TY  - JOUR
A1  - Farmer, Adam D.
A1  - Strzelczyk, Adam
A1  - Finisguerra, Alessandra
A1  - Gourine, Alexander V.
A1  - Gharabaghi, Alireza
A1  - Hasan, Alkomiet
A1  - Burger, Andreas M.
A1  - Jaramillo, Andrés M.
A1  - Mertens, Ann
A1  - Majid, Arshad
A1  - Verkuil, Bart
A1  - Badran, Bashar W.
A1  - Ventura-Bort, Carlos
A1  - Gaul, Charly
A1  - Beste, Christian
A1  - Warren, Christopher M.
A1  - Quintana, Daniel S.
A1  - Hämmerer, Dorothea
A1  - Freri, Elena
A1  - Frangos, Eleni
A1  - Tobaldini, Eleonora
A1  - Kaniusas, Eugenijus
A1  - Rosenow, Felix
A1  - Capone, Fioravante
A1  - Panetsos, Fivos
A1  - Ackland, Gareth L.
A1  - Kaithwas, Gaurav
A1  - O'Leary, Georgia H.
A1  - Genheimer, Hannah
A1  - Jacobs, Heidi I. L.
A1  - Van Diest, Ilse
A1  - Schoenen, Jean
A1  - Redgrave, Jessica
A1  - Fang, Jiliang
A1  - Deuchars, Jim
A1  - Széles, Jozsef C.
A1  - Thayer, Julian F.
A1  - More, Kaushik
A1  - Vonck, Kristl
A1  - Steenbergen, Laura
A1  - Vianna, Lauro C.
A1  - McTeague, Lisa M.
A1  - Ludwig, Mareike
A1  - Veldhuizen, Maria G.
A1  - De Couck, Marijke
A1  - Casazza, Marina
A1  - Keute, Marius
A1  - Bikson, Marom
A1  - Andreatta, Marta
A1  - D'Agostini, Martina
A1  - Weymar, Mathias
A1  - Betts, Matthew
A1  - Prigge, Matthias
A1  - Kaess, Michael
A1  - Roden, Michael
A1  - Thai, Michelle
A1  - Schuster, Nathaniel M.
A1  - Montano, Nicola
A1  - Hansen, Niels
A1  - Kroemer, Nils B.
A1  - Rong, Peijing
A1  - Fischer, Rico
A1  - Howland, Robert H.
A1  - Sclocco, Roberta
A1  - Sellaro, Roberta
A1  - Garcia, Ronald G.
A1  - Bauer, Sebastian
A1  - Gancheva, Sofiya
A1  - Stavrakis, Stavros
A1  - Kampusch, Stefan
A1  - Deuchars, Susan A.
A1  - Wehner, Sven
A1  - Laborde, Sylvain
A1  - Usichenko, Taras
A1  - Polak, Thomas
A1  - Zaehle, Tino
A1  - Borges, Uirassu
A1  - Teckentrup, Vanessa
A1  - Jandackova, Vera K.
A1  - Napadow, Vitaly
A1  - Koenig, Julian
T1  - International Consensus Based Review and Recommendations for Minimum Reporting Standards in Research on Transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation (Version 2020)
JF  - Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
N2  - Given its non-invasive nature, there is increasing interest in the use of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) across basic, translational and clinical research. Contemporaneously, tVNS can be achieved by stimulating either the auricular branch or the cervical bundle of the vagus nerve, referred to as transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation(VNS) and transcutaneous cervical VNS, respectively. In order to advance the field in a systematic manner, studies using these technologies need to adequately report sufficient methodological detail to enable comparison of results between studies, replication of studies, as well as enhancing study participant safety. We systematically reviewed the existing tVNS literature to evaluate current reporting practices. Based on this review, and consensus among participating authors, we propose a set of minimal reporting items to guide future tVNS studies. The suggested items address specific technical aspects of the device and stimulation parameters. We also cover general recommendations including inclusion and exclusion criteria for participants, outcome parameters and the detailed reporting of side effects. Furthermore, we review strategies used to identify the optimal stimulation parameters for a given research setting and summarize ongoing developments in animal research with potential implications for the application of tVNS in humans. Finally, we discuss the potential of tVNS in future research as well as the associated challenges across several disciplines in research and clinical practice.
KW  - transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation
KW  - minimum reporting standards
KW  - guidelines & recommendations
KW  - transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation
KW  - transcutaneous cervical vagus nerve stimulation
Y1  - 2021
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-234346
SN  - 1662-5161
VL  - 14
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Schleuning, Matthias
A1  - Farwig, Nina
A1  - Peters, Marcell K.
A1  - Bergsdorf, Thomas
A1  - Bleher, Bärbel
A1  - Brandl, Roland
A1  - Dalitz, Helmut
A1  - Fischer, Georg
A1  - Freund, Wolfram
A1  - Gikungu, Mary W.
A1  - Hagen, Melanie
A1  - Garcia, Francisco Hita
A1  - Kagezi, Godfrey H.
A1  - Kaib, Manfred
A1  - Kraemer, Manfred
A1  - Lung, Tobias
A1  - Naumann, Clas M.
A1  - Schaab, Gertrud
A1  - Templin, Mathias
A1  - Uster, Dana
A1  - Wägele, J. Wolfgang
A1  - Böhning-Gaese, Katrin
T1  - Forest Fragmentation and Selective Logging Have Inconsistent Effects on Multiple Animal-Mediated Ecosystem Processes in a Tropical Forest
JF  - PLoS ONE
N2  - Forest fragmentation and selective logging are two main drivers of global environmental change and modify biodiversity and environmental conditions in many tropical forests. The consequences of these changes for the functioning of tropical forest ecosystems have rarely been explored in a comprehensive approach. In a Kenyan rainforest, we studied six animal-mediated ecosystem processes and recorded species richness and community composition of all animal taxa involved in these processes. We used linear models and a formal meta-analysis to test whether forest fragmentation and selective logging affected ecosystem processes and biodiversity and used structural equation models to disentangle direct from biodiversity-related indirect effects of human disturbance on multiple ecosystem processes. Fragmentation increased decomposition and reduced antbird predation, while selective logging consistently increased pollination, seed dispersal and army-ant raiding. Fragmentation modified species richness or community composition of five taxa, whereas selective logging did not affect any component of biodiversity. Changes in the abundance of functionally important species were related to lower predation by antbirds and higher decomposition rates in small forest fragments. The positive effects of selective logging on bee pollination, bird seed dispersal and army-ant raiding were direct, i.e. not related to changes in biodiversity, and were probably due to behavioural changes of these highly mobile animal taxa. We conclude that animal-mediated ecosystem processes respond in distinct ways to different types of human disturbance in Kakamega Forest. Our findings suggest that forest fragmentation affects ecosystem processes indirectly by changes in biodiversity, whereas selective logging influences processes directly by modifying local environmental conditions and resource distributions. The positive to neutral effects of selective logging on ecosystem processes show that the functionality of tropical forests can be maintained in moderately disturbed forest fragments. Conservation concepts for tropical forests should thus include not only remaining pristine forests but also functionally viable forest remnants.
KW  - Ant-following birds
KW  - Land-use change
KW  - Habitat fragmentation
KW  - Rain-forest
KW  - Functional diversity
KW  - Plantation forests
KW  - Amazonian forest
KW  - Prunus-africana
KW  - Seed dispersal
KW  - Logged forests
Y1  - 2011
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-140093
VL  - 6
IS  - 11
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Eiringhaus, Jörg
A1  - Wünsche, Christoph M.
A1  - Tirilomis, Petros
A1  - Herting, Jonas
A1  - Bork, Nadja
A1  - Nikolaev, Viacheslav O.
A1  - Hasenfuss, Gerd
A1  - Sossalla, Samuel
A1  - Fischer, Thomas H.
T1  - Sacubitrilat reduces pro‐arrhythmogenic sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca\(^{2+}\) leak in human ventricular cardiomyocytes of patients with end‐stage heart failure
JF  - ESC Heart Failure
N2  - Aims
Inhibition of neprilysin and angiotensin II receptor by sacubitril/valsartan (Val) (LCZ696) reduces mortality in heart failure (HF) patients compared with sole inhibition of renin–angiotensin system. Beneficial effects of increased natriuretic peptide levels upon neprilysin inhibition have been proposed, whereas direct effects of sacubitrilat (Sac) (LBQ657) on myocardial Ca\(^{2+}\) cycling remain elusive.

Methods and results
Confocal microscopy (Fluo‐4 AM) was used to investigate pro‐arrhythmogenic sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca\(^{2+}\) leak in freshly isolated murine and human ventricular cardiomyocytes (CMs) upon Sac (40 μmol/L)/Val (13 μmol/L) treatment. The concentrations of Sac and Val equalled plasma concentrations of LCZ696 treatment used in PARADIGM‐HF trial. Epifluorescence microscopy measurements (Fura‐2 AM) were performed to investigate effects on systolic Ca\(^{2+}\) release, SR Ca\(^{2+}\) load, and Ca\(^{2+}\)‐transient kinetics in freshly isolated murine ventricular CMs. The impact of Sac on myocardial contractility was evaluated using in toto‐isolated, isometrically twitching ventricular trabeculae from human hearts with end‐stage HF. Under basal conditions, the combination of Sac/Val did not influence diastolic Ca\(^{2+}\)‐spark frequency (CaSpF) nor pro‐arrhythmogenic SR Ca\(^{2}\) leak in isolated murine ventricular CMs (n CMs/hearts = 80/7 vs. 100/7, P = 0.91/0.99). In contrast, Sac/Val treatment reduced CaSpF by 35 ± 9% and SR Ca\(^{2+}\) leak by 45 ± 9% in CMs put under catecholaminergic stress (isoproterenol 30 nmol/L, n = 81/7 vs. 62/7, P < 0.001 each). This could be attributed to Sac, as sole Sac treatment also reduced both parameters by similar degrees (reduction of CaSpF by 57 ± 7% and SR Ca2+ leak by 76 ± 5%; n = 101/4 vs. 108/4, P < 0.01 each), whereas sole Val treatment did not. Systolic Ca2+ release, SR Ca\(^{2+}\) load, and Ca\(^{2+}\)‐transient kinetics including SERCA activity (k\(_{SERCA}\)) were not compromised by Sac in isolated murine CMs (n = 41/6 vs. 39/6). Importantly, the combination of Sac/Val and Sac alone also reduced diastolic CaSpF and SR Ca\(^{2+}\) leak (reduction by 74 ± 7%) in human left ventricular CMs from patients with end‐stage HF (n = 71/8 vs. 78/8, P < 0.05 each). Myocardial contractility of human ventricular trabeculae was not acutely affected by Sac treatment as the developed force remained unchanged over a time course of 30 min (n trabeculae/hearts = 3/3 vs. 4/3).

Conclusion
This study demonstrates that neprilysin inhibitor Sac directly improves Ca\(^{2+}\) homeostasis in human end‐stage HF by reducing pro‐arrhythmogenic SR Ca\(^{2+}\) leak without acutely affecting systolic Ca\(^{2+}\) release and inotropy. These effects might contribute to the mortality benefits observed in the PARADIGM‐HF trial.
KW  - heart failure
KW  - entresto
KW  - Neprilysin inhibition
KW  - Ca cycling
KW  - SR Ca leak
KW  - arrhythmia
Y1  - 2020
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-218479
VL  - 7
IS  - 5
SP  - 2992
EP  - 3002
ER  -