@article{TofeldeBufeTurowski2022, author = {Tofelde, Stefanie and Bufe, Aaron and Turowski, Jens M.}, title = {Hillslope Sediment Supply Limits Alluvial Valley Width}, series = {AGU Advances}, journal = {AGU Advances}, publisher = {American Geophysical Union (AGU); Wiley}, address = {Hoboken, New Jersey, USA}, issn = {2576-604X}, doi = {10.1029/2021AV000641}, pages = {20}, year = {2022}, abstract = {River-valley morphology preserves information on tectonic and climatic conditions that shape landscapes. Observations suggest that river discharge and valley-wall lithology are the main controls on valley width. Yet, current models based on these observations fail to explain the full range of cross-sectional valley shapes in nature, suggesting hitherto unquantified controls on valley width. In particular, current models cannot explain the existence of paired terrace sequences that form under cyclic climate forcing. Paired river terraces are staircases of abandoned floodplains on both valley sides, and hence preserve past valley widths. Their formation requires alternating phases of predominantly river incision and predominantly lateral planation, plus progressive valley narrowing. While cyclic Quaternary climate changes can explain shifts between incision and lateral erosion, the driving mechanism of valley narrowing is unknown. Here, we extract valley geometries from climatically formed, alluvial river-terrace sequences and show that across our dataset, the total cumulative terrace height (here: total valley height) explains 90\%-99\% of the variance in valley width at the terrace sites. This finding suggests that valley height, or a parameter that scales linearly with valley height, controls valley width in addition to river discharge and lithology. To explain this valley-width-height relationship, we reformulate existing valley-width models and suggest that, when adjusting to new boundary conditions, alluvial valleys evolve to a width at which sediment removal from valley walls matches lateral sediment supply from hillslope erosion. Such a hillslope-channel coupling is not captured in current valley-evolution models. Our model can explain the existence of paired terrace sequences under cyclic climate forcing and relates valley width to measurable field parameters. Therefore, it facilitates the reconstruction of past climatic and tectonic conditions from valley topography.}, language = {en} } @article{MiklashevskyFischerLindemann2022, author = {Miklashevsky, Alex and Fischer, Martin H. and Lindemann, Oliver}, title = {Spatial-numerical associations without a motor response? Grip force says 'Yes'}, series = {Acta Psychologica}, volume = {231}, journal = {Acta Psychologica}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {1873-6297}, doi = {10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103791}, pages = {1 -- 17}, year = {2022}, abstract = {In numerical processing, the functional role of Spatial-Numerical Associations (SNAs, such as the association of smaller numbers with left space and larger numbers with right space, the Mental Number Line hypothesis) is debated. Most studies demonstrate SNAs with lateralized responses, and there is little evidence that SNAs appear when no response is required. We recorded passive holding grip forces in no-go trials during number processing. In Experiment 1, participants performed a surface numerical decision task ("Is it a number or a letter?"). In Experiment 2, we used a deeper semantic task ("Is this number larger or smaller than five?"). Despite instruction to keep their grip force constant, participants' spontaneous grip force changed in both experiments: Smaller numbers led to larger force increase in the left than in the right hand in the numerical decision task (500-700 ms after stimulus onset). In the semantic task, smaller numbers again led to larger force increase in the left hand, and larger numbers increased the right-hand holding force. This effect appeared earlier (180 ms) and lasted longer (until 580 ms after stimulus onset). This is the first demonstration of SNAs with passive holding force. Our result suggests that (1) explicit motor response is not a prerequisite for SNAs to appear, and (2) the timing and strength of SNAs are task-dependent. (216 words).}, language = {en} } @article{LindnerMoellerHildebrandtetal.2022, author = {Lindner, Nadja and Moeller, Korbinian and Hildebrandt, Frauke and Hasselhorn, Marcus and Lonnemann, Jan}, title = {Children's use of egocentric reference frames in spatial language is related to their numerical magnitude understanding}, series = {Frontiers in Psychology}, journal = {Frontiers in Psychology}, publisher = {Frontiers}, address = {Lausanne, Schweiz}, issn = {1664-1078}, doi = {10.3389/fpsyg.2022.943191}, pages = {1 -- 13}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Numerical magnitude information is assumed to be spatially represented in the form of a mental number line defined with respect to a body-centred, egocentric frame of reference. In this context, spatial language skills such as mastery of verbal descriptions of spatial position (e.g., in front of, behind, to the right/left) have been proposed to be relevant for grasping spatial relations between numerical magnitudes on the mental number line. We examined 4- to 5-year-old's spatial language skills in tasks that allow responses in egocentric and allocentric frames of reference, as well as their relative understanding of numerical magnitude (assessed by a number word comparison task). In addition, we evaluated influences of children's absolute understanding of numerical magnitude assessed by their number word comprehension (montring different numbers using their fingers) and of their knowledge on numerical sequences (determining predecessors and successors as well as identifying missing dice patterns of a series). Results indicated that when considering responses that corresponded to the egocentric perspective, children's spatial language was associated significantly with their relative numerical magnitude understanding, even after controlling for covariates, such as children's SES, mental rotation skills, and also absolute magnitude understanding or knowledge on numerical sequences. This suggests that the use of egocentric reference frames in spatial language may facilitate spatial representation of numbers along a mental number line and thus seem important for preschoolers' relative understanding of numerical magnitude.}, language = {en} } @article{HeckerSteckhanEybenetal.2022, author = {Hecker, Pascal and Steckhan, Nico and Eyben, Florian and Schuller, Bj{\"o}rn Wolfgang and Arnrich, Bert}, title = {Voice Analysis for Neurological Disorder Recognition - A Systematic Review and Perspective on Emerging Trends}, series = {Frontiers in Digital Health}, journal = {Frontiers in Digital Health}, publisher = {Frontiers Media SA}, address = {Lausanne, Schweiz}, issn = {2673-253X}, doi = {10.3389/fdgth.2022.842301}, pages = {16}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Quantifying neurological disorders from voice is a rapidly growing field of research and holds promise for unobtrusive and large-scale disorder monitoring. The data recording setup and data analysis pipelines are both crucial aspects to effectively obtain relevant information from participants. Therefore, we performed a systematic review to provide a high-level overview of practices across various neurological disorders and highlight emerging trends. PRISMA-based literature searches were conducted through PubMed, Web of Science, and IEEE Xplore to identify publications in which original (i.e., newly recorded) datasets were collected. Disorders of interest were psychiatric as well as neurodegenerative disorders, such as bipolar disorder, depression, and stress, as well as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's disease, and speech impairments (aphasia, dysarthria, and dysphonia). Of the 43 retrieved studies, Parkinson's disease is represented most prominently with 19 discovered datasets. Free speech and read speech tasks are most commonly used across disorders. Besides popular feature extraction toolkits, many studies utilise custom-built feature sets. Correlations of acoustic features with psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders are presented. In terms of analysis, statistical analysis for significance of individual features is commonly used, as well as predictive modeling approaches, especially with support vector machines and a small number of artificial neural networks. An emerging trend and recommendation for future studies is to collect data in everyday life to facilitate longitudinal data collection and to capture the behavior of participants more naturally. Another emerging trend is to record additional modalities to voice, which can potentially increase analytical performance.}, language = {en} } @article{GoeldelKamrathMindenetal.2022, author = {G{\"o}ldel, Julia M. and Kamrath, Clemens and Minden, Kirsten and Wiegand, Susanna and Lanzinger, Stefanie and Sengler, Claudia and Weihrauch-Bl{\"u}her, Susann and Holl, Reinhard W. and Tittel, Sascha Ren{\´e} and Warschburger, Petra}, title = {Access to Healthcare for Children and Adolescents with a Chronic Health Condition during the COVID-19 Pandemic: First Results from the KICK-COVID Study in Germany}, series = {Children}, volume = {10}, journal = {Children}, edition = {1}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel, Schweiz}, issn = {2227-9067}, doi = {10.3390/children10010010}, pages = {1 -- 11}, year = {2022}, abstract = {This study examines the access to healthcare for children and adolescents with three common chronic diseases (type-1 diabetes (T1D), obesity, or juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)) within the 4th (Delta), 5th (Omicron), and beginning of the 6th (Omicron) wave (June 2021 until July 2022) of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany in a cross-sectional study using three national patient registries. A paper-and-pencil questionnaire was given to parents of pediatric patients (<21 years) during the routine check-ups. The questionnaire contains self-constructed items assessing the frequency of healthcare appointments and cancellations, remote healthcare, and satisfaction with healthcare. In total, 905 parents participated in the T1D-sample, 175 in the obesity-sample, and 786 in the JIA-sample. In general, satisfaction with healthcare (scale: 0-10; 10 reflecting the highest satisfaction) was quite high (median values: T1D 10, JIA 10, obesity 8.5). The proportion of children and adolescents with canceled appointments was relatively small (T1D 14.1\%, JIA 11.1\%, obesity 20\%), with a median of 1 missed appointment, respectively. Only a few parents (T1D 8.6\%; obesity 13.1\%; JIA 5\%) reported obstacles regarding health services during the pandemic. To conclude, it seems that access to healthcare was largely preserved for children and adolescents with chronic health conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany.}, language = {en} } @article{ReegStriglJeltsch2022, author = {Reeg, Jette and Strigl, Lea and Jeltsch, Florian}, title = {Agricultural buffer zone thresholds to safeguard functional bee diversity}, series = {Ecology and Evolution}, volume = {12}, journal = {Ecology and Evolution}, edition = {3}, publisher = {Wiley Online Library}, address = {Hoboken, New Jersey, USA}, issn = {2045-7758}, doi = {10.1002/ece3.8748}, pages = {1 -- 17}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Wild bee species are important pollinators in agricultural landscapes. However, population decline was reported over the last decades and is still ongoing. While agricultural intensification is a major driver of the rapid loss of pollinating species, transition zones between arable fields and forest or grassland patches, i.e., agricultural buffer zones, are frequently mentioned as suitable mitigation measures to support wild bee populations and other pollinator species. Despite the reported general positive effect, it remains unclear which amount of buffer zones is needed to ensure a sustainable and permanent impact for enhancing bee diversity and abundance. To address this question at a pollinator community level, we implemented a process-based, spatially explicit simulation model of functional bee diversity dynamics in an agricultural landscape. More specifically, we introduced a variable amount of agricultural buffer zones (ABZs) at the transition of arable to grassland, or arable to forest patches to analyze the impact on bee functional diversity and functional richness. We focused our study on solitary bees in a typical agricultural area in the Northeast of Germany. Our results showed positive effects with at least 25\% of virtually implemented agricultural buffer zones. However, higher amounts of ABZs of at least 75\% should be considered to ensure a sufficient increase in Shannon diversity and decrease in quasi-extinction risks. These high amounts of ABZs represent effective conservation measures to safeguard the stability of pollination services provided by solitary bee species. As the model structure can be easily adapted to other mobile species in agricultural landscapes, our community approach offers the chance to compare the effectiveness of conservation measures also for other pollinator communities in future.}, language = {en} } @article{ZieglerPfitznerSchulzetal.2022, author = {Ziegler, Joceline and Pfitzner, Bjarne and Schulz, Heinrich and Saalbach, Axel and Arnrich, Bert}, title = {Defending against Reconstruction Attacks through Differentially Private Federated Learning for Classification of Heterogeneous Chest X-ray Data}, series = {Sensors}, volume = {22}, journal = {Sensors}, edition = {14}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel, Schweiz}, issn = {1424-8220}, doi = {10.3390/s22145195}, pages = {25}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Privacy regulations and the physical distribution of heterogeneous data are often primary concerns for the development of deep learning models in a medical context. This paper evaluates the feasibility of differentially private federated learning for chest X-ray classification as a defense against data privacy attacks. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to directly compare the impact of differentially private training on two different neural network architectures, DenseNet121 and ResNet50. Extending the federated learning environments previously analyzed in terms of privacy, we simulated a heterogeneous and imbalanced federated setting by distributing images from the public CheXpert and Mendeley chest X-ray datasets unevenly among 36 clients. Both non-private baseline models achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.940.94 on the binary classification task of detecting the presence of a medical finding. We demonstrate that both model architectures are vulnerable to privacy violation by applying image reconstruction attacks to local model updates from individual clients. The attack was particularly successful during later training stages. To mitigate the risk of a privacy breach, we integrated R{\´e}nyi differential privacy with a Gaussian noise mechanism into local model training. We evaluate model performance and attack vulnerability for privacy budgets ε∈{1,3,6,10}�∈{1,3,6,10}. The DenseNet121 achieved the best utility-privacy trade-off with an AUC of 0.940.94 for ε=6�=6. Model performance deteriorated slightly for individual clients compared to the non-private baseline. The ResNet50 only reached an AUC of 0.760.76 in the same privacy setting. Its performance was inferior to that of the DenseNet121 for all considered privacy constraints, suggesting that the DenseNet121 architecture is more robust to differentially private training.}, language = {en} } @article{LiebeDordevicKaufmannetal.2022, author = {Liebe, Thomas and Dordevic, Milos and Kaufmann, J{\"o}rn and Avetisyan, Araks and Skalej, Martin and M{\"u}ller, Notger Germar}, title = {Investigation of the functional pathogenesis of mild cognitive impairment by localisation-based locus coeruleus resting-state fMRI}, series = {Human Brain Mapping}, volume = {43}, journal = {Human Brain Mapping}, edition = {18}, publisher = {Wiley}, address = {New York, NY, USA}, issn = {1097-0193}, doi = {10.1002/hbm.26039}, pages = {5630 -- 5642}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Dementia as one of the most prevalent diseases urges for a better understanding of the central mechanisms responsible for clinical symptoms, and necessitates improvement of actual diagnostic capabilities. The brainstem nucleus locus coeruleus (LC) is a promising target for early diagnosis because of its early structural alterations and its relationship to the functional disturbances in the patients. In this study, we applied our improved method of localisation-based LC resting-state fMRI to investigate the differences in central sensory signal processing when comparing functional connectivity (fc) of a patient group with mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n = 28) and an age-matched healthy control group (n = 29). MCI and control participants could be differentiated in their Mini-Mental-State-Examination (MMSE) scores (p < .001) and LC intensity ratio (p = .010). In the fMRI, LC fc to anterior cingulate cortex (FDR p < .001) and left anterior insula (FDR p = .012) was elevated, and LC fc to right temporoparietal junction (rTPJ, FDR p = .012) and posterior cingulate cortex (PCC, FDR p = .021) was decreased in the patient group. Importantly, LC to rTPJ connectivity was also positively correlated to MMSE scores in MCI patients (p = .017). Furthermore, we found a hyperactivation of the left-insula salience network in the MCI patients. Our results and our proposed disease model shed new light on the functional pathogenesis of MCI by directing to attentional network disturbances, which could aid new therapeutic strategies and provide a marker for diagnosis and prediction of disease progression.}, language = {en} } @article{HauffeRathAgyapongetal.2022, author = {Hauffe, Robert and Rath, Michaela and Agyapong, Wilson and Jonas, Wenke and Vogel, Heike and Schulz, Tim Julius and Schwarz, Maria and Kipp, Anna Patricia and Bl{\"u}her, Matthias and Kleinridders, Andr{\´e}}, title = {Obesity Hinders the Protective Effect of Selenite Supplementation on Insulin Signaling}, series = {Antioxidants}, volume = {11}, journal = {Antioxidants}, edition = {5}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel, Schweiz}, issn = {2076-3921}, doi = {10.3390/antiox11050862}, pages = {1 -- 16}, year = {2022}, abstract = {The intake of high-fat diets (HFDs) containing large amounts of saturated long-chain fatty acids leads to obesity, oxidative stress, inflammation, and insulin resistance. The trace element selenium, as a crucial part of antioxidative selenoproteins, can protect against the development of diet-induced insulin resistance in white adipose tissue (WAT) by increasing glutathione peroxidase 3 (GPx3) and insulin receptor (IR) expression. Whether selenite (Se) can attenuate insulin resistance in established lipotoxic and obese conditions is unclear. We confirm that GPX3 mRNA expression in adipose tissue correlates with BMI in humans. Cultivating 3T3-L1 pre-adipocytes in palmitate-containing medium followed by Se treatment attenuates insulin resistance with enhanced GPx3 and IR expression and adipocyte differentiation. However, feeding obese mice a selenium-enriched high-fat diet (SRHFD) only resulted in a modest increase in overall selenoprotein gene expression in WAT in mice with unaltered body weight development, glucose tolerance, and insulin resistance. While Se supplementation improved adipocyte morphology, it did not alter WAT insulin sensitivity. However, mice fed a SRHFD exhibited increased insulin content in the pancreas. Overall, while selenite protects against palmitate-induced insulin resistance in vitro, obesity impedes the effect of selenite on insulin action and adipose tissue metabolism in vivo.}, language = {en} } @article{KayhanMatthesMarriottHaresignetal.2022, author = {Kayhan, Ezgi and Matthes, Daniel and Marriott Haresign, Ira and B{\´a}nki, Anna and Michel, Christine and Langeloh, Miriam and Wass, Sam and Hoehl, Stefanie}, title = {DEEP: A dual EEG pipeline for developmental hyperscanning studies}, series = {Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience}, volume = {54}, journal = {Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam, Niederlande}, issn = {1878-9307}, doi = {10.1016/j.dcn.2022.101104}, pages = {1 -- 11}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Cutting-edge hyperscanning methods led to a paradigm shift in social neuroscience. It allowed researchers to measure dynamic mutual alignment of neural processes between two or more individuals in naturalistic contexts. The ever-growing interest in hyperscanning research calls for the development of transparent and validated data analysis methods to further advance the field. We have developed and tested a dual electroencephalography (EEG) analysis pipeline, namely DEEP. Following the preprocessing of the data, DEEP allows users to calculate Phase Locking Values (PLVs) and cross-frequency PLVs as indices of inter-brain phase alignment of dyads as well as time-frequency responses and EEG power for each participant. The pipeline also includes scripts to control for spurious correlations. Our goal is to contribute to open and reproducible science practices by making DEEP publicly available together with an example mother-infant EEG hyperscanning dataset.}, language = {en} }