The Histone Chaperone Spn1 Preserves Chromatin Protections at Promoters and Nucleosome Positioning in Open Reading Frames.

Spn1 is a multifunctional histone chaperone that associates with RNA polymerase II during elongation and is essential for life in eukaryotes. While previous work has elucidated regions of the protein important for its many interactions, it is unknown how these domains contribute to the maintenance of chromatin structure. Here, we employ digestion by micrococcal nuclease followed by single-stranded library preparation and sequencing (MNase-SSP) to characterize chromatin structure in expressing wild-type or mutants of Spn1.

Test Rig for Investigating the Functional and Structural Fatigue of Shape Memory Alloy Wires Based on Different Activation Profiles.

This work presents a test rig developed for testing the lifetime of electrically and cyclically activated shape memory alloy wires. This test rig is developed to provide information on the functional and structural fatigue of the wires. Therefore, electrical activation on the test rig can be carried out using different activation profiles, because it is of great research interest to determine whether those profiles have a significant influence on the wire's lifetime and functional behavior.

[Spreading Dynamics of the Alpha and Beta Virus Variants of SARS-CoV-2 at the Beginning of Their Appearance in the City of Cologne in January and February 2021].

Background And Aim Of The Study: Constantly changing virus variants of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 pose major challenges to the healthcare system. The aim of the present study was to analyse major outbreaks of the alpha and beta variants in Cologne in order to enable effective and rapid response to new virus variants in future pandemics as well as to derive targeted measures to combat the pandemic.

Methods: In the observation period from January 22 to February 23, 2021, all individuals testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 and their contact persons who were reported to the Cologne Public Health Department were interviewed by employees of the Public Health Department over the telephone.

Comparative study of OMNIgene®•SPUTUM reagent versus cold-chain for the transportation of sputum samples to GeneXpert®MTB/RIF testing sites in Malawi.

Background: The study was conducted in a remote sputum sample collection sites and GeneXpert® MTB/RIF testing centers to detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Malawi. The main purpose of the study was to evaluate whether sputum samples stored and transported with OMNIgene®•SPUTUM (OM-S) medium perform comparably to the routine cold-chain stored and transported samples for GeneXpert testing to detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Methods: Two sputum samples from each of 362 tuberculosis suspects were randomly assigned to the OMNIgene treated (OM-S group) or the standard-of-care group (SOC; transported via cold chain).