TCERG1L allelic variation is associated with cisplatin-induced hearing loss in childhood cancer, a PanCareLIFE study.

In children with cancer, the heterogeneity in ototoxicity occurrence after similar treatment suggests a role for genetic susceptibility. Using a genome-wide association study (GWAS) approach, we identified a genetic variant in TCERG1L (rs893507) to be associated with hearing loss in 390 non-cranial irradiated, cisplatin-treated children with cancer. These results were replicated in two independent, similarly treated cohorts (n = 192 and 188, respectively) (combined cohort: P = 5.3 × 10-10, OR 3.11, 95% CI 2.2-4.5). Modulating TCERG1L expression in cultured human cells revealed significantly altered cellular responses to cisplatin-induced cytokine secretion and toxicity. These results contribute to insights into the genetic and pathophysiological basis of cisplatin-induced ototoxicity

Classification of steady state gain reduction produced by amplitude modulation based noise reduction in digital hearing aids

Digital noise reduction systems in modern digital hearing aids aim to improve either speech intelligibility or listening comfort. Little is known, however, about the actual gain reduction produced by different noise reduction systems. The aim of this study is to compare the gain reduction of different noise reduction systems. We applied a systematic variation of different presentation levels of the input signal, different signal-to-noise ratios, and different target hearing loss configurations. The gain reduction of 12 different hearing aids was compared both qualitatively and quantitatively by means of principal value decomposition. The results show that these hearing aids differ considerably in their responses. These differences are presented qualitatively by plotting contour maps that give the gain reduction as function of signal-to-noise-ratio and frequency. The quantitative analysis shows that the gain reduction produced by most hearing aids can be characterized by two transfer functions. The most important being an overall gain reduction. In addition to this, the frequency response is tilted to achieve either more low-frequency reduction and less high-frequency reduction, or the opposit

A genome-wide association study of a rage-related misophonia symptom and the genetic link with audiological traits, psychiatric disorders, and personality

Introduction: People with misophonia experience strong negative emotional responses to sounds and associated stimuli—mostly human produced—to an extent that it may cause impairment in social functioning. The exact nature of the disorder remains a matter of ongoing research and debate. Here, we investigated the genetic etiology of misophonia to understand contributing genetic factors and shed light on individual differences in characteristics that are related to the disorder. Methods: For misophonia, we used an unpublished genome-wide association study (GWAS) from genetic service provider 23andMe, Inc., on a self-report item probing a single common misophonic symptom: the occurrence of rage when others produce eating sounds. First, we used gene-based and functional annotation analyses to explore neurobiological determinants of the rage-related misophonia symptom. Next, we calculated genetic correlations (rG) of this rage-related misophonia symptom GWAS with a wide range of traits and disorders from audiology (tinnitus, hearing performance, and hearing trauma), psychiatry, neurology, and personality traits. Results: The rage-related misophonia symptom was significantly correlated with tinnitus, major depression disorder (MDD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD; 0.12 < rG < 0.22). Stronger genetic correlations (0.21 < rG < 0.42) were observed for two clusters of personality traits: a guilt/neuroticism and an irritability/sensitivity cluster. Our results showed no genetic correlation with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and psychotic disorders. A negative correlation with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was found, which may be surprising given the previously reported comorbidities and the sensory sensitivity reported in ASD. Clustering algorithms showed that rage-related misophonia consistently clustered with MDD, generalized anxiety, PTSD, and related personality traits. Discussion: We conclude that—based on the genetics of a common misophonia symptom—misophonia most strongly clusters with psychiatric disorders and a personality profile consistent with anxiety and PTSD

Imaging of thoracic blood volume changes during the heart cycle with electrical impedance using a linear spot-electrode array

Electrical impedance (EI) measurements conducted on the thorax contain useful information about the changes in blood volume that occur in the thorax during the heart cycle. The aim of this paper is to present a new (tomographic-like) method to obtain this relevant information with electrical impedance measurements, using a linear electrode array. This method is tested on three subjects and the results are compared with results, obtained from magnetic resonance cine-images showing the cross-sectional surface area changes of the aorta, the vena cava, the carotid arteries, and the heart. This paper shows that the different sources of the thoracic EI waveform may be separated in time and location on the thoracic surface and that aortic volume changes may be estimated accurately

'Brussel is een bodemloze put...' en zes andere clichés over de Europese Unie

Contains fulltext : 203301pub.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access