroplasty'. 1288 articles met the inclusion criteria. The articles were evaluated using the following criteria: type of article, type of study, main topic and special topic, use of patient-reported outcome scores, number of references and citations, level of evidence (LOE), number of authors, gender of the first author and continent of origin. Three time intervals were compared: 2006-2010, 2011-2015 and 2016-2020. Results: Between 2016 and 2020, publications peaked at 670 articles (52%) compared with 465 (36%) published between 2011 and 2016 and 153 articles (12%) between 2006 and 2010. While percentage of reviews (2006-2010: 0% vs. 2011-2015: 5% vs. 2016-2020: 5%) and meta-analyses (1% vs. 6% vs. 5%) increased, fewer case reports were published (13% vs. 3% vs. 1%) (p < 0.001). Interest in navigation and computer-assisted surgery decreased, whereas interest in perioperative management, robotic and individualized surgery increased over time (p < 0.001). There was an increasing number of references [26 (2-73) vs. 30 (2-158) vs. 31 (1-143), p < 0.001] while number of citations decreased [30 (0-188) vs. 22 (0-264) vs. 6 (0-106), p < 0.001]. LOE showed no significant changes (p = 0.439). The number of authors increased between each time interval (p < 0.001), while the percentage of female authors was comparable between first and last interval (p = 0.252). Europe published significantly fewer articles over time (56% vs. 47% vs. 52%), whereas the number of articles from Asia increased (35% vs. 45% vs. 37%, p = 0.005). Conclusion: Increasing interest in the field of knee arthroplasty-related surgery arose within the last 15 years in KSSTA. The investigated topics showed a significant trend towards the latest techniques at each time interval. With rising number of authors, the part of female first authors also increased-but not significantly. Furthermore, publishing characteristics showed an increasing number of publications from Asia and a slightly decreasing number in Europe.
title: The Sleep of Reason
Creators: name: Kirkpatrick, Jesse
Publisher: name: George Mason University
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Fiction
subject: Mystery
subject: Horror
subject: Depression
subject: 1930s

description: This thesis has been embargoed for 10 years and will not be available until August 2030 at the earliest.
description: 20-year-old Marion Merriweather lives with her aunt, uncle, and self-important cousin in Camden, Massachusetts. A decade ago, a disastrous family camping trip left her mother missing and her father committed to a private clinic. She has largely blocked this from her memory and, in her last year of undergraduate work, applied to the medical school at Camden College. After visiting her father, she comes home to a rejection letter, barbs from her cousin, and late that night, a shadowy creature tries to suffocate her in bed. Is it just a nightmare, or something more? In this Depression-era mystery/horror story, a smart, courageous young woman tries to save her family and herself.
Supplementary document for Dual-Wavelength Absorption Technique for Dryness Measurement of Wet Steam - 6318332.pdf
Creators: name: CHANDRA, MANISH
name: Seshadri, Satyanarayanan
name: Vasa, Nilesh
Publisher: name: Optica Publishing Group
Year: 2025
Subjects: Uncategorized

description: Supplement 1
The ischiofemoral space of the hip is influenced by the frontal knee alignment
Creators: name: Ahmad, Sufian S.
name: Kerber, Vincent
name: Konrads, Christian
name: Ateschrang, Atesch
name: Hirschmann, Michael T.
name: Stöckle, Ulrich
name: Ahrend, Marc D.
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Knee malalignment
subject: Valgus knee
subject: Varus knee
subject: Femoroacetabular impingement
subject: FAI
subject: Ischiofemoral space
subject: Hip impingement
subject: Hip conflict
subject: Extra-articular hip impingment
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Purpose: The ischiofemoral distance (IFD), defined as the distance between the ischial tuberosity and the lesser trochanter of the femur, is gaining recognition as an extra-articular cause of hip pain. It is unknown whether the IFD is influenced by the frontal knee alignment. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of realignment surgery around the knee on the IFD. It was hypothesized that valgisation osteotomy around the knee is associated with reduction of the IFD. Methods: A consecutive series of 154 patients undergoing frontal realignment procedures around the knee in 2017 were included in this study. Long-leg standing radiographs were obtained before surgery and postoperatively. The IFD was measured between the ischium and the lesser trochanter at three different levels (proximal, middle and distal margins of the lesser trochanter parallel to the horizontal orientation of the pelvis) on standardized long-leg radiographs with the patient in upright standing position. The knee alignment was determined by measuring the hip knee ankle angle, mechanical lateral distal femur angle and the medial mechanical proximal tibia angle. Linear regression was performed to determine the influence of the change of frontal knee alignment on the IFD. Results: Linear regression showed a direct influence of the overall change in frontal knee alignment on the IFD of the hip, regardless of the site of the osteotomy (beta-0.4, confidence-interval - 0.5 to - 0.3, p < 0.001). Valgisation osteotomy around the knee induced a significant reduction of the ipsilateral IFD (p < 0.001), while varisation osteotomy induced a significant increase (p < 0.001). The amount of ISD change was 0.4 mm per corresponding degree of change in frontal knee alignment. Conclusion: These findings are relevant to both the hip and knee surgeons when planning an osteotomy or arthroplasty procedure. Correction of a malalignment of the knee may resolve an ischiofemoral conflict in the hip. The concept deserves inclusion in the diagnostic workup of both the hip and knee joints.
title: Transdiagnostic Psychological Symptoms Associated with Temporal Delay Discounting Tasks – Monetary, Social, & Health Tasks
Creators: name: DeHart, Morgan
Publisher: name: George Mason University
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: Delay discounting
subject: Metacognition
subject: Behavioral inhibition
subject: Transdiagnostic symptoms
subject: Decision-making

description: This thesis examined transdiagnostic characteristics of psychological symptoms and how they might affect decision making and performance on a behavior inhibition task. Instead of examining individuals diagnosed with distinct psychological disorders, this study examined the influence of transdiagnostic symptoms, similar across different disorders, measured in the general population. Anxious/depressive, compulsive/impulsive, and social withdrawal were the three dimensions examined in the present study, and are anticipated to play a role in decision-making. Decision-making was measured in this paper using delay discounting techniques. Delay discounting measures the likelihood that an individual will choose a smaller, immediate reward or a larger, delayed reward. It is a measure of impulsiveness that was hypothesized to relate to certain symptoms of psychological disorders. This study also examined behavioral inhibition using a Go/No-Go decision making task. This study used a transdiagnostic dimensions questionnaire, three discounting tasks regarding monetary, social and health rewards, and a behavioral inhibition task. The results showed that age was a good predictor of higher discount rates, with older individuals significantly more likely to choose the smaller, immediate reward. We did not see any significant relationships between the three transdiagnostic dimensions and delay discounting. However, we did see an effect of reaction time and anxious depressive symptoms on the Go/No-Go behavioral inhibition task. Also, age played a role in false positive error, while social withdrawal symptoms played a role in false negative error on the Go/No-Go task. The observed relationship between age and discounting was broadly consistent with previous literature. The lack of an association between transdiagnostic symptoms might reflect the relatively mild levels of symptoms in the small sample used, weaknesses in the symptom measures, and/or this specific measure of decision making.
Wt1 haploinsufficiency induces browning of epididymal fat and alleviates metabolic dysfunction in mice on high-fat diet
Creators: name: Kirschner, Karin M.
name: Foryst-Ludwig, Anna
name: Gohlke, Sabrina
name: Li, Chen
name: Flores, Roberto E.
name: Kintscher, Ulrich
name: Schupp, Michael
name: Schulz, Tim J.
name: Scholz, Holger
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Adipocyte
subject: Browning
subject: Glucosetolerance
subject: Hepatic steatosis
subject: High-fat diet
subject: Obesity
subject: Thermogenesis
subject: Transcription factor
subject: UCP1
subject: WT1
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Aims/hypothesis: Despite a similar fat storing function, visceral (infra-abdominal) white adipose tissue (WAT) is detrimental, whereas subcutaneous WAT is considered to protect against metabolic disease. Recent findings indicate that thermogenic genes, expressed in brown adipose tissue (BAT), can be induced primarily in subcutaneous WAT. Here, we investigate the hypothesis that the Wilms tumour gene product (WT1), which is expressed in intra-abdominal WAT but not in subcutaneous WAT and BAT, suppresses a thennogenic program in white fat cells. Methods: Heterozygous Wt1 knockout mice and their wild-type littermates were examined in terms of thermogenic and adipocyte-selective gene expression. Glucose tolerance and hepatic lipid accumulation in these mice were assessed under normal chow and high-fat diet conditions. Pre-adipocytes isolated from the stromal vascular fraction of BAT were transduced with Wt1-expressing retrovinis, induced to differentiate and analysed for the expression of thermogenic and adipocyte-selective genes. Results: Expression of the thermogenic genes Cpt1b and Tmem26 was enhanced and transcript levels of Ucp1 were on average more than tenfold higher in epididymal WAT of heterozygous Wt1 knockout mice compared with wild-type mice. Wt1 heterozygosity reduced epididymal WAT mass, improved whole-body glucose tolerance and alleviated severe hepatic steatosis upon diet-induced obesity in mice. Retroviral expression of WT1 in brown pre-adipocytes, which lack endogenous WT1, reduced mRNA levels of Ucp1, Ppargc1a, Cidea, Prdm16 and Cptlb upon in vitro differentiation by 60-90%. WT1 knockdown in epididymal pre-adipocytes significantly lowered Aldh1a1 and Zfp423 transcripts, two key suppressors of the thermogenic program. Conversely, Aldh1a1 and Zfp423 mRNA levels were increased approximately five- and threefold, respectively, by retroviral expression of WT1 in brown pre-adipocytes. Conclusion/interpretation: WT1 functions as a white adipocyte determination factor in epididymal WAT by suppressing thermogenic genes. Reducing Wt1 expression in this and other intra-abdominal fat depots may represent a novel treatment strategy in metabolic disease.
Introducing urine-enriched biochar-based fertilizer for vegetable production: acceptability and results from rural Bangladesh
Creators: name: Sutradhar, Ipsita
name: Jackson-DeGraffenried, Meredith
name: Akter, Sayema
name: McMahon, Shannon A.
name: Waid, Jillian L.
name: Schmidt, Hans-Peter
name: Wendt, Amanda S.
name: Gabrysch, Sabine
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Agricultural production
subject: Family farms
subject: Home gardening
subject: Biochar
subject: Urine
subject: Bangladesh
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Improved agricultural practices that increase yields and preserve soils are critical to addressing food insecurity and undernutrition among smallholder farmer families. Urine-enriched biochar has been shown to be an accessible and effective fertilization option in various subtropical countries; however, it is new to Bangladesh. To better understand attitudes and experiences preparing and using urine-enriched biochar fertilizer, mixed-methods research was undertaken among smallholder farmers in northeastern Bangladesh in 2016/2017. In-depth interviews were conducted with 25 respondents who had compared the production of crops grown with biochar-based fertilizer to usual practice. In addition, in areas where trainings on biochar-based fertilization had been offered, 845 farmers were asked about their experience through a quantitative survey. Interview results indicated that cow urine-enriched biochar was favored over human urine because cow urine was perceived as clean and socially acceptable, whereas human urine was considered impure and disgusting. Respondents praised biochar-based fertilizer because it increased yields, cost little, was convenient to prepare with readily available natural materials, produced tastier crops, and allowed families to share their larger yields which in turn enhanced social and financial capital. Comparative field trials indicated a 60% yield benefit in both cabbage and kohlrabi crops. Challenges included uneven access to ingredients, with some respondents having difficulty procuring cow urine and biomass feedstock. The low social, health, and financial risk of adoption and the perceived benefits motivated farmers to produce and apply biochar-based fertilizer in their gardens, demonstrating strong potential for scale-up of this technology in Bangladesh.
title: Comparing Fan Beam and Cone Beam CT for Non-Clinical Imaging of Tuberculosis
Creators: name: Sutphin, Michelle
Publisher: name: George Mason University
Year: 2019
Subjects: subject: Fan beam CT
subject: Hounsfield unit
subject: Rhesus macaque
subject: Cone beam CT
subject: Mycobacterium tuberculosis
subject: Computed tomography

description: Objective: To determine the hounsfield unit (HU) range of normal lung tissue and tubercular diseased lung tissue of the same rhesus macaque on repeat scans using two different manufacturers’ scanners, a non-clinical cone beam computerized tomography scanner (CBCT) versus a clinical fan beam computerized tomography scanner (FBCT). Methods: Serial CT scans on two different CT imaging systems was performed on three rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) prior to and after infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). A low-tube-voltage protocol of 80kV, 820uA at 90ms exposure time/projection (Mediso) and a previously optimized high-tube-voltage protocol consisting of 120kV, 5mA (CereTom) were compared. Tissue composition parameters were analyzed in hounsfield units (HU). Differences between protocols on the cone beam CT and the fan beam CT series were documented. Results: Thoracic CT’s of the same three macaques were scanned serially on both machines every two weeks starting 4 weeks post bronchial installation of Mtb. Including a breath hold in the scanning methodology is necessary to prevent liver artifacts and motion which can obscure TB granulomas, as well as, decrease the total lung volume. These artifacts interfere with the assessment of the HU values of the overall lung. The geometry by which each scanner works is disparate, and the HU range obtained on the FBCT appears to show tubercular lesions as denser than the CBCT. The non-clinical CBCT generated smaller voxels which significantly improved spatial resolution as compared to the FBCT. However, the FBCT generated smaller voxels over a wider slice thickness which increased the voxel size to capture more photons which in turn generated images with less noise and more sensitive to HU density changes. Conclusion: FBCT and CBCT scanner identified diseased lung at approximately the same HU density range, starting around -500 HU and decreasing to a negligible value around +200 HU in monitoring the disease of a M. tuberculosis infected rhesus macaque. Keywords: Fan beam CT, cone beam CT, Hounsfield unit, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, rhesus macaque, computed tomography
Social network of sustainable forest use for the production of biomass for thermal purposes
Creators: name: Colell, Aitor
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Forest biomass
Rural economy
Sustainable management
Renewable energy

description: A collective forest biomass management model in rural areas could enhance the circular economy by reducing fire risks, lowering greenhouse gas emissions, and creating jobs. This approach optimizes forest biomass use for thermal energy, bolstering local economies, promoting renewable energy, and offering job opportunities, especially for youth and women, to counteract rural depopulation.
title: Spatial memory deficits in a mouse model of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease are caused by zinc supplementation and correlate with amyloid-beta levels
Creators: name: Flinn, Jane M.
name: Bozzelli, P. Lorenzo
name: Adlard, Paul A.
name: Railey, Angela M.
Publisher: name: Frontiers Media
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Apolipoprotein E,
subject: HAPP
subject: CRND8
subject: Transgenic mice
subject: Barnes maze
subject: Metals
subject: ZnT3
subject: Copper

description: Much of the research in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) that uses mouse models focuses on the early-onset form of the disease, which accounts for less than 5% of cases. In contrast, this study used a late-onset AD model to examine the interaction between increased dietary zinc (Zn) and the apolipoprotein E (ApoE) gene. ApoE ε4 is overrepresented in late-onset AD and enhances Zn binding to amyloid-β (Aβ). This study sought to determine if elevated dietary Zn would impair spatial memory in CRND8 mice (CRND8), as well as mice who carry both the mutated human amyloid precursor protein (APP) and ApoE ε4 genes (CRND8/E4). Mice were provided with either lab tap water or water enhanced with 10 ppm Zn (ZnCO3) for 4 months. At 6 months of age, spatial memory was measured by the Barnes maze. CRND8 mice exhibited significant memory deficits compared to WT mice, as shown by an increased latency to reach the escape box. For the CRND8/E4, but not the CRND8 mice, those given Zn water made significantly more errors than those on lab water. During the probe trial for the WT group, those on Zn water spent significantly less time in the target quadrant than those on lab water. These data suggest that increased dietary Zn can significantly impair spatial memory in CRND8/E4. WT mice given Zn water were also impaired on the 24-h probe trial when compared to lab water WTs. Within the CRND8/E4 group only, levels of soluble Aβ were significantly correlated with average primary latencies. Within the Zn-treated CRND8/E4 group, there was a significant correlation between insoluble Aβ and average primary errors. Levels of the zinc transporter 3, ZnT3, were negatively correlated with soluble Aβ (p < 0.01). These findings are particularly relevant because increased intake of dietary supplements, such as Zn, are common in the elderly—a population already at risk for AD. Given the effects observed in the CRND8/E4 mice, ApoE status should be taken into consideration when evaluating the efficacy of therapies targeting metals.
Die Testung von Äpfeln auf ihre Allergenität
Creators: name: Becker, Soraya
name: Becker, Sylvia
name: Chebib, Soraya
name: Schwab, Wilfried
name: Dierend, Werner
name: Zuberbier, Torsten
name: Bergmann, Karl-Christian
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Appels
subject: Allergenicity
subject: Mal d 1
subject: Oral Allergy Syndrome
subject: Oral provocation
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Apples have several allergens which, when eaten, lead to symptoms in the mouth within 5-10 min-and therefore cannot be eaten by those suffering from apple allergies. In Germany around 7.5 million people have developed specific antibodies against the main allergen (Mal d 1) in apples and are thus sensitized. At least 3.5 million of them develop the sometimes-considerable allergic symptoms as an expression of an Oral Allergy Syndrome. So far there is no drug therapy for this allergy. Apple allergy sufferers can therefore only do without apples entirely, or eat apples that have been heated beforehand or look for varieties that contain few allergens and can therefore be described as "allergy-friendly" apple varieties. Solely determinations of allergens in the laboratory cannot predict whether an apple can be eaten by apple allergy sufferers without allergic symptoms; clinical trials are required for this. We describe a standardized clinical, oral provocation test that can be used to characterize a low-allergen, allergy-friendly apple or apple variety. The results of such at least three-year tests can be used to award the ECARF seal for allergy-friendly products.
Families in the COVID-19 pandemic: parental stress, parent mental health and the occurrence of adverse childhood experiences—results of a representative survey in Germany
Creators: name: Calvano, Claudia
name: Engelke, Lara
name: Di Bella, Jessica
name: Kindermann, Jana
name: Renneberg, Babette
name: Winter, Sibylle M.
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: COVID-19
subject: Parental stress
subject: Mental health
subject: Adverse childhood experiences
subject: Child maltreatment
subject: Child abuse
subject: Child neglect
subject: Domestic violence
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Parenting during the COVID-19 pandemic is highly challenging, with parents having to meet various demands simultaneously. An increase in adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) has been widely predicted, but empirical evidence is still scarce. This study aimed to (1) generate representative data on pandemic-related stress, parental stress, general stress, parental subjective and mental health, and the occurrence of ACEs; (2) identify risk factors for an increase in ACEs, and (3) provide qualitative data on parents' experiences. A representative survey was conducted in Germany in August 2020 with 1024 parents of underage children (M-age = 41.70, 50.9% female). More than 50% of parents reported being stressed by social distancing and the closure of schools and childcare facilities. Parental stress increased significantly during the pandemic (d = 0.21). Subgroups of parents also reported very high levels of depressive symptoms (12.3%) and anxiety (9.7%). Up to one-third of the sample reported ACEs in the child's lifetime. In this group, 29.1% reported an increase in children witnessing domestic violence during the pandemic, and 42.2% an increase verbal emotional abuse. These families were characterized by higher parental stress, job losses, and younger parent and child age. Positive aspects of the pandemic related primarily to personal or family life (e.g. slower pace of life, increase in family time). While some parents coped well, a particularly negative pattern was observed in a subgroup of families that experienced an increase in ACEs. Parental stress emerged as important target point for interventions addressing the negative sequelae of the pandemic.
Supplementary document for Measurement of Articular Cartilage Optical Properties in the Visible and Short Near Infrared Spectral Bands: Part I – Impact of Experimental Setup Parameters - 6318417.pdf
Creators: name: Kafian-Attari, Iman
name: Nippolainen, Ervin
name: Bergmann, Florian
name: Mirhashemi, Arash
name: Pakkari, Petri
name: Foschum, Florian
name: Kienle, Alwin
name: Töyräs, Juha
name: Afara, Isaac
Publisher: name: Optica Publishing Group
Year: 2025
Subjects: Uncategorized

description: Supplementary document to the results of the main manuscript
Incidence and survival of HNSCC patients living with HIV compared with HIV-negative HNSCC patients
Creators: name: Haase, Katharina
name: Piwonski, Iris
name: Stromberger, Carmen
name: Thieme, Nadine
name: Heiland, Max
name: Beck-Broichsitter, Benedicta
name: Hofmann, Veit M.
name: Kofla, Grzegorz
name: Sander, Steffen
name: Keilholz, Ullrich
name: Neumann, Konrad
name: Stölzel, Katharina
name: Olze, Heidi
name: Arens, Philipp
name: Dommerich, Steffen
name: Coordes, Annekatrin
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: HNSCC
subject: HIV
subject: Survival
subject: Smoking
subject: p16
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Purpose: The aim was to analyze the incidence and survival of patients living with HIV (PLWH) with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and to compare with a control group of HIV-negative HNSCC patients. Methods: Clinicopathological data and predictors for overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were investigated (2009-2019). Results: 50 of 5151 HNSCC patients (0.97%) were PLWH, and 76% were smokers. Age <= 60 years, HIV-PCR <= 50 copies, CD4 cells <= 200/mm(3), cART treatment, T and UICC classification, oral cavity and nasal/paranasal sinuses, and therapy were significantly associated with OS in univariate analysis. In the multivariate analysis, only age and HIV-PCR independently predicted OS. The OS of the 50 PLWH was not significantly altered compared with the 5101 HIV-negative controls. However, OS and DFS were significantly inferior in advanced tumor stages of PLWH compared with an age-matched control group of 150 HIV-negative patients. Conclusions: PLWH were diagnosed with HNSCC at a significantly younger age compared to HIV-negative patients. Taking into account patient age at initial diagnosis, both OS and DFS rates in PLWH are significantly worse compared with a matched control group of HIV-negative patients in advanced tumor stages UICC III/IV. The prognosis (OS) is improved when taking cART treatment, the HIV viral load is undetectable and CD4 count is high.
title: Optimizing Intel Optane DC Persistent Memory Performance for Serverless Storage
Creators: name: Rivera, Rafael Alejandro Madrid
Publisher: name: George Mason University
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Intel Optane Persistent Memory
subject: Serverless computing
subject: Reinforcement learning
subject: serverless storage
subject: q-learning

description: Intel Optane DC Persistent Memory (Optane PMem) presents a promising solution for developing a serverless storage service. Leveraging its unique attributes of persistence, substantial capacity, and memory-like speeds, this innovative technology holds potential to serve as efficient storage media, offering low latency and high throughput for a variety of applications running on serverless platforms. However, the dynamic and unpredictable characteristics inherent in serverless computing workloads pose challenges to the effective utilization of Optane PMem. This thesis delves into the utilization of Optane PMem as storage media for serverless computing workloads. Through simulations of real-world serverless applications with diverse workload characteristics and performance requirements, we analyze the limitations of Optane PMem and their impact on latency and throughput service-level agreement (SLA) metrics. Our findings reveal that concurrent execution of applications sharing persistent memory leads to performance degradation and unpredictable behavior from Optane PMem. Moreover, these limitations pose contractual challenges for cloud providers, affecting their ability to meet SLAs.
Prevalence of human papillomavirus detection in ovarian cancer: a meta-analysis
Creators: name: Cherif, Soumia
name: Amine, Abdessamad
name: Thies, Sarah
name: Taube, Eliane T.
name: Braicu, Elena Ioana
name: Sehouli, Jalid
name: Kaufmann, Andreas M.
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: HPV prevalence
subject: Ovarian malignancy
subject: Worldwide
subject: Subgroup analysis
subject: Etiologic agent
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: We conducted a meta-analysis of published data to update and estimate the prevalence of HPV in ovarian cancer. A comprehensive literature search was performed according to the PRISMA guidelines. Eligible articles published from 1989 until 2020 by searching Web of Sciences, Pubmed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library Central databases were gathered. A pooled estimation of HPV prevalence with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated based on a random effect model. Quantitative assessment of heterogeneity was explored using Cochrane test and I-2. Additionally, publication bias, sensitivity, meta-regression, and subgroup analyses were also performed. Twenty-nine studies involving 2280 patients with ovarian cancer were included. The statistical heterogeneity was high (I-2 = 88%, P<0.0001). The pooled prevalence of HPV in ovarian cancer cases was 15.9% (95% CI, 11-22). In subgroup analyses, the highest prevalence of HPV was reported by studies from Asia (30.9%; 95% CI, 20-44) and Eastern Europe (29.3%; 95% CI, 4.4-78). Furthermore, the most frequently detected HPV genotype was HPV16 (54%; 95% CI, 27.9-55), followed by HPV18 (23.2%; 95% CI, 18.8-28.2). Our meta-analysis suggests a great difference in the prevalence of HPV detected in ovarian cancer by different studies, which is not seen in strongly HPV-associated cancers such as cervical cancer. However, the prevalence varied markedly by geographic region. Considering the substantial heterogeneity found, more studies with control groups and precise assays measuring HPV mRNA expression are needed to further evaluate the link and causative aetiology between HPV and ovarian cancer.
Man vs. machine: comparison of pharmacogenetic expert counselling with a clinical medication support system in a study with 200 genotyped patients
Creators: name: Preissner, Sally H.
name: Marchetti, Paolo
name: Simmaco, Maurizio
name: Gohlke, Björn O.
name: Eckert, Andreas
name: Preissner, Saskia
name: Preissner, Robert
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Precision medicine
subject: Drug-drug interactions
subject: Polymorphisms
subject: Medication score
subject: Polypharmacy
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Background: Medication problems such as strong side effects or inefficacy occur frequently. At our university hospital, a consultation group of specialists takes care of patients suffering from medication problems. Nevertheless, the counselling of poly-treated patients is complex, as it requires the consideration of a large network of interactions between drugs and their targets, their metabolizing enzymes, and their transporters, etc. Purpose This study aims to check whether a score-based decision-support system (1) reduces the time and effort and (2) suggests solutions at the same quality level. Patients and methods: A total of 200 multimorbid, poly-treated patients with medication problems were included. All patients were considered twice: manually, as clinically established, and using the Drug-PIN decision-support system. Besides diagnoses, lab data (kidney, liver), phenotype (age, gender, BMI, habits), and genotype (genetic variants with actionable clinical evidence I or IIa) were considered, to eliminate potentially inappropriate medications and to select individually favourable drugs from existing medication classes. The algorithm is connected to automatically updated knowledge resources to provide reproducible up-to-date decision support. Results: The average turnaround time for manual poly-therapy counselling per patient ranges from 3 to 6 working hours, while it can be reduced to ten minutes using Drug-PIN. At the same time, the results of the novel computerized approach coincide with the manual approach at a level of > 90%. The holistic medication score can be used to find favourable drugs within a class of drugs and also to judge the severity of medication problems, to identify critical cases early and automatically. Conclusion: With the computerized version of this approach, it became possible to score all combinations of all alternative drugs from each class of drugs administered ("personalized medication landscape ") and to identify critical patients even before problems are reported ("medication alert"). Careful comparison of manual and score-based results shows that the incomplete manual consideration of genetic specialties and pharmacokinetic conflicts is responsible for most of the (minor) deviations between the two approaches. The meaning of the reduction of working time for experts by about 2 orders of magnitude should not be underestimated, as it enables practical application of personalized medicine in clinical routine.
Combining callers improves the detection of copy number variants from whole-genome sequencing
Creators: name: Coutelier, Marie
name: Holtgrewe, Manuel
name: Jäger, Marten
name: Flöttman, Ricarda
name: Mensah, Martin A.
name: Spielmann, Malte
name: Krawitz, Peter
name: Horn, Denise
name: Beule, Dieter
name: Mundlos, Stefan
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: whole-genome sequencing
subject: Copy Number Variants (CNVs)
subject: human pathology
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Copy Number Variants (CNVs) are deletions, duplications or insertions larger than 50 base pairs. They account for a large percentage of the normal genome variation and play major roles in human pathology. While array-based approaches have long been used to detect them in clinical practice, whole-genome sequencing (WGS) bears the promise to allow concomitant exploration of CNVs and smaller variants. However, accurately calling CNVs from WGS remains a difficult computational task, for which a consensus is still lacking. In this paper, we explore practical calling options to reach the best compromise between sensitivity and sensibility. We show that callers based on different signal (paired-end reads, split reads, coverage depth) yield complementary results. We suggest approaches combining four selected callers (Manta, Delly, ERDS, CNVnator) and a regenotyping tool (SV2), and show that this is applicable in everyday practice in terms of computation time and further interpretation. We demonstrate the superiority of these approaches over array-based Comparative Genomic Hybridization (aCGH), specifically regarding the lack of resolution in breakpoint definition and the detection of potentially relevant CNVs. Finally, we confirm our results on the NA12878 benchmark genome, as well as one clinically validated sample. In conclusion, we suggest that WGS constitutes a timely and economically valid alternative to the combination of aCGH and whole-exome sequencing.