@article{VencesKoehlerCrottinietal.2022, author = {Vences, Miguel and K{\"o}hler, J{\"o}rn and Crottini, Angelica and Hofreiter, Michael and Hutter, Carl R. and du Preez, Louis and Preick, Michaela and Rakotoarison, Andolalao and Rancilhac, Lo{\"i}s and Raselimanana, Achille P. and Rosa, Gon{\c{c}}alo M. and Scherz, Mark D. and Glaw, Frank}, title = {An integrative taxonomic revision and redefinition of Gephyromantis (Laurentomantis) malagasius based on archival DNA analysis reveals four new mantellid frog species from Madagascar}, series = {Vertebrate zoology}, volume = {72}, journal = {Vertebrate zoology}, publisher = {Senckenberg Gesellschaft f{\"u}r Naturforschung}, address = {Frankfurt am Main}, issn = {1864-5755}, doi = {10.3897/vz.72.e78830}, pages = {271 -- 309}, year = {2022}, abstract = {The subgenus Laurentomantis in the genus Gephyromantis contains some of the least known amphibian species of Madagascar. The six currently valid nominal species are rainforest frogs known from few individuals, hampering a full understanding of the species diversity of the clade. We assembled data on specimens collected during field surveys over the past 30 years and integrated analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear-encoded genes of 88 individuals, a comprehensive bioacoustic analysis, and morphological comparisons to delimit a minimum of nine species-level lineages in the subgenus. To clarify the identity of the species Gephyromantis malagasius, we applied a target-enrichment approach to a sample of the 110 year old holotype of Microphryne malagasia Methuen and Hewitt, 1913 to assign this specimen to a lineage based on a mitochondrial DNA barcode. The holotype clustered unambiguously with specimens previously named G. ventrimaculatus. Consequently we propose to consider Trachymantis malagasia ventrimaculatus Angel, 1935 as a junior synonym of Gephyromantis malagasius. Due to this redefinition of G. malagasius, no scientific name is available for any of the four deep lineages of frogs previously subsumed under this name, all characterized by red color ventrally on the hindlimbs. These are here formally named as Gephyromantis fiharimpe sp. nov., G. matsilo sp. nov., G. oelkrugi sp. nov., and G. portonae sp. nov. The new species are distinguishable from each other by genetic divergences of >4\% uncorrected pairwise distance in a fragment of the 16S rRNA marker and a combination of morphological and bioacoustic characters. Gephyromantis fiharimpe and G. matsilo occur, respectively, at mid-elevations and lower elevations along a wide stretch of Madagascar's eastern rainforest band, while G. oelkrugi and G. portonae appear to be more range-restricted in parts of Madagascar's North East and Northern Central East regions. Open taxonomic questions surround G. horridus, to which we here assign specimens from Montagne d'Ambre and the type locality Nosy Be; and G. ranjomavo, which contains genetically divergent populations from Marojejy, Tsaratanana, and Ampotsidy.}, language = {en} } @article{VogelClausAhringetal.2022, author = {Vogel, Annemarie and Claus, Inga and Ahring, Sigrid and Gruber, Doreen and Haghikia, Aiden and Frank, Ulrike and Dziewas, Rainer and Ebersbach, Georg and Gandor, Florin and Warnecke, Tobias}, title = {Endoscopic characteristics of dysphagia in multiple system atrophy}, series = {Movement disorders : official journal of the Movement Disorder Society}, volume = {37}, journal = {Movement disorders : official journal of the Movement Disorder Society}, number = {3}, publisher = {Wiley-Blackwell}, address = {Hoboken}, issn = {0885-3185}, doi = {10.1002/mds.28854}, pages = {535 -- 544}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Background Dysphagia is a major clinical concern in multiple system atrophy (MSA). A detailed evaluation of its major endoscopic features compared with Parkinson's disease (PD) is lacking. Objective This study systematically assessed dysphagia in MSA compared with PD and correlated subjective dysphagia to objective endoscopic findings. Methods Fifty-seven patients with MSA (median, 64 [interquartile range (IQR): 59-71] years; 35 women) underwent flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing using a specific MSA-flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing task protocol. Findings were compared with an age-matched cohort of 57 patients with PD (median, 67 [interquartile range: 60-73] years; 28 women). In a subcohort, subjective dysphagia was assessed using the Swallowing Disturbance Questionnaire and correlated to endoscopy findings. Results Patients with MSA predominantly showed symptoms suggestive of oral-phase disturbance (premature spillage, 75.4\%, piecemeal deglutition, 75.4\%). Pharyngeal-phase symptoms occurred less often (pharyngeal residues, 50.9\%; penetration/aspiration, 28.1\%). In contrast, pharyngeal symptoms were the most common finding in PD (pharyngeal residues, 47.4\%). Oral symptoms occurred less frequently in PD (premature spillage, 15.8\%, P < 0.001; piecemeal deglutition, 1.8\%, P < 0.01). Patients with MSA had a greater risk for oral-phase disturbances with increased disease severity (P < 0.05; odds ratio, 3.15). Patients with MSA showed a significantly higher intraindividual interswallow variability compared with PD. When correlating Swallowing Disturbance Questionnaire scores with endoscopy results, its cutoff, validated for PD, was not sensitive enough to identify patients with MSA with dysphagia. We developed a subscore for identifying dysphagia in MSA and calculated a new cutoff (sensitivity 85\%, specificity 100\%). Conclusions In contrast with patients with PD, patients with dysphagic MSA more frequently present with oral-phase symptoms and a significantly higher intraindividual interswallow variability. A novel Swallowing Disturbance Questionnaire MSA subscore may be a valuable tool to identify patients with MSA with early oropharyngeal dysphagia.}, language = {en} } @article{LupienRussellPearsonetal.2022, author = {Lupien, Rachel L. and Russell, James M. and Pearson, Emma J. and Castaneda, Isla S. and Asrat, Asfawossen and F{\"o}rster, Verena and Lamb, Henry F. and Roberts, Helen M. and Sch{\"a}bitz, Frank and Trauth, Martin H. and Beck, Catherine C. and Feibel, Craig S. and Cohen, Andrew S.}, title = {Orbital controls on eastern African hydroclimate in the Pleistocene}, series = {Scientific reports}, volume = {12}, journal = {Scientific reports}, number = {1}, publisher = {Macmillan Publishers Limited}, address = {London}, issn = {2045-2322}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-022-06826-z}, pages = {10}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Understanding eastern African paleoclimate is critical for contextualizing early human evolution, adaptation, and dispersal, yet Pleistocene climate of this region and its governing mechanisms remain poorly understood due to the lack of long, orbitally-resolved, terrestrial paleoclimate records. Here we present leaf wax hydrogen isotope records of rainfall from paleolake sediment cores from key time windows that resolve long-term trends, variations, and high-latitude effects on tropical African precipitation. Eastern African rainfall was dominantly controlled by variations in low-latitude summer insolation during most of the early and middle Pleistocene, with little evidence that glacial-interglacial cycles impacted rainfall until the late Pleistocene. We observe the influence of high-latitude-driven climate processes emerging from the last interglacial (Marine Isotope Stage 5) to the present, an interval when glacial-interglacial cycles were strong and insolation forcing was weak. Our results demonstrate a variable response of eastern African rainfall to low-latitude insolation forcing and high-latitude-driven climate change, likely related to the relative strengths of these forcings through time and a threshold in monsoon sensitivity. We observe little difference in mean rainfall between the early, middle, and late Pleistocene, which suggests that orbitally-driven climate variations likely played a more significant role than gradual change in the relationship between early humans and their environment.}, language = {en} } @article{EssenSternHaaseetal.2022, author = {Essen, Anna and Stern, Ariel Dora and Haase, Christoffer Bjerre and Car, Josip and Greaves, Felix and Paparova, Dragana and Vandeput, Steven and Wehrens, Rik and Bates, David W.}, title = {Health app policy}, series = {npj digital medicine}, volume = {5}, journal = {npj digital medicine}, number = {1}, publisher = {Macmillan Publishers Limited}, address = {Basingstoke}, issn = {2398-6352}, doi = {10.1038/s41746-022-00573-1}, pages = {10}, year = {2022}, abstract = {An abundant and growing supply of digital health applications (apps) exists in the commercial tech-sector, which can be bewildering for clinicians, patients, and payers. A growing challenge for the health care system is therefore to facilitate the identification of safe and effective apps for health care practitioners and patients to generate the most health benefit as well as guide payer coverage decisions. Nearly all developed countries are attempting to define policy frameworks to improve decision-making, patient care, and health outcomes in this context. This study compares the national policy approaches currently in development/use for health apps in nine countries. We used secondary data, combined with a detailed review of policy and regulatory documents, and interviews with key individuals and experts in the field of digital health policy to collect data about implemented and planned policies and initiatives. We found that most approaches aim for centralized pipelines for health app approvals, although some countries are adding decentralized elements. While the countries studied are taking diverse paths, there is nevertheless broad, international convergence in terms of requirements in the areas of transparency, health content, interoperability, and privacy and security. The sheer number of apps on the market in most countries represents a challenge for clinicians and patients. Our analyses of the relevant policies identified challenges in areas such as reimbursement, safety, and privacy and suggest that more regulatory work is needed in the areas of operationalization, implementation and international transferability of approvals. Cross-national efforts are needed around regulation and for countries to realize the benefits of these technologies.}, language = {en} } @article{KelleyHippProtsch2024, author = {Kelley, Kristin and Hipp, Lena and Protsch, Paula}, title = {Organizational commitments to equality change how people view women's and men's professional success}, series = {Scientific reports}, volume = {14}, journal = {Scientific reports}, number = {1}, publisher = {Macmillan Publishers Limited, part of Springer Nature}, address = {London}, issn = {2045-2322}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-024-56829-1}, pages = {10}, year = {2024}, abstract = {To address women's underrepresentation in high-status positions, many organizations have committed to gender equality. But is women's professional success viewed less positively when organizations commit to women's advancement? Do equality commitments have positive effects on evaluations of successful men? We fielded a survey experiment with a national probability sample in Germany (N = 3229) that varied employees' gender and their organization's commitment to equality. Respondents read about a recently promoted employee and rated how decisive of a role they thought intelligence and effort played in getting the employee promoted from 1 "Not at all decisive" to 7 "Very decisive" and the fairness of the promotion from 1 "Very unfair" to 7 "Very fair." When organizations committed to women's advancement rather than uniform performance standards, people believed intelligence and effort were less decisive in women's promotions, but that intelligence was more decisive in men's promotions. People viewed women's promotions as least fair and men's as most fair in organizations committed to women's advancement. However, women's promotions were still viewed more positively than men's in all conditions and on all outcomes, suggesting people believed that organizations had double standards for success that required women to be smarter and work harder to be promoted, especially in organizations that did not make equality commitments.}, language = {en} } @misc{Bilgen2024, author = {Bilgen, Isa}, title = {Our dignity in your hands}, series = {Verfassungsblog : on matters constitutional}, journal = {Verfassungsblog : on matters constitutional}, publisher = {Verfassungsblog : on matters constitutional}, address = {Max Steinbeis Verfassungsblog gGmbH}, issn = {2366-7044}, doi = {10.17176/20240204-004255-0}, pages = {9}, year = {2024}, language = {en} } @article{KlugeSocolarSchoell2021, author = {Kluge, Lucas and Socolar, Joshua E. S. and Sch{\"o}ll, Eckehard}, title = {Random logic networks}, series = {Physical review : E, Statistical, nonlinear and soft matter physics}, volume = {104}, journal = {Physical review : E, Statistical, nonlinear and soft matter physics}, number = {6}, publisher = {American Physical Society}, address = {Woodbury, NY}, issn = {2470-0045}, doi = {10.1103/PhysRevE.104.064308}, pages = {10}, year = {2021}, abstract = {We investigate dynamical properties of a quantum generalization of classical reversible Boolean networks. The state of each node is encoded as a single qubit, and classical Boolean logic operations are supplemented by controlled bit-flip and Hadamard operations. We consider synchronous updating schemes in which each qubit is updated at each step based on stored values of the qubits from the previous step. We investigate the periodic or quasiperiodic behavior of quantum networks, and we analyze the propagation of single site perturbations through the quantum networks with input degree one. A nonclassical mechanism for perturbation propagation leads to substantially different evolution of the Hamming distance between the original and perturbed states.}, language = {en} } @article{LiSchlaichZhangetal.2021, author = {Li, Mingjun and Schlaich, Christoph and Zhang, Jianguang and Donskyi, Ievgen and Schwibbert, Karin and Schreiber, Frank and Xia, Yi and Radnik, J{\"o}rg and Schwerdtle, Tanja and Haag, Rainer}, title = {Mussel-inspired multifunctional coating for bacterial infection prevention and osteogenic induction}, series = {Journal of materials science \& technology : JMST ; an international journal / spons. by the Chinese Society for Metals (CSM), the Chinese Materials Research Society (CMRS), Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences}, volume = {68}, journal = {Journal of materials science \& technology : JMST ; an international journal / spons. by the Chinese Society for Metals (CSM), the Chinese Materials Research Society (CMRS), Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam [u.a.]}, issn = {1005-0302}, doi = {10.1016/j.jmst.2020.08.011}, pages = {160 -- 171}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Bacterial infection and osteogenic integration are the two main problems that cause severe complications after surgeries. In this study, the antibacterial and osteogenic properties were simultaneously introduced in biomaterials, where copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) were generated by in situ reductions of Cu ions into a mussel-inspired hyperbranched polyglycerol (MI-hPG) coating via a simple dip-coating method. This hyperbranched polyglycerol with 10 \% catechol groups' modification presents excellent antifouling property, which could effectively reduce bacteria adhesion on the surface. In this work, polycaprolactone (PCL) electrospun fiber membrane was selected as the substrate, which is commonly used in biomedical implants in bone regeneration and cardiovascular stents because of its good biocompatibility and easy post-modification. The as-fabricated CuNPs-incorporated PCL membrane [PCL-(MI-hPG)-CuNPs] was confirmed with effective antibacterial performance via in vitro antibacterial tests against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), Escherichia coli (E. coli), and multi-resistant E. coli. In addition, the in vitro results demonstrated that osteogenic property of PCL-(MI-hPG)-CuNPs was realized by upregulating the osteoblast-related gene expressions and protein activity. This study shows that antibacterial and osteogenic properties can be balanced in a surface coating by introducing CuNPs.}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Rasche2024, author = {Rasche, Daniel}, title = {Cosmic-ray neutron sensing for the estimation of soil moisture}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-63646}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-636465}, school = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam}, pages = {xvi, 194}, year = {2024}, abstract = {Water stored in the unsaturated soil as soil moisture is a key component of the hydrological cycle influencing numerous hydrological processes including hydrometeorological extremes. Soil moisture influences flood generation processes and during droughts when precipitation is absent, it provides plant with transpirable water, thereby sustaining plant growth and survival in agriculture and natural ecosystems. Soil moisture stored in deeper soil layers e.g. below 100 cm is of particular importance for providing plant transpirable water during dry periods. Not being directly connected to the atmosphere and located outside soil layers with the highest root densities, water in these layers is less susceptible to be rapidly evaporated and transpired. Instead, it provides longer-term soil water storage increasing the drought tolerance of plants and ecosystems. Given the importance of soil moisture in the context of hydro-meteorological extremes in a warming climate, its monitoring is part of official national adaption strategies to a changing climate. Yet, soil moisture is highly variable in time and space which challenges its monitoring on spatio-temporal scales relevant for flood and drought risk modelling and forecasting. Introduced over a decade ago, Cosmic-Ray Neutron Sensing (CRNS) is a noninvasive geophysical method that allows for the estimation of soil moisture at relevant spatio-temporal scales of several hectares at a high, subdaily temporal resolution. CRNS relies on the detection of secondary neutrons above the soil surface which are produced from high-energy cosmic-ray particles in the atmosphere and the ground. Neutrons in a specific epithermal energy range are sensitive to the amount of hydrogen present in the surroundings of the CRNS neutron detector. Due to same mass as the hydrogen nucleus, neutrons lose kinetic energy upon collision and are subsequently absorbed when reaching low, thermal energies. A higher amount of hydrogen therefore leads to fewer neutrons being detected per unit time. Assuming that the largest amount of hydrogen is stored in most terrestrial ecosystems as soil moisture, changes of soil moisture can be estimated through an inverse relationship with observed neutron intensities. Although important scientific advancements have been made to improve the methodological framework of CRNS, several open challenges remain, of which some are addressed in the scope of this thesis. These include the influence of atmospheric variables such as air pressure and absolute air humidity, as well as, the impact of variations in incoming primary cosmic-ray intensity on observed epithermal and thermal neutron signals and their correction. Recently introduced advanced neutron-to-soil moisture transfer functions are expected to improve CRNS-derived soil moisture estimates, but potential improvements need to be investigated at study sites with differing environmental conditions. Sites with strongly heterogeneous, patchy soil moisture distributions challenge existing transfer functions and further research is required to assess the impact of, and correction of derived soil moisture estimates under heterogeneous site conditions. Despite its capability of measuring representative averages of soil moisture at the field scale, CRNS lacks an integration depth below the first few decimetres of the soil. Given the importance of soil moisture also in deeper soil layers, increasing the observational window of CRNS through modelling approaches or in situ measurements is of high importance for hydrological monitoring applications. By addressing these challenges, this thesis aids to closing knowledge gaps and finding answers to some of the open questions in CRNS research. Influences of different environmental variables are quantified, correction approaches are being tested and developed. Neutron-to-soil moisture transfer functions are evaluated and approaches to reduce effects of heterogeneous soil moisture distributions are presented. Lastly, soil moisture estimates from larger soil depths are derived from CRNS through modified, simple modelling approaches and in situ estimates by using CRNS as a downhole technique. Thereby, this thesis does not only illustrate the potential of new, yet undiscovered applications of CRNS in future but also opens a new field of CRNS research. Consequently, this thesis advances the methodological framework of CRNS for above-ground and downhole applications. Although the necessity of further research in order to fully exploit the potential of CRNS needs to be emphasised, this thesis contributes to current hydrological research and not least to advancing hydrological monitoring approaches being of utmost importance in context of intensifying hydro-meteorological extremes in a changing climate.}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Dronsella2024, author = {Dronsella, Beau B.}, title = {Overcoming natural biomass limitations in gram-negative bacteria through synthetic carbon fixation}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-64627}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-646273}, school = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam}, pages = {174}, year = {2024}, abstract = {The carbon demands of an ever-increasing human population and the concomitant rise in net carbon emissions requires CO2 sequestering approaches for production of carbon-containing molecules. Microbial production of carbon-containing products from plant-based sugars could replace current fossil-based production. However, this form of sugar-based microbial production directly competes with human food supply and natural ecosystems. Instead, one-carbon feedstocks derived from CO2 and renewable energy were proposed as an alternative. The one carbon molecule formate is a stable, readily soluble and safe-to-store energetic mediator that can be electrochemically generated from CO2 and (excess off-peak) renewable electricity. Formate-based microbial production could represent a promising approach for a circular carbon economy. However, easy-to-engineer and efficient formate-utilizing microbes are lacking. Multiple synthetic metabolic pathways were designed for better-than-nature carbon fixation. Among them, the reductive glycine pathway was proposed as the most efficient pathway for aerobic formate assimilation. While some of these pathways have been successfully engineered in microbial hosts, these synthetic strains did so far not exceed the performance of natural strains. In this work, I engineered and optimized two different synthetic formate assimilation pathways in gram-negative bacteria to exceed the limits of a natural carbon fixation pathway, the Calvin cycle. The first chapter solidified Cupriavidus necator as a promising formatotrophic host to produce value-added chemicals. The formate tolerance of C. necator was assessed and a production pathway for crotonate established in a modularized fashion. Last, bioprocess optimization was leveraged to produce crotonate from formate at a titer of 148 mg/L. In the second chapter, I chromosomally integrated and optimized the synthetic reductive glycine pathway in C. necator using a transposon-mediated selection approach. The insertion methodology allowed selection for condition-specific tailored pathway expression as improved pathway performance led to better growth. I then showed my engineered strains to exceed the biomass yields of the Calvin cycle utilizing wildtype C. necator on formate. This demonstrated for the first time the superiority of a synthetic formate assimilation pathway and by extension of synthetic carbon fixation efforts as a whole. In chapter 3, I engineered a segment of a synthetic carbon fixation cycle in Escherichia coli. The GED cycle was proposed as a Calvin cycle alternative that does not perform a wasteful oxygenation reaction and is more energy efficient. The pathways simple architecture and reasonable driving force made it a promising candidate for enhanced carbon fixation. I created a deletion strain that coupled growth to carboxylation via the GED pathway segment. The CO2 dependence of the engineered strain and 13C-tracer analysis confirmed operation of the pathway in vivo. In the final chapter, I present my efforts of implementing the GED cycle also in C. necator, which might be a better-suited host, as it is accustomed to formatotrophic and hydrogenotrophic growth. To provide the carboxylation substrate in vivo, I engineered C. necator to utilize xylose as carbon source and created a selection strain for carboxylase activity. I verify activity of the key enzyme, the carboxylase, in the decarboxylative direction. Although CO2-dependent growth of the strain was not obtained, I showed that all enzymes required for operation of the GED cycle are active in vivo in C. necator. I then evaluate my success with engineering a linear and cyclical one-carbon fixation pathway in two different microbial hosts. The linear reductive glycine pathway presents itself as a much simpler metabolic solution for formate dependent growth over the sophisticated establishment of hard-to-balance carbon fixation cycles. Last, I highlight advantages and disadvantages of C. necator as an upcoming microbial benchmark organism for synthetic metabolism efforts and give and outlook on its potential for the future of C1-based manufacturing.}, language = {en} }