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Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Fiber-based SORS-SERDS system and chemometrics for the diagnostics and therapy monitoring of psoriasis inflammatory disease in vivo
    (Washington, DC : Optica, 2021-1-28) Schleusener, Johannes; Guo, Shuxia; Darvin, Maxim E.; Thiede, Gisela; Chernavskaia, Olga; Knorr, Florian; Lademann, Jürgen; Popp, Jürgen; Bocklitz, Thomas W.
    Psoriasis is considered a widespread dermatological disease that can strongly affect the quality of life. Currently, the treatment is continued until the skin surface appears clinically healed. However, lesions appearing normal may contain modifications in deeper layers. To terminate the treatment too early can highly increase the risk of relapses. Therefore, techniques are needed for a better knowledge of the treatment process, especially to detect the lesion modifications in deeper layers. In this study, we developed a fiber-based SORS-SERDS system in combination with machine learning algorithms to non-invasively determine the treatment efficiency of psoriasis. The system was designed to acquire Raman spectra from three different depths into the skin, which provide rich information about the skin modifications in deeper layers. This way, it is expected to prevent the occurrence of relapses in case of a too short treatment. The method was verified with a study of 24 patients upon their two visits: the data is acquired at the beginning of a standard treatment (visit 1) and four months afterwards (visit 2). A mean sensitivity of ≥85% was achieved to distinguish psoriasis from normal skin at visit 1. At visit 2, where the patients were healed according to the clinical appearance, the mean sensitivity was ≈65%.
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    Geometry-Driven Cell Organization Determines Tissue Growths in Scaffold Pores: Consequences for Fibronectin Organization
    (San Francisco, CA : Public Library of Science, 2013) Joly, P.; Duda, G.N.; Schöne, M.; Welzel, P.B.; Freudenberg, U.; Werner, C.; Petersen, A.
    To heal tissue defects, cells have to bridge gaps and generate new extracellular matrix (ECM). Macroporous scaffolds are frequently used to support the process of defect filling and thus foster tissue regeneration. Such biomaterials contain micro-voids (pores) that the cells fill with their own ECM over time. There is only limited knowledge on how pore geometry influences cell organization and matrix production, even though it is highly relevant for scaffold design. This study hypothesized that 1) a simple geometric description predicts cellular organization during pore filling at the cell level and that 2) pore closure results in a reorganization of ECM. Scaffolds with a broad distribution of pore sizes (macroporous starPEG-heparin cryogel) were used as a model system and seeded with primary fibroblasts. The strategies of cells to fill pores could be explained by a simple geometrical model considering cells as tensioned chords. The model matched qualitatively as well as quantitatively by means of cell number vs. open cross-sectional area for all pore sizes. The correlation between ECM location and cell position was higher when the pores were not filled with tissue (Pearson's coefficient ρ = 0.45±0.01) and reduced once the pores were closed (ρ = 0.26±0.04) indicating a reorganization of the cell/ECM network. Scaffold pore size directed the time required for pore closure and furthermore impacted the organization of the fibronectin matrix. Understanding how cells fill micro-voids will help to design biomaterial scaffolds that support the endogenous healing process and thus allow a fast filling of tissue defects.
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    Order patterns networks (orpan) - A method to estimate time-evolving functional connectivity from multivariate time series
    (Lausanne : Frontiers Research Foundation, 2012) Schinkel, S.; Zamora-López, G.; Dimigen, O.; Sommer, W.; Kurths, J.
    Complex networks provide an excellent framework for studying the function of the human brain activity. Yet estimating functional networks from measured signals is not trivial, especially if the data is non-stationary and noisy as it is often the case with physiological recordings. In this article we propose a method that uses the local rank structure of the data to define functional links in terms of identical rank structures. The method yields temporal sequences of networks which permits to trace the evolution of the functional connectivity during the time course of the observation. We demonstrate the potentials of this approach with model data as well as with experimental data from an electrophysiological study on language processing.
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    Cortical hot spots and labyrinths: Why cortical neuromodulation for episodic migraine with aura should be personalized
    (Lausanne : Frontiers Research Foundation, 2015) Dahlem, M.A.; Schmidt, B.; Bojak, I.; Boie, S.; Kneer, F.; Hadjikhani, N.; Kurths, J.
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    Towards dynamical network biomarkers in neuromodulation of episodic migraine
    (Berlin : De Gruyter, 2013) Dahlem, M.A.; Rode, S.; May, A.; Fujiwara, N.; Hirata, Y.; Aihara, K.; Kurths, J.
    Computational methods have complemented experimental and clinical neurosciences and led to improvements in our understanding of the nervous systems in health and disease. In parallel, neuromodulation in form of electric and magnetic stimulation is gaining increasing acceptance in chronic and intractable diseases. In this paper, we firstly explore the relevant state of the art in fusion of both developments towards translational computational neuroscience. Then, we propose a strategy to employ the new theoretical concept of dynamical network biomarkers (DNB) in episodic manifestations of chronic disorders. In particular, as a first example, we introduce the use of computational models in migraine and illustrate on the basis of this example the potential of DNB as early-warning signals for neuromodulation in episodic migraine.