Form and function in the hominoid tarsal skeleton.

This thesis explores form variation in the adult tarsal skeleton of extant and fossil hominoids. Three dimensional coordinate data were obtained from five bones of the foot: the calcaneus, talus, cuboid, navicular and medial cuneiform. The comparative sample was made up of Homo sapiens, Pan troglodytes troglodytes, Pan paniscus, Gorilla gorilla gorilla and Pongo pygmaeus. The fossil sample consisted of tarsal remains assigned to a number of Late Pliocene taxa: Australopithecus afarensis, Australopithecus africanus, Paranthropus robustus and Homo habilis. Statistical shape analysis was conducted using geometric morphometric techniques. The first section of analysis explores sexual dimorphism in the extant hominoid foot. It is found that there is no shape dimorphism in the forefoot, and a marginal amount in the hindfoot of Gorilla and Pongo only. Such differences are likely to be linked to high degrees of body mass dimorphism in those taxa. The section concludes that shape dimorphism is unlikely to be an important factor in explaining differences between fossil hominin pedal remains. The second section explores the inter-specific relationship between the tarsals of the extant hominoids. It is found that shape differences between taxa closely mirror those differences already described in the literature. However, it is found that the phenetic relationship between the taxa varies from bone to bone, and, furthermore, does not match the consensus molecular phylogeny. The section concludes that some tarsals are more specialised and remodelled than others, and thus great caution should be taken when considering isolated fossil pedal specimens. The third section incorporates the fossil specimens into the study. It is found that the morphology of the A. africanus and H. habilis tarsals are very similar, and fall within extant hominoid intra-specific ranges of variation. However, the morphology of the A. afarensis tarsals are considerably distinct, and show a different overall pattern to those of A. africanus and H. habilis. The section concludes that all taxa were mosaic in their affinities, but were mosaic in different ways. This thesis concludes that it is likely that there were at least two distinct ways in which the tarsals of different hominin taxa had adapted to bipedal locomotion. This finding supports recent new discoveries suggesting a far wider degree of taxonomic diversity in the African fossil hominin record than had previously been thought

Assessing the effectiveness of interventions to support patient decision making about breast reconstruction: A systematic review

© 2018 Elsevier Ltd Background: Decision making about breast reconstruction (BR) following a diagnosis of breast cancer, Ductal Carcinoma in Situ (DCIS), or to reduce future breast cancer risk, is difficult and complex. This paper systematically reviews interventions aiming to support patients facing the option of BR, and assesses their effectiveness in improving a range of patient outcomes. Methods: Ten databases were searched for articles published up to October 2017 that evaluated interventions to support patient decision making about BR within controlled trials. All included studies were assessed for methodological quality. Descriptive analyses of patient outcomes within included studies were performed. Results: The search yielded 3291 articles. Eight studies met the inclusion criteria resulting in the evaluation of seven distinct interventions (n = 1212). Six studies were assessed to be of weak methodological quality, with one of moderate and one of strong quality. Three out of five interventions demonstrated a reduction in decisional conflict (ds = 0.26–0.69) and two out of three interventions resulted in reductions in decisional regret (ds = 0.27–3.69) at various time points. Treatment choice was altered in two of five studies. There were no changes in patient-reported anxiety levels, whilst the impact on depression was mixed. In all studies which reported on it, improvements in patient satisfaction and involvement in decision making were found. Conclusions: Few interventions are currently available. Whilst some findings are encouraging, improvements on patient outcomes are mixed. Further research should focus on the development and evaluation of effective interventions

Syndromic surveillance to assess the potential public health impact of the Icelandic volcanic ash plume across the United Kingdom, April 2010

The Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland erupted on 14 April 2010 emitting a volcanic ash plume that spread across the United Kingdom and mainland Europe. The Health Protection Agency and Health Protection Scotland used existing syndromic surveillance systems to monitor community health during the incident: there were no particularly unusual increases in any of the monitored conditions. This incident has again demonstrated the use of syndromic surveillance systems for monitoring community health in real time

Form and function in the hominoid tarsal skeleton

This thesis explores form variation in the adult tarsal skeleton of extant and fossil hominoids. Three dimensional coordinate data were obtained from five bones of the foot: the calcaneus, talus, cuboid, navicular and medial cuneiform. The comparative sample was made up of Homo sapiens, Pan troglodytes troglodytes, Pan paniscus, Gorilla gorilla gorilla and Pongo pygmaeus. The fossil sample consisted of tarsal remains assigned to a number of Late Pliocene taxa: Australopithecus afarensis, Australopithecus africanus, Paranthropus robustus and Homo habilis. Statistical shape analysis was conducted using geometric morphometric techniques. The first section of analysis explores sexual dimorphism in the extant hominoid foot. It is found that there is no shape dimorphism in the forefoot, and a marginal amount in the hindfoot of Gorilla and Pongo only. Such differences are likely to be linked to high degrees of body mass dimorphism in those taxa. The section concludes that shape dimorphism is unlikely to be an important factor in explaining differences between fossil hominin pedal remains. The second section explores the inter-specific relationship between the tarsals of the extant hominoids. It is found that shape differences between taxa closely mirror those differences already described in the literature. However, it is found that the phenetic relationship between the taxa varies from bone to bone, and, furthermore, does not match the consensus molecular phylogeny. The section concludes that some tarsals are more specialised and remodelled than others, and thus great caution should be taken when considering isolated fossil pedal specimens. The third section incorporates the fossil specimens into the study. It is found that the morphology of the A. africanus and H. habilis tarsals are very similar, and fall within extant hominoid intra-specific ranges of variation. However, the morphology of the A. afarensis tarsals are considerably distinct, and show a different overall pattern to those of A. africanus and H. habilis. The section concludes that all taxa were mosaic in their affinities, but were mosaic in different ways. This thesis concludes that it is likely that there were at least two distinct ways in which the tarsals of different hominin taxa had adapted to bipedal locomotion. This finding supports recent new discoveries suggesting a far wider degree of taxonomic diversity in the African fossil hominin record than had previously been thought.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Quaternary fossil fauna from the Luangwa Valley, Zambia

This paper describes a large collection of Quaternary fossil fauna from the Luangwa rift valley, Zambia. Stone Age artefacts have been recovered from stratified fluvial contexts, but no in situ fossil fauna have yet been recovered. We report on 500 fossil specimens collected from the surface of point bars exposed seasonally along the banks of the main Luangwa river channel. We used non-destructive x-ray fluorescence analysis of the fossils' chemical signatures to determine whether they derive from one or many primary contexts, and the relation between chemical signature and state of preservation. Specimens are identified to taxon (genus) to reconstruct palaeoenvironments and biochronology. A relatively wide range of taxa is identified, including a fossil hominin talus, described here. None of the fossils are positively attributable to extinct species, except a femur of an extinct Theropithecus reported in 2003 (Elton et al., 2003). Although no additional extinct taxa were identified, some of the remains were attributable to genera which are not currently found in this region. The results suggest that the majority of the assemblage derives from sediments which are Middle Pleistocene or later, and that past environments in the Luangwa Valley may have differed from the habitat availability found today

Exploring the experiences and psychosocial support needs of informal carers of men with breast cancer: A qualitative study

Purpose: The provision of practical and emotional support for men who have been diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK falls primarily on their partners, close family members or friends. However, informal carers’ experiences are omitted from the research literature. Therefore, the present study aimed to explore the care-giving experiences of informal carers (ICs) of men with breast cancer in the UK and identify psychosocial support needs and preferences. Methods: Semi-structured interviews, conducted on the telephone or via online video calls, explored ICs’ experiences of providing support, the psychosocial issues they faced and the impact of the illness on themselves and their relationship with the patient. They were also asked about any support previously offered to them, in addition to their support preferences. Twelve ICs participated (11 females, 1 male), and 9 were spouses. Interview transcripts were analysed with reflexive thematic analysis using NVIVO software. Results: Four key themes were identified: “The impact of caring”, “Lack of awareness”, “Isolated and alone” and “Making a difference”. Conclusions: The physical, emotional, financial and social impact of providing emotional and practical care and support for a man diagnosed with breast cancer can be considerable. ICs may experience significant levels of distress and often feel isolated. Greater awareness and more research is needed to better understand the psychosocial impact and support needs for ICs of men with breast cancer. There is an evident necessity to address their information needs and offer sources of support throughout the cancer journey

Virological sampling of inaccessible wildlife with drones

© 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. There is growing interest in characterizing the viromes of diverse mammalian species, particularly in the context of disease emergence. However, little is known about virome diversity in aquatic mammals, in part due to difficulties in sampling. We characterized the virome of the exhaled breath (or blow) of the Eastern Australian humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). To achieve an unbiased survey of virome diversity, a meta-transcriptomic analysis was performed on 19 pooled whale blow samples collected via a purpose-built Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV, or drone) approximately 3 km off the coast of Sydney, Australia during the 2017 winter annual northward migration from Antarctica to northern Australia. To our knowledge, this is the first time that UAVs have been used to sample viruses. Despite the relatively small number of animals surveyed in this initial study, we identified six novel virus species from five viral families. This work demonstrates the potential of UAVs in studies of virus disease, diversity, and evolution