Active Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface for the Millimeter-Wave Frequency Band: Design and Measurement Results

Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs) will play a key role to establish reliable low-latency millimeter wave (mmWave) communication links for indoor automation and control applications. In case of a blocked line-of-sight between the base station (BS) and the user equipment (UE), a RIS mounted on a wall or on a ceiling enables a bypass for the radio communication link. In this work, we present an active RIS for the mmWave frequency band. Each RIS element uses a field effect transistor (FET) to amplify the reflected signal and an orthogonal polarization transformation to increase the isolation between impinging and reflected radio wave. By switching the bias voltage at gate and drain of the FET we can establish four states for each RIS element: two reflection states with different phase shifts, an active amplification and an off state. We present results of the active RIS with 37 patch antenna elements arranged in a hexagonal grid for a center frequency of 25.8 GHz. The RIS field patterns obtained by numerical simulations and by empirical measurements in an anechoic chamber are compared. They show a good match and the received power is improved by 12 dB in the active mode of the RIS compared to the reflective mode.Comment: Submitted to IEEE Wireless Communications and Networking Conference, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, April 202

A communal catalogue reveals Earth's multiscale microbial diversity

Our growing awareness of the microbial world's importance and diversity contrasts starkly with our limited understanding of its fundamental structure. Despite recent advances in DNA sequencing, a lack of standardized protocols and common analytical frameworks impedes comparisons among studies, hindering the development of global inferences about microbial life on Earth. Here we present a meta-analysis of microbial community samples collected by hundreds of researchers for the Earth Microbiome Project. Coordinated protocols and new analytical methods, particularly the use of exact sequences instead of clustered operational taxonomic units, enable bacterial and archaeal ribosomal RNA gene sequences to be followed across multiple studies and allow us to explore patterns of diversity at an unprecedented scale. The result is both a reference database giving global context to DNA sequence data and a framework for incorporating data from future studies, fostering increasingly complete characterization of Earth's microbial diversity.Peer reviewe

A communal catalogue reveals Earth’s multiscale microbial diversity

Our growing awareness of the microbial world’s importance and diversity contrasts starkly with our limited understanding of its fundamental structure. Despite recent advances in DNA sequencing, a lack of standardized protocols and common analytical frameworks impedes comparisons among studies, hindering the development of global inferences about microbial life on Earth. Here we present a meta-analysis of microbial community samples collected by hundreds of researchers for the Earth Microbiome Project. Coordinated protocols and new analytical methods, particularly the use of exact sequences instead of clustered operational taxonomic units, enable bacterial and archaeal ribosomal RNA gene sequences to be followed across multiple studies and allow us to explore patterns of diversity at an unprecedented scale. The result is both a reference database giving global context to DNA sequence data and a framework for incorporating data from future studies, fostering increasingly complete characterization of Earth’s microbial diversity

Genome-wide analysis of 53,400 people with irritable bowel syndrome highlights shared genetic pathways with mood and anxiety disorders

Funder: Kennedy Trust Rheumatology Research Prize StudentshipFunder: DFG Cluster of Excellence “Precision Medicine in Chronic In-flammation” (PMI; ID: EXC2167)Funder: EC | EC Seventh Framework Programm | FP7 Ideas: European Research Council (FP7-IDEAS-ERC - Specific Programme: “Ideas” Implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration Activities (2007 to 2013)); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/100011199; Grant(s): 715772Funder: NWO-VIDI grant 016.178.056, the Netherlands Heart Foundation CVON grant 2018-27, and NWO Gravitation grant ExposomeNLFunder: Li Ka Shing Foundation (Li Ka Shing Foundation Limited); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/100007421Abstract: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) results from disordered brain–gut interactions. Identifying susceptibility genes could highlight the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms. We designed a digestive health questionnaire for UK Biobank and combined identified cases with IBS with independent cohorts. We conducted a genome-wide association study with 53,400 cases and 433,201 controls and replicated significant associations in a 23andMe panel (205,252 cases and 1,384,055 controls). Our study identified and confirmed six genetic susceptibility loci for IBS. Implicated genes included NCAM1, CADM2, PHF2/FAM120A, DOCK9, CKAP2/TPTE2P3 and BAG6. The first four are associated with mood and anxiety disorders, expressed in the nervous system, or both. Mirroring this, we also found strong genome-wide correlation between the risk of IBS and anxiety, neuroticism and depression (rg > 0.5). Additional analyses suggested this arises due to shared pathogenic pathways rather than, for example, anxiety causing abdominal symptoms. Implicated mechanisms require further exploration to help understand the altered brain–gut interactions underlying IBS

Abstracts from the 8th International Conference on cGMP Generators, Effectors and Therapeutic Implications

This work was supported by a restricted research grant of Bayer AG

Konservative Therapie von Sehnenverletzungen

The treatment of tendon injuries in general presents one of the most relevant challenges in sports medicine, and there is high demand to ensure a long-term successful treatment and short time loss of the sport. However, there are only a few contributions providing guidance and recommendations for the nonoperative treatment of tendon injuries. The 2016 GOTS Expert Meeting, initiated by the German-Austrian-Swiss Society for Orthopaedic Traumatologic Sports Medicine (GOTS), focused on the topic of muscle and tendon injuries. The committee was composed of twenty-two medical specialists. Nine of them were delegated to a subcommittee focusing on the nonoperative treatment of tendon injuries. The recommendations and statements that were developed were reviewed by the entire consensus committee and voted on by the members. The committee reached a consensus on the utility and efficacy of the management of tendon injuries. Addressing precipitating risk factors and the concept of load management including well designed training programs are one of the most relevant steps in the treatment of tendinopathies. A wide variety of additional therapeutic approaches can be considered individually based on the underlying localisation, the grade of injury and the healing phase. The present work provides a structured overview on the diverse conservative treatment strategies of tendon injuries and evaluates their efficacy with respect to the existing scientific evidence and clinical expertise in the context of basic science on the healing process of tendon injuries