Responsible Research and Innovation: responding to the new research agenda

Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is concerned with the nature and trajectory of research and innovation: what it can do for society and who gets to decide. RRI has been embedded in key funding institutions such as EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council), and the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme and in major funding calls from other organisations. As RRI has emerged, it has been addressed in an ad hoc manner by individual projects within The University of Nottingham, such as the Synthetic Biology Research Centre and the Centre for Doctoral Training in Sustainable Chemistry. This report provides an overview of RRI, breaking down the concept into four dimensions, laying out approaches from key funders, strands of existing work at the University and recommendations for addressing the challenges which RRI presents. The report is one output of a research project using documentary analysis and interviews to investigate how RRI is being interpreted within a research-intensive, Russell Group university. The project is an interdisciplinary collaboration between the Schools of Biosciences, Chemistry and Sociology and Social Policy, funded by the University’s Bridging the Gaps initiative

Aspects of optical meterology systems for space-borne gravitational wave detectors

This thesis is an account of the research carried out by the author in developing a range of necessary components for future gravitational wave detectors, between October 2009 and September 2013 in the Institute for Gravitational Research at the University of Glasgow. The aims of this thesis were to design, develop and test technologies which enable future space-borne interferometric gravitational wave detectors. The research was as part of a large international collaboration focused on developments for a space-borne gravitational wave detector by the name of LISA an all of her variants. At the university of Glasgow this collaboration included H.Ward, D.I. Robertson, C. J. Killow, E. D. Fitzsimons, M. Perreur-Lloyd and the author

Enterovesical Fistula: A Rare Complication of Urethral Catheterization

This report describes the case of an eighty-two-year old lady with an indwelling urethral catheter inserted eight years prior to her presentation to manage her urinary incontinence. She underwent radiotherapy for muscle-invasive bladder cancer (stage T2b) in 1991 and had a laparotomy and drainage of an appendicular abscess in her early twenties. She presented with a short history of fecaluria, pneumaturia, and passage of urine per rectum. On laparotomy she was found to have an inflated catheter balloon that has eroded through the bladder wall into the lumen of a terminal ileal segment. To our knowledge this is the first reported case in literature of a patient developing an enterovesical fistula as a result of a urethral catheter eroding through the bladder wall into the bowel lumen. There are numerous known complications of long-term urethral catheterization. They include recurrent urinary tract infections, recurrent pyelonephritis, sepsis, urethral stricture, blocked and retained catheters, among many other reported complications. This case describes an unusual presentation secondary to an even more unusual complication. This should be considered when handling patients with indwelling urethral catheters inserted in unhealthy bladders

Antibiotic Resistance Is Associated with Integrative and Conjugative Elements and Genomic Islands in Naturally Circulating Streptococcus pneumoniae Isolates from Adults in Liverpool, UK

Pneumonia is the sixth largest cause of death in the UK. It is usually caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, which healthy individuals can carry in their nose without symptoms of disease. Antimicrobial resistance further increases mortality and morbidity associated with pneumococcal infection, although few studies have analysed resistance in naturally circulating pneumococcal isolates in adult populations. Here, we report on the resistome and associated mobile genetic elements within circulating pneumococcus isolated from adult volunteers enrolled in the experimental human pneumococcal colonisation (EHPC) research program at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK. Pneumococcal isolates collected from 30 healthy asymptomatic adults who had volunteered to take part in clinical research were screened for antibiotic susceptibility to erythromycin and tetracycline, and whole-genome sequenced. The genetic context of resistance to one or both antibiotics in four isolates was characterised bioinformatically, and any association of the resistance genes with mobile genetic elements was determined. Tetracycline and macrolide resistance genes [tet(M), erm(B), mef(A), msr(D)] were detected on known Tn916-like integrative and conjugative elements, namely Tn6002 and Tn2010, and tet(32) was found for the first time in S. pneumoniae located on a novel 50 kb genomic island. The widespread use of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines impacts on serotype prevalence and transmission within the community. It is therefore important to continue to monitor antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes present in both vaccine types and non-vaccine types in response to contemporary antimicrobial therapies and characterise the genetic context of acquired resistance genes to continually optimise antibiotic therapies

Vehicle point of interest detection using in-car data

Intelligent transportation systems often identify and make use of locations extracted from GPS trajectories to make informed decisions. However, many of the locations identified by existing systems are false positives, such as those in heavy traffic. Signals from the vehicle, such as speed and seatbelt status, can be used to identify these false positives. In this paper, we (i) demonstrate the utility of the Gradient-based Visit Extractor (GVE) in the automotive domain, (ii) propose a classification stage for removing false positives from the location extraction process, and (iii) evaluate the effectiveness of these techniques in a high resolution vehicular dataset

Protecting disabled children : what the latest research tells us

A recent study of child protection practice in Scotland suggests that disabled children fare less well in child protection services than their non-disabled peers. A group of academics highlight the lessons for social workers from the latest studies of safeguarding disabled children

Identifying the emergence of the superficial peroneal nerve through deep fascia on ultrasound and by dissection:Implications for regional anesthesia in foot and ankle surgery

Regional anesthesia relies on a sound understanding of anatomy and the utility of ultrasound in identifying relevant structures. We assessed the ability to identify the point at which the superficial peroneal nerve (SPN) emerges through the deep fascia by ultrasound on 26 volunteers (mean age 27.85 years ± 13.186; equal male: female). This point was identified, characterized in relation to surrounding bony landmarks (lateral malleolus and head of the fibula), and compared to data from 16 formalin‐fixed human cadavers (mean age 82.88 years ± 6.964; equal male: female). The SPN was identified bilaterally in all subjects. On ultrasound it was found to pierce the deep fascia of the leg at a point 0.31 (±0.066) of the way along a straight line from the lateral malleolus to the head of the fibula (LM‐HF line). This occurred on or anterior to the line in all cases. Dissection of cadavers found this point to be 0.30 (±0.062) along the LM‐HF line, with no statistically significant difference between the two groups (U = 764.000; exact two‐tailed P = 0.534). It was always on or anterior to the LM‐HF line, anterior by 0.74 cm (±0.624) on ultrasound and by 1.51 cm (±0.509) during dissection. This point was significantly further anterior to the LM‐HF line in cadavers (U = 257.700, exact two‐tailed P < 0.001). Dissection revealed the nerve to divide prior to emergence in 46.88% (n = 15) limbs, which was not identified on ultrasound (although not specifically assessed). Such information can guide clinicians when patient factors (e.g., obesity and peripheral edema) make ultrasound‐guided nerve localization more technically challenging.PostprintPeer reviewe

Developing a Methodology Protocol for Identifying the Superficial Peroneal Nerve in Living Models Sonographically and Formalin-Fixed Cadavers Morphologically: a Proof of Concept Study

The superficial peroneal nerve (SPN) provides cutaneous innervation to the distal anterolateral leg and dorsum of foot.1 Knowing the position where the SPN penetrates the deep fascia, to become superficial, is useful in clinical practice (e.g. ankle blocks and internal fixation of distal fibular fractures). However, there is variability in the literature as to where the SPN penetrates the deep fascia as well as the methodology to identify it with no standardised guidelines. Our primary aim was to identify this point and create a methodology protocol that could be implemented in clinical practice. The study involved sonography of living healthy adult volunteers and dissection of formalin-fixed cadavers with no past history of pathology or surgery affecting the SPN. During sonography, the bony prominences of the fibular head and lateral malleolus were identified and marked with a straight line. A 6-12 MHz linear array ultrasound probe was positioned anterior to the lateral malleolus and moved proximally to identify the location where the SPN penetrates the deep fascia to lie in a superficial plane. The lateral malleolus-fibular head (length of fibula) and lateral malleolus-SPN distances were measured. The distance of emergence from the deep fascia of the SPN anterior or posterior to the length of fibula was measured (fig 1). In the cadavers, a skin incision was made from the tibial tuberosity to the anterior intermalleolar line and the skin reflected laterally to a line posterior to fibula. The superficial fascia was explored to identify the SPN and branches (fig 2). The same bony landmarks/measurements as in the sonography were marked and measured to allow for comparison with the sonographic methodology. We successfully developed a protocol that can provide standardisation for identifying the SPN. This can reduce incorrect identification and improve success rates of clinical procedures, though individual variation must be considered. Reference: 1. STANDRING, S (Editor) 2008. Gray’s Anatomy The Anatomical Basis of Clinical Practice (Fortieth Edition). London: Churchill Livingstone ELSEVIER, page 1427. Acknowledgements: For their help and support in this study, we would to thank the volunteers, the anatomy technical staff, and the clinical skills suite manager from the University of St Andrews Medical School

Arterial Anatomy of the Anterior Abdominal Wall:Ultrasound Evaluation as a Real-Time Guide to Percutaneous Instrumentation

Introduction: Instrumenting the anterior abdominal wall carries a potential for vascular trauma. We previously assessed the presence, position, and size of the anterior abdominal wall superior and inferior (deep) epigastric arteries with computed tomography (CT). We now present a study using ultrasound (US) assessment of these arteries, to evaluate its use for real time guidance of percutaneous procedures involving the rectus sheath. Materials and Methods: Twenty‐four participants (mean age 67.9 ± 9 years, 15 M:9 F [62:38%]) were assessed with US at three axial planes on the anterior abdominal wall: transpyloric plane (TPP), umbilicus, and anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS). Results: An artery was visible least frequently at the TPP (62.5 – 45.8%), compared with the umbilicus (95.8–100%) and ASIS (100%), on the left, χ2(2) = 20.571; p &lt; .001, and right, χ2(2) = 27.842; p &lt; .001, with a moderate strength association (Cramer's V = 0.535 [left] and 0.622 [right]). Arteries were most commonly observed within the rectus abdominis muscle at the level of the TPP and umbilicus, but posterior to the muscle at the level of the ASIS (95.8–100%). As with the CT study, the inferior epigastric artery was observed to be larger in diameter, start more laterally, and move medially as it coursed superiorly. Conclusions: These data corroborate our previous results and suggest that the safest level to instrument the rectus sheath (with respect to vascular anatomy) is at the TPP. Such information may be particularly relevant to anesthetists performing rectus sheath block and surgeons during laparoscopic port insertion