Time for change: a new training programme for morpho-molecular pathologists?

The evolution of cellular pathology as a specialty has always been driven by technological developments and the clinical relevance of incorporating novel investigations into diagnostic practice. In recent years, the molecular characterisation of cancer has become of crucial relevance in patient treatment both for predictive testing and subclassification of certain tumours. Much of this has become possible due to the availability of next-generation sequencing technologies and the whole-genome sequencing of tumours is now being rolled out into clinical practice in England via the 100 000 Genome Project. The effective integration of cellular pathology reporting and genomic characterisation is crucial to ensure the morphological and genomic data are interpreted in the relevant context, though despite this, in many UK centres molecular testing is entirely detached from cellular pathology departments. The CM-Path initiative recognises there is a genomics knowledge and skills gap within cellular pathology that needs to be bridged through an upskilling of the current workforce and a redesign of pathology training. Bridging this gap will allow the development of an integrated 'morphomolecular pathology' specialty, which can maintain the relevance of cellular pathology at the centre of cancer patient management and allow the pathology community to continue to be a major influence in cancer discovery as well as playing a driving role in the delivery of precision medicine approaches. Here, several alternative models of pathology training, designed to address this challenge, are presented and appraised

Grape plant named `Opportunity`

Description and specifications of a new and distinct wine grape cultivar which originated from a hand-pollinated cross of `Cayuga White` (Vitis labrusca L. by V. vinifera L., developed by the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Geneva, N.Y.; female parent, non-patented) x A-1754 (non-patented, non-released breeding genotype; male parent). This new wine grape cultivar can be distinguished by its quality juice attributes for wine production with hardy and productive grapevines adapted to Arkansas and the Mid-South of the United States

Grape Plant Named ‘Dazzle’

Description and specifications of a new and distinct cultivar of grapevine which originated from a hand-pollinated cross of ‘Gewürztraminer’ (female parent) x ‘Melody’ (male parent) made in 1991. The seedlings fruited in the summer of 1992 in a vineyard near Clarksville, Ark. and one was selected for its potential as a wine grape for utilization in the Mid-South of the United States. The original vine was tested as ‘Ark. 2574’. The new cultivar of grapevine is intended for wine production and provides advancements in cold hardiness

Grape Plant Named ‘Indulgence’

Description and specifications of a new and distinct cultivar of wine grapevine which originated from a hand-pollinated cross of ‘Seyval Blanc’ (female parent) and ‘Muscat Ottonel’ (male parent) made in 1988. The seedlings fruited in the summer of 1992 in a vineyard near Clarksville, Ark. and one was selected for its potential as a wine grape for utilization in the Mid-South. The original vine was tested as ‘Ark. 2359’. The new cultivar of grapevine is a white wine grape which is adapted to the Mid-South of the United States with good winter hardiness and distinct muscat flavor

Grape plant named `Enchantment`

Description and specifications of a new and distinct wine grape cultivar which originated from a hand-pollinated cross of Ark. 1628 (non-patented, non-released breeding genotype; female parent) x Ark. 1481 (non-patented, non-released breeding genotype; male parent). This new wine grape cultivar can be distinguished by its quality juice attributes for wine production with hardy and productive grapevines adapted Arkansas and the Mid-South of the United States

Assessing awareness and attitudes of healthcare professionals on the use of biosimilar medicines: A survey of physicians and pharmacists in Ireland

Increasing numbers of biosimilar medicines are becoming available. The objective of this survey was to assess awareness of and attitudes to biosimilars amongst physicians (medical specialists and General Practitioners (GPs)) and community pharmacists in Ireland. Physicians were invited to complete an online questionnaire during April and May 2016. Community pharmacists received a postal questionnaire in August 2015. Responses from 102 medical specialists, 253 GPs and 125 community pharmacists were analysed. The majority of medical specialists (85%) and pharmacists (77%) claimed to be either very familiar or familiar with the term biosimilar, whereas many GPs (60%) were unable to define or had never heard of the term. One in five (21%) healthcare professionals responded that biosimilars were the same as generic medicines. The majority of medical specialists opposed pharmacist-led substitution of biological medicines but some thought it could be appropriate if agreed with the clinician in advance. Medical specialists who prescribe biosimilars (n = 43) were more likely to do so on treatment initiation (67%), than switch a patient from an originator medicine to a biosimilar (28%). The findings will aid the design of educational initiatives for healthcare professionals and highlight attitudes of healthcare professionals to biosimilars, so informing regulators, policy makers and industry

Regulatory Science Ireland: bridging the information gap on biosimilar medicines

Regulatory Science Ireland (RSI) is a voluntary network of interested parties from academia, the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA), pharmaceutical and medical device industries and government agencies. RSI is conducting a research project, the objective of which is to enhance understanding of biosimilar medicines amongst stakeholders and encourage best practice in the use of these medicines

TEAMwork: Testing Emotional Attunement and Mutuality During Parent-Adolescent fMRI.

The parent-child relationship and family context influence the development of emotion regulation (ER) brain circuitry and related skills in children and adolescents. Although both parents' and children's ER neurocircuitry simultaneously affect how they interact with one another, neuroimaging studies of parent-child relationships typically include only one member of the dyad in brain imaging procedures. The current study examined brain activation related to parenting and ER in parent-adolescent dyads during concurrent fMRI scanning with a novel task - the Testing Emotional Attunement and Mutuality (TEAM) task. The TEAM task includes feedback trials indicating the other dyad member made an error, resulting in a monetary loss for both participants. Results indicate that positive parenting practices as reported by the adolescent were positively correlated with parents' hemodynamic activation of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, a region related to empathy, during these error trials. Additionally, during feedback conditions both parents and adolescents exhibited fMRI activation in ER-related regions, including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior insula, fusiform gyrus, thalamus, caudate, precuneus, and superior parietal lobule. Adolescents had higher left amygdala activation than parents during the feedback condition. These findings demonstrate the utility of dyadic fMRI scanning for investigating relational processes, particularly in the parent-child relationship