Performance of three local chicken ecotypes of Ghana naturally exposed to velogenic Newcastle disease virus

This study was to evaluate the performance of three Ghanaian local ecotypes that were exposed to a natural velogenic Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV) challenge. The birds at four weeks of age had been challenged with a lentogenic (vaccine) form of the virus and later exposed to velogenic NDV when their anti-NDV antibody titres had fallen below 1000. All the birds lost weight over the 21 days of exposure to the virus, with the Coastal Savannah ecotype showing the fastest weight loss albeit not significant (p\u3e0.05). Lesion scores for all ecotypes were low and similar across ecotypes suggesting that the challenge was not severe. Heritability was zero for the lesion scores and low (0.01) for post-challenge growth rate across ecotypes. Hence, not much progress can be made in selection to improve post infection growth rate

Genotypic and phenotypic characterisation of three local chicken ecotypes of Ghana based on principal component analysis and body measurements

This study was to characterise three Ghanaian local chicken ecotypes, namely, Interior Savannah, Forest and Coastal Savannah ecotypes, based on morphological data and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes. Morphological data including shank length, body girth, back length, thigh length, beak length, comb length and wattle length were collected. Blood samples were also obtained for SNP genotyping with Affymetrix chicken 600k SNP chip. Principal component analysis showed that Forest and Coastal Savannah birds were closely related. Generally, all three ecotypes seemed very diverse especially birds from the Interior Savannah zone. Morphological characterisation showed ecotype, sex and pen had significant effect on body weights (p0.05). Very few of the phenotypes reported to be associated with heat resistance – frizzle (2%) and naked neck (1.6%) – were found in the current study. It is concluded that the three local ecotypes are genetically diverse but with similar morphological features

Genetic parameters and genomic regions associated with growth rate and response to Newcastle disease in local chicken ecotypes in Ghana and Tanzania

Local chicken breeds play an important role in the livelihoods of people in both rural and urban areas of Africa. One of the main constraints to the poultry sector in many sub-Saharan countries is disease, with Newcastle disease (ND) being the most important. Because vaccination does not adequately control ND, selective breeding offers an effective complement, provided there is genetic variation in resistance, tolerance and/or response to ND. We investigated this topic by challenging 6 local ecotypes from Ghana and Tanzania with a lentogenic (vaccine) strain of Newcastle disease virus (NDV), then measuring growth, anti-NDV antibody levels, and viral load from hatch to 38 days of age. We estimated variance components and performed a genome-wide association study using 2800 birds genotyped with the 600K Affymetrix chicken genotyping array. Heritabilities were moderate to high (0.14 – 0.55) for all the traits studied, which indicates that selection to improve these breeds for resistance to ND can be feasible. GWAS also revealed several genomic regions that explained ≥0.5% of the genetic variance, including a candidate gene region for antibody response on GGA1. We conclude that all traits investigated in this study appear to be highly polygenic in nature. Future studies will characterize differences between the breeds/ecotypes, determine if large breed-specific quantitative trait loci can be identified, and evaluate the response of the same birds to endemic, velogenic NDV strains

Patient-reported outcomes in the ProtecT randomized trial of clinically localized prostate cancer treatments: Study design, and baseline urinary, bowel and sexual function and quality of life

Objectives: To present the baseline patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) in the Prostate Testing for Cancer and Treatment (ProtecT) randomized trial comparing active monitoring, radical prostatectomy and external-beam conformal radiotherapy for localized prostate cancer and to compare results with other populations. Materials and Methods: A total of 1643 randomized men, aged 50-69 years and diagnosed with clinically localized disease identified by prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing, in nine UK cities in the period 1999-2009 were included. Validated PROMs for disease-specific (urinary, bowel and sexual function) and condition-specific impact on quality of life (Expanded Prostate Index Composite [EPIC], 2005 onwards; International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Urinary Incontinence [ICIQ-UI], 2001 onwards; the International Continence Society short-form male survey [ICSmaleSF]; anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale [HADS]), generic mental and physical health (12-item short-form health survey [SF-12]; EuroQol quality-of-life survey, the EQ-5D-3L) were assessed at prostate biopsy clinics before randomization. Descriptive statistics are presented by treatment allocation and by men's age at biopsy and PSA testing time points for selected measures. Results: A total of 1438 participants completed biopsy questionnaires (88%) and 77-88% of these were analysed for individual PROMs. Fewer than 1% of participants were using pads daily (5/754). Storage lower urinary tract symptoms were frequent (e.g. nocturia 22%, 312/1423). Bowel symptoms were rare, except for loose stools (16%, 118/754). One third of participants reported erectile dysfunction (241/735) and for 16% (118/731) this was a moderate or large problem. Depression was infrequent (80/1399, 6%) but 20% of participants (278/1403) reported anxiety. Sexual function and bother were markedly worse in older men (65-70 years), whilst urinary bother and physical health were somewhat worse than in younger men (49-54 years, all P < 0.001). Bowel health, urinary function and depression were unaltered by age, whilst mental health and anxiety were better in older men (P < 0.001). Only minor differences existed in mental or physical health, anxiety and depression between PSA testing and biopsy assessments. Conclusion: The ProtecT trial baseline PROMs response rates were high. Symptom frequencies and generic quality of life were similar to those observed in populations screened for prostate cancer and control subjects without cancer

Global wealth disparities drive adherence to COVID-safe pathways in head and neck cancer surgery

Peer reviewe

Cost-effectiveness of robot-assisted radical cystectomy vs open radical cystectomy for patients with bladder cancer

Importance The value to payers of robot-assisted radical cystectomy with intracorporeal urinary diversion (iRARC) when compared with open radical cystectomy (ORC) for patients with bladder cancer is unclear. Objectives To compare the cost-effectiveness of iRARC with that of ORC. Design, Setting, and Participants This economic evaluation used individual patient data from a randomized clinical trial at 9 surgical centers in the United Kingdom. Patients with nonmetastatic bladder cancer were recruited from March 20, 2017, to January 29, 2020. The analysis used a health service perspective and a 90-day time horizon, with supplementary analyses exploring patient benefits up to 1 year. Deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were undertaken. Data were analyzed from January 13, 2022, to March 10, 2023. Interventions Patients were randomized to receive either iRARC (n = 169) or ORC (n = 169). Main Outcomes and Measures Costs of surgery were calculated using surgery timings and equipment costs, with other hospital data based on counts of activity. Quality-adjusted life-years were calculated from European Quality of Life 5-Dimension 5-Level instrument responses. Prespecified subgroup analyses were undertaken based on patient characteristics and type of diversion. Results A total of 305 patients with available outcome data were included in the analysis, with a mean (SD) age of 68.3 (8.1) years, and of whom 241 (79.0%) were men. Robot-assisted radical cystectomy was associated with statistically significant reductions in admissions to intensive therapy (6.35% [95% CI, 0.42%-12.28%]), and readmissions to hospital (14.56% [95% CI, 5.00%-24.11%]), but increases in theater time (31.35 [95% CI, 13.67-49.02] minutes). The additional cost of iRARC per patient was £1124 (95% CI, −£576 to £2824 [US $1622 (95$831 to $4075)]) with an associated gain in quality-adjusted life-years of 0.01124 (95$144 312) per quality-adjusted life-year gained. Robot-assisted radical cystectomy had a much higher probability of being cost-effective for subgroups defined by age, tumor stage, and performance status. Conclusions and Relevance In this economic evaluation of surgery for patients with bladder cancer, iRARC reduced short-term morbidity and some associated costs. While the resulting cost-effectiveness ratio was in excess of thresholds used by many publicly funded health systems, patient subgroups were identified for which iRARC had a high probability of being cost-effective