VARX Granger analysis: Models for neuroscience, physiology, sociology and econometrics.

Complex systems, such as in brains, markets, and societies, exhibit internal dynamics influenced by external factors. Disentangling delayed external effects from internal dynamics within these systems is often difficult. We propose using a Vector Autoregressive model with eXogenous input (VARX) to capture delayed interactions between internal and external variables.

Intrinsic dynamic shapes responses to external stimulation in the human brain.

Sensory stimulation of the brain reverberates in its recurrent neuronal networks. However, current computational models of brain activity do not separate immediate sensory responses from intrinsic recurrent dynamics. We apply a vector-autoregressive model with external input (VARX), combining the concepts of "functional connectivity" and "encoding models", to intracranial recordings in humans.

Motifs of human hippocampal and cortical high frequency oscillations structure processing and memory of naturalistic stimuli.

The discrete events of our narrative experience are organized by the neural substrate that underlies episodic memory. This narrative process is segmented into discrete units by event boundaries. This permits a replay process that acts to consolidate each event into a narrative memory.

Neonatal Sepsis Episodes and Retinopathy of Prematurity in Very Preterm Infants.

Importance: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a major morbidity of preterm infants causing visual impairment, including blindness, for which timely treatment is vital and prevention is key. Increasing evidence suggests that exposure to neonatal sepsis contributes to ROP development.

Objective: To investigate the association between neonatal sepsis and ROP in 2 large-scale cohorts of preterm infants born at less than 29 weeks' gestation.

[ChatGPT and the German board examination for ophthalmology: an evaluation].

Purpose: In recent years artificial intelligence (AI), as a new segment of computer science, has also become increasingly more important in medicine. The aim of this project was to investigate whether the current version of ChatGPT (ChatGPT 4.0) is able to answer open questions that could be asked in the context of a German board examination in ophthalmology.

'Young crystallographers' rejuvenate crystallography in Germany.

Since its founding in 2013, the Young Crystallographers (YC) have become one of the most active working groups not only within their parent organization, the German Crystallographic Society (DGK), but also among other young crystallographers' groups in Europe and the world. The aim of the YC is and always has been to support early-career researchers in the diverse fields of crystallography and the rejuvenation of the field on a national scale. Over the past decade, we have curated events, platforms, and educational content tailored to foster collaboration and knowledge transfer among young crystallographers.

Treatment of multiple-beam X-ray diffraction in energy-dependent measurements.

During X-ray diffraction experiments on single crystals, the diffracted beam intensities may be affected by multiple-beam X-ray diffraction (MBD). This effect is particularly frequent at higher X-ray energies and for larger unit cells. The appearance of this so-called Renninger effect often impairs the interpretation of diffracted intensities.

An open-access dataset of naturalistic viewing using simultaneous EEG-fMRI.

In this work, we present a dataset that combines functional magnetic imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) to use as a resource for understanding human brain function in these two imaging modalities. The dataset can also be used for optimizing preprocessing methods for simultaneously collected imaging data. The dataset includes simultaneously collected recordings from 22 individuals (ages: 23-51) across various visual and naturalistic stimuli.

Semantic novelty modulates neural responses to visual change across the human brain.

Our continuous visual experience in daily life is dominated by change. Previous research has focused on visual change due to stimulus motion, eye movements or unfolding events, but not their combined impact across the brain, or their interactions with semantic novelty. We investigate the neural responses to these sources of novelty during film viewing.

Saccadic modulation of neural excitability in auditory areas of the neocortex.

In natural "active" vision, humans and other primates use eye movements (saccades) to sample bits of information from visual scenes. In the visual cortex, non-retinal signals linked to saccades shift visual cortical neurons into a high excitability state as each saccade ends. The extent of this saccadic modulation outside of the visual system is unknown.

Analysis of antibiotic resistance and genetic profile of conjunctival bacteria flora before and after cataract surgery.

Purpose: To analyze antibiotic resistance and genetic profile of conjunctival bacteria flora before and after cataract surgery with the focus on coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) during cataract surgery and discuss the implications of this colonization as a potential risk of acquiring endophthalmitis.

Methods: After approval of the institutional review board and informed consent from patients had been obtained, conjunctival swabs for culture from 59 patients undergoing cataract surgery were taken of the fellow eye at baseline (C0) and from the eye to be operated before (T0) and after (T1) irrigation with povine-iodine 5%, and at the end of surgery (T2). Genes responsible for virulence (mecA, ica and atlE) and antibiotic profile were determined; strain clonality of persistent colonizing Staphylococcus epidermidis strains was established by the Multi-locus sequence typing (MLST).

A Second Gamma-Glutamylpolyamine Synthetase, GlnA2, Is Involved in Polyamine Catabolism in .

is a soil bacterium living in a habitat with very changeable nutrient availability. This organism possesses a complex nitrogen metabolism and is able to utilize the polyamines putrescine, cadaverine, spermidine, and spermine and the monoamine ethanolamine. We demonstrated that GlnA2 (SCO2241) facilitates to survive under high toxic polyamine concentrations.

SARS-CoV-2 Blood RNA Load Predicts Outcome in Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients.

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) RNA loads in patient specimens may act as a clinical outcome predictor in critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Methods: We evaluated the predictive value of viral RNA loads and courses in the blood compared with the upper and lower respiratory tract loads of critically ill COVID-19 patients. Daily specimen collection and viral RNA quantification by reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction were performed in all consecutive 170 COVID-19 patients between March 2020 and February 2021 during the entire intensive care unit (ICU) stay (4145 samples analyzed).

Associations between pancreatic expression quantitative traits and risk of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is among the most lethal cancers. Its poor prognosis is predominantly due to the fact that most patients remain asymptomatic until the disease reaches an advanced stage, alongside the lack of early markers and screening strategies. A better understanding of PDAC risk factors is essential for the identification of groups at high risk in the population.

Patient Characteristics and Clinical Course of COVID-19 Patients Treated at a German Tertiary Center during the First and Second Waves in the Year 2020.

In this study, we directly compared coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients hospitalized during the first (27 February-28 July 2020) and second (29 July-31 December 2020) wave of the pandemic at a large tertiary center in northern Germany. Patients who presented during the first ( = 174) and second ( = 331) wave did not differ in age (median [IQR], 59 years [46, 71] vs. 58 years [42, 73]; = 0.

Quantitative Fundus Autofluorescence in the Developing and Maturing Healthy Eye.

Purpose: Quantitative fundus autofluorescence (QAF) enables comparisons of autofluorescence intensities among participants. While clinical QAF reports mostly focused on the healthy and diseased adult retina, only very limited data of QAF in the maturing eye are available. Here, we report QAF in a large cohort of healthy children.

Yokoyama procedure for esotropia associated with high myopia: real-world data from a large-scale multicentre analysis.

Purpose: High myopic patients may develop strabismus due to globe dislocation out of the normal extraocular muscle cone. Surgical correction of this strabismus type is possible by joining the superior and lateral rectus muscles without the need for a scleral suture called the Yokoyama procedure. Data from large patient samples and the evaluation of a potential effect of an additional medial rectus recession (MRR) have been lacking so far.

Genome-wide scan of long noncoding RNA single nucleotide polymorphisms and pancreatic cancer susceptibility.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is projected to become the second cancer-related cause of death by 2030. Identifying novel risk factors, including genetic risk loci, could be instrumental in risk stratification and implementation of prevention strategies. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in regulation of key biological processes, and the possible role of their genetic variability has been unexplored so far.

[Intensive care back up for infectious disease disasters].

Background: Outbreaks of infectious diseases pose particular challenges for hospitals and intensive care units.

Objectives: Typical infectiological scenarios and their significance for modern intensive care medicine are presented.

Materials And Methods: Selected pathogens/infectious diseases that have significantly strained the resources of intensive care units are described.

Structure variations within RSi and RSi silicides. Part II. Structure driving factors.

To gain an overview of the various structure reports on RSi and RTSi compounds (R is a member of the Sc group, an alkaline earth, lanthanide or actinide metal, T is a transition metal), compositions, lattice parameters a and c, ratios c/a, formula units per unit cell, and structure types are summarized in extensive tables and the variations of these properties when varying the R or T elements are analyzed. Following the structural systematization given in Part I, Part II focuses on revealing the driving factors for certain structure types, in particular, the electronic structure. Here, concepts of different complexity are presented, including molecular orbital theory, the principle of hard and soft acids and bases, and a Bader analysis based on Density Functional Theory calculations for representatives of the reported structure types.

Structure variations within RSi and RTSi silicides. Part I. Structure overview.

Here, structural parameters of various structure reports on RSi and RTSi compounds [where R is an alkaline earth metal, a rare earth metal (i.e. an element of the Sc group or a lathanide), or an actinide and T is a transition metal] are summarized.

Prognostic value of positive histological margins in patients with pancreatic head ductal adenocarcinoma and lymph node involvement: an international multicentric study.

Background: Resection margin status and lymph node (LN) involvement are known prognostic factors for patients who undergo pancreatoduodenectomy for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). This study aimed to compare overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) by resection margin status in patients with PDAC and LN involvement.

Methods: A retrospective international multicentric study was performed including four Western centers.

Polygenic and multifactorial scores for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma risk prediction.

Background: Most cases of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) are asymptomatic in early stages, and the disease is typically diagnosed in advanced phases, resulting in very high mortality. Tools to identify individuals at high risk of developing PDAC would be useful to improve chances of early detection.

Objective: We generated a polygenic risk score (PRS) for PDAC risk prediction, combining the effect of known risk SNPs, and carried out an exploratory analysis of a multifactorial score.