56 research outputs found
Correlation of velocity and susceptibility in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage
In many cerebral grey matter structures including the neocortex, spreading
depolarization (SD) is the principal mechanism of the near-complete breakdown
of the transcellular ion gradients with abrupt water influx into neurons.
Accordingly, SDs are abundantly recorded in patients with traumatic brain
injury, spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage, aneurysmal subarachnoid
hemorrhage (aSAH) and malignant hemispheric stroke using subdural electrode
strips. SD is observed as a large slow potential change, spreading in the
cortex at velocities between 2 and 9 mm/min. Velocity and SD susceptibility
typically correlate positively in various animal models. In patients monitored
in neurocritical care, the Co-Operative Studies on Brain Injury
Depolarizations (COSBID) recommends several variables to quantify SD
occurrence and susceptibility, although accurate measures of SD velocity have
not been possible. Therefore, we developed an algorithm to estimate SD
velocities based on reconstructing SD trajectories of the wave-front's
curvature center from magnetic resonance imaging scans and time-of-SD-arrival-
differences between subdural electrode pairs. We then correlated variables
indicating SD susceptibility with algorithm-estimated SD velocities in twelve
aSAH patients. Highly significant correlations supported the algorithm's
validity. The trajectory search failed significantly more often for SDs
recorded directly over emerging focal brain lesions suggesting in humans
similar to animals that the complexity of SD propagation paths increase in
tissue undergoing injury
Impact of the first COVID lockdown on accident- and injury-related pediatric intensive care admissions in Germany - a multicenter study
Children’s and adolescents’ lives drastically changed during COVID lockdowns worldwide. To compare accident- and injury-related admissions to pediatric intensive care units (PICU) during the first German COVID lockdown with previous years, we conducted a retrospective multicenter study among 37 PICUs (21.5% of German PICU capacities). A total of 1444 admissions after accidents or injuries during the first lockdown period and matched periods of 2017–2019 were reported and standardized morbidity ratios (SMR) were calculated. Total PICU admissions due to accidents/injuries declined from an average of 366 to 346 (SMR 0.95 (CI 0.85–1.05)). Admissions with trauma increased from 196 to 212 (1.07 (0.93–1.23). Traffic accidents and school/kindergarten accidents decreased (0.77 (0.57–1.02 and 0.26 (0.05–0.75)), whereas household and leisure accidents increased (1.33 (1.06–1.66) and 1.34 (1.06–1.67)). Less neurosurgeries and more visceral surgeries were performed (0.69 (0.38–1.16) and 2.09 (1.19–3.39)). Non-accidental non-suicidal injuries declined (0.73 (0.42–1.17)). Suicide attempts increased in adolescent boys (1.38 (0.51–3.02)), but decreased in adolescent girls (0.56 (0.32–0.79)). In summary, changed trauma mechanisms entailed different surgeries compared to previous years. We found no evidence for an increase in child abuse cases requiring intensive care. The increase in suicide attempts among boys demands investigation
Developing a vocabulary and ontology for modeling insect natural history data: example data, use cases, and competency questions
Insects are possibly the most taxonomically and ecologically diverse class of multicellular organisms on Earth. Consequently, they provide nearly unlimited opportunities to develop and test ecological and evolutionary hypotheses. Currently, however, large-scale studies of insect ecology, behavior, and trait evolution are impeded by the difficulty in obtaining and analyzing data derived from natural history observations of insects. These data are typically highly heterogeneous and widely scattered among many sources, which makes developing robust information systems to aggregate and disseminate them a significant challenge. As a step towards this goal, we report initial results of a new effort to develop a standardized vocabulary and ontology for insect natural history data. In particular, we describe a new database of representative insect natural history data derived from multiple sources (but focused on data from specimens in biological collections), an analysis of the abstract conceptual areas required for a comprehensive ontology of insect natural history data, and a database of use cases and competency questions to guide the development of data systems for insect natural history data. We also discuss data modeling and technology-related challenges that must be overcome to implement robust integration of insect natural history data
Hemodynamic Traveling Waves in Human Visual Cortex
Functional MRI (fMRI) experiments rely on precise characterization of the blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal. As the spatial resolution of fMRI reaches the sub-millimeter range, the need for quantitative modelling of spatiotemporal properties of this hemodynamic signal has become pressing. Here, we find that a detailed physiologically-based model of spatiotemporal BOLD responses predicts traveling waves with velocities and spatial ranges in empirically observable ranges. Two measurable parameters, related to physiology, characterize these waves: wave velocity and damping rate. To test these predictions, high-resolution fMRI data are acquired from subjects viewing discrete visual stimuli. Predictions and experiment show strong agreement, in particular confirming BOLD waves propagating for at least 5–10 mm across the cortical surface at speeds of 2–12 mm s-1. These observations enable fundamentally new approaches to fMRI analysis, crucial for fMRI data acquired at high spatial resolution
Plasma lipid profiles discriminate bacterial from viral infection in febrile children
Fever is the most common reason that children present to Emergency Departments. Clinical signs and symptoms suggestive of bacterial infection are often non-specific, and there is no definitive test for the accurate diagnosis of infection. The 'omics' approaches to identifying biomarkers from the host-response to bacterial infection are promising. In this study, lipidomic analysis was carried out with plasma samples obtained from febrile children with confirmed bacterial infection (n = 20) and confirmed viral infection (n = 20). We show for the first time that bacterial and viral infection produces distinct profile in the host lipidome. Some species of glycerophosphoinositol, sphingomyelin, lysophosphatidylcholine and cholesterol sulfate were higher in the confirmed virus infected group, while some species of fatty acids, glycerophosphocholine, glycerophosphoserine, lactosylceramide and bilirubin were lower in the confirmed virus infected group when compared with confirmed bacterial infected group. A combination of three lipids achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of 0.911 (95% CI 0.81 to 0.98). This pilot study demonstrates the potential of metabolic biomarkers to assist clinicians in distinguishing bacterial from viral infection in febrile children, to facilitate effective clinical management and to the limit inappropriate use of antibiotics
Plasma lipid profiles discriminate bacterial from viral infection in febrile children
Fever is the most common reason that children present to Emergency Departments. Clinical signs and symptoms suggestive of bacterial infection ar
Deletion of <i>Snai2</i> and <i>Snai3</i> Results in Impaired Physical Development Compounded by Lymphocyte Deficiency
<div><p>The Snail family of transcriptional regulators consists of three highly conserved members. These proteins regulate (repress) transcription via the recruitment of histone deacetylases to target gene promoters that possess the appropriate E-box binding sequences. Murine <i>Snai1</i> is required for mouse development while <i>Snai2</i> deficient animals survive with some anomalies. Less is known about the third member of the family, <i>Snai3</i>. To investigate the function of <i>Snai3</i>, we generated a conditional knockin mouse. Utilizing <i>Cre</i>-mediated deletion to facilitate the ablation of <i>Snai3</i> in T cells or the entire animal, we found little to no effect of the loss of <i>Snai3</i> in the entire animal or in T cell lineages. This finding provided the hypothesis that absence of Snai3 was mitigated, in part, by the presence of Snai2. To test this hypothesis we created <i>Snai2/Snai3</i> double deficient mice. The developmental consequences of lacking both of these proteins was manifested in stunted growth, a paucity of offspring including a dramatic deficiency of female mice, and impaired immune cell development within the lymphoid lineages.</p> </div
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