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OBJECTIVE Postprocedural infection is a consequential complication of neurosurgical intervention. Periprocedural antimicrobial prophylaxis is routinely administered to prevent infection, and in some cases, continued for extended periods while surgical drains remain in place. However, there is little evidence that extended antimicrobial administration is necessary to reduce postprocedural infection, and extended antimicrobials can be associated with harm, such as Clostridioides difficile infection. The authors sought to evaluate whether shortening the duration of postprocedural antimicrobial prophylaxis would decrease the incidence of C. difficile infection without increasing the incidence of postprocedural infection. METHODS In this retrospective study, two general neurosurgical cohorts were examined. In one cohort, postoperative antimicrobial prophylaxis was limited to 24 hours; in the other, some patients received extended postoperative antimicrobial prophylaxis while surgical drains or external ventricular drains (EVDs) remained in place. Rates of infection with C. difficile as well as postprocedural infection after surgery and EVD placement were compared. RESULTS Seven thousand two hundred four patients undergoing 8586 surgical procedures and 413 EVD placements were reviewed. The incidence of C. difficile infection decreased significantly from 0.5% per procedural encounter to 0.07% with the discontinuation of extended postprocedural antibiotics within 90 days of a procedure. Rates of postprocedural infection and EVD infection did not significantly change. Results were similar in subgroups of patients with closed suction drains as well as cranial and spine subgroups. CONCLUSIONS Discontinuation of extended antimicrobial prophylaxis was associated with a significant decrease in the incidence of C. difficile infection without a concomitant change in postprocedural infections or EVD-associated infection. This study provides evidence in support of specialtfy-wide discontinuation of extended postoperative antimicrobial prophylaxis, even in the presence of closed suction drains.

Prolonged coronavirus disease 2019 may generate new viral variants. We report an immunocompromised patient treated with monoclonal antibodies who experienced rebound of viral RNA and emergence of an antibody-resistant (>1000-fold) variant containing 5 mutations in the spike gene. The mutant virus was isolated from respiratory secretions, suggesting the potential for secondary transmission.

International audience; It has been argued that the mechanisms structuring ecological communities may be more generalizable when based on traits than on species identities. If so, patterns in the assembly of community-level traits along environmental gradients should be similar in different places in the world. Alternatively, geographical change in the species pool and regional variation in climate might result in site-specific relationships between community traits and local environments. These competing hypotheses are particularly untested for animal communities. Here we test the geographical constancy of trait-based assembly patterns using a widespread multi-trophic community: aquatic macroinvertebrates within bromeliads. We used data on 615 invertebrate taxa from 1,656 bromeliads in 26 field sites from Mexico to Argentina. We summarized invertebrate traits with four orthogonal axes, and used these trait axes to examine trait convergence and divergence assembly patterns along three environmental gradients: detrital biomass and water volume in bromeliads, and canopy cover over bromeliads. We found no overall signal of trait-based assembly patterns along any of the environmental gradients. However, individual sites did show trait convergence along detrital and water gradients, and we built predictive models to explore these site differences. Sites that showed trait convergence along detrital gradients were all north of the Northern Andes. This geographical pattern may be related to phylogeographical differences in bromeliad morphology. Bromeliads with low detritus were dominated by detritivorous collectors and filter feeders, where those with high detritus had more sclerotized and predatory invertebrates. Sites that showed the strongest trait convergence along gradients in bromeliad water were in regions with seasonal precipitation. In such sites, bromeliads with low water were dominated by soft-bodied, benthic invertebrates with simple life cycles. In less seasonal sites, traits associated with short-term desiccation resistance, such as hard exoskeletons, were more important. In summary, we show that there are strong geographical effects on the trait-based assembly patterns of this invertebrate community, driven by the biogeography of their foundational plant species as well as by regional climate. We suggest that inclusion of biogeography and climate in trait-based community ecology could help make it a truly general theory.

We administered severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 viral-specific T cells (VSTs) under emergency investigational new drug applications to 6 immunocompromised patients with persistent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and characterized clinical and virologic responses. Three patients had partial responses after failing other therapies but then died. Two patients completely recovered, but the role of VSTs in recovery was unclear due to concomitant use of other antivirals. One patient had not responded to 2 courses of remdesivir and experienced sustained recovery after VST administration. The use of VSTs in immunocompromised patients with persistent COVID-19 requires further study.

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a frequent symptomatic feature of pediatric Chiari I, reported in at least 24% of patients presenting to neurosurgeons. Here the epidemiology, natural history, pathophysiology, and diagnosis of SDB in Chiari I is reviewed. Diagnosis requires polysomnography, which should be pursued in young or symptomatic patients or those with prominent imaging findings. Review of case series of surgical decompression suggest that surgical decompression can improve SDB in selected patients.

Background The reduction of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLc) levels is Key for improving the prognosis of patiens with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Purpose To estimate the clinical characteristics and treatments of patients with a first episode of ACS in real world in a large database in Spain. Methods An observational and retrospective study was carried out based on electronic medical records of primary care centers and hospitals including 969.587 spanish patients aged >18 years.From these, we selected the ones with a first episode of ACS between 01/07/2016 and 30/06/2018, with a follow-up period of 18 months. Patients were divided according to the intensity of their lipid-lowering treatments: low, moderate, high (high intensity statin/moderate plus ezetimibe), very high (high intensity statin plus ezetimibe) and extreme (IPCSK added) and those on treatment with lipid-lowering drugs other than statins. The incidence of new cardiovascular events, the reduction of LDLc levels, the persistence rates at 9 and 18 months, and the mortality rates were estimated. The concomitant treatments prescribed at the start of the study were registered. Results A first episode of ACS was detected in 7,150 patients (mean age: 70 years [SD: 9.6]; males: 62.2%). The intensity of their lipid-lowering treatments: low [n=172 (2.4%)], moderate [n=370 (5.2%)], high [n=3,751 (52.5%)], very high [n=2,457 (34.4%)], extreme [n=67 (0.9%)])and non-statins lipid-lowering treatments (n=333 [4.7%]). Patients with lipid-lowering treatments other than statins had the highest incidence rate of cardiovascular events (33.0%), followed by those on treatment with low intensity treatments (32.0%): acute myocardial infarction and angina were the most frequent cardiovascular events. The deepest reductions of LDLc levels at 18 months were reported in patients with extreme intensity and very-high intensity treatments (−60.5 mg/dL [42.9%] and −31.6 mg/dL [24.3%], respectively). The persistence rates at 9 and 18 months were higher in patients with extreme intensity and very high intensity lipid-lowering treatments. The highest mortality rate was observed in patients with lipid-lowering treatments other than statins (12.6%), with the median time to death being 221 days (P25–P75: 116–327). The lowest mortality rate was registered in patients with extreme intensity lipid-lowering treatments, who showed a median time to death of 405 days (P25–P75: 396–0).Overall, referral to Cardiac Rehabilitation in ACS is less than 20% in Spain. Conclusion Patients with ACS who received lipid-lowering treatments other than statins and low intensity treatments had the highest incidence of cardiovascular events and mortality rates.The reduction of LDLc levels increased with the intensity of the lipid-lowering treatments, which may lead to a reduced risk of cardiovascular events and death. More referral to Cardiac Rehabilitation could also improve these results Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: Private company. Main funding source(s): SANOFI

For the past few decades, educators and evangelists have been trying to bring the art and craft of programming to broader communities. Publishers have offered a proliferation of titles, such as Exp...

International audience; While future climate scenarios predict declines in precipitations in many regions of the world, little is known of the mechanisms underlying community resilience to prolonged dry seasons, especially in ‘naïve’ Neotropical rainforests. Predictions of community resilience to intensifying drought are complicated by the fact that the underlying mechanisms are mediated by species' tolerance and resistance traits, as well as rescue through dispersal from source patches.We examined the contribution of in situ tolerance‐resistance and immigration to community resilience, following drought events that ranged from the ambient norm to IPCC scenarios and extreme events. We used rainshelters above rainwater‐filled bromeliads of French Guiana to emulate a gradient of drought intensity (from 1 to 3.6 times the current number of consecutive days without rainfall), and we analysed the post‐drought dynamics of the taxonomic and functional community structure of aquatic invertebrates to these treatments when immigration is excluded (by netting bromeliads) or permitted (no nets). Drought intensity negatively affected invertebrate community resistance, but had a positive influence on community recovery during the post‐drought phase. After droughts of 1 to 1.4 times the current intensities, the overall invertebrate abundance recovered within invertebrate life cycle durations (up to 2 months). Shifts in taxonomic composition were more important after longer droughts, but overall, community composition showed recovery towards baseline states. The non‐random patterns of changes in functional community structure indicated that deterministic processes like environmental filtering of traits drive community re‐assembly patterns after a drought event. Community resilience mostly relied on in situ tolerance‐resistance traits. A rescue effect of immigration after a drought event was weak and mostly apparent under extreme droughts.Under climate change scenarios of drought intensification in Neotropical regions, community and ecosystem resilience could primarily depend on the persistence of suitable habitats and on the resistance traits of species, while metacommunity dynamics could make a minor contribution to ecosystem recovery. Climate change adaptation should thus aim at identifying and preserving local conditions that foster in situ resistance and the buffering effects of habitat features.

Made available in DSpace on 2022-04-28T19:29:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2021-03-01 Functional traits determine an organism's performance in a given environment and as such determine which organisms will be found where. Species respond to local conditions, but also to larger scale gradients, such as climate. Trait ecology links these responses of species to community composition and species distributions. Yet, we often do not know which environmental gradients are most important in determining community trait composition at either local or biogeographical scales, or their interaction. Here we quantify the relative contribution of local and climatic conditions to the structure and composition of functional traits found within bromeliad invertebrate communities. We conclude that climate explains more variation in invertebrate trait composition within bromeliads than does local conditions. Importantly, climate mediated the response of traits to local conditions; for example, invertebrates with benthic life-history traits increased with bromeliad water volume only under certain precipitation regimes. Our ability to detect this and other patterns hinged on the compilation of multiple fine-grained datasets, allowing us to contrast the effect of climate versus local conditions. We suggest that, in addition to sampling communities at local scales, we need to aggregate studies that span large ranges in climate variation in order to fully understand trait filtering at local, regional and global scales. Dept of Zoology and Biodiversity Research Centre Univ. of British Columbia Dept of Biology Simon Fraser Univ. Dept of Forest and Conservation Sciences Univ. of British Columbia Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias Inst. de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario Univ. Nacional de Rosario Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement Univ. de Toulouse CNRS Univ. Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier Centre for the Synthesis and Analysis of Biodiversity (CESAB-FRB) Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Univ. of Toronto Dept of Ecology and Graduate Program in Ecology Univ. Federal do Rio Grande do Sul Laboratory of Multitrophic Interactions and Biodiversity Dept of Animal Biology Inst. of Biology Univ. of Campinas Inst. of Biological Sciences Univ. Federal do Pará Laboratoire Microorganismes Génome et Environnement Univ. Clermont Auvergne AMAP Univ. Montpellier CIRAD CNRS INRA IRD ECOFOG Campus Agronomique Depto de Ciencias Biológicas Univ. de los Andes Depto de Ciencias Biológicas Univ. de Caldas School of Biological and Chemical Sciences Queen Mary Univ. of London Dept of Botany Biosciences Inst. Univ. of São Paulo Depto de Ecologia Inst. de Biologia Univ. Federal do Rio de Janeiro Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia Univ. Federal do Rio de Janeiro Luquillo LTER Inst. for Tropical Ecosystem Studies Univ. of Puerto Rico UMR ESE Ecology and Ecosystem Health INRA Agrocampus Oues Dept of Zoology and Botany Univ. of São Paulo State Aquatic and Terrestrial Ecology Royal Belgian Inst. of Natural Sciences

Transition metal oxides (TMOs) and post-TMOs (PTMOs), when doped with Carbon, show non-volatile current-voltage (I-V) characteristics, which are both universal and repeatable. We have shown spectroscopic evidence of the introduction of carbon-based impurity states inside the existing larger bandgap effectively creating a smaller bandgap which we suggest could enable Mott-like correlation effect. Our findings indicate new insights for yet to be understood unipolar and nonpolar resistive switching in the TMOs and PTMOs. We have shown that device switching is not thermal-energy dependent and have developed an electronic-dominated switching model that allows for the extreme temperature operation (from 1.5 K to 423 K) and state retention up to 673 K for a 1-hour bake. Importantly, we have optimized the technology in an industrial process and demonstrated integrated 1-transistor/1-resistor (1T1R) arrays up to 1 kbit with 47 nm devices on 300 mm wafers for advanced node CMOS-compatible correlated electron RAM (CeRAM). These devices are shown to operate with 2 ns write pulses and retain the memory states up to 200 C for 24 hours. The collection of attributes shown, including scalability to state-of-the-art dimensions, non-volatile operation to extreme low and high temperatures, fast write, and reduced stochasticity as compared to filamentary memories such as ReRAMs show the potential for a highly capable two-terminal back-end-of-line non-volatile memory., 28 pages, 17 figures, accepted in APL Materials

This paper explored the chemical, mechanical, and morphological characteristics ofpolycaprolactone and starch composite membranes by utilizing SEM, FTIR, W-CA, UTM, and biodegradability tests. Native Philippine arrowroot (Marantaarundinacea L.) starch was extracted for the study. Varying polymer concentrations along with 85% solvent NMP, the films were plasticized with PEG 4000 and prepared through solvent casting and NIPS. The films were found to be hydrophilic. Increased starch contentimproved porousnessand biodegradation rate, with 4.12%/day in 5 days for the highest starch-containing film, with the highest weight loss of 38.02% in 15 days for 20% starch-containing films. However, degradation decreased as time went by. Increasing amounts of starch also increased elongation at break, albeit reducing Young’s modulus and tensile strength of the films. Coupled with notable morphological and chemical interaction, arrowroot starch and PCL composite films can indeed be successfully fabricated, proving the potential of Marantaarundinacea L. in the field of bioplastic research.

International audience; Animal community responses to extreme climate events can be predicted from the functional traits represented within communities. However, it is unclear whether geographic variation in the response of functional community structure to climate change is primarily driven by physiological matching to local conditions (local adaptation hypothesis) or by differences between species pools in functional redundancy (insurance hypothesis). We conducted a coordinated experiment to understand how aquatic invertebrate traits mediate the responses of multitrophic communities to changes in the quantity and evenness of rainfall in 180 natural freshwater microcosms (tank bromeliads) distributed across six sites from 18°N in the Caribbean to 29°S in South America. At each site, we manipulated the mean and dispersion of the daily amount of rainfall that entered tank bromeliads over a 2-month period. Manipulations covered a response surface representing 50% to 200% of the dispersion of daily rainfall crossed with 10% to 300% of the mean amounts of rainfall. The response of functional community structure to precipitation regimes differed across sites. These geographic differences were not consistent with the local adaptation hypothesis, as responses did not correlate with the current amplitude in precipitation. Geographic differences in community responses were consistent with the insurance hypothesis: sites with the lowest functional redundancy in their species pools had the strongest response to a gradient in hydrological variability induced by uneven precipitation. In such sites, an increase in the hydrologic variability induced a shift from communities with both pelagic and benthic traits using both green and brown energy channels to strictly benthic, brown energy communities. Our results predict uneven impacts of precipitation change on community structure and energy channels within communities across Neotropical regions. This geographic variation is due more to differences in the size and redundancy of species pools than to local adaptation. Strategies for climate change adaptation should thus seek to identify and preserve functionally unique species and their habitats. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

OBJECTIVE While surgical decompression is an important treatment modality for cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM), it remains unclear if the severity of preoperative myelopathy status affects potential benefit from surgical intervention and when maximum postoperative improvement is expected. This investigation sought to determine if retrospective analysis of prospectively collected patient-reported outcomes (PROs) following surgery for CSM differed when stratified by preoperative myelopathy status. Secondary objectives included assessment of the minimal clinically important difference (MCID). METHODS A total of 1151 patients with CSM were prospectively enrolled from the Quality Outcomes Database at 14 US hospitals. Baseline demographics and PROs at baseline and 3 and 12 months were measured. These included the modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association (mJOA) score, Neck Disability Index (NDI), quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) from the EQ-5D, and visual analog scale from the EQ-5D (EQ-VAS). Patients were stratified by preoperative myelopathy severity using criteria established by the AO Spine study group: mild (mJOA score 15–17), moderate (mJOA score 12–14), or severe (mJOA score < 12). Univariate analysis was used to identify demographic variables that significantly varied between myelopathy groups. Then, multivariate linear regression and linear mixed regression were used to model the effect of severity and time on PROs, respectively. RESULTS For NDI, EQ-VAS, and QALY, patients in all myelopathy cohorts achieved significant, maximal improvement at 3 months without further improvement at 12 months. For mJOA, moderate and severe myelopathy groups demonstrated significant, maximal improvement at 3 months, without further improvement at 12 months. The mild myelopathy group did not demonstrate significant change in mJOA score but did maintain and achieve higher PRO scores overall when compared with more advanced myelopathy cohorts. The MCID threshold was reached in all myelopathy cohorts at 3 months for mJOA, NDI, EQ-VAS, and QALY, with the only exception being mild myelopathy QALY at 3 months. CONCLUSIONS As assessed by statistical regression and MCID analysis, patients with cervical myelopathy experience maximal improvement in their quality of life, neck disability, myelopathy score, and overall health by 3 months after surgical decompression, regardless of their baseline myelopathy severity. An exception was seen for the mJOA score in the mild myelopathy cohort, improvement of which may have been limited by ceiling effect. The data presented here will aid surgeons in patient selection, preoperative counseling, and expected postoperative time courses.

In the article, a statistical approach to the assessment of the emission rates discharged by road traffic in a spatial context is proposed. It exploits the ‘yearly average vehicle’, an indicator representing the pollutant emission rate of the average vehicle belonging to a specific category, considering the statistical variability of most of the involved traffic parameters: the vehicle speed and mileage travelled in the considered time. Finally, indicators assessing both the most probable value among the possible emission rates and the extent of their variability range are proposed. They may also be used to underpin decision-making processes, when the effects of different policies addressing air pollution issues are to be evaluated. Therefore, they are suitable for the analysis supporting urban planning activities, with a view to addressing and mitigating the effects and the consequences of pollution due to the transportation sector of the urban context. In addition, they can also be exploited by researchers when prediction analyses are to be performed.

Background: Metastatic lesions to the brain are common in patients with melanoma. Imaging characteristics can support the diagnosis of metastatic melanoma, but alternative diagnoses should be considered. Case Description: Here, we present a case of a 57-year-old man in whom a metastatic melanoma initially mimicked the imaging characteristics of cortical laminar necrosis. Conclusion: This comprises the first report of melanoma brain metastasis presenting with these imaging characteristics and emphasizes the importance of maintaining a high index of suspicion for metastatic lesions in patients with known cancer.

Staphylococcus aureus is a pathogenic bacterium but also a commensal of skin and anterior nares in humans. As S. aureus transits from skins/nares to inside the human body, it experiences changes in temperature. The production and content of S. aureus extracellular vesicles (EVs) have been increasingly studied over the past few years, and EVs are increasingly being recognized as important to the infectious process. Nonetheless, the impact of temperature variation on S. aureus EVs has not been studied in detail, as most reports that investigate EV cargoes and host cell interactions are performed using vesicles produced at 37°C. Here, we report that EVs in S. aureus differ in size and protein/RNA cargo depending on the growth temperature used. We demonstrate that the temperature-dependent regulation of vesicle production in S. aureus is mediated by the alpha phenol-soluble modulin peptides (αPSMs). Through proteomic analysis, we observed increased packaging of virulence factors at 40°C, whereas the EV proteome has greater diversity at 34°C. Similar to the protein content, we perform transcriptomic analysis and demonstrate that the RNA cargo also is impacted by temperature. Finally, we demonstrate greater αPSM- and alpha-toxin-mediated erythrocyte lysis with 40°C EVs, but 34°C EVs are more cytotoxic toward THP-1 cells. Together, our study demonstrates that small temperature variations have great impact on EV biogenesis and shape the interaction with host cells. IMPORTANCE Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are lipid bilayer spheres that contain proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids secreted by bacteria. They are involved in Staphylococcus aureus infections, as they package virulence factors and deliver their contents inside host cells. The impact of temperature variations experienced by S. aureus during the infectious process on EVs is unknown. Here, we demonstrate the importance of temperature in vesicle production and packaging. High temperatures promote packaging of virulence factors and increase the protein and lipid concentration but reduce the overall RNA abundance and protein diversity in EVs. The importance of temperature changes is highlighted by the fact that EVs produced at low temperature are more toxic toward macrophages, whereas EVs produced at high temperature display more hemolysis toward erythrocytes. Our research brings new insights into temperature-dependent vesiculation and interaction with the host during S. aureus transition from colonization to virulence.

International audience; • A meta-analysis was performed to test whether organic matter "priming" occurs in aquatic ecosystems • We show that despite large variability between observations, priming is a generalizable feature of aquatic ecosystems • This variability can be explained by two main factors: How priming is measured and field/laboratory differences

Low back disorders (LBDs) are a leading injury in the workplace. Back exoskeletons (exos) are wearable assist devices that complement traditional ergonomic controls and reduce LBD risks by alleviating musculoskeletal overexertion. However, there are currently no ergonomic assessment tools to evaluate risk for workers wearing back exos. Exo-LiFFT, an extension of the Lifting Fatigue Failure Tool, is introduced as a means to unify the etiology of LBDs with the biomechanical function of exos. We present multiple examples demonstrating how Exo-LiFFT can assess or predict the effect of exos on LBD risk without costly, time-consuming electromyography studies. For instance, using simulated and real-world material handling data we show an exo providing a 30 Nm lumbar moment is projected to reduce cumulative back damage by ∼70% and LBD risk by ∼20%. Exo-LiFFT provides a practical, efficient ergonomic assessment tool to assist safety professionals exploring back exos as part of a comprehensive occupational health program.HIGHLIGHTSBack exos are wearable assist devices that complement ergonomic controls for reducing low back disorder (LBD) risksHowever, no ergonomic assessment tools exist to evaluate LBD risks for workers wearing back exosWe introduce Exo-LiFFT, an ergonomic assessment tool adapted from the Lifting Fatigue Failure ToolExo-LiFFT is a practical tool that unifies the etiology of LBDs and biomechanical function of exosExo-LiFFT can be used to assess or predict the effect of exos on LBD risk without EMG testing

A workplace study was conducted to evaluate user perceptions, acceptance, and muscle activity amongst logistics workers wearing an unmotorized, dual-mode, back-assist exosuit prototype. Eleven workers performed a lifting/lowering task with versus without the exosuit, while back muscle activity was recorded. They then used the exosuit while performing their actual work tasks in a distribution center before completing a questionnaire about their user experience. Worker perceptions of the exosuit were overwhelmingly positive: 100% felt the exosuit could be useful and fit into their daily job without interfering, >90% felt assisted and that the exosuit made lifting easier, and >80% felt it was comfortable and that they were free to move naturally while wearing the exosuit. Finally, the majority of workers showed reduced back muscle activity while wearing the exosuit during lifting/lowering, consistent with results from prior lab studies. Worker feedback on this prototype was then used to inform design of the HeroWear Apex exosuit.

Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are a key component in the chemoprevention and treatment of hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer. While the addition of AI therapy has improved cancer-related outcomes in the management of HR+ breast cancer, AIs are associated with musculoskeletal adverse effects known as the aromatase inhibitor-associated musculoskeletal syndrome (AIMSS) that limit its tolerability and use. AIMSS is mainly comprised of AI-associated bone loss and arthralgias that affect up to half of women on AI therapy and detrimentally impact patient quality of life and treatment adherence. The pathophysiology of AIMSS is not fully understood though has been proposed to be related to estrogen deprivation within the musculoskeletal and nervous systems. This review aims to characterize the prevalence, risk factors, and clinical features of AIMSS, and explore the syndrome’s underlying mechanisms and management strategies.

Objective Localization related epilepsy (LRE) is increasingly accepted as a network disorder. To better understand the network specific characteristics of LRE, we defined individual epilepsy networks and compared them across patients. Methods The epilepsy network was defined in the slow cortical potential frequency band in 10 patients using intracranial EEG data obtained during interictal periods. Cortical regions were included in the epilepsy network if their connectivity pattern was similar to the connectivity pattern of the seizure onset electrode contact. Patients were subdivided into frontal, temporal, and posterior quadrant cohorts according to the anatomic location of seizure onset. Jaccard similarity was calculated within each cohort to assess for similarity of the epilepsy network between patients within each cohort. Results All patients exhibited an epilepsy network in the slow cortical potential frequency band. The topographic distribution of this correlated network activity was found to be unique at the single subject level. Conclusions The epilepsy network was unique at the single patient level, even between patients with similar seizure onset locations. Significance We demonstrated that the epilepsy network is patient-specific. This is in keeping with our current understanding of brain networks and identifies the patient-specific epilepsy network as a possible biomarker in LRE.

we report the case of a 44-year-old male affected by life-long, severe and recalcitrant form of atopic dermatitis (AD), with various atopic comorbidities. Multiple systemic therapies had been performed before our first observation, all interrupted for ineffectiveness. On May 2018, the patient recorded an Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) of 52, Peak Pruritus Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) of 8, and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) of 20. Blood exams showed a significant increased of total immunoglobulin E (IgE) plasma levels (5321 kUa/L; 0,00-100,00 kUa/L reference range).

We investigate three fundamental issues in the physics of high-Tc cuprates, from the perspective of a recently proposed comprehensive theory for these materials. (a) Orbital ordering × superconductivity. The first issue is the detailed microscopic mechanism that produces an attractive interaction between holes in high-Tc cuprates. (b) Dispersion relation × pseudogap order parameter. The second issue refers to the existence of a pseudogap order parameter, which would be different from zero all over the pseudogap phase and would vanish elsewhere. (c) Chemical potential × quantum critical point location. The third issue concerns the debate as to whether the quantum critical point, located where the pseudogap transition line T*(x) meets the T = 0 axis is inside the superconducting dome or at its boundary. We obtain clearcut solutions for the three issues.

We discuss several aspects of a generalization of the Chern-Simons action containing the pseudodifferential operator −□, which we shall call pseudo-Chern-Simons (PCS). First, we derive the PCS from the bosonization of free massive Dirac particles in (2+1)D in the limit when m2≪p2, where m is the fermion mass and p is its momentum. In this regime, the whole bosonized action also has a modified Maxwell term, involving the same pseudodifferential operator. Furthermore, the large-mass m2≫p2 regime is also considered. We also investigate the main effects of the PCS term into the pseudo-quantum electrodynamics (PQED), which describes the electromagnetic interactions between charged particles in (2+1)D. We show that the massless gauge field of PQED becomes massive in the presence of a PCS term, without the need of a Higgs mechanism. In the nonrelativistic limit, we show that the static potential has a repulsive term (given by the Coulomb potential) and an attractive part (given by a sum of special functions), whose competition generates bound states of particles with the same charge. Having in mind two-dimensional materials, we also conclude that the presence of a PCS term does not affect the renormalization either of the Fermi velocity or of the band gap in a Dirac-like material.