Design of Glycoengineered IL-4 Antagonists Employing Chemical and Biosynthetic Glycosylation.

Interleukin-4 (IL-4) plays a key role in atopic diseases. It coordinates T-helper cell differentiation to subtype 2, thereby directing defense toward humoral immunity. Together with Interleukin-13, IL-4 further induces immunoglobulin class switch to IgE.

Heart Rate Variability-Derived Thresholds for Exercise Intensity Prescription in Endurance Sports: A Systematic Review of Interrelations and Agreement with Different Ventilatory and Blood Lactate Thresholds.

Background: Exercise intensities are prescribed using specific intensity zones (moderate, heavy, and severe) determined by a 'lower' and a 'higher' threshold. Typically, ventilatory (VT) or blood lactate thresholds (LT), and critical power/speed concepts (CP/CS) are used. Various heart rate variability-derived thresholds (HRVTs) using different HRV indices may constitute applicable alternatives, but a systematic review of the proximity of HRVTs to established threshold concepts is lacking.

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.

DRD1 signaling modulates TrkB turnover and BDNF sensitivity in direct pathway striatal medium spiny neurons.

Disturbed motor control is a hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). Cortico-striatal synapses play a central role in motor learning and adaption, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) from cortico-striatal afferents modulates their plasticity via TrkB in striatal medium spiny projection neurons (SPNs). We studied the role of dopamine in modulating the sensitivity of direct pathway SPNs (dSPNs) to BDNF in cultures of fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS)-enriched D1-expressing SPNs and 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-treated rats.

CD4+ T cells are the major predictor of HCMV control in allogeneic stem cell transplant recipients on letermovir prophylaxis.

Introduction: Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) causes significant morbidity and mortality in allogeneic stem cell transplant (alloSCT) recipients. Recently, antiviral letermovir prophylaxis during the first 100 days after alloSCT replaced PCR-guided preemptive therapy as the primary standard of care for HCMV reactivations. Here, we compared NK-cell and T-cell reconstitution in alloSCT recipients receiving preemptive therapy or letermovir prophylaxis in order to identify potential biomarkers predicting prolonged and symptomatic HCMV reactivation.

Prospective single-center study of health-related quality of life after COVID-19 in ICU and non-ICU patients.

Long-term sequelae in hospitalized Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients may result in limited quality of life. The current study aimed to determine health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after COVID-19 hospitalization in non-intensive care unit (ICU) and ICU patients. This is a single-center study at the University Hospital of Wuerzburg, Germany.

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.

Demographics and Etiology for Lower Extremity Amputations-Experiences of an University Orthopaedic Center in Germany.

: Currently, the worldwide incidence of major amputations in the general population is decreasing whereas the incidence of minor amputations is increasing. The purpose of our study was to analyze whether this trend is reflected among orthopaedic patients treated with lower extremity amputation in our orthopaedic university institution. : We conducted a single-center retrospective study and included patients referred to our orthopaedic department for lower extremity amputation (LEA) between January 2007 and December 2019.

Determinants of satisfaction with acute pain therapy during and after childbirth.

Background: An important task in obstetrics is to offer patients adequate pain management after vaginal delivery (VD) and after cesarean section (CS). The aim of the present analysis was to assess pain intensity at the day after childbirth, after 3 and 6 months in women after VD and after CS. Additionally, it was planned to identify determinants of maternal satisfaction with acute pain therapy following VD and CS.

Trends in Computer-Assisted Surgery for Total Knee Arthroplasty in Germany: An Analysis Based on the Operative Procedure Classification System between 2010 to 2021.

Alignment strategies for primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA) have changed significantly over time with a shift towards a more individualized alignment goal. At the same time, computer-assisted surgery (CAS) has gained interest for intraoperative control and accuracy in implant positioning and limb alignment. Despite the often discussed benefits and drawbacks of robotics and navigation for TKA, the routine use of these new devices on a day-to-day basis remains obscure.

Demographics and Trends for Inbound Medical Tourism in Germany for Orthopedic Patients before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Medical tourism is a rapidly growing sector of economic growth and diversification. However, data on the demographics and characteristics of the traveling patients are sparse. In this study, we analyzed the common demographic properties and characteristics of the inbound medical tourists seeking orthopedic medical care in Germany for the years 2010 to 2019 compared to a domestic group.

Multiclass prediction of different dementia syndromes based on multi-centric volumetric MRI imaging.

Introduction: Dementia syndromes can be difficult to diagnose. We aimed at building a classifier for multiple dementia syndromes using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Methods: Atlas-based volumetry was performed on T1-weighted MRI data of 426 patients and 51 controls from the multi-centric German Research Consortium of Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration including patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia, Alzheimer's disease, the three subtypes of primary progressive aphasia, i.

Influence of Vitamin D and C on Bone Marrow Edema Syndrome-A Scoping Review of the Literature.

Bone marrow edema syndrome (BMES) is a rare disease with a largely unknown etiology. The aim of this scoping review is to systematically evaluate and combine the available evidence about vitamin D and C and BMES. The analysis of the manuscripts was based on country of origin, number of patients, gender, study type, epidemiology, localization, bone mineral density measurements, vitamin status and therapy.

Reliability of the 3-Component Model of Aerobic, Anaerobic Lactic, and Anaerobic Alactic Energy Distribution (PCr-LA-O2) for Energetic Profiling of Continuous and Intermittent Exercise.

Purpose: To assess the test-retest reliability of the continuous (PCr-LA-O2) and intermittent (PCr-LA-O2int) version of the 3-component model of energy distribution in an applied setting.

Methods: Sixteen male handball players (age 23 [3] y, height 185 [7] cm, weight 85 [14] kg) completed the 30-15 Intermittent Fitness Test (30-15IFT) twice. Performance was assessed by peak speed (speed of the last successfully completed stage of the 30-15IFT [VIFT], in kilometers per hour) and time to exhaustion (in seconds).

Does Concurrent Cholestasis Alter the Prognostic Value of Preoperatively Elevated CA19-9 Serum Levels in Patients with Pancreatic Head Adenocarcinoma?

Background: Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients with preoperative carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) serum levels higher than 500 U/ml are classified as biologically borderline resectable (BR-B). To date, the impact of cholestasis on preoperative CA19-9 serum levels in these patients has remained unquantified.

Methods: Data on 3079 oncologic pancreatic resections due to PDAC that were prospectively acquired by the German Study, Documentation and Quality (StuDoQ) registry were analyzed in relation to preoperative CA19-9 and bilirubin serum values.

Inhibition of TNF-α Restores Muscle Force, Inhibits Inflammation, and Reduces Apoptosis of Traumatized Skeletal Muscles.

Background: Muscle injuries are common in humans and are often associated with irrecoverable damage and disability. Upon muscle injury, TNF-α signaling pathways modulate the healing process and are predominantly associated with tissue degradation. In this study we assumed that TNF-α inhibition could reduce the TNF-α-associated tissue degradation after muscle injury.

Multi-faceted analyses of seasonal trends and drivers of land surface variables in Indo-Gangetic river basins.

The Indo-Gangetic river basins feature a wide range of climatic, topographic, and land cover characteristics providing a suitable setting for the exploration of multivariate time series. Here, we collocated a comprehensive feature space for these river basins including Earth observation time series on the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), surface water area (SWA), and snow cover area (SCA) in combination with driving variables between December 2002 and November 2020. First, we evaluated changes using multi-faceted trend analyses.

The influence of partial weight bearing on plantar peak forces using three different types of postoperative shoes.

Background: Therapeutic shoes and partial weight bearing regimes are used after foot surgery to prevent the operated region from excessive load. It remains unclear to which extent partial weight bearing reduces the plantar peak forces. Therefore, we investigated the correlation of weight bearing and plantar peak forces in commonly used therapeutic shoes.

Reduced performance after return to competition in ACL injuries: an analysis on return to competition in the 'ACL registry in German Football'.

Purpose: ACL injuries are one of the most severe injuries in football, but medical consequences and performance outcomes after return to competition are only rarely investigated. Aim of this study was to analyse the time of return to competition (RTC) in German professional, semi-professional and amateur football. Also, this investigation highlights the rate of career ending and performance outcome after RTC in different playing levels by the measurement of playing level, performed matches and played minutes.

Prevalence of Cancer Predisposition Germline Variants in Male Breast Cancer Patients: Results of the German Consortium for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer.

Male breast cancer (mBC) is associated with a high prevalence of pathogenic variants (PVs) in the BRCA2 gene; however, data regarding other BC predisposition genes are limited. In this retrospective multicenter study, we investigated the prevalence of PVs in BRCA1/2 and 23 non-BRCA1/2 genes using a sample of 614 patients with mBC, recruited through the centers of the German Consortium for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer. A high proportion of patients with mBC carried PVs in BRCA2 (23.

Influence of Wound Fluid on the Transdifferentiation of Human Mesenchymal Bone Marrow Stem Cells into Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts.

Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF) in the tumor microenvironment have a decisive influence on tumor growth and metastatic behavior. The cellular origins as well as the stimuli leading to CAF formation are heterogenous, impeding a precise characterization. Aim of this study was to analyze the influence of cytokines secreted in the process of wound healing, tumor cell-associated paracrine-secreted factors, and direct cell-cell contact on the expression of the CAF-associated markers fibroblast activation protein (FAP), α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), thrombospondin-1 (THBS1), and tenascin-c (TNC) by RT-PCR in mesenchymal stem cells (MSC).

Impaired dynamic interaction of axonal endoplasmic reticulum and ribosomes contributes to defective stimulus-response in spinal muscular atrophy.

Background: Axonal degeneration and defects in neuromuscular neurotransmission represent a pathological hallmark in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and other forms of motoneuron disease. These pathological changes do not only base on altered axonal and presynaptic architecture, but also on alterations in dynamic movements of organelles and subcellular structures that are not necessarily reflected by static histopathological changes. The dynamic interplay between the axonal endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and ribosomes is essential for stimulus-induced local translation in motor axons and presynaptic terminals.

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).

Immune and stem cell compartments of acetabular and femoral bone marrow in hip osteoarthritis patients.

Objective: Hip osteoarthritis (OA) affects all components of the osteochondral unit, leading to bone marrow (BM) lesions, and unknown consequences on BM cell functionality. We analyzed the cellular composition in OA-affected acetabula compared to proximal femur shafts obtained of hip OA patients to reveal yet not explored immune and stem cell compartments.

Design: Combining flow cytometry, cellular assays and transcription analyses, we performed extensive ex vivo phenotyping of acetabular BM cells from 18 hip OA patients, comparing them with their counterparts from patient-matched femoral shaft BM samples.