TY  - JOUR
A1  - Weich, Alexander
A1  - Werner, Rudolf A.
A1  - Buck, Andreas K.
A1  - Hartrampf, Philipp E.
A1  - Serfling, Sebastian E.
A1  - Scheurlen, Michael
A1  - Wester, Hans-Jürgen
A1  - Meining, Alexander
A1  - Kircher, Stefan
A1  - Higuchi, Takahiro
A1  - Pomper, Martin G.
A1  - Rowe, Steven P.
A1  - Lapa, Constantin
A1  - Kircher, Malte
T1  - CXCR4-Directed PET/CT in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Neuroendocrine Carcinomas
JF  - Diagnostics
N2  - We aimed to elucidate the diagnostic potential of the C-X-C motif chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4)-directed positron emission tomography (PET) tracer \(^{68}\)Ga-Pentixafor in patients with poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinomas (NEC), relative to the established reference standard \(^{18}\)F-FDG PET/computed tomography (CT). In our database, we retrospectively identified 11 treatment-naïve patients with histologically proven NEC, who underwent \(^{18}\)F-FDG and CXCR4-directed PET/CT for staging and therapy planning. The images were analyzed on a per-patient and per-lesion basis and compared to immunohistochemical staining (IHC) of CXCR4 from PET-guided biopsies. \(^{68}\)Ga-Pentixafor visualized tumor lesions in 10/11 subjects, while \(^{18}\)F-FDG revealed sites of disease in all 11 patients. Although weak to moderate CXCR4 expression could be corroborated by IHC in 10/11 cases, \(^{18}\)F-FDG PET/CT detected significantly more tumor lesions (102 vs. 42; total lesions, n = 107; p < 0.001). Semi-quantitative analysis revealed markedly higher 18F-FDG uptake as compared to \(^{68}\)Ga-Pentixafor (maximum and mean standardized uptake values (SUV) and tumor-to-background ratios (TBR) of cancerous lesions, SUVmax: 12.8 ± 9.8 vs. 5.2 ± 3.7; SUVmean: 7.4 ± 5.4 vs. 3.1 ± 3.2, p < 0.001; and, TBR 7.2 ± 7.9 vs. 3.4 ± 3.0, p < 0.001). Non-invasive imaging of CXCR4 expression in NEC is inferior to the reference standard \(^{18}\)F-FDG PET/CT.
KW  - CXCR4
KW  - NET
KW  - NEC
KW  - <sup>68</sup>Ga-Pentixafor
KW  - <sup>18</sup>F-FDG
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-234231
SN  - 2075-4418
VL  - 11
IS  - 4
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Bachmann, Friederike
A1  - Schreder, Martin
A1  - Engelhardt, Monika
A1  - Langer, Christian
A1  - Wolleschak, Denise
A1  - Mügge, Lars Olof
A1  - Dürk, Heinz
A1  - Schäfer-Eckart, Kerstin
A1  - Blau, Igor Wolfgang
A1  - Gramatzki, Martin
A1  - Liebisch, Peter
A1  - Grube, Matthias
A1  - Metzler, Ivana v.
A1  - Bassermann, Florian
A1  - Metzner, Bernd
A1  - Röllig, Christoph
A1  - Hertenstein, Bernd
A1  - Khandanpour, Cyrus
A1  - Dechow, Tobias
A1  - Hebart, Holger
A1  - Jung, Wolfram
A1  - Theurich, Sebastian
A1  - Maschmeyer, Georg
A1  - Salwender, Hans
A1  - Hess, Georg
A1  - Bittrich, Max
A1  - Rasche, Leo
A1  - Brioli, Annamaria
A1  - Eckardt, Kai-Uwe
A1  - Straka, Christian
A1  - Held, Swantje
A1  - Einsele, Hermann
A1  - Knop, Stefan
T1  - Kinetics of renal function during induction in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma: results of two prospective studies by the German Myeloma Study Group DSMM
JF  - Cancers
N2  - Background: Preservation of kidney function in newly diagnosed (ND) multiple myeloma (MM) helps to prevent excess toxicity. Patients (pts) from two prospective trials were analyzed, provided postinduction (PInd) restaging was performed. Pts received three cycles with bortezomib (btz), cyclophosphamide, and dexamethasone (dex; VCD) or btz, lenalidomide (len), and dex (VRd) or len, adriamycin, and dex (RAD). The minimum required estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was >30 mL/min. We analyzed the percent change of the renal function using the International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG) criteria and Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO)-defined categories. Results: Seven hundred and seventy-two patients were eligible. Three hundred and fifty-six received VCD, 214 VRd, and 202 RAD. VCD patients had the best baseline eGFR. The proportion of pts with eGFR <45 mL/min decreased from 7.3% at baseline to 1.9% PInd (p < 0.0001). Thirty-seven point one percent of VCD versus 49% of VRd patients had a decrease of GFR (p = 0.0872). IMWG-defined “renal complete response (CRrenal)” was achieved in 17/25 (68%) pts after VCD, 12/19 (63%) after RAD, and 14/27 (52%) after VRd (p = 0.4747). Conclusions: Analyzing a large and representative newly diagnosed myeloma (NDMM) group, we found no difference in CRrenal that occurred independently from the myeloma response across the three regimens. A trend towards deterioration of the renal function with VRd versus VCD may be explained by a better pretreatment “renal fitness” in the latter group.
KW  - multiple myeloma
KW  - renal failure
KW  - kidney
KW  - bortezomib
KW  - lenalidomide
KW  - induction regimen
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-234139
SN  - 2072-6694
VL  - 13
IS  - 6
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Egenolf, Nadine
A1  - Altenschildesche, Caren Meyer zu
A1  - Kreß, Luisa
A1  - Eggermann, Katja
A1  - Namer, Barbara
A1  - Gross, Franziska
A1  - Klitsch, Alexander
A1  - Malzacher, Tobias
A1  - Kampik, Daniel
A1  - Malik, Rayaz A.
A1  - Kurth, Ingo
A1  - Sommer, Claudia
A1  - Üçeyler, Nurcan
T1  - Diagnosing small fiber neuropathy in clinical practice: a deep phenotyping study
JF  - Therapeutic Advances in Neurological Disorders
N2  - Background and aims:
Small fiber neuropathy (SFN) is increasingly suspected in patients with pain of uncertain origin, and making the diagnosis remains a challenge lacking a diagnostic gold standard.
	
Methods:
In this case–control study, we prospectively recruited 86 patients with a medical history and clinical phenotype suggestive of SFN. Patients underwent neurological examination, quantitative sensory testing (QST), and distal and proximal skin punch biopsy, and were tested for pain-associated gene loci. Fifty-five of these patients additionally underwent pain-related evoked potentials (PREP), corneal confocal microscopy (CCM), and a quantitative sudomotor axon reflex test (QSART).
	
	
Results:
Abnormal distal intraepidermal nerve fiber density (IENFD) (60/86, 70%) and neurological examination (53/86, 62%) most frequently reflected small fiber disease. Adding CCM and/or PREP further increased the number of patients with small fiber impairment to 47/55 (85%). Genetic testing revealed potentially pathogenic gene variants in 14/86 (16%) index patients. QST, QSART, and proximal IENFD were of lower impact.
	
Conclusion:
We propose to diagnose SFN primarily based on the results of neurological examination and distal IENFD, with more detailed phenotyping in specialized centers.
KW  - algorithm
KW  - diagnosis
KW  - neurological examination
KW  - skin punch biopsy
KW  - small fiber neuropathy
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-232019
SN  - 1756-2864
VL  - 14
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kunz, Felix
A1  - Hirth, Matthias
A1  - Schweitzer, Tilmann
A1  - Linz, Christian
A1  - Goetz, Bernhard
A1  - Stellzig-Eisenhauer, Angelika
A1  - Borchert, Kathrin
A1  - Böhm, Hartmut
T1  - Subjective perception of craniofacial growth asymmetries in patients with deformational plagiocephaly
JF  - Clinical Oral Investigations
N2  - Objectives
The present investigation aimed to evaluate the subjective perception of deformational cranial asymmetries by different observer groups and to compare these subjective perceptions with objective parameters.

Materials and methods
The 3D datasets of ten infants with different severities of deformational plagiocephaly (DP) were presented to 203 observers, who had been subdivided into five different groups (specialists, pediatricians, medical doctors (not pediatricians), parents of infants with DP, and laypersons). The observers rated their subjective perception of the infants’ cranial asymmetries using a 4-point Likert-type scale. The ratings from the observer groups were compared with one another using a multilevel modelling linear regression analysis and were correlated with four commonly used parameters to objectively quantify the cranial asymmetries.

Results
No significant differences were found between the ratings of the specialists and those of the parents of infants with DP, but both groups provided significantly more asymmetric ratings than did pediatricians, medical doctors, or laypersons. Moreover, the subjective perception of cranial asymmetries correlated significantly with commonly used parameters for objectively quantifying cranial asymmetries.

Conclusions
Our results demonstrate that different observer groups perceive the severity of cranial asymmetries differently. Pediatricians’ more moderate perception of cranial asymmetries may reduce the likelihood of parents to seek therapeutic interventions for their infants. Moreover, we identified some objective symmetry-related parameters that correlated strongly with the observers’ subjective perceptions.

Clinical relevance
Knowledge about these findings is important for clinicians when educating parents of infants with DP about the deformity.
KW  - infants with deformational plagiocephaly (DP)
KW  - deformational cranial asymmetry
KW  - subjective perception
KW  - positionalskull deformities
KW  - three-dimensional
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-232803
SN  - 1432-6981
VL  - 25
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Merz, Viktor
A1  - Merz, Julia
A1  - Kirchner, Maximilian
A1  - Lenhart, Julian
A1  - Marder, Todd B.
A1  - Krueger, Anke
T1  - Pyrene-Based "Turn-Off" Probe with Broad Detection Range for Cu\(^{2+}\), Pb\(^{2+}\) and Hg\(^{2+}\) Ions
JF  - Chemistry—A European Journal
N2  - Detection of metals in different environments with high selectivity and specificity is one of the prerequisites of the fight against environmental pollution with these elements. Pyrenes are well suited for the fluorescence sensing in different media. The applied sensing principle typically relies on the formation of intra- and intermolecular excimers, which is however limiting the sensitivity range due to masking of e. g. quenching effects by the excimer emission. Herein we report a highly selective, structurally rigid chemical sensor based on the monomer fluorescence of pyrene moieties bearing triazole groups. This sensor can quantitatively detect Cu\(^{2+}\), Pb\(^{2+}\) and Hg\(^{2+}\) in organic solvents over a broad concentrations range, even in the presence of ubiquitous ions such as Na\(^{+}\), K\(^{+}\), Ca\(^{2+}\) and Mg\(^{2+}\). The strongly emissive sensor's fluorescence with a long lifetime of 165 ns is quenched by a 1 : 1 complex formation upon addition of metal ions in acetonitrile. Upon addition of a tenfold excess of the metal ion to the sensor, agglomerates with a diameter of about 3 nm are formed. Due to complex interactions in the system, conventional linear correlations are not observed for all concentrations. Therefore, a critical comparison between the conventional Job plot interpretation, the method of Benesi-Hildebrand, and a non-linear fit is presented. The reported system enables the specific and robust sensing of medically and environmentally relevant ions in the health-relevant nM range and could be used e. g. for the monitoring of the respective ions in waste streams.
KW  - probes
KW  - fluorescence spectroscopy
KW  - pyrene
KW  - heavy metals
KW  - luminescence
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-256803
VL  - 27
IS  - 31
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Ankenbrand, Markus Johannes
A1  - Lohr, David
A1  - Schlötelburg, Wiebke
A1  - Reiter, Theresa
A1  - Wech, Tobias
A1  - Schreiber, Laura Maria
T1  - Deep learning-based cardiac cine segmentation: Transfer learning application to 7T ultrahigh-field MRI
JF  - Magnetic Resonance in Medicine
N2  - Purpose
Artificial neural networks show promising performance in automatic segmentation of cardiac MRI. However, training requires large amounts of annotated data and generalization to different vendors, field strengths, sequence parameters, and pathologies is limited. Transfer learning addresses this challenge, but specific recommendations regarding type and amount of data required is lacking. In this study, we assess data requirements for transfer learning to experimental cardiac MRI at 7T where the segmentation task can be challenging. In addition, we provide guidelines, tools, and annotated data to enable transfer learning approaches by other researchers and clinicians.

Methods
A publicly available segmentation model was used to annotate a publicly available data set. This labeled data set was subsequently used to train a neural network for segmentation of left ventricle and myocardium in cardiac cine MRI. The network is used as starting point for transfer learning to 7T cine data of healthy volunteers (n = 22; 7873 images) by updating the pre-trained weights. Structured and random data subsets of different sizes were used to systematically assess data requirements for successful transfer learning.

Results
Inconsistencies in the publically available data set were corrected, labels created, and a neural network trained. On 7T cardiac cine images the model pre-trained on public imaging data, acquired at 1.5T and 3T, achieved DICE\(_{LV}\) = 0.835 and DICE\(_{MY}\) = 0.670. Transfer learning using 7T cine data and ImageNet weight initialization improved model performance to DICE\(_{LV}\) = 0.900 and DICE\(_{MY}\) = 0.791. Using only end-systolic and end-diastolic images reduced training data by 90%, with no negative impact on segmentation performance (DICE\(_{LV}\) = 0.908, DICE\(_{MY}\) = 0.805).

Conclusions
This work demonstrates and quantifies the benefits of transfer learning for cardiac cine image segmentation. We provide practical guidelines for researchers planning transfer learning projects in cardiac MRI and make data, models, and code publicly available.
KW  - 7T
KW  - ultrahigh-field
KW  - transfer learning
KW  - segmentation
KW  - neural networks
KW  - deep learning
KW  - cardiac magnetic resonance
KW  - cardiac function
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-257604
VL  - 86
IS  - 4
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Morais, António P.
A1  - Pasechnik, Roman
A1  - Porod, Werner
T1  - Grand Unified origin of gauge interactions and families replication in the Standard Model
JF  - Universe
N2  - The tremendous phenomenological success of the Standard Model (SM) suggests that its flavor structure and gauge interactions may not be arbitrary but should have a fundamental first-principle explanation. In this work, we explore how the basic distinctive properties of the SM dynamically emerge from a unified New Physics framework tying together both flavor physics and Grand Unified Theory (GUT) concepts. This framework is suggested by a novel anomaly-free supersymmetric chiral E\(_6\)×SU(2)\(_F\)×U(1)\(_F\) GUT containing the SM. Among the most appealing emergent properties of this theory is the Higgs-matter unification with a highly-constrained massless chiral sector featuring two universal Yukawa couplings close to the GUT scale. At the electroweak scale, the minimal SM-like effective field theory limit of this GUT represents a specific flavored three-Higgs doublet model consistent with the observed large hierarchies in the quark mass spectra and mixing already at tree level.
KW  - grand unified theories
KW  - supersymmetry
KW  - phenomenology of New Physics
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-250237
SN  - 2218-1997
VL  - 7
IS  - 12
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Wagenbrenner, Mike
A1  - Mayer-Wagner, Susanne
A1  - Rudert, Maximilian
A1  - Holzapfel, Boris Michael
A1  - Weissenberger, Manuel
T1  - Combinations of hydrogels and mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) for cartilage tissue engineering — a review of the literature
JF  - Gels
N2  - Cartilage offers limited regenerative capacity. Cell-based approaches have emerged as a promising alternative in the treatment of cartilage defects and osteoarthritis. Due to their easy accessibility, abundancy, and chondrogenic potential mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) offer an attractive cell source. MSCs are often combined with natural or synthetic hydrogels providing tunable biocompatibility, biodegradability, and enhanced cell functionality. In this review, we focused on the different advantages and disadvantages of various natural, synthetic, and modified hydrogels. We examined the different combinations of MSC-subpopulations and hydrogels used for cartilage engineering in preclinical and clinical studies and reviewed the effects of added growth factors or gene transfer on chondrogenesis in MSC-laden hydrogels. The aim of this review is to add to the understanding of the disadvantages and advantages of various combinations of MSC-subpopulations, growth factors, gene transfers, and hydrogels in cartilage engineering.
KW  - hydrogels
KW  - osteoarthritis
KW  - cartilage defects
KW  - MSCs
KW  - cartilage regeneration
KW  - tissue engineering
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-250177
SN  - 2310-2861
VL  - 7
IS  - 4
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Hoche, Joscha
A1  - Flock, Marco
A1  - Miao, Xincheng
A1  - Philipp, Luca Nils
A1  - Wenzel, Michael
A1  - Fischer, Ingo
A1  - Mitric, Roland
T1  - Excimer formation dynamics in the isolated tetracene dimer
JF  - Chemical Science
N2  - The understanding of excimer formation and its interplay with the singlet-correlated triplet pair state \(^{1}\)(TT) is of high significance for the development of efficient organic electronics. Here, we study the photoinduced dynamics of the tetracene dimer in the gas phase by time-resolved photoionisation and photoion imaging experiments as well as nonadiabatic dynamics simulations in order to obtain mechanistic insight into the excimer formation dynamics. The experiments are performed using a picosecond laser system for excitation into the S\(_{2}\) state and reveal a biexponential time dependence. The time constants, obtained as a function of excess energy, lie in the range between ≈10 ps and 100 ps and are assigned to the relaxation of the excimer on the S\(_{1}\) surface and to its deactivation to the ground state. Simulations of the quantum-classical photodynamics are carried out in the frame of the semi-empirical CISD and TD-lc-DFTB methods. Both theoretical approaches reveal a dominating relaxation pathway that is characterised by the formation of a perfectly stacked excimer. TD-lc-DFTB simulations have also uncovered a second relaxation channel into a less stable dimer conformation in the S\(_{1}\) state. Both methods have consistently shown that the electronic and geometric relaxation to the excimer state is completed in less than 10 ps. The inclusion of doubly excited states in the CISD dynamics and their diabatisation further allowed to observe a transient population of the \(^{1}\)(TT) state, which, however, gets depopulated on a timescale of 8 ps, leading finally to the trapping in the excimer minimum.
KW  - excimer formation
KW  - tetracene dimer
KW  - organic electronics
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-251559
VL  - 12
IS  - 36
SP  - 11965
EP  - 11975
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Strekalova, Tatyana
A1  - Veniaminova, Ekaterina
A1  - Svirin, Evgeniy
A1  - Kopeikina, Ekaterina
A1  - Veremeyko, Tatyana
A1  - Yung, Amanda W. Y.
A1  - Proshin, Andrey
A1  - Tan, Shawn Zheng Kai
A1  - Khairuddin, Sharafuddin
A1  - Lim, Lee Wei
A1  - Lesch, Klaus-Peter
A1  - Walitza, Susanne
A1  - Anthony, Daniel C.
A1  - Ponomarev, Eugene D.
T1  - Sex-specific ADHD-like behaviour, altered metabolic functions, and altered EEG activity in sialyltransferase ST3GAL5-deficient mice
JF  - Biomolecules
N2  - A deficiency in GM3-derived gangliosides, resulting from a lack of lactosylceramide-alpha-2,3-sialyltransferase (ST3GAL5), leads to severe neuropathology, including epilepsy and metabolic abnormalities. Disruption of ganglioside production by this enzyme may also have a role in the development of neuropsychiatric disorders. ST3Gal5 knock-out (St3gal5\(^{−/−}\)) mice lack a-, b-, and c-series gangliosides, but exhibit no overt neuropathology, possibly owing to the production of compensatory 0-series glycosphingolipids. Here, we sought to investigate the possibility that St3gal5\(^{−/−}\) mice might exhibit attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)-like behaviours. In addition, we evaluated potential metabolic and electroencephalogram (EEG) abnormalities. St3gal5\(^{−/−}\) mice were subjected to behavioural testing, glucose tolerance tests, and the levels of expression of brain and peripheral A and B isoforms of the insulin receptor (IR) were measured. We found that St3gal5\(^{−/−}\) mice exhibit locomotor hyperactivity, impulsivity, neophobia, and anxiety-like behavior. The genotype also altered blood glucose levels and glucose tolerance. A sex bias was consistently found in relation to body mass and peripheral IR expression. Analysis of the EEG revealed an increase in amplitude in St3gal5\(^{−/−}\) mice. Together, St3gal5\(^{−/−}\) mice exhibit ADHD-like behaviours, altered metabolic and EEG measures providing a useful platform for better understanding of the contribution of brain gangliosides to ADHD and associated comorbidities.
KW  - lactosylceramide alpha-2,3-sialyltransferase (ST3GAL5)
KW  - attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
KW  - insulin receptor (IR)
KW  - sex differences
KW  - electroencephalogram (EEG)
KW  - mice
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-250071
SN  - 2218-273X
VL  - 11
IS  - 12
ER  -