A systematic review of the cost-effectiveness of anti-VEGF drugs for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy.

Background: Non-proliferative and proliferative diabetic retinopathy are common complications of diabetes and a major cause of sight loss. Anti-vascular endothelial growth factor drugs represent a treatment option for people with diabetic retinopathy and are routinely used to treat various other eye conditions. However, anti-vascular endothelial growth factor drugs are expensive relative to current care options, and it is unclear whether this additional cost is justified when the immediate risk of vision loss is lower compared to patients with more aggressive ophthalmological conditions.

Dynamic tracking of tumor microenvironment modulation using Kaede photoconvertible transgenic mice unveils new biological properties of viral immunotherapy.

CAN-2409 is a replication-defective adenovirus that delivers the herpes simplex virus (HSV)-thymidine kinase gene to infected cells. Intratumoral administration of CAN-2409 followed by prodrug results in the formation of a toxic metabolite able to induce immunogenic cell death, exposure of tumor-associated antigens, and activation of local and systemic immune responses. We used a dynamic labeling model with MC38 tumor cells implanted in photoconvertible Kaede mice.

The specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS) in Europe - Part 2: training environment including the new Union of European Medical Specialists (UEMS) Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery European Training Requirement (OMFS ETR).

OMFS training in Europe has incrementally improved over the last 50 years. However, not all European nations have a formal written curriculum/syllabus, quality indicators, exit examinations, or guidelines for training programmes or trainers. In 2021 the OMFS Section of the Union of European Medical Specialists (UEMS) created an OMFS European Training Requirement (OMFS ETR) to help address these gaps and raise training standards in Europe.

The specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS) in Europe - Part 1: service configuration, regulation, and provision.

Oral and maxillofacial surgical (OMFS) practice and training in Europe is supported by the OMFS Section of the Union of European Medical Specialists (UEMS). Across Europe the number of OMFS specialists per 100,000 varies from 3.0 (Switzerland) to 0.

Harnessing viral internal proteins to combat flu and beyond.

This mini-review examines the strategy of combining viral protein sequence conservation with drug-binding potential to identify novel antiviral targets, focusing on internal proteins of influenza A and other RNA viruses. The importance of combating viral genetic variability and reducing the likelihood of resistance development is emphasised in the context of sequence redundancy in viral datasets. It covers recent structural and functional updates, as well as drug targeting efforts for three internal influenza A viral proteins: Basic Polymerase 2, Nuclear Export Protein, and Nucleoprotein.

A scoping review of somatosensory interaction design for mental health and well-being.

This study explores the efficacy of somatosensory interactions in enhancing mental health care by examining the deployment and impact of these technologies. Based on a scoping review of 46 research studies, our analysis reveals that traditional mental health interventions often fail to align with prevalent technological trends. However, somatosensory interactions bridge this gap by creating immersive and engaging experiences.

Exploiting venom toxins in paratransgenesis to prevent mosquito-borne disease.

Mosquitoes are responsible for the transmission of numerous pathogens, including Plasmodium parasites, arboviruses and filarial worms. They pose a significant risk to public health with over 200 million cases of malaria per annum and approximately 4 billion people at risk of arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses). Mosquito populations are geographically expanding into temperate regions and their distribution is predicted to continue increasing.

Impact of commercial gut health interventions on caecal metagenome and broiler performance.

Background: Maintaining gut health is a persistent and unresolved challenge in the poultry industry. Given the critical role of gut health in chicken performance and welfare, there is a pressing need to identify effective gut health intervention (GHI) strategies to ensure optimal outcomes in poultry farming. In this study, across three broiler production cycles, we compared the metagenomes and performance of broilers provided with ionophores (as the control group) against birds subjected to five different GHI combinations involving vaccination, probiotics, prebiotics, essential oils, and reduction of ionophore use.

Understanding the local-level variations in seasonality of human respiratory syncytial virus infection: a systematic analysis.

Background: While previous reports characterised global and regional variations in RSV seasonality, less is known about local variations in RSV seasonal characteristics. This study aimed to understand the local-level variations in RSV seasonality and to explore the role of geographical, meteorological, and socio-demographic factors in explaining these variations.

Methods: We conducted a systematic literature review to identify published studies reporting data on local-level RSV season onset, offset, or duration for at least two local sites.

Association of healthy sleep patterns with incident sepsis: a large population-based prospective cohort study.

Background: The role that sleep patterns play in sepsis risk remains poorly understood.

Objectives: The objective was to evaluate the association between various sleep behaviours and the incidence of sepsis.

Methods: In this prospective cohort study, we analysed data from the UK Biobank (UKB).

Perceived healthiness of sugary drinks and related social norms among adults in five countries: evidence from the International Food Policy Study.

Background: A better understanding of correlates of sugary drink consumption is essential to inform public health interventions. This study examined differences in perceived healthiness of sugary drinks and related social norms between countries, over time, and sociodemographic groups and associations with sugary drink intake.

Methods: This study used annual cross-sectional data from the International Food Policy Study from 2018 to 2021 in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Mexico.

Knights in shining armour and (M)others in life jackets: Women's experiences of advocating for care alone when suffering recurrent early pregnancy loss during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Background: Recurrent early pregnancy loss [rEPL] is a traumatic experience, marked by feelings such as grief and depression, and often anxiety. Despite this, the psychological consequences of rEPL are often overlooked, particularly when considering future reproductive health or approaching subsequent pregnancies. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic led to significant reconfiguration of maternity care and a negative impact on the perinatal experience, but the specific impact on women's experience of rEPL has yet to be explored.

Post COVID glaucoma service redesign utilising electronic patient triage and community optometry clinics (Fife, Scotland 2020-2022).

Background: COVID-19 caused a huge backlog of patients in glaucoma clinics. This study describes redesign of an entire glaucoma service with electronic patient triage to three levels and utilisation of the Scottish optometry infrastructure of upskilled optometrists.

Methods: 2276 patients in glaucoma clinics were identified and triaged to three levels in keeping with Glauc-strat-fast guidance with local amendments.

scATAC-seq generates more accurate and complete regulatory maps than bulk ATAC-seq.

Bulk ATAC-seq assays have been used to map and profile the chromatin accessibility of regulatory elements such as enhancers, promoters, and insulators. This has provided great insight into the regulation of gene expression in many cell types in a variety of organisms. To date, ATAC-seq has most often been used to provide an average evaluation of chromatin accessibility in populations of cells.

The effect of pregnancy vitamin D supplementation on maternal blood pressure: real-world data analysis within the MAVIDOS randomised placebo-controlled trial.

Purpose: Observational studies have suggested negative associations between maternal 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) status and risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy [pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) and preeclampsia (PET)]. Data from intervention studies are limited. We hypothesised that vitamin D supplementation would lower maternal blood pressure (BP) during pregnancy and reduce the incidence of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Evaluation of the Digital Ventilated Cage® system for circadian phenotyping.

The study of circadian rhythms has been critically dependent upon analysing mouse home cage activity, typically employing wheel running activity under different lighting conditions. Here we assess a novel method, the Digital Ventilated Cage (DVC, Tecniplast SpA, Italy), for circadian phenotyping. Based upon capacitive sensors mounted under black individually ventilated cages with inbuilt LED lighting, each cage becomes an independent light-controlled chamber.

Transforming CCTV cameras into NO sensors at city scale for adaptive policymaking.

Air pollution in cities, especially NO, is linked to numerous health problems, ranging from mortality to mental health challenges and attention deficits in children. While cities globally have initiated policies to curtail emissions, real-time monitoring remains challenging due to limited environmental sensors and their inconsistent distribution. This gap hinders the creation of adaptive urban policies that respond to the sequence of events and daily activities affecting pollution in cities.

The genetics of neurodegenerative diseases is the genetics of age-related damage clearance failure.

In this perspective we draw together the data from the genome wide association studies for Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and the tauopathies and reach the conclusion that in each case, most of the risk loci are involved in the clearance of the deposited proteins: in Alzheimer's disease, the microglial removal of Aβ, in the synucleinopathies, the lysosomal clearance of synuclein and in the tauopathies, the removal of tau protein by the ubiquitin proteasome. We make the point that most loci identified through genome wide association studies are not strictly pathogenic but rather relate to failures to remove age related damage. We discuss these issues in the context of copathologies in elderly individuals and the prediction of disease through polygenic risk score analysis at different ages.

Emergence of opposing arrows of time in open quantum systems.

Deriving an arrow of time from time-reversal symmetric microscopic dynamics is a fundamental open problem in many areas of physics, ranging from cosmology, to particle physics, to thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Here we focus on the derivation of the arrow of time in open quantum systems and study precisely how time-reversal symmetry is broken. This derivation involves the Markov approximation applied to a system interacting with an infinite heat bath.

CODE-ACCORD: A Corpus of building regulatory data for rule generation towards automatic compliance checking.

Automatic Compliance Checking (ACC) within the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) sector necessitates automating the interpretation of building regulations to achieve its full potential. Converting textual rules into machine-readable formats is challenging due to the complexities of natural language and the scarcity of resources for advanced Machine Learning (ML). Addressing these challenges, we introduce CODE-ACCORD, a dataset of 862 sentences from the building regulations of England and Finland.

The representation of stimulus features during stable fixation and active vision.

Predictive updating of an object's spatial coordinates from pre-saccade to post-saccade contributes to stable visual perception. Whether object features are predictively remapped remains contested. We set out to characterise the spatiotemporal dynamics of feature processing during stable fixation and active vision.

How do GPs' new ways of working affect community nurses? A qualitative study.

Background A growing literature examines the way two changes in primary care - the shift towards remote working, and the diversification of practice teams to incorporate, for instance, physician associates and paramedics - affect patient care within the practice. However, little is known about these changes' effects on community nurses. Aim To explore community nurses' experiences of delivering palliative care in the context of GPs' new ways of working.

Qualitative evaluation of the Rehabilitation Exercise and psycholoGical support After COVID-19 InfectioN (REGAIN) randomised controlled trial (RCT): 'you are not alone'.

Background: This qualitative evaluation was embedded in the Rehabilitation Exercise and psycholoGical support After COVID-19 InfectioN (REGAIN) study, a randomised controlled trial (RCT) for those with post-COVID-19 condition ('long COVID') after hospital admission for COVID-19, comparing weekly home-based, live online supervised group exercise and psychological support sessions with 'best practice usual care' (a single session of advice).

Objective: To increase our understanding of how and why the REGAIN programme might have worked and what helped or hindered this intervention.

Design: A qualitative evaluation which utilised interviews with participants and practitioners delivering the intervention.