@article{AndelovicWinterKampfetal.2021, author = {Andelovic, Kristina and Winter, Patrick and Kampf, Thomas and Xu, Anton and Jakob, Peter Michael and Herold, Volker and Bauer, Wolfgang Rudolf and Zernecke, Alma}, title = {2D Projection Maps of WSS and OSI Reveal Distinct Spatiotemporal Changes in Hemodynamics in the Murine Aorta during Ageing and Atherosclerosis}, series = {Biomedicines}, volume = {9}, journal = {Biomedicines}, number = {12}, issn = {2227-9059}, doi = {10.3390/biomedicines9121856}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-252164}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Growth, ageing and atherosclerotic plaque development alter the biomechanical forces acting on the vessel wall. However, monitoring the detailed local changes in wall shear stress (WSS) at distinct sites of the murine aortic arch over time has been challenging. Here, we studied the temporal and spatial changes in flow, WSS, oscillatory shear index (OSI) and elastic properties of healthy wildtype (WT, n = 5) and atherosclerotic apolipoprotein E-deficient (Apoe\(^{-/-}\), n = 6) mice during ageing and atherosclerosis using high-resolution 4D flow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Spatially resolved 2D projection maps of WSS and OSI of the complete aortic arch were generated, allowing the pixel-wise statistical analysis of inter- and intragroup hemodynamic changes over time and local correlations between WSS, pulse wave velocity (PWV), plaque and vessel wall characteristics. The study revealed converse differences of local hemodynamic profiles in healthy WT and atherosclerotic Apoe\(^{-/-}\) mice, and we identified the circumferential WSS as potential marker of plaque size and composition in advanced atherosclerosis and the radial strain as a potential marker for vascular elasticity. Two-dimensional (2D) projection maps of WSS and OSI, including statistical analysis provide a powerful tool to monitor local aortic hemodynamics during ageing and atherosclerosis. The correlation of spatially resolved hemodynamics and plaque characteristics could significantly improve our understanding of the impact of hemodynamics on atherosclerosis, which may be key to understand plaque progression towards vulnerability.}, language = {en} } @article{LiSamnickLapaetal.2012, author = {Li, Xiang and Samnick, Samuel and Lapa, Constantin and Israel, Ina and Buck, Andreas K. and Kreissl, Michael C. and Bauer, Wolfgang}, title = {68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT for the detection of inflammation of large arteries: correlation with18F-FDG, calcium burden and risk factors}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-76231}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Background: Ga-[1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-N,N0,N00,N000-tetraacetic acid]-d-Phe1,Tyr3-octreotate (DOTATATE) positron emission tomography (PET) is commonly used for the visualization of somatostatin receptor (SSTR)-positive neuroendocrine tumors. SSTR is also known to be expressed on macrophages, which play a major role in inflammatory processes in the walls of coronary arteries and large vessels. Therefore, imaging SSTR expression has the potential to visualize vulnerable plaques. We assessed 68Ga-DOTATATE accumulation in large vessels in comparison to 18F-2-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake, calcified plaques (CPs), and cardiovascular risk factors. Methods: Sixteen consecutive patients with neuroendocrine tumors or thyroid cancer underwent both 68Ga-DOTATATE and 18F-FDG PET/CT for staging or restaging purposes. Detailed clinical data, including common cardiovascular risk factors, were recorded. For a separate assessment, they were divided into a high-risk and a low-risk group. In each patient, we calculated the maximum target-to-background ratio (TBR) of eight arterial segments. The correlation of the TBRmean of both tracers with risk factors including plaque burden was assessed. Results: The mean TBR of 68Ga-DOTATATE in all large arteries correlated significantly with the presence of CPs (r = 0.52; p < 0.05), hypertension (r = 0.60; p < 0.05), age (r = 0.56; p < 0.05), and uptake of 18F-FDG (r = 0.64; p < 0.01). There was one significant correlation between 18F-FDG uptake and hypertension (0.58; p < 0.05). Out of the 37 sites with the highest focal 68Ga-DOTATATE uptake, 16 (43.2\%) also had focal 18F-FDG uptake. Of 39 sites with the highest 18F-FDG uptake, only 11 (28.2\%) had a colocalized 68Ga-DOTATATE accumulation. Conclusions: In this series of cancer patients, we found a stronger association of increased 68Ga-DOTATATE uptake with known risk factors of cardiovascular disease as compared to 18F-FDG, suggesting a potential role for plaque imaging in large arteries. Strikingly, we found that focal uptake of 68Ga-DOTATATE and 18F-FDG does not colocalize in a significant number of lesions.}, subject = {Medizin}, language = {en} } @article{HeroldHerzWinteretal.2017, author = {Herold, Volker and Herz, Stefan and Winter, Patrick and Gutjahr, Fabian Tobias and Andelovic, Kristina and Bauer, Wolfgang Rudolf and Jakob, Peter Michael}, title = {Assessment of local pulse wave velocity distribution in mice using k-t BLAST PC-CMR with semi-automatic area segmentation.}, series = {Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance}, volume = {19}, journal = {Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance}, number = {77}, doi = {10.1186/s12968-017-0382-2}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-157696}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Background: Local aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) is a measure for vascular stiffness and has a predictive value for cardiovascular events. Ultra high field CMR scanners allow the quantification of local PWV in mice, however these systems are yet unable to monitor the distribution of local elasticities. Methods: In the present study we provide a new accelerated method to quantify local aortic PWV in mice with phase-contrast cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (PC-CMR) at 17.6 T. Based on a k-t BLAST (Broad-use Linear Acquisition Speed-up Technique) undersampling scheme, total measurement time could be reduced by a factor of 6. The fast data acquisition enables to quantify the local PWV at several locations along the aortic blood vessel based on the evaluation of local temporal changes in blood flow and vessel cross sectional area. To speed up post processing and to eliminate operator bias, we introduce a new semi-automatic segmentation algorithm to quantify cross-sectional areas of the aortic vessel. The new methods were applied in 10 eight-month-old mice (4 C57BL/6J-mice and 6 ApoE\(^{(-/-)}\)-mice) at 12 adjacent locations along the abdominal aorta. Results: Accelerated data acquisition and semi-automatic post-processing delivered reliable measures for the local PWV, similiar to those obtained with full data sampling and manual segmentation. No statistically significant differences of the mean values could be detected for the different measurement approaches. Mean PWV values were elevated for the ApoE\(^{(-/-)}\)-group compared to the C57BL/6J-group (3.5 ± 0.7 m/s vs. 2.2 ± 0.4 m/s, p < 0.01). A more heterogeneous PWV-distribution in the ApoE \(^{(-/-)}\)-animals could be observed compared to the C57BL/6J-mice, representing the local character of lesion development in atherosclerosis. Conclusion: In the present work, we showed that k-t BLAST PC-MRI enables the measurement of the local PWV distribution in the mouse aorta. The semi-automatic segmentation method based on PC-CMR data allowed rapid determination of local PWV. The findings of this study demonstrate the ability of the proposed methods to non-invasively quantify the spatial variations in local PWV along the aorta of ApoE\(^{(-/-)}\)-mice as a relevant model of atherosclerosis.}, language = {en} } @article{ManchiaAdliAkulaetal.2013, author = {Manchia, Mirko and Adli, Mazda and Akula, Nirmala and Arda, Raffaella and Aubry, Jean-Michel and Backlund, Lena and Banzato, Claudio E. M. and Baune, Bernhard T. and Bellivier, Frank and Bengesser, Susanne and Biernacka, Joanna M. and Brichant-Petitjean, Clara and Bui, Elise and Calkin, Cynthia V. and Cheng, Andrew Tai Ann and Chillotti, Caterina and Cichon, Sven and Clark, Scott and Czerski, Piotr M. and Dantas, Clarissa and Del Zompo, Maria and DePaulo, J. Raymond and Detera-Wadleigh, Sevilla D. and Etain, Bruno and Falkai, Peter and Fris{\´e}n, Louise and Frye, Mark A. and Fullerton, Jan and Gard, S{\´e}bastien and Garnham, Julie and Goes, Fernando S. and Grof, Paul and Gruber, Oliver and Hashimoto, Ryota and Hauser, Joanna and Heilbronner, Urs and Hoban, Rebecca and Hou, Liping and Jamain, St{\´e}phane and Kahn, Jean-Pierre and Kassem, Layla and Kato, Tadafumi and Kelsoe, John R. and Kittel-Schneider, Sarah and Kliwicki, Sebastian and Kuo, Po-Hsiu and Kusumi, Ichiro and Laje, Gonzalo and Lavebratt, Catharina and Leboyer, Marion and Leckband, Susan G. and L{\´o}pez Jaramillo, Carlos A. and Maj, Mario and Malafosse, Alain and Martinsson, Lina and Masui, Takuya and Mitchell, Philip B. and Mondimore, Frank and Monteleone, Palmiero and Nallet, Audrey and Neuner, Maria and Nov{\´a}k, Tom{\´a}s and O'Donovan, Claire and {\"O}sby, Urban and Ozaki, Norio and Perlis, Roy H. and Pfennig, Andrea and Potash, James B. and Reich-Erkelenz, Daniela and Reif, Andreas and Reininghaus, Eva and Richardson, Sara and Rouleau, Guy A. and Rybakowski, Janusz K. and Schalling, Martin and Schofield, Peter R. and Schubert, Oliver K. and Schweizer, Barbara and Seem{\"u}ller, Florian and Grigoroiu-Serbanescu, Maria and Severino, Giovanni and Seymour, Lisa R. and Slaney, Claire and Smoller, Jordan W. and Squassina, Alessio and Stamm, Thomas and Steele, Jo and Stopkova, Pavla and Tighe, Sarah K. and Tortorella, Alfonso and Turecki, Gustavo and Wray, Naomi R. and Wright, Adam and Zandi, Peter P. and Zilles, David and Bauer, Michael and Rietschel, Marcella and McMahon, Francis J. and Schulze, Thomas G. and Alda, Martin}, title = {Assessment of Response to Lithium Maintenance Treatment in Bipolar Disorder: A Consortium on Lithium Genetics (ConLiGen) Report}, series = {PLoS ONE}, volume = {8}, journal = {PLoS ONE}, number = {6}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0065636}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-130938}, pages = {e65636}, year = {2013}, abstract = {Objective: The assessment of response to lithium maintenance treatment in bipolar disorder (BD) is complicated by variable length of treatment, unpredictable clinical course, and often inconsistent compliance. Prospective and retrospective methods of assessment of lithium response have been proposed in the literature. In this study we report the key phenotypic measures of the "Retrospective Criteria of Long-Term Treatment Response in Research Subjects with Bipolar Disorder" scale currently used in the Consortium on Lithium Genetics (ConLiGen) study. Materials and Methods: Twenty-nine ConLiGen sites took part in a two-stage case-vignette rating procedure to examine inter-rater agreement [Kappa (\(\kappa\))] and reliability [intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC)] of lithium response. Annotated first-round vignettes and rating guidelines were circulated to expert research clinicians for training purposes between the two stages. Further, we analyzed the distributional properties of the treatment response scores available for 1,308 patients using mixture modeling. Results: Substantial and moderate agreement was shown across sites in the first and second sets of vignettes (\(\kappa\) = 0.66 and \(\kappa\) = 0.54, respectively), without significant improvement from training. However, definition of response using the A score as a quantitative trait and selecting cases with B criteria of 4 or less showed an improvement between the two stages (\(ICC_1 = 0.71\) and \(ICC_2 = 0.75\), respectively). Mixture modeling of score distribution indicated three subpopulations (full responders, partial responders, non responders). Conclusions: We identified two definitions of lithium response, one dichotomous and the other continuous, with moderate to substantial inter-rater agreement and reliability. Accurate phenotypic measurement of lithium response is crucial for the ongoing ConLiGen pharmacogenomic study.}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Bauer2004, author = {Bauer, Michael}, title = {Die Unabh{\"a}ngigkeit des Abschlusspr{\"u}fers im Zusammenhang mit dem gleichzeitigen Angebot von Beratungsleistungen beim Pr{\"u}fungsmandanten - eine empirische Analyse}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-14913}, school = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg}, year = {2004}, abstract = {Zahlreiche, zum Teil sehr spektakul{\"a}re Unternehmenszusammenbr{\"u}che - national (z.B. Holzmann, Bankgesellschaft Berlin) wie international (z.B. Enron, Worldcom) - in Verbindung mit Bilanzmanipulationen, haben den Berufsstand in eine schwere Vertrauenskrise gest{\"u}rzt. Vor allem der Zusammenbruch von Enron (vormals das siebtgr{\"o}ßte Unternehmen der USA) hat die internationale Wirtschaftspr{\"u}fung in großen Aufruhr versetzt. Nach Bekanntwerden des Enron-Skandals wurden weitere F{\"a}lle fragw{\"u}rdiger Bilanzierungspraktiken aufgedeckt, was in der {\"O}ffentlichkeit den Eindruck erweckte, dass es sich hierbei um keinen Einzelfall handelte, sondern dass erhebliche strukturelle Defizite vorliegen m{\"u}ssen. Diese Entwicklungen l{\"o}sten weltweit eine Reformdebatte aus, welche zahlreiche berufsst{\"a}ndische und gesetzliche Regulierungseingriffe, sowohl national als auch international, zur Folge hatte. Unter besonderem Handlungsdruck stand der Gesetzgeber in den USA. Im Sommer 2002 wurde der „Sarbanes-Oxley Act" verabschiedet, der stark regulierend in den Berufsstand eingreift. Die Kritik der {\"O}ffentlichkeit konzentriert sich dabei haupts{\"a}chlich auf das gleichzeitige Angebot von Pr{\"u}fungs- und Beratungsleistungen durch den amtierenden Abschlusspr{\"u}fer. Viele sehen dadurch die Unabh{\"a}ngigkeit des Abschlusspr{\"u}fers und damit die Glaubw{\"u}rdigkeit der Jahresabschlussinformationen gef{\"a}hrdet. Die Sicherung der Vertrauensw{\"u}rdigkeit stellt f{\"u}r die Qualit{\"a}t der Abschlusspr{\"u}fung eine existentielle Grundlage dar. Die Vorschriften zur Unabh{\"a}ngigkeit des Abschlusspr{\"u}fers wurden daraufhin versch{\"a}rft, zahlreiche Beratungsleistungen durch den Abschlusspr{\"u}fer gelten nun als unvereinbar mit gleichzeitiger Abschlusspr{\"u}fung. Auch in der Europ{\"a}ischen Union und in Deutschland wird heftig diskutiert, wie man das verloren gegangene Vertrauen der {\"O}ffentlichkeit wiedergewinnen kann. Vor dem Hintergrund dieser Reformdebatte muss die Frage gestellt werden, ob durch das gleichzeitige Angebot von Pr{\"u}fungs- und Beratungsleistungen die Unabh{\"a}ngigkeit des Abschlusspr{\"u}fers tats{\"a}chlich gef{\"a}hrdet ist, oder die eingeleiteten Maßnahmen der {\"O}ffentlichkeit lediglich Handlungsf{\"a}higkeit seitens des Gesetzgebers suggerieren sollen, um das Vertrauen in den Berufsstand schnellstm{\"o}glich wieder zur{\"u}ckzugewinnen. Aus wissenschaftlicher Sicht konnte eine Beeintr{\"a}chtigung der Unabh{\"a}ngigkeit des Abschlusspr{\"u}fers bisher weder theoretisch noch empirisch nachgewiesen werden. Einige Autoren kritisieren vor allem bei der amerikanischen Gesetzesinitiative, sie habe sich eher an der Meinung der {\"O}ffentlichkeit orientierte, ohne wirkliche Ursachenanalyse zu betreiben. Es ist jedoch ausdr{\"u}cklich nicht das Anliegen dieser Arbeit, das F{\"u}r und Wider einschl{\"a}giger gesetzlicher Regelungen bzw. interner Sicherungsmaßnahmen darzustellen und zu er{\"o}rtern. Die vorliegende Arbeit leistet einen Beitrag zur aktuellen Diskussion, indem ausf{\"u}hrlich untersucht wird, ob sich eine Gef{\"a}hrdung der Unabh{\"a}ngigkeit des Abschlusspr{\"u}fers im Zusammenhang mit dem gleichzeitigen Angebot von Pr{\"u}fungs- und Beratungsleistungen empirisch nachweisen l{\"a}sst oder nicht. Dabei werden zwei Ziele verfolgt: Zum einen werden bereits vorliegende empirische Studien zu dieser Problematik vorgestellt und diskutiert, zum anderen werden zwei eigene empirische Untersuchungen, welche auf agencytheoretischen Grund{\"u}berlegungen basieren, in die Diskussion eingebracht.}, subject = {Deutschland}, language = {de} } @article{ReiterGenslerRitteretal.2012, author = {Reiter, Theresa and Gensler, Daniel and Ritter, Oliver and Weiss, Ingo and Geistert, Wolfgang and Kaufmann, Ralf and Hoffmeister, Sabine and Friedrich, Michael T. and Wintzheimer, Stefan and D{\"u}ring, Markus and Nordbeck, Peter and Jakob, Peter M. and Ladd, Mark E. and Quick, Harald H. and Bauer, Wolfgang R.}, title = {Direct cooling of the catheter tip increases safety for CMR-guided electrophysiological procedures}, series = {Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance}, volume = {14}, journal = {Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance}, number = {12}, doi = {10.1186/1532-429X-14-12}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-134927}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Background: One of the safety concerns when performing electrophysiological (EP) procedures under magnetic resonance (MR) guidance is the risk of passive tissue heating due to the EP catheter being exposed to the radiofrequency (RF) field of the RF transmitting body coil. Ablation procedures that use catheters with irrigated tips are well established therapeutic options for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias and when used in a modified mode might offer an additional system for suppressing passive catheter heating. Methods: A two-step approach was chosen. Firstly, tests on passive catheter heating were performed in a 1.5 T Avanto system (Siemens Healthcare Sector, Erlangen, Germany) using a ASTM Phantom in order to determine a possible maximum temperature rise. Secondly, a phantom was designed for simulation of the interface between blood and the vascular wall. The MR-RF induced temperature rise was simulated by catheter tip heating via a standard ablation generator. Power levels from 1 to 6 W were selected. Ablation duration was 120 s with no tip irrigation during the first 60 s and irrigation at rates from 2 ml/min to 35 ml/min for the remaining 60 s (Biotronik Qiona Pump, Berlin, Germany). The temperature was measured with fluoroscopic sensors (Luxtron, Santa Barbara, CA, USA) at a distance of 0 mm, 2 mm, 4 mm, and 6 mm from the catheter tip. Results: A maximum temperature rise of 22.4 degrees C at the catheter tip was documented in the MR scanner. This temperature rise is equivalent to the heating effect of an ablator's power output of 6 W at a contact force of the weight of 90 g (0.883 N). The catheter tip irrigation was able to limit the temperature rise to less than 2 degrees C for the majority of examined power levels, and for all examined power levels the residual temperature rise was less than 8 degrees C. Conclusion: Up to a maximum of 22.4 degrees C, the temperature rise at the tissue surface can be entirely suppressed by using the catheter's own irrigation system. The irrigated tip system can be used to increase MR safety of EP catheters by suppressing the effects of unwanted passive catheter heating due to RF exposure from the MR scanner.}, language = {en} } @article{PfennigLeopoldBechdolfetal.2014, author = {Pfennig, Andrea and Leopold, Karolina and Bechdolf, Andreas and Correll, Christoph U. and Holtmann, Martin and Lambert, Martin and Marx, Carolin and Meyer, Thomas D. and Pfeiffer, Steffi and Reif, Andreas and Rottmann-Wolf, Maren and Schmitt, Natalie M. and Stamm, Thomas and Juckel, Georg and Bauer, Michael}, title = {Early specific cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy in subjects at high risk for bipolar disorders: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial}, series = {TRIALS}, volume = {15}, journal = {TRIALS}, number = {161}, issn = {1468-6694}, doi = {10.1186/1745-6215-15-161}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-116279}, year = {2014}, abstract = {Background: Bipolar disorders (BD) are among the most severe mental disorders with first clinical signs and symptoms frequently appearing in adolescence and early adulthood. The long latency in clinical diagnosis (and subsequent adequate treatment) adversely affects the course of disease, effectiveness of interventions and health-related quality of life, and increases the economic burden of BD. Despite uncertainties about risk constellations and symptomatology in the early stages of potentially developing BD, many adolescents and young adults seek help, and most of them suffer substantially from symptoms already leading to impairments in psychosocial functioning in school, training, at work and in their social relationships. We aimed to identify subjects at risk of developing BD and investigate the efficacy and safety of early specific cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy (CBT) in this subpopulation. Methods/Design: EarlyCBT is a randomised controlled multi-centre clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of early specific CBT, including stress management and problem solving strategies, with elements of mindfulness-based therapy (MBT) versus unstructured group meetings for 14 weeks each and follow-up until week 78. Participants are recruited at seven university hospitals throughout Germany, which provide in-and outpatient care (including early recognition centres) for psychiatric patients. Subjects at high risk must be 15 to 30 years old and meet the combination of specified affective symptomatology, reduction of psychosocial functioning, and family history for (schizo) affective disorders. Primary efficacy endpoints are differences in psychosocial functioning and defined affective symptomatology at 14 weeks between groups. Secondary endpoints include the above mentioned endpoints at 7, 24, 52 and 78 weeks and the change within groups compared to baseline; perception of, reaction to and coping with stress; and conversion to full BD. Discussion: To our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate early specific CBT in subjects at high risk for BD. Structured diagnostic interviews are used to map the risk status and development of disease. With our study, the level of evidence for the treatment of those young patients will be significantly raised.}, language = {en} } @article{LeopoldBauerBechdolfetal.2020, author = {Leopold, Karolina and Bauer, Michael and Bechdolf, Andreas and Correll, Christoph U. and Holtmann, Martin and Juckel, Georg and Lambert, Martin and Meyer, Thomas D. and Pfeiffer, Steffi and Kittel-Schneider, Sarah and Reif, Andreas and Stamm, Thomas J. and Rottmann-Wolf, Maren and Mathiebe, Josephine and Kellmann, Eva L. and Ritter, Philipp and Kr{\"u}ger-{\"O}zg{\"u}rdal, Seza and Karow, Anne and Sondergeld, Lene-Marie and Roessner, Veit and Sauer, Cathrin and Pfennig, Andrea}, title = {Efficacy of cognitive-behavioral group therapy in patients at risk for serious mental illness presenting with subthreshold bipolar symptoms: Results from a prespecified interim analysis of a multicenter, randomized, controlled study}, series = {Bipolar Disorders}, volume = {22}, journal = {Bipolar Disorders}, number = {5}, doi = {10.1111/bdi.12894}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-215469}, pages = {517 -- 529}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Objective Most patients with bipolar disorders (BD) exhibit prodromal symptoms before a first (hypo)manic episode. Patients with clinically significant symptoms fulfilling at-risk criteria for serious mental illness (SMI) require effective and safe treatment. Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy (CBT) has shown promising results in early stages of BD and in patients at high risk for psychosis. We aimed to investigate whether group CBT can improve symptoms and functional deficits in young patients at risk for SMI presenting with subthreshold bipolar symptoms. Method In a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial, patients at clinical risk for SMI presenting with subthreshold bipolar symptoms aged 15-30 years were randomized to 14 weeks of at-risk for BD-specific group CBT or unstructured group meetings. Primary efficacy endpoints were differences in affective symptomatology and psychosocial functioning at 14 weeks. At-risk status was defined as a combination of subthreshold bipolar symptomatology, reduction of psychosocial functioning and a family history for (schizo)affective disorders. A prespecified interim analysis was conducted at 75\% of the targeted sample. Results Of 128 screened participants, 75 were randomized to group CBT (n = 38, completers = 65.8\%) vs unstructured group meetings (n = 37, completers = 78.4\%). Affective symptomatology and psychosocial functioning improved significantly at week 14 (P < .001) and during 6 months (P < .001) in both groups, without significant between-group differences. Findings are limited by the interim character of the analysis, the use of not fully validated early detection interviews, a newly adapted intervention manual, and the substantial drop-outs. Conclusions Results suggest that young patients at-risk for SMI presenting with subthreshold bipolar symptoms benefit from early group sessions. The degree of specificity and psychotherapeutic interaction needed requires clarification.}, language = {en} } @article{AndelovicWinterJakobetal.2021, author = {Andelovic, Kristina and Winter, Patrick and Jakob, Peter Michael and Bauer, Wolfgang Rudolf and Herold, Volker and Zernecke, Alma}, title = {Evaluation of plaque characteristics and inflammation using magnetic resonance imaging}, series = {Biomedicines}, volume = {9}, journal = {Biomedicines}, number = {2}, issn = {2227-9059}, doi = {10.3390/biomedicines9020185}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-228839}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease of large and medium-sized arteries, characterized by the growth of atherosclerotic lesions (plaques). These plaques often develop at inner curvatures of arteries, branchpoints, and bifurcations, where the endothelial wall shear stress is low and oscillatory. In conjunction with other processes such as lipid deposition, biomechanical factors lead to local vascular inflammation and plaque growth. There is also evidence that low and oscillatory shear stress contribute to arterial remodeling, entailing a loss in arterial elasticity and, therefore, an increased pulse-wave velocity. Although altered shear stress profiles, elasticity and inflammation are closely intertwined and critical for plaque growth, preclinical and clinical investigations for atherosclerosis mostly focus on the investigation of one of these parameters only due to the experimental limitations. However, cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been demonstrated to be a potent tool which can be used to provide insights into a large range of biological parameters in one experimental session. It enables the evaluation of the dynamic process of atherosclerotic lesion formation without the need for harmful radiation. Flow-sensitive MRI provides the assessment of hemodynamic parameters such as wall shear stress and pulse wave velocity which may replace invasive and radiation-based techniques for imaging of the vascular function and the characterization of early plaque development. In combination with inflammation imaging, the analyses and correlations of these parameters could not only significantly advance basic preclinical investigations of atherosclerotic lesion formation and progression, but also the diagnostic clinical evaluation for early identification of high-risk plaques, which are prone to rupture. In this review, we summarize the key applications of magnetic resonance imaging for the evaluation of plaque characteristics through flow sensitive and morphological measurements. The simultaneous measurements of functional and structural parameters will further preclinical research on atherosclerosis and has the potential to fundamentally improve the detection of inflammation and vulnerable plaques in patients.}, language = {en} } @article{WinterAndelovicKampfetal.2019, author = {Winter, Patrick and Andelovic, Kristina and Kampf, Thomas and Gutjahr, Fabian Tobias and Heidenreich, Julius and Zernecke, Alma and Bauer, Wolfgang Rudolf and Jakob, Peter Michael and Herold, Volker}, title = {Fast self-navigated wall shear stress measurements in the murine aortic archusing radial 4D-phase contrast cardiovascular magnetic resonance at 17.6 T}, series = {Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance}, volume = {21}, journal = {Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance}, doi = {10.1186/s12968-019-0566-z}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-201120}, pages = {64}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Purpose 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) and the assessment of wall shear stress (WSS) are non-invasive tools to study cardiovascular risks in vivo. Major limitations of conventional triggered methods are the long measurement times needed for high-resolution data sets and the necessity of stable electrocardiographic (ECG) triggering. In this work an ECG-free retrospectively synchronized method is presented that enables accelerated high-resolution measurements of 4D flow and WSS in the aortic arch of mice. Methods 4D flow and WSS were measured in the aortic arch of 12-week-old wildtype C57BL/6 J mice (n = 7) with a radial 4D-phase-contrast (PC)-CMR sequence, which was validated in a flow phantom. Cardiac and respiratory motion signals were extracted from the radial CMR signal and were used for the reconstruction of 4D-flow data. Rigid motion correction and a first order B0 correction was used to improve the robustness of magnitude and velocity data. The aortic lumen was segmented semi-automatically. Temporally averaged and time-resolved WSS and oscillatory shear index (OSI) were calculated from the spatial velocity gradients at the lumen surface at 14 locations along the aortic arch. Reproducibility was tested in 3 animals and the influence of subsampling was investigated. Results Volume flow, cross-sectional areas, WSS and the OSI were determined in a measurement time of only 32 min. Longitudinal and circumferential WSS and radial stress were assessed at 14 analysis planes along the aortic arch. The average longitudinal, circumferential and radial stress values were 1.52 ± 0.29 N/m2, 0.28 ± 0.24 N/m2 and - 0.21 ± 0.19 N/m2, respectively. Good reproducibility of WSS values was observed. Conclusion This work presents a robust measurement of 4D flow and WSS in mice without the need of ECG trigger signals. The retrospective approach provides fast flow quantification within 35 min and a flexible reconstruction framework.}, language = {en} }