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Locomotor recovery after incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI) is influenced by spinal and supraspinal networks. Conventional clinical gait analysis fails to differentiate between these components. There is evidence that corticospinal control is enhanced during targeted walking, where each foot must be continuously placed on visual targets in randomized order. This study investigates the potential of targeted walking in the functional assessment of corticospinal integrity. Twenty-one controls and 16 individuals with chronic iSCI performed normal and targeted walking on a treadmill while electromyograms (EMGs) and kinematics were recorded. Precision (% of accurate foot placements) in targeted walking was significantly lower in individuals with iSCI (82.9 ± 14.7%, controls: 94.9 ± 4.0%). Although the overall kinematic pattern was comparable between walking conditions, controls showed significantly higher semitendinosus (ST) activity before heel-strike during targeted walking. This was accompanied by a shift of relative EMG intensity from 90-120 Hz to lower frequencies of 20-60 Hz, previously associated with corticospinal control of muscle activity. Targeted walking in individuals with iSCI evoked smaller EMG changes, suggesting that the switch to more corticospinal control is impaired. Accordingly, mildly impaired iSCI individuals revealed higher adaptations to the targeted walking task than more-impaired individuals. Recording of EMGs during targeted walking holds potential as a research tool to reveal further insights into the neuromuscular control of locomotion. It also complements findings of pre-clinical studies and is a promising novel surrogate marker of integrity of corticospinal control in individuals with iSCI and other neurological impairments. Future studies should investigate its potential for diagnosis or tracking recovery during rehabilitation.

Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 (DM1) is the most frequent hereditary, adult-onset muscular dystrophy. Nevertheless, DM1-associated cognitive-motor impairments have not been fully characterized so far. This study aimed at profiling cognitive and locomotor dysfunctions in these patients. In addition, cognitive-motor interactions were assessed using a dual-task paradigm. Comprehensive cognitive-motor impairment profiles were generated for 19 patients with DM1 and 19 healthy subjects by thorough clinical, biomechanical and neuropsychological examinations. Detailed gait analysis was performed using a 3D motion capture system, whereas cognitive function was assessed using a standardized neuropsychological test battery. Patients with DM1 showed impaired functional mobility, gait velocity and endurance. DM1-related gait pathology was mainly characterized by enhanced dynamic instability, gait variability, and restricted ankle dorsiflexion. Patients' cognitive impairments particularly concerned attentional functions. Dual-task conditions induced gait deviations that slightly differed between patients and controls. DM1-associated cognitive impairments correlated with reduced functional mobility and impaired ankle dorsiflexion. Patients with DM1 revealed significant impairments of walking function, balance and cognitive performance. Differential cognitive-motor interference and significant interactions between cognitive and motor dysfunctions point towards a prominent role of cognition in gait performance of patients with DM1.

BACKGROUND Fampridine leads to significant walking improvements in many persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). However, a relevant proportion of PwMS does not respond to fampridine and predictors of initial drug responsiveness are unknown. METHODS Drug response to prolonged-release (PR)-fampridine was assessed in 55 PwMS using the timed 25-foot walk (T25FW), the 6-minute walk test (6MWT) and the 12-item multiple sclerosis walking scale (MSWS-12) as outcome parameters. Patients were treated with PR-fampridine and placebo each for 6 weeks in a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with cross-over design (NCT01576354). Possible predictors of drug responsiveness were investigated by multiple correlation analysis and binary logistic regression models. An additional longitudinal analysis followed drug responses of 32 patients treated with PR-fampridine over 3 years to identify potential predictors of long-term drug responsiveness. RESULTS Severity of walking disability was positively correlated with enhanced responses to PR-fampridine. The strongest single predictor of drug responsiveness was poor 6MWT performance at baseline, which was positively correlated with enhanced drug response in the 6MWT (R=-0.541; P

Seit einigen Jahren nimmt das Forschende Lernen als hochschuldidaktisches Prinzip in der Diskussion um die Professionalisierung von angehenden Lehrkräften einen zentralen Stellenwert ein. Der Beitrag beschäftigt sich mit der spezifischen Ausgestaltung Forschenden Lernens im Fachgebiet Deutsch als Zweitsprache am Universitätsstandort Bielefeld. Fokussiert werden insbesondere die fachspezifischen Voraussetzungen in Abgrenzung zu anderen an der Lehramtsausbildung beteiligten Fächern, die theoretische Verortung im Rahmen des soziokulturellen Paradigmas (u.a. Vygotskij, 2002/1934) sowie die theoretische Fundierung im pragmatistischen Forschungsbegriff nach Dewey (u.a. Dewey, 1991/1938). Des Weiteren werden didaktische Umsetzungen Forschenden Lernens im Rahmen des Moduls Deutsch als Zweitsprache in ihren Möglichkeiten und Grenzen diskutiert., PraxisForschungLehrer*innenBildung. Zeitschrift für Schul- und Professionsentwicklung., Bd. 1 Nr. 2 (2019): Forschendes Lernen in Bielefeld – fachdidaktische Profile

Die integrierte Vermittlung von sprachlichen und fachlichen Inhalten im Unterricht wird mittlerweile sowohl in der universitären Lehrer_innenbildung als auch in der Schule verstärkt thematisiert. Ein zentrales Thema dabei ist insbesondere auch die sprachsensible Gestaltung von Aufgabenstellungen. Basierend auf dem Konkretisierungsraster von Tajmel und Hägi-Mead (Tajmel, 2011; Tajmel & Hägi-Mead, 2017) wurde ein Instrument für den Geschichtsunterricht entwickelt, mit dem Aufgabenstellungen sowohl sprachsensibel aufbereitet als auch die spezifischen fachlichen Anforderungen dezidiert herausgearbeitet werden können. Das Instrument, welches im vorliegenden Beitrag vorgestellt wird, eignet sich für den Einsatz in der sprachsensiblen Unterrichtsvorberei-tung bzw. für die Aus- und Weiterbildung von (angehenden) Lehrkräften., Herausforderung Lehrer*innenbildung - Zeitschrift zur Konzeption, Gestaltung und Diskussion, Bd. 2 Nr. 1 (2019): Herausforderung Lehrer_innenbildung - Ausgabe 2

In this paper we estimate the effect of monetary policy on the US labor market using disaggregated data based on large scale micro surveys. By employing a Bayesian factor-augmented vector autoregression framework, we investigate the impact of an unanticipated interest rate change on the unemployment rate in 32 occupation groups. Our results on the aggregate level are in line with the literature and point towards a strong influence of monetary policy on economic activity, overall unemployment and investment. A closer look on the disaggregated level reveals heterogeneous impacts across occupation groups. This heterogeneity can partially be explained by the amount of routine tasks and the degree of offshorability of an particular occupation group. These results suggest that workers who are highly vulnerable to medium-term and long-term developments such as automatization and offshoring are also hit disproportionately hard by short-term economic fluctuations., Series: Department of Economics Working Paper Series

Magnetic sphincter-augmentation (MSA) has been proven effective in the treatment of GERD. No consensus exists on whether crural closure should be performed. Our aim was to assess the impact of cruroplasty on reflux-control and quality of life. MSA-Patients treated between 03/2012-03/2017 were classified into those without hiatal hernia (“NHH”), those post-MSA (NHR) and those post-MSA/hiatal repair (HR). GERD-symptoms, PPI-intake, GERD-Health-related-Quality-of-Life (GERD-HRQL) and Alimentary Satisfaction were assessed. Sixty-eight patients underwent MSA, 26 patients had additional crural closure. PH-monitoring was negative in 80% of HR, 73% of NHR and 89% of NHH-patients. GERD-HRQL-total scores decreased significantly in all groups (p

Gait dysfunction is a common and relevant symptom in multiple sclerosis (MS). This study aimed to profile gait pathology in gait-impaired patients with MS using comprehensive 3D gait analysis and clinical walking tests. Thirty-seven patients with MS walked on the treadmill at their individual, sustainable speed while 20 healthy control subjects walked at all the different patient’s paces, allowing for comparisons independent of walking velocity. Kinematic analysis revealed pronounced restrictions in knee and ankle joint excursion, increased gait variability and asymmetry along with impaired dynamic stability in patients. The most discriminative single gait parameter, differentiating patients from controls with an accuracy of 83.3% (χ2 test; p = 0.0001), was reduced knee range of motion. Based on hierarchical cluster and principal component analysis, three principal pathological gait patterns were identified: a spastic-paretic, an ataxia-like, and an unstable gait. Follow-up assessments after 1 year indicated deterioration of walking function, particularly in patients with spastic-paretic gait patterns. Our findings suggest that impaired knee/ankle control is common in patients with MS. Personalised gait profiles and clustering algorithms may be promising tools for stratifying patients and to inform patient-tailored exercise programs. Responsive, objective outcome measures are important for monitoring disease progression and treatment effects in MS trials.

The research work was funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) of the Federal Republic of Germany within the CLIENT II funding programme International Partnerships for Sustainable Innovations under the project “ÖkoFlussPlan” (Project ID 01LZ1802A-F). open access article The northern part of the globe is dominated by industrialisation and is well-developed. For many years, the southern part of the world (South Asia, Africa etc.) has been a target of research concentrating on access to energy (mainly electricity) in rural regions. However, the Central Asian region has not been a focus of energy research compared to South East Asia and Africa. Despite plentiful domestically available energy resources, the energy supply in Central Asia is very unevenly distributed between urban and rural areas. Almost half of the total population of Central Asia lives in rural areas and there is a lack of access to modern energy services to meet primary needs. To analyse the energy situation (i.e., electricity, heating, hot water consumption, cooking, etc.) in rural Central Asia, this paper reviews residential energy consumption trends in rural Central Asian regions as compared to urban areas. Furthermore, the paper illustrates the potential of renewable energies in Central Asia. To perform the study, a qualitative comparative analysis was conducted based on a literature review, data, and statistical information. In summary, the presented article discusses the rural energy situation analytically and provides in-depth insights of Central Asian energy infrastructure.

This review provides an overview of the precursor chemistry that has been developed around the phase-change material germanium-antimony-telluride, Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST). Thin films of GST can be deposited by employing either chemical vapor deposition (CVD) or atomic layer deposition (ALD) techniques. In both cases, the success of the layer deposition crucially depends on the proper choice of suitable molecular precursors. Previously reported processes mainly relied on simple alkoxides, alkyls, amides and halides of germanium, antimony, and tellurium. More sophisticated precursor design provided a number of promising new aziridinides and guanidinates.

Two hallmarks of chronic multiple sclerosis lesions are the absence of significant spontaneous remyelination and primary as well as secondary neurodegeneration. Both characteristics may be influenced by the presence of inhibitory factors preventing myelin and neuronal repair. We investigated the potential of antibodies against Nogo-A, a well-known inhibitory protein for neuronal growth and plasticity, to enhance neuronal regeneration and remyelination in two animal models of multiple sclerosis. We induced a targeted experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) lesion in the dorsal funiculus of the cervical spinal cord of adult rats resulting in a large drop of skilled forelimb motor functions. We subsequently observed improved recovery of forelimb function after anti-Nogo-A treatment. Anterograde tracing of the corticospinal tract revealed enhanced axonal sprouting and arborisation within the spinal cord gray matter preferentially targeting pre-motor and motor spinal cord laminae on lesion level and above in the anti-Nogo-A-treated animals. An important additional effect of Nogo-A-neutralization was enhanced remyelination observed after lysolecithin-induced demyelination of spinal tracts. Whereas remyelinated fiber numbers in the lesion site were increased several fold, no effect of Nogo-A-inhibition was observed on oligodendrocyte precursor proliferation, migration, or differentiation. Enhancing remyelination and promoting axonal regeneration and plasticity represent important unmet medical needs in multiple sclerosis. Anti-Nogo-A antibodies hold promise as a potential new therapy for multiple sclerosis, in particular during the chronic phase of the disease when neurodegeneration and remyelination failure determine disability evolution.

In healthy subjects, changes in arm swing symmetry while walking are observed when a cognitive dual task is added, with a tendency toward left-dominant arm swing as cognitive load increases. We applied a modified Stroop word/color naming paradigm to investigate this effect in spinal cord injured (SCI) patients. Six patients with cervical SCI (cSCI), 6 with thoracic injuries (tSCI; all 12 patients American Spinal Injury Association [ASIA] Injury Score [AIS]D), and 12 healthy, matched controls underwent three-dimensional 3D gait analysis while walking normally at a comfortable speed (NW) and when performing an additional congruent (CS) and incongruent (IS) Stroop task. An arm swing symmetry index (ASI)-in which positive values indicate proportionally more movement on the left and vice versa-was calculated. Even in the baseline NW condition, all three subject groups showed larger arm movements on the left. In controls, ASI increased (NW, 13.7 ± 6.3; CS, 16.6 ± 6.4; IS, 19.6 ± 7.8) as the task became more demanding. A larger shift in tSCI patients (NW, 15.8 ± 6.0; CS, 23.4 ± 3.8; IS, 30.7 ± 4.4) was driven by a significant reduction in right wrist trajectory (p = 0.014), whereas cSCI patients showed a small reduction in mean ASI with high variability (NW, 14.2 ± 10.7; CS, 9.3 ± 13.5; IS, 6.0 ± 12.9). The effect of the IS task on ASI compared to baseline (NW) was significantly different between tSCI (+12.5 ± 6.3) and cSCI (-8.2 ± 6.0) patients (p = 0.011). Disruption of the long propriospinal connections coordinating arm and leg movements during walking may explain the heightened sensitivity to manipulation of cognitive load in tSCI, whereas the more robust automaticity in cSCI may be attributed to impaired supraspinal inputs in the context of preserved intraspinal pathways.

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link. Within the present study a novel concept for the demand-oriented power generation of a solid-biomass fueled combined heat and power (CHP) plant is investigated. The integration of a steam storage system into the plants process enables a decoupling of the steam (boiler) and the power generation (steam turbine). By buffering the steam, the power output of the turbine can be adjusted without changing the rated thermal capacity of the plant. Various available storage systems are selected and comparatively evaluated applying the adapted analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The technology assessment revealed that the combination of a steam accumulator and solid concrete storage represents the best suiting option. An initial model based simulation study is performed to identify the fundamental behaviour of this system, integrated in a biomass CHP plant. The operation principle is has proved their technical feasibility and seems to be applicable at a commercial scale. According to the modelling results flexible short term power generation in a time range of up to fifteen minutes is applicable. A load-range of almost the plants rated capacity can be achieved.

Indigenous forests cover 24% of New Zealand and provide valuable ecosystem services. However, a national map of forest types, that is, physiognomic types, which would benefit conservation management, does not currently exist at an appropriate level of detail. While traditional forest classification approaches from remote sensing data are based on spectral information alone, the joint use of space-based optical imagery and structural information from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and canopy metrics from air-borne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) facilitates more detailed and accurate classifications of forest structure. We present a support vector machine (SVM) classification using data from ESA’s Sentinel-1 and 2 missions, ALOS PALSAR, and airborne LiDAR to produce a regional map of physiognomic types of indigenous forest in New Zealand. A five-fold cross-validation of ground data showed that the highest classification accuracy of 80.9% is achieved for bands 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 11, and 12 from Sentinel-2, the ratio of bands VH and VV from Sentinel-1, HH from PALSAR, and mean canopy height and 97th percentile canopy height from LiDAR. The classification based on the optical bands alone was 73.1% accurate and the addition of structural metrics from SAR and LiDAR increased accuracy by 7.8%. The classification accuracy is sufficient for many management applications for indigenous forest in New Zealand, including biodiversity management, carbon inventory, pest control, ungulate management, and disease management. National application of the method will be possible in several years, once national LiDAR coverage is achieved, and a national canopy height model is available.

This paper investigates the role of credit market sentiments and investor beliefs on credit cycle dynamics and their propagation to business cycle fluctuations. Using US data from 1968 to 2019, we show that credit market sentiments are indeed able to detect asymmetries in a small-scale macroeconomic model. By exploiting recent developments in behavioral finance on expectation formation in financial markets, we are able to identify an unexpected credit market news shock exhibiting different impacts in an optimistic and pessimistic credit market environment. While an unexpected movement in the optimistic regime leads to a rather low to muted impact on output and credit, we find a significant and persistent negative impact on those variables in the pessimistic regime. Therefore, this article departs from the current literature on the role of financial frictions for explaining business cycle behavior in macroeconomics and argues in line with recent theoretical contributions on the relevance of expectation formation and beliefs as source of cyclicity and instability in financial markets., Series: Department of Economics Working Paper Series

Reproducible science is greatly aided by open publishing of scientific computer code. There are also many institutional benefits for encouraging the publication of scientific code, but there are also institutional considerations around intellectual property and risk. We discuss questions around scientific code publishing from the perspective of a research organisation asking: who will be involved, how should code be licensed, where should code be published, how to get credit, what standards, and what costs? In reviewing advice and evidence relevant to these questions we propose a research institution framework for publishing open scientific code to enable reproducible science.