UK national observational cohort study investigating Tolerance of Anti-cancer Systemic Therapy in the Elderly: the TOASTIE study.

Objective: The Cancer and Aging Research Group (CARG) score was developed to predict severe chemotherapy-induced toxicity risk in older adults; validation study results have varied. The Tolerance of Anti-cancer Systemic Therapy in the Elderly study sought to evaluate the CARG score prospectively in a chemotherapy-naïve UK population.

Methods And Analysis: This multicentre, prospective, observational study recruited patients aged ≥65 years commencing first-line chemotherapy for any solid organ malignancy or setting.

A Framework for Assessing Viral Pathogens: A Key Element of the BARDA Emerging Infectious Diseases Strategy.

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the need for nations to prepare more effectively for emerging infectious diseases. Preparing for these threats requires a multifaceted approach that includes assessing pathogen threat, building flexible capabilities for rapid medical countermeasure (MCM) development, and exercising, maintaining, and improving those response capabilities. The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) promotes the advanced development of MCMs in response to natural and manmade threats.

Microbial surveillance versus cytokine responsiveness in native and non-native house sparrows.

The success of introduced species often relies on flexible traits, including immune system traits. While theories predict non-natives will have weak defences due to decreased parasite pressure, effective parasite surveillance remains crucial, as infection risk is rarely zero and the evolutionary novelty of infection is elevated in non-native areas. This study examines the relationship between parasite surveillance and cytokine responsiveness in native and non-native house sparrows, hypothesizing that non-natives maintain high pathogen surveillance while avoiding costly inflammation.

Geographic differences in the phenology of gonadal development and moult, but not of egg laying, are genetically based in a small songbird.

To forecast how fast populations can adapt to climate change, it is essential to determine the evolutionary potential of different life-cycle stages under selection. In birds, timing of gonadal development and moult are primarily regulated by photoperiod, while laying date is highly phenotypically plastic to temperature. We tested whether geographic variation in phenology of these life-cycle events between populations of great tits () has a genetic basis, indicating that contemporary genetic adaptation is possible.

Functionally enriched human polymorphisms associate to species in the chronic wound microbiome.

Chronic wounds are a burden to millions of patients and healthcare providers worldwide. With rising incidence and prevalence, there is an urgent need to address non-healing wounds with novel approaches. Impaired wound healing has been shown to be associated with wound microbiota, and multiple bacterial species are known to contribute to delays in closure.