Interaction of carrier and disease isolates of MenB cc32 and MenW cc22 with epithelial cells of the nasopharyngeal barrier.

(Nm, the meningococcus) is considered an asymptomatic colonizer of the upper respiratory tract and a transient member of its microbiome. It is assumed that the spread of into the bloodstream occurs via transcytosis of the nasopharyngeal epithelial barrier without destroying the barrier layer. Here, we used Calu-3 respiratory epithelial cells that were grown under air-liquid-interface conditions to induce formation of pseudostratified layers and mucus production.

Cultural adaption and validation of the Explanatory Model Interview Catalogue-Community Stigma Scale in the assessment of public stigma related to schistosomiasis in lakeshore areas of Mwanza region, Tanzania.

Background: Previous qualitative studies on attitudes towards schistosomiasis demonstrated inconclusive results on the extent of stigma towards schistosomiasis in endemic communities around the world. The Explanatory Model Interview Catalogue-Community Stigma Scale (EMIC-CSS) has been used and validated for the assessment of public stigma across numerous countries in various health conditions. This study tested the performance of the scale in the context of stigma related to schistosomiasis in twelve communities in the three districts of Magu, Nyamagana and Ilemela in Mwanza region, Tanzania.

Physical activity-related health competence and symptom burden for exercise prescription in patients with multiple myeloma: a latent profile analysis.

The purpose of this study is to ensure best possible supply of exercise therapy to patients with multiple myeloma (MM); it is helpful to identify patient groups with similar symptom burden and physical activity-related health competences (PAHCO). Latent profile analyses (LPA) of MM patients were used to identify profiles of patients with similar PAHCO and symptom burden. Analysis of variance was applied to investigate group differences in important covariates.

Orbital-resolved observation of singlet fission.

Singlet fission may boost photovoltaic efficiency by transforming a singlet exciton into two triplet excitons and thereby doubling the number of excited charge carriers. The primary step of singlet fission is the ultrafast creation of the correlated triplet pair. Whereas several mechanisms have been proposed to explain this step, none has emerged as a consensus.

Single-Cell Protein and Transcriptional Characterization of Epiretinal Membranes From Patients With Proliferative Vitreoretinopathy.

Purpose: Proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) remains an unresolved clinical challenge and can lead to frequent revision surgery and blindness vision loss. The aim of this study was to characterize the microenvironment of epiretinal PVR tissue, in order to shed more light on the complex pathophysiology and to unravel new treatment options.

Methods: A total of 44 tissue samples were analyzed in this study, including 19 epiretinal PVRs, 13 epiretinal membranes (ERMs) from patients with macular pucker, as well as 12 internal limiting membranes (ILMs).

Dual-Color Fluorescence Cross-Correlation Spectroscopy to Study Protein-Protein Interaction and Protein Dynamics in Live Cells.

We present a protocol and workflow to perform live cell dual-color fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy (FCCS) combined with Förster Resonance Energy transfer (FRET) to study membrane receptor dynamics in live cells using modern fluorescence labeling techniques. In dual-color FCCS, where the fluctuations in fluorescence intensity represent the dynamic "fingerprint" of the respective fluorescent biomolecule, we can probe co-diffusion or binding of the receptors. FRET, with its high sensitivity to molecular distances, serves as a well-known "nanoruler" to monitor intramolecular changes.

Couples coping with advanced prostate cancer: An explorative study on treatment decision making, mental deterioration, partnership, and psychological burden.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of spouses and the relevance of quality of life (QoL) and life expectancy (LE) in the treatment decision-making process of patients with advanced prostate cancer (CaP). We also addressed the role of possible mental deterioration, partnership quality, QoL, distress, anxiety, and depression in patients and their spouses.

Methods And Material: This was a cross-sectional non-interventional explorative study.

Click-correlative light and electron microscopy (click-AT-CLEM) for imaging and tracking azido-functionalized sphingolipids in bacteria.

Sphingolipids, including ceramides, are a diverse group of structurally related lipids composed of a sphingoid base backbone coupled to a fatty acid side chain and modified terminal hydroxyl group. Recently, it has been shown that sphingolipids show antimicrobial activity against a broad range of pathogenic microorganisms. The antimicrobial mechanism, however, remains so far elusive.

A crop type dataset for consistent land cover classification in Central Asia.

Land cover is a key variable in the context of climate change. In particular, crop type information is essential to understand the spatial distribution of water usage and anticipate the risk of water scarcity and the consequent danger of food insecurity. This applies to arid regions such as the Aral Sea Basin (ASB), Central Asia, where agriculture relies heavily on irrigation.

Pedicled perforator flaps for mid-tibial soft tissue reconstruction in medically compromised patients.

Background: The soft tissue of the central pretibial area is difficult to reconstruct often requiring free tissue transfer. Especially medically compromised patients are not ideal candidates for free tissue transfer and may benefit from expeditiously harvested local flaps with limited donor site morbidity. As muscle flaps are rare, pedicled flaps based on lateral perforators represent an alternative as the arc of rotation can often be limited to 90°.

Validation of sodium/glucose cotransporter proteins in human brain as a potential marker for temporal narrowing of the trauma formation.

In many forensic cases, the existence of a traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an essential factor, and the determination of the survival time is nearly as important as the determination of whether or not a trauma exists. Since it is known that glucose uptake increases in injured brain cells in order to perpetuate the neuronal integrity, this study focuses on the pathomechanism of brain glucose supply via sodium/glucose cotransporters 1 and 2 (SGLT1, SGLT2) following traumatization. Human cerebrum tissue of male and female individuals who died following TBI was taken from the contusional and contralateral regions, as well as from individuals deceased due to cardiac arrest (control group).

Antibacterial activity of ceramide and ceramide analogs against pathogenic Neisseria.

Certain fatty acids and sphingoid bases found at mucosal surfaces are known to have antibacterial activity and are thought to play a more direct role in innate immunity against bacterial infections. Herein, we analysed the antibacterial activity of sphingolipids, including the sphingoid base sphingosine as well as short-chain C and long-chain C-ceramides and azido-functionalized ceramide analogs against pathogenic Neisseriae. Determination of the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) demonstrated that short-chain ceramides and a ω-azido-functionalized C-ceramide were active against Neisseria meningitidis and N.

CD56 Is a Pathogen Recognition Receptor on Human Natural Killer Cells.

Aspergillus (A.) fumigatus is an opportunistic fungal mold inducing invasive aspergillosis (IA) in immunocompromised patients. Although antifungal activity of human natural killer (NK) cells was shown in previous studies, the underlying cellular mechanisms and pathogen recognition receptors (PRRs) are still unknown.

Cephalometric findings among children with velopharyngeal dysfunction following adenoidectomy-A retrospective study.

Objectives: To characterise the craniofacial structure by cephalometry, especially the skull base and nasopharyngeal space, in children who underwent adenoidectomy and developed persistent velopharyngeal dysfunction (VPD).

Design: Retrospective study.

Setting: Speech and swallowing clinic of a single academic hospital.

Striatal Dopaminergic Innervation Regulates Subthalamic Beta-Oscillations and Cortical-Subcortical Coupling during Movements: Preliminary Evidence in Subjects with Parkinson's Disease.

Activation of the basal ganglia has been shown during the preparation and execution of movement. However, the functional interaction of cortical and subcortical brain areas during movement and the relative contribution of dopaminergic striatal innervation remains unclear. We recorded local field potential (LFP) activity from the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and high-density electroencephalography (EEG) signals in four patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) off dopaminergic medication during a multi-joint motor task performed with their dominant and non-dominant hand.

Synthesis of a Far-Red Photoactivatable Silicon-Containing Rhodamine for Super-Resolution Microscopy.

The rhodamine system is a flexible framework for building small-molecule fluorescent probes. Changing N-substitution patterns and replacing the xanthene oxygen with a dimethylsilicon moiety can shift the absorption and fluorescence emission maxima of rhodamine dyes to longer wavelengths. Acylation of the rhodamine nitrogen atoms forces the molecule to adopt a nonfluorescent lactone form, providing a convenient method to make fluorogenic compounds.

Human mesenchymal stem cells enhance cancer cell proliferation via IL-6 secretion and activation of ERK1/2.

Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSC) are frequently used in tissue engineering. Due to their strong tumor tropism, hMSC seem to be a promising vehicle for anticancer drugs. However, interactions between hMSC and cancer are ambiguous.

Super-resolution imaging of plasma membrane glycans.

Much of the physiology of cells is controlled by the spatial organization of the plasma membrane and the glycosylation patterns of its components, however, studying the distribution, size, and composition of these components remains challenging. A bioorthogonal chemical reporter strategy was used for the efficient and specific labeling of membrane-associated glycoconjugates with modified monosaccharide precursors and organic fluorophores. Super-resolution fluorescence imaging was used to visualize plasma membrane glycans with single-molecule sensitivity.

Kirschner wire fixations for scapholunate dissociation: a cadaveric, biomechanical study.

Purpose: To compare 5 different Kirschner wire fixation techniques in terms of the failure loads seen as scapholunate (SL) dissociation in a cadaveric, biomechanical study.

Methods: 10 fresh-frozen, finger-amputated wrists with sectioned SL ligaments from 3 male and 2 female cadavers were tested. The change of SL angle, SL dissociation, and the load to failure of the 5 different Kirschner wire fixation techniques (using 1.

Analysis of nicotine-induced DNA damage in cells of the human respiratory tract.

Epithelium of the upper and lower airways is a common origin of tobacco-related cancer. The main tobacco alkaloid nicotine may be associated with tumor progression. The potential of nicotine in inducing DNA mutations as a step towards cancer initiation is still controversially discussed.

Subfascial directionality of perforators of the distal lower extremity: an anatomic study regarding selection of perforators for 180-degree propeller flaps.

Background: The 180-degree propeller flaps allow closure of soft-tissue defects of the distal lower extremity. In addition to twist, the pedicle is often subject to additional kinking which increases proportionally to the angle at which the perforator pierces through the fascia. This study evaluates the directionality of the perforators at the fascial level to guide in the selection process of the best perforator.

Adequacy of palmaris longus and plantaris tendons for tendon grafting.

Purpose: The reconstruction of tendon defects is challenging. The palmaris longus and plantaris tendon are generally considered best for tendon grafting. Only a few studies have examined whether these tendons, when present, meet criteria for successful grafting.