"Jetzt weiß ich, dass ich weder verrückt bin noch sterben werde!" : Die Verhaltenstherapie-Ambulanz verbindet Forschung, Lehre und Praxis

Psychische Störungen überschreiten alle Grenzen – es gibt sie in allen Kulturen, zu allen Zeiten, in allen soziodemografischen Schichten und in jedem Lebensalter. Sie sind häufige Themen sowohl in Talkshows, Fernsehserien und Illustrierten als auch in Literatur, Theater und bildender Kunst. Jeden können sie treffen, und beinahe jeder kennt zumindest eine Person, die an einer klinisch bedeutsamen psychischen Störung leidet. Zu deren Behandlung und Erforschung sowie zur Ausbildung von Psychologischen Psychotherapeuten wurde 1999 am Fachbereich Psychologie und Sportwissenschaften der Universität Frankfurt die Verhaltenstherapie-Ambulanz eingerichtet. Primäres Ziel der universitären Ambulanz ist dabei, die Forschung und Lehre des Fachs »Klinische Psychologie und Psychotherapie « mit der praktischen therapeutischen Arbeit an Klienten zusammenzuführen, um damit die Verbindung aus Forschung, Lehre, Ausbildung und Praxis herzustellen

Entwicklung und Realisierung eines 40 GHz Ankunftszeitmonitors für Elektronenpakete für FLASH und den European XFEL

Die vorliegende Arbeit dokumentiert die Entwicklung eines Ankunftszeitmonitorsystems mit verbesserter Zeitauflösung fur den Freie-Elektronen-Laser in Hamburg (FLASH) am Deutschen Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY). Die Notwendigkeit der Entwicklung dieses Systems ergab sich aus der Anforderung auch bei Experimenten mit Elektronenpaketladungen von nur 20 pC, anstelle der bisher verwendeten 500 bis 3000 pC, eine Zeitauflösung von 10 fs zu erzielen. Das gesamte System muss hierzu eine Bandbreite von etwa 40 GHz aufweisen. Zur Realisierung wurde zunächst eine Studie neuer potentieller Pickupelektroden mittels Computersimulationen durchgeführt. Unter Berücksichtigung der elektrischen und mechanischen Eigenschaften sowie der Herstellbarkeit wurde ein konusförmiger Pickup ausgewählt. Grenzen für die Produktionstoleranzen wurden anhand einer ausführlichen Simulationsstudie ermittelt. Die Ergebnisse der Vermessung des elektrischen Verhaltens eines Prototypen zeigten gute Übereinstimmung mit den Simulationsergebnissen. Das elektrische Signal des Pickups wird auf einen elektro-optischen Modulator (EOM) geleitet. Die erhöhte Bandbreite erfordert den Austausch der bestehenden EOMs. Es existieren nur wenige EOMs, welche nominell die geforderte Bandbreite aufweisen. Sie wurden im Labor hinsichtlich ihrer Eigenschaften, wie optische Modulationstiefe und optischer Verluste untersucht und das geeignetste Modell ausgewählt. Schließlich werden Aufbaukonzepte präsentiert. Der erweiterte Ladungsbereich erfordert einen Betrieb mit zwei Modi für niedrige und hohe Ladungen, wobei jeder Modus einen Fein- und einen Grobkanal besitzt. Der Grobkanal dient zur Bestimmung des Arbeitsfensters des Feinkanals. Um die hohe Ankunftszeitgenauigkeit des Gesamtsystems zu garantieren kommt der Wahl der HF-Kabel eine wichtige Bedeutung zu. Diese müssen einerseits die Anforderung an die hohe Bandbreite erfüllen und zudem eine geringe Dämpfung aufweisen. Ein Prototyp des neuen Ankunftszeitmonitorsystems wurde realisiert und vermessen. Aufgrund von Verfügbarkeitsproblemen musste dabei zunächst auf ein EOM Modell mit geringerer Bandbreite zurückgegriffen werden, um die Funktionalität zu demonstrieren. Gemäß Computersimulationen wird das neue Ankunftszeitmonitorsystem bei Verwendung des geplanten EOM die geforderte Genauigkeit von 10 fs ab einer Elektronenpaketladung von etwa 55 pC erzielen. Die unerwartet hohe Dämpfung der Verkabelung vom Pickup bis zum EOM bei Frequenzen oberhalb von etwa 20 GHz erlaubt es nicht diese Genauigkeit bei 20 pC Ladung zu erreichen. Bei dieser Paketladung kann eine Genauigkeit von etwa 27 fs erwartet werden

Analysis of the Crab Nebula and Pulsar

Although the Crab Nebula is well understood, the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS) still regularly observes the Crab\u27s highest energy emissions. These emissions are used to calibrate the telescopes, further, document the system, and investigate the validity of physical models. Our research this summer is geared to analyze data from 2018-2022 to add to an ongoing research project investigating the long term variability of the Crab Nebula’s emission

An Introduction to the VERITAS Observatory

Located at the base of Mount Hopkins, Arizona, at an elevation of approximately 4200 feet, the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS) is a ground-based gamma ray observatory containing four Cherenkov telescopes designed to detect very high energy gamma rays with energies ranging from 100GeV to 10TeV using the Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Technique. In April 2007, VERITAS began successful operations with all four telescopes. As of today, over 15 years of data has been taken by the VERITAS array, stored in an archive of data, and used for a wide variety of research, publications, PhD theses, and conventions examining some of the most violent and energetic processes in our universe

Analysis of the functional consequences of targeted exon deletion in COL7A1 reveals prospects for dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa therapy

Genetically evoked deficiency of collagen VII causes dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB)-a debilitating disease characterized by chronic skin fragility and progressive fibrosis. Removal of exons carrying frame-disrupting mutations can reinstate protein expression in genetic diseases. The therapeutic potential of this approach is critically dependent on gene, protein, and disease intrinsic factors. Naturally occurring exon skipping in COL7A1, translating collagen VII, suggests that skipping of exons containing disease-causing mutations may be feasible for the treatment of DEB. However, despite a primarily in-frame arrangement of exons in the COL7A1 gene, no general conclusion of the aptitude of exon skipping for DEB can be drawn, since regulation of collagen VII functionality is complex involving folding, intra-and intermolecular interactions. To directly address this, we deleted two conceptually important exons located at both ends of COL7A1, exon 13, containing recurrent mutations, and exon 105, predicted to impact folding. The resulting recombinantly expressed proteins showed conserved functionality in biochemical and in vitro assays. Injected into DEB mice, the proteins promoted skin stability. By demonstrating functionality of internally deleted collagen VII variants, our study provides support of targeted exon deletion or skipping as a potential therapy to treat a large number of individuals with DEB

The linear chromosome of the plant-pathogenic mycoplasma 'Candidatus Phytoplasma mali'

BACKGROUND: Phytoplasmas are insect-transmitted, uncultivable bacterial plant pathogens that cause diseases in hundreds of economically important plants. They represent a monophyletic group within the class Mollicutes (trivial name mycoplasmas) and are characterized by a small genome with a low GC content, and the lack of a firm cell wall. All mycoplasmas, including strains of 'Candidatus (Ca.) Phytoplasma asteris' and 'Ca. P. australiense', examined so far have circular chromosomes, as is the case for almost all walled bacteria. RESULTS: Our work has shown that 'Ca. Phytoplasma mali', the causative agent of apple proliferation disease, has a linear chromosome. Linear chromosomes were also identified in the closely related provisional species 'Ca. P. pyri' and 'Ca. P. prunorum'. The chromosome of 'Ca. P. mali' strain AT is 601,943 bp in size and has a GC content of 21.4%. The chromosome is further characterized by large terminal inverted repeats and covalently closed hairpin ends. Analysis of the protein-coding genes revealed that glycolysis, the major energy-yielding pathway supposed for 'Ca. P. asteris', is incomplete in 'Ca. P. mali'. Due to the apparent lack of other metabolic pathways present in mycoplasmas, it is proposed that maltose and malate are utilized as carbon and energy sources. However, complete ATP-yielding pathways were not identified. 'Ca. P. mali' also differs from 'Ca. P. asteris' by a smaller genome, a lower GC content, a lower number of paralogous genes, fewer insertions of potential mobile DNA elements, and a strongly reduced number of ABC transporters for amino acids. In contrast, 'Ca. P. mali' has an extended set of genes for homologous recombination, excision repair and SOS response than 'Ca. P. asteris'. CONCLUSION: The small linear chromosome with large terminal inverted repeats and covalently closed hairpin ends, the extremely low GC content and the limited metabolic capabilities reflect unique features of 'Ca. P. mali', not only within phytoplasmas, but all mycoplasmas. It is expected that the genome information obtained here will contribute to a better understanding of the reduced metabolism of phytoplasmas, their fastidious nutrition requirements that prevented axenic cultivation, and the mechanisms involved in pathogenicity

Language ability in preterm children is associated with arcuate fasciculi microstructure at term.

In the mature human brain, the arcuate fasciculus mediates verbal working memory, word learning, and sublexical speech repetition. However, its contribution to early language acquisition remains unclear. In this work, we aimed to evaluate the role of the direct segments of the arcuate fasciculi in the early acquisition of linguistic function. We imaged a cohort of 43 preterm born infants (median age at birth of 30 gestational weeks; median age at scan of 42 postmenstrual weeks) using high b value high-angular resolution diffusion-weighted neuroimaging and assessed their linguistic performance at 2 years of age. Using constrained spherical deconvolution tractography, we virtually dissected the arcuate fasciculi and measured fractional anisotropy (FA) as a metric of white matter development. We found that term equivalent FA of the left and right arcuate fasciculi was significantly associated with individual differences in linguistic and cognitive abilities in early childhood, independent of the degree of prematurity. These findings suggest that differences in arcuate fasciculi microstructure at the time of normal birth have a significant impact on language development and modulate the first stages of language learning. Hum Brain Mapp 38:3836-3847, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

Measurement of Rb in e+e- Collisions at 182 - 209 GeV

Measurements of Rb, the ratio of the bbbar cross-section to the qqbar cross- section in e+e- collisions, are presented. The data were collected by the OPAL experiment at LEP at centre-of-mass energies between 182 GeV and 209 GeV. Lepton, lifetime and event shape information is used to tag events containing b quarks with high efficiency. The data are compatible with the Standard Model expectation. The mean ratio of the eight measurements reported here to the Standard Model prediction is 1.055+-0.031+-0.037, where the first error is statistical and the second systematic.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figures, Submitted to Phys. Letts

Measurement of the partial widths of the Z into up- and down-type quarks

Using the entire OPAL LEP1 on-peak Z hadronic decay sample, Z -> qbarq gamma decays were selected by tagging hadronic final states with isolated photon candidates in the electromagnetic calorimeter. Combining the measured rates of Z -> qbarq gamma decays with the total rate of hadronic Z decays permits the simultaneous determination of the widths of the Z into up- and down-type quarks. The values obtained, with total errors, were Gamma u = 300 ^{+19}_{-18} MeV and Gamma d = 381 ^{+12}_{-12} MeV. The results are in good agreement with the Standard Model expectation.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figures, Submitted to Phys. Letts.