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Knowledge about useful plants and their various applications in West Africa is scattered over many publications and often in form of grey literature difficult to access. Several online-databases compile large scale information from these sources and provide comprehensive summarized descriptions of plant usages. Our aim is to additionally build up a database (UseDa) for primary ethnobotanical interview data. Thus, quantitative data can be extracted and synthesized and data sets can be treated according to different research questions analyzing for example uses in specific areas, of different ethnic groups or user groups, which is essential for practical applications on a local level. In this article we give an overview on the technical structure and the content of the database and discuss at the end the possible output for practical application. The database was set up in the frame of the EU-funded Project UNDESERT.
Use of drug-eluting balloon coronary intervention prior to living donor kidney transplantation
(2014)
Background: Kidney transplantation is the gold standard of therapy in patients with terminal renal insufficiency. Living donor transplantation is a well-established option in this field. Enlarging the donor's pool implicates the acceptance of an increased rate of comorbidities. Among them, coronary artery disease is a growing problem. An increasing number of patients, undergoing living donation, receive antiplatelet therapies due to coronary disease.
Case presentation: Here we report about the perioperative treatment with a drug-eluting balloon in a patient with major cardiac risk factors who underwent kidney transplantation.
Conclusion: At the current time no recommendation can be given for the routine use of drug-eluting balloons.
Am Ende seiner 'Archäologie der Humanwissenschaften' hat Michel Foucault darauf gewettet, dass der Mensch - diese "junge Erfindung" - "verschwindet wie am Meeresufer ein Gesicht im Sand." Gemeint war damit nicht die Möglichkeit der physischen Auslöschung der Gattung, die zur Zeit der Erstveröffentlichung des Buches im Jahre 1966 - unter den Bedingungen des Kalten Krieges - immerhin breit diskutiert wurde. Vielmehr erwartete Foucault eine grundlegende Transformation der Episteme, in deren Gefolge 'der Mensch' seine zentrale Stellung zur Erklärung der Gesellschaft und der Geschichte wieder verlieren würde - eine Depotenzierung und Dezentrierung des Menschen, die Foucault in den Arbeiten von Marx, Nietzsche und Freud angebahnt sah. Die aktuelle Konjunktur des Begriffs 'Anthropozän' verdient vor diesem Hintergrund besondere Beachtung.
The disintegrin and metalloproteinases ADAM10 and ADAM17 are regarded as the most important α-secretases involved in the physiological processing of amyloid precursor protein (APP) in brain. Since it has been suggested that processing of APP by α-secretases could be involved in the reorganization of the brain following injury, we studied mRNA expression of the two α-secretases Adam10 and Adam17, the ß-secretase Bace1, and the App-gene family (App, Aplp1, Aplp2) in the dentate gyrus of the mouse following entorhinal denervation. Using laser microdissection, tissue was harvested from the outer molecular layer and the granule cell layer of the denervated dentate gyrus. Expression levels of candidate genes were assessed using Affymetrix GeneChip Mouse Gene 1.0 ST arrays and reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, revealing an upregulation of Adam10 mRNA and Adam17 mRNA in the denervated outer molecular layer and an upregulation of Adam10 mRNA and App mRNA in the dentate granule cell layer. Immunolabeling for ADAM10 or ADAM17 in combination with markers for astro- and microglia revealed an increased labeling of ADAM10 and ADAM17 in the denervated outer molecular layer that was associated with reactive astrocytes but not with microglia. Collectively, these data show that denervation affects the expression level of APP and its two most important α-secretases. This suggests that APP-processing could be shifted towards the non-amyloidogenic pathway in denervated areas of the brain and, thus, towards the formation of neuroprotective APP cleavage products, such as APPsα.
Franz Kafkas Äußerungen zu seiner angeblichen Unmusikalität sind in der Kafka-Forschung hinlänglich bekannt. Weniger erforscht ist, wie diese spezifische Unmusikalität mit Kafkas poetologischem Konzept zu vereinen ist. Die Auffassung von Musik in seinen Texten, wie zum Beispiel in 'Josefine, die Sängerin' oder 'Das Volk der Mäuse', im Schluss des Romanfragments 'Der Verschollene' und in seinen Briefen und Tagebucheintragungen, verdeutlicht, dass er ein ganz anderes Verständnis von Musik hatte als etwa sein musikalischer Freund Max Brod. Vor dem Hintergrund von Brods Übersetzungsarbeit am Libretto von Leoš Janáčeks 'Jenůfa (Ihre Ziehtochter)' und von der Einführung der Oper auf die internationale Szene wird ein Zusammenhang zwischen Musikalität und Kafkas Auffassung von Literatur hergestellt.
Understanding the diverging opinions of academic experts, stakeholders and the public is important for effective conservation management. This is especially so when a consensus is needed for action to minimize future risks but the knowledge upon which to base this action is uncertain or missing. How to manage non-native, invasive species (NIS) is an interesting case in point: the issue has long been controversial among stakeholders, but publicly visible, major disagreement among experts is recent. To characterize the multitude of experts’ understanding and valuation of non-native, NIS we performed structured qualitative interviews with 26 academic experts, 13 of whom were invasion biologists and 13 landscape experts. Within both groups, thinking varied widely, not only about basic concepts (e.g., non-native, invasive) but also about their valuation of effects of NIS. The divergent opinions among experts, regarding both the overall severity of the problem in Europe and its importance for ecosystem services, contrasted strongly with the apparent consensus that emerges from scientific synthesis articles and policy documents. We postulate that the observed heterogeneity of expert judgments is related to three major factors: (1) diverging conceptual understandings, (2) lack of empirical information and high scientific uncertainties due to complexities and contingencies of invasion processes, and (3) missing deliberation of values. Based on theory from science studies, we interpret the notion of an NIS as a boundary object, i.e., concepts that have a similar but not identical meaning to different groups of experts and stakeholders. This interpretative flexibility of a concept can facilitate interaction across diverse groups but bears the risk of introducing misunderstandings. An alternative to seeking consensus on exact definitions and risk assessments would be for invasive species experts to acknowledge uncertainties and engage transparently with stakeholders and the public in deliberations about conflicting opinions, taking the role of honest brokers of policy alternatives rather than of issue advocates.
August von Platen notiert 1816 nach der Lektüre von John Miltons Paradise Lost (1667) in das Memorandum meines Lebens, dass ihm Milton "[a]m glücklichsten […] in seinen eigenen Erfindungen [erscheint], […] weniger interessant ist es mir, wo er nur die Bibel nacherzählt." Die in Platens Tagebucheintrag zu lesende Kritik an Miltons Epos ist rein-ästhetischer Natur. Die Differenz zwischen 'eigenen Erfindungen' und der Nacherzählung der Bibel betrifft die Heilige Poesie selbst aber freilich tiefgreifender. Hier führt das Spannungsverhältnis zwischen Poiesis und Nacherzählung zu einem komplexen Legitimationsbedürfnis, ob und wieweit das mythische Wort Gottes, von dem die Heilige Schrift zeugt, in der Heiligen Poesie ausgeführt werden darf.
Meiner These zufolge ist das in 'Paradise Lost' zu findende Sujet des Sündenfalls für die Problemstellung der Heiligen Poesie im Allgemeinen exemplarisch. Es fällt auf, dass sich das an der Heiligen Poesie abzulesende Spannungsverhältnis zwischen dem autoritativen Wort Gottes und der poetischen Freiheit strukturanalog im Sündenfall der Genesis widerspiegelt. Denn so, wie die anthropologischen Überlegungen der Genesis und ihre im 18. Jahrhundert frequente Bearbeitung in der Aufklärungsphilosophie den Menschen zwischen Gehorsam und Freiheit situieren, so verortet sich offenbar auch die Heilige Poesie zwischen den Fronten der religiösen Heteronomie und der poetischen Autonomie.
Türkiye'de Akademik Açık Erişim Dergi Yayıncılığı ve Çeviribilim Alanındaki Açık Erişim Dergiler
(2014)
Bu çalışmada Türkiye'nin akademik açık erişim dergi yayıncılığında geldiği noktayı ortaya koymak, 70'li yıllardan itibaren dilbilim ve filolojiden ayrılarak kendi bilimsel çerçevesini çizen ve kendi bilimsel iletişim sistemini oluşturan Çeviribilim alanının, bilimsel iletişim sisteminin en önemli araçlarından biri olan akademik açık erişim dergicilik konusunda aldığı mesafeyi görmek, bu konuda mevcut eksiklikleri tespit etmek ve bunlara çözüm önerilerinde bulunmak amaçlanmaktadır. Bu amaçla ulusal ve uluslararası açık erişim veritabanları incelenerek elde edilen bilgiler değerlendirilmeye çalışıldı. Çalışmanın birinci aşamasında Türkiye'nin akademik açık erişim dergicilik konusundaki mevcut durumu değerlendirilirken ikinci aşamada Çeviribilim alanının durumu ele alındı. Son aşamada ise elde edilen verilerden anlamlı sonuçlar çıkarılarak genel bir değerlendirme yapıldı ve çeşitli öneriler sunuldu.
Wohnen im eigenen kleinen Haus gilt mit seinen Versprechen von Individualität und Privatheit als Topos der Unabhängigkeit. Dergestalt selbstbezogenes Wohnen erscheint zunächst als unvereinbar mit konnexbewusstem ökologischem Engagement. Gleichwohl sind Bewohner von besonders konzipierten Eigenheimen der Ansicht, sie könnten mit ihren Häusern zur Verbesserung der herrschenden ökologischen Verhältnisse beitragen. Diese Meinung lässt sie von 'Öko-Eigenheime' sprechen. In den letzten Jahren forcierte die Politik deren Errichtung durch finanzielle Anreize. Gleichzeitig polarisieren Öko-Eigenheime durch unterschiedliche funktionale und formale Entwürfe. Zu Beginn meiner Untersuchungen, 2006, war das Feld um Öko-Eigenheime noch besonders 'warm'. Dies zeigte sich unter anderem in der Offenheit gegenüber 'Pionieren', sowohl im 'harten' Segment des stofflichen Gehäuses als auch im 'weichen' Segment der Wohnpraxis. Um den innovativen Gehalt des Umgangs mit diesen spezifischen Eigenheimen auszuloten, fragt die hier vorgestellte Studie im Kern nach den Lebensstilen ihrer Bewohner und ferner nach wesentlichen Feldbedingungen.
This paper analyzes two contemporary, „third-generation“ perspectives within critical theory - Nancy Fraser’s and Axel Honneth’s - with the aim of examining the degree to which the two authors succeed in grounding the normative criteria of social critique in the perspectives of ’ordinary’ social actors, as opposed to speculative social theory. To that end, the author focuses on the influential debate between Fraser and Honneth Redistribution or Recognition? which concerns the appropriate normative foundations of a „post-metaphysical“ critical theory, and attempts to reconstruct the fundamental 29 disagreements between Fraser and Honneth over the meaning and tasks of critical theory. The author concludes that both critical theorists ultimately secure the normative foundations of critique through substantive theorizations of the social, which frame the two authors’ „reconstructions“ of the normativity of everyday social action, but argues that post-metaphysical critical theory does not have to abandon comprehensive social theory in order to be epistmologically „non-authoritarian“.
U radu se donose rezultati istraživanja provedenoga na korpusu reklamnih tekstova te radijskih i televizijskih spotova prikupljenom od 2009. do 2013. godine. U središtu zanimanja su rječotvorbeni postupci kojima se reklamne poruke oblikuju. Analizom je utvrđeno da se radi stvaranja efekta začudnosti u primatelja poruke primjenjuju netipični tvorbeni postupci kao što su grafoderivacija i stapanje. S obzirom na njihovo mjesto u leksičkome sustavu, takve su tvorenice poseban tip prigodnica, tzv. reklamni okazionalizmi.
Aim: The cytokine receptor tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 9 (TNFRSF9) is mainly considered to be a co-stimulatory activation marker in hematopoietic cells. Several preclinical models have shown a dramatic beneficial effect of treatment approaches targeting TNFRSF9 with agonistic antibodies. However, preliminary clinical phase I/II studies were stopped after the occurrence of several severe deleterious side effects. In a previous study, it was demonstrated that TNFRSF9 was strongly expressed by reactive astrocytes in primary central nervous system (CNS) tumors, but was largely absent from tumor or inflammatory cells. The aim of the present study was to address the cellular source of TNFRSF9 expression in the setting of human melanoma brain metastasis, a highly immunogenic tumor with a prominent tropism to the CNS.
Methods: Melanoma brain metastasis was analyzed in a cohort of 78 patients by immunohistochemistry for TNFRSF9 and its expression was correlated with clinicopathological parameters including sex, age, survival, tumor size, number of tumor spots, and BRAF V600E expression status.
Results: Tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 9 was frequently expressed independently on both melanoma and endothelial cells. In addition, TNFRSF9 was also present on smooth muscle cells of larger vessels and on a subset of lymphomonocytic tumor infiltrates. No association between TNFRSF9 expression and patient survival or other clinicopathological parameters was seen. Of note, several cases showed a gradual increase in TNFRSF9 expression on tumor cells with increasing distance from blood vessels, an observation that might be linked to hypoxia-driven TNFRSF9 expression in tumor cells.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that the cellular source of TNFRSF9 in melanoma brain metastasis largely exceeds the lymphomonocytic pool, and therefore further careful (re-) assessment of potential TNFRSF9 functions in cell types other than hematopoietic cells is needed. Furthermore, the hypothesis of hypoxia-driven TNFRSF9 expression in brain metastasis melanoma cells requires further functional testing.
Die Große Kapuzinerkresse (Tropaeolum majus), meist kurz Kapuzinerkresse genannt, wurde zur Arzneipflanze des Jahres 2013 gewählt, die Kategorie der "Natur des Jahres", die insbesondere den pharmazeutischen Nutzen einer Art herausstellen will. Laut dem Studienkreis Entwicklungsgeschichte der Arzneipflanzen der Universität Würzburg, welcher die Arzneipflanze des Jahres kürt, können die in der Kapuzinerkresse enthaltenen Senföle die Vermehrung von Bakterien, Viren und Pilzen hemmen und dadurch Medikamente wie Antibiotika zum Teil ersetzen. Zusätzlich enthält die Pflanze viel Vitamin C, wodurch die Abwehrkräfte gestärkt werden.
Besser bekannt ist die Kapuzinerkresse als attraktive bodendeckende oder rankende Zierpflanze in Gärten oder Balkonkästen. Seltener findet man ihre Blüten, Blätter oder Früchte als Dekoration von Speisen. Studierende der Botanik kennen die Kapuzinerkresse außerdem aufgrund einer Reihe von Eigenschaften als Anschauungsobjekt aus Morphologiekursen.
A cell-based high-throughput screen that assessed the cellular stability of a tumor suppressor protein PDCD4 (Programmed cell death 4) was used to identify a new guanidine-containing marine alkaloid mirabilin K (3), as well as the known compounds mirabilin G (1) and netamine M (2). The structures of these tricyclic guanidine alkaloids were established from extensive spectroscopic analyses. Compounds 1 and 2 inhibited cellular degradation of PDCD4 with EC50 values of 1.8 μg/mL and 2.8 μg/mL, respectively. Mirabilin G (1) and netamine M (2) are the first marine natural products reported to stabilize PDCD4 under tumor promoting conditions.
Background: Aviscumine, a recombinant plant protein, is an immune modulator that induces ribotoxic stress at the 28S ribosomal RNA subunit. In this way cytokine release and T-cell responses are enhanced. This phase II trial was conducted to test the efficacy and safety of aviscumine in patients with systemically pre-treated metastatic melanoma stage IV.
Methods: A total of 32 patients with progressive stage IV melanoma after failure of standard therapy were enrolled onto a single-arm, multi-centre, open-label, phase II trial. All patients had an ECOG performance status of 0 or 1. Patients received 350 ng aviscumine twice weekly by subcutaneous injection until progression. The primary end points were progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Safety was assessed as adverse events (AEs). Tumor response was assessed every eight weeks and survival of patients was followed up to one year after the end of therapy. Thirty one patients (intent-to-treat population (ITT)) were assessed for efficacy; safety was assessed in the whole population.
Results: One patient achieved a partial response (PR) and 10 patients showed stable disease/no change (SD). The median progression-free survival (mPFS) was 63 days (95% CI 57–85) and median overall survival (mOS) was 335 days (95% CI 210–604). In total 210 treatment-emergent adverse events were recorded. Grade 1 or 2 AEs occurred in 72% of patients and were mostly application-site effects such as pruritus Grade 3–4 treatment-emergent drug-related adverse events occurred in 9% of patients.
Conclusion: These results suggest that aviscumine may have a clinical impact in patients with previously treated metastatic melanoma and provide rationale for further clinical evaluation of this agent. In the light of effective new immune checkpoint blockers it might be a candidate for combinations with these agents.
Evidence based clinical guidelines are implemented to treat patients efficiently that include efficacy, tolerability but also health economic considerations. This is of particular relevance to the new direct acting antiviral agents that have revolutionized treatment of chronic hepatitis C. For hepatitis C genotypes 2/3 interferon free treatment is already available with sofosbuvir plus ribavirin. However, treatment with sofosbuvir-based regimens is 10–20 times more expensive compared to pegylated interferon alfa and ribavirin (PegIFN/RBV). It has to be discussed if PegIFN/RBV is still an option for easy to treat patients. We assessed the treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C genotypes 2/3 with PegIFN/RBV in a real world setting according to the latest German guidelines. Overall, 1006 patients were recruited into a prospective patient registry with 959 having started treatment. The intention-to-treat analysis showed poor SVR (GT2 61%, GT3 47%) while patients with adherence had excellent SVR in the per protocol analysis (GT2 96%, GT3 90%). According to guidelines, 283 patients were candidates for shorter treatment duration, namely a treatment of 16 weeks (baseline HCV-RNA <800.000 IU/mL, no cirrhosis and RVR). However, 65% of these easy to treat patients have been treated longer than recommended that resulted in higher costs but not higher SVR rates. In conclusion, treatment with PegIFN/RBV in a real world setting can be highly effective yet similar effective than PegIFN± sofosbuvir/RBV in well-selected naïve G2/3 patients. Full adherence to guidelines could be further improved, because it would be important in the new era with DAA, especially to safe resources.
Moderate physical activity improves various cognitive functions, particularly when it is applied simultaneously to the cognitive task. In two psychoneuroendocrinological within-subject experiments, we investigated whether very low-intensity motor activity, i.e. walking, during foreign-language vocabulary encoding improves subsequent recall compared to encoding during physical rest. Furthermore, we examined the kinetics of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in serum and salivary cortisol. Previous research has associated both substances with memory performance.In both experiments, subjects performed better when they were motorically active during encoding compared to being sedentary. BDNF in serum was unrelated to memory performance. In contrast we found a positive correlation between salivary cortisol concentration and the number of correctly recalled items. In summary, even very light physical activity during encoding is beneficial for subsequent recall.
Speolepta leptogaster (Winnertz, 1863) is frequently occurring in European subterranean environments. As for most cave animals, studies addressing non-anatomical aspects are sparse. Here we present the first molecular study on S. leptogaster. We investigated the demographic structure (i.e. COI locus) of 69 specimens from 36 underground populations in Hesse (Central German Uplands) to get first insights into the species’ dispersal ability.
In total, 14 haplotypes were revealed. Haplotype diversity was relatively high, whereas nucleotide diversity was low. Furthermore, a significant but low pattern of isolation-by-distance and (a) past population expansion event(s) were detected.
Our genetic results suggest a (good) active dispersal ability for Speolepta leptogaster. The occurrence of several surface records of adult specimens corroborates this hypothesis. We discuss the developmental stages of S. leptogaster in the context of the ecological classification system and regard the species as a eutroglophile. Evidence has been found to distinguish two larval types. A reconstructed life-cycle of the species is provided.
The taxon Syndermata comprises the biologically interesting wheel animals (“Rotifera”: Bdelloidea + Monogononta + Seisonidea) and thorny-headed worms (Acanthocephala), and is central for testing superordinate phylogenetic hypotheses (Platyzoa, Gnathifera) in the metazoan tree of life. Recent analyses of syndermatan phylogeny suggested paraphyly of Eurotatoria (free-living bdelloids and monogononts) with respect to endoparasitic acanthocephalans. Data of epizoic seisonids, however, were absent, which may have affected the branching order within the syndermatan clade. Moreover, the position of Seisonidea within Syndermata should help in understanding the evolution of acanthocephalan endoparasitism. Here, we report the first phylogenomic analysis that includes all four higher-ranked groups of Syndermata. The analyzed data sets comprise new transcriptome data for Seison spec. (Seisonidea), Brachionus manjavacas (Monogononta), Adineta vaga (Bdelloidea), and Paratenuisentis ambiguus (Acanthocephala). Maximum likelihood and Bayesian trees for a total of 19 metazoan species were reconstructed from up to 410 functionally diverse proteins. The results unanimously place Monogononta basally within Syndermata, and Bdelloidea appear as the sister group to a clade comprising epizoic Seisonidea and endoparasitic Acanthocephala. Our results support monophyly of Syndermata, Hemirotifera (Bdelloidea + Seisonidea + Acanthocephala), and Pararotatoria (Seisonidea + Acanthocephala), rejecting monophyly of traditional Rotifera and Eurotatoria. This serves as an indication that early acanthocephalans lived epizoically or as ectoparasites on arthropods, before their complex lifecycle with arthropod intermediate and vertebrate definite hosts evolved.
The question of whether most gliomas are infected with human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) has been under dispute for more than 10 years. We recently reported our failure to detect HCMV in gliomas in Neuro-Oncology.1 Our article was accompanied by 2 related editorials,2,3 one of which boldly criticized our approach.3 Instead of fighting a petty, ivory tower dispute, we would like to lobby for a serious collaborative approach to providing conclusive evidence on the presence of HCMV in glioma (and other cancers). Since we developed the concept of oncomodulation (ie, that HCMV …
Top-down influences on ambiguous perception: the role of stable and transient states of the observer
(2014)
The world as it appears to the viewer is the result of a complex process of inference performed by the brain. The validity of this apparently counter-intuitive assertion becomes evident whenever we face noisy, feeble or ambiguous visual stimulation: in these conditions, the state of the observer may play a decisive role in determining what is currently perceived. On this background, ambiguous perception and its amenability to top-down influences can be employed as an empirical paradigm to explore the principles of perception. Here we offer an overview of both classical and recent contributions on how stable and transient states of the observer can impact ambiguous perception. As to the influence of the stable states of the observer, we show that what is currently perceived can be influenced (1) by cognitive and affective aspects, such as meaning, prior knowledge, motivation, and emotional content and (2) by individual differences, such as gender, handedness, genetic inheritance, clinical conditions, and personality traits and by (3) learning and conditioning. As to the impact of transient states of the observer, we outline the effects of (4) attention and (5) voluntary control, which have attracted much empirical work along the history of ambiguous perception. In the huge literature on the topic we trace a difference between the observer's ability to control dominance (i.e., the maintenance of a specific percept in visual awareness) and reversal rate (i.e., the switching between two alternative percepts). Other transient states of the observer that have more recently drawn researchers' attention regard (6) the effects of imagery and visual working memory. (7) Furthermore, we describe the transient effects of prior history of perceptual dominance. (8) Finally, we address the currently available computational models of ambiguous perception and how they can take into account the crucial share played by the state of the observer in perceiving ambiguous displays.
This article focuses on the opportunities and challenges of implementing an extensive reading project in an English as a foreign language classroom in Germany. Studies such as PISA have shown that comparatively poor German and foreign language reading skills are still a prevalent issue in German society today. Consequently, the question of how these poor results can be improved is of utmost importance. Reading motivation is often described as the ‘driving force of reading’. Research has shown that if reading motivation and reading for pleasure are supported, interest in reading in a foreign language can be created, which may in turn have a positive impact on the other influential factors in reading and related skills. Dörnyei’s framework of L2 motivation sums up the current thinking on reading motivation. With its constituents ‘language’, ‘learner’, and ‘learning situation’, it shows the aspects to be taken into consideration when it comes to the improvement of motivation. Within this theoretical framework, an ER project was conducted at a grammar school (Gymnasium) in Frankfurt/Main, Germany. On the basis of the gathered data, gained from questionnaires, worksheets and the transcript of a focus group discussion, six main categories could be identified. They point to the development of a positive attitude towards reading among the students and the potential of graphic novels as a motivating factor. It was also confirmed that a successful application of reading strategies led to increased motivation. Generally, the project showed that reading is still an issue amongst many teenagers and that an ER project can affect learners, their motivation and related language skills in a positive way.
Background: Diabetes mellitus and thyroid diseases frequently coexist. In order to evaluate how thyroid disorders interfere with glycemic control, we analysed insulin-treated type 2 diabetes patients with thyroid disease.
Methods: Diabetes patients (n = 1.957) were retrospectively investigated. We focused on type 2 diabetes patients who had been admitted for insulin-treatment and diagnosed thyroid diseases (n = 328). Patients were divided into three groups according to thyroid disease manifestation in relation to diabetes onset: prior to (group 1), same year (group 2) and thyroid disease following diabetes (group 3).
Results: Out of all diabetes patients 27.3% had a thyroid disorder with more women (62.2%) being affected (p < 0.001). Thyroid disease was predominantly diagnosed after diabetes onset. Patients with type 2 diabetes and prior appearance of thyroid disease required insulin therapy significantly earlier (median insulin-free period: 2.5 yrs; Q1 = 0.0, Q3 = 8.25) compared to patients who had thyroid dysfunction after diabetes onset (median insulin-free period: 8.0 yrs; Q1 = 3.0, Q3 = 12.0; p < 0.001). Age at diabetes onset correlated with insulin-free period (p < 0.001).
Conclusions: Thyroid disease may be a marker of a distinct metabolic trait in type 2 diabetes potentially requiring earlier insulin treatment.
We study the phase structure of QCD at finite temperature within a Polyakov-loop extended quark–meson model. Such a model describes the chiral as well as the confinement-deconfinement dynamics. In the present investigation, based on the approach and results put forward in [1], [2], [3], [4], both matter and glue fluctuations are included. We present results for the order parameters as well as some thermodynamic observables and find very good agreement with recent results from lattice QCD.
Peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) represents a relatively rare group of heterogeneous non-Hodgkin lymphomas with a very poor prognosis. Current therapies, based on historical regimens for aggressive B-cell lymphomas, have resulted in insufficient patient outcomes. The majority of patients relapse rapidly, and current 5-year overall survival rates are only 10–30%. It is evident that new approaches to treat patients with PTCL are required. In recent years, prospective studies in PTCL have been initiated, mainly in patients with relapsed/refractory disease. In some of these, selected histologic subtypes have been evaluated in detail. As a consequence, numerous new therapies have been developed and shown activity in PTCL, including: agents targeting the immune system (e.g. brentuximab vedotin, alemtuzumab, lenalidomide); histone deacetylase inhibitors (romidepsin, belinostat); antifolates (pralatrexate); fusion proteins (denileukin diftitox); nucleoside analogs (pentostatin, gemcitabine); and other agents (e.g. alisertib, plitidepsin, bendamustine, bortezomib). A variety of interesting novel combinations is also emerging. It is hoped that these innovative approaches, coupled with a greater understanding of the clinicopathologic features, pathogenesis, molecular biology, and natural history of PTCL will advance the field and improve outcomes in this challenging group of diseases. This review summarizes the currently available clinical evidence on the various approaches to treating relapsed/refractory PTCL, including the role of stem cell transplantation, with an emphasis on potential new drug therapies.
Kakao wird in den unterschiedlichsten Verarbeitungsformen bereits für kleinstes Geld angeboten, insbesondere als Schokolade. Das war allerdings nicht immer so. Die Samen des Kakaobaums (Theobroma cacao) waren in seiner südamerikanischen Heimat zu Zeiten der präkolumbianischen Hochkulturen hochgeschätzt und dienten nicht nur zur Herstellung von aromatischen Getränken, sondern waren auch ein wichtiges Zahlungsmittel, teilweise noch bis ins 16. Jh. hinein. Der vorliegende Beitrag stellt biologische Aspekte sowie Verarbeitung und Verwendung des Kakaos dar.
The paper aims at the discussion of some major aspects of postmodern theatre from the vantage point of actual staging and performing. Theatre should be regarded as the result of varied cross-cultural, intermedial and intertextual elements merged into a hybrid art form. The paper illustrates my statements by referring to the theatrical activity of the German language players known as DUO BASTET from Braºov and some of their adaptations.
Background: HER2 status assessment is a prerequisite for the establishment of an appropriate treatment strategy in gastric cancer. Gastric cancers are very heterogeneous and separate evaluations of gene amplification and protein expression lead to uncertainties in localizing distinct clones and are time consuming. This study evaluates the equivalence of the novel method combining both gene and protein platforms on one slide.
Methods: Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and HER2 dual-colour silver in situ hybridization (SISH) as single methods (IHC/SISH) and gene-protein platform combining both methods on one slide (gene/protein) were performed in randomly collected 100 cases of gastric adenocarcinoma. Results of IHC/SISH were compared with gene/protein staining.
Results: 96 of 100 samples were assessable. In the gene/protein staining, pathologists were able to assess gene amplification and consequent protein expression at the single cell level. In comparison trials, gene amplification was observed in 14.6% by both, conventional SISH and gene/protein platform (agreement 100%; Kappa-coefficient κ = 1.0). Protein expression scores by IHC were 70.8% (0), 10.4% (1+), 9.4% (2+), and 9.4% (3+). Protein expression by gene/protein method were: 70.8% (0), 11.5% (1+), 7.3% (2+) and 10.4% (3+) of patients. There were complete concordances in IHC assessment of cases with score 0 (100.0%; κ = 1). High concordances are shown in score 1+ (98.96%; κ = 0.947) and 3+ (96.88%; κ = 0.825) cases and good concordances in 2+ cases (95.83%; κ = 0.728).
Conclusions: This novel combined platform has the advantage of being able to evaluate both gene and the protein status in the same cancer cell and may be of particular interest for research and patient's care.
A survey of spiders of the genus Scytodes Latreille, 1804 in Iran resulted in six species occurring in this country: Scytodes fusca Walckenaer, 1837, S. strandi Spassky, 1941, S. thoracica (Latreille, 1802), S. univittata Simon, 1882 and – recorded for the first time – S. arwa Rheims, Brescovit & van Harten, 2006 and S. makeda Rheims, Brescovit & van Harten, 2006. Illustrations of the newly recorded species and a key to all known Iranian species are presented.
Disruption of the renal endothelial integrity is pivotal for the development of a vascular leak, tissue edema and consequently acute kidney injury. Kidney ischemia amplifies endothelial activation and up-regulation of pro-inflammatory mechanisms. After restoring a sufficient blood flow, the kidney is damaged through complex pathomechanisms that are classically referred to as ischemia and reperfusion injury, where the disruption of the inter-endothelial connections seems to be a crucial step in this pathomechanism. Focusing on the molecular cell-cell interaction, the fibrinopeptide Bβ15–42 prevents vascular leakage by stabilizing these inter-endothelial junctions. The peptide associates with vascular endothelial-cadherin, thus preventing early kidney dysfunction by preserving blood perfusion efficacy, edema formation and thus organ dysfunction. We intended to demonstrate the early therapeutic benefit of intravenously administered Bβ15–42 in a mouse model of renal ischemia and reperfusion. After 30 minutes of ischemia, the fibrinopeptide Bβ15–42 was administered intravenously before reperfusion was commenced for 1 and 3 hours. We show that Bβ15–42 alleviates early functional and morphological kidney damage as soon as 1 h and 3 h after ischemia and reperfusion. Mice treated with Bβ15–42 displayed a significantly reduced loss of VE-cadherin, indicating a conserved endothelial barrier leading to less neutrophil infiltration which in turn resulted in significantly reduced structural renal damage. The significant reduction in tissue and serum neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin levels reinforced our findings. Moreover, renal perfusion analysis by color duplex sonography revealed that Bβ15–42 treatment preserved resistive indices and even improved blood velocity. Our data demonstrate the efficacy of early therapeutic intervention using the fibrinopeptide Bβ15–42 in the treatment of acute kidney injury resulting from ischemia and reperfusion. In this context Bβ15–42 may act as a potent renoprotective agent by preserving the endothelial and vascular integrity.
The quark gluon plasma produced in heavy ion collisions behaves like an almost ideal fluid described by viscous hydrodynamics with a number of transport coefficients. The second order coefficient κ is related to a Euclidean correlator of the energy-momentum tensor at vanishing frequency and low momentum. This allows for a lattice determination without maximum entropy methods or modelling, but the required lattice sizes represent a formidable challenge. We calculate κ in leading order lattice perturbation theory and simulations on 1203 × 6, 8 lattices with a < 0.1 fm. In the temperature range 2Tc − 10Tc we find κ = 0.36(15)T2. The error covers both a suitably rescaled AdS/CFT prediction as well as, remarkably, the result of leading order perturbation theory. This suggests that appropriate noise reduction methods on the lattice and NLO perturbative calculations could provide an accurate QCD prediction in the near future.
Biodiversity is unevenly distributed on Earth and hotspots of biodiversity are often associated with areas that have undergone orogenic activity during recent geological history (i.e. tens of millions of years). Understanding the underlying processes that have driven the accumulation of species in some areas and not in others may help guide prioritization in conservation and may facilitate forecasts on ecosystem services under future climate conditions. Consequently, the study of the origin and evolution of biodiversity in mountain systems has motivated growing scientific interest. Despite an increasing number of studies, the origin and evolution of diversity hotspots associated with the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) remains poorly understood. We review literature related to the diversification of organisms linked to the uplift of the QTP. To promote hypothesis-based research, we provide a geological and palaeoclimatic scenario for the region of the QTP and argue that further studies would benefit from providing a complete set of complementary analyses (molecular dating, biogeographic, and diversification rates analyses) to test for a link between organismic diversification and past geological and climatic changes in this region. In general, we found that the contribution of biological interchange between the QTP and other hotspots of biodiversity has not been sufficiently studied to date. Finally, we suggest that the biological consequences of the uplift of the QTP would be best understood using a meta-analysis approach, encompassing studies on a variety of organisms (plants and animals) from diverse habitats (forests, meadows, rivers), and thermal belts (montane, subalpine, alpine, nival). Since the species diversity in the QTP region is better documented for some organismic groups than for others, we suggest that baseline taxonomic work should be promoted.
The role of RNA interference in the developmental separation of blood and lymphatic vasculature
(2014)
Background: Dicer is an RNase III enzyme that cleaves double stranded RNA and generates functional interfering RNAs that act as important regulators of gene and protein expression. Dicer plays an essential role during mouse development because the deletion of the dicer gene leads to embryonic death. In addition, dicer-dependent interfering RNAs regulate postnatal angiogenesis. However, the role of dicer is not yet fully elucidated during vascular development.
Methods: In order to explore the functional roles of the RNA interference in vascular biology, we developed a new constitutive Cre/loxP-mediated inactivation of dicer in tie2 expressing cells.
Results: We show that cell-specific inactivation of dicer in Tie2 expressing cells does not perturb early blood vessel development and patterning. Tie2-Cre; dicerfl/fl mutant embryos do not show any blood vascular defects until embryonic day (E)12.5, a time at which hemorrhages and edema appear. Then, midgestational lethality occurs at E14.5 in mutant embryos. The developing lymphatic vessels of dicer-mutant embryos are filled with circulating red blood cells, revealing an impaired separation of blood and lymphatic vasculature.
Conclusion: Thus, these results show that RNA interference perturbs neither vasculogenesis and developmental angiogenesis, nor lymphatic specification from venous endothelial cells but actually provides evidence for an epigenetic control of separation of blood and lymphatic vasculature.
Saccharum spontaneum L. is an invasive grass that has spread extensively in disturbed areas throughout the Panama Canal watershed (PCW), where it has created a fire hazard and inhibited reforestation efforts. Currently physical removal of aboveground biomass is the primary means of controlling this weed, which is largely ineffective and does little to inhibit spread of the species. Little is known about reproduction of this species, although it is both rhizomatous and produces abundant seed. Here we report a series of studies looking at some of the basic reproductive mechanisms and strategies utilised by S. spontaneum to provide information to support development of better targeted management strategies. We found that seed produced between September and November was germinable both in the lab and in situ. Genetic diversity of mature stands was assessed using microsatellite markers and found to be high, even at small scales. Studies of vegetative reproduction showed that buds on stems that had been dried for up to six weeks were still capable of sprouting. Separate experiments showed that stem fragments could sprout when left on the surface or buried shallowly and that larger pieces sprouted more readily than smaller pieces. Collectively these results demonstrate that S. spontaneum in the PCW has the capability to produce many propagules that can successfully recruit and it is likely that seed dispersal drives the spread of the species. Timing of management actions to reduce flowering would significantly reduce the seed load into the environment and help to prevent spread to new sites. Similarly, where biomass is cut, cutting stems into smaller pieces will allow the stems to dry out and reduce the ability of buds to sprout. Additionally, attention should be paid to prevent accidental transport to new sites on machinery.
In order to achieve climate change mitigation, long-term decisions are required that must be reconciled with other societal goals that draw on the same resources. For example, ensuring food security for a growing population may require an expansion of crop land, thereby reducing natural carbon sinks or the area available for bio-energy production. Here, we show that current impact-model uncertainties pose an important challenge to long-term mitigation planning and propose a new risk-assessment and decision framework that accounts for competing interests.
Based on cross-sectorally consistent simulations generated within the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project (ISI-MIP) we discuss potential gains and limitations of additional irrigation and trade-offs of the expansion of agricultural land as two possible response measures to climate change and growing food demand. We describe an illustrative example in which the combination of both measures may close the supply demand gap while leading to a loss of approximately half of all natural carbon sinks.
We highlight current limitations of available simulations and additional steps required for a comprehensive risk assessment.
The prediction of climate on time scales of years to decades is attracting the interest of both climate researchers and stakeholders. The German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) has launched a major research programme on decadal climate prediction called MiKlip (Mittelfristige Klimaprognosen, Decadal Climate Prediction) in order to investigate the prediction potential of global and regional climate models (RCMs). In this paper we describe a regional predictive hindcast ensemble, its validation, and the added value of regional downscaling. Global predictions are obtained from an ensemble of simulations by the MPI-ESM-LR model (baseline 0 runs), which were downscaled for Europe using the COSMO-CLM regional model. Decadal hindcasts were produced for the 5 decades starting in 1961 until 2001. Observations were taken from the E-OBS data set. To identify decadal variability and predictability, we removed the long-term mean, as well as the long-term linear trend from the data. We split the resulting anomaly time series into two parts, the first including lead times of 1–5 years, reflecting the skill which originates mainly from the initialisation, and the second including lead times from 6–10 years, which are more related to the representation of low frequency climate variability and the effects of external forcing. We investigated temperature averages and precipitation sums for the summer and winter half-year. Skill assessment was based on correlation coefficient and reliability. We found that regional downscaling preserves, but mostly does not improve the skill and the reliability of the global predictions for summer half-year temperature anomalies. In contrast, regionalisation improves global decadal predictions of half-year precipitation sums in most parts of Europe. The added value results from an increased predictive skill on grid-point basis together with an improvement of the ensemble spread, i.e. the reliability.
The Sahel has been the focus of scientific interest in environmental-human dynamics and interactions. The objective of the present study is to contribute to the recent debate on the re-greening of Sahel. The paper examines the dynamics of barren land in the Sahel of Burkina Faso through analysis of remotely-sensed and rainfall data from 1975–2011. Discussions with farmers and land management staff have helped to understand the anthropogenic efforts toward soil restoration to enable the subsistence farming agriculture. Results showed that area of barren land has been fluctuating during the study period with approximately 10-year cyclicity. Similarly, rainfall, both at national and local levels has followed the same trends. The trends of the area of barren land and rainfall variability suggest that when rainfall increases, the area of barren land decreases and barren land increases when rainfall decreases. This implies that rainfall is one of the main factors driving the change in area of barren land. In addition, humans have contributed positively and negatively to the change by restoring barren lands for agriculture using locally known techniques and by accelerating land degradation through intensive and inappropriate land use practices.
Biodiversity continues to decline in the face of increasing anthropogenic pressures such as habitat destruction, exploitation, pollution and introduction of alien species. Existing global databases of species’ threat status or population time series are dominated by charismatic species. The collation of datasets with broad taxonomic and biogeographic extents, and that support computation of a range of biodiversity indicators, is necessary to enable better understanding of historical declines and to project – and avert – future declines. We describe and assess a new database of more than 1.6 million samples from 78 countries representing over 28,000 species, collated from existing spatial comparisons of local-scale biodiversity exposed to different intensities and types of anthropogenic pressures, from terrestrial sites around the world. The database contains measurements taken in 208 (of 814) ecoregions, 13 (of 14) biomes, 25 (of 35) biodiversity hotspots and 16 (of 17) megadiverse countries. The database contains more than 1% of the total number of all species described, and more than 1% of the described species within many taxonomic groups – including flowering plants, gymnosperms, birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, beetles, lepidopterans and hymenopterans. The dataset, which is still being added to, is therefore already considerably larger and more representative than those used by previous quantitative models of biodiversity trends and responses. The database is being assembled as part of the PREDICTS project (Projecting Responses of Ecological Diversity In Changing Terrestrial Systems – www.predicts.org.uk). We make site-level summary data available alongside this article. The full database will be publicly available in 2015.
Croatian negative indefinite expressions, or the so-called ni-words, are complex forms made by adding the prefix ni- to simple forms of indefinite pronouns. The Croatian standard norm prescribes that in prepositional phrases involving negative idefinite pronouns (the so-called ni-pronouns), the negative element ni should be separated from the pronoun and put in front of the preposition. However, in everyday communication one may often notice the use of the word order P + negative indefinite pronoun, and this word order has also made its way into newspapers and other media. This paper attempts to determine whether there is a significant difference in meaning between the order ni + P + indefinite pronoun and the order P + negative indefinite pronoun to account for such a change in language. We also analyze the frequency of use of these two different word orders in the Croatian National Corpus, examining eleven most frequent prepositions and six simple indefinite pronouns.
The phase diagram of the square lattice bilayer Hubbard model: a variational Monte Carlo study
(2014)
We investigate the phase diagram of the square lattice bilayer Hubbard model at half-filling with the variational Monte Carlo method for both the magnetic and the paramagnetic case as a function of the interlayer hopping and on-site Coulomb repulsion U. With this study we resolve some discrepancies in previous calculations based on the dynamical mean-field theory, and we are able to determine the nature of the phase transitions between metal, Mott insulator and band insulator. In the magnetic case we find only two phases: an antiferromagnetic Mott insulator at small for any value of U and a band insulator at large . At large U values we approach the Heisenberg limit. The paramagnetic phase diagram shows at small a metal to Mott insulator transition at moderate U values and a Mott to band insulator transition at larger U values. We also observe a re-entrant Mott insulator to metal transition and metal to band insulator transition for increasing in the range of . Finally, we discuss the phase diagrams obtained in relation to findings from previous studies based on different many-body approaches.
Walter Benjamin had a revealing fascination with the legend of a Chinese artist who entered his painting and disappeared in it. In his writings this character becomes an emblematic figure that enables the philosopher to discuss the nature of representation in its various infections (in games and in painting, in theater and in cinema); to explore the status of the image and of the threshold that simultaneously separates and connects image and reality; to analyse the different bodily (i. e. "aesthetic") attitudes of the beholder in his/her close or distant relationship to the image; to investigate the manifold implications of empathy ('Einfühlung ') toward the figurative world; and finally, to approach a peculiar kind of dialectics, namely the "Chinese". My paper aims at considering such varied aspects in Benjamin's interpretation of the Chinese painter, understanding it as a true "dialectical image" that in its 'non-coincidentia oppositorum' provokes not only significant hermeneutic oscillations, but even a radical inversion of its fundamental meaning.
Recognizing individual faces is an important human ability that highly depends on experience. This is reflected in the so called other-race effect; adults are better at recognizing faces from their own ethnic group, while very young infants do not show this specialization yet. Two experiments examined whether 3-year-old children from two different cultural backgrounds show the other-race effect. In Experiment 1, German children (N = 41) were presented with a forced choice paradigm where they were asked to recognize female Caucasian or African faces. In Experiment 2, 3-year-olds from Cameroon (N = 66) participated in a similar task using the same stimulus material. In both cultures the other-race effect was present; children were better at recognizing individual faces from their own ethnic group. In addition, German children performed at a higher overall level of accuracy than Cameroonians. The results are discussed in relation to cultural aspects in particular.
Talking about emotion and sharing emotional experiences is a key component of human interaction. Specifically, individuals often consider the reactions of other people when evaluating the meaning and impact of an emotional stimulus. It has not yet been investigated, however, how emotional arousal ratings and physiological responses elicited by affective stimuli are influenced by the rating of an interaction partner. In the present study, pairs of participants were asked to rate and communicate the degree of their emotional arousal while viewing affective pictures. Strikingly, participants adjusted their arousal ratings to match up with their interaction partner. In anticipation of the affective picture, the interaction partner’s arousal ratings correlated positively with activity in anterior insula and prefrontal cortex. During picture presentation, social influence was reflected in the ventral striatum, that is, activity in the ventral striatum correlated negatively with the interaction partner’s ratings. Results of the study show that emotional alignment through the influence of another person’s communicated experience has to be considered as a complex phenomenon integrating different components including emotion anticipation and conformity.
Silometopus ambiguus (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1905) is a species occurring in coastal habitats from northeastern to western Europe. S. curtus (Simon, 1881), occurring in southern France and north-eastern Spain, was for a long time mixed up with S. ambiguus, even though corrections have been published very early and several times. This contribution summarizes publications on this topic, discusses doubtful records of both species and proposes corrections for the World Spider Catalog; and thus tries to avoid repetitions of the mistake in the future.
The link between atmospheric radicals and newly formed particles at a spruce forest site in Germany
(2014)
It has been claimed for more than a century that atmospheric new particle formation is primarily influenced by the presence of sulfuric acid. However, the activation process of sulfuric acid related clusters into detectable particles is still an unresolved topic. In this study we focus on the PARADE campaign measurements conducted during August/September 2011 at Mt Kleiner Feldberg in central Germany. During this campaign a set of radicals, organic and inorganic compounds and oxidants and aerosol properties were measured or calculated. We compared a range of organic and inorganic nucleation theories, evaluating their ability to simulate measured particle formation rates at 3 nm in diameter (J3) for a variety of different conditions. Nucleation mechanisms involving only sulfuric acid tentatively captured the observed noon-time daily maximum in J3, but displayed an increasing difference to J3 measurements during the rest of the diurnal cycle. Including large organic radicals, i.e. organic peroxy radicals (RO2) deriving from monoterpenes and their oxidation products, in the nucleation mechanism improved the correlation between observed and simulated J3. This supports a recently proposed empirical relationship for new particle formation that has been used in global models. However, the best match between theory and measurements for the site of interest was found for an activation process based on large organic peroxy radicals and stabilised Criegee intermediates (sCI). This novel laboratory-derived algorithm simulated the daily pattern and intensity of J3 observed in the ambient data. In this algorithm organic derived radicals are involved in activation and growth and link the formation rate of smallest aerosol particles with OH during daytime and NO3 during night-time. Because the RO2 lifetime is controlled by HO2 and NO we conclude that peroxy radicals and NO seem to play an important role for ambient radical chemistry not only with respect to oxidation capacity but also for the activation process of new particle formation. This is supposed to have significant impact of atmospheric radical species on aerosol chemistry and should be taken into account when studying the impact of new particles in climate feedback cycles.
Plexins are widely expressed transmembrane proteins that mediate the cellular effects of semaphorins. The molecular mechanisms of plexin-mediated signal transduction are still poorly understood. Here we show that signalling via B-family plexins leading to the activation of the small GTPase RhoA requires activation of the IκB kinase (IKK)-complex. In contrast, plexin-B-dependent regulation of R-Ras activity is not affected by IKK activity. This regulation of plexin signalling depends on the kinase activity of the IKK-complex, but is independent of NF-κB activation. We confirm that the IKK-complex is active in tumour cells and osteoblasts, and we demonstrate that plexin-B-dependent tumour cell invasiveness and regulation of osteoblast differentiation require an active IKK-complex. This study identifies a novel, NF-κB-independent function of the IKK-complex and shows that IKK directs plexin-B signalling to the activation of RhoA.
Ongoing and predicted global change makes understanding and predicting species’ range shifts an urgent scientific priority. Here, we provide a synthetic perspective on the so far poorly understood effects of interspecific interactions on range expansion rates. We present theoretical foundations for how interspecific interactions may modulate range expansion rates, consider examples from empirical studies of biological invasions and natural range expansions as well as process-based simulations, and discuss how interspecific interactions can be more broadly represented in process-based, spatiotemporally explicit range forecasts. Theory tells us that interspecific interactions affect expansion rates via alteration of local population growth rates and spatial displacement rates, but also via effects on other demographic parameters. The best empirical evidence for interspecific effects on expansion rates comes from studies of biological invasions. Notably, invasion studies indicate that competitive dominance and release from specialized enemies can enhance expansion rates. Studies of natural range expansions especially point to the potential for competition from resident species to reduce expansion rates. Overall, it is clear that interspecific interactions may have important consequences for range dynamics, but also that their effects have received too little attention to robustly generalize on their importance. We then discuss how interspecific interactions effects can be more widely incorporated in dynamic modeling of range expansions. Importantly, models must describe spatiotemporal variation in both local population dynamics and dispersal. Finally, we derive the following guidelines for when it is particularly important to explicitly represent interspecific interactions in dynamic range expansion forecasts: if most interacting species show correlated spatial or temporal trends in their effects on the target species, if the number of interacting species is low, and if the abundance of one or more strongly interacting species is not closely linked to the abundance of the target species.
The hydrophobic thickness of membranes, which is manly defined by fatty acids, influences the packing of transmembrane domains of proteins and thus can modulate the activity of these proteins. We analyzed the dynamics of the dimerization of Glycophorin A (GpA) by molecular dynamics simulations to describe the fatty acid dependence of the transmembrane region assembly. GpA represents a well-established model for dimerization of single transmembrane helices containing a GxxxG motif in vitro and in silico. We performed simulations of the dynamics of the NMR-derived dimer as well as self-assembly simulations of monomers in membranes composed of different fatty acid chains and monitored the formed interfaces and their transitions. The observed dimeric interfaces, which also include the one known from NMR, are highly dynamic and converted into each other. The frequency of interface formation and the preferred transitions between interfaces similar to the interface observed by NMR analysis strongly depend on the fatty acid used to build the membrane. Molecular dynamic simulations after adaptation of the helix topology parameters to better represent NMR derived structures of single transmembrane helices yielded an enhanced occurrence of the interface determined by NMR in molecular dynamics simulations. Taken together we give insights into the influence of fatty acids and helix conformation on the dynamics of the transmembrane domain of GpA.
It is commonly assumed that the colonization of restored river reaches by fish depends on the regional species pools; however, quantifications of the relationship between the composition of the regional species pool and restoration outcome are lacking. We analyzed data from 18 German river restoration projects and adjacent river reaches constituting the regional species pools of the restored reaches. We found that the ability of statistical models to describe the fish assemblages established in the restored reaches was greater when these models were based on ‘biotic’ variables relating to the regional species pool and the ecological traits of species rather than on ‘abiotic’ variables relating to the hydromorphological habitat structure of the restored habitats and descriptors of the restoration projects. For species presence in restored reaches, ‘biotic’ variables explained 34% of variability, with the occurrence rate of a species in the regional species pool being the most important variable, while ’abiotic’ variables explained only the negligible amount of 2% of variability. For fish density in restored reaches, about twice the amount of variability was explained by ‘biotic’ (38%) compared to ‘abiotic’ (21%) variables, with species density in the regional species pool being most important. These results indicate that the colonization of restored river reaches by fish is largely determined by the assemblages in the surrounding species pool. Knowledge of species presence and abundance in the regional species pool can be used to estimate the likelihood of fish species becoming established in restored reaches.
This study investigates the diabetes-associated alterations present in cardiac mesenchymal cells (CMSC) obtained from normoglycemic (ND-CMSC) and type 2 diabetic patients (D-CMSC), identifying the histone acetylase (HAT) activator pentadecylidenemalonate 1b (SPV106) as a potential pharmacological intervention to restore cellular function. D-CMSC were characterized by a reduced proliferation rate, diminished phosphorylation at histone H3 serine 10 (H3S10P), decreased differentiation potential, and premature cellular senescence. A global histone code profiling of D-CMSC revealed that acetylation on histone H3 lysine 9 (H3K9Ac) and lysine 14 (H3K14Ac) was decreased, whereas the trimethylation of H3K9Ac and lysine 27 significantly increased. These observations were paralleled by a downregulation of the GCN5-related N-acetyltransferases (GNAT) p300/CBP-associated factor and its isoform 5-α general control of amino acid synthesis (GCN5a), determining a relative decrease in total HAT activity. DNA CpG island hypermethylation was detected at promoters of genes involved in cell growth control and genomic stability. Remarkably, treatment with the GNAT proactivator SPV106 restored normal levels of H3K9Ac and H3K14Ac, reduced DNA CpG hypermethylation, and recovered D-CMSC proliferation and differentiation. These results suggest that epigenetic interventions may reverse alterations in human CMSC obtained from diabetic patients.
The growing role of IT in real estate asset management – the appraisal process as a master sample
(2014)
To understand what makes some species successful invaders, it is critical to quantify performance differences between native and introduced regions, and among populations occupying a broad range of environmental conditions within each region. However, these data are not available even for the world’s most notorious invasive species. Here we introduce the Global Garlic Mustard Field Survey, a coordinated distributed field survey to collect performance data and germplasm from a single invasive species: garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) across its entire distribution using minimal resources. We chose this species for its ecological impacts, prominence in ecological studies of invasion success, simple life history, and several genetic and life history attributes that make it amenable to experimental study. We developed a standardised field survey protocol to estimate population size (area) and density, age structure, plant size and fecundity, as well as damage by herbivores and pathogens in each population, and to collect representative seed samples. Across four years and with contributions from 164 academic and non-academic participants from 16 countries in North America and Europe thus far, we have collected 45,788 measurements and counts of 137,811 plants from 383 populations and seeds from over 5,000 plants. All field data and seed resources will be curated for release to the scientific community. Our goal is to establish A. petiolata as a model species for plant invasion biology and to encourage large collaborative studies of other invasive species.
The comeback of the Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) throughout western and central Europe is considered a major conservation success. Traditionally, several subspecies are recognised by morphology and mitochondrial haplotype, each linked to a relict population. During various reintroduction programs in the 20th century, beavers from multiple source localities were released and now form viable populations. These programs differed in their reintroduction strategies, i.e., using pure subspecies vs. mixed source populations. This inhomogeneity in management actions generated ongoing debates regarding the origin of present beaver populations and appropriate management plans for the future. By sequencing of the mitochondrial control region and microsatellite genotyping of 235 beaver individuals from five selected regions in Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Belgium we show that beavers from at least four source origins currently form admixed, genetically diverse populations that spread across the study region. While regional occurrences of invasive North American beavers (n = 20) were found, all but one C. fiber bore the mitochondrial haplotype of the autochthonous western Evolutionary Significant Unit (ESU). Considering this, as well as the viability of admixed populations and the fact that the fusion of different lineages is already progressing in all studied regions, we argue that admixture between different beaver source populations should be generally accepted.
The Future of the Noosphere
(2014)
In this article, a Koselleckian approach to the issue of time will be employed. In Koselleck's view, modernity has been characterized by a multiplicity of synchronous times, or as Helge Jordheim puts it, by "multiple temporalities". By temporality, Koselleck means something different than epochs or periodizations. More precisely, Jordheim asserts, Koselleck uses this term to reach for experiences of time, such as "progress, decadence, acceleration, or delay, the 'not yet' and the 'no longer', the 'earlier' or 'later than', the 'too early' and the 'too late', situation and the duration". Especially pertinent for this article is Koselleck's category of a horizon of expectations (Erwartungshorizont), understood as perceived prospects for the future. In both the noosphere and the Anthropocene discussion, the notion of an Age of Man seems to merge different timescales into one another, or, as stated by one of the most prominent scientists in the early debate, "The division of historical and geological time is levelled out for us". This article examines the temporality implied in the noosphere concept in order to formulate a specific question regarding the Anthropocene. The article is thus intended to contribute to the on-going examination of the Anthropocene concept by way of historicising its temporality.
Background: In an earlier study we demonstrated the feasibility to create tissue engineered venous scaffolds in vitro and in vivo. In this study we investigated the use of tissue engineered constructs for ureteral replacement in a long term orthotopic minipig model. In many different projects well functional ureretal tissue was established using tissue engineering in animals with short-time follow up (12 weeks). Therefore urothelial cells were harvested from the bladder, cultured, expanded in vitro, labelled with fluorescence and seeded onto the autologous veins, which were harvested from animals during a second surgery. Three days after cell seeding the right ureter was replaced with the cell-seeded matrices in six animals, while further 6 animals received an unseeded vein for ureteral replacement. The animals were sacrificed 12, 24, and 48 weeks after implantation. Gross examination, intravenous pyelogram (IVP), H&E staining, Trichrome Masson's Staining, and immunohistochemistry with pancytokeratin AE1/AE3, smooth muscle alpha actin, and von Willebrand factor were performed in retrieved specimens.
Results: The IVP and gross examination demonstrated that no animals with tissue engineered ureters and all animals of the control group presented with hydronephrosis after 12 weeks. In the 24-week group, one tissue engineered and one unseeded vein revealed hydronephrosis. After 48 weeks all tissue engineered animals and none of the control group showed hydronephrosis on the treated side. Histochemistry and immunohistochemistry revealed a multilayer of urothelial cells attached to the seeded venous grafts.
Comclusions: Venous grafts may be a potential source for ureteral reconstruction. The results of so far published ureteral tissue engineering projects reveal data up to 12 weeks after implantation. Even if the animal numbers of this study are small, there is an increasing rate of hydronephrosis revealing failure of ureteral tissue engineering with autologous matrices in time points longer than 3 months after implantation. Further investigations have to prove adequate clinical outcome and appropriate functional long-term results.
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is one of the most important complications in hospitalized patients and its pathomechanisms are not completely elucidated. We hypothesize that signaling via toll-like receptor (TLR)-3, a receptor that is activated upon binding of double-stranded nucleotides, might play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of AKI following ischemia and reperfusion (IR). Male adult C57Bl6 wild-type (wt) mice and TLR-3 knock-out (-/-) mice were subjected to 30 minutes bilateral selective clamping of the renal artery followed by reperfusion for 30 min 2.5h and 23.5 hours or subjected to sham procedures. TLR-3 down-stream signaling was activated already within 3 h of ischemia and reperfusion in post-ischemic kidneys of wt mice lead to impaired blood perfusion followed by a strong pro-inflammatory response with significant neutrophil invasion. In contrast, this effect was absent in TLR-3-/- mice. Moreover, the quick TLR-3 activation resulted in kidney damage that was histomorphologically associated with significantly increased apoptosis and necrosis rates in renal tubules of wt mice. This finding was confirmed by increased kidney injury marker NGAL in wt mice and a better preserved renal perfusion after IR in TLR-3-/- mice than wt mice. Overall, the absence of TLR-3 is associated with lower cumulative kidney damage and maintained renal blood perfusion within the first 24 hours of reperfusion. Thus, we conclude that TLR-3 seems to participate in the pathogenesis of early acute kidney injury.
ALMOST 20% OF THE GERMAN POPULATION CURRENTLY HOLDS A CONSUMER LOAN. DESPITE ITS OBVIOUS IMPORTANCE FOR A PRIVATE HOUSEHOLD’S BALANCE SHEET, WE KNOW SURPRISINGLY LITTLE ABOUT IT. ONE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY IS TO GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF THE GERMAN CONSUMER/INSTALLMENT LOAN MARKET. WE COMPARED FIVE WIDELY ACCEPTED DATA SOURCES AND FOUND DIFFERENCES IN THE LOAN PARTICIPATION RATE, EVEN ON AN AGGREGATED NATIONWIDE LEVEL. IN A SECOND STEP, WE TRY TO FIND REASONS FOR EXTRAORDINARY HIGH GROWTH RATES AMONG SENIORS’ DEBT PARTICIPATION RATES.
Escherichia coli α-hemolysin (HlyA) is a pore-forming protein of 110 kDa belonging to the family of RTX toxins. A hydrophobic region between the amino acid residues 238 and 410 in the N-terminal half of HlyA has previously been suggested to form hydrophobic and/or amphipathic α-helices and has been shown to be important for hemolytic activity and pore formation in biological and artificial membranes. The structure of the HlyA transmembrane channel is, however, largely unknown. For further investigation of the channel structure, we deleted in HlyA different stretches of amino acids that could form amphipathic β-strands according to secondary structure predictions (residues 71–110, 158–167, 180–203, and 264–286). These deletions resulted in HlyA mutants with strongly reduced hemolytic activity. Lipid bilayer measurements demonstrated that HlyAΔ71–110 and HlyAΔ264–286 formed channels with much smaller single-channel conductance than wildtype HlyA, whereas their channel-forming activity was virtually as high as that of the wildtype toxin. HlyAΔ158–167 and HlyAΔ180–203 were unable to form defined channels in lipid bilayers. Calculations based on the single-channel data indicated that the channels generated by HlyAΔ71–110 and HlyAΔ264–286 had a smaller size (diameter about 1.4 to 1.8 nm) than wildtype HlyA channels (diameter about 2.0 to 2.6 nm), suggesting that in these mutants part of the channel-forming domain was removed. Osmotic protection experiments with erythrocytes confirmed that HlyA, HlyAΔ71–110, and HlyAΔ264–286 form defined transmembrane pores and suggested channel diameters that largely agreed with those estimated from the single-channel data. Taken together, these results suggest that the channel-forming domain of HlyA might contain β-strands, possibly in addition to α-helical structures.
The Queensland Herbarium Regional Ecosystem Survey and Mapping (QHRESM) program has contributed almost 90000 (89389) specimens to the Queensland Herbarium in Brisbane accounting for 28% of the specimens added to the Herbarium between 1970 and 2011. These specimens have been collected across all bioregions and vegetation communities in Queensland in a systematic sampling program driven by the requirement to sample comprehensively all vegetation communities. The QHRESM’s Queensland Herbarium (BRI) specimens represent more than 79% of the native, and 73% of the naturalised vascular flora of Queensland, as well as making valuable contributions to the bryophytes, lichens and liverworts collections. The data and specimens collected enhance our ability to assess local, state and continental-scale plant diversity, and will be used by botanists, ecologists, governments, business and the public for long into the future.
The compulsive habit of cars
(2014)
The car dependence of people living in contemporary cities is a major concern for policy makers, who often find it difficult to persuade people into more sustainable transport modes. By contrast, recent insights from neuroscience have shown that a broad spectrum of behaviors can become habitual and, thus, resistant to change. Here, we outline the potential of collaboration between neuroscience and human geography aiming at a better understanding of habits that determine everyday commuting routines.
Vesicle transport is a central process to ensure protein and lipid distribution in eukaryotic cells. The current knowledge on the molecular components and mechanisms of this process is majorly based on studies in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Arabidopsis thaliana, which revealed 240 different proteinaceous factors either experimentally proven or predicted to be involved in vesicle transport. In here, we performed an orthologue search using two different algorithms to identify the components of the secretory pathway in yeast and 14 plant genomes by using the ‘core-set’ of 240 factors as bait. We identified 4021 orthologues and (co-)orthologues in the discussed plant species accounting for components of COP-II, COP-I, Clathrin Coated Vesicles, Retromers and ESCRTs, Rab GTPases, Tethering factors and SNAREs. In plants, we observed a significantly higher number of (co-)orthologues than yeast, while only 8 tethering factors from yeast seem to be absent in the analyzed plant genomes. To link the identified (co-)orthologues to vesicle transport, the domain architecture of the proteins from yeast, genetic model plant A. thaliana and agriculturally relevant crop Solanum lycopersicum has been inspected. For the orthologous groups containing (co-)orthologues from yeast, A. thaliana and S. lycopersicum, we observed the same domain architecture for 79% (416/527) of the (co-)orthologues, which documents a very high conservation of this process. Further, publically available tissue-specific expression profiles for a subset of (co-)orthologues found in A. thaliana and S. lycopersicum suggest that some (co-)orthologues are involved in tissue-specific functions. Inspection of localization of the (co-)orthologues based on available proteome data or localization predictions lead to the assignment of plastid- as well as mitochondrial localized (co-)orthologues of vesicle transport factors and the relevance of this is discussed.
The zoogeographic composition of the coastal ichthyofauna of the Cape Verde archipelago shows a predominance of Guinean species, followed by tropical-subtropical (amphi-Atlantic) fishes and several endemic species. Recent taxonomic revisions, new species descriptions, new fish records in the area and recent ecological surveys of intra-specific fish interaction as well as emergent research on seamounts in national waters warrant an up-to-date review of research on the ichthyofauna of Cape Verde. An updated percentage of endemic coastal reef fish of 10.2% attest significant speciation in Cape Verde waters. Almost half of the total cryptobenthic fish species richness in Cape Verde comprises endemic species, some of them newly discovered. Examples of endemism are discussed, notably white seabream Diplodus sargus lineatus, bulldog dentex Dentex (Virididentex) acromegalus, blackfish drummer Girella stuebeli, Lubbock's chromis Chromis lubbocki, Cape Verde damselfish Similiparma hermani and Guinean parrotfish Scarus hoefleri. Cape Verde diverges considerably from the other Macaronesian island groups in terms of its ichthyofauna and its uniqueness warrants special attention by governmental agencies and conservation organizations.
Sleep is regulated in a time-of-day dependent manner and profits working memory. However, the impact of the circadian timing system as well as contributions of specific sleep properties to this beneficial effect remains largely unexplored. Moreover, it is unclear to which extent inter-individual differences in sleep-wake regulation depend on circadian phase and modulate the association between sleep and working memory. Here, sleep electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded during a 40-h multiple nap protocol, and working memory performance was assessed by the n-back task 10 times before and after each scheduled nap sleep episode. Twenty-four participants were genotyped regarding a functional polymorphism in adenosine deaminase (rs73598374, 12 G/A-, 12 G/G-allele carriers), previously associated with differences in sleep-wake regulation. Our results indicate that genotype-driven differences in sleep depend on circadian phase: heterozygous participants were awake longer and slept less at the end of the biological day, while they exhibited longer non rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and slow wave sleep concomitant with reduced power between 8–16 Hz at the end of the biological night. Slow wave sleep and NREM sleep delta EEG activity covaried positively with overall working memory performance, independent of circadian phase and genotype. Moreover, REM sleep duration benefitted working memory particularly when occurring in the early morning hours and specifically in heterozygous individuals. Even though based on a small sample size and thus requiring replication, our results suggest genotype-dependent differences in circadian sleep regulation. They further indicate that REM sleep, being under strong circadian control, boosts working memory performance according to genotype in a time-of-day dependent manner. Finally, our data provide first evidence that slow wave sleep and NREM sleep delta activity, majorly regulated by sleep homeostatic mechanisms, is linked to working memory independent of the timing of the sleep episode within the 24-h cycle.
Background: There is an urgent need for expanding and enhancing autism spectrum disorder (ASD) samples, in order to better understand causes of ASD.
Methods: In a unique public-private partnership, 13 sites with extensive experience in both the assessment and diagnosis of ASD embarked on an ambitious, 2-year program to collect samples for genetic and phenotypic research and begin analyses on these samples. The program was called The Autism Simplex Collection (TASC). TASC sample collection began in 2008 and was completed in 2010, and included nine sites from North America and four sites from Western Europe, as well as a centralized Data Coordinating Center.
Results: Over 1,700 trios are part of this collection, with DNA from transformed cells now available through the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) and Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Generic (ADOS-G) measures are available for all probands, as are standardized IQ measures, Vineland Adaptive Behavioral Scales (VABS), the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS), Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), and physical measures (height, weight, and head circumference). At almost every site, additional phenotypic measures were collected, including the Broad Autism Phenotype Questionnaire (BAPQ) and Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R), as well as the non-word repetition scale, Communication Checklist (Children's or Adult), and Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC). Moreover, for nearly 1,000 trios, the Autism Genome Project Consortium (AGP) has carried out Illumina 1 M SNP genotyping and called copy number variation (CNV) in the samples, with data being made available through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Whole exome sequencing (WES) has been carried out in over 500 probands, together with ancestry matched controls, and this data is also available through the NIH. Additional WES is being carried out by the Autism Sequencing Consortium (ASC), where the focus is on sequencing complete trios. ASC sequencing for the first 1,000 samples (all from whole-blood DNA) is complete and data will be released in 2014. Data is being made available through NIH databases (database of Genotypes and Phenotypes (dbGaP) and National Database for Autism Research (NDAR)) with DNA released in Dist 11.0. Primary funding for the collection, genotyping, sequencing and distribution of TASC samples was provided by Autism Speaks and the NIH, including the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and the National Human Genetics Research Institute (NHGRI).
Conclusions: TASC represents an important sample set that leverages expert sites. Similar approaches, leveraging expert sites and ongoing studies, represent an important path towards further enhancing available ASD samples.
Translation fidelity and efficiency require multiple ribosomal (r)RNA modifications that are mostly mediated by small nucleolar (sno)RNPs during ribosome production. Overlapping basepairing of snoRNAs with pre-rRNAs often necessitates sequential and efficient association and dissociation of the snoRNPs, however, how such hierarchy is established has remained unknown so far. Here, we identify several late-acting snoRNAs that bind pre-40S particles in human cells and show that their association and function in pre-40S complexes is regulated by the RNA helicase DDX21. We map DDX21 crosslinking sites on pre-rRNAs and show their overlap with the basepairing sites of the affected snoRNAs. While DDX21 activity is required for recruitment of the late-acting snoRNAs SNORD56 and SNORD68, earlier snoRNAs are not affected by DDX21 depletion. Together, these observations provide an understanding of the timing and ordered hierarchy of snoRNP action in pre-40S maturation and reveal a novel mode of regulation of snoRNP function by an RNA helicase in human cells.
Multimorbidity is a health issue mostly dealt with in primary care practice. As a result of their generalist and patient-centered approach, long-lasting relationships with patients, and responsibility for continuity and coordination of care, family physicians are particularly well placed to manage patients with multimorbidity. However, conflicts arising from the application of multiple disease oriented guidelines and the burden of diseases and treatments often make consultations challenging. To provide orientation in decision making in multimorbidity during primary care consultations, we developed guiding principles and named them after the Greek mythological figure Ariadne. For this purpose, we convened a two-day expert workshop accompanied by an international symposium in October 2012 in Frankfurt, Germany. Against the background of the current state of knowledge presented and discussed at the symposium, 19 experts from North America, Europe, and Australia identified the key issues of concern in the management of multimorbidity in primary care in panel and small group sessions and agreed upon making use of formal and informal consensus methods. The proposed preliminary principles were refined during a multistage feedback process and discussed using a case example. The sharing of realistic treatment goals by physicians and patients is at the core of the Ariadne principles. These result from i) a thorough interaction assessment of the patient’s conditions, treatments, constitution, and context; ii) the prioritization of health problems that take into account the patient's preferences – his or her most and least desired outcomes; and iii) individualized management realizes the best options of care in diagnostics, treatment, and prevention to achieve the goals. Goal attainment is followed-up in accordance with a re-assessment in planned visits. The occurrence of new or changed conditions, such as an increase in severity, or a changed context may trigger the (re-)start of the process. Further work is needed on the implementation of the formulated principles, but they were recognized and appreciated as important by family physicians and primary care researchers.
The constantly growing amount of Web content and the success of the SocialWeb lead to increasing needs for Web archiving. These needs go beyond the pure preservationo of Web pages. Web archives are turning into “community memories” that aim at building a better understanding of the public view on, e.g., celebrities, court decisions and other events. Due to the size of the Web, the traditional “collect-all” strategy is in many cases not the best method to build Web archives. In this paper, we present the ARCOMEM (From Future Internet 2014, 6 689 Collect-All Archives to Community Memories) architecture and implementation that uses semantic information, such as entities, topics and events, complemented with information from the Social Web to guide a novel Web crawler. The resulting archives are automatically enriched with semantic meta-information to ease the access and allow retrieval based on conditions that involve high-level concepts.
Tumor cell plasticity is an event that has been observed in several malignancies. In fact, most of the solid tumors are characterized by cellular heterogeneity and undergo constant changes as the tumor develops. The increased plasticity displayed by these cells allows them to acquire additional properties, enabling epithelial-mesenchymal transitions, dedifferentiation and the acquisition of stem cell-like properties. Here we discuss the particular importance of an inflammatory microenvironment for the bidirectional control of cellular plasticity and the potential for therapeutic intervention.
In the 20th century, the term "ecosystem" was one of the most important concepts for the biological discipline "ecology." Originally coined by the English botanist Arthur G. Tansley in an article from 1935, it is now a well-established term. The authors of the textbook 'Ecology' write, the ecosystem concept "has become a powerful tool for integrating ecology with other disciplines." But this only addresses the scientific resonance of the term. In the 1970s "ecosystem" also became an important concept for the environmental movement, for the term "ecosystem" describes nature as a whole entity, in which all things are linked together, forming a network of biotic and abiotic factors. In this sense, the "ecosystem" concept also took on a key role in the political ecology discourse. This article begins with a look at the political ecology discourse, and then focuses on the formation of the "ecosystem" concept. The terminological development of the term turns first to the linguistic definition of "ecosystem" before looking how the ecosystem became an established concept by transforming the object "lake" into the scientific object "ecosystem." Sections four and five further pursue the role of the ecosystem concept in the environmental discourse, based on the metaphor of "spaceship earth" on the one hand and of the "closing circle" on the other. Finally, the article contextualizes the "ecosystem" concept in conjunction with Claude Lefort's concept of "the political." As we will see, the political impact of the "ecosystem" concept inheres in the very term itself for it describes a wholeness that human beings are inevitably a part of even as their actions alter or disturb with the ecosystem fundamentally. In other words, human beings are both inside and outside of the "ecosystem" at the same time. This paradoxical situation is inevitably constituted by the concept "ecosystem", which is understood as a (nearly) closed system. Hence solutions to environmental problems aim at reintegrating human beings into the closed circle of the global ecosystem through technical constructions or through adapting to natural processes.
Textkompetenz in mehreren Sprachen : Forschungsergebnisse und weiterführende Forschungsansätze
(2014)
The article presents results of an empirical study which examines productive transfer in the area of text skills competence and the associated writing skill which could be attributed to the learners' contact with several languages. The research was conducted within the research project "Multilingualism in the Czech Republik: Learning and Teaching German after English." After a short presentation of the key concepts in the development of the study and a presentation of selected results, implications and a modell for further research in multilingual writing and on transfer processes between languages are introduced.
Text und Experiment : die Experimentalszene als mediale Konfiguration im Werk E. T. A. Hoffmanns
(2014)
Im literarischen Werk E.T.A. Hoffmanns nimmt das Experiment eine besondere Stellung ein. Wissenschaftliche oder parawissenschaftliche - auch alchemistische - Experimente kommen in seinem OEuvre an vielen Stellen explizit zur Sprache. In der zweiten Vigilie des bekannten 'Goldenen Topf', beispielsweise stellt der Registrator Heerbrand den geheimen Archivarius Lindhorst zunächst als einen "experimentierenden Chemiker" vor. In dem Märchen 'Klein Zaches genannt Zinnober' unternimmt der Professor Mosch Terpin so manch "physikalisches Experiment". In den Gesprächen der Serapions-Brüder ist unter anderem vom "Experiment" des Magnetismus die Rede, und in der späten Erzählung 'Der Elementargeist' kommt es noch zu einem sehr ausgiebig beschriebenen "Experiment". Dies sind lediglich vereinzelte Beispiele, die einen ersten Einblick bieten. Das "Experiment" an sich stellt ein rekurrentes Motiv des Gesamtwerks Hoffmanns dar. Wie lässt sich diese Präsenz und Prägnanz des Experimentalmoments kontextualisieren? Wie lässt sie sich begründen? Und zunächst auch: Welche Verbindungen ergeben sich genereller aus dem Zusammenhang von Literatur und Experiment?
Mit der Konstellation "Text und Experiment" ist ein Themenfeld bezeichnet, das als Schnittfläche zwischen wissenschaftsgeschichtlichen und literaturhistorischen Fragestellungen heute kein unerforschtes Gebiet darstellt. Zu den Verbindungen zwischen Experiment und literarischer Konfiguration liegt mit dem von Michael Gamper herausgegebenen Band 'Experiment und Literatur' sowie der grundlegenden, dreibändigen literaturgeschichtlichen Buchfolge zu dem Thema inzwischen eine imposante Reihe wissenschaftlicher Werke vor. Die genannten Bände stecken Grundlagen ab, liefern Einzelanalysen und geben darüber hinaus Impulse und Anregungen für die weitere Beschäftigung mit dem Gegenstand.
In the title compound, C40H76Si, the Si atom is located on a special position of site symmetry -4. Thus, there is just a quarter of a molecule in the asymmetric unit. The C=C double bonds exhibit a trans configuration. The Si atom and the tert-butyl group are located on the same side of the plane formed by the C=C double bond and its four substituents. The crystal packing shows no short contacts between the molecules and despite the low crystal density (0.980 Mg m−3), there are no significant voids in the structure.
Trotz der Annäherung der Begriffe 'Geschichte' und 'Evolution' unter dem Vorzeichen einer semantischen Verschiebung kulturellen Kapitals haben sich bis in die Gegenwart auch begriffliche Differenzen erhalten. So gibt es neben der unbekümmerten Anwendung von 'Geschichte' und 'Evolution' auf alle sich in der Zeit verändernden Dinge auch Versuche, die Begriffe terminologisch stark zu machen und in der Folge dessen 'Evolution' für den Bereich der Natur und 'Geschichte' für den der Kultur zu reservieren. Der Beitrag liefert eine historische Rekonstruktion dieser Entwicklung. Am Anfang stehen dabei einige quantitative sprachwissenschaftliche Beobachtungen zur Entwicklung der Häufigkeit der Begriffe in verschiedenen Textgattungen und zur gegenwärtigen Semantik durch einen Vergleich der häufigsten Genitivattribute. Im zweiten Abschnitt wird die Veränderung des Ausdrucks 'Geschichte' untersucht, zunächst in seiner terminologischen Bedeutung in den Geschichtswissenschaften, dann in seiner Ausweitung auf Gegenstände der Natur. Der dritte Abschnitt liefert eine analoge Untersuchung zu 'Evolution', ausgehend von den Naturwissenschaften und in der Ausweitung auf kulturelle Phänomene. Im vierten Abschnitt wird eine Verbindung der beiden Begriffe näher betrachtet, die im Sinne einer semantischen Verschränkung wirksam ist und sich unter anderem daraus ergibt, dass das Wort 'Evolution' eine teleologische Konnotation hat, die bei 'Geschichte' nicht vorliegt. Der fünfte Abschnitt schließlich beleuchtet die wissenschaftliche Stellung der Begriffe in der Gegenwart und erwägt die Aussichten ihrer terminologischen Differenzierung.
Buff, red, grey – these are common descriptions of pottery in archaeology. Colour is usually part of the recording of ceramic data, but these data are rarely used for more than the most general characterisation of pottery. Despite hesitations concerning the subjective nature of these observations and other factors involved in colour notation, is has been shown that the data can lead the way to broader interpretations, and careful recording with a standardised system such as the Munsell colour charts may reduce the effects of personal perception. A sample of colour notations of pottery from Tell Mozan, Syria, is presented here as an example of the possibilities; it is hoped that this study will provide comparative data for other sites in the region.
Various aspects of uncertainty have become topical in pest risk modelling discussions. A recent contribution to the literature sought to explore the effect of taxonomic uncertainty on modelled pest risk. The case study involved a high profile plant pathogen Puccinia psidii, which causes a major disease of plants within the Myrtaceae family. Consequently, the results and recommendations may attract a wide range of interest in the biosecurity and pest risk modelling communities. We found the study by Elith et al. (2013) included a number of methodological issues that limit some of the specific and general conclusions reached in the paper. We discuss these issues and the ensuing implications for biosecurity management. We also draw attention to the need for pest risk modellers and biosecurity managers to find ways to communicate more effectively. We urge modellers and managers alike to develop a better understanding of the challenges and limitations of modelling species potential distributions across novel climates, and to be able to appreciate the meanings and limitations of models framed in different ways.
Bellek ve tarih ilişkisinin irdelendiği bir çok araştırmada, doksanlı yılların başından beri tüm dünyada bir bellek ve anımsama furyasının yaşandığı belirtilmekte ve ana nedenlerinden biri olarak da yazılı tarihin kaydettiği en ağır felaketlerin yaşandığı 20. Yüzyılın sona ermesi gösterilmektedir. 2000'li yıllardan bu yana gerek Avrupa kıtasında yazılan romanlara gerekse Türkiye'de yayımlanan romanlara bakıldığında, metinlerin odak noktasına yakın geçmişi yerleştiren tarihsel romanların sayısı küçümsenmeyecek kadar artmıştır. Yakın tarihe bugünden bakarak tarihsel durumların yeniden değerlendirilmesi, dolayısıyla belleklerde saklanan ancak şimdi dile gelen anıların öykülendirilmesi söz konusudur.
Tarihsel romanların yanı sıra bir ya da birden fazla ailenin kuşaklar boyu belleklerinde sakladıkları ve büyük tarihin yanında bugün "oral history" olarak yeniden önem kazanan bireysel/kollektif bellek, özellikle tarihsel romanların bir uzantısı olan "yeni" aile romanlarında gittikçe daha fazla yer bulmaktadır. 2011'in Mart ayında yayımlanan, Zülfü Livanel'nin "Serenad" adlı romanı da içerdiği tarihsel düzlem ve bu tarihin bireysel ve kollektif belleklerin bir parçası olarak aile üyelerinin anımsaması yoluyla okuyucuya açımlanması nedeniyle, çerçevesini tarihsel olguların oluşturduğu bir aile romanıyla karşı karşıya olduğumuzu göstermektedir.
Bu çalışmada romanda yer alan figürlerin tarihle ilişkileri yeni aile romanı çerçevesinde incelenecektir.
Survivin is a well-established target in experimental cancer therapy. The molecule is over-expressed in most human tumors, but hardly detectable in normal tissues. Multiple functions in different subcellular compartments have been assigned. It participates in the control of cell division, apoptosis, the cellular stress response, and also in the regulation of cell migration and metastasis. Survivin expression has been recognized as a biomarker: high expression indicates an unfavorable prognosis and resistance to chemotherapeutic agents and radiation treatment. Survivin is an unconventional drug target and several indirect approaches have been exploited to affect its function and the phenotype of survivin-expressing cells. Interference with the expression of the survivin gene, the utilization of its messenger RNA, the intracellular localization, the interaction with binding partners, the stability of the survivin protein, and the induction of survivin-specific immune responses have been taken into consideration. A direct strategy to inhibit survivin has been based on the identification of a specifically interacting peptide. This peptide can recognize survivin intracellularly and cause the degradation of the ligand–survivin complex. Technology is being developed that might allow the derivation of small molecular-weight, drug-like compounds that are functionally equivalent to the peptide ligand.
Blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN) is a rare haematopoietic malignancy characterized by dismal prognosis and overall poor therapeutic response. Since the biology of BPDCN is barely understood, our study aims to shed light on the genetic make-up of these highly malignant tumors. Using targeted high-coverage massive parallel sequencing, we investigated 50 common cancer genes in 33 BPDCN samples. We detected point mutations in NRAS (27.3% of cases), ATM (21.2%), MET, KRAS, IDH2, KIT (9.1% each), APC and RB1 (6.1% each), as well as in VHL, BRAF, MLH1, TP53 and RET (3% each). Moreover, NRAS, KRAS and ATM mutations were found to be mutually exclusive and we observed recurrent mutations in NRAS, IDH2, APC and ATM. CDKN2A deletions were detected in 27.3% of the cases followed by deletions of RB1 (9.1%), PTEN and TP53 (3% each). The mutual exclusive distribution of some mutations may point to different subgroups of BPDCN whose biological significance remains to be explored.
In this study, we describe the synthesis of 1,4-disustituted-1,2,3-triazolo-quinazoline ribonucleosides or acyclonucleosides by means of 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition between various O or N-alkylated propargyl-quinazoline and 1'-azido-2',3',5'-tri-O-benzoylribose or activated alkylating agents under microwave conditions. None of the compounds selected showed significant anti-HCV activity in vitro.
MicroRNAs are key modulators at molecular level in different biological processes, including determination of cell fate and differentiation. Herein, microRNA expression profiling experiments were performed on syngeneic cardiac (CStC) and bone marrow (BMStC) mesenchymal stromal cells cultured in standard growth medium and then in vitro exposed to adipogenic, osteogenic, cardiomyogenic and endothelial differentiation media. Analysis identified a tissue-specific microRNA signature composed of 16 microRNAs that univocally discriminated cell type of origin and that were completely unaffected by in vitro differentiation media: 4 microRNAs were over-expressed in cardiac stromal cells, and 12 were overexpressed or present only in bone marrow stromal cells. Further, results revealed microRNA subsets specifically modulated by each differentiation medium, irrespective of the cell type of origin, and a subset of 7 microRNAs that were down-regulated by all media with respect to growth medium. Finally, we identified 16 microRNAs that were differentially modulated by the media when comparing the two tissues of origin. The existence of a tissue-specific microRNA signature surviving to any differentiation stimuli, strongly support the role if microRNAs determining cell identity related to tissue origin. Moreover, we identified microRNA subsets modulated by different culture conditions in a tissue-specific manner, pointing out their importance during differentiation processes.
The morphology of presynaptic specializations can vary greatly ranging from classical single-release-site boutons in the central nervous system to boutons of various sizes harboring multiple vesicle release sites. Multi-release-site boutons can be found in several neural contexts, for example at the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) of body wall muscles of Drosophila larvae. These NMJs are built by two motor neurons forming two types of glutamatergic multi-release-site boutons with two typical diameters. However, it is unknown why these distinct nerve terminal configurations are used on the same postsynaptic muscle fiber. To systematically dissect the biophysical properties of these boutons we developed a full three-dimensional model of such boutons, their release sites and transmitter-harboring vesicles and analyzed the local vesicle dynamics of various configurations during stimulation. Here we show that the rate of transmission of a bouton is primarily limited by diffusion-based vesicle movements and that the probability of vesicle release and the size of a bouton affect bouton-performance in distinct temporal domains allowing for an optimal transmission of the neural signals at different time scales. A comparison of our in silico simulations with in vivo recordings of the natural motor pattern of both neurons revealed that the bouton properties resemble a well-tuned cooperation of the parameters release probability and bouton size, enabling a reliable transmission of the prevailing firing-pattern at diffusion-limited boutons. Our findings indicate that the prevailing firing-pattern of a neuron may determine the physiological and morphological parameters required for its synaptic terminals.
Background: Dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system is frequent in subjects with cardiovascular disease. The contribution of different forms of renovascular hypertension and the mechanisms contributing to autonomic dysfunction in hypertension are incompletely understood. Here, murine models of renovascular hypertension with preserved (2-kidneys-1 clip, 2K1C) and reduced (1-kidney-1 clip, 1K1C) kidney mass were studied with regard to autonomic nervous system regulation (sympathetic tone: power-spectral analysis of systolic blood pressure; parasympathetic tone: power-spectral analysis of heart rate) and baroreflex sensitivity of heart rate by spontaneous, concomitant changes of systolic blood pressure and pulse interval. Involvement of the renin-angiotensin system and the rho-kinase pathway were determined by application of inhibitors.
Results: C57BL6N mice (6 to 11) with reduced kidney mass (1K1C) or with preserved kidney mass (2K1C) developed a similar degree of hypertension. In comparison to control mice, both models presented with a significantly increased sympathetic tone and lower baroreflex sensitivity of heart rate. However, only 2K1C animals had a lower parasympathetic tone, whereas urinary norepinephrine excretion was reduced in the 1K1C model. Rho kinase inhibition given to a subset of 1K1C and 2K1C animals improved baroreflex sensitivity of heart rate selectively in the 1K1C model. Rho kinase inhibition had no additional effects on autonomic nervous system in either model of renovascular hypertension and did not change the blood pressure. Blockade of AT1 receptors (in 2K1C animals) normalized the sympathetic tone, decreased resting heart rate, improved baroreflex sensitivity of heart rate and parasympathetic tone.
Conclusions: Regardless of residual renal mass, blood pressure and sympathetic tone are increased, whereas baroreflex sensitivity is depressed in murine models of renovascular hypertension. Reduced norepinephrine excretion and/or degradation might contribute to sympathoactivation in renovascular hypertension with reduced renal mass (1K1C). Overall, the study helps to direct research to optimize medical therapy of hypertension.
The pharmacokinetic properties and tolerability of a triamcinolone acetonide poloxamer 407 hydrogel for intratympanic application were investigated in a guinea pig model. Evaluation of in vivo release kinetics showed very high initial perilymph drug levels, with clinically relevant levels present for a minimum of 10 days. Assessment of auditory brainstem response thresholds showed a minimal, delayed and transient threshold shift, which was apparent on day 3 and resolved by day 10. No relevant histological changes of the middle and inner ear structures were noted, and hair cell counts showed no significant differences between treated and untreated ears. Thus, the triamcinolone-acetonide-loaded poloxamer 407 hydrogel is an effective vehicle for sustained high-dose inner ear glucocorticoid delivery.
The Tarim River Basin, located in Xinjiang, NW China, is the largest endorheic river basin of China and one of the largest in whole Central Asia. Due to the extremely arid climate with an annual precipitation of less than 100 mm, the water supply along the Aksu and Tarim River solely depends on river water. This applies for anthropogenic activities (e.g. agriculture) as well as for the natural ecosystems so that both compete for water. The on-going increase of water consumption by agriculture and other human activities in this region has been enhancing the competition for water between human needs and nature. Against this background, 11 German and 6 Chinese universities and research institutes formed the consortium SuMaRiO (www.sumario.de), which aims at gaining a holistic picture of the availability of water resources in the Tarim River Basin and the impacts on anthropogenic activities and natural ecosystems caused by the water distribution within the Tarim River Basin. The discharge of the Aksu River, which is the major tributary to the Tarim, has been increasing over the past 6 decades due to enhanced glacier melt. Alone from 1989 to 2011, the area under agriculture more than doubled. Thereby, cotton became the major crop and there was a shift from small-scale farming to large-scale intensive farming. The major natural ecosystems along the Aksu and Tarim River are riparian ecosystems: Riparian (Tugai) forests, shrub vegetation, reed beds, and other grassland. Within the SuMaRiO Cluster the focus was laid on the Tugai forests, with Populus euphratica as dominant tree, because the most productive and species-rich natural ecosystems can be found among those forests. On sites with groundwater distance of less than 7.5 m the annual increments correlated with river runoffs of the previous year. But, the further downstream along the Tarim River, the more the natural river dynamics ceased, which impacts on the recruitment of Populus euphratica. Household surveys revealed that there is a considerable willingness to pay for conservation of those riparian forests with the mitigation of dust and sandstorms considered as the most important ecosystem service. This interdisciplinary project will result in a decision support tool (DST), build on the participation of regional stakeholders and models based on results and field experiments. This DST finally shall assist stakeholders in balancing the water competition acknowledging the major external effects of any water allocation.
Survival according to BRAF-V600 tumor mutations : an analysis of 437 patients with primary melanoma
(2014)
The prognostic impact of BRAF-V600 tumor mutations in stage I/II melanoma patients has not yet been analyzed in detail. We investigated primary tumors of 437 patients diagnosed between 1989 and 2006 by Sanger sequencing. Mutations were detected in 38.7% of patients and were associated with age, histological subtype as well as mitotic rate. The mutational rate was 36.7% in patients with disease-free course and 51.7% in those with subsequent distant metastasis (p = 0.031). No difference in overall survival (p = 0.119) but a trend for worse distant-metastasis-free survival (p = 0.061) was observed in BRAF mutant compared to BRAF wild-type patients. Independent prognostic factors for overall survival were tumor thickness, mitotic rate and ulceration. An interesting significant prognostic impact was observed in patients with tumor thickness of 1 mm or less, with the mutation present in 6 of 7 patients dying from melanoma. In conclusion, no significant survival differences were found according to BRAF-V600 tumor mutations in patients with primary melanoma but an increasing impact of the mutational status was observed in the subgroup of patients with tumor thickness of 1 mm or less. A potential role of the mutational status as a prognostic factor especially in this subgroup needs to be investigated in larger studies.
he aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of controlled intraoral grinding and polishing on the roughness of full-contour zirconia compared to classical veneered zirconia. Thirty bar-shaped zirconia specimens were fabricated and divided into two groups (n=15). Fifteen specimens (group 1) were glazed and 15 specimens (group 2) were veneered with feldspathic ceramic and then glazed. Prior to grinding, maximum roughness depth (Rmax) values were measured using a profilometer, 5 times per specimen. Simulated clinical grinding and polishing were performed on the specimens under water coolant for 15 s and 2 N pressure. For grinding, NTI diamonds burs with grain sizes of 20 µm, 10 µm, and 7.5 µm were used sequentially. The ground surfaces were polished using NTI kits with coarse, medium and fine polishers. After each step, Rmax values were determined. Differences between groups were examined using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The roughness of group 1 was significantly lower than that of group 2. The roughness increased significantly after coarse grinding in both groups. The results after glazing were similar to those obtained after fine grinding for non-veneered zirconia. However, fine-ground veneered zirconia had significantly higher roughness than venerred, glazed zirconia. No significant difference was found between fine-polished and glazed zirconia, but after the fine polishing of veneered zirconia, the roughness was significantly higher than after glazing. It can be concluded that for full-contour zirconia, fewer defects and lower roughness values resulted after grinding and polishing compared to veneered zirconia. After polishing zirconia, lower roughness values were achieved compared to glazing; more interesting was that the grinding of glazed zirconia using the NTI three-step system could deliver smooth surfaces comparable to untreated glazed zirconia surfaces.
We report on the measurement of the inclusive Υ (1S) production in Pb–Pb collisions at √sNN = 2.76 TeV carried out at forward rapidity (2.5 < y < 4) and down to zero transverse momentum using its μ+μ−decay channel with the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider. A strong suppression of the inclusive Υ (1S) yield is observed with respect to pp collisions scaled by the number of independent nucleon–nucleon collisions. The nuclear modification factor, for events in the 0–90% centrality range, amounts to 0.30 ± 0.05(stat) ± 0.04(syst). The observed Υ (1S) suppression tends to increase with the centrality of the collision and seems more pronounced than in corresponding mid-rapidity measurements. Our results are compared with model calculations, which are found to underestimate the measured suppression and fail to reproduce its rapidity dependence.
Fission fragment mass distributions were measured in heavy-ion induced fissions using 238U target nucleus. The measured mass distributions changed drastically with incident energy. The results are explained by a change of the ratio between fusion and qasifission with nuclear orientation. A calculation based on a fluctuation dissipation model reproduced the mass distributions and their incident energy dependence. Fusion probability was determined in the analysis, and the values were consistent with those determined from the evaporation residue cross sections.
We present an approach for combining high resolution MRI-based myelin mapping with functional information from electroencephalography (EEG) or magnetoencephalography (MEG). The main contribution to the primary currents detectable with EEG and MEG comes from ionic currents in the apical dendrites of cortical pyramidal cells, aligned perpendicularly to the local cortical surface. We provide evidence from an in-vivo experiment that the variation in MRI-based myeloarchitecture measures across the cortex predicts the variation of the current density over individuals and thus is of functional relevance. Equivalent current dipole locations and moments due to pitch onset evoked response fields (ERFs) were estimated by means of a variational Bayesian algorithm. The myeloarchitecture was estimated indirectly from individual high resolution quantitative multi-parameter maps (MPMs) acquired at 800 μm isotropic resolution. Myelin estimates across cortical areas correlated positively with dipole magnitude. This correlation was spatially specific: regions of interest in the auditory cortex provided significantly better models than those covering whole hemispheres. Based on the MPM data we identified the auditory cortical area TE1.2 as the most likely origin of the pitch ERFs measured by MEG. We can now proceed to exploit the higher spatial resolution of quantitative MPMs to identify the cortical origin of M/EEG signals, inform M/EEG source reconstruction and explore structure–function relationships at a fine structural level in the living human brain.
Structure and regulatory interactions of the cytoplasmic terminal domains of serotonin transporter
(2014)
Uptake of neurotransmitters by sodium-coupled monoamine transporters of the NSS family is required for termination of synaptic transmission. Transport is tightly regulated by protein–protein interactions involving the small cytoplasmic segments at the amino- and carboxy-terminal ends of the transporter. Although structures of homologues provide information about the transmembrane regions of these transporters, the structural arrangement of the terminal domains remains largely unknown. Here, we combined molecular modeling, biochemical, and biophysical approaches in an iterative manner to investigate the structure of the 82-residue N-terminal and 30-residue C-terminal domains of human serotonin transporter (SERT). Several secondary structures were predicted in these domains, and structural models were built using the Rosetta fragment-based methodology. One-dimensional 1H nuclear magnetic resonance and circular dichroism spectroscopy supported the presence of helical elements in the isolated SERT N-terminal domain. Moreover, introducing helix-breaking residues within those elements altered the fluorescence resonance energy transfer signal between terminal cyan fluorescent protein and yellow fluorescent protein tags attached to full-length SERT, consistent with the notion that the fold of the terminal domains is relatively well-defined. Full-length models of SERT that are consistent with these and published experimental data were generated. The resultant models predict confined loci for the terminal domains and predict that they move apart during the transport-related conformational cycle, as predicted by structures of homologues and by the “rocking bundle” hypothesis, which is consistent with spectroscopic measurements. The models also suggest the nature of binding to regulatory interaction partners. This study provides a structural context for functional and regulatory mechanisms involving SERT terminal domains.
Autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia share a substantial number of etiologic and phenotypic characteristics. Still, no direct comparison of both disorders has been performed to identify differences and commonalities in brain structure. In this voxel based morphometry study, 34 patients with autism spectrum disorder, 21 patients with schizophrenia and 26 typically developed control subjects were included to identify global and regional brain volume alterations. No global gray matter or white matter differences were found between groups. In regional data, patients with autism spectrum disorder compared to typically developed control subjects showed smaller gray matter volume in the amygdala, insula, and anterior medial prefrontal cortex. Compared to patients with schizophrenia, patients with autism spectrum disorder displayed smaller gray matter volume in the left insula. Disorder specific positive correlations were found between mentalizing ability and left amygdala volume in autism spectrum disorder, and hallucinatory behavior and insula volume in schizophrenia. Results suggest the involvement of social brain areas in both disorders. Further studies are needed to replicate these findings and to quantify the amount of distinct and overlapping neural correlates in autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia.
We study the equilibrium properties of strongly-interacting infinite parton-hadron matter, characterized by the transport coefficients such as shear and bulk viscosity and electric conductivity, and the non-equilibrium dynamics of heavy-ion collisions within the Parton-Hadron-String Dynamics (PHSD) transport approach, which incorporates explicit partonic degrees of freedom in terms of strongly interacting quasiparticles (quarks and gluons) in line with an equation of state from lattice QCD as well as the dynamical hadronization and hadronic collision dynamics in the final reaction phase. We discuss in particular the possible origin for the strong elliptic flow v2 of direct photons observed at RHIC energies.
U radu se daje prikaz tehničkih odnosno strojarskih naziva u prvim četirima izdanjima Rječnika stranih riječi koje je sastavio i priredio sâm Klaić. Analiza uključuje način definiranja pojma, leksikografsku obradu rječničkoga članka kao i osvrt na dopunjavanje novim natuknicama u svakome od četiriju izdanja Rječnika. U radu se donose i primjeri strojarskih germanizama kako su popisani u Klaićevu Rječniku te osvrt na kratice i pokrate kao važno obilježje tehničkoga jezika.
Dekorierte Straußenei-Behältnisse konnten bislang in zahlreichen Regionen des Mittelmeerraums nachgewiesen werden. Die Bearbeitung und Dekoration erfolgte meist individuell, sodass die Eier aller Wahrscheinlichkeit nach eine Einbettung in den jeweiligen regionalen Kontext erfuhren und dort spezifische Funktionen innehatten. Da der Strauß jedoch nur in wenigen Regionen des Mittelmeerraums heimisch war, kann ein überregionaler Handel mit den Eiern angenommen werden.
Within the statistical model, the net strangeness conservation and incomplete total strangeness equilibration lead to the suppression of strange particle multiplicities. Furthermore, suppression effects appear to be stronger in small systems. By treating the production of strangeness within the canonical ensemble formulation we developed a simple model which allows to predict the excitation function of K+/π+ ratio in nucleus–nucleus collisions. In doing so we assumed that different values of K+/π+, measured in p + p and Pb + Pb interactions at the same collision energy per nucleon, are driven by the finite size effects only. These predictions may serve as a baseline for experimental results from NA61/SHINE at the CERN SPS and the future CBM experiment at FAIR.
Die Ermittlung und Bewertung der Auswirkungen von Stickstoffeinträgen in der FFH-Verträglichkeitsprüfung ist in Deutschland seit fast zehn Jahren Gegenstand einer intensiven Fachdiskussion. Zuletzt hat sich ein Forschungsprojekt im Auftrag der Bundesanstalt für Straßenwesen (BASt) mit dieser Frage beschäftigt und eine Fachkonvention für den Projekttyp Straße erarbeitet. Diese Fachkonvention, die auch auf andere Projekttypen übertragbar ist, basiert grundsätzlich auf dem Maßstab der Critical Loads zur Beschreibung der Empfindlichkeit von FFH-Lebensräumen gegenüber Stickstoffeintrag. Liegt die gebietsspezifische Gesamtbelastung mit Stickstoffeinträgen über dem standort- und vegetationstypspezifisch zu ermittelnden Critical Load, so wird für die FFH-Verträglichkeitsprüfung ein mehrstufiges Schwellenwertkonzept zur Bestimmung von irrelevanten bzw. bagatellhaften Zusatzbelastungen empfohlen: Unterschieden wird ein vorhabenbezogenes absolutes Abschneidekriterium von 0,3 kg N ha-1a-1 und eine rezeptorbezogene Bagatellschwelle von 3% des jeweiligen Critical Loads. Beide Schwellenwerte sind als sehr niedrig und der Zielsetzung der FFH-Richtlinie entsprechend vorsorgeorientiert einzustufen.Mit dem Bewertungsansatz werden alle Anforderungen, die sich aus den fachlichen und rechtlichen Maßstäben für die FFH-Verträglichkeitsprüfung ergeben, berücksichtigt. Zugleich handelt es sich um einen praxistauglichen Bewertungsansatz, der auch dem Grundsatz der Verhältnismäßigkeit Rechnung trägt. Das vorhabenbezogene Abschneidekriterium soll für jedes zu genehmigende Vorhaben gelten. Für die Größenordnung von 0,3kg N ha-1a-1 für den vorhabenbezogenen Stickstoffeintrag in ein FFH-Gebiet sprechen verschiedene Argumente: Einträge in dieser Größenordnung liegen deutlich unterhalb der messtechnischen Erfassbarkeit und deutlich unterhalb jeder bekannten Schwelle von Zusatzbelastungen, die negative Wirkungen für die Biodiversität auslösen können; unterhalb dieser Größenordnung ist eine Ermittlung von Belastungen und Beeinträchtigungen mit derzeit verfügbaren Modellen und Eingangsdaten auch aufgrund der Unsicherheiten und fehlenden statistischen Signifikanz nicht mehr sinnvoll möglich. Zusatzbelastungen eines Vorhabens in dieser Größenordnung stellen somit lediglich ein theoretisches Risiko dar und können keine erheblichen Beeinträchtigungen im Sinne der FFH-RL auslösen. Somit können auch nur diejenigen projektbezogenen Zusatzbelastungen, die oberhalb dieses Abschneidekriteriums liegen, für eine kumulative Prüfung mit weiteren Projekten und deren gemeinsamer Wirkung geprüft werden. Die Bagatellschwelle von 3% des Critical Loads wird demgegenüber gebietsbezogen angewendet und kann daher auch durch das Zusammenwirken mehrerer einzelner Vorhaben überschritten werden. Die Anwendung soll unabhängig von der Höhe der Überschreitung der Critical Loads in der Gesamtbelastung möglich sein. Die Bagatellschwelle ist an der spezifischen Stickstoffempfindlichkeit der FFH Lebensräume, die durch die Critical Loads vorsorgeorientiert beschrieben wird, ausgerichtet. Eine Auswertung der Ergebnisse der Wirkungsforschung, insbesondere zu Randeffekten entlang von Straßen, hat ergeben, dass der Wert von 3% des maßgeblichen Critical Loads sicher unterhalb von feststellbaren negativen Wirkungen auf den Erhaltungszustand von FFH-Lebensräumen liegt.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is characterized by an aberrant self-renewal of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) and a block in differentiation. The major therapeutic challenge is the characterization of the leukemic stem cell as a target for the eradication of the disease. Until now the biology of AML-associated fusion proteins (AAFPs), such as the t(15;17)-PML/RARα, t(8;21)-RUNX1/RUNX1T1 and t(6;9)-DEK/NUP214, all able to induce AML in mice, was investigated in different models and genetic backgrounds, not directly comparable to each other. To avoid the bias of different techniques and models we expressed these three AML-inducing oncogenes in an identical genetic background and compared their influence on the HSC compartment in vitro and in vivo.
These AAFPs exerted differential effects on HSCs and PML/RARα, similar to DEK/NUP214, induced a leukemic phenotype from a small subpopulation of HSCs with a surface marker pattern of long-term HSC and characterized by activated STAT3 and 5. In contrast the established AML occurred from mature populations in the bone marrow. The activation of STAT5 by PML/RARα and DEK/NUP214 was confirmed in t(15;17)(PML/RARα) and t(6;9)(DEK/NUP214)-positive patients as compared to normal CD34+ cells. The activation of STAT5 was reduced upon the exposure to Arsenic which was accompanied by apoptosis in both PML/RARα- and DEK/NUP214-positive leukemic cells. These findings indicate that in AML the activation of STATs plays a decisive role in the biology of the leukemic stem cell. Furthermore we establish exposure to arsenic as a novel concept for the treatment of this high risk t(6;9)-positive AML.
Zu Beginn noch Treffpunkt ausziehender Soldaten, die besonders in den ersten Monaten umjubelt die Städte verließen, wurde der Heimtransport Verwundeter besonders in den Grenzregionen mit zunehmender Dauer alltäglicher. Spätestens mit Kriegsende aber wird die Figur des Kriegsheimkehrers auch in den von der Westfront entfernten Städten wie Hamburg oder Berlin immer präsenter — als körperlich invalider Krüppel, wie auch als äußerlich unverletzter, aber tief traumatisierter Veteran.