The immune response to a Coxiella burnetii vaccine in sheep varies according to their natural pre-exposure.

Q fever in humans is caused by Coxiella (C.) burnetii. In 2008 and 2012, cases of Q fever in humans were linked to an infected flock of approximately 650 ewes.

Safety analysis of new medications in clinical trials: a simulation study to assess the differences between cause-specific and subdistribution frameworks in the presence of competing events.

Safety is an essential part of the evaluation of new medications and competing risks that occur in most clinical trials are a well identified challenge in the analysis of adverse events. Two statistical frameworks exist to consider competing risks: the cause-specific and the subdistribution framework. To date, the application of the cause-specific framework is the standard practice in safety analyses.

Long-term control of Coxiellosis in sheep by annual primary vaccination of gimmers.

Coxiella (C.) burnetii, a Gram-negative intracellular bacterium, causes Q fever in humans and Coxiellosis in animals. Ruminants are a primary source of human infection with C.

Prostate cancer in PI-RADS scores 1 and 2 version 2.1: a comparison to previous PI-RADS versions.

Purpose: To evaluate the validity of PI-RADS categories 1 and 2 version 2.1 (V2.1) as predictors of the absence of carcinoma and to reevaluate lesions that were analysed as suspicious prior to PI-RADS or according to PI-RADS versions 1 and 2 and classified as PI-RADS 1 or 2 in V2.

Crisis-driven innovation and fundamental human needs: A typological framework of rapid-response COVID-19 innovations.

As a microcosm for future challenges, the COVID-19 pandemic exhibits increasingly transboundary dynamics, causing interconnected problems across multiple societal systems. To examine the role of innovations as a social mechanism to reconcile these arising challenges, we view the unfolding of the pandemic through the lens of a content analysis of 707 innovation projects that address the fundamental human needs of consumers and businesses. This study proposes a novel procedure to characterize large-scale innovative activities via text mining and employs a theoretical framework for identifying the pressing societal needs amidst crises.

Self-reported cardiovascular health of teachers: results from the 5-year follow-up of the Gutenberg Health Study cohort.

Objectives: Following an exploratory approach, we examined cardiovascular disease risk factors at baseline and the 5-year incidence proportion of self-reported doctor-diagnosed cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in teachers and other occupational groups of the Gutenberg Health Study.

Methods: Study participants lived in the region of Mainz, Germany. Data from 6510 working participants without prevalent CVD at baseline (2007-2012) were analyzed.

Impact of magnetic resonance imaging-guided prostate biopsy in the supine position on the detection of significant prostate cancer in an inhomogeneous patient cohort.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the tumour detection rate of magnetic resonance-guided biopsy (MRGB) in the supine position for significant prostate cancer in an inhomogeneous patient cohort.

Materials And Methods: Thirty-two consecutive patients with a total prostate-specific antigen > 4 ng/ml and/or a tumour-suspicious palpable lesion upon digital rectal examination and a cancer-suspicious region in multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) underwent MRGB in a standard 1.5 T magnet.

How good is post-biopsy multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging in detecting and characterising the index lesion of localised prostate cancer?

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of multiparametric endorectal magnetic resonance imaging (mp-MRI) in detecting and characterising the largest tumour lesion, which is defined as the index tumour of prostate cancer.

Material And Methods: A total of 55 patients with proven histological prostate cancer underwent post-biopsy MRI at 1.5 T and subsequent radical prostatectomy.

Avian influenza A virus monitoring in wild birds in Bavaria: occurrence and heterogeneity of H5 and N1 encoding genes.

To define avian influenza virus prevalence in wild birds in Bavaria, 12,930 tracheal, cloacal swabs or tissue samples from various waterfowl species were screened between January 2006 and December 2007. In 291 (2.3%) birds, genomes of influenza A viruses were detected by reverse transcription real-time PCR (rRT-PCR) targeting the matrix protein genes.

[Surveillance of wild birds for avian influenza A virus (AIV) in Bavaria in the years 2007 and 2008].

A monitoring programme has been initiated in Bavaria to continuously control wild birds for the presence of avian Influenza A virus (AIV) and to monitor the possible occurrence and accumulation of notifiable AIV subtypes as an early-warning system. In addition information about the regional, seasonal and species-specific distribution of AIV could be obtained. Between July 2007 and December 2008 samples from 5864 wild birds of twelve different zoological orders had been collected (cloacal- and tracheal swab samples, droppings, and organs) and analysed.

Diagnosis of hepatic iron overload: a family study illustrating pitfalls in diagnosing hemochromatosis.

Recent identification of genetic variants in iron storage disease has changed the classification system and diagnostic algorithms for hemochromatosis. Clinical diagnosis of the disease requires phenotypic evidence of iron overload because the commonly disease-associated HFE genotypes have an incomplete penetrance. Furthermore, approximately 20% of patients with a clinical diagnosis of hemochromatosis have no disease-associated genotype, which underlines the importance of clear phenotypic criteria of hemochromatosis.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (H5N1) in frozen duck carcasses, Germany, 2007.

We conducted phylogenetic and epidemiologic analyses to determine sources of outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV), subtype H5N1, in poultry holdings in 2007 in Germany, and a suspected incursion of HPAIV into the food chain through contaminated deep-frozen duck carcasses. In summer 2007, HPAIV (H5N1) outbreaks in 3 poultry holdings in Germany were temporally, spatially, and phylogenetically linked to outbreaks in wild aquatic birds. Detection of HPAIV (H5N1) in frozen duck carcass samples of retained slaughter batches of 1 farm indicated that silent infection had occurred for some time before the incidental detection.

Severe course of rat bite-associated Weil's disease in a patient diagnosed with a new Leptospira-specific real-time quantitative LUX-PCR.

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease with global distribution, caused by spirochaetes of the genus Leptospira. Transmission of Leptospira interrogans serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae, the causative agent of Weil's disease, to humans usually results from exposure to the urine of infected, but mostly asymptomatic, rodents, either by direct contact or indirectly through contaminated soil or water. Although regarded as a re-emerging infectious disease, human leptospirosis is probably underdiagnosed due to its often unspecific clinical appearance and difficulties in culturing leptospires.

Genetic evidence for multi-event imports of avian influenza virus A (H5N1) into Bavaria, Germany.

The almost simultaneous initial detections of avian influenza A H5N1 viruses in central Europe in February 2006, at a time devoid of migratory bird activity, raised the question of the origin of these viruses. This report presents molecular data from Europe providing evidence for multiple and spatially overlapping H5N1 introductions into Bavaria, Germany.

[Case report: mast cell leukosis in a neonatal calf].

Multicentric mast cell tumours in a newborn Fleckvieh-calf are described. The calf showed clearly pronounced lesions over the whole body. The lesions were multiple raised, cutaneous, greyisch-red and partially ulcerated.

[Prevalence and association of porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2), porcine parvovirus (PPV) and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) in aborted fetuses, mummified fetuses, stillborn and nonviable neonatal piglets].

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) seems to cause reproductive failure in sows not only in experimental studies. A retrospective study was made with a total of 252 aborted fetuses, mummified fetuses, stillborn and nonviable neonatal piglets to determine the presence of PCV2, porcine parvovirus (PPV) and porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome virus (PRRSV) by PCR. PCV2 was found in all stages of gestation in 27.

Localization and synthesis of zona pellucida proteins in the marmoset monkey (Callithrix jacchus) ovary.

In most species, the zona pellucida (ZP), an extracellular matrix surrounding the mammalian oocyte, is composed of three glycoproteins: ZPA, ZPB and ZPC. Based mainly on results with mice, the site of zona pellucida biosynthesis has been suggested to be exclusively in the oocyte cytoplasm. However, evidence is accumulating that among various species cumulus/granulosa cells may be involved.

[Requirements for the use of ELISA systems in eradication programs].

Users of ELISA test systems applied in eradication schemes must be aware of their potential and their limitations. Means to improve laboratory quality as well as strict performance of the test procedure are essential. Sensitivity and specificity of test systems are limited.

[BHV-1 eradication program in Bavaria: a marker-independent strategy].

In Bavaria a BHV-1 eradication program was initiated in 1986 and was changed to a compulsory program in 1998. The eradication success increased progressively from < 50% in 1986 to 87% of the farms in 2002. BHV 1-free farms are controlled by bulk milk serology twice a year along with blood serology in animals that are negative but from herds where positive field virus infected animals are present.

In vitro and in vivo comparison of egg yolk-based and soybean lecithin-based extenders for cryopreservation of bovine semen.

Semen diluents containing egg yolk as a cryoprotectant may pose hygienic risks and are difficult to standardize. Although a new generation of semen diluents free of animal ingredients is available, egg yolk-containing extenders are still widely used for cryopreserving semen. We compared the effects of using different extenders on bovine sperm function in vitro and on fertility in vivo.

Initiation of CPAP therapy for OSA: does prophylactic humidification during CPAP pressure titration improve initial patient acceptance and comfort?

Background: Heated humidifiers (HH) enable effective treatment of upper airway dryness during nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) therapy for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA), but the role of prophylactic use of HH during the initiation of nCPAP treatment has not been studied so far.

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate whether prophylactic HH during the initiation of CPAP would result in improved initial patient comfort and acceptance.

Methods: In 44 consecutive, previously untreated OSA patients with no history of upper airway dryness, CPAP titration with and without HH was performed on two consecutive nights in a randomised order.

Alterations of intracranial pressure and cerebral blood flow velocity in healthy neonates and their implication in the origin of perinatal brain damage.

Intracranial pressure and cerebral blood flow velocity were recorded in term healthy neonates during the first 3 days of life using non-invasive methods (LADD-fontanometry and cw-Doppler sonography). Intracranial pressure increased from 4.0 +/- 2.