Fifteen years SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics: life science databases, tools and support.

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (www.isb-sib.ch) was created in 1998 as an institution to foster excellence in bioinformatics. It is renowned worldwide for its databases and software tools, such as UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot, PROSITE, SWISS-MODEL, STRING, etc, that are all accessible on ExPASy.org, SIB's Bioinformatics Resource Portal. This article provides an overview of the scientific and training resources SIB has consistently been offering to the life science community for more than 15 years

Fifteen years SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics: life science databases, tools and support

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (www.isb-sib.ch) was created in 1998 as an institution to foster excellence in bioinformatics. It is renowned worldwide for its databases and software tools, such as UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot, PROSITE, SWISS-MODEL, STRING, etc, that are all accessible on ExPASy.org, SIB's Bioinformatics Resource Portal. This article provides an overview of the scientific and training resources SIB has consistently been offering to the life science community for more than 15 year

Endstation for ultrafast magnetic scattering experiments at the free-electron laser in Hamburg

This content may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and AIP Publishing. This material originally appeared in Review of Scientific Instruments 84, 013906 (2013) and may be found at https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4773543.An endstation for pump–probe small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) experiments at the free-electron laser in Hamburg (FLASH) is presented. The endstation houses a solid-state absorber, optical incoupling for pump–probe experiments, time zero measurement, sample chamber, and detection unit. It can be used at all FLASH beamlines in the whole photon energy range offered by FLASH. The capabilities of the setup are demonstrated by showing the results of resonant magnetic SAXS measurements on cobalt-platinum multilayer samples grown on freestanding Si3N4 membranes and pump-laser-induced grid structures in multilayer samples.BMBF, 05K10GU4, Verbundprojekt: FSP 301 - FLASH: Nanoskopische Systeme. Teilprojekt 6: Aufbau einer Plattform für Experimente mit ultimativer Orts- und Zeitauflösung unter Ausnutzung der kohärenten Beugung weicher Röntgenstrahlung an PETRA III und FLASHDFG, 13002249, SFB 668: Magnetismus vom Einzelatom zur NanostrukturDFG, 170620586, SFB 925: Licht-induzierte Dynamik und Kontrolle korrelierter Quantensystem

TRY plant trait database – enhanced coverage and open access

Plant traits - the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants - determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait‐based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits - almost complete coverage for ‘plant growth form’. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait–environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics' resources: focus on curated databases

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (www.isb-sib.ch) provides world-class bioinformatics databases, software tools, services and training to the international life science community in academia and industry. These solutions allow life scientists to turn the exponentially growing amount of data into knowledge. Here, we provide an overview of SIB's resources and competence areas, with a strong focus on curated databases and SIB's most popular and widely used resources. In particular, SIB's Bioinformatics resource portal ExPASy features over 150 resources, including UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot, ENZYME, PROSITE, neXtProt, STRING, UniCarbKB, SugarBindDB, SwissRegulon, EPD, arrayMap, Bgee, SWISS-MODEL Repository, OMA, OrthoDB and other databases, which are briefly described in this article

Financial implications of cancer. Empirical data and ethical aspects

Mehlis K, Witte J, Surmann B, et al. Financial implications of cancer. Empirical data and ethical aspects. In: Manz MG, ed. Abstractband für die Virtuelle Jahrestagung der Deutschen, Österreichischen und Schweizerischen Gesellschaften für Hämatologie und Medizinische Onkologie, 09.–11. Oktober 2020: Abstracts. Oncology Research and Treatment . Vol 43. Basel: Karger; 2020: 21-22

Psychogenic nonepileptic seizures: clinical characteristics and outcome

Abstract Background Clinical characteristics, outpatient situation, and outcome in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) remain to be elucidated. Methods Patients diagnosed with PNES after video‐electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring (VEM) 03/2000–01/2016 at the Erlangen Epilepsy Center were surveyed between June 2016 and February 2017. Primary outcome was PNES cessation defined as no PNES episodes within > = 12 months prior to the interview. Secondary outcome variables included quality of life (QoL) and dependency. Sensitivity analysis included patients with proven PNES during VEM without comorbid epilepsy. Results Ninety‐nine patients were included (median age 38 (interquartile range (IQR 29–52)) years; 68 (69%) females, follow‐up 4 (IQR 2.1–7.7) years). Twenty‐eight (28%) patients suffered from comorbid epilepsy. Twenty‐five (25%) patients reported PNES cessation. Older age at symptom onset (odds ratio (OR) related to PNES cessation: 0.95 (95% CI 0.90–0.99)), comorbid epilepsy (OR 0.16 (95% CI 0.03–0.83)), anxiety disorder (OR 0.15 (95% CI 0.04–0.61)), and tongue biting (OR 0.22 (95% CI 0.03–0.91)) remained independently associated with ongoing PNES activity after adjustment. Sensitivity analysis (n = 63) revealed depressive disorder (OR 0.03 (95% CI 0.003–0.34)) instead of anxiety as independent predictor, while this seemed relevant only in patients older than 26 years at onset (OR 0.04 (95% CI 0.002–0.78) versus OR 0.21 (95% CI 0.02–1.84) in patients  younger than 26 years). PNES cessation was associated with increased median QoL (8 (IQR 7–9) versus 5.5 (IQR 4–7); p < .001) and an increased frequency of financial independency (14 (56%) versus 21 (28%); p = .01). Conclusions We found poor outcomes in PNES especially in older patients at onset with comorbid depressive disorder. Comorbid epilepsy also seems to be a major risk factor of ongoing PNES activity, which in turn affects patients’ daily living

Psychological long-term outcome in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures.

OBJECTIVE To examine the long-term outcome of psychological status, personality, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) and to define predictors of favorable outcome of cessation of PNES. METHOD Patients diagnosed with PNES during video-electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring at the Erlangen Epilepsy Center were contacted 1-16 years after communicating the diagnosis. Follow-up information from each participant was obtained by interview (PNES outcome) and by self-reported questionnaires of psychological symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory-II, Symptom Checklist-90-Standard, Dissociative Symptoms questionnaire), personality traits (Freiburg Personality Inventory-Revised), and HRQoL (36-Item Short Form Health Survey). RESULTS Fifty-two patients participated in the study (mean age ± standard deviation [SD] 40.5 ± 14.0 years; 75% female, follow-up: 5.3 ± 4.2 years). Nineteen patients (37%) were free of PNES for the past 12 months. Patients with persisting PNES were older at disease onset (32.9 vs 22.3 years, P < 0.01) and diagnosis (40.5 vs 27.2 years, P < 0.001), and showed worse psychological functioning, lower extraversion and life satisfaction, and higher inhibitedness and worse HRQoL than PNES-free patients. Patients with cessation of PNES were within the normal range in all dimensions. Cessation of PNES was best predicted by younger age at PNES onset and higher extraversion. SIGNIFICANCE Outcome of PNES is poor, psychopathology is high, and HRQoL is low in patients with persistent PNES but may normalize with PNES cessation. High introversion and older age at PNES onset are risk factors for persistent PNES