Dynamic modulation of the processing of unpredicted technical errors by the posterior cingulate and the default mode network.

The pervasive use of information technologies (IT) has tremendously benefited our daily lives. However, unpredicted technical breakdowns and errors can lead to the experience of stress, which has been termed technostress. It remains poorly understood how people dynamically respond to unpredicted system runtime errors occurring while interacting with the IT systems on a behavioral and neuronal level.

Automatic classification of experimental models in biomedical literature to support searching for alternative methods to animal experiments.

Current animal protection laws require replacement of animal experiments with alternative methods, whenever such methods are suitable to reach the intended scientific objective. However, searching for alternative methods in the scientific literature is a time-consuming task that requires careful screening of an enormously large number of experimental biomedical publications. The identification of potentially relevant methods, e.

Protocol to conduct functional magnetic resonance spectroscopy in different age groups of human participants.

We present a protocol to conduct functional magnetic resonance spectroscopy (fMRS) in human participants before, during, and after training on a visual task. We describe steps for participant setup, volume-of-interest placement, fMRS measurement, and post-scan tests. We discuss the design, analysis, and interpretation of fMRS experiments.

Vestibular and visual brain areas in the medial cortex of the human brain.

Self-motion perception involves an interaction between vestibular and visual brain regions. In the lateral brain, it includes the parietoinsular vestibular cortex and the posterior insular cortex. In the medial cortex, the cingulate sulcus visual (CSv) area is known to process visual-vestibular cues.

GPER1 links estrogens to centrosome amplification and chromosomal instability in human colon cells.

The role of the alternate G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 (GPER1) in colorectal cancer (CRC) development and progression is unclear, not least because of conflicting clinical and experimental evidence for pro- and anti-tumorigenic activities. Here, we show that low concentrations of the estrogenic GPER1 ligands, 17β-estradiol, bisphenol A, and diethylstilbestrol cause the generation of lagging chromosomes in normal colon and CRC cell lines, which manifest in whole chromosomal instability and aneuploidy. Mechanistically, (xeno)estrogens triggered centrosome amplification by inducing centriole overduplication that leads to transient multipolar mitotic spindles, chromosome alignment defects, and mitotic laggards.

Efficient learning in children with rapid GABA boosting during and after training.

It is generally thought that children learn more efficiently than adults. One way to accomplish this is to have learning rapidly stabilized such that it is not interfered with by subsequent learning. Although γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) plays an important role in stabilization, it has been reported that GABAergic inhibitory processing is not fully matured yet in children compared with adults.

Adamant: a JSON schema-based metadata editor for research data management workflows.

The web tool Adamant has been developed to systematically collect research metadata as early as the conception of the experiment. Adamant enables a continuous, consistent, and transparent research data management (RDM) process, which is a key element of good scientific practice ensuring the path to Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable (FAIR) research data. It simplifies the creation of on-demand metadata schemas and the collection of metadata according to established or new standards.

Plasma-MDS, a metadata schema for plasma science with examples from plasma technology.

A metadata schema, named Plasma-MDS, is introduced to support research data management in plasma science. Plasma-MDS is suitable to facilitate the publication of research data following the FAIR principles in domain-specific repositories and with this the reuse of research data for data driven plasma science. In accordance with common features in plasma science and technology, the metadata schema bases on the concept to separately describe the source generating the plasma, the medium in which the plasma is operated in, the target the plasma is acting on, and the diagnostics used for investigation of the process under consideration.

Biomedical Research Meets Toxicology: How Chromosome Instability Methods Can Contribute to Carcinogenicity Prediction.

Cancer is a major health concern and a leading cause of mortality. The reliable identification of carcinogens and understanding of carcinogenicity has become a main focus of biomedical research and regulatory toxicology. While biomedical research applies cellular methods to uncover the underlying mechanisms causing cancer, regulatory toxicology relies on animal testing to predict carcinogenicity of chemicals, often with limited human relevance.

Multimodal Clinical Imaging Assessment of the Outcome in Mild-to-Moderate Acne: A Prospective Study.

Background: The quality of outcome assessment in acne studies has been either subjective/insufficient or time consuming through the ordinary lesion counting.

Objective: To evaluate the application of multimodal clinical imaging (MCI), a combination of imaging technology and computation, in the assessment of acne lesions in a clinical study setting.

Methods: A prospective, monocentric, single-group open study designed to evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of a cosmetic product (IP/SG) in subjects with mild-to-moderate facial acne by classical clinical counting (CCC) - change in the total/inflammatory/noninflammatory acne lesion number compared with baseline (D0) - Investigator Global Assessment (IGA) and self-reported outcomes.

Nuclear Localization of Robo is Associated with Better Survival in Bladder Cancer.

The Slit-Robo pathway has shown to be altered in several malignant diseases. However, its role in bladder cancer is poorly understood. Therefore, we aimed to assess the tissue expression of Robo1 and Robo4 as well as their ligand Slit2 in different stages of bladder cancer to explore possible changes of Slit-Robo signalling during the progression of bladder cancer.

Hyperspectral imaging of tissue perfusion and oxygenation in wounds: assessing the impact of a micro capillary dressing.

Objective: Experimental tests of non-invasive multi- or hyperspectral imaging (HSI) systems reveal the high potential of support for medical diagnostic purposes and scientific biomedical analysis. Until now the use of HSI technologies for medical applications was limited by complex and overly sophisticated systems. We present a new and compact HSI-camera that could be used in normal clinical practice.

Objective assessment of acne.

A precise and reliable assessment of acne severity is unarguably the most essential clinical method when it comes to monitoring and choosing optimal treatment in the daily practice. Since the early 1960s, different severity assessment systems have been described in the literature. The two commonly used concepts are global gradings and lesion counting.

Formation of hybrid ABX perovskite compounds for solar cell application: first-principles calculations of effective ionic radii and determination of tolerance factors.

The development of hybrid organic-inorganic perovskite solar cells is one of the most rapidly growing fields in the photovoltaic community and is on its way to challenge polycrystalline silicon and thin film technologies. High power conversion efficiencies can be achieved by simple processing with low cost. However, due to the limited long-term stability and environmental toxicity of lead in the prototypic CHNHPbI, there is a need to find alternative ABX constitutional combinations in order to promote commercialization.

A diagnostic predicament: activated sarcoidosis or pulmonary histoplasmosis. A case report.

We report a case of a 41-year-old man presenting with persisting fevers over 2 weeks. The patient had spent 4 weeks in Central America. He was in control of a stable stage II sarcoidosis.

Analysis of putative protomer crosstalk in the trimeric transporter BetP: The heterotrimer approach.

The homotrimeric, secondary active betaine carrier BetP from Corynebacterium glutamicum is a model system for stress-regulated transport in bacteria. Its activity responds to hyperosmotic stress and it harbors two different functions, transport catalysis (betaine uptake) and stimulus sensing, resp. activity regulation.

Direct identification of bacteria in urine samples by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and relevance of defensins as interfering factors.

Standard methods for the identification of uropathogens that are based on the determination of metabolic activity require cultivation on agar plates, which often takes more than 1 day. If microbial growth on agar plates is slow, or if metabolic activity is impaired by adverse interactions resulting from the patient's condition or from medical treatment, the application of standard methods may lead to delayed or erroneous identification of bacteria. In recent studies, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has proven to be able to rapidly identify bacteria obtained from cultures.

Osmotic stress response in C. glutamicum: impact of channel- and transporter-mediated potassium accumulation.

Potassium accumulation is an essential aspect of bacterial response to diverse stress situations; consequently its uptake plays a pivotal role. Here, we show that the Gram-positive soil bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum which is employed for the large-scale industrial production of amino acids requires potassium under conditions of ionic and non-ionic osmotic stress. Besides the accumulation of high concentrations of potassium contributing significantly to the osmotic potential of the cytoplasm, we demonstrate that glutamate is not the counter ion for potassium under these conditions.

PSA quo vadis? It is reasonable to start with prostate-specific antigen testing at the age of 40!

Background: It is common to start with PSA (prostate-specific antigen)-testing at the age of 50. If patients with a PSA value greater than 4 ng/mL should be considered for prostate biopsy, approximately 20% of all men undergoing test are considered for biopsy at the time of first early-detection examination.

Methods: We have screened 2,592 asymptomatic men younger than 45 years.

Validation of circulating MMP-7 level as an independent prognostic marker of poor survival in urinary bladder cancer.

Molecular marker analyses aiming a more accurate disease characterization and risk stratification of cancer patients provided several promising marker candidates in the last few years. However, recent reviews underlined the paramount importance of validation, since many of the initially promising results could not be confirmed in independent patient cohorts. If serum or plasma is a more appropriate sample to test for prognostic markers is a matter of debate.

Correlation of pathological and cytological-cytometric grading of transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary tract.

Introduction: Cystoscopy and cytology are standard procedures for diagnosis and follow-up of patients with bladder cancer. Urinary cytodiagnosis is a descriptive method for tumor characterization. We correlated histopathologic diagnosis of noninvasive urothelial carcinomas with cytological evaluation and, furthermore, we validated cytology by cytometric analysis.

Urinary matrix metalloproteinase-7 level is associated with the presence of metastasis in bladder cancer.

Objective: • To assess the presence of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-7 in urine samples of patients with bladder cancer and to investigate the correlation between MMP-7 urine concentration and clinicopathological variables.

Patients And Methods: • The presence of MMP-7 in the urine of patients with bladder cancer was tested in 32 representative cases using immunoprecipitation followed by western blot analysis. • Urinary MMP-7 concentration levels were analyzed in 132 patients with bladder cancer and 96 controls using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Prognostic impact of plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 expression in bladder cancer.

Background: Recent studies have demonstrated a poor prognosis for patients who have altered expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1) in several cancer types. The objective of the current study was to investigate the prognostic impact of PAI-1 on patients with transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the urinary bladder.

Methods: PAI-1 expression was quantified using real-time polymerase chain reaction in 91 TCCs and in 6 normal tissue specimens.

Elevated serum matrix metalloproteinase 7 levels predict poor prognosis after radical prostatectomy.

Elevated matrix metalloproteinase-7 (MMP-7) tissue expression and serum concentration have been shown to be associated with cancer progression and metastasis. The aim of our study was to assess the prognostic value of preoperative circulating MMP-7 levels in serum samples of patients with clinically localized prostate cancer. Furthermore, we compared the serum MMP-7 levels between patients with organ confined and metastatic prostate cancer.