Half-metallic ferromagnetism with high magnetic moment and high Curie temperature in Co2_2FeSi

Co$_2$FeSi crystallizes in the ordered L2$_1$ structure as proved by X-ray diffraction and M\"o\ss bauer spectroscopy. The magnetic moment of Co$_2$FeSi was measured to be about $6\mu_B$ at 5K. Magnetic circular dichroism spectra excited by soft X-rays (XMCD) were taken to determine the element specific magnetic moments of Co and Fe. The Curie temperature was measured with different methods to be ($1100\pm20$)K. Co$_2$FeSi was found to be the Heusler compound as well as the half-metallic ferromagnet with the highest magnetic moment and Curie temperature.Comment: conference contribution, MMM200

Influence of Patient-Specific Covariates on Test Validity of Two Delirium Screening Instruments in Neurocritical Care Patients (DEMON-ICU)

Background: Delirium screening instruments (DSIs) should be used to detect delirium, but they only show moderate sensitivity in patients with neurocritical illness. We explored whether, for these patients, DSI validity is impacted by patient-specific covariates. Methods: Data were prospectively collected in a single-center quality improvement project. Patients were screened for delirium once daily using the Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist (ICDSC) and the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU). Reference was the daily assessment using criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 4th Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR). In a two-step receiver operating characteristics regression analysis adjusting for repeated measurements, the impact of acute diagnosis of stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA), neurosurgical intervention, Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale, and ventilation status on test validity was determined. Results: Of 181 patients screened, 101 went into final analysis. Delirium incidence according to DSM-IV-TR was 29.7%. For the first complete assessment series (CAM-ICU, ICDSC, and DSM-IV-TR), sensitivity for the CAM-ICU and the ICDSC was 73.3% and 66.7%, and specificity was 91.8% and 94.1%, respectively. Consideration of daily repeated measurements increased sensitivity for the CAM-ICU and ICDSC to 75.7% and 73.4%, and specificity to 97.3% and 98.9%, respectively. Receiver operating characteristics regression revealed that lower Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale levels significantly impaired validity of the ICDSC (p = 0.029) and the CAM-ICU in its severity scale version (p = 0.004). Neither acute diagnosis of stroke or TIA nor neurosurgical intervention or mechanical ventilation significantly influenced DSI validity. Conclusions: The CAM-ICU and ICDSC perform well in patients requiring neurocritical care, regardless of the presence of acute stroke, TIA, or neurosurgical interventions. Yet, even very light or moderate sedation can significantly impair DSI performance

SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants BA.1 and BA.2 both show similarly reduced disease severity of COVID-19 compared to Delta, Germany, 2021 to 2022

German national surveillance data analysis shows that hospitalisation odds associated with Omicron lineage BA.1 or BA.2 infections are up to 80% lower than with Delta infection, primarily in ≥ 35-year-olds. Hospitalised vaccinated Omicron cases’ proportions (2.3% for both lineages) seemed lower than those of the unvaccinated (4.4% for both lineages). Independent of vaccination status, the hospitalisation frequency among cases with Delta seemed nearly threefold higher (8.3%) than with Omicron (3.0% for both lineages), suggesting that Omicron inherently causes less severe disease.Peer Reviewe

Estrogen transactivates EGFR via the sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor Edg-3: the role of sphingosine kinase-1

The transactivation of enhanced growth factor receptor (EGFR) by G protein–coupled receptor (GPCR) ligands is recognized as an important signaling mechanism in the regulation of complex biological processes, such as cancer development. Estrogen (E2), which is a steroid hormone that is intimately implicated in breast cancer, has also been suggested to function via EGFR transactivation. In this study, we demonstrate that E2-induced EGFR transactivation in human breast cancer cells is driven via a novel signaling system controlled by the lipid kinase sphingosine kinase-1 (SphK1). We show that E2 stimulates SphK1 activation and the release of sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P), by which E2 is capable of activating the S1P receptor Edg-3, resulting in the EGFR transactivation in a matrix metalloprotease–dependent manner. Thus, these findings reveal a key role for SphK1 in the coupling of the signals between three membrane-spanning events induced by E2, S1P, and EGF. They also suggest a new signal transduction model across three individual ligand-receptor systems, i.e., “criss-cross” transactivation

Subtype-specific differentiation of cardiac pacemaker cell clusters from human induced pluripotent stem cells

Background: Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) harbor the potential to differentiate into diverse cardiac cell types. Previous experimental efforts were primarily directed at the generation of hiPSC-derived cells with ventricular cardiomyocyte characteristics. Aiming at a straightforward approach for pacemaker cell modeling and replacement, we sought to selectively differentiate cells with nodal-type properties. Methods: hiPSC were differentiated into spontaneously beating clusters by co-culturing with visceral endoderm-like cells in a serum-free medium. Subsequent culturing in a specified fetal bovine serum (FBS)-enriched cell medium produced a pacemaker-type phenotype that was studied in detail using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), immunocytochemistry, and patch-clamp electrophysiology. Further investigations comprised pharmacological stimulations and co-culturing with neonatal cardiomyocytes. Results: hiPSC co-cultured in a serum-free medium with the visceral endoderm-like cell line END-2 produced spontaneously beating clusters after 10–12 days of culture. The pacemaker-specific genes HCN4, TBX3, and TBX18 were abundantly expressed at this early developmental stage, while levels of sarcomeric gene products remained low. We observed that working-type cardiomyogenic differentiation can be suppressed by transfer of early clusters into a FBS-enriched cell medium immediately after beating onset. After 6 weeks under these conditions, sinoatrial node (SAN) hallmark genes remained at high levels, while working-type myocardial transcripts (NKX2.5, TBX5) were low. Clusters were characterized by regular activity and robust beating rates (70–90 beats/min) and were triggered by spontaneous Ca2+ transients recapitulating calcium clock properties of genuine pacemaker cells. They were responsive to adrenergic/cholinergic stimulation and able to pace neonatal rat ventricular myocytes in co-culture experiments. Action potential (AP) measurements of cells individualized from clusters exhibited nodal-type (63.4%) and atrial-type (36.6%) AP morphologies, while ventricular AP configurations were not observed. Conclusion: We provide a novel culture media-based, transgene-free approach for targeted generation of hiPSC-derived pacemaker-type cells that grow in clusters and offer the potential for disease modeling, drug testing, and individualized cell-based replacement therapy of the SAN

An Organic Borate Salt with Superior p‐Doping Capability for Organic Semiconductors

Molecular doping allows enhancement and precise control of electrical properties of organic semiconductors, and is thus of central technological relevance for organic (opto‐) electronics. Beyond single‐component molecular electron acceptors and donors, organic salts have recently emerged as a promising class of dopants. However, the pertinent fundamental understanding of doping mechanisms and doping capabilities is limited. Here, the unique capabilities of the salt consisting of a borinium cation (Mes2B+; Mes: mesitylene) and the tetrakis(penta‐fluorophenyl)borate anion [B(C6F5)4]− is demonstrated as p‐type dopant for polymer semiconductors. With a range of experimental methods, the doping mechanism is identified to comprise electron transfer from the polymer to Mes2B+, and the positive charge on the polymer is stabilized by [B(C6F5)4]−. Notably, the former salt cation leaves during processing and is not present in films. The anion [B(C6F5)4]− even enables the stabilization of polarons and bipolarons in poly(3‐hexylthiophene), not yet achieved with other molecular dopants. From doping studies with high ionization energy polymer semiconductors, the effective electron affinity of Mes2B+[B(C6F5)4]− is estimated to be an impressive 5.9 eV. This significantly extends the parameter space for doping of polymer semiconductors.Peer Reviewe

Rapid alterations of cell cycle control proteins in human T lymphocytes in microgravity

In our study we aimed to identify rapidly reacting gravity-responsive mechanisms in mammalian cells in order to understand if and how altered gravity is translated into a cellular response. In a combination of experiments using "functional weightlessness" provided by 2D-clinostats and real microgravity provided by several parabolic flight campaigns and compared to in-flight-1g-controls, we identified rapid gravity-responsive reactions inside the cell cycle regulatory machinery of human T lymphocytes. In response to 2D clinorotation, we detected an enhanced expression of p21 Waf1/Cip1 protein within minutes, less cdc25C protein expression and enhanced Ser147-phosphorylation of cyclinB1 after CD3/CD28 stimulation. Additionally, during 2D clinorotation, Tyr-15-phosphorylation occurred later and was shorter than in the 1 g controls. In CD3/CD28-stimulated primary human T cells, mRNA expression of the cell cycle arrest protein p21 increased 4.1-fold after 20s real microgravity in primary CD4+ T cells and 2.9-fold in Jurkat T cells, compared to 1 g in-flight controls after CD3/CD28 stimulation. The histone acetyltransferase (HAT) inhibitor curcumin was able to abrogate microgravity-induced p21 mRNA expression, whereas expression was enhanced by a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor. Therefore, we suppose that cell cycle progression in human T lymphocytes requires Earth gravity and that the disturbed expression of cell cycle regulatory proteins could contribute to the breakdown of the human immune system in space

Mobility recorded by wearable devices and gold standards: the Mobilise-D procedure for data standardization

Wearable devices are used in movement analysis and physical activity research to extract clinically relevant information about an individual's mobility. Still, heterogeneity in protocols, sensor characteristics, data formats, and gold standards represent a barrier for data sharing, reproducibility, and external validation. In this study, we aim at providing an example of how movement data (from the real-world and the laboratory) recorded from different wearables and gold standard technologies can be organized, integrated, and stored. We leveraged on our experience from a large multi-centric study (Mobilise-D) to provide guidelines that can prove useful to access, understand, and re-use the data that will be made available from the study. These guidelines highlight the encountered challenges and the adopted solutions with the final aim of supporting standardization and integration of data in other studies and, in turn, to increase and facilitate comparison of data recorded in the scientific community. We also provide samples of standardized data, so that both the structure of the data and the procedure can be easily understood and reproduced

Phylogenetic relationships of species of Raymunida (Decapoda: Galatheidae) based on morphology and mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase sequences, with the recognition of four new species

19 pages.-- RECEIVED: 10 April 2000, ACCEPTED: 8 November 2000.The species of the genus Raymunida from the Pacific and Indian oceans are revised using morphological characters and the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I sequences. Four new species are described (R. confundens, R. dextralis, R. erythrina, and R. insulata), and the status of R. bellior and R. elegantissima are revised. The species of Raymunida can be identified by subtle morphological characters, which match differences in mitochondrial nucleotide sequences. Therefore, the sequence divergences confirm the specific and phylogenetic value of some morphological characters (e.g., length of the mesial spine on the basal antennal segment, length of the walking legs). Furthermore, they confirm the importance of the color pattern as a diagnostic character. The widespread species (R. elegantissima), known from the Philippines to Fiji, shows minimal divergence between specimens from different localities (maximum of 3 nucleotide differences or 0.2% mean divergence). The phylogenetic reconstruction agreed with the monophyletic condition of Raymunida and its differentiation with respect to the genus Munida (in which Raymunida species had previously been included) and Agononida.Peer reviewe

Selection effects may account for better outcomes of the German Disease Management Program for type 2 diabetes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The nationwide German disease management program (DMP) for type 2 diabetes was introduced in 2003. Meanwhile, results from evaluation studies were published, but possible baseline differences between DMP and usual-care patients have not been examined. The objective of our study was therefore to find out if patient characteristics as socio-demographic variables, cardiovascular risk profile or motivation for life style changes influence the chance of being enrolled in the German DMP for type 2 diabetes and may therefore account for outcome differences between DMP and usual-care patients.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Case control study comparing DMP patients with usual-care patients at baseline and follow up; mean follow-up period of 36 ± 14 months. We used chart review data from 51 GP surgeries. Participants were 586 DMP and 250 usual-care patients with type 2 diabetes randomly selected by chart registry. Data were analysed by multivariate logistic and linear regression analyses. Significance levels were p ≤ 0.05.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There was a better chance for enrolment if patients a) had a lower risk status for diabetes complications, i.e. non-smoking (odds ratio of 1.97, 95% confidence interval of 1.11 to 3.48) and lower systolic blood pressure (1.79 for 120 mmHg vs. 160 mmHg, 1.15 to 2.81); b) had higher activity rates, i.e. were practicing blood glucose self-monitoring (1.67, 1.03 to 2.76) and had been prescribed a diabetes patient education before enrolment (2.32, 1.29 to 4.19) c) were treated with oral medication (2.17, 1.35 to 3.49) and d) had a higher GP-rated motivation for diabetes education (4.55 for high motivation vs. low motivation, 2.21 to 9.36).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>At baseline, future DMP patients had a lower risk for diabetes complications, were treated more intensively and were more active and motivated in managing their disease than usual-care patients. This finding a) points to the problem that the German DMP may not reach the higher risk patients and b) selection bias may impair the assessment of differences in outcome quality between enrolled and usual-care patients. Suggestions for dealing with this bias in evaluation studies are being made.</p