Heidelberg University

AI Dermatology's Unfulfilled Promise: Why Early Melanoma Detection Remains Unverified

A growing number of artificial intelligence (AI) systems for melanoma diagnosis now match dermatologist-level performance. Early detection is a driving factor, yet it is rarely validated beyond aggregate diagnostic accuracy. More targeted studies are necessary so these claims bec...

Prediction-Based Adaptive Designs for Reducing Wave Nonresponse Rates and Bias in Panel Surveys

Machine learning (ML)-based nonresponse prediction in panel surveys enables selective interventions. However, the optimal use of ML predictions in Adaptive Survey Design (ASD) remains uncertain. We propose a method that integrates field experiment results on incentives, questionn...

Quantizing the Exterior Region of a Kerr-AdS Black Hole Leads to a Resolution of the Information Paradox on a Quantum Level

We quantize the exterior region of an odd-dimensional Kerr-AdS black hole, in which all rotational parameters are equal, using our model of quantum gravity. The resulting hyperbolic equation is solved by products of temporal eigenfunctions wi, whose corresponding eigenvalues all...

Total en Bloc Urethra Preservation at Robot-Assisted Prostatectomy (ToP-RAP): A Prospective IDEAL Stage 1–2a Study

Background/objective: Urinary continence recovery after robot-assisted radical prostatectomy remains variable despite technical refinements intended to preserve function. We describe Total en bloc Urethra Preservation at Robot-assisted Prostatectomy (ToP-RAP), a technique that pr...

Everyday ethical attentiveness in stem cell-based model research

The ethics of human stem cell-based models, from organoids to embryo models, has concentrated on the moral status and biological properties of research objects while overlooking everyday laboratory practices that shape and express ethical attitudes toward these objects before any...

Two cases of an imatinib-sensitive PRKG2::PDGFRA-positive chronic myeloid neoplasm with basophilia

The clinical and morphological phenotype of myeloid/lymphoid neoplasms with tyrosine kinase (TK) gene fusions (MLN-TK) is influenced by both the TK and the partner gene [ 1 ]. Here, we report on two patients with an initial diagnosis of a chronic myeloid neoplasm with prominent b...

A comparative study of causal machine learning models for personalized treatment of acute ischemic stroke

Abstract Background Accurate estimation of the individualized treatment effect (ITE) is critical for supporting personalized decision-making in acute ischaemic stroke, while the average treatment effect (ATE) provides a cohort-level benchmark for method comparison and context. Ho...

Applying an adaptationist framework to personality science: jealousy as a mechanistic basis of Emotionality

Over the past half century, the field of personality psychology has developed several descriptive taxonomies, but progress toward a genuinely explanatory framework for between- and within-person variation in psychology and behavior has been elusive. We argue that this is largely...

The ventilation–perfusion differential index assists target lobe selection and improves V/Q redistribution for endobronchial valve lung volume reduction: a prospective study

Identifying the optimal target lobe remains a challenge for bronchoscopic lung volume reduction (BLVR) with endobronchial valves (EBVs). The ventilation/perfusion differential index (VQDI) has been identified as a possible tool for target lobe selection in BLVR. Twenty-four indiv...

SpaCEy links spatial tissue patterns to clinical outcomes using explainable graph neural networks

Abstract Tissues are complex ecosystems organised in space, and alterations in this organisation underpin multiple diseases. Spatial omics enables molecular profiling of tissue organisation, but linking these patterns to clinical outcomes remains challenging. We present SpaCEy (...

Discovering how ice crystals grow using neural ODEs and symbolic regression

Depositional ice growth strongly influences the evolution and lifetime of ice-containing clouds on Earth and Mars, yet its physics remain uncertain because the earliest stages of ice-crystal growth cannot be directly observed and are sparsely sampled in laboratory settings. Here,...

Residential heating emissions tool in the Climate Action Navigator: High-resolution estimation based on open data

Reducing CO 2 emissions from residential space heating is critical to achieve carbon neutrality, particularly in urban areas. However, effective climate action is often hindered by the lack of precise location-specific emissions data. This study introduces the first web tool for...

The effect of dance movement therapy on traumatized refugee women – a clinical controlled trial

Abstract Background Women worldwide are fleeing war, persecution and violence. Typically, they experienced multiple traumata in the home country, on the way, and in the host country. In Germany, less than 10% of the refugees in need receive mental health treatment. Dance movement...

A cross-species atlas platform for comparative neuroscience in teleost fish

Abstract Uncovering general principles connecting neural circuits to behaviour requires comparative brain analyses across species. To advance these efforts, we developed a standardised workflow and a unified brain atlas platform for the quantitative comparison of neural structure...

Diagnosing autoimmune encephalitis in psychiatry: clinical recommendations and unresolved challenges from the GENERATE network

Psychiatric syndromes can be caused by underlying autoimmune encephalitis (AE). This represents a diagnostic challenge at the interface of psychiatry and neurology. While AE mostly manifests with a combined, complex neuropsychiatric syndrome, some patients with AE may (initially)...

Green space exposure predicts manic episodes in bipolar disorder: one year longitudinal analysis using smartphone-derived GPS data

Abstract Urban living is linked to increased psychiatric morbidity, while green spaces may protect mental health via stress-buffering effects. Yet, the role of green space exposure in the onset of affective episodes in bipolar disorder (BD) remains unclear. Using 12 months of GPS...

Divergent medulloblastoma chromatin states disclose KDM2B as a selective dependency

Abstract Medulloblastoma is a biologically heterogeneous childhood cerebellar tumor harboring frequent chromatin-modifying gene alterations. How these alterations promote transcriptional programs governing malignancy remains poorly defined. To address this knowledge gap, we evalu...

Measurements of the production of W$$^{\pm }$$ and Z$$^0$$ bosons in pp collisions at $$\sqrt{s} = 13$$ TeV

Abstract Measurements of the production of the W $$^{\pm }$$ ± and Z $$^0$$ 0 bosons at midrapidity in pp collisions at $$\sqrt{s} = 13$$ s = 13 TeV with ALICE at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) are presented. The W $$^{\pm }$$ ± and Z $$^0$$ 0 bosons are detected via their (di)e...

Allocation of TSPO-PET signals to cellular and extracellular compartments in dependence of blood-brain barrier disruption in experimental glioblastoma

BACKGROUND: Translocator protein (TSPO)-PET imaging facilitates monitoring of glioblastoma in preclinical models and patients. However, specificity of TSPO-PET signals remains to be investigated. In this study, we aimed to decipher exact contributions of cellular and extracellula...

The persistence and predictability of policy tool use: Policy styles and the tools of government

Abstract The relationship between “policy tools” and “policy styles” in literature is often implicit, resting on the assumption that governments’ characteristic ways of doing business shape their tool choices, without clarifying what a “style” is or how it connects to those choic...