Publications by authors named "Weisser M"

Article Synopsis
  • Adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV) in rural Tanzania show a viral suppression rate of 78%, but this falls short of the UNAIDS 95% target.
  • Factors positively influencing viral suppression include having a CD4 cell count of ≥500 cells/mm3 and receiving a dolutegravir-based ART regimen, while female gender correlates with lower suppression odds.
  • There is only a weak to moderate consistency between different measures of treatment adherence and actual viral load suppression.
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  • Wearable sensors in healthcare enable continuous and minimally invasive monitoring of health, providing detailed physiological data for better clinical understanding.
  • The next generation of these devices expands beyond biophysical measurements to include biochemical monitoring of substances in various body fluids like sweat and saliva.
  • For widespread adoption, these wearable devices need large-scale validation, ethical considerations, and acceptance among different user groups, as well as support for reimbursement and public health initiatives.
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  • The study aimed to examine weight changes in HIV-positive individuals receiving either dolutegravir- or efavirenz-based antiretroviral therapy (ART) in rural Tanzania, where undernutrition is common.
  • It analyzed the weight changes over 18 months for 1,205 adults starting ART, finding that those on dolutegravir gained more weight (5.1 kg) compared to those on efavirenz (4.0 kg).
  • The results indicated that dolutegravir led to higher obesity rates and increased hypertension risk, particularly in individuals with a higher body mass index before starting treatment.*
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The resolution in Bonse-Hart double-crystal diffractometers is determined for a given Bragg angle by the value of the crystallographic structure factor. To date, the reflections Si 220 or Si 111 have been used exclusively in neutron scattering, which provide resolutions for triple-bounce crystals of about 2 × 10 Å (FWHM). The Darwin width of the GaAs 200 reflection is about a factor of 10 smaller, offering the possibility of a resolution of 2 × 10 Å provided crystals of sufficient quality are available.

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The PP2A-B55 phosphatase regulates a plethora of signaling pathways throughout eukaryotes. How PP2A-B55 selects its substrates presents a severe knowledge gap. By integrating AlphaFold modeling with comprehensive high-resolution mutational scanning, we show that α helices in substrates bind B55 through an evolutionary conserved mechanism.

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Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is an important cause of morbidity and mortality among people living with HIV (PLHIV). Current WHO-recommended strategies for diagnosing TB among hospitalized PLHIV rely on symptom screening and disease severity to assess eligibility for urine lipoarabinomannan lateral flow (LF-LAM) and molecular testing. Despite these recommendations, autopsy studies show a large burden of undiagnosed TB among admitted PLHIV.

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  • The study investigates how the protein Mrc1 in fission yeast plays a crucial role in the inheritance of histones during DNA replication, which is essential for maintaining epigenetic memory.
  • It reveals that mutations in Mrc1 can disrupt the proper segregation of parental histones to the lagging strand, leading to loss of gene silencing.
  • The research proposes that Mrc1 is involved in controlling histone recycling between leading and lagging strands, ensuring that both daughter cells receive the necessary epigenetic information.
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Objectives: We aimed to determine the prevalence of HIV-related stigma among people with HIV (PWH) in Switzerland.

Design: A cross-sectional multicenter study nested within the Swiss HIV Cohort Study (SHCS).

Methods: We included adult PWH enrolled in the SHCS, attending follow-up between March 1, 2020, and January 31, 2021.

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Background: Children and adolescents with HIV taking antiretroviral therapy (ART) have high rates of viraemia. We assessed if genotypic resistance testing (GRT) to inform onward treatment improved treatment outcomes in Lesotho and Tanzania, two countries with little access to GRT.

Methods: The Genotype-Informed Versus Empirical Management of Viremia (GIVE MOVE) open-label, parallel-group randomised controlled trial enrolled children and adolescents with HIV between the ages of 6 months and 19 years, taking ART, and with a viral load at least 400 copies per mL.

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Introduction: Healthcare workers (HCW) play an important role in managing women living with HIV (WLHIV) with gender-based violence (GBV) experience, but little is known about their experience in screening and managing GBV among WLHIV. This study explored the perceptions and experience of the HCWs on screening and managing GBV cases among WLHIV.

Patients And Methods: We performed a descriptive phenomenological qualitative study to elicit the views and experience of HCW on GBV screening and management for WLHIV.

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We assessed the diagnostic yield of urine GeneXpert MTB/RIF Ultra and factors associated with a positive test among adult patients suspected to have extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Urine Ultra was positive in 14% of participants with definite or probable tuberculosis. Hospitalization, disseminated tuberculosis, and human immunodeficiency virus infection were associated with a positive result.

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  • The study assessed the recovery of left ventricular systolic function in women with peripartum cardiomyopathy receiving specialized care in rural Tanzania between 2015 and 2021.
  • It involved 110 women, with a median age of 28.5 years, and tracked their recovery via clinical examinations and echocardiograms.
  • Results showed that 69% of participants fully recovered their heart function, with younger age and higher initial heart function positively influencing recovery outcomes.
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The hexameric AAA+ ATPase p97/VCP functions as an essential mediator of ubiquitin-dependent cellular processes, extracting ubiquitylated proteins from macromolecular complexes or membranes by catalyzing their unfolding. p97 is directed to ubiquitylated client proteins via multiple cofactors, most of which interact with the p97 N-domain. Here, we discover that FAM104A, a protein of unknown function also named VCF1 (VCP/p97 nuclear Cofactor Family member 1), acts as a p97 cofactor in human cells.

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Importance: Agreement in lung ultrasonography findings between clinicians using a handheld ultrasonographic device and expert sonographers using a high-end ultrasonographic machine has not been studied in sub-Saharan Africa.

Objective: To determine the agreement in ultrasonographic findings and diagnoses between primary care clinicians trained in lung ultrasonography, board-certified expert sonographers, and senior physicians.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional single-center study was conducted from February 1, 2022, to April 30, 2023 at a referral center in rural Tanzania.

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The PP2A-B55 phosphatase regulates a plethora of signaling pathways throughout eukaryotes. How PP2A-B55 selects its substrates presents a severe knowledge gap. By integrating AlphaFold modelling with comprehensive high resolution mutational scanning, we show that α-helices in substrates bind B55 through an evolutionary conserved mechanism.

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  • A study analyzed 451 historic MRSA isolates from Switzerland, collected between 1965 and 1987, to uncover evolutionary patterns and resistance factors compared to modern MRSA samples and international genomes.
  • The researchers found 17 unique sequence types (STs), including five new STs, indicating a mix of both previously known and novel genetic variations.
  • The dominant type identified among early isolates was ST247-MRSA-I, showing early MRSA strains were primarily from clonal complex 8, while other complexes began appearing from 1980 onwards, highlighting changes in MRSA diversity over time.
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Mental health problems are highly prevalent among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), yet mental health care in African countries is scarce. There is growing interest in understanding the effect of group therapy delivery models and task-shifting to support mental health care in African settings. We conducted a scoping review following the PRISMA-ScR statement on group therapy in PLWHA in Africa.

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In settings where access to expert echocardiography is limited, focused echocardiography, combined with artificial intelligence (AI)-supported analysis, may improve diagnosis and monitoring of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH). Sixteen nurses/nurse-assistants without prior experience in echocardiography underwent a 2-day hands-on intensive training to learn how to assess parasternal long axis views (PLAX) using an inexpensive hand-held ultrasound device in Lesotho, Southern Africa. Loops were stored on a cloud-drive, analyzed using deep learning algorithms at the University Hospital Basel, and afterwards confirmed by a board-certified cardiologist.

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The atomic mobility in liquid pure gallium and a gallium-nickel alloy with 2 at% of nickel is studied experimentally by incoherent quasielastic neutron scattering. The integral diffusion coefficients for all-atom diffusion are derived from the experimental data at different temperatures. DFT-basedmolecular dynamics (MD) is used to find numerically the diffusion coefficient of liquid gallium at different temperatures, and numerical theory results well agree with the experimental findings at temperatures below 500 K.

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The pursuit of sustainable and productive agriculture demands the exploration of innovative approaches to improve plant productivity and soil health. The utilization of natural agricultural biostimulants, such as extracts from seaweed, fish, and humus, has gained prominence as an ecological strategy to achieve this goal. In this study we investigated the effectiveness of a fortified biostimulant extract (FBE), composed of extracts from seaweed, fish, and humus, on tomato plant physiology, productivity, and growing media properties, and estimated carbon emissions associated with tomato production.

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Background: Reliable species identification of cultured isolates is essential in clinical bacteriology. We established a new study algorithm named NOVA - Novel Organism Verification and Analysis to systematically analyze bacterial isolates that cannot be characterized by conventional identification procedures MALDI-TOF MS and partial 16 S rRNA gene sequencing using Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS).

Results: We identified a total of 35 bacterial strains that represent potentially novel species.

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Article Synopsis
  • SARS-CoV-2 interacts with host proteins to enhance viral replication and evade immune responses, with a focus on its NSP3 protein.
  • Researchers discovered that NSP3 binds to fragile X mental retardation proteins (FMRPs), and mutations preventing this binding lead to reduced virus replication and lower viral levels in lungs.
  • The study highlights how NSP3 disrupts the normal function of FMRPs by competing with another protein, shedding light on both viral mechanisms and potential links to fragile X syndrome.
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Objectives: This scoping review aims to identify and synthesise existing statistical methods used to assess the progress of HIV treatment programmes in terms of the HIV cascade and continuum of care among people living with HIV (PLHIV).

Design: Systematic scoping review.

Data Sources: Published articles were retrieved from PubMed, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) Complete and Excerpta Medica dataBASE (EMBASE) databases between April and July 2022.

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Purpose: Cefepime is recommended for treating infections caused by AmpC beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacterales (AmpC-PE), though supporting evidence is limited. Therefore, this study compared outcomes associated with cefepime versus carbapenem therapy for bloodstream infections (BSIs) caused by AmpC-PE after phenotypic exclusion of ESBL-co-producing isolates.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study compared definite cefepime versus carbapenem treatment for AmpC-PE BSI in hospitalized patients of the University Hospital Basel, Switzerland, between 01/2015 and 07/2020.

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