A fucose-binding superlectin from Enterobacter cloacae with high Lewis and ABO blood group antigen specificity.

Bacteria frequently employ carbohydrate-binding proteins, so-called lectins, to colonize and persist in a host. Thus, bacterial lectins are attractive targets for the development of new antiinfectives. To find new potential targets for antiinfectives against pathogenic bacteria, we searched for homologs of Pseudomonas aeruginosa lectins and identified homologs of LecA in Enterobacter species.

An evolutionary perspective on the relationship between kinetochore size and CENP-E dependence for chromosome alignment.

Chromosome alignment during mitosis can occur as a consequence of bi-orientation or is assisted by the CENP-E (kinesin-7) motor at kinetochores. We previously found that Indian muntjac chromosomes with larger kinetochores bi-orient more efficiently and are biased to align in a CENP-E-independent manner, suggesting that CENP-E dependence for chromosome alignment negatively correlates with kinetochore size. Here, we used targeted phylogenetic profiling of CENP-E in monocentric (localized centromeres) and holocentric (centromeres spanning the entire chromosome length) clades to test this hypothesis at an evolutionary scale.

Pristionchus - Beetle associations: Towards a new natural history.

The free-living nematode Pristionchus pacificus has been established as a model system in integrative evolutionary biology by combining laboratory studies with field work and evolutionary biology. Multiple genetic, molecular and experimental tools and a collection of more than 2,500 P. pacificus strains and more than 50 Pristionchus species, which are available as living cultures or frozen stock collections, support research on various life history traits.

The Role of Epigenetic Switches in Polyphenism Control: Implications from a Nematode Model for the Developmental Regulation of Alternative Phenotypes.

Polyphenisms, the capability of organisms to form two or more alternative phenotypes in response to environmental variation, are prevalent in nature. However, associated molecular mechanisms and potential general principles of polyphenisms among major organismal groups remain currently unknown. This review focuses on an emerging model system for developmental plasticity and polyphenism research, the nematode and explores mechanistic insight obtained through unbiased genetic, experimental and natural variation studies.

Rapid chromosome evolution and acquisition of thermosensitive stochastic sex determination in nematode androdioecious hermaphrodites.

The factors contributing to evolution of androdioecy, the coexistence of hermaphrodites and males such as in Caenorhabditis elegans, remains poorly known. However, nematodes exhibit androdioecy in at last 13 genera with the predatory genus Pristionchus having seven independent transitions towards androdioecy. Nonetheless, associated genomic architecture and sex determination mechanisms are largely known from Caenorhabditis.

Retinal microvascular phenotypes can track small vessel disease burden and CPAP treatment effectiveness in obstructive sleep apnoea.

Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) retinal imaging enables visualization of the retinal microvasculature that is developmentally related to the brain and can offer insight on cerebrovascular health. We investigated retinal phenotypes and neuroimaging markers of small vessel disease (SVD) in individuals with obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). We enrolled 44 participants (mean age 50.

Description of two new species from South Korea.

Based on molecular markers, mating experiments, morphological observations and ecological data, two species (Nematoda: Diplogastridae) new to science are described. Both were collected from different Scarabaeoid beetles in South Korea, have a gonochoristic mode of reproduction and fall into a sub-clade of the clade. n.

Developmental transcriptomics in reveals the logic of a plasticity gene regulatory network.

Developmental plasticity enables the production of alternative phenotypes in response to different environmental conditions. While significant advances in understanding the ecological and evolutionary implications of plasticity have been made, understanding its genetic basis has lagged. However, a decade of genetic screens in the model nematode has culminated in 30 genes which affect mouth-form plasticity.

Migraine Headache and Patent Foramen Ovale: Observational Studies, the Randomized Clinical Trials, and the GORE RELIEF Clinical Study.

The pathophysiology of migraine remains poorly understood. Like most migraine preventive therapies, patent foramen ovale (PFO) closure was never intended for the treatment of migraine. After closure of PFO for other reasons, migraine symptom reduction/elimination was noted in some patients.

Beyond Vicarious Storytelling: How Level Telling Fields Could Help Create a Fair Narrative on Migration.

Life stories play a crucial role in migration discourses: they serve as testimony in journalistic work, form the core of ambassadorial storytelling by non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and inspire collaborative projects initiated by writers seeking to express their solidarity. However, this article argues, drawing on migrants' experiences for such purposes also creates an ethical dilemma: speaking -or even -rather than migrants assigns them a passive role and tends to recycle existing narrative patterns and templates. Starting with a generic distinction between what we call stories of migration (various forms of self-expression granting migrants full authority and control over their narrative) and narratives on migration (external perspectives, , academic, economic, political, and legal approaches, detached from lived experience), we explore the extensive middle ground of hybrid forms between these two extremes- , different kinds of vicarious storytelling-before addressing their ethical implications.

Long-Term Results of the Atrial Septal Defect Occluder ASSURED Trial for Combined Pivotal/Continued Access Cohorts.

Background: The GORE CARDIOFORM ASD Occluder (GCA, W. L. Gore & Associates) was approved in 2019 for ostium secundum atrial septal defect (ASD) closure.

Nematode genome announcement: A chromosome-scale genome assembly for the reference mapping strain PS1843.

is a free-living nematode that shares many features with , such as its short generation time and hermaphroditism, but also exhibits novel traits, i.e., a mouth-form dimorphism that enables predation.

Patient needs in women of childbearing age with psoriasis: retrospective analysis from the German PsoBest registry.

Background: Women of childbearing age (WoCBA) with psoriasis face additional burden related to contraindications of systemic treatments during pregnancy/lactation and to the physical and psychosocial impact of psoriasis on their intimate/sexual relationships.

Objective: Within a people-centered health care model, this study aimed to identify specific patient needs and their correlates in WoCBA (18-45 years), in comparison to same-age men and women above 45 years.

Methods: Baseline data from the German PsoBest registry, including patients with moderate/severe plaque-type psoriasis with the indication for systemic therapy, were retrospectively analyzed.

Interventions to Reduce Skin-related Self-stigma: A Systematic Review.

Self-stigma beliefs are common among people with visible chronic skin diseases and can negatively affect their quality of life and psychosocial wellbeing. Hence, evidence-based interventions are urgently needed. The objective for this systematic review was to summarize research on available interventions and evaluate their benefits and limitations.

An unexpected degradation pathway of N-hydroxy-5-methylfuran-2-sulfonamide (BMS-986231), a pH sensitive prodrug of HNO, in a prototype formulation solution.

N-hydroxy-5-methylfuran-2-sulfonamide (BMS-986231, Cimlanod) was being developed as a pH-sensitive prodrug of HNO (nitroxyl) for the treatment of acute decompensated heart failure. During a stressed study of Cimlanod in a prototype formulation solution (pH 4.5) at 40°C, a predominant unknown degradant along with three previously identified degradants were observed.

Vitiligo - a disease: A position paper on stigmatization, life quality impairment and psychosocial comorbidity.

Vitiligo is a common disorder characterized by the visible loss of skin pigmentation. Non-segmental vitiligo (NSV) is the major subtype. The disease is caused by autoimmune-mediated destruction of melanocytes.

How to grow crystals for X-ray crystallography.

Growing high-quality crystals remains a necessary part of crystallography and many other techniques. This article tabulates and describes several techniques and variations that will help individuals grow high-quality crystals in preparation for crystallographic techniques and other endeavors, such as form screening. The discussion is organized to focus on low-tech approaches available in any laboratory.

Patient and Caregiver Experience With the Hope and Prognostic Uncertainty of Immunotherapy: A Qualitative Study.

Purpose: Immunotherapy has improved survival for patients with melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Yet, as responses vary widely, immunotherapy also introduces challenges in prognostic communication. In this study, we sought to explore how patients and caregivers learned about the goal of immunotherapy and their experience of living with uncertainty.

Assessing the impact of inland navigation on the faecal pollution status of large rivers: A novel integrated field approach.

The contribution of ships to the microbial faecal pollution status of water bodies is largely unknown but frequently of human health concern. No methodology for a comprehensive and target-orientated system analysis was available so far. We developed a novel approach for integrated and multistage impact evaluation.