[Frequency and barriers to the patient advanced directive and lasting power of attorney: findings from a prospective observation study in palliative care services].

Background: The advance directive and lasting power of attorney are instruments to strengthen patients' autonomy. A hospital-based palliative care consultation service can advise patients and family members about these instruments. This study investigates the need for such consultation among patients with life-limiting illness.

NF-κB is a critical mediator of post-mitotic senescence in oligodendrocytes and subsequent white matter loss.

Background: Inflammaging represents an accepted concept where the immune system shifts to a low-grade chronic pro-inflammatory state without overt infection upon aging. In the CNS, inflammaging is mainly driven by glia cells and associated with neurodegenerative processes. White matter degeneration (WMD), a well-known process in the aging brain, manifests in myelin loss finally resulting in motor, sensory and cognitive impairments.

Drowsiness detection from polysomnographic data using multivariate selfsimilarity and eigen-wavelet analysis.

Because drowsiness is a major cause in vehicle accidents, its automated detection is critical. Scale-free temporal dynamics is known to be typical of physiological and body rhythms. The present work quantifies the benefits of applying a recent and original multivariate selfsimilarity analysis to several modalities of polysomnographic measurements (heart rate, blood pressure, electroencephalogram and respiration), from the MIT-BIH Polysomnographic Database, to better classify drowsiness-related sleep stages.

The pandemic that shocked managers across the world: the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on leadership behavior.

In March 2020, the COVID-19 virus turned into a pandemic that hit organizations globally. This pandemic qualifies as an exogenous shock. Based on the threat-rigidity hypothesis, we hypothesize that this shock led to an increase in directive leadership behavior.

Frequency modulation of a bacterial quorum sensing response.

In quorum sensing, bacteria secrete or release small molecules into the environment that, once they reach a certain threshold, trigger a behavioural change in the population. As the concentration of these so-called autoinducers is supposed to reflect population density, they were originally assumed to be continuously produced by all cells in a population. However, here we show that in the α-proteobacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti expression of the autoinducer synthase gene is realized in asynchronous stochastic pulses that result from scarcity and, presumably, low binding affinity of the key activator.

Treating lexical retrieval using letter fluency and tDCS in primary progressive aphasia: a single-case study.

Background: In early stages, individuals with Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) report language symptoms while scoring within norm in formal language tests. Early intervention is important due to the progressive nature of the disease.

Method: We report a single case study of an individual with logopenic variant PPA (lvPPA).

Functional brain-heart interplay extends to the multifractal domain.

The study of functional brain-heart interplay has provided meaningful insights in cardiology and neuroscience. Regarding biosignal processing, this interplay involves predominantly neural and heartbeat linear dynamics expressed via time and frequency domain-related features. However, the dynamics of central and autonomous nervous systems show nonlinear and multifractal behaviours, and the extent to which this behaviour influences brain-heart interactions is currently unknown.

Revisiting Functional Connectivity for Infraslow Scale-Free Brain Dynamics Using Complex Wavelets.

The analysis of human brain functional networks is achieved by computing functional connectivity indices reflecting phase coupling and interactions between remote brain regions. In magneto- and electroencephalography, the most frequently used functional connectivity indices are constructed based on Fourier-based cross-spectral estimation applied to specific fast and band-limited oscillatory regimes. Recently, infraslow arrhythmic fluctuations (below the 1 Hz) were recognized as playing a leading role in spontaneous brain activity.

Learning Event Representations for Temporal Segmentation of Image Sequences by Dynamic Graph Embedding.

Recently, self-supervised learning has proved to be effective to learn representations of events suitable for temporal segmentation in image sequences, where events are understood as sets of temporally adjacent images that are semantically perceived as a whole. However, although this approach does not require expensive manual annotations, it is data hungry and suffers from domain adaptation problems. As an alternative, in this work, we propose a novel approach for learning event representations named Dynamic Graph Embedding (DGE).

Quantifying Functional Links between Brain and Heartbeat Dynamics in the Multifractal Domain: a Preliminary Analysis.

Quantification of brain-heart interplay (BHI) has mainly been performed in the time and frequency domains. However, such functional interactions are likely to involve nonlinear dynamics associated with the two systems. To this extent, in this preliminary study we investigate the functional coupling between multifractal properties of Electroencephalography (EEG) and Heart Rate Variability (HRV) series using a channel- and time scale-wise maximal information coefficient analysis.

Integrative and quantitative view of the CtrA regulatory network in a stalked budding bacterium.

The Alphaproteobacteria show a remarkable diversity of cell cycle-dependent developmental patterns, which are governed by the conserved CtrA pathway. Its central component CtrA is a DNA-binding response regulator that is controlled by a complex two-component signaling network, mediating distinct transcriptional programs in the two offspring. The CtrA pathway has been studied intensively and was shown to consist of an upstream part that reads out the developmental state of the cell and a downstream part that integrates the upstream signals and mediates CtrA phosphorylation.

Wavelet p-Leader Non-Gaussian Multiscale Expansions for EEG series: an Exploratory Study on Cold-Pressor Test.

Brain dynamics recorded through electroencephalography (EEG) have been proven to be the output of a nonstationary and nonlinear system. Thus, multifractality of EEG series has been exploited as a useful tool for a neurophysiological characterization in health and disease. However, the role of EEG multifractality under peripheral stress is unknown.

Heartbeat Dynamics Analysis under Cold-Pressure Test using Wavelet p-Leader Non-Gaussian Multiscale Expansions.

Multiscale and multifractal (MF) analyses have been proven an effective tool for the characterisation of heartbeat dynamics in physiological and pathological conditions. However, pre-processing methods for the unevenly sampled heartbeat interval series are known to affect the estimation of MF properties. In this study, we employ a recently proposed method based on wavelet p-leaders MF spectra to estimate MF properties from cardiovascular variability series, which are also pre-processed through an inhomogeneous point-process modelling.

[Postoperative treatment and rehabilitation following flexor tendon injuries].

Background: The ideal surgical and postoperative treatment for flexor tendon injuries, especially in zone 2, is still subject to continuous modifications and professional discussions.

Objective: Presentation of established rehabilitation concepts, specific problems and new treatment approaches with practical recommendations for application.

Material And Methods: Comparison of commonly used treatment concepts by assessing surgical flexor tendon repair, splint choice and clinical application in patients.

Cognitive and language performance predicts effects of spelling intervention and tDCS in Primary Progressive Aphasia.

Predictors of treatment effects allow individual tailoring of treatment characteristics, thereby saving resources and optimizing outcomes. Electrical stimulation coupled with language intervention has shown promising results in improving language performance in individuals with Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA). The current study aimed to identify language and cognitive variables associated with response to therapy consisting of language intervention combined with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS).

National-scale marine bioregions for the Southwest Pacific.

Existing marine bioregions covering the Pacific Ocean are conceptualised at spatial scales that are too broad for national marine spatial planning. Here, we developed the first combined oceanic and coastal marine bioregionalisation at national scales, delineating 262 deep-water and 103 reef-associated bioregions across the southwest Pacific. The deep-water bioregions were informed by thirty biophysical environmental variables.

Brain volumes as predictors of tDCS effects in primary progressive aphasia.

The current study aims to determine the brain areas critical for response to anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in PPA. Anodal tDCS and sham were administered over the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), combined with written naming/spelling therapy. Thirty people with PPA were included in this study, and assessed immediately, 2 weeks, and 2 months post-therapy.

Multifractal formalisms for multivariate analysis.

Multifractal analysis, that quantifies the fluctuations of regularities in time series or textures, has become a standard signal/image processing tool. It has been successfully used in a large variety of applicative contexts. Yet, successes are confined to the analysis of one signal or image at a time (univariate analysis).

The Role of Word Properties in Performance on Fluency Tasks in People with Primary Progressive Aphasia.

People with primary progressive aphasia (PPA) present language difficulties that require lengthy assessments and follow-ups. Despite individual differences, people with PPA are often classified into three variants that present some distinctive language difficulties. We analyzed the data of 6 fluency tasks (i.

A Bifunctional UDP-Sugar 4-Epimerase Supports Biosynthesis of Multiple Cell Surface Polysaccharides in Sinorhizobium meliloti.

produces multiple extracellular glycans, including among others, lipopolysaccharides (LPS), and the exopolysaccharides (EPS) succinoglycan (SG) and galactoglucan (GG). These polysaccharides serve cell protective roles. Furthermore, SG and GG promote the interaction of with its host in root nodule symbiosis.

Recommendations for iliosacral screw placement in dysmorphic sacrum based on modified in-out-in corridors.

(1) Can iliosacral osseous corridor diameters in sacral dysmorphism be enlarged by in-out-in screw placement at the posterior iliosacral recessus? (2) Are lumbosacral transitional vertebra (LSTV) the anatomical cause for sacral dysmorphism? (3) Are there sex-specific differences in sacral dysmorphism? 594 multislice CT scans were screened for sacral dysmorphism and 55 data-sets selected. Each pelvis was segmented manually and cylindrical iliosacral corridors (on the level of S1 and S2 vertebra) were semi-automatically determined. Corridor trajectories, -diameters and -lengths were measured.

Mortality Prediction in Severe Congestive Heart Failure Patients with Multifractal Point-Process Modeling of Heartbeat Dynamics.

Multifractal analysis of human heartbeat dynamics has been demonstrated to provide promising markers of Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). Yet, it crucially builds on the interpolation of RR intervals series, which has been generically performed with limited links to CHF pathophysiology. We devise a novel methodology estimating multifractal autonomic dynamics from heartbeat-derived series defined in the continuous time.

Wavelet p-Leader Non Gaussian Multiscale Expansions for Heart Rate Variability Analysis in Congestive Heart Failure Patients.

Objective: Numerous indices were devised for the statistical characterization of temporal dynamics of heart rate variability (HRV) with the aim to discriminate between healthy subjects and nonhealthy patients. Elaborating on the concepts of (multi)fractal and nonlinear analyses, the present contribution defines and studies formally novel non Gaussian multiscale representations.

Methods: A methodological framework for non Gaussian multiscale representations constructed on wavelet p-leaders is developed, relying a priori neither on exact scale-free dynamics nor on predefined forms of departure from Gaussianity.

Scattering Transform of Heart Rate Variability for the Prediction of Ischemic Stroke in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an identified risk factor for ischemic strokes (IS). AF causes a loss in atrial contractile function that favors the formation of thrombi, and thus increases the risk of stroke. Also, AF produces highly irregular and complex temporal dynamics in ventricular response RR intervals.

The Fluid Dynamical Performance of the Carpentier-Edwards PERIMOUNT Magna Ease Prosthesis.

The aim of the present in vitro study was the evaluation of the fluid dynamical performance of the Carpentier-Edwards PERIMOUNT Magna Ease depending on the prosthetic size (21, 23, and 25 mm) and the cardiac output (3.6-6.4 L/min).