Point-of-care HCV RNA testing improves hepatitis C testing rates and allows rapid treatment initiation among people who inject drugs attending a medically supervised injecting facility.

Background: To achieve hepatitis C virus (HCV) elimination targets, simplified care engaging people who inject drugs is required. We evaluated whether fingerstick HCV RNA point-of-care testing (PoCT) increased the proportion of clients attending a supervised injecting facility who were tested for hepatitis C.

Methods: Prospective single-arm study with recruitment between 9 November 2020 and 28 January 2021 and follow-up to 31 July 2021.

Eliminating hepatitis C in Australia: a novel model of hepatitis C testing and treatment for people who inject drugs at a medically supervised injecting facility.

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of testing and treating people who inject drugs at a supervised injecting facility for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting, Participants: People who inject drugs who attended the Melbourne supervised injecting facility, 30 June 2018 - 30 June 2020.

Patella-Femoral Joint Revision Surgery Following a Rare and Interesting Case of Implant Failure: A Case Report and Retrospective Analysis of Our Hospitals Implant Data.

According to the national joint registry, patello-femoral joint (PFJ) replacement accounts for 1% of all knee arthroplasty procedures in the UK, 1014 of which were performed in 2018. The femoro-patella vialla (FPV) implant by MicroPort orthopaedics has a high reported rate of revision, more than four times that of other knee replacements. The mechanisms of failure are usually loss of fixation at the bone-implant interface.

Evolution and lineage dynamics of a transmissible cancer in Tasmanian devils.

Devil facial tumour 1 (DFT1) is a transmissible cancer clone endangering the Tasmanian devil. The expansion of DFT1 across Tasmania has been documented, but little is known of its evolutionary history. We analysed genomes of 648 DFT1 tumours collected throughout the disease range between 2003 and 2018.

Inbreeding depression in one of the last DFTD-free wild populations of Tasmanian devils.

Background: Vulnerable species experiencing inbreeding depression are prone to localised extinctions because of their reduced fitness. For Tasmanian devils, the rapid spread of devil facial tumour disease (DFTD) has led to population declines and fragmentation across the species' range. Here we show that one of the few remaining DFTD-free populations of Tasmanian devils is experiencing inbreeding depression.

An oral bait vaccination approach for the Tasmanian devil facial tumor diseases.

: The Tasmanian devil () is the largest extant carnivorous marsupial. Since 1996, its population has declined by 77% primarily due to a clonal transmissible tumor, known as devil facial tumor (DFT1) disease. In 2014, a second transmissible devil facial tumor (DFT2) was discovered.

Quantitative evaluation of an integrated nurse model of care providing hepatitis C treatment to people attending homeless services in Melbourne, Australia.

Background: The prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) has been reported to be high among people experiencing homelessness. People who are homeless often have multiple needs that may take precedence over HCV testing and treatment. We quantitatively evaluated the outcomes of a service providing HCV treatment to people attending homeless services.

Complex problems need detailed solutions: Harnessing multiple data types to inform genetic management in the wild.

For bottlenecked populations of threatened species, supplementation often leads to improved population metrics (genetic rescue), provided that guidelines can be followed to avoid negative outcomes. In cases where no "ideal" source populations exist, or there are other complicating factors such as prevailing disease, the benefit of supplementation becomes uncertain. Bringing multiple data and analysis types together to plan genetic management activities can help.

Tasman-PCR: a genetic diagnostic assay for Tasmanian devil facial tumour diseases.

Tasmanian devils have spawned two transmissible cancer clones, known as devil facial tumour 1 (DFT1) and devil facial tumour 2 (DFT2). DFT1 and DFT2 are transmitted between animals by the transfer of allogeneic contagious cancer cells by biting, and both cause facial tumours. DFT1 and DFT2 tumours are grossly indistinguishable, but can be differentiated using histopathology, cytogenetics or genotyping of polymorphic markers.

Two Decades of the Impact of Tasmanian Devil Facial Tumor Disease.

The Tasmanian devil, a marsupial carnivore, has been restricted to the island state of Tasmania since its extinction on the Australian mainland about 3000 years ago. In the past two decades, this species has experienced severe population decline due to the emergence of devil facial tumor disease (DFTD), a transmissible cancer. During these 20 years, scientists have puzzled over the immunological and evolutionary responses by the Tasmanian devil to this transmissible cancer.

Density trends and demographic signals uncover the long-term impact of transmissible cancer in Tasmanian devils.

1. Monitoring the response of wild mammal populations to threatening processes is fundamental to effective conservation management. This is especially true for infectious diseases, which may have dynamic and therefore unpredictable interactions with their host.

Immunization Strategies Producing a Humoral IgG Immune Response against Devil Facial Tumor Disease in the Majority of Tasmanian Devils Destined for Wild Release.

Devil facial tumor disease (DFTD) is renowned for its successful evasion of the host immune system. Down regulation of the major histocompatabilty complex class I molecule (MHC-I) on the DFTD cells is a primary mechanism of immune escape. Immunization trials on captive Tasmanian devils have previously demonstrated that an immune response against DFTD can be induced, and that immune-mediated tumor regression can occur.

Immunoglubolin dynamics and cancer prevalence in Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii).

Immunoglobulins such as IgG and IgM have been shown to induce anti-tumour cytotoxic activity. In the present study we therefore explore total serum IgG and IgM expression dynamics in 23 known-aged Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) of which 9 where affected by Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD). DFTD is clonally transmissible cancer that has caused massive declines in devil numbers.

A second transmissible cancer in Tasmanian devils.

Clonally transmissible cancers are somatic cell lineages that are spread between individuals via the transfer of living cancer cells. There are only three known naturally occurring transmissible cancers, and these affect dogs, soft-shell clams, and Tasmanian devils, respectively. The Tasmanian devil transmissible facial cancer was first observed in 1996, and is threatening its host species with extinction.

The Tasmanian devil microbiome-implications for conservation and management.

Background: The Tasmanian devil, the world's largest carnivorous marsupial, is at risk of extinction due to devil facial tumour disease (DFTD), a fatal contagious cancer. The Save the Tasmanian Devil Program has established an insurance population, which currently holds over 600 devils in captive facilities across Australia. Microbes are known to play a crucial role in the health and well-being of humans and other animals, and increasing evidence suggests that changes in the microbiota can influence various aspects of host physiology and development.

Early results with a patient specific interpositional knee device.

The iForma ConforMIS Interpositional knee device is a recently developed patient specific implant used for the treatment of mild to moderate uni-compartmental osteoarthritis. The benefits over traditional methods of surgical management are: it is less invasive, can be performed as a day procedure and does not limit future options. Bespoke implants are produced from data extracted from MRIs.

Life-history change in disease-ravaged Tasmanian devil populations.

Changes in life history are expected when new sources of extrinsic mortality impact on natural populations. We report a new disease, devil facial tumor disease, causing an abrupt transition from iteroparity toward single breeding in the largest extant carnivorous marsupial, the Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii), in which males can weigh as much as 14 kg and females 9 kg. This change in life history is associated with almost complete mortality of individuals from this infectious cancer past their first year of adult life.