Long-term results of corneal wedge resections for the correction of high astigmatism

Abstract We retrospectively evaluated 41 corneal wedge resections, performed for the correction of high astigmatism in 40 patients who were spectacle and contact lens intolerant. Keratometric astigmatism decreased from an average of 11.7 diopters (range 5 to 22.5 D) preoperatively to 3.5 diopters (range 0 to 10 D) postoperatively, representing a mean reduction of 8.2D (range 0 to 16.5), or 70%. The length of follow-up averaged 11 months. Twenty-five, 15 and 9 cases had a follow-up of at least 3, 5 and 10 years, respectively. In 16 cases the keratometry readings remained stable over the years. However, in 1 case of Fuchs' endothelial dystrophy (follow-up 13 years) and 5 cases of keratoconus (follow-up 3, 4, 12, 13 and 14 years) the astigmatism gradually increased during the various follow-up periods. In 3 other cases the astigmatism gradually decreased over the years. Corneal wedge resection is an effective technique for managing high corneal astigmatism. The results remain stable over the years except in some patients with keratoconus

Triple procedure; analysis of outcome, refraction, and intraocular lens power calculation

AIMS: A total of 97 triple procedures performed over a 6 year period were studied retrospectively to determine the best approach to calculate intraocular lens power. METHODS: The cases were divided into two diagnostic categories. RESULTS: After 1 year best corrected visual acuity was 20/40 or better in 37.5% of the cases of the 'modified group'. This group consists of patients with the diagnosis Fuchs' dystrophy, non-guttate endothelial dystrophy, and Reis-Buckler dystrophy. Analysis of visual acuity was made using logMAR. A final postoperative refraction within 2 dioptres of predicted refraction was achieved in 76.5% of patients in the modified group. CONCLUSION: In future, in the absence of a keratometry, a keratometry value of 7.49 mm will be used for calculation of the power of the implant as analysed in this study

Deformed two center shell model

A highly specialized two-center shell model has been developed accounting for the splitting of a deformed parent nucleus into two ellipsoidaly deformed fragments. The potential is based on deformed oscillator wells in direct correspondance with the shape change of the nuclear system. For the first time a potential responsible for the necking part between the fragments is introduced on potential theory basis. As a direct consequence, spin-orbit {\bf ls} and {\bf l$^2$} operators are calculated as shape dependent. Level scheme evolution along the fission path for pairs of ellipsoidaly deformed fragments is calculated. The Strutinsky method yields the shell corrections for different mass asymmetries from the superheavy nucleus $^{306}$122 and $^{252}$Cf all along the splitting process.Comment: 32 pages, 8 figure

Recombinants between Deformed wing virus and Varroa destructor virus-1 may prevail in Varroa destructor-infested honeybee colonies

We have used high-throughput Illumina sequencing to identify novel recombinants between deformed wing virus (DWV) and Varroa destructor virus-1 (VDV-1), which accumulate to higher levels than DWV in both honeybees and Varroa destructor mites. The recombinants, VDV-1VVD and VDV-1DVD, exhibit crossovers between the 5’-untranslated region (5’-UTR), and/or the regions encoding the structural (capsid) and non-structural viral proteins. This implies the genomes are modular and that each region may evolve independently, as demonstrated in human enteroviruses. Individual honeybee pupae were infected with a mixture of observed recombinants and DWV. The strong correlation between VDV-1DVD levels in honeybee pupae and the associated mites was observed, suggesting that this recombinant, with a DWV-derived 5’-UTR and non-structural protein region flanking VDV- 1-derived capsid encoding region, is better adapted to transmission between V. destructor and honeybees than the parental DWV or a recombinant bearing the VDV-1-derived 5’-UTR (VDV-1VVD)

Calculation of a self-consistent, low frequency electrostatic field in the drift-kinetic approximation

July 1977Includes bibliographical references (pages 22-23)We derive an asymptotic series in [omega]p -2 , the inverse-square plasma frequency, for the self-consistent, low frequency electrostatic field in tori. The derivation is consistent with the drift-kinetic ordering and may be used in either instability or equilibrium calculations. We find that in a time-dependent formalism, the electric field is completely determined to first order in a drift-kinetic expansion.Research supported by the Energy Research and Development Administration under contract with Union Carbide Corporation and under contract at M.I.T EX-76-A-01-229

Only one independent genetic association with rheumatoid arthritis within the KIAA1109-TENR-IL2-IL21 locus in Caucasian sample sets: confirmation of association of rs6822844 with rheumatoid arthritis at a genome-wide level of significance

INTRODUCTION: The single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs6822844 within the KIAA1109-TENR-IL2-IL21 gene cluster has been associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Other variants within this cluster, including rs17388568 that is not in linkage disequilibrium (LD) with rs6822844, and rs907715 that is in moderate LD with rs6822844 and rs17388568, have been associated with a number of autoimmune phenotypes, including type 1 diabetes (T1D). Here we aimed to: one, confirm at a genome-wide level of significance association of rs6822844 with RA and, two, evaluate whether or not there were effects independent of rs6822844 on RA at the KIAA1109-TENR-IL2-IL21 locus. METHODS: A total of 842 Australasian RA patients and 1,115 controls of European Caucasian ancestry were genotyped for rs6822844, rs17388568 and rs907715. Meta-analysis of these data with published and publicly-available data was conducted using STATA. RESULTS: No statistically significant evidence for association was observed in the Australasian sample set for rs6822844 (odds ratio (OR)=0.95 (0.80 to 1.12), P=0.54), or rs17388568 (OR=1.03 (0.90 to 1.19), P=0.65) or rs907715 (OR=0.98 (0.86 to 1.12), P=0.69). When combined in a meta-analysis using data from a total of 9,772 cases and 10,909 controls there was a genome-wide level of significance supporting association of rs6822844 with RA (OR=0.86 (0.82 to 0.91), P=8.8x10(-8), P=2.1x10(-8) including North American Rheumatoid Arthritis Consortium data). Meta-analysis of rs17388568, using a total of 6,585 cases and 7,528 controls, revealed no significant association with RA (OR=1.03, (0.98 to 1.09); P=0.22) and meta-analysis of rs907715 using a total of 2,689 cases and 4,045 controls revealed a trend towards association (OR=0.93 (0.87 to 1.00), P=0.07). However, this trend was not independent of the association at rs6822844. CONCLUSIONS: The KIAA1109-TENR-IL2-IL21 gene cluster, that encodes an interleukin (IL-21) that plays an important role in Th17 cell biology, is the 20th locus for which there is a genome-wide (P ≤ 5x10(-8)) level of support for association with RA. As for most other autoimmune diseases, with the notable exception of T1D, rs6822844 is the dominant association in the locus. The KIAA1109-TENR-IL2-IL21 locus also confers susceptibility to other autoimmune phenotypes with a heterogeneous pattern of association

Using Policy Labs as a process to bring evidence closer to public policymaking: a guide to one approach

While robust evidence is one ingredient in the policymaking process, it is by no means the only one. Engaging with policymakers and the policymaking process requires collaborative working models, navigating through the experiences, values and perspectives of policymakers and other stakeholders, as well as communicating evidence in an accessible manner. As a response to these requirements, over recent years there has been proliferation of activities that engage producers of evidence (specifically, academics), policymakers, practitioners, and the public in policy formulation, implementation and evaluation. In this article, we describe one engagement approach for facilitating research evidence uptake into policy and practice—an activity called a ‘Policy Lab’—as conducted by the team at The Policy Institute at King’s College London on numerous policy challenges over the past four years. Drawing on our experience in running 15 Policy Labs between January 2015 and September 2019, we (a) provide a guide to how we have run Policy Labs, while sharing our learning on what has worked best in conducting them and (b) demonstrate how these labs can contribute to bringing evidence closer to policymaking, by comparing their characteristics to enablers for doing so identified in the literature. While this approach to Policy Labs is not the only one of its kind, we suggest that these types of Labs manifest characteristics identified in previous studies for influencing the policymaking process; namely: providing a forum for open, honest conversations around a policy topic; creating new networks, collaborations and partnerships between academics and policymakers; synthesising available evidence on a policy topic in a robust and accessible format; and providing timely access to evidence relevant to a policy issue. We recognise the limitations of measuring and evaluating how these Labs change policy in the long-term and recommend viewing the Policy Lab as part of a process for engaging evidence and policymaking and not an isolated activity. This process serves to build a coalition through participation of diverse communities (thereby establishing ‘trust’), work on the language and presentation of evidence (thereby enabling effective ‘translation’ of evidence) and engage policymakers early to respond when policy windows emerge (thereby taking into account ‘timing’ for creating policy action)