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Combined use of R-VSPI and VSPI for enhanced quantification of fire severity in south-eastern Australian forests
No full textWildfires, intensified by climate change, necessitate advanced methods for accurate and near-real-time fire severity mapping to improve emergency response and post-fire recovery strategies. Satellite remote sensing, combined with supervised learning approaches, enhances the accuracy and efficiency of fire severity mapping. This study introduces Decision-Based Hierarchical Learning (DBHL), a novel multi-sensor fire severity classification model that integrates Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR; Sentinel-1 backscatter) and optical (Sentinel-2 reflectance) data. The model was applied to assess wildfire impacts on temperate forests during the 2019/20 “Black Summer” wildfire season in south-eastern Australia. DBHL incorporated SAR-based RADAR-Vegetation Structure Perpendicular Index (R-VSPI) and optical-based Vegetation Structure Perpendicular Index (VSPI) as candidate indices. By integrating these complementary datasets, DBHL leverages both structural and physiological changes as fire severity indicators, addressing limitations in single-sensor approaches. A pixel-wise approach was employed to spatially upscale the applicability of the R-VSPI and VSPI indices for fire severity assessment across the entire region. Using field data, the sensitivities of the R-VSPI and VSPI indices were validated during the immediate post-fire to one-year post-fire period. DBHL was trained and evaluated with a focus on comparing its performance against independent R-VSPI and VSPI classifications. The findings reveal the unique strengths of each index across various fire severity classes, demonstrating their complementary value. R-VSPI is more sensitive to structural changes in forests, while VSPI excels in identifying changes related to canopy-level disturbances. One-year post-fire recovery analysis shows distinct spatial patterns, with VSPI indicating faster recovery in surface vegetation and R-VSPI highlighting prolonged structural recovery. The DBHL model demonstrates the complementary strengths of the indices, allowing fire severity assessments to be contextualized across vertical vegetation strata, distinguishing between canopy-based damage indicators and underlying structural changes. DBHL outperformed single-sensor approaches, achieving the highest classification accuracy (overall accuracy=88.89%, kappa=0.86), particularly improving differentiation of Moderate (partial canopy scorch) and High (full crown scorch) severity with a producer’s accuracy of 100%, and 80%, respectively. Future research is aimed at integrating multi-wavelength SAR, including L-band (1.25 GHz) and P-band (0.43 GHz), along with LiDAR measurements to enhance structural fire severity assessments
Multimodal multicentre investigation of diagnostic and prognostic markers in disorders of consciousness
No full textSeverely brain-injured patients may enter a spectrum of conditions collectively known as disorders of consciousness. This spectrum includes clinical conditions such as unresponsive wakefulness syndrome or minimally conscious state, where the behavioural assessment of consciousness can often be deceptive.
To bridge this dissociation, neuroimaging techniques are employed to identify the residual brain functions. Each neuroimaging modality imperfectly captures distinct aspects of brain preservation—functional, anatomical, or both. In this study, we adopt a comprehensive approach by integrating the neurophysiology and neuroimaging modalities available from the standard and advanced clinical assessments through interpretable machine learning. The electrophysiological modalities included high-density EEG (resting state and task), whereas neuroimaging modalities included anatomical and resting-state functional MRI, diffusion MRI and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET.
Our investigation reveals that specific modalities, such as functional assessments, provide comprehensive insights into the currently evaluated state of consciousness, the diagnosis of the patients. Conversely, structural modalities offer valuable information about the patient's evolution within the consciousness spectrum. We validate the proposed analysis with data coming from other centres with different acquisition parameters. Importantly, we demonstrate that model performance improves with an increase in the number of modalities. We observe a higher inter-modality disagreement for minimally conscious state patients and those patients who improve. Lastly, we observe a difference in feature importances between diagnosis and prognosis, with an interaction between modality and anatomical structures: some subcortical markers tend to contribute more to prognosis, while other cortical markers are more informative for diagnosis.
This integrative multimodal and machine learning methodology presents a promising avenue for a more nuanced understanding of disorders of consciousness, contributing to enhanced diagnostic precision, prognostic capabilities and the personalization of rehabilitative strategies in clinical practice
Fontan associated protein-losing enteropathy is linked to distinct metabolic and hepatic alterations
No full textThe univentricular Fontan circulation is associated with long-term multiorgan complications, including protein-losing enteropathy (PLE). While hemodynamic and lymphatic contributors to PLE have been described, its systemic metabolic signature remains incompletely characterized. We aimed to identify PLE-associated alterations in circulating metabolites using targeted serum metabolomics. Targeted serum metabolomic profiling was performed by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) using the AbsoluteIDQ p180 kit. Forty-nine individuals were included: Fontan patients with PLE (FPLE, n = 10), Fontan patients without PLE (F, n = 30), and clinically stable biventricular controls (C, n = 9). Data were analyzed using MetaboAnalyst v6.0, including multivariate modeling (PLS-DA), univariate statistics with false discovery rate correction, correlation analyses, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses. Compared with controls, Fontan patients without PLE showed reduced concentrations of cholesterol, triacylglycerols, and several phosphatidylcholine (PC) species, whereas Fontan patients with PLE demonstrated relative increases in these lipid classes. Among 90 quantified PCs, 11 showed a consistent gradient with the lowest concentrations in F and the highest in FPLE. FPLE was further characterized by marked hypoalbuminemia and hypogammaglobulinemia, accompanied by elevated renin, aldosterone, and copeptin levels, indicating pronounced renal–neurohormonal activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) and vasopressin. Bile acid derivatives, including taurodeoxycholic acid and glycodeoxycholic acid, tended to be lower in FPLE and showed group-specific associations with both renin and selected PC species. Exploratory ROC-based screening identified the immunoglobulin G (IgG)-to-aldosterone and the albumin-to-PC ae C40:3 ratios as the most informative biomarker combinations distinguishing FPLE from non-PLE Fontan patients. These findings are exploratory and hypothesis-generating and require validation in independent cohorts. Fontan patients with PLE show a distinct metabolic phenotype integrating protein loss, lipid alterations, bile acid perturbations, and activation of the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system. These findings suggest that metabolic and renal–neurohormonal pathways extend beyond lymphatic dysfunction in PLE and identify candidate biomarker patterns for further investigation rather than established diagnostic tools. Further studies are required to clarify causality, mechanistic links, and clinical generalizability
Buckelchirurgie bei rhegmatogener Ablatio retinae – der Stellenwert eindellender Operationen in der heutigen Netzhautchirurgie
No full textBackground
Rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) is a potentially acute vision-threatening condition. While scleral buckling (SB) was considered the standard treatment for decades, it has increasingly been replaced by pars plana vitrectomy (ppV).
Objective
This study aims to re-evaluate the role of SB within the current therapeutic context by comparing the clinical outcomes of SB versus primary ppV for RRD, based on data published from 2005–2025.
Material and methods
A systematic literature search across five databases identified 24 studies (2005–2025) comparing SB and ppV in primary RRD. Exclusion criteria included patient age under 18 years and proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) greater than grade B. Outcomes were analyzed in terms of preoperative and postoperative corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) and single surgery anatomical success (SSAS).
Results
Across all included studies the mean preoperative CDVA was 1.22 logMAR. Postoperatively, visual acuity improved to 0.49 logMAR with SB and to 0.5 logMAR with ppV. In phakic eyes, SB resulted in an average postoperative CDVA of 0.17 logMAR, whereas ppV achieved a mean of 0.23 logMAR in the same subgroup. The SSAS was reported to be up to 93.8% for SB and up to 96.3% for ppV.
Conclusion
Scleral buckling remains an effective therapeutic option for selected patient populations, particularly those with a phakic lens status. Given its clinical relevance, SB should continue to be an integral part of surgical training programs
Der pastorale Dienst an Wahrheit und Gerechtigkeit in der Ehejudikatur – die Ansprache Papst Leos XIV. vom 21.11.2025 an die Teilnehmer einer Fortbildungsveranstaltung der Rota Romana
No full textThe 11th IUPS Workshop for Physiology Education: towards a new global horizon in the teaching of physiology, Löwenstein, Germany, 14-16 Sept 2025
No full textEffects of Helicobacter pylori infection on T cell activation markers and regulatory T cells in people with and without HIV infection in Central Ethiopia
No full textBackground: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is known to modulate host immunity and sustain chronic inflammation, yet most data come from HIV-negative populations. In people living with HIV, whose T cell compartments are already dysregulated, the way H. pylori shapes peripheral T cell phenotypes, and how those profiles change after eradication therapy, is still unclear. Because both infections are common in Central Ethiopia, we examined peripheral T cell phenotypes in adults with and without HIV according to H. pylori status and assessed the immunologic effects of antibiotic eradication.
Materials and methods: We conducted a prospective study in people with and without HIV infection from Ethiopia. H. pylori status was determined by stool-antigen testing; a subset received standard triple therapy and was followed for 12 months. Multiparameter flow cytometry quantified T cell activation, proliferation, exhaustion, and regulatory T cells (Tregs) at baseline and after therapy.
Results: T cell analyses showed that participants with HIV had consistently higher proliferation (Ki67), exhaustion (PD-1, TIM3), and Th17 (CCR6⁺CD161⁺) markers than those without HIV. H. pylori-positive individuals exhibited higher Treg levels irrespective of HIV status (HIV-negative: median 2% vs 1.08%, p < 0.0001; HIV-positive: median 2.9% vs 1.62%, p = 0.009). Successful eradication therapy led to a significant reduction in Tregs in both HIV-positive (median 3.04% → 0.70%, p = 0.031) and HIV-negative (median 2.96% → 1.46%, p = 0.040) groups. A similar decline was also observed in HIV-negative individuals with unsuccessful therapy (median 2.85% vs 1.29%, p = 0.0039).
Conclusions: H. pylori infection was linked to significant differences in T cell profiles in both HIV-negative and HIV-positive individuals. Eradication therapy was followed by a reduction in Tregs-significant in HIV-negative participants irrespective of outcome and in PLWH with successful eradication-with subgroup-specific shifts in activation and differentiation/exhaustion markers, highlighting potential therapeutic avenues for mitigating immune dysregulation in co-infected populations