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Abstract The determination of the neutrino mass is one of the major challenges in astroparticle physics today. Direct neutrino mass experiments, based solely on the kinematics of $$\upbeta $$ β -decay, provide a largely model-independent probe to the neutrino mass scale. The Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino (KATRIN) experiment is designed to directly measure the effective electron antineutrino mass with a sensitivity of $$0.2\hbox { eV}$$ 0.2eV ($$90\%$$ 90% CL). In this work we report on the first operation of KATRIN with tritium which took place in 2018. During this commissioning phase of the tritium circulation system, excellent agreement of the theoretical prediction with the recorded spectra was found and stable conditions over a time period of 13 days could be established. These results are an essential prerequisite for the subsequent neutrino mass measurements with KATRIN in 2019.

We provide a well-defined accurate brute force implementation without approximations as a reference to support future development of correct and fast algorithms to measure the trabecular thickness and spacing. Using artificial ellipsoid examples, the systematic error is shown to be related to the voxelization, which can be reduced by upsampling. Furthermore, we collected a database of 40 three-dimensional micro-computed tomography images of trabecular bone regions of a sheep femur. With the coverage of a broad range of trabecular thickness and spacing, the database is suitable for assessing the correctness of algorithms for the measurements of trabecular thickness and spacing. The bone data is shared publicly in the online repository ‘Figshare’ and the brute force code is freely available in Code Ocean. Scientists are encouraged to implement faster algorithms, e.g., graphic processing unit-accelerated, with accurate or controlled approximate behaviour to compute trabecular thickness and spacing. Especially, the provided data can be re-employed together with the reference algorithm to evaluate their accuracies.

Using data from the German Hepatitis C-Registry (Deutsche Hepatitis C-Register, DHC-R), we report the real-world safety and effectiveness of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir (GLE/PIB) treatment and its impact on patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in underserved populations who are not typically included in clinical trials, yet who will be crucial for achieving hepatitis C virus (HCV) elimination. The DHC-R is an ongoing, non-interventional, multicenter, prospective, observational cohort study on patients treated for chronic HCV infection in Germany. The data cutoff was 17 January 2021. The primary effectiveness endpoint was sustained virologic response at post-treatment Week 12 (SVR12). Safety outcomes were assessed in all patients receiving GLE/PIB. PROs were assessed using the SF-36 survey. Of 2354 patients, 1964 had valid SVR12 data (intention-to-treat analysis). Of these, 1905 (97.0%) achieved SVR12 with rates similar across the comorbidities analyzed, except for people who actively use drugs (PWUD (active)) (86.4%). Excluding those who discontinued treatment and did not achieve SVR12, or were reinfected with HCV, the rate was 99.3%, with similar results regardless of comorbidity. PWUD (active) and those with psychiatric disorders had the most meaningful improvements in PROs. Adverse events (AEs) occurred in 631/2354 patients (26.8%), and serious AEs in 44 patients (1.9%). GLE/PIB was highly effective and well tolerated in this real-world study of patient groups key to HCV elimination.

Prescription and efficacy of daclatasvir and sofosbuvir ± ribavirin, including patient-reported outcomes, in routine practice in three European countries: the CMPASS-EU cohort study. Objectives: To identify patient characteristics associated with routine prescription of daclatasvir (DCV) in chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and evaluate effectiveness, safety and quality-of-life (QoL) changes for DCV-based regimens. Methods: A prospective, observational cohort study in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands collected baseline data from all patients initiating a new HCV regimen, with 12-month follow-up of DCV-based treatments. Baseline predictors of prescription, longitudinal efficacy, and patient-reported QoL outcomes (EQ-5D, EQ-VAS and SF-36 global physical/mental health) on DCV were assessed. Results: Of 914 patients analyzed, 470 were prescribed DCV (469 with sofosbuvir [SOF] ± ribavirin [RBV]) and 444 non-DCV regimens. A high proportion prescribed DCV were cirrhotic (36%) and/or illicit drug users (IDU; 24%). Multivariate predictors of DCV treatment included genotype 3 infection (odds ratio 85.9 [95% confidence interval 43.5–170]), age ≥65 years (2.0 [1.2–3.3]), and cirrhosis (3.3 [2.0–5.3]). Sustained virologic response on DCV+SOF±RBV (observed) was 96–100% across subgroups of IDU, HIV co-infection, HCV genotype and cirrhosis status. Statistically significant improvements in all QoL outcomes were observed over 12 months of DCV+SOF±RBV irrespective of RBV use or cirrhosis status, but IDU had no change in SF-36 global mental health although other outcomes improved. Conclusions: In this cohort, DCV+SOF±RBV was efficacious for HCV treatment across a range of subgroups and associated with QoL improvements.