The effect of live-performed music therapy with physical contact in preterm infants on parental perceived stress and salivary cortisol levels.

Introduction: Parents of preterm infants face a stressful life event which might have long term impact on the parent-child relation as well as on the infant's cognitive and socio-emotional development. Both music therapy (MT) and physical contact (PC) are stress-reducing interventions for parents and preterm infants on the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Meanwhile, especially close PC is considered as standard care (SC) in most NICUs.

Neoarchaean oxygen-based nitrogen cycle en route to the Great Oxidation Event.

The nitrogen isotopic composition of sedimentary rocks (δN) can trace redox-dependent biological pathways and early Earth oxygenation. However, there is no substantial change in the sedimentary δN record across the Great Oxidation Event about 2.45 billion years ago (Ga), a prominent redox change.

GMP-compliant iPS cell lines show widespread plasticity in a new set of differentiation workflows for cell replacement and cancer immunotherapy.

Cell therapeutic applications based on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) appear highly promising and challenging at the same time. Good manufacturing practice (GMP) regulations impose necessary yet demanding requirements for quality and consistency when manufacturing iPSCs and their differentiated progeny. Given the scarcity of accessible GMP iPSC lines, we have established a corresponding production workflow to generate the first set of compliant cell banks.

Automated quantification of photoreceptor outer segments in developing and degenerating retinas on microscopy images across scales.

The functionality of photoreceptors, rods, and cones is highly dependent on their outer segments (POS), a cellular compartment containing highly organized membranous structures that generate biochemical signals from incident light. While POS formation and degeneration are qualitatively assessed on microscopy images, reliable methodology for quantitative analyses is still limited. Here, we developed methods to quantify POS (QuaPOS) maturation and quality on retinal sections using automated image analyses.

[Ophthalmological research in Germany: evaluation by an international expert panel].

Purpose: To evaluate the research performance in ophthalmology in Germany based on the findings of the recent research map of the German Ophthalmological Society ( DOG) and to suggest strategies for future improvements on a national level both to DOG as well as to politics. The focus is on preclinical and translational clinical research.

Methods: International expert panel evaluation and discussion organized by the Task Force Research of the German Ophthalmological Society (DOG).

COMFORTneo scale in preterm infants during live performed music therapy-Difference between close physical contact and hand touch contact.

There is evidence that music therapy combined with physical contact to parents stabilizes the vital signs of hospitalized preterm infants. Yet, there is no evidence for the difference between simple contact by touching the infant in the incubator or cod, or close physical contact during music therapy sessions (MT). Behavioral effects of the various forms of attention toward the infant during therapy need to be elucidated.

Phytoplanktonic species in the haloalkaline Lake Dziani Dzaha select their archaeal microbiome.

Microorganisms are key contributors of aquatic biogeochemical cycles but their microscale ecology remains largely unexplored, especially interactions occurring between phytoplankton and microorganisms in the phycosphere, that is the region immediately surrounding phytoplankton cells. The current study aimed to provide evidence of the phycosphere taking advantage of a unique hypersaline, hyperalkaline ecosystem, Lake Dziani Dzaha (Mayotte), where two phytoplanktonic species permanently co-dominate: a cyanobacterium, Arthrospira fusiformis, and a green microalga, Picocystis salinarum. To assay phycospheric microbial diversity from in situ sampling, we set up a flow cytometry cell-sorting methodology for both phytoplanktonic populations, coupled with metabarcoding and comparative microbiome diversity.

Reliability of human retina organoid generation from hiPSC-derived neuroepithelial cysts.

The possible applications for human retinal organoids (HROs) derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) rely on the robustness and transferability of the methodology for their generation. Standardized strategies and parameters to effectively assess, compare, and optimize organoid protocols are starting to be established, but are not yet complete. To advance this, we explored the efficiency and reliability of a differentiation method, called CYST protocol, that facilitates retina generation by forming neuroepithelial cysts from hiPSC clusters.

Iron-mediated anaerobic ammonium oxidation recorded in the early Archean ferruginous ocean.

The nitrogen isotopic composition of organic matter is controlled by metabolic activity and redox speciation and has therefore largely been used to uncover the early evolution of life and ocean oxygenation. Specifically, positive δ N values found in well-preserved sedimentary rocks are often interpreted as reflecting the stability of a nitrate pool sustained by water column partial oxygenation. This study adds much-needed data to the sparse Paleoarchean record, providing carbon and nitrogen concentrations and isotopic compositions for more than fifty samples from the 3.

[Scientific performance of ophthalmological research institutions in Germany 2018-2020 : Studies, publications, third-party funding and more-The research map of the German Ophthalmological Society (DOG)].

Background: The German Ophthalmological Society (DOG) regularly records the scientific activities of ophthalmological research institutions in Germany.

Objective: With this publication the DOG wants to make the performance of scientific ophthalmology in Germany transparent and increase the options for future research cooperation with facilities of research institutions.

Methods: Systematic survey of German research centers in ophthalmology.

Transplanted human cones incorporate into the retina and function in a murine cone degeneration model.

Once human photoreceptors die, they do not regenerate, thus, photoreceptor transplantation has emerged as a potential treatment approach for blinding diseases. Improvements in transplant organization, donor cell maturation, and synaptic connectivity to the host will be critical in advancing this technology for use in clinical practice. Unlike the unstructured grafts of prior cell-suspension transplantations into end-stage degeneration models, we describe the extensive incorporation of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) retinal organoid-derived human photoreceptors into mice with cone dysfunction.

Measures of glucose homeostasis during and after duodenal exclusion using a duodenal-jejunal bypass liner in a normoglycemic, nonobese canine model.

Background: Discovering the role duodenal exclusion plays in weight loss and resolution of type 2 diabetes (T2D) may help refine the surgical and nonsurgical treatment of obesity and T2D.

Objectives: To assess changes in glucose homeostasis due to duodenal exclusion using a duodenal-jejunal bypass liner (DJBL) in a nonobese canine model.

Setting: Academic laboratory setting.

Evidence for endogenous exchange of cytoplasmic material between a subset of cone and rod photoreceptors within the adult mammalian retina via direct cell-cell connections.

Photoreceptor cell transplantation into the mouse retina has been shown to result in the transfer of cytoplasmic material between donor and host photoreceptors. Recently it has been found that this inter-photoreceptor material transfer process is likely to be mediated by nanotube-like structures connecting donor and host photoreceptors. By leveraging cone-specific reporter mice and super-resolution microscopy we provide evidence for the transfer of cytoplasmic material also from endogenous cones to endogenous rod photoreceptors and the existence of nanotube-like cell-cell connections possibly mediating this process in the adult mouse retina, together with preliminary data indicating that horizontal material transfer may also occur in the human retina.

The Physiology of Insulin Clearance.

In the 1950's, Dr. I. Arthur Mirsky first recognized the possible importance of insulin degradation changes to the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes.

The Dziani Dzaha Lake: A long-awaited modern analogue for superheavy pyrites.

Sedimentary records of superheavy pyrites in Phanerozoic and Proterozoic successions (i.e., extremely positive δ S values together with higher δ S than coeval δ S ) are mostly interpreted as resulting either from secondary postdepositional processes or from multiple redox reactions between sulfate and sulfide in stratified sulfate-poor environments.

Label-free imaging flow cytometry for analysis and sorting of enzymatically dissociated tissues.

Biomedical research relies on identification and isolation of specific cell types using molecular biomarkers and sorting methods such as fluorescence or magnetic activated cell sorting. Labelling processes potentially alter the cells' properties and should be avoided, especially when purifying cells for clinical applications. A promising alternative is the label-free identification of cells based on physical properties.

Machine learning assisted real-time deformability cytometry of CD34+ cells allows to identify patients with myelodysplastic syndromes.

Diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) mainly relies on a manual assessment of the peripheral blood and bone marrow cell morphology. The WHO guidelines suggest a visual screening of 200 to 500 cells which inevitably turns the assessor blind to rare cell populations and leads to low reproducibility. Moreover, the human eye is not suited to detect shifts of cellular properties of entire populations.

Strong reorganization of multi-domain microbial networks associated with primary producers sedimentation from oxic to anoxic conditions in an hypersaline lake.

Understanding the role of microbial interactions in the functioning of natural systems is often impaired by the levels of complexity they encompass. In this study, we used the relative simplicity of an hypersaline crater lake hosting only microbial organisms (Dziani Dzaha) to provide a detailed analysis of the microbial networks including the three domains of life. We identified two main ecological zones, one euphotic and oxic zone in surface, where two phytoplanktonic organisms produce a very high biomass, and one aphotic and anoxic deeper zone, where this biomass slowly sinks and undergoes anaerobic degradation.

Influence of aphotic haloclines and euxinia on organic biomarkers and microbial communities in a thalassohaline and alkaline volcanic crater lake.

Studies on microbial communities, and their associated organic biomarkers, that are found thriving in the aphotic euxinic waters in modern stratified ecosystems are scarce compared to those undertaken in euxinic photic zones. The Dziani Dzaha (Mayotte, Indian Ocean) is a tropical, saline, alkaline crater lake that has recently been presented as a modern analog of Proterozoic Oceans due to its thalassohaline classification (having water of marine origin) and specific biogeochemical characteristics. Continuous intense photosynthetic production and microbial mineralization keep most of the water column permanently aphotic and anoxic preventing the development of a euxinic (sulfidic and anoxic) photic zone despite a high sulfide/sulfate ratio and the presence of permanent or seasonal haloclines.

Hyperinsulinemic Compensation for Insulin Resistance Occurs Independent of Elevated Glycemia in Male Dogs.

Insulin resistance engenders a compensatory increase in plasma insulin. Inadequate compensation is a primary element in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. The signal that heralds developing insulin resistance and initiates hyperinsulinemic compensation is not known.

Transplanted pluripotent stem cell-derived photoreceptor precursors elicit conventional and unusual light responses in mice with advanced retinal degeneration.

Retinal dystrophies often lead to blindness. Developing therapeutic interventions to restore vision is therefore of paramount importance. Here we demonstrate the ability of pluripotent stem cell-derived cone precursors to engraft and restore light responses in the Pde6brd1 mouse, an end-stage photoreceptor degeneration model.

Correction: Karimi, P., et al. Crocetin Prevents RPE Cells from Oxidative Stress through Protection of Cellular Metabolic Function and Activation of ERK1/2. 2020, , 2949.

The authors wish to make the following correction to Figure 6B of this article [...