Aging Dynamics of d−d-dimensional Locally Activated Random Walks

Locally activated random walks are defined as random processes, whose dynamical parameters are modified upon visits to given activation sites. Such dynamics naturally emerge in living systems as varied as immune and cancer cells interacting with spatial heterogeneities in tissues, or at larger scales animals encountering local resources. At the theoretical level, these random walks provide an explicit construction of strongly non Markovian, and aging dynamics. We propose a general analytical framework to determine various statistical properties characterizing the position and dynamical parameters of the random walker on $d$-dimensional lattices. Our analysis applies in particular to both passive (diffusive) and active (run and tumble) dynamics, and quantifies the aging dynamics and potential trapping of the random walker; it finally identifies clear signatures of activated dynamics for potential use in experimental data

„Super Mario Level“

Innerhalb der kunstpädagogischen Kinder- und Jugendbildforschung sind dreidimensionale Werke von Kindern und Jugendlichen als Artefakte bildnerischer Praktiken noch ungenügend dokumentiert und erforscht. Dieser Beitrag beleuchtet 3D-Ansichten von Gegenständen, die in der kunstpädagogischen Kinder- und Jugendbildforschung innerhalb einer dreidimensionalen bildnerischen Praktik zu einem Artefakt werden. Für die Analyse dieser Artefakte stellt sich die Frage nach einer adäquaten Erhebungstechnik und Dokumentationsart. Somit wird in diesem Beitrag im Speziellen untersucht, welche spezifische Attraktivität und Affordanz 3D-Ansichten als Medium und Datenmaterial grundsätzlich mit sich bringen. Hierfür wird mit der 3D-Ansicht eines dreidimensionalen Werkes von Jugendlichen ein empirisches Beispiel aus einer Pilotstudie exemplarisch vorgestellt, um abschließend 3D-Ansichten als Datenmaterial in Abgrenzung und im Vergleich zu den bekannten Medien der Datenerfassung „Fotografie“ und „Video“ zu beleuchten.Peer Reviewe

Minimal disease activity and remission in patients with psoriatic arthritis with elevated body mass index: an observational cohort study in the Swiss Clinical Quality Management cohort

OBJECTIVE To assess the impact of elevated body mass index (BMI) in the achievement of minimal disease activity (MDA) and several definitions of remission in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) in Switzerland. Secondarily, to assess the overlapping across the study outcomes. METHODS This observational cohort study in the Swiss Clinical Quality Management in Rheumatic Diseases (SCQM) registry included patients with PsA starting their first biologic or targeted synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (b/tsDMARD) from 1997 to 30 June 2018. Exposure was BMI category at b/tsDMARD start: overweight, obese, and normal weight (reference). Logistic regression was used to assess the achievement of MDA and remission at ≤12 months, as well as treatment persistence at 1 year, in overweight patients and patients with obesity compared with the normal weight group. Remission was defined by Disease Activity for Psoriatic Arthritis (DAPSA), clinical DAPSA (cDAPSA) and 28-joint Disease Activity Score (DAS28). Additionally, overlapping across study outcomes was investigated. RESULTS The study included 306 (39.5%) normal weight patients, 285 (36.8%) overweight patients and 183 (23.6%) patients with obesity. Compared with the normal weight group, patients with obesity had lower odds of achieving MDA at ≤12 months (adjusted OR (ORadj) 0.45, 95% CI 0.24 to 0.82). This was consistent with the observed reduced odds of achieving DAPSA-remission (ORadj 0.42, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.85), cDAPSA-remission (ORadj 0.51, 95% CI 0.27 to 0.96) and DAS28-remission (ORadj 0.51, 95% CI 0.32 to 0.81) in patients with obesity versus normal weight patients. Among the 125 patients achieving MDA, the majority (81.8% normal weight, 80.0% overweight, 78.9% obese) achieved cDAPSA-remission. No differences were observed in the odds to achieving treatment persistence between the BMI strata. CONCLUSIONS Obesity halved the likelihood of achieving MDA and remission in patients with PsA with b/tsDMARDs compared with those with normal weight, while it did not impact treatment persistence. High overlapping of patients achieving the outcomes MDA and cDAPSA-remission was observed across every BMI group

Shear wave elastography-based liver fibrosis assessment in patients with chronic hepatitis E displays elevated liver stiffness regardless of previous antiviral therapy

Background: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection especially in immunocompromised individuals can lead to chronic hepatitis. Aggressive courses of chronic hepatitis E leading to liver cirrhosis in a short period of time have been described, but evidence on the degree of liver involvement in chronic hepatitis E is rare. Vie therefore aimed to quantify liver fibrosis in patients with chronic active hepatitis E compared to patients with sustained virological response after ribavirin (RBV) treatment using 2D-shear wave elastography (2D-SWE) to measure liver stiffness. Methods: Patients with chronic hepatitis E underwent 2D-SWE, B-mode and Doppler ultrasound and laboratory testing in order to assess severity of liver involvement. Results: In this cross-sectional study, we included 14 patients of whom 8 had ongoing chronic hepatitis E and 6 patients had been successfully treated for chronic hepatitis E. The most frequent cause for immunosuppression was prior kidney transplantation (n = 12), one patient was a multivisceral transplant recipient, one had been treated for lymphoma. Five patients cleared HEV after RBV therapy, one patient reached viral clearance after reduction of his immunosuppressive medication. Using 2D-SWE measurement, 71.4% displayed increased stiffness indicative of liver fibrosis: 57.1% classified as significant fibrosis and 14.3% as severe fibrosis. Liver stiffness did not differ between patients with active chronic hepatitis E and in patients who had cleared HEN (1.59 and 1.54 m/S respectively). Compared with a control group of kidney transplant recipients without hepatitis E (1.44 m/S), the patients with a history of hepatitis E displayed a significantly higher liver stiffness (P=0.04). Conclusions: In our cohort of chronic hepatitis E patients, elevated liver stiffness indicating liver fibrosis was common and significantly higher than in controls. This is consistent with prior sparse reports of the presence of liver fibrosis or cirrhosis in chronic hepatitis E and emphasizes the need for HEV testing, therapy and research on new therapeutic options. As elevated liver stiffness was also present in patients after HEV treatment, continuous liver surveillance including elastography and ultrasound should be considered

Lower odds of remission among women with rheumatoid arthritis: A cohort study in the Swiss Clinical Quality Management cohort

OBJECTIVE To compare the likelihood of achieving remission between men and women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) after starting their first biologic or targeted synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (b/tsDMARD). METHODS This cohort study in the Swiss Clinical Quality Management in Rheumatic Diseases (SCQM) registry included RA patients starting their first b/tsDMARD (1997-31/04/2018). The odds of achieving remission at ≤12-months, defined by disease activity score 28-joints (DAS28) <2.6, were compared between men and women. Secondary analyses were adjusted for age and seropositivity, and we investigated potential mediators or factors that could explain the main findings. RESULTS The study included 2839 (76.3%) women and 883 (23.7%) men with RA. Compared to women, men were older at diagnosis and b/tsDMARD start, but had shorter time from diagnosis to b/tsDMARD (3.4 versus 5.0 years, p<0.001), and they had lower DAS28 at b/tsDMARD start. Compared to women, men had 21% increased odds of achieving DAS28-remission, with odds ratio (OR) 1.21, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02-1.42. Adjusting for age and seropositivity yielded similar findings (adjusted OR 1.24, 95%CI 1.05-1.46). Analyses of potential mediators suggested that the observed effect may be explained by the shorter disease duration and lower DAS28 at treatment initiation in men versus women. CONCLUSION Men started b/tsDMARD earlier than women, particularly regarding disease duration and disease activity (DAS28), and had higher odds of reaching remission. This highlights the importance of early initiation of second line treatments, and suggests to target an earlier stage of disease in women to match the benefits observed in men

Vitamin K1 inhibits ferroptosis and counteracts a detrimental effect of phenprocoumon in experimental acute kidney injury

Ferroptosis, a type of iron-dependent programmed cell death distinct from apoptosis, necroptosis, and other types of cell death, is characterized by lipid peroxidation, reactive oxygen species production, and mitochondrial dysfunction. Accumulating evidence has highlighted vital roles for ferroptosis in multiple diseases, including acute kidney injury. Therefore, ferroptosis has become a major focus for translational research. However, despite its involvement in pathological conditions, there are no pharmacologic inhibitors of ferroptosis in clinical use. In the context of drug repurposing, a strategy for identifying new uses for approved drugs outside the original medical application, we discovered that vitamin K1 is an efficient inhibitor of ferroptosis. Our findings are strengthened by the fact that the vitamin K antagonist phenprocoumon significantly exacerbated ferroptotic cell death in vitro and also massively worsened the course of acute kidney injury in vivo, which is of utmost clinical importance. We therefore assign vitamin K1 a novel role in preventing ferroptotic cell death in acute tubular necrosis during acute kidney injury. Since the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of vitamin K1 formulations are well documented, this drug is primed for clinical application, and provides a new strategy for pharmacological control of ferroptosis and diseases associated with this mode of cell death

Correction:Comprehensive genetic screening of early-onset dementia patients in an Austrian cohort-suggesting new disease-contributing genes (Human Genomics, (2023), 17, 1, (55), 10.1186/s40246-023-00499-z)

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported an error in Table 1. The correct Table 1 has been provided in this Correction. (Table presented.) Basic clinical and genetic characteristics of all 60 EOD patients ID Diagnosis AAO (years) Sex FH APOE Gene Variant Position Transcript CADD ClinVar Significance for disease EOD-1 EOD-2 c.184G &gt; A; p.R62C chr6:41129208-41129208 NM_001271821.1 25.5 n.r Risk modifier Risk modifier EOD-3 AD 45 f 2 E3/E3 EOD-4 AD 51 f 4 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-5 nfPPA 58 f 2 E3/E2 EOD-6 AD 56 f 3 E3/E3 EOD-7 AD/PCA 56 f 4 E3/E3 EOD-8 bvFTD 56 m 4 E3/E3 c.1427T &gt; C; p.M476T chr11:117160361-117160361 NM_012104.3 26.4 n.r Unknown c.9757A &gt; G; p.S3253G chr15:62173781-62173781 NM_020821.2 29.5 n.r Unknown EOD-9 AD 55 f 3,5 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-10 AD 58 f 3,5 E3/E3 EOD-11 AD 63 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-12 mixed dementia (AD + VD) 55 m 3,5 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-13 AD 61 m 4,5 E3/E3 EOD-14 AD/lpPPA 61 m 4 E4/E3 Risk modifier c.4300C &gt; T; p.V1434I chr15:62244179-62244179 NM_020821.2 24.8 n.r Unknown EOD-15 nfPPA 64 m 2 E3/E3 c.2218C &gt; T; p.E740K chr2:74594514-74594514 NM_004082.4 24.0 n.r Unknown EOD-16 AD 56 f 4 E3/E3 EOD-17 AD (PD) 60 m 1 E4/E3 Risk modifier g.chr16:1816528 A &gt; G; c.2817-2A &gt; G chr16:1816528-1816528 NM_015133.3 22.3 n.r Unknown EOD-18a c.2914C &gt; T; p.P972S chr19:1051537-1051537 NM_019112.3 25.3 n.r Potential risk modifier EOD-19 EOD-19 (2)b EOD-20 AD 57 m 4,5 E3/E3 c.7397T &gt; A; p.L2466H chr12:40760814-40760814 NM_198578.3 25.7 VUS Unknown EOD-21 EOD-22 EOD-23 EOD-24 EOD-25 EOD-26 AD 56 f 4 E3/E3 c.2980G &gt; C; p.P994A chr2:74590268-74590268 NM_023019.3 17.3 VUS Unknown c.2087G &gt; A; p.R696H chr16:1814180-1814180 NM_015133.3 31.0 n.r Unknown EOD-27 AD 57 f 4 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-28 AD 54 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-29 AD 54 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-30 AD 64 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-31 mixed dementia (AD + VD) 58 m 3,5 E3/E3 EOD-32 FTD/svPPA 61 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-33 AD 62 f 4,5 E4/E3 Risk modifier c.521G &gt; A; p.S174L chr2:74598788-74598788 NM_004082.4 24.4 VUS Unknown EOD-34 AD 59 f 2 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-35 AD 55 m 3,5 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-36c AD 64 m 2 E4/E3 c.140G &gt; A; p.R47H chr6:41129252-41129252 NM_018965.3 9.7 LB Risk modifier Risk modifier EOD-37 AD 52 f 3,5 E3/E3 c.7397T &gt; A; p.L2466H chr12:40760814-40760814 NM_198578.3 25.7 VUS Unknown EOD-38 AD 52 f 3,5 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-39 AD 63 f 3 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-40 AD 55 f 4 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-41 AD 58 m 3,5 E3/E3 EOD-42 AD 39 m 4 E3/E2 EOD-43 AD 63 m 4 E3/E3 c.3148A &gt; G; p.I1050V chr15:62256964-62256964 NM_020821.2 0.001 VUS Unknown EOD-44 AD/lpPPA 58 f 3,5 E3/E3 c.3014T &gt; G; p.M1005R chr11:121430331-121430331 NM_003105.5 27.9 n.r Potential risk modifier EOD-45 AD 65 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-46 CBS + AD 51 f 3,5 E3/E3 c.4606G &gt; A; p.G1536S chr11:121474988-121474988 NM_003105.5 25.2 B Risk modifier EOD-47 AD 54 f 4 E3/E3 EOD-48 bvFTD 57 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-49 FTD/nfPPA + ALS 58 m 4 E3/E3 c.986T &gt; C; p.L276P chr12:64875636-64875636 NM_013254.3 n.r Potential risk modifier c.7436T &gt; C; p.I2429T chr15:62212307-62212307 NM_020821.2 n.r Unknown EOD-50 Risk modifier EOD-51 FTD/svPPA 62 f 4 E3/E3 EOD-52 AD 57 m 4 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-53 c.7377G &gt; A; p.M2459I chr12:40758839-40758839 NM_198578.3 17.7 n.r Unknown EOD-54 AD 59 m 1 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-55 AD 49 m 4 E3/E3 EOD-56 AD 61 m 3,5 E3/E3 EOD-57 AD/lpPPA 57 f 4 E3/E3 EOD-58 AD + VD 64 f 3 E3/E3 c.823C &gt; T; p.R141C chr2:74598126-74598126 NM_004082.3 29.3 VUS Unknown EOD-59 bvFTD 52 m 4 E4/E3 Risk modifier EOD-60 a, EOD-18: The APP duplication of was confirmed to be 'de novo'. Both parents did not show this duplication b, EOD-19 (2) is the brother of EOD19. He was also affected by AD and carrier of the same duplication. EOD 19 (2) was not included in the analyses of AAO and FH c, EOD-36: ClinVar assessment of TREM2 p.R47H of LB (likely benign) refers to Nasu-Hakola disease. However, p.R47H is an established risk variant for dementia (Ref. 15) The original article [1] has been corrected.</p

COVID-19 Vaccines: Computational tools and Development

The 2019 coronavirus outbreak, also known as COVID-19, poses a serious threat to global health and has already had widespread, devastating effects around the world. Scientists have been working tirelessly to develop vaccines to stop the virus from spreading as much as possible, as its cure has not yet been found. As of December 2022, 651,918,402 cases and 6,656,601 deaths had been reported. Globally, over 13 billion doses of vaccine have been administered, representing 64.45% of the world’s population that has received the vaccine. To expedite the vaccine development process, computational tools have been utilized. This paper aims to analyze some computational tools that aid vaccine development by presenting positive evidence for proving the efficacy of these vaccines to suppress the spread of the virus and for the use of computational tools in the development of vaccines for emerging diseases