Systematic assessment of COVID-19 host genetics using whole genome sequencing data.

Courses of SARS-CoV-2 infections are highly variable, ranging from asymptomatic to lethal COVID-19. Though research has shown that host genetic factors contribute to this variability, cohort-based joint analyses of variants from the entire allelic spectrum in individuals with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infections are still lacking. Here, we present the results of whole genome sequencing in 1,220 mainly vaccine-naïve individuals with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, including 827 hospitalized COVID-19 cases.

The Physiological and Biochemical Response of Ribbed Mussels to Rising Temperatures: Benefits of Salt Marsh Cordgrass.

Salt marsh ecosystems are heavily reliant on ribbed mussel () populations to aid in rapid recovery from droughts. The focus of this study was thus to document the effects of rising temperatures on ribbed mussel populations in a Georgia salt marsh. Seven lab and eight field experiments were used to assess the effects of current air temperatures on mussels at two high marsh (HM) sites with short and sparse cordgrass and one mid marsh (MM) site with tall and dense cordgrass.

Evaluation of a host-protein signature score for differentiating between bacterial and viral infections: real-life evidence from a German tertiary hospital.

Purpose: A host-protein signature score, consisting of serum-concentrations of C-reactive protein, tumour necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand, and interferon gamma-induced protein 10, was validated for distinguishing between bacterial and viral infections as an antimicrobial stewardship measure for routine clinical practice among adult patients in a German tertiary hospital.

Methods: This single-centre, explorative study prospectively assessed the host-protein signature score, comparing it with serum procalcitonin (PCT) in patients with blood stream infections (BSI) and evaluating its efficacy in patients with viral infections against the standard of care (SOC) to assess the need for antibiotics due to suspected bacterial super/coinfection. Manufacturer-specified threshold scores were used to differentiate viral (< 35) and bacterial (> 65) infections.

Electronic data capture in resource-limited settings using the lightweight clinical data acquisition and recording system.

Our prototype system designed for clinical data acquisition and recording of studies is a novel electronic data capture (EDC) software for simple and lightweight data capture in clinical research. Existing software tools are either costly or suffer from very limited features. To overcome these shortcomings, we designed an EDC software together with a mobile client.

A precise performance-based reimbursement model for the multi-centre NAPKON cohorts - development and evaluation.

Fair allocation of funding in multi-centre clinical studies is challenging. Models commonly used in Germany - the case fees ("fixed-rate model", FRM) and up-front staffing and consumables ("up-front allocation model", UFAM) lack transparency and fail to suitably accommodate variations in centre performance. We developed a performance-based reimbursement model (PBRM) with automated calculation of conducted activities and applied it to the cohorts of the National Pandemic Cohort Network (NAPKON) within the Network of University Medicine (NUM).

Postmortem Minimally Invasive Autopsy in Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients at the Bedside: A Proof-of-Concept Study at the ICU.

Background: Economic restrictions and workforce cuts have continually challenged conventional autopsies. Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has added tissue quality and safety requirements to the investigation of this disease, thereby launching efforts to upgrade autopsy strategies.

Methods: In this proof-of-concept study, we performed bedside ultrasound-guided minimally invasive autopsy (US-MIA) in the ICU of critically ill COVID-19 patients using a structured protocol to obtain non-autolyzed tissue.

Clinical and immunological outcomes of SARS-CoV-2-infected vaccine responders, vaccine non-responders, and unvaccinated patients evaluated for neutralizing monoclonal antibody treatment at a single German tertiary care center: a retrospective cohort study with prospective follow-up.

Purpose: This study assessed the clinical and immunological outcomes of SARS-CoV-2-infected patients with risk factors for severe disease depending on their immunological status.

Methods: In this retrospective study with single follow-up visit, clinical outcome and humoral immunity was monitored in SARS-CoV-2 infected patients at risk. The results were compared based on the patients' initial immunological status: unvaccinated (UV), patients who did not develop neutralizing antibodies after vaccination (vaccine non-responders, VNR), and patients who expressed neutralizing antibodies after vaccination (vaccine responders, VR).

Platelet aggregates detected using quantitative phase imaging associate with COVID-19 severity.

Background: The clinical spectrum of acute SARS-CoV-2 infection ranges from an asymptomatic to life-threatening disease. Considering the broad spectrum of severity, reliable biomarkers are required for early risk stratification and prediction of clinical outcomes. Despite numerous efforts, no COVID-19-specific biomarker has been established to guide further diagnostic or even therapeutic approaches, most likely due to insufficient validation, methodical complexity, or economic factors.

Are enterococcal bloodstream infections an independent risk factor for a poorer 5-year survival or just a marker for severity of illness?-The Munich multicentric enterococci cohort.

The present study provides a substantial contribution to literature, showing that patients with enterococcal bloodstream infections (BSI) have a lower survival rate than those with () bloodstream infections after adjusting for 17 limiting prognostic factors and excluding patients with a limited life expectancy [metastatic tumor disease, Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) (greater than or equal to) 5]. This difference in the 5-year long-term survival was mainly driven by (ECFM) bloodstream infections, with vancomycin resistance not being a significant contributing factor. Our findings imply that bloodstream infections seem to be an independent risk factor for poor long-term outcomes.

Rapid point-of-care detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection in exhaled breath using ion mobility spectrometry: a pilot study.

Background: An effective testing strategy is essential for pandemic control of the novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Breath gas analysis can expand the available toolbox for diagnostic tests by using a rapid, cost-beneficial, high-throughput point-of-care test. We conducted a bi-center clinical pilot study in Germany to evaluate breath gas analysis using multi-capillary column ion mobility spectrometry (MCC-IMS) to detect SARS-CoV-2 infection.

CEBPA phase separation links transcriptional activity and 3D chromatin hubs.

Cell identity is orchestrated through an interplay between transcription factor (TF) action and genome architecture. The mechanisms used by TFs to shape three-dimensional (3D) genome organization remain incompletely understood. Here we present evidence that the lineage-instructive TF CEBPA drives extensive chromatin compartment switching and promotes the formation of long-range chromatin hubs during induced B cell-to-macrophage transdifferentiation.

Covid-19 triage in the emergency department 2.0: how analytics and AI transform a human-made algorithm for the prediction of clinical pathways.

The Covid-19 pandemic has pushed many hospitals to their capacity limits. Therefore, a triage of patients has been discussed controversially primarily through an ethical perspective. The term triage contains many aspects such as urgency of treatment, severity of the disease and pre-existing conditions, access to critical care, or the classification of patients regarding subsequent clinical pathways starting from the emergency department.

Regulation of T cell differentiation and function by long noncoding RNAs in homeostasis and cancer.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) increase in genomes of complex organisms and represent the largest group of RNA genes transcribed in mammalian cells. Previously considered only transcriptional noise, lncRNAs comprise a heterogeneous class of transcripts that are emerging as critical regulators of T cell-mediated immunity. Here we summarize the lncRNA expression landscape of different T cell subsets and highlight recent advances in the role of lncRNAs in regulating T cell differentiation, function and exhaustion during homeostasis and cancer.

Transpulmonary thermodilution: A revised correction formula for global end-diastolic volume index derived after femoral indicator injection.

Purpose: Transpulmonary thermodilution (TPTD) is usually performed by jugular indicator injection. In clinical practice, femoral venous access is often used instead, resulting in substantial overestimation of global end-diastolic volume index (GEDVI). A correction formula compensates for that.

Validation of the SACOV-19 score for identifying patients at risk of complicated or more severe COVID-19: a prospective study.

Purpose: Identification of patients at risk of complicated or more severe COVID-19 is of pivotal importance, since these patients might require monitoring, antiviral treatment, and hospitalization. In this study, we prospectively evaluated the SACOV-19 score for its ability to predict complicated or more severe COVID-19.

Methods: In this prospective multicenter study, we included 124 adult patients with acute COVID-19 in three German hospitals, who were diagnosed in an early, uncomplicated stage of COVID-19 within 72 h of inclusion.

Accuracy of hemodynamic parameters derived by GE E-PiCCO in comparison with PiCCO® in patients admitted to the intensive care unit.

To evaluate the agreement and accuracy of a novel advanced hemodynamic monitoring (AHM) device, the GE E-PiCCO module, with the well-established PiCCO® device in intensive care patients using pulse contour analysis (PCA) and transpulmonary thermodilution (TPTD). A total of 108 measurements were performed in 15 patients with AHM. Each of the 27 measurement sequences (one to four per patient) consisted of a femoral and a jugular indicator injection via central venous catheters (CVC) and measurement using both PiCCO (PiCCO® Jug and Fem) and GE E-PiCCO (GE E-PiCCO Jug and Fem) devices.

Hepatic genomic assessment of dietary ingestion of 2-aminoanthracene in Sprague Dawley rats.

This research aims to investigate the effects of 2-aminoanthracene (2-AA), a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), on the liver. PAH is a by-product of the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels. Specifically, the impact of 2-AA on different body tissues in animals has been reported.

Consistency as a Data Quality Measure for German Corona Consensus Items Mapped from National Pandemic Cohort Network Data Collections.

Background: As a national effort to better understand the current pandemic, three cohorts collect sociodemographic and clinical data from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients from different target populations within the German National Pandemic Cohort Network (NAPKON). Furthermore, the German Corona Consensus Dataset (GECCO) was introduced as a harmonized basic information model for COVID-19 patients in clinical routine. To compare the cohort data with other GECCO-based studies, data items are mapped to GECCO.