Der Rochlitzer Supervulkan: Vulkanosedimentäre Faziesanalyse und Geochemie des permischen Rochlitz-Ignimbrit-Komplexes und seiner distalen Äquivalente

Im Schatten der ausklingenden variszischen Gebirgsbildung erschütterten katastrophale Supervulkanausbrüche vor ca. 300 Millionen Jahren das Spätpaläozoikum Mitteleuropas. Östlich von Leipzig erstreckt sich auf einer Gesamtfläche von 2.000 km² (ca. 10 % der Fläche des Freistaates) der Nordsächsische Vulkanitkomplex, welcher mindestens zwei große Calderen beinhaltet: 1) das Wurzener und 2) das Rochlitzer Vulkansystem. Wobei die Gesteine des Rochlitzer Vulkansystems die größte Verbreitung finden. Ablagerungen dieser intrakontinentalen und großvolumigen Eruptionen dienten zahlreichen historischen Bauwerken als Baustoff. Redaktionsschluss: 27.04.202

Temporal structure of stimulated-Brillouin-scattering reflectivity considering transversal-mode development

The time-resolved reflectivity of optical phase conjugation by stimulated Brillouin scattering ~SBS! is investigated both theoretically and experimentally. A three-dimensional and transient model of SBS is developed to compare the experimental and theoretical results. Noise initiation of the SBS process is included in the model to simulate the shot-to-shot variation in the reflectivity and the Stokes temporal profile.Shahraam Afshaarvahid, Axel Heuer, Ralf Menzel, and Jesper Munc

Basic CSF parameters and MRZ reaction help in differentiating MOG antibody-associated autoimmune disease versus multiple sclerosis

BackgroundMyelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated autoimmune disease (MOGAD) is a rare monophasic or relapsing inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) and can mimic multiple sclerosis (MS). The variable availability of live cell-based MOG-antibody assays and difficulties in interpreting low-positive antibody titers can complicate diagnosis. Literature on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) profiles in MOGAD versus MS, one of the most common differential diagnoses, is scarce. We here analyzed the value of basic CSF parameters to i) distinguish different clinical MOGAD manifestations and ii) differentiate MOGAD from MS.MethodsThis is retrospective, single-center analysis of clinical and laboratory data of 30 adult MOGAD patients and 189 adult patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. Basic CSF parameters included CSF white cell count (WCC) and differentiation, CSF/serum albumin ratio (QAlb), intrathecal production of immunoglobulins, CSF-restricted oligoclonal bands (OCB) and MRZ reaction, defined as intrathecal production of IgG reactive against at least 2 of the 3 viruses measles (M), rubella (R) and varicella zoster virus (Z).ResultsMOGAD patients with myelitis were more likely to have a pleocytosis, a QAlb elevation and a higher WCC than those with optic neuritis, and, after review and combined analysis of our and published cases, they also showed a higher frequency of intrathecal IgM synthesis. Compared to MS, MOGAD patients had significantly more frequently neutrophils in CSF and WCC>30/µl, QAlb>10×10-3, as well as higher mean QAlb values, but significantly less frequently CSF plasma cells and CSF-restricted OCB. A positive MRZ reaction was present in 35.4% of MS patients but absent in all MOGAD patients. Despite these associations, the only CSF parameters with relevant positive likelihood ratios (PLR) indicating MOGAD were QAlb>10×10-3 (PLR 12.60) and absence of CSF-restricted OCB (PLR 14.32), whereas the only relevant negative likelihood ratio (NLR) was absence of positive MRZ reaction (NLR 0.00).ConclusionBasic CSF parameters vary considerably in different clinical phenotypes of MOGAD, but QAlb>10×10-3 and absence of CSF-restricted OCB are highly useful to differentiate MOGAD from MS. A positive MRZ reaction is confirmed as the strongest CSF rule-out parameter in MOGAD and could be useful to complement the recently proposed diagnostic criteria

A degenerate primer MOB typing (DPMT) method to classify gamma-proteobacterial plasmids in clinical and environmental settings

Transmissible plasmids are responsible for the spread of genetic determinants, such as antibiotic resistance or virulence traits, causing a large ecological and epidemiological impact. Transmissible plasmids, either conjugative or mobilizable, have in common the presence of a relaxase gene. Relaxases were previously classified in six protein families according to their phylogeny. Degenerate primers hybridizing to coding sequences of conserved amino acid motifs were designed to amplify related relaxase genes from γ-Proteobacterial plasmids. Specificity and sensitivity of a selected set of 19 primer pairs were first tested using a collection of 33 reference relaxases, representing the diversity of γ-Proteobacterial plasmids. The validated set was then applied to the analysis of two plasmid collections obtained from clinical isolates. The relaxase screening method, which we call "Degenerate Primer MOB Typing" or DPMT, detected not only most known Inc/Rep groups, but also a plethora of plasmids not previously assigned to any Inc group or Rep-type