Heterophoria: Vergence stability and visual acuity after asymmetric saccades

Many patients with heterophoria report on symptoms related to impaired vision. To investigate whether these symptoms are provoked by saccades this study examines whether in heterophoria effects on intrasaccadic and postsaccadic vergence movements are linked to effects on visual performance. Visual acuity was measured in 35 healthy subjects during fixation and immediately after asymmetric diverging saccades. Binocular position traces were recorded by video-oculography. Subjects with exophoria showed larger intrasaccadic divergence amplitudes, which in turn led to smaller postsaccadic divergence amplitudes. Visual acuity did not depend on heterophoria or vergence amplitudes. The results suggest that compensating for exophoria requires increased convergence activity as compared to orthophoria or compensated esophoria. Visual acuity seemed relatively robust with respect to postsaccadic vergence movements

Collective dynamics of active Brownian particles in three spatial dimensions: a predictive field theory

We investigate the nonequilibrium dynamics of spherical active Brownian particles in three spatial dimensions that interact via a pair potential. The investigation is based on a predictive local field theory that is derived by a rigorous coarse-graining starting from the overdamped Langevin dynamics of the particles. This field theory is highly accurate and applicable even for the highest activities. It includes configurational order parameters and derivatives up to infinite orders. We present also three finite reduced models that result from the general field theory by suitable approximations and are easier to apply. Furthermore, we use the general field theory and the simplest one of the reduced models to derive analytic expressions for the density-dependent mean swimming speed and the spinodal corresponding to the onset of motility-induced phase separation of the particles, respectively. Both of these results show a good agreement with recent findings described in the literature. The analytic result for the spinodal yields also a prediction for the associated critical point whose position has not been determined before.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures, 3 table

Perfil de segurança da terapêutica farmacológica da esclerose múltipla

A esclerose múltipla é uma doença crónica, degenerativa, inflamatória e autoimune que afeta o sistema nervoso central e a medula espinhal causando incapacidade física e mental irreversível, principalmente na faixa etária entre os 20 e os 30 anos. Nestes últimos anos, assistiu-se a uma evolução do arsenal terapêutico desta patologia, contribuindo para uma melhor qualidade de vida dos doentes. O objetivo principal desta dissertação consiste em caracterizar o perfil de segurança da terapêutica da esclerose múltipla, com base na melhor evidência científica disponível. Pretende-se, também, que esta caracterização sirva de ferramenta, aos vários profissionais de saúde envolvidos no acompanhamento do doente com esclerose múltipla e, em particular, ao Farmacêutico. Assim, foram identificados e descritos os seguintes fármacos modificadores de doença, as formulações interferão-β, acetato de glatirâmero, teriflunomida, fumarato de dimetilo, natalizumab, fingolimod, alemtuzumab e mitoxantrona. As formulações interferão β e o acetato de glatirâmero apresentam um perfil de segurança favorável e conhecido quando utilizados a longo termo. Por outro lado, o natalizumab, o fingolimod e alemtuzumab são utilizados quando a terapêutica de primeira linha falha, mas apresentam um perfil de segurança mais desfavorável e menos conhecido, capaz de comprometer, ainda mais, a qualidade de vida do doente. Salienta-se a leucoencefalopatia multifocal progressiva, comorbilidades do foro cardíaco e purpura trombocitopenia idiopática para cada fármaco respetivamente. A realização desta dissertação permitiu conhecer de forma pormenorizada a terapêutica farmacológica utilizada no tratamento da esclerose múltipla, em especial o seu perfil de segurança e as medidas a adotar para minimização dos riscos. Tal conduziu à construção de diversos quadros-resumo de consulta rápida com a informação considerada mais relevante para cada fármaco, o que pode constituir uma ferramenta de trabalho para farmacêuticos envolvidos no tratamento de doentes com esclerose múltipla

The necessity of multiple data sources for ECG-based machine learning models

Even though the interest in machine learning studies is growing significantly, especially in medicine, the imbalance between study results and clinical relevance is more pronounced than ever. The reasons for this include data quality and interoperability issues. Hence, we aimed at examining site- and study-specific differences in publicly available standard electrocardiogram (ECG) datasets, which in theory should be interoperable by consistent 12-lead definition, sampling rate, and measurement duration. The focus lies upon the question of whether even slight study peculiarities can affect the stability of trained machine learning models. To this end, the performances of modern network architectures as well as unsupervised pattern detection algorithms are investigated across different datasets. Overall, this is intended to examine the generalization of machine learning results of single-site ECG studies

Macroporous Silicone Chips for Decoding Microbial Dark Matter in Environmental Microbiomes

Natural evolution has produced an almost infinite variety of microorganisms that can colonize almost any conceivable habitat. Since the vast majority of these microbial consortia are still unknown, there is a great need to elucidate this “microbial dark matter” (MDM) to enable exploitation in biotechnology. We report the fabrication and application of a novel device that integrates a matrix of macroporous elastomeric silicone foam (MESIF) into an easily fabricated and scalable chip design that can be used for decoding MDM in environmental microbiomes. Technical validation, performed with the model organism Escherichia coli expressing a fluorescent protein, showed that this low-cost, bioinert, and widely modifiable chip is rapidly colonized by microorganisms. The biological potential of the chip was then illustrated through targeted sampling and enrichment of microbiomes in a variety of habitats ranging from wet, turbulent moving bed biofilters and wastewater treatment plants to dry air-based environments. Sequencing analyses consistently showed that MESIF chips are not only suitable for sampling with high robustness but also that the material can be used to detect a broad cross section of microorganisms present in the habitat in a short time span of a few days. For example, results from the biofilter habitat showed efficient enrichment of microorganisms belonging to the enigmatic Candidate Phyla Radiation, which comprise ∼70% of the MDM. From dry air, the MESIF chip was able to enrich a variety of members of Actinobacteriota, which is known to produce specific secondary metabolites. Targeted sampling from a wastewater treatment plant where the herbicide glyphosate was added to the chip’s reservoir resulted in enrichment of Cyanobacteria and Desulfobacteria, previously associated with glyphosate degradation. These initial case studies suggest that this chip is very well suited for the systematic study of MDM and opens opportunities for the cultivation of previously unculturable microorganisms

Anti-EBNA1 IgG titre is not associated with fatigue in multiple sclerosis patients

Introduction. Fatigue is the most frequent symptom in multiple sclerosis (MS), although it is still poorly understood due to its complexity and subjective nature. There is an urgent need to identify reliable biomarkers to improve disease prognosis and therapeutic strategies. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is the major environmental risk factor associated with MS aetiology, and trials with EBV-targeted T cell therapies have reduced fatigue severity in MS patients. Aim of the study. We investigated whether the serum amount of immunoglobulin (Ig)G-specific for EBV antigens could be a suitable prognostic marker for the assessment of MS-related fatigue. Material and methods. A total of 194 MS patients were enrolled. We quantified EBV nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1) and EBV viral capsid antigen (VCA) immunoglobulin (Ig) G levels and B cell-activating factor of the tumour necrosis factor family (BAFF) concentration in the serum of patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and chronic progressive MS (CPMS), and we analysed their correlation with aspects of fatigue and other clinical disease parameters. Results. A complete EBV seropositivity could be detected in our cohort. After adjusting for confounding variables and covariates, neither EBNA1 nor VCA antibody titres were associated with levels of fatigue, sleepiness, depression, or with any of the clinical values such as expanded disability status scale, lesion count, annual relapse rate, or disease duration. However, patients with RRMS had significantly higher EBNA1 IgG titre than those with CPMS, whereas this was not the case under therapies targeting CD20+ cells. BAFF levels in serum were inversely proportional to anti-EBNA1 IgG. Conclusions and clinical implications. Our results show that EBNA1 IgG titre is not associated with the presence or level of fatigue. Whether the increased EBNA1 titre in RRMS plays a direct role in disease progression, or is only a consequence of excessive B cell activation, remains to be answered in future studies