Publications by authors named "A. Michiels"

Background: Pathological tau accumulation is the primary constituent of neurofibrillary tangles and other tau aggregates seen in various neurodegenerative diseases collectively known as tauopathies. Recently, immunotherapeutic strategies focused on tau have shown promise in reducing tauopathy in both cellular and animal models.

Method: We previously used humanized yeast models to purify recombinant hyper-phosphorylated human Tau for mouse immunizations and the isolation of a high-affinity anti-Tau monoclonal antibody (mAb) with enhanced diagnostic and prognostic capacities.

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Although the highlands of East Africa lack the geo-ecological landmarks of Rift Valley fever (RVF) disease hotspots to participate in cyclic RVF epidemics, they have recently reported growing numbers of small RVF clusters. Here, we investigated whether RVF cycling occurred among livestock and humans in the central highlands of Kenya during inter-epidemic periods. A 2-year prospective hospital-based study among febrile patients (March 2022-February 2024) in Murang'a County of Kenya was followed by a cross-sectional human-animal survey.

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Introduction: The longitudinal progression of synaptic loss in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and how it is affected by tau pathology remains poorly understood.

Methods: Thirty patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and 26 healthy controls underwent cognitive evaluations and tau, synaptic vesicle protein 2A (SV2A), and amyloid positron emission tomography. Twenty-one aMCI underwent 2-year follow-up (FU) investigations.

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Somatic tinnitus (ST) is a type of tinnitus that is influenced by changes in somatosensory input from the cervical spine or temporomandibular area. Although traditional physiotherapy has been shown to reduce ST symptoms, in-clinic treatment is not always available, and adherence to home exercise programs is often low. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of an app-based physiotherapy program to enhance the compliance and availability of treatment for ST patients.

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Spatial neglect is a post-stroke attention deficit for which there is no evidence-based intervention. Immersive virtual reality (IVR) may increase treatment efficacy, as it allows to train spatial attention in a rich environment. This study evaluated the efficacy and feasibility of an IVR patient-tailored training (HEMIRehApp).

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Background: Tinnitus, defined as the conscious awareness of a noise without any identifiable corresponding external acoustic source, can be modulated by various factors. Among these factors, tinnitus patients commonly report drastic increases of tinnitus loudness following nap sleep. Previous studies have suggested that this clinical pattern could be attributed to a somatosensory modulation of tinnitus.

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Article Synopsis
  • * The study analyzed existing data on E. coli and established a new metric to differentiate between cross-resistance and collateral sensitivity, uncovering 404 cross-resistance and 267 collateral-sensitivity interactions—tripling known cases.
  • * By confirming many of these interactions through experimental methods and identifying specific mutants, the research showed that some drug pairs can display both resistance types, and using collateral-sensitive pairs can help prevent antibiotic resistance from developing in laboratory settings.
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Background: Heat stress (HS) incidence is associated with the accumulation of reactive substances, which might be associated with bone loss. N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) exhibits strong antioxidants due to its sulfhydryl group and being as the precursor for endogenous glutathione synthesis. Therefore, interplay between oxidative stress and bone turnover of broilers and the effects of dietary NAC inclusion on antioxidant capability and "gut-bone" axis were evaluated during chronic HS.

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Background: Clinical risk factors of deficient immune responses to COVID-19 mRNA vaccination in SARS-CoV-2 naive hemodialysis recipients (HDR) have already been identified. Clinical factors influencing hybrid immunity induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination in HDR have not been reported.

Methods: A comprehensive analysis of antibody (Ab) and T cell responses to two doses of BNT162b2 mRNA vaccination was performed in 103 HDR, including 75 SARS-CoV-2 naive and 28 experienced patients, and in 106 healthy controls (HC) not undergoing HD, including 40 SARS-CoV-2 naive and 66 experienced subjects.

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Background: The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, commonly used in industry, exhibits complex metabolism due to the Crabtree effect, fermenting alcohol even under aerobic conditions when glucose exceeds 0.10-0.15 g/L.

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Background: In paediatric palliative care, children with life-threatening and life-limiting conditions, their families, and their health care professionals often face difficult decisions about treatment, goals of care, and delivery of care. Advance care planning and shared decision-making are strategies that can improve quality of care by discussing goals and preferences on future care. In this paper, we provide recommendations that aim to optimise advance care planning and shared decision-making in paediatric palliative care in the Netherlands.

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Objective: Tinnitus, the perception of sound without an external source, affects many adults, impacting quality of life. While factors like hearing loss and psychological distress are linked to tinnitus, the relationship with physical activity remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the association between physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and the presence of tinnitus.

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Aims: We aimed to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the survival of Mycobacterium abscessus when faced with antibiotic combination therapy. By conducting evolution experiments and whole-genome sequencing (WGS), we sought to identify genetic variants associated with stress response mechanisms, with a particular focus on drug survival and resistance.

Methods And Results: We conducted evolution experiments on M.

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During growth, cells need to synthesize and expand their envelope, a process that requires careful regulation. Here, we show that the GTPase ObgE of E. coli contributes to the regulation of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) synthesis, an essential component of the Gram-negative outer membrane.

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The role of adaptive immunity in long-term outcomes in early breast cancer is increasingly recognised. Standard (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy can have adverse effects on immune cells. We conducted a retrospective longitudinal study of full blood counts (FBC) of 200 patients receiving (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy for early breast cancer at a single institution.

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Aims: DNA methylation profiling, recently endorsed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a pivotal diagnostic tool for brain tumours, most commonly relies on bead arrays. Despite its widespread use, limited data exist on the technical reproducibility and potential cross-institutional differences. The LOGGIC Core BioClinical Data Bank registry conducted a prospective laboratory comparison trial with 12 international laboratories to enhance diagnostic accuracy for paediatric low-grade gliomas, focusing on technical aspects of DNA methylation data generation and profile interpretation under clinical real-time conditions.

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Styled Handwritten Text Generation (HTG) has received significant attention in recent years, propelled by the success of learning-based solutions employing GANs, Transformers, and, preliminarily, Diffusion Models. Despite this surge in interest, there remains a critical yet understudied aspect - the impact of the input, both visual and textual, on the HTG model training and its subsequent influence on performance. This work extends the VATr [1] Styled-HTG approach by addressing the pre-processing and training issues that it faces, which are common to many HTG models.

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Article Synopsis
  • - FLASH radiotherapy offers effective tumor control with reduced damage to surrounding healthy tissues by delivering radiation at ultra-high dose rates (≥40 Gy/s), known as the FLASH effect.
  • - Current explanations for the FLASH effect highlight the role of oxygen, including transient hypoxia and reactive oxygen species (ROS), but no single hypothesis fully accounts for the differences in tissue responses.
  • - The review compiles existing theories and proposes new mechanisms for the FLASH effect, along with experiments aimed at enhancing understanding of ROS's behavior and their biological impacts post-irradiation.
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  • - The MATCH-R trial aimed to analyze the resistance mechanisms to cancer treatments by studying fresh tumor biopsies from metastatic patients, covering data collected from 2015 to 2022.
  • - Out of 1,120 biopsies from patients primarily with lung, digestive, and prostate cancers, 30.9% revealed targetable genomic alterations, with EGFR being the most common altered gene.
  • - Among patients with resistance mechanisms, 45% had treatments tailored based on identified mechanisms, resulting in an average of 11 months of additional clinical benefit.
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  • * Researchers analyzed data from 1,194 CML patients, finding that younger age and absence of comorbidities were linked to higher adherence rates, while older patients faced increased risk of treatment discontinuation.
  • * The findings indicate that low adherence contributes to higher mortality and transplantation rates, emphasizing the need for strategies to improve patient adherence in CML treatment.
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Non-alcoholic and low-alcoholic beers often suffer from inferior foaming quality and lack palate fullness, both of which are positively influenced by arabinoxylan. This study aimed to identify factors during brewing that most affect arabinoxylan content and structure. Analysis showed that malting and mashing had the most significant impact on arabinoxylan, increasing its extractability and reducing its molecular weight.

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Purpose: To determine whether the Lrit3-/- mouse model of complete congenital stationary night blindness with an ON-pathway defect harbors myopic features and whether the genetic defect influences the recovery from lens-induced myopia.

Methods: Retinal levels of dopamine (DA) and 3,4 dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) from adult isolated Lrit3-/- retinas were quantified using ultra performance liquid chromatography after light adaptation. Natural refractive development of Lrit3-/- mice was measured from three weeks to nine weeks of age using an infrared photorefractometer.

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