Engineered extrachromosomal oncogene amplifications promote tumorigenesis.

Focal gene amplifications are among the most common cancer-associated mutations but have proven challenging to engineer in primary cells and model organisms. Here we describe a general strategy to engineer large (more than 1 Mbp) focal amplifications mediated by extrachromosomal DNAs (ecDNAs) in a spatiotemporally controlled manner in cells and in mice. By coupling ecDNA formation with expression of selectable markers, we track the dynamics of ecDNA-containing cells under physiological conditions and in the presence of specific selective pressures.

Strong connectivity to the sensorimotor cortex predicts clinical effectiveness of thalamic deep brain stimulation in essential tremor.

Introduction: The outcome of thalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) for essential tremor (ET) varies, probably due to the difficulty in identifying the optimal target for DBS placement. Recent approaches compared the clinical response with a connectivity-based segmentation of the target area. However, studies are contradictory by indicating the connectivity to the primary motor cortex (M1) or to the premotor/supplementary motor cortex (SMA) to be therapeutically relevant.

Perioperative Observations and Outcome in Surgical Treatment of Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors.

Background/objectives: This retrospective observational study aimed to investigate the perioperative outcome in Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors (MPNSTs) with and without relation to Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1) and to detect possible influencing factors.

Methods: Clinical reports, histopathological evaluations, imaging, and treatment characteristics were reviewed in 35 operated MPNSTs in 33 patients. Possible predictive valuables included disease type, preoperative tumor volume, SUV and MIB-1 proliferation index, resection margins, the presence of metastasis, and whether radio-/chemotherapy was received.

Problems when diagnosing cutaneous leishmaniasis: a retrospective study analyzing clinical, histopathological and immunohistochemical features.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) incidence in Switzerland is rising due to factors like migration and globalization. The aim of this work was to investigate CL frequency in Switzerland and identify clinical and histopathological difficulties in diagnosing CL in a non-endemic country.

Patients And Methods: This retrospective study evaluated the clinical and histopathological characteristics of all CL cases from two dermatopathology laboratories between 2000 and 2022.

In-situ electrochemical impedance analysis of a commercial SOFC stack fueled by real wood gas.

The combination of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) and wood gasification has the potential to significantly increase renewable electricity production and decrease emissions. Depending on the quality of the wood gas, degradation processes have a significant impact on the reliability and lifetime of the SOFC. Using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and subsequent distribution of relaxation times (DRT) analysis, the impact on the degradation of coupling wood gasification with a commercial SOFC stack is determined in this study.