Transcription antitermination: the Λ paradigm updated

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75002/1/j.1365-2958.1995.mmi_18020191.x.pd

Total hip replacement for the treatment of end stage arthritis of the hip : a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Evolvements in the design, fixation methods, size, and bearing surface of implants for total hip replacement (THR) have led to a variety of options for healthcare professionals to consider. The need to determine the most optimal combinations of THR implant is warranted. This systematic review evaluated the clinical effectiveness of different types of THR used for the treatment of end stage arthritis of the hip. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was undertaken in major health databases. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and systematic reviews published from 2008 onwards comparing different types of primary THR in patients with end stage arthritis of the hip were included. Results: Fourteen RCTs and five systematic reviews were included. Patients experienced significant post-THR improvements in Harris Hip scores, but this did not differ between impact types. There was a reduced risk of implant dislocation after receiving a larger femoral head size (36 mm vs. 28 mm; RR = 0.17, 95% CI: 0.04, 0.78) or cemented cup (vs. cementless cup; pooled odds ratio: 0.34, 95% CI: 0.13, 0.89). Recipients of cross-linked vs. conventional polyethylene cup liners experienced reduced femoral head penetration and revision. There was no impact of femoral stem fixation and cup shell design on implant survival rates. Evidence on mortality and complications (aseptic loosening, femoral fracture) was inconclusive. Conclusions: The majority of evidence was inconclusive due to poor reporting, missing data, or uncertainty in treatment estimates. The findings warrant cautious interpretation given the risk of bias (blinding, attrition), methodological limitations (small sample size, low event counts, short follow-up), and poor reporting. Long-term pragmatic RCTs are needed to allow for more definitive conclusions. Authors are encouraged to specify the minimal clinically important difference and power calculation for their primary outcome(s) as well CONSORT, PRISMA and STROBE guidelines to ensure better reporting and more reliable production and assessment of evidence

Nanotechnology and the Developing World

How nanotechnology can be harnessed to address some of the world's most critical development problem

Belimumab : a technological advance for systemic lupus erythematosus patients? Report of a systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives: To undertake a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate clinical effectiveness of belimumab for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and antinuclear and/or anti-double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) autoantibodies. Methods: We searched eight electronic databases and reference lists for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of belimumab against placebo or best supportive care. Quality assessment and random effects meta-analysis were undertaken. Design: A meta-analysis of RCTs. Participants: 2133 SLE patients. Primary and secondary outcome measures: SLE Responder Index (SRI) at week 52. Results: Three double-blind placebo-controlled RCTs (L02, BLISS-52 BLISS-76) investigated 2133 SLE patients. BLISS-52 and BLISS-76 trials recruited patients with antinuclear and/or anti-dsDNA autoantibodies and demonstrated belimumab effectiveness for the SRI at week 52. Ethnicity and geographical location of participants varied considerably between BLISS trials. Although tests for statistical heterogeneity were negative, BLISS-52 results were systematically more favourable for all measured outcomes. Meta-analysis of pooled 52-week SRI BLISS results showed benefit for belimumab (OR 1.63, 95% CI 1.27 to 2.09). By week 76, the primary SRI outcome in BLISS-76 was not statistically significant (OR 1.31, 95% CI 0.919 to 1.855)

Innovations in Radiotherapy Technology.

Many low- and middle-income countries, together with remote and low socioeconomic populations within high-income countries, lack the resources and services to deal with cancer. The challenges in upgrading or introducing the necessary services are enormous, from screening and diagnosis to radiotherapy planning/treatment and quality assurance. There are severe shortages not only in equipment, but also in the capacity to train, recruit and retain staff as well as in their ongoing professional development via effective international peer-review and collaboration. Here we describe some examples of emerging technology innovations based on real-time software and cloud-based capabilities that have the potential to redress some of these areas. These include: (i) automatic treatment planning to reduce physics staffing shortages, (ii) real-time image-guided adaptive radiotherapy technologies, (iii) fixed-beam radiotherapy treatment units that use patient (rather than gantry) rotation to reduce infrastructure costs and staff-to-patient ratios, (iv) cloud-based infrastructure programmes to facilitate international collaboration and quality assurance and (v) high dose rate mobile cobalt brachytherapy techniques for intraoperative radiotherapy

Deed for sale from Davis Family to L. N. Box, H. Rutledge, and Nathaniel Jackson, 1878

From the Falcón Family Collection, contains personal, legal documents, photographs, family genealogy, and newspaper articles concerning various family members of the Falcón family. The largest of the series being that of correspondence between Clotilde Falcón and Alfredo Náñez. Deed for sale from Davis Family to L. N. Box, H. Rutledge, and Nathaniel Jackson, 1878, Container: 31, Box: 3, Folder: 126. University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Special Collections and Archives, Edinburg Campus. https://archives.lib.utrgv.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/94842https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/hidalgohist/1003/thumbnail.jp

Practitioners’ multi-disciplinary perspectives of soccer talent according to phase of development and playing position

The study aimed to establish the perceived importance that academy soccer practitioners placed on technical/tactical, physical, psycho-social player attributes during player selection and explore whether perceptions change according to Elite Player Performance Plan phase. Seventy academy practitioners working within Elite Player Performance Plan programs (Category 1: n = 29; Category 2: n = 13 and Category 3: n = 28) completed an online survey. Psychological factors were rated significantly (p ≤ 0.01) higher than sociological, technical/tactical, and physical factors, with recruitment staff specifically valuing psychological factors significantly (p ≤ 0.01) more than medical staff. Youth Development phase practitioners valued sociological factors significantly (p < 0.05) more than in the Foundation phase, which was also true for physical factors. Practitioners indicated significant positional differences for most physical and technical/tactical attributes. There was no playing position effect for relative age effect or maturity. Between playing position variance of outfield players for most technical and physical attributes increased according to advancing Elite Player Performance Plan phase. Attitudes to holistic talent identification criteria likely change according to practitioner role. Therefore, this study provides evidence to suggest that Elite Player Performance Plan practitioners place less perceived importance on enhanced maturity status and relative age of players but does indicate an enhancing and significant positional preference for physical and technical/tactical attributes. Suggesting that practitioners are less likely to (de)select players based on transient, maturity-related attributes and instead place greater emphasis on specialist physical/technical position-specific attributes as players navigate the Elite Player Performance Plan pathway towards professional status

Mapping the Economic Contribution of Women Entrepreneurs

Abstrac

Simple and highly efficient BAC recombineering using galK selection

Recombineering allows DNA cloned in Escherichia coli to be modified via lambda (λ) Red-mediated homologous recombination, obviating the need for restriction enzymes and DNA ligases to modify DNA. Here, we describe the construction of three new recombineering strains (SW102, SW105 and SW106) that allow bacterial artificial chromosomes (BACs) to be modified using galK positive/negative selection. This two-step selection procedure allows DNA to be modified without introducing an unwanted selectable marker at the modification site. All three strains contain an otherwise complete galactose operon, except for a precise deletion of the galK gene, and a defective temperature-sensitive λ prophage that makes recombineering possible. SW105 and SW106 cells in addition carry l-arabinose-inducible Cre or Flp genes, respectively. The galK function can be selected both for and against. This feature greatly reduces the background seen in other negative-selection schemes, and galK selection is considerably more efficient than other related selection methods published. We also show how galK selection can be used to rapidly introduce point mutations, deletions and loxP sites into BAC DNA and thus facilitate functional studies of SNP and/or disease-causing point mutations, the identification of long-range regulatory elements and the construction of conditional targeting vectors