Dynamic walking stability of the TUlip robot by means of the extrapolated center of mass

The TUlip robot was created to participate in the teensize league of Robocup. The TUlip robot is a bipedal robot intended for dynamic walking. It has six degrees of freedom for each leg: three for the hip, one for the knee and two for the ankle. This paper elaborates on the algorithm for the sideways control during gait. The algorithm uses the extrapolated center of mass (XcoM) to achieve limit cycle stability. The algorithm is tested in simulation using a linear inverted pendulum and, then, experimentally applied to the TUlip robot. The result is an adaptive behavior of the TUlip robot, promising for future application to legged robot stability

OBEDIS Core Variables Project : European Expert Guidelines on a Minimal Core Set of Variables to Include in Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trials of Obesity Interventions

Heterogeneity of interindividual and intraindividual responses to interventions is often observed in randomized, controlled trials for obesity. To address the global epidemic of obesity and move toward more personalized treatment regimens, the global research community must come together to identify factors that may drive these heterogeneous responses to interventions. This project, called OBEDIS (OBEsity Diverse Interventions Sharing - focusing on dietary and other interventions), provides a set of European guidelines for a minimal set of variables to include in future clinical trials on obesity, regardless of the specific endpoints. Broad adoption of these guidelines will enable researchers to harmonize and merge data from multiple intervention studies, allowing stratification of patients according to precise phenotyping criteria which are measured using standardized methods. In this way, studies across Europe may be pooled for better prediction of individuals' responses to an intervention for obesity - ultimately leading to better patient care and improved obesity outcomes.Peer reviewe

Samaria im lukanischen Doppelwerk

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Samaria im lukanischen Doppelwerk

nicht vorhanden

An exploration of the potential contribution of genetic modification and genome editing to the development of abiotic stress-tolerant crops as compared to conventional breeding

COGEM has commissioned a research project to obtain insight in the possibilities that gene-editing may offer for the development of abiotic stress tolerant crops. Genetically modified abiotic stress tolerant crops were also included in the research project. The project was carried out by Wageningen University & Research and Wageningen Food Safety Research.The results indicate that most of the effort is put into obtaining drought tolerant crops, followed by crops tolerant to salinity or heat. Worldwide there are a few genetically modified abiotic stress tolerant crops that have been authorised for cultivation. Several genetically modified abiotic stress tolerant crops have been tested in the field.There are only a few examples of gene edited abiotic stress tolerant crops. Results from extensive field testing with these gene edited crops have not been published yet.According to the researchers abiotic stress tolerant crops could be developed faster and more efficient using gene editing. With gene editing gene expression may be changed in a more subtle way, which might allow the development of crops that only express the genes which confer abiotic stress tolerance under stressful conditions. In addition, gene editing may be used to change several genes simultaneously, which may allow signaling routes that play a role in abiotic stress tolerance to be altered in a more balanced way thereby reducing the occurrence of unwanted negative side effects

Occurrence and Nature of Off-Target Modifications by CRISPR-Cas Genome Editing in Plants

CRISPR-Cas-based genome editing allows for precise and targeted genetic modification of plants. Nevertheless, unintended off-target edits can arise that might confer risks when present in gene-edited food crops. Through an extensive literature review we gathered information on CRISPR-Cas off-target edits in plants. Most observed off-target changes were small insertions or deletions (1-22 bp) or nucleotide substitutions, and large deletions (>100 bp) were rare. One study detected the insertion of vector-derived DNA sequences, which is important considering the risk assessment of gene-edited plants. Off-target sites had few mismatches (1-3 nt) with the target sequence and were mainly located in protein-coding regions, often in target gene homologues. Off-targets edits were predominantly detected via biased analysis of predicted off-target sites instead of unbiased genome-wide analysis. CRISPR-Cas-edited plants showed lower off-target mutation frequencies than conventionally bred plants. This Review can aid discussions on the relevance of evaluating off-target modifications for risk assessment of CRISPR-Cas-edited plants

Polyunsaturated fatty acids acutely affect triacylglycerol-derived skeletal muscle fatty acid uptake and increases postprandial insulin sensitivity

Dietary fat quality may influence skeletal muscle lipid handling and fat accumulation, thereby modulating insulin sensitivity. Objective: To examine acute effects of meals with various fatty acid (FA) compositions on skeletal muscle FA handling and postprandial insulin sensitivity in obese insulin resistant men. Design: In a single-blinded randomized crossover study, 10 insulin resistant men consumed three high-fat mixed-meals (2.6MJ). Meals were high in saturated FA (SFA), in monounsaturated FA (MUFA) or in polyunsaturated FA (PUFA). Fasting and postprandial skeletal muscle FA handling were examined by measuring arterio-venous concentration differences across forearm muscle. [2H2]-palmitate was infused intravenously to label endogenous triacylglycerol (TAG) and FFA in the circulation and [U-13C]-palmitate was added to the meal to label chylomicron-TAG. Skeletal muscle biopsies were taken to assess intramuscular lipid metabolism and gene expression. Results: Insulin and glucose responses (AUC) after SFA meal were significantly higher compared with PUFA meal (p=0.003 and 0.028, respectively). Uptake of TAG-derived FA was significantly lower in the early postprandial phase after PUFA meal as compared with other meals (AUC60-120, p<0.001). The PUFA meal induced less transcriptional downregulation of oxidative pathways compared with other meals. The fractional synthetic rate was higher in DAG and PL fraction after MUFA and PUFA meal. Conclusion: Intake of a PUFA meal reduced TAG-derived skeletal muscle FA uptake, which was accompanied by higher postprandial insulin sensitivity and a tendency towards a higher muscle lipid turnover. These data suggest that the effects of replacement of SFA by PUFA may contribute to less muscle lipid uptake and may be therefore protective against the development of insulin resistance

Systematic screening identifies ABCG2 as critical factor underlying synergy of kinase inhibitors with transcriptional CDK inhibitors

Abstract Background Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a subtype of breast cancer with limited treatment options and poor clinical prognosis. Inhibitors of transcriptional CDKs are currently under thorough investigation for application in the treatment of multiple cancer types, including breast cancer. These studies have raised interest in combining these inhibitors, including CDK12/13 inhibitor THZ531, with a variety of other anti-cancer agents. However, the full scope of these potential synergistic interactions of transcriptional CDK inhibitors with kinase inhibitors has not been systematically investigated. Moreover, the mechanisms behind these previously described synergistic interactions remain largely elusive. Methods Kinase inhibitor combination screenings were performed to identify kinase inhibitors that synergize with CDK7 inhibitor THZ1 and CDK12/13 inhibitor THZ531 in TNBC cell lines. CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screening and transcriptomic evaluation of resistant versus sensitive cell lines were performed to identify genes critical for THZ531 resistance. RNA sequencing analysis after treatment with individual and combined synergistic treatments was performed to gain further insights into the mechanism of this synergy. Kinase inhibitor screening in combination with visualization of ABCG2-substrate pheophorbide A was used to identify kinase inhibitors that inhibit ABCG2. Multiple transcriptional CDK inhibitors were evaluated to extend the significance of the found mechanism to other transcriptional CDK inhibitors. Results We show that a very high number of tyrosine kinase inhibitors synergize with the CDK12/13 inhibitor THZ531. Yet, we identified the multidrug transporter ABCG2 as key determinant of THZ531 resistance in TNBC cells. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that most synergistic kinase inhibitors block ABCG2 function, thereby sensitizing cells to transcriptional CDK inhibitors, including THZ531. Accordingly, these kinase inhibitors potentiate the effects of THZ531, disrupting gene expression and increasing intronic polyadenylation. Conclusion Overall, this study demonstrates the critical role of ABCG2 in limiting the efficacy of transcriptional CDK inhibitors and identifies multiple kinase inhibitors that disrupt ABCG2 transporter function and thereby synergize with these CDK inhibitors. These findings therefore further facilitate the development of new (combination) therapies targeting transcriptional CDKs and highlight the importance of evaluating the role of ABC transporters in synergistic drug–drug interactions in general

Tear biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease screening and diagnosis (the TearAD study):design and rationale of an observational longitudinal multicenter study

Abstract Background Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia, and due to increasing life expectancy the number of patients is expected to grow. The diagnosis of AD involves the use of biomarkers determined by an amyloid PET scan or cerebrospinal fluid analyses that are either invasive or expensive, and not available in each hospital, thus limiting their usage as a front-line screener. The TearAD study aims to use tear fluid as a potential source for AD biomarkers. In previous reports, we demonstrated that AD biomarkers amyloid-beta and tau, are measurable in tear fluid and are associated with disease severity and neurodegeration. This study aims to validate previous results in a larger cohort and evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of tear biomarkers to discriminate between individuals with and without neurodegeneration as determined by hippocampal atrophy. Methods The TearAD study is an observational longitudinal multi-center study that will enroll 50 cognitively healthy controls, 50 patients with subjective cognitive decline, 50 patients with mild cognitive impairment and 50 patients with AD dementia from the memory clinic. Participants will be examined at baseline, after one year, and after two years follow-up. Study assessments include neuropsychological tests and ophthalmic examination. All participants will receive a MRI scan, and a subset of the study population will undergo cerebral spinal fluid collection and an amyloid PET scan. Tear fluid will be collected with Schirmer strips and levels of Aβ38, Aβ40, Aβ42, t-tau and p-tau in tear fluid will be determined using multiplex immunoassays. Blood samples will be collected from all participants. Images of the retina will be obtained with a standard, hyperspectral and ultra-wide field fundus camera. Additionally, macular pigment optical density will be measured with the macular pigment reflectometer, and cross-sectional images of the retina will be obtained through optical coherence tomography imaging. Discussion The TearAD study will provide insight into the potential diagnostic use of tear biomarkers as a minimally invasive and low cost tool for the screening and diagnosis of AD. Trial registration Retrospectively registered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT05655793)