Berlin University of the Arts

PURPOSE: To evaluate magnetic resonance (MR) imaging-guided laser-induced thermotherapy (LITT) of liver metastases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a phase II study, 20 patients with 33 metastases from colorectal carcinoma (75%) or other primary tumors (25%) underwent LITT. MR thermometry performed with fast low-angle shot sequences was used to monitor therapy on-line, and dynamic and static contrast material-enhanced MR images enabled estimation of the degree of resultant necrosis. Follow-up studies were performed 3 months after thermotherapy. RESULTS: The thermosequences enabled accurate on-line monitoring in 85% of lesions. In 69% of lesions 20 mm in diameter or smaller, contrast-enhanced MR images depicted substantial necrosis, with a local tumor control rate of 69% after 6 months and 44% after 12 months. Among lesions larger than 20 mm, necrosis was frequently incomplete, with a local control rate of only 41% after 6 months and 27% after 12 months. CONCLUSION: MR imaging-guided LITT of liver metastases is a safe and promising therapy for liver metastases.

BACKGROUND: Giardia lamblia causes infection of the small intestine, which leads to malabsorption and chronic diarrhoea. AIM: To characterise the inherent pathomechanisms of G lamblia infection. METHODS: Duodenal biopsy specimens from 13 patients with chronic giardiasis and from controls were obtained endoscopically. Short-circuit current (I(SC)) and mannitol fluxes were measured in miniaturised Ussing chambers. Epithelial and subepithelial resistances were determined by impedance spectroscopy. Mucosal morphometry was performed and tight junction proteins were characterised by immunoblotting. Apoptotic ratio was determined by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick-end labelling staining. RESULTS: In giardiasis, mucosal surface area per unit serosa area was decreased to 75% (3%) of control, as a result of which epithelial resistance should increase. Instead, epithelial resistance of giardiasis biopsy specimens was decreased (19 (2) vs 25 (2) Omega cm(2); p<0.05) whereas mannitol flux was not significantly altered (140 (27) vs 105 (16) nmol/h/cm(2)). As structural correlate, reduced claudin 1 expression and increased epithelial apoptosis were detected. Furthermore, basal I(SC) increased from 191 (20) in control to 261 (12) microA/h/cm(2) in giardiasis. The bumetanide-sensitive portion of I(SC) in giardiasis was also increased (51 (5) vs 20 (9) microA/h/cm(2) in control; p<0.05). Finally, phlorizin-sensitive Na(+)-glucose symport was reduced in patients with giardiasis (121 (9) vs 83 (14) microA/h/cm(2)). CONCLUSIONS: G lamblia infection causes epithelial barrier dysfunction owing to down regulation of the tight junction protein claudin 1 and increased epithelial apoptoses. Na(+)-dependent d-glucose absorption is impaired and active electrogenic anion secretion is activated. Thus, the mechanisms of diarrhoea in human chronic giardiasis comprise leak flux, malabsorptive and secretory components.

The past decade has witnessed a paradigm shift in the initial treatment of multiple myeloma with the introduction of novel agents such as thalidomide, lenalidomide, and bortezomib, leading to improved outcomes. High-dose therapy and autologous stem cell transplantation remains an important therapeutic option for patients with multiple myeloma eligible for the procedure. Before the advent of the novel agents, patients underwent stem cell collection prior to significant alkylating agent exposure, given its potential deleterious effect on stem cell collection. With increasing use of the novel agents in the upfront setting, several reports have emerged raising concerns about their impact on the ability to collect stem cells. An expert panel of the International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG) was convened to examine the implications of these therapies on stem collection in patients with myeloma and to develop recommendations for addressing these issues. Here we summarize the currently available data and present our perspective on the problem and potential options to overcome this problem. Specifically, we recommend early mobilization of stem cells, preferably within the first 4 cycles of initial therapy, in patients treated with novel agents and encourage participation in clinical trials evaluating novel approaches to stem cell mobilization.

Simulation and optimisation of district heating and cooling networks requires efficient and realistic models of the individual network elements in order to correctly represent heat losses or gains, temperature propagation and pressure drops. Due to more recent thermal networks incorporating meshing decentralised heat and cold sources, the system often has to deal with variable temperatures and mass flow rates, with flow reversal occurring more frequently. This paper presents the mathematical derivation and software implementation in Modelica of a thermo-hydraulic model for thermal networks that meets the above requirements and compares it to both experimental data and a commonly used model. Good correspondence between experimental data from a controlled test set-up and simulations using the presented model was found. Compared to measurement data from a real district heating network, the simulation results led to a larger error than in the controlled test set-up, but the general trend is still approximated closely and the model yields results similar to a pipe model from the Modelica Standard Library. However, the presented model simulates 1.7 (for low number of volumes) to 68 (for highly discretized pipes) times faster than a conventional model for a realistic test case. A working implementation of the presented model is made openly available within the IBPSA Modelica Library. The model is robust in the sense that grid size and time step do not need to be adapted to the flow rate, as is the case in finite volume models.

In this paper structures that actively use bending as a self-forming process are reviewed. By bringing together important material developments and various historical as well as recently built samples of such structures, the aim is to show coherences in their design approach, structural systems and behaviour. Different approaches to bending-active structures are defined and described. By making this work accessible and categorising it, this paper aims to contribute to an emerging development. A differentiation of such structures is suggested based on their design approaches. Three such approaches are differentiated: the behaviour based approach, the geometry based approach and current research that seeks to integrate the two. In this paper the nature of these approaches and some important project samples are discussed.

The relationship between perceived control over development (PCD) and subjective well-being (SWB) across adulthood was examined in 3 studies. In Study 1, with 480 adults aged between 20 and 90 years, PCD was closely related to SWB. Chronological age moderated the associations between PCD and SWB beyond individual differences in health, intelligence, social support, and socioeconomic status. In the longitudinal Study 2, with 42 older adults, strong PCD was associated with increased positive affect only when desirable events had occurred previously. In Study 3, older adults experienced greater satisfaction when attributing attainment of developmental goals to their ability, whereas younger adults were more satisfied when attributing such successes to their own efforts. Findings point to adaptive adjustments of control perceptions to age-related actual control potentials across adulthood.

Botanicus Interacticus is a technology for designing highly expressive interactive plants, both living and artificial. We are motivated by the rapid fusion of computing and our dwelling spaces, as well as the increasingly tactile and gestural nature of our interactions with digital devices. Today, however, this interaction happens either on the touch screens of tablet computers and smart phones, or in free air, captured by camera-based devices, such as the Kinect. What if, instead of this limited range of devices, a broad variety of objects in living, social and working spaces become aware and responsive to human presence, touch and gesture?

Based on theoretical assumptions from film psychology and their application to video games, the hypothesis is tested that suspense is a major factor in video game enjoyment. A first-person shooter game was experimentally manipulated to create either a low level or a high level of suspense. Sixty-three participants were randomly assigned to experimental conditions; enjoyment was assessed after playing by a 10-item rating scale. Results support the assumption that suspense is a driver of video game enjoyment.

Marginalized communities like deaf-blind people are excluded from several forms of communication. This paper introduces a novel system of interaction to support deafblind people's communication and therefore enhance their independence. We introduce the Mobile Lorm Glove: a mobile communication and translation device for the deafblind. The glove translates the hand-touch alphabet Lorm, a common form of communication used by people with both hearing and sight impairment, into text and vice versa. We will present a hardware prototype, created in a participatory design process, which enables the deaf-blind user to compose messages via fabric pressure sensors placed on the palm of the glove to be transmitted as an SMS to the receiver's handheld. Initiated by small vibrating motors located on the back of the glove, tactile feedback patterns allow the wearer to perceive incoming messages. We discuss related work, prototype design and interaction design and application scenarios. We conclude with an outlook into further research.

Salivation to food cues is typically explained in terms of mere stimulus-response links. However, food cues seem to especially increase salivation when food is attractive, suggesting a more complex psychological process. Adopting a grounded cognition perspective, we suggest that perceiving a food triggers simulations of consuming it, especially when attractive. These simulations then induce salivation, which effectively prepares the body for eating the food. In two experiments, we systematically examined the role of simulations on salivation to food cues. As stimuli, both experiments used an attractive, a neutral, and a sour food, as well as a non-food control object. In Experiment 1, participants were instructed to simulate eating every object they would be exposed to. We then exposed them to each object separately. Salivation was assessed by having participants spit their saliva into a cup after one minute of exposure. In Experiment 2, we instructed half of participants to simulate eating each object, and half to merely look at them, while measuring salivation as in Experiment 1. Afterwards, participants rated their simulations and desire to eat for each object separately. As predicted, foods increased salivation compared to the non-food control object, especially when they were attractive or sour (Exp. 1 and 2). Importantly, attractive and sour foods especially increased salivation when instructed to simulate (Exp. 2). These findings suggest that consumption simulations play an important role in inducing salivary responses to food cues. We discuss directions for future research as well as the role of simulations for other appetitive processes.

BACKGROUND: The influence of surgical manipulation and carbon dioxide pneumoperitoneum on intraperitoneal tumour growth and port-site metastasis during laparoscopic colon resection is still unknown. METHODS: Some 33 male WAG/Rij rats were randomized into three experimental groups: a laparoscopy group with carbon dioxide pneumoperitoneum (n = 11), a gasless laparoscopy group (n = 11) and a laparotomy group (n = 11). After transanal injection of a tumour cell suspension (1 x 106 CC 531 cells) into the distal colon, a colon segment resection and an end-to-end anastomosis (laparoscopy; intra-abdominal technique) were performed. Tumour growth was scored semiquantitatively 24 days after the operation. Data were analysed by the Kruskal-Wallis test. RESULTS: The tumour indices from the four locations with the greatest tumour growth were significantly decreased in the laparoscopy group with carbon dioxide pneumoperitoneum compared with the gasless laparoscopy and laparotomy groups (P < 0.01). Port-site metastases were significantly decreased in the carbon dioxide pneumoperitoneum group compared with the gasless laparoscopy group (P = 0.05). CONCLUSION: A full laparotomy incision promotes greater tumour growth than does carbon dioxide pneumoperitoneum. Surgical manipulation stimulates local tumour spread more than the establishment of a carbon dioxide pneumoperitoneum.

The problems encountered in casting titanium in dentistry have not been completely resolved. The Procera system forms crowns by means of a combination of spark-erosion and milling. The accuracy of fit was examined before and after ceramic veneering both in vitro and in vivo. Before veneering, on conical surfaces space widths were approximately 53 microns in vitro and 69 microns in vivo. At shoulders and occlusal surfaces, spaces of about 430 microns were measured in vitro and of about 500 microns were measured in vivo. After ceramic veneering, slight increases in space widths could be observed. The metal-ceramic compound was tested by the 3-point bending test (DIN) and the bending test (ISO). The DIN test was satisfactory, but not the ISO test. It is concluded that titanium crowns processed by the Procera System are suitable for clinical usage, if the space widths at shoulders and the occlusal surface and the special requirements of tooth preparation are taken into account.

This article explores the future imaginaries used in Facebook’s corporate communications. It aims to reconstruct how these “Facebook Futures” are constructed over time and across different contexts by Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Focus of the investigation is a discourse analysis of Zuckerberg’s public language from 2004 to 2017. By employing qualitative and interpretive modes of enquiry, this study attempts to show (1) how Facebook’s future imaginaries change over time, (2) how Facebook’s central imaginaries “global connectivity” and “global community” are substantiated, and (3) how these imaginaries are supported by norms and values inherent in Silicon Valley culture. Overall, Facebook is analyzed as an example of a prophetic corporation, not only providing an explicitly corporate vision of a better world, but also blending it with the digital technologies and practices involved in making this vision reality.

Fungal biomaterials are becoming increasingly popular in the fields of architecture and design, with a significant bloom of projects having taken place during the last 10 years. Using mycelium as a stabilizing compound for fibers from agricultural waste, new building elements can be manufactured according to the circular economy model and be used for architectural construction to transform the building industry towards an increased environmental and economic sustainability. Simultaneously, research on those materials and especially fungal biocomposites is producing knowledge that allows for the materials themselves to inspire and transform the architectural design. Novel research on those materials is not only allowing for their use as construction materials, but it inspires and affects the architectural design process through the discovery and variation of the materials' properties. Today, many interdisciplinary teams are working on this emerging field to integrate fungal biocomposites in the construction industry and to merge science, art, and architecture responsibly.This study provides an overview of the progress that has been made in this field during the last 10 years, focusing on six works that are presented in more detail. Those six works are spaces at an architectural scale which showcase unique elements and innovative aspects for the use of fungal biomaterials in architecture. Each work has followed different design strategies, different fabrication methods, or different post-processing methods. All of them together have produced significant technical knowledge as well as a cultural impact for the field of architecture but also for the field of fungal biotechnology.

OBJECTIVE: To study the influence of laparotomy and laparoscopy on local and systemic inflammation in a rat model of peritonitis. DESIGN: Bacteremia, peripheral leukocyte subpopulations, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) plasma levels, and ex vivo secretion of peripheral blood mononuclear cells were investigated after laparotomy and laparoscopy in a prospective randomized experimental study. SETTING: Surgical department of a university hospital. ANIMALS: 60 male inbred Wistar rats. INTERVENTIONS: Standardized fecal inoculum was injected intraperitoneally and rats underwent laparotomy (n=20), laparoscopy (n=20), or no further manipulation (control group, n=20). Blood samples were obtained during the perioperative course to determine bacteremia, leukocytic subpopulations, TNF-alpha plasma levels, and ex vivo secretion. The number of intraperitoneal abscesses was determined in each animal after 1 week. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: The hypothesis of the experiment was that laparoscopy with carbon dioxide leads to an increase of local and systemic inflammation in comparison with the laparotomy and control groups. RESULTS: One hour after intervention, bacteremia was significantly higher in the laparotomy and laparoscopy groups compared with the control group (P=.01). Fecal inoculum caused significant monocytopenia and lymphocytopenia in all groups within 1 hour after intervention (P<.05), with complete recovery on day 2 only in the laparoscopy and control groups. Laparotomy caused a significant increase in TNF-alpha plasma levels and decrease of ex vivo production of TNF-alpha compared with the other 2 groups (P<.05). CONCLUSIONS: Laparotomy and laparoscopy increased the incidence of bacteremia and systemic inflammation in this peritonitis model. The inflammatory response was significantly higher in the laparotomy group compared with the laparoscopy group.

No societal development within the past 50 years or so has been more fierce or far-reaching than that related to information and telecommunication technology. The digital technology on which it is based has penetrated every societal process and every societal activity system. It not only laid the foundations of the World Wide Web, including its derivations, but built a new global network of communication systems.

Though critical and speculative design have been increasingly relevant in discussing the social and cultural role of design, there has been a distinct lack of both theory and praxis aimed at questioning gender oppression. Departing from an intersectional feminist analysis of the influences and origins of speculative and critical design, this essay questions the underlying privilege that has been hindering the discussion on gender within the discipline and its role in propagating oppression; it then goes on to propose the concept of a “feminist speculative design” as an approach aimed at questioning the complex relationships between gender, technology and social and cultural oppression.

Overall survival rates for pediatric patients with high-risk or relapsed rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) have not improved significantly since the 1980s. Recent studies have identified a number of targetable vulnerabilities in RMS, but these discoveries have infrequently translated into clinical trials. We propose streamlining the process by which agents are selected for clinical evaluation in RMS. We believe that strong consideration should be given to the development of combination therapies that add biologically targeted agents to conventional cytotoxic drugs. One example of this type of combination is the addition of the WEE1 inhibitor AZD1775 to the conventional cytotoxic chemotherapeutics, vincristine and irinotecan.

BACKGROUND: The influence of raised intraperitoneal pressure during laparoscopy on tumour growth and port site metastasis is still unknown. METHODS: Tumour growth of colonic adenocarcinoma DHD/K12/TRb was measured after laparoscopy with carbon dioxide at different pressures (0, 5, 10 and 15 mmHg) in a rat model. Cell kinetics were determined after incubation with carbon dioxide (0, 5, 10 and 15 mmHg) in vitro (n=60). Additionally, tumour growth was measured subcutaneously and intraperitoneally 4 weeks after laparoscopy at different intraperitoneal pressures (5, 10 and 15 mmHg) (n=100). RESULTS: In vitro tumour growth decreased significantly after incubation with carbon dioxide at 10 and 15 mmHg compared with a pressure of 0 or 5 mmHg. In vivo, mean(s.d.) intraperitoneal tumour weight was significantly increased after laparoscopy at 5 mmHg (919(1085) mg) and at 10 mmHg (1274(1523) mg) (P< 0.05), but decreased again after laparoscopy with an intraperitoneal pressure of 15 mmHg (731(929) mg) compared with the control group (365(353) mg) (P=0.3). Mean(s.d.) subcutaneous tumour growth was promoted after laparoscopy at 5 mmHg (172(234) mg), at 10 mmHg (190(253) mg) and at 15 mmHg (178(194) mg) compared with controls (48(33) mg) (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: In vitro, raised intraperitoneal pressure leads to suppression of tumour growth. In vivo, intraperitoneal tumour growth is suppressed only by higher pressure (15 mmHg). Subcutaneous tumour growth is stimulated by carbon dioxide independently of the intraperitoneal pressure.

INTRODUCTION: In older adults, dementia and depression are associated with individual distress and high societal costs. Music interventions such as group music therapy (GMT) and recreational choir singing (RCS) have shown promising effects, but their comparative effectiveness across clinical subgroups is unknown. This trial aims to determine effectiveness of GMT, RCS and their combination for care home residents and to examine heterogeneity of treatment effects across subgroups. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This large, pragmatic, multinational cluster-randomised controlled trial with a 2×2 factorial design will compare the effects of GMT, RCS, both or neither, for care home residents aged 65 years or older with dementia and depressive symptoms. We will randomise 100 care home units with ≥1000 residents in total across eight countries. Each intervention will be offered for 6 months (3 months 2 times/week followed by 3 months 1 time/week), with extension allowed if locally available. The primary outcome will be the change in the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale score at 6 months. Secondary outcomes will include depressive symptoms, cognitive functioning, neuropsychiatric symptoms, psychotropic drug use, caregiver burden, quality of life, mortality and costs over at least 12 months. The study has 90% power to detect main effects and is also powered to determine interaction effects with gender, severity and socioeconomic status. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval has been obtained for one country and will be obtained for all countries. Results will be presented at national and international conferences and published in scientific journals. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBERS: NCT03496675; Pre-results, ACTRN12618000156280.