Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg

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)...

A Statistical Perspective on Transformers for Small Longitudinal Cohort Data

ABSTRACT Modeling of longitudinal cohort data typically involves complex temporal dependencies between multiple variables. There, the transformer architecture, which has been highly successful in language and vision applications, allows us to account for the fact that the most re...

Future GLP-1 receptor co-agonists and their cardiac effects

Agonists at glucagon-like-peptide-1 receptors (GLP-1R) are becoming approved drugs to treat not only type 2 diabetes and obesity but also cardiac diseases such as coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction and heart failure. Agonism at the GLP-1R can be combined with agonism a...

Contractile effects of Aficamten in the human atrium

Abstract Aficamten is an approved drug to treat hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Aficamten desensitizes bovine myofilaments against calcium cations. In isolated animal cardiac preparations, aficamten reduced force of contraction (FOC) but its effects on isolated human cardiac prepara...

Antimicrobial activity of Vepris salicifolia leaf essential oil and δ-cadinene: in vitro evaluation and in silico mechanistic insights into δ-cadinene

The emergence of antimicrobial resistance has intensified the search for new bioactive compounds from natural sources. This study investigated the chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oil (EO) extracted from the leaves of Vepris salicifolia (Engl.) Mzi...

Perspectives of High‐Resolution Mass Spectrometry in Soil Science

ABSTRACT Soil biogeochemical research requires specific, sensitive, and accurate methods to identify and quantify organic molecules in order to trace biochemical processes and assess element cycling in complex, heterogenous systems. High‐resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) has ev...

Lifestyle factors and symptom burden in endometriosis: an exploratory mixed-methods analysis of nutrition, physical activity, and psychosocial well-being

Abstract Background Endometriosis affects approximately 10% of reproductive-age women worldwide, with symptom burden significantly impacting quality of life. While current treatment guidelines focus primarily on hormonal and surgical interventions, the role of lifestyle factors i...

Ligand Functionalization and Fe Precursor Selection Modulated the Physicochemical Properties of Fe-MOFs and Their Biological Response on Prostate Cancer and Normal Prostate Cells

Abstract Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) offer modular platforms for cancer nanomedicine, but how metal precursor chemistry and linker functionalization jointly regulate physicochemical properties and biological response remains insufficiently defined. Here, three Fe-based MOFs,...

Immunohistochemical profiling of the tumor microenvironment in Ethiopian breast cancer tissue: insights into pathology and subtypes

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common malignancy globally and poses a significant public health challenge in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). To date, the clinical use of immunotherapies has improved patients’ outcomes in high-income countries, but is not feasible in most countries in S...

Parvovirus B19 infections in paediatric sickle cell disease patients: Genotype and hydroxyurea treatment influence disease severity

Summary In patients with sickle cell disease (SCD), parvovirus B19 infection (B19V) leads to acute anaemia (aplastic crisis), but may also be associated with other serious complications. We retrospectively analysed clinical data from paediatric SCD patients with B19V infections b...

Fast post-ploughing recovery of traditionally managed semi-natural mountain grasslands in the Romanian Carpathians

Mountain hay meadows are among the most species-rich grassland habitats in Europe, yet many have been historically ploughed and later re-established under traditional management. We examined the legacy effects of past ploughing on plant diversity, vegetation composition, and soil...

Comparison of new and recurring post-acute infection syndrome – results from a German population-based cohort

New respiratory infections after or while experiencing post-acute infectious syndromes (PAIS) can lead to resurgence of symptoms. Data comparing symptoms, related impairment, and duration of first and recurring PAIS episodes are lacking. This cross-sectional study was conducted i...

Post-infectious syndromes in the post-pandemic phase among the German general population

BACKGROUND: Persistent symptoms after a respiratory infection can impair daily life, as has been shown, for example, for "long COVID." In this study, we determined the frequency and impact of symptoms that persisted for 12 weeks or more after a respiratory infection. A further en...

Whole-body quantitative muscle MRI in myotonic dystrophy type 2: a sensitive tool for pattern recognition, disease stratification and objective assessment of clinical severity

Background Myotonic dystrophy type 2 (DM2) is a frequent yet underdiagnosed muscle disorder. Although muscle MRI is increasingly used in neuromuscular disorders, there is an overt lack of evidence regarding its role in DM2. This study aimed to characterise whole-body muscle invol...

Twelve-Month Outcomes After Hearing Rehabilitation With an Active Middle Ear Implant and Latest Generation Vibroplasty Couplers in Adults And Children: A Prospective Multicenter Study

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the audiological efficacy, patient-reported outcomes, and safety of an active middle ear implant (AMEI) in children and adults with distinct coupling options. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, longitudinal, multicenter, noninterventional observational study with r...

An Initial Integration of Constructs That Account for Moral Actions: Moral Foundations, Values, and Character Strengths

Morality has been described as a psychological system comprising sets of values, practices, institutions, and psychological mechanisms that work together to support moral/socially positive behavior. Nonetheless, there have been relatively few efforts to integrate these diverse co...

Bordering standards: The politics of verifying the Korean military demarcation line

The Military Demarcation Line (MDL) on the Korean Peninsula is often treated as the archetype of a clear, militarized border. Yet it is increasingly described as ‘unclear,’ a puzzling claim for a boundary long regarded as rigid and well enforced. This article argues that such ‘un...

Machine learning provides individualized prediction of outcomes after first complete remission without allo‐HSCT consolidation in adult acute myeloid leukemia—A HARMONY study

Abstract Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo‐HSCT) is a curative treatment option for a significant proportion of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and it is generally recommended when the relapse risk without allo‐HSCT outweighs the estimated non‐r...

Between myopathy and mortality: Challenges in the diagnosis of PLOD1 -related kyphoscoliotic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome

Objective PLOD1-related kyphoscoliotic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (kEDS) is a rare autosomal recessive connective tissue disorder characterized by generalized joint laxity, severe congenital hypotonia, progressive kyphoscoliosis, hyperextensible and easily bruised skin, ocular abnorm...

2D and 3D Nets by Self‐Assembly of Carbosilane Functionalized Polyphilic Liquid Crystals

Herein we report new liquid crystalline (LC) compounds with highly branched carbosilane chains. The considered compounds are so‐called bolapolyphiles, consisting of a rigid p ‐terphenyl core with two sticky glycerol groups at both ends and a bulky branched carbosilane side‐chain....