The gynaecological subspecialties: advances in women’s health

Under Professor Dennis Davey’s leadership, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology recognised the need for subspecialist expertise and training. Thus, the gynaecological subspecialties were developed, the first of which was gynaecological oncology. We review the research, and subsequent clinical application, which has evolved from the subspecialist units

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the environment: What are the big questions?

Background: Over the past 10-15 years, a substantial amount of work has been done by the scientific, regulatory, and business communities to elucidate the effects and risks of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in the environment. Objective: This review was undertaken to identify key outstanding issues regarding the effects of PPCPs on human and ecological health in order to ensure that future resources will be focused on the most important areas. Data sources: To better understand and manage the risks of PPCPs in the environment, we used the "key question" approach to identify the principle issues that need to be addressed. Initially, questions were solicited from academic, government, and business communities around the world. A list of 101 questions was then discussed at an international expert workshop, and a top-20 list was developed. Following the workshop, workshop attendees ranked the 20 questions by importance. Data synthesis: The top 20 priority questions fell into seven categories: a) prioritization of substances for assessment, b) pathways of exposure, c) bioavailability and uptake, d) effects characterization, e) risk and relative risk, f) antibiotic resistance, and g) risk management. Conclusions: A large body of information is now available on PPCPs in the environment. This exercise prioritized the most critical questions to aid in development of future research programs on the topic.Centro de Investigaciones del Medioambient

The Application of DNA Barcodes for the Identification of Marine Crustaceans from the North Sea and Adjacent Regions

During the last years DNA barcoding has become a popular method of choice for molecular specimen identification. Here we present a comprehensive DNA barcode library of various crustacean taxa found in the North Sea, one of the most extensively studied marine regions of the world. Our data set includes 1,332 barcodes covering 205 species, including taxa of the Amphipoda, Copepoda, Decapoda, Isopoda, Thecostraca, and others. This dataset represents the most extensive DNA barcode library of the Crustacea in terms of species number to date. By using the Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD), unique BINs were identified for 198 (96.6%) of the analyzed species. Six species were characterized by two BINs (2.9%), and three BINs were found for the amphipod species Gammarus salinus Spooner, 1947 (0.4%). Intraspecific distances with values higher than 2.2% were revealed for 13 species (6.3%). Exceptionally high distances of up to 14.87% between two distinct but monophyletic clusters were found for the parasitic copepod Caligus elongatus Nordmann, 1832, supporting the results of previous studies that indicated the existence of an overlooked sea louse species. In contrast to these high distances, haplotype-sharing was observed for two decapod spider crab species, Macropodia parva Van Noort & Adema, 1985 and Macropodia rostrata (Linnaeus, 1761), underlining the need for a taxonomic revision of both species. Summarizing the results, our study confirms the application of DNA barcodes as highly effective identification system for the analyzed marine crustaceans of the North Sea and represents an important milestone for modern biodiversity assessment studies using barcode sequence

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Population genomics confirms acquisition of drug-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus infection by humans from the environment

Infections caused by the fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus are increasingly resistant to first-line azole antifungal drugs. However, despite its clinical importance, little is known about how susceptible patients acquire infection from drug-resistant genotypes in the environment. Here, we present a population genomic analysis of 218 A. fumigatus isolates from across the UK and Ireland (comprising 153 clinical isolates from 143 patients and 65 environmental isolates). First, phylogenomic analysis shows strong genetic structuring into two clades (A and B) with little interclade recombination and the majority of environmental azole resistance found within clade A. Second, we show occurrences where azole-resistant isolates of near-identical genotypes were obtained from both environmental and clinical sources, indicating with high confidence the infection of patients with resistant isolates transmitted from the environment. Third, genome-wide scans identified selective sweeps across multiple regions indicating a polygenic basis to the trait in some genetic backgrounds. These signatures of positive selection are seen for loci containing the canonical genes encoding fungicide resistance in the ergosterol biosynthetic pathway, while other regions under selection have no defined function. Lastly, pan-genome analysis identified genes linked to azole resistance and previously unknown resistance mechanisms. Understanding the environmental drivers and genetic basis of evolving fungal drug resistance needs urgent attention, especially in light of increasing numbers of patients with severe viral respiratory tract infections who are susceptible to opportunistic fungal superinfections

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the environment: What are the big questions?

Background: Over the past 10-15 years, a substantial amount of work has been done by the scientific, regulatory, and business communities to elucidate the effects and risks of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in the environment. Objective: This review was undertaken to identify key outstanding issues regarding the effects of PPCPs on human and ecological health in order to ensure that future resources will be focused on the most important areas. Data sources: To better understand and manage the risks of PPCPs in the environment, we used the "key question" approach to identify the principle issues that need to be addressed. Initially, questions were solicited from academic, government, and business communities around the world. A list of 101 questions was then discussed at an international expert workshop, and a top-20 list was developed. Following the workshop, workshop attendees ranked the 20 questions by importance. Data synthesis: The top 20 priority questions fell into seven categories: a) prioritization of substances for assessment, b) pathways of exposure, c) bioavailability and uptake, d) effects characterization, e) risk and relative risk, f) antibiotic resistance, and g) risk management. Conclusions: A large body of information is now available on PPCPs in the environment. This exercise prioritized the most critical questions to aid in development of future research programs on the topic.Fil: Boxall, Alistair B. A.. University of York; Reino UnidoFil: Rudd, Murray A.. University of York; Reino UnidoFil: Brooks, Bryan W.. Baylor University; Estados UnidosFil: Caldwell, Daniel J.. Johnson & Johnson; Estados UnidosFil: Choi, Kyungho. Seoul National University; Corea del SurFil: Hickmann, Silke. Umweltbundesamt; AlemaniaFil: Innes, Elizabeth. Health Canada; CanadáFil: Ostapyk, Kim. Health Canada; CanadáFil: Staveley, Jane P.. Exponent; Estados UnidosFil: Verslycke, Tim. Gradient; Estados UnidosFil: Ankley, Gerald T.. United States Environmental Protection Agency; Estados UnidosFil: Beazley, Karen F.. Dalhousie University Halifax; CanadáFil: Belanger, Scott E.. Procter And Gamble; Estados UnidosFil: Berninger, Jason P.. Baylor University; Estados UnidosFil: Carriquiriborde, Pedro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Departamento de Química. Centro de Investigaciones del Medio Ambiente; ArgentinaFil: Coors, Anja. Ect Oekotoxikologie Gmbh; AlemaniaFil: DeLeo, Paul C.. American Cleaning Institute; Estados UnidosFil: Dyer, Scott D.. Procter And Gamble; Estados UnidosFil: Ericson, Jon F.. Pfizer Inc.; Estados UnidosFil: Gagné, François. Environment Canada; CanadáFil: Giesy, John P.. University of Saskatchewan; CanadáFil: Gouin, Todd. Unilever; Reino UnidoFil: Hallstrom, Lars. University of Alberta; CanadáFil: Karlsson, Maja V.. University of York; Reino UnidoFil: Joakim Larsson, D.G.. University of Göteborg; AlemaniaFil: Lazorchak, James M.. United States Environmental Protection Agency; Estados UnidosFil: Mastrocco, Frank. Pfizer Inc.; Estados UnidosFil: McLaughlin, Alison. Health Canada; CanadáFil: McMaster, Mark E.. Environment Canada; CanadáFil: Meyerhoff, Roger D.. Eli Lilly And Company; Estados UnidosFil: Moore, Roberta. Health Canada; CanadáFil: Parrott, Joanne L.. Environment Canada; CanadáFil: Snape, Jason R.. AstraZeneca UK Ltd.; Reino UnidoFil: Murray-Smith, Richard. AstraZeneca UK Ltd.; Reino UnidoFil: Servos, Mark R.. University of Waterloo; CanadáFil: Sibley, Paul K.. University of Guelph; CanadáFil: Straub, Jürg Oliver. F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.; SuizaFil: Szabo, Nora D.. University of Ottawa; CanadáFil: Topp, Edward. Agriculture Et Agroalimentaire Canada; CanadáFil: Tetreault, Gerald R.. University of Waterloo; CanadáFil: Trudeau, Vance L.. University of Ottawa; CanadáFil: Van Der Kraak, Glen. University of Guelph; Canad