Challenges and facilitators in repeated bio-behavioural surveys for blood-borne virus infections in Australian prisons.

Background: Prison-based blood-borne virus (BBV) surveillance is essential for evaluation of prevention and treatment programs for high-risk populations, such as people who inject drugs who are over-represented amongst those incarcerated. Regular triennial surveillance has been in place in Australian prisons for almost two decades, but has been focused to date only on new prison entrants. Recently, the Australian Hepatitis and risk survey in prisons (AusHep study) was established to provide improved surveillance via an expanded bio-behavioural survey representative of all people in prison, including those sentenced and those on remand.

Shining a light on an additional clinical burden: work-related digital communication survey study - COVID-19 impact on NHS staff wellbeing.

Work-related communication volume within the United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS) has had little systematic research previously. The impact of communication volume on work-life balance of healthcare staff in the NHS is also not known and has not been an area of focus or governance. COVID-19 led to a shift to non-physical work, with greater reliance on digital communication for clinical decision making.

Safety and pharmacokinetics of EP-104IAR (sustained-release fluticasone propionate) in knee osteoarthritis: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 1 trial.

Objective: EP-104IAR is a novel, sustained-release, intra-articular (IA) formulation of the corticosteroid fluticasone propionate (FP), in development for the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA) pain. This study evaluated the safety, pharmacokinetics (PK) and efficacy of a single dose of EP-104IAR in patients with OA of the knee.

Design: This was a multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial performed at 3 sites in Canada.

Human Herpes-8 virus copy to cell ratio: A diagnostic tool in primary effusion lymphoma.

Primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) is a serious sequel to Human Herpes Virus 8 (HHV8) infection in the immunosuppressed host. Usually requiring a cytological diagnosis, body cavity effusions are often referred for investigation for possible PEL. Although absence of HHV8 effectively refutes this, the presence of HHV8 DNA, though indicative is not diagnostic.

Safety and Efficacy of a Topical Sodium Channel Inhibitor (TV-45070) in Patients With Postherpetic Neuralgia (PHN): A Randomized, Controlled, Proof-of-Concept, Crossover Study, With a Subgroup Analysis of the Nav1.7 R1150W Genotype.

Objective: The objective was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of TV-45070 ointment, as a treatment for postherpetic neuralgia, and to explore the response in patients with the Nav1.7 R1150W gain-of-function polymorphism.

Materials And Methods: This was a randomized, placebo-controlled, 2-period, 2-treatment crossover trial.

Reprint of: Eating like you are overweight: the effect of overweight models on food intake in a remote confederate study.

There is consistent evidence that people model the eating behaviour of others. The extent to which people model the amount of food consumed by other people of different weight statuses has received less attention. Here we tested the effect on food consumption of exposing female participants to information about the food consumption of either normal/healthy weight or overweight individuals.

Eating like you are overweight: the effect of overweight models on food intake in a remote confederate study.

There is consistent evidence that people model the eating behaviour of others. The extent to which people model the amount of food consumed by other people of different weight statuses has received less attention. Here we tested the effect on food consumption of exposing female participants to information about the food consumption of either normal/healthy weight or overweight individuals.

Treatment of Na(v)1.7-mediated pain in inherited erythromelalgia using a novel sodium channel blocker.

Mutations in the SCN9A gene leading to deficiency of its protein product, Na(v)1.7, cause congenital indifference to pain (CIP). CIP is characterized by the absence of the ability to sense pain associated with noxious stimuli.

Evidence of person-to-person transmission of oseltamivir-resistant pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009 virus in a hematology unit.

We describe the first confirmed person-to-person transmission of oseltamivir-resistant pandemic influenza A(H1N1) 2009 virus that occurred in a hematology unit in the United Kingdom. Eleven cases of (H1N1) 2009 virus infection were identified, of which, ten were related as shown by sequence analysis of the hemagglutinin and neuraminidase genes. H275Y analysis demonstrated that 8 of 10 case patients had oseltamivir-resistant virus, with 4 of 8 case patients infected by direct transmission of resistant virus.

Experiments on mixotrophic protists and catastrophic darkness.

Catastrophically darkened photic zone conditions in water bodies are postulated to be induced by a diversity of mechanisms that are recorded in the geological record, including asteroid and comet impacts and large-scale volcanic eruptions. Giant wildfires, such as those that followed the great fires in Siberia in 1915, have been directly shown to cause large reductions in sunlight penetrating to the ground. Previous studies on the response of phototrophs to sudden prolonged darkness have focused on the survival of axenic strains.

Holiday haemodialysis and imported hepatitis C virus infection: a series of sixteen cases in two large haemodialysis units.

Background: Patients in haemodialysis units are at an increased risk of blood borne virus infections. Birmingham city (West Midlands, UK) has a large number of its population from an ethnic origin other than white (30%). Recently due to the increase in number of haemodialysis centres abroad and particularly in the Indian Subcontinent, a large number of haemodialysis patients from these ethnic minorities are encouraged to take holidays in their countries of origin.

Treatment of children persistently infected with hepatitis B virus: seroconversion or suppression.

We have reviewed the current strategies regarding the treatment of persistent hepatitis B virus (HBV) in children and compared these with adult strategies. The options for achieving suppression of viral DNA replication versus hepatitis B e antigen to antibody seroconversion have been evaluated. The results of studies in different geographical locations have been confounded by HBV genotypes, as it is now clear that some genotypes respond better to treatment than others.

Discordant outcome of perinatal transmission of hepatitis C in twin pregnancies.

Background: Mother to infant transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV) is dependent on significant HCV viraemia being present in the mother. As yet there are no appropriate interventions to prevent perinatal transmission. The investigation of twin pregnancies where only one twin is infected may reveal further information relating to transmission and specific risks.

Resistance tests: what do clinical trials tell us?

Few routine laboratory tests have been evaluated by randomised controlled trials. Nevertheless, a number of such studies have been undertaken for genotypic and phenotypic HIV drug resistance assays. They are all based on a structure whereby patients are randomised to receive resistance tests or none (standards of care) at the time of acute viral failure, with the primary end points being the proportion with undetectable viral load at a time point 1224 weeks following randomisation.

Predictors of academic success in a Bachelor of Nursing course.

A longitudinal study of one Bachelor of Nursing course (n=181) was carried out to determine the relationship between academic outcomes and pre-entry qualifications and to discuss the progress and success of students with conventional and non-conventional qualifications. A multi-linear regression analysis was used to determine which pre-entry qualification best explained the variation in the course marks. Results identified that the number of GCSE A grades obtained significantly predicted success on the BN course.

A study of the vaccinia virus interferon-gamma receptor and its contribution to virus virulence.

Vaccinia virus (VV) strain Western Reserve gene B8R encodes a 43 kDa glycoprotein that is secreted from infected cells early in infection as a homodimer. This protein has amino acid similarity with the extracellular domain of cellular IFN-gamma receptor (IFN-gammaR) and binds and inhibits IFN-gamma from a wide range of species. Here we demonstrate that the B8R protein also inhibits equine IFN-gamma.

The vaccinia virus B9R protein is a 6 kDa intracellular protein that is non-essential for virus replication and virulence.

Vaccinia virus (VV) strain Western Reserve gene B9R is shown to encode an intracellular 6 kDa protein that is expressed late during the infectious cycle. In vitro transcription and translation produced two polypeptides in the presence of microsomal membranes, but only the larger protein in the absence of membranes. The smaller protein sedimented with microsomes during centrifugation, suggesting it was inserted into the lipid membrane or into the microsomal lumen via the N-terminal hydrophobic signal sequence that was subsequently cleaved proteolytically.