Carer and staff perceptions of end-of-life care provision: case of a hospice-at-home service

People requiring palliative care should have their needs met by services acting in accordance with their wishes. A hospice in the south of England provides such care via a 24/7 hospice at home service. This study aimed to establish how a nurse-led night service supported patients and family carers to remain at home and avoid hospital admissions. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with family carers (n=38) and hospice-at-home staff (n=9). Through night-time phone calls and visits, family carers felt supported by specialist hospice staff whereby only appropriate hospital admission was facilitated. Staff provided mediation between family carer and other services enabling more integrated care and support to remain at home. A hospice-at-home night service can prevent unnecessary hospital admissions and meet patient wishes through specialist care at home

Collecting wild Miscanthus germplasm in Asia for crop improvement and conservation in Europe whilst adhering to the guidelines of the United Nations’ Convention on Biological Diversity

We would like to thank Dr Helen Ougham and Professor Howard Thomas for their valuable comments on this manuscript; Sarah Hawkins at IBERS for the leading of harvesting and phenotyping works; and Paul Barber at Plant Health and Seeds Inspectorate, Wales & West Midlands, Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) for advice on germplasm collection practice and quarantine management. This research was supported by the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) under a project entitled ‘Accession of CBD compliant Miscanthus and Triarrhena germplasm from China, Japan and Taiwan for incorporation in the UK Miscanthus breeding programme’ [grant no. NF0436]. The breeding and evaluation were conducted under ‘Genetic improvement of Miscanthus as a sustainable feedstock for bioenergy in the UK (GIANT)’ [supported by Defra and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000690, ‘Research Councils UK’), UK, grant no. LK0863]. LH, ID and JCB were supported by BBSRC grant nos BBS/E/G/00003134 and BBS/E/W/0012843A.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Genome-Wide Association Study of Golden Retrievers Identifies Germ-Line Risk Factors Predisposing to Mast Cell Tumours

Canine mast cell tumours (CMCT) are one of the most common skin tumours in dogs with a major impact on canine health. Certain breeds have a higher risk of developing mast cell tumours, suggesting that underlying predisposing germ-line genetic factors play a role in the development of this disease. The genetic risk factors are largely unknown, although somatic mutations in the oncogene C-KIT have been detected in a proportion of CMCT, making CMCT a comparative model for mastocytosis in humans where C-KIT mutations are frequent. We have performed a genome wide association study in golden retrievers from two continents and identified separate regions in the genome associated with risk of CMCT in the two populations. Sequence capture of associated regions and subsequent fine mapping in a larger cohort of dogs identified a SNP associated with development of CMCT in the GNAI2 gene (p = 2.2x10(-16)), introducing an alternative splice form of this gene resulting in a truncated protein. In addition, disease associated haplotypes harbouring the hyaluronidase genes HYAL1, HYAL2 and HYAL3 on cfa20 and HYAL4, SPAM1 and HYALP1 on cfa14 were identified as separate risk factors in European and US golden retrievers, respectively, suggesting that turnover of hyaluronan plays an important role in the development of CMCT

Genome-Wide Association Study of Golden Retrievers Identifies Germ-Line Risk Factors Predisposing to Mast Cell Tumours

Canine mast cell tumours (CMCT) are one of the most common skin tumours in dogs with a major impact on canine health. Certain breeds have a higher risk of developing mast cell tumours, suggesting that underlying predisposing germ-line genetic factors play a role in the development of this disease. The genetic risk factors are largely unknown, although somatic mutations in the oncogene C-KIT have been detected in a proportion of CMCT, making CMCT a comparative model for mastocytosis in humans where C-KIT mutations are frequent. We have performed a genome wide association study in golden retrievers from two continents and identified separate regions in the genome associated with risk of CMCT in the two populations. Sequence capture of associated regions and subsequent fine mapping in a larger cohort of dogs identified a SNP associated with development of CMCT in the GNAI2 gene (p = 2.2x10-16), introducing an alternative splice form of this gene resulting in a truncated protein. In addition, disease associated haplotypes harbouring the hyaluronidase genes HYAL1, HYAL2 and HYAL3 on cfa20 and HYAL4, SPAM1 and HYALP1 on cfa14 were identified as separate risk factors in European and US golden retrievers, respectively, suggesting that turnover of hyaluronan plays an important role in the development of CMCT

a) Close up view of the most associated region from the American GWAS analysis. b) Minor allele frequency of the associated region. c) Further close up of the associated peak showing the LD structure of the SNPs in the area relative to the most associated SNP. d) Close up view of the genes located in the area of the associated haplotype.

<p>Red arrow indicates the location of the most associated SNP.</p

Manhattan plot showing the–log 10 p-values in relation to the chromosomes.

<p>a) American data b) European data c) American and European data combined. Q-Q plots showing the expected p-value in relation to the observed p-value for each GWAS analysis. Shaded area indicates 95% confidence interval. Stippled line marks nominal significance threshold.</p

Multiple dimensional scaling plot visualising the genetic similarity between the individuals within the population using the two first principal components as calculated in PLINK.

<p>a) American and European data combined b) American data c) European data.</p