151398 research outputs found
Sort by
List of Recommended Names for bacteria of medical importance: report of the Ad Hoc Committee on Mitigating Changes in Prokaryotic Nomenclature
No full textThe Ad Hoc Committee on Mitigating Changes in Prokaryotic Nomenclature was recently established under the auspices of the International Committee on Systematics of Prokaryotes to address the impact of name changes of prokaryotic taxa in databases, scientific publications and other sources, particularly agencies responsible for establishing protocols and standards for infectious disease control. Here, we report on the activities of the committee and the actions taken to date. A first key task of the Committee was to emphasize to stakeholders that the vast majority of name changes are not mandatory under the International Code of Nomenclature of Prokaryotes (ICNP), and to provide guidance. The second key task was to compile a List of Recommended Names (LoRN) for bacteria of human or veterinary medical importance. This list has been incorporated into the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and is easily and freely available from LPSN. The principles for compiling and updating the list are described. Use of this list, rather than automatically treating the most recently proposed name of a taxon that has obtained standing under the ICNP as the name to be applied to the taxon, will greatly reduce the burden on practitioners who need to use prokaryotic names, e.g. in human and veterinary medical routines, and the risk associated with new, unfamiliar names. Other databases are encouraged to use LoRN
Hydrogel-based devices for cancer diagnostics: a systematic review of materials and biomarkers
No full textA promising trend in complex cancer care is personalized therapy, a molecular profiling to tailor treatments to each patient's unique tumor attributes. Different methodologies have been used to identify cancer's mutation profile, including the use of hydrogel in liquid biopsy. This review aims to assess published works describing the performance of hydrogels as diagnostic devices for cancer biomarker detection. A systematic search was conducted following PRISMA guidelines across five databases: PubMed, Scopus, Embase, MEDLINE, and EBSCO. Studies were screened, selected, and assessed for quality. Relevant data were extracted, including the demographics of the studies, characteristics of the hydrogel, cancer, sample characteristics captured, and detection methods. From 33 studies, various types and forms of hydrogels were discussed. This review identified the most used hydrogel polymers, including acrylamide, PEG, DNA, and alginate. The most frequently observed cancer sites were breast, liver, and cervical uteri. In addition, this work reports that the most captured biomarkers were CTCs and protein markers. Hydrogels have demonstrated a promising platform for detecting cancer biomarkers in the early stages of research. Future investigations are required to optimize and validate the hydrogel application as a diagnostic device in the translational stage.</p
Perceptions on lipoprotein(a) testing and treatment in patients from the INTERASPIRE study: a commentary
No full textThis invited commentary refers to ‘Patient perceptions on lipoprotein(a) testing and treatment for secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease: results from the INTERASPIRE study in seven countries across five World Health Organization regions’ by C.S. Jennings et al., https://doi.org/10.1093/eurjcn/zvaf17
Waiting is the hardest part: patient, caregiver, and clinician perspectives on shaping prehabilitation support strategies in liver transplantation
No full textObjective Exploring the unmet needs of patients awaiting liver transplantation remains largely unexplored and with no established multicomponent support mechanisms currently available, identifying these needs could provide better, tailored support. This study explores the experiences of patients, caregivers and clinicians, highlighting unmet needs and using these to inform support strategies during the pre-transplant period.Methods A qualitative study using focus groups. Participants: patients, caregivers and clinicians with experience of awaiting liver transplantation and/or receiving a transplantation. Focus groups were audio-recorded, transcribed on Microsoft Teams and verified by the lead author. The data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.Results A total of 52 participants were involved in the study: 23 patients, 10 caregivers and 19 clinicians, across 11 focus groups. Reflexive thematic analysis identified six overarching themes and 16 subthemes that impacted patients awaiting liver transplantation. Six themes included: (1) Sequelae of awaiting liver transplantation, (2) Current management strategies awaiting liver transplantation, (3) Perceived benefits of prehabilitation, (4) Essential considerations for targeted support, (5) Strategies to optimise engagement and (6) Opportunities and challenges of remote delivery.Conclusion This study highlights critical unmet needs among patients awaiting liver transplantation, emphasising the necessity for flexible, individualised and remotely delivered interventions that go beyond exercise support to include nutrition, psychological and peer support, financial and social resources and comprehensive education. Clinician endorsement and regular check-ins delivering behaviour change support may improve engagement, though variability in disease progression will continue to pose challenges.<br/
Overcoming the stickiness of concepts: the interplay between the barriers to theory building and creativity
No full textTheory building is not only a set of procedures related to the statement of concepts and their relations, but also requires transferring knowledge. Concepts used to construct and develop theoretical contributions must move from the minds of authors to the minds of their audience. This social-organizational process is inherently creative but also fraught with barriers. In this article, we propose a novel model of theory building involving a knowledge transfer process, emphasizing the dialectical interplay between the barriers to theory building and creativity. Drawing inspiration from Gabriel Szulanski’s work, we submit that the process is particularly “sticky”: Unless the theory is adapted to meet various criteria as it progresses through the phases of construction, it is unlikely to reach the end of the process successfully. Still, contrary to the conventional perspective on knowledge transfer, which views "stickiness” as entirely detrimental and assumes that removing barriers always facilitates theory building, we propose an alternative approach. In our model, barriers are seen as both impediments and stimuli for theory building. This dual nature of barriers requires strategic consideration, particularly when aiming to eliminate or mitigate the most harmful forms of stickiness from theory building without disregarding their potential to foster creativity. Our integrated, knowledge transfer-based approach uncovers new strategic ground for addressing the barriers to theory building, making the process socially fluent and more rational
Outsourcing the responsibility to respect? ‘Visibilising’ the external expert in business and human rights litigation
No full textExternal experts play a crucial role in implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, advising businesses on how to identify, prevent and mitigate risks. Yet their responsibility remains underexplored in relation to judicial remedy. This article addresses this gap by investigating the involvement of external experts in strategic litigation concerning alleged corporate human rights harms. While such litigation primarily seeks remediation and societal change, it also reveals overlooked actors within legal processes. Using the concept of ‘visibilisation’, this study examines three landmark cases to explore how courts understand experts’ legal subjectivity. Findings suggest that this subjectivity encompasses both an evidentiary and functional role in corporate processes, raising important questions regarding accountability. By highlighting their influence on the corporate responsibility to respect human rights and human rights due diligence (HRDD), the article advances understanding of expert responsibility and considers its future in the emerging era of mandatory HRDD.<br/
‘Marching to someone else’s beat or creating your own groove?’ Toward a rhythmic understanding of context, (entrepreneurial) agency, and transformative change
No full textHow contexts shape organizational phenomena has long been a focus of management and organization studies (MOS), as has how actors influence contexts. This paper deepens this debate using a rhythm perspective, developed against the backdrop of entrepreneurship research, which has made context a priority but not fully clarified how entrepreneurial agency alters contextual conditions. Drawing on Henri Lefebvre’s Rhythmanalysis, we argue that the everyday provides a privileged vantage point for understanding how contextual forces permeate entrepreneurship and, conversely, how they are affected by it. Specifically, we theorize that the everyday forms a diverse and shifting symphony of rhythms, and suggest that entrepreneurial agency includes the transformative capacity to shape these rhythms to create tangible value. We deepen our theorizing through the example of the Brukman textile factory, an entrepreneurial squat taken over by its former workers. The vignette explores how agency is enacted through the cultivation of moments of rupture (arrhythmia) and moments of rhythmic harmony (eurhythmia). Our contribution is to develop a rhythm perspective to spark new ways of thinking about context, agency, and transformative change. While our theorizing is rooted in entrepreneurship research, we identify ways in which it can stimulate MOS more broadly
Design and prototyping of custom SHA-3 instruction for CVA6 RISC-V Core
No full textThis paper presents the design, implementation, validation, and performance benchmarking of a custom SHA-3 instruction (shatr) integrated directly into the CPU datapath of a Linux-capable RISC-V System-on-Chip (SoC). While previous research has focused on software simulations or external coprocessors, our work details the full-stack integration into the CVA6 CPU core, implemented and validated entirely on an FPGA hardware prototype. The system is proven to be robust and compatible, successfully booting a standard Linux operating system and passing the complete suite of NIST SHA-3 cryptographic validation tests. Experimental results demonstrate that the shatr instruction provides an average performance gain of 155.21x for short inputs, 157.20x for long inputs over standard ISA execution of SHA-3 workloads. This acceleration is achieved with a minimal area overhead of 3.3% in LUTs and 1.5% in registers, with no degradation to the system’s maximum clock frequency and with no added critical path latency. This work provides a concrete, hardware-proven reference for SHA-3-based cryptographic extensions in open-source RISC-V platforms, bridging the gap between microarchitectural theory and practical, system-level deployment for SHA-3 acceleration
Unsettling integration. Decolonial acts of belonging
No full textThe content of this edited collected is based on the contributions of the Special Issue with the Refereed Journal Ethnic And Racial Studies (vol 48 issue 11), plus an additional foreword by Prof Agnes Maillot (DCU)
A multi-national cross-sectional exploration of rehabilitation services for children and young people following brain injury in low and middle income countries
No full textBackgroundBrain injury (BI) is the largest cause of mortality and morbidity among children and can lead to significant cognitive, social, emotional and behavioural deficits. There has been an absence of research examining the availability of rehabilitation services for affected children and young people in low and middle income countries (LMICs). This study therefore investigated current rehabilitation provision in LMICs for children and young people with BI.MethodsAn online survey was developed which collected data on funding support for rehabilitation, causes of BI and access to services. The survey was distributed to healthcare professionals known to members of the research team. Participants were asked to forward the survey to other professionals in their networks. Representation was sought from as many LMICs as possible. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics (e.g. percentages) and the Kruskal Wallis test to explore differences between Official Development Assistance (ODA) status (least developed, lower middle and upper middle) on access to services.ResultsA total of 179 participants from 32 LMICs responded to the survey. Healthcare professionals from the least developed countries reported charities as the main source of funding to support rehabilitation, while those from upper middle income regions were most often funded by governments. According to healthcare professionals, the greatest cause of BI in LMICs was hypoxia. The Kruskal Wallis test comparing ODA status showed statistically significant differences in access to services for occupational (P = .005), speech and language (P = .038) and aquatic therapies (P < .001), cognitive (p < .001) and vocational rehabilitation (P = .008), and community based inclusive development programmes (P = .009).ConclusionsThere is a lack of equity in accessibility of rehabilitation services for children and young people with BI in LMICs, with some services being non-existent in lower income countries. Improvements to obstetric services, screening and management of infectious diseases are needed to reduce rates of hypoxic injuries and injury prevention programmes are needed to reduce traumatic injury. Centralised, government funding is required to develop services to improve life chances for these children.<br/