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How federal government departments are protecting Australians' data against cyber hack

Cyber Security Minister Dan Tehan says the government can't rule out vulnerabilities to cyber threats.




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Faster NBN connections should go to all Canberra homes: Labor's Gai Brodtmann

Canberra Labor MP calls for fibre-to-the-curb and fibre-to-the-premises for whole of Canberra.




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Chinese Overseas Direct Investment and the Economic Crisis: Reaching Out

1 January 2009 , Number 5

Decisions taken today will determine the course of events for a generation. Nowhere is this truer than over the question of China’s investment abroad. This issue lies at the heart of what part the country will play in the global finance and trade system, and how it will work with the rest of the world in laying the foundations for longer term growth and stability after the current crisis is over.

Professor Kerry Brown

Associate Fellow, Asia-Pacific Programme

Peter Wood

Independent China strategist based in Hong Kong

HaierFlickr.jpg

Chinese companies establish a presence abroad.




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Episode 46 - The Internet of Christmas (IoC) Design trends, gift ideas & Rogue One

This week David Price is in the presenter chair for the jolliest tech podcast of the year. David is joined by Miriam Harris, staff writer at Digital Arts, to talk about the design trends set to shape 2017. Then online editor at Techworld Scott Carey runs through the hottest tech gifts this Christmas, including games consoles, VR, Amazon gadgets and Star Wars merch (14:30). Finally, staff writer at PC Advisor Dom Preston makes his UKTW debut to chat about the latest Star Wars movie, Rogue One, which includes spoilers (29:00). This is the last UK Tech Weekly podcast of the year. Thank you for listening and we will be back in 2017 to chat about the hottest tech topics all over again.  


See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.




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Episode 77 - The Internet of Tulips (IoT) Bitcoin, the platform wars and Christmas tech gifts

We finally get the IoT acronym the pod has been waiting for as we discuss Bitcoin and 17th century Dutch finance. Charlotte Jee informs Henry Burrell, David Price and Scott Carey.


Scott then leads us down the winding road of the so-called platform wars, in a week when Google blocked the Amazon Echo Show from streaming YouTube. Is this a bump in the road or will services be cut from rival hardware?


And finally, led by David, the pod discusses its favourite tech of the year and what you might consider buying for friends and family for Christmas.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.




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Episode 78 - The Internet of the pod before Christmas (IotPBC) iMac Pro, Netflix's Twitter misstep and Apple buys Shazam

Once more for 2017 as Henry Burrell, Karen Khan and Scott Carey bid farewell to this wonderful year (ahem) with musings on Apple's sexy new iMac Pro. Who is it for, how much is it and does this mean there is no Mac Pro in 2018?


We then tackle Netflix's Twitter shaming of its users and why Spotify got away with it earlier in the year. How comfortable are we all when we realise how much data companies really have on us?


In light of this, Apple bought Shazam - most likely for the data sets as much as the tech and the talent. What form will it take in Apple as another UK tech company is acquired?

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.




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Episode 102 - The Internet of Tennis Max (IoTM) Apple event special, new iPhones and Apple Watch

A quick-fire reaction Apple special, recorded the morning after new iPhones and an Apple Watch were announced at an event in California.


Henry Burrell joins David Price, Ashleigh Macro and Scott Carey to discuss which products we'll be buying, avoiding and coveting over the Christmas period.


Is the new iPhone named terribly? Is it an upgrade at all? What wasn't announced? And does Scott give the new Apple Watch any praise at all? It's all here.

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.




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Episode 109 - The Internet of Takes Two to Tango (IoTTtT) Fallout 76, Red Dead online and Christmas buying guide

Two’s a crowd for this week’s games and Christmas pod with Consumer Tech Editor Henry Burrell and Games Editor Lewis Painter. Lewis lines up reviews of the awful Fallout 76 and the excellent online mode of Red Dead Redemption 2 – two polar opposites in how to make a decent online multiplayer game.


We also discuss smartwatches we’ve recently reviewed that left us feeling cold and why Apple is still king of the hill.


And to get into the festive vibe, interspersed throughout as we enter December are our top tech Christmas gift picks, both cheap and indulgent.


Everything we recommend is linked below:


Google Home Hub


Tile Bluetooth tracker


Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4)


Super Smash Bros – Ultimate (Switch)


Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! (Switch)


Turtle Beach Elite Pro 2 + Superamp


Amazon Kindle Paperwhite


PlayStation Classic


PlayStation VR Starter Pack


The best budget smartphones

 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.




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Lukashenka’s Commitment to Belarusian Sovereignty Is Overstated

18 February 2020

Ryhor Astapenia

Robert Bosch Stiftung Academy Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Programme
Although President Lukashenka has recently shown assertiveness in relations with Russia, overall he has done very little to ensure his country’s freedom of action.

2020-02-18-LP.jpg

Putin and Lukashenka play ice hockey in Sochi after a day of talks in February. Photo: Getty Images.

Earlier this month, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo became the highest-ranking US official to visit Belarus since Bill Clinton in 1994. After meetings with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka – who Condoleezza Rice once memorably described as ‘Europe’s last dictator’ – Pompeo said he was ‘optimistic about our strengthened relationship’. 

The EU and its member states have also changed their tune, at least a little. Previously, prosecutions of democratic activists led to sanctions against the Lukashenka regime. But his less-than-liberal manner of governance did not prevent him from visiting Austria last November or from receiving invitations to Brussels. 

Eight years ago, most EU contacts with Belarusian officials were frozen. Now, Western diplomats regularly meet with Belarusian officials again. This year, a US ambassador to Belarus will be appointed after a 12-year break.

The West is also more willing to support Belarus financially. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development invested a record-breaking $433 million in the country in 2019. The European Investment Bank only began working with the country in 2017 but already has a portfolio of $600 million.

Certain policymakers in the EU and US now, at least publicly, appear to regard Lukashenka as one of the sources of regional security and a defender of Belarusian sovereignty against Russia.

There is some truth in this. He has taken a neutral position in Russia’s conflict with Ukraine, and he has consistently resisted pressure from the Kremlin to establish a military base in Belarus.

Now, amid Moscow’s demands for deeper integration in exchange for the continuation of Russian energy subsidies, Lukashenka has shown reluctance to sell his autonomy. In a token attempt to portray sovereignty Belarus even started buying oil from Norway, although this makes no economic sense.

But Lukashenka’s long-term record shows he has done little to ensure the country’s sovereignty. Lukashenka has resisted reforms that would have strengthened the economy (because they would have weakened his own position). The political system is also dependent on Russia because Lukashenka has been unwilling to build better relations with the West. Belarusians are still strongly influenced by Russian culture and media because the authorities marginalize their own national identity.

Since the conflict in Ukraine in 2014, Lukashenka’s primary goal has not been to strengthen the sovereignty of Belarus, but to preserve his absolute control over the country.

For example, when in 2018 Russia started pressing Belarus to deepen its integration in order to retain economic support, Minsk did not reject this approach outright; instead, it discussed no less than 31 ‘road maps’ for deepening integration for more than a year, hoping to receive more benefits. For Lukashenka, greater dependency on Russia is a matter of price and conditions, not principle. 

None of this is to say Belarus has illusions about Russia. It is just that Lukashenka does not take long-term steps to protect the country’s sovereignty or to strengthen relations with the West.

Belarus needs to start economic reform with the support of the International Monetary Fund, but this cannot happen without Lukashenka’s genuine commitment to transform the economy. Absence of cross-sectoral reform has led to the deterioration of the education system as well as unprecedented emigration. Few Belarusian experts are optimistic about their country’s future. Lukashenka knows all this, but does not change his system, fearing it would damage the stability of his regime.  

The West should therefore adopt a broader policy. Lukashenka is unlikely to still be president in 10–15 years, so policymakers should develop relations with the broader ruling elite, which will remain after he leaves, and try to be present in Belarus as much as possible helping it to improve public governance and develop private businesses.

The West should also support the country’s civil society and independent media, for whom Belarusian independence is a matter of principle rather than something to be bargained away.

Lukashenka may be a strong leader, but the state he has built is weak.




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Monitoring the itinerary of lysosomal cholesterol in Niemann-Pick Type C1-deficient cells after cyclodextrin treatment [Research Articles]

Niemann-Pick disease type C (NPC) disease is a lipid-storage disorder that is caused by mutations in the genes encoding NPC proteins and results in lysosomal cholesterol accumulation. 2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (CD) has been shown to reduce lysosomal cholesterol levels and enhance sterol homeostatic responses, but CD’s mechanism of action remains unknown. Recent work provides evidence that CD stimulates lysosomal exocytosis, raising the possibility that lysosomal cholesterol is released in exosomes. However, therapeutic concentrations of CD do not alter total cellular cholesterol, and cholesterol homeostatic responses at the ER are most consistent with increased ER membrane cholesterol. To address these disparate findings, here we used stable isotope labeling to track the movement of lipoprotein cholesterol cargo in response to CD in NPC1-deficient U2OS cells. Although released cholesterol was detectable, it was not associated with extracellular vesicles. Rather, we demonstrate that lysosomal cholesterol trafficks to the plasma membrane (PM), where it exchanges with lipoprotein-bound cholesterol in a CD-dependent manner. We found that in the absence of suitable extracellular cholesterol acceptors, cholesterol exchange is abrogated, cholesterol accumulates in the PM, and reesterification at the ER is increased. These results support a model in which CD promotes intracellular redistribution of lysosomal cholesterol, but not cholesterol exocytosis or efflux, during the restoration of cholesterol homeostatic responses.




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Current and future treatments for tuberculosis




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Novel Detection and Restorative Levodopa Treatment for Pre-Clinical Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is diagnosed clinically by directly viewing retinal vascular changes during ophthalmoscopy or through fundus photographs. However, electroretinography (ERG) studies in humans and rodents have revealed that retinal dysfunction is demonstrable prior to the development of visible vascular defects. Specifically, delays in dark-adapted ERG oscillatory potential (OP) implicit times in response to dim flash stimuli (<-1.8 log cd·s/m2) occur prior to clinically-recognized diabetic retinopathy. Animal studies suggest that retinal dopamine deficiency underlies these early functional deficits. Here, we randomized persons with diabetes, without clinically detectable retinopathy, to treatment with either low or high dose Sinemet (levodopa plus carbidopa) for 2 weeks and compared their ERG findings with those of control (no DM) subjects. We assessed dim flash stimulated OP delays using a novel hand-held ERG system (RETeval) at baseline, 2 and 4 weeks. RETeval recordings identified significant OP implicit-time delays in persons with diabetes without retinopathy compared to age-matched controls (p<0.001). After two weeks of Sinemet treatment, OP implicit times were restored to control values, and these improvements persisted even after a two-week washout. We conclude that detection of dim flash OP delays could provide early detection of DR, and that Sinemet treatment may reverse retinal dysfunction.




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Amylin Agonists: A Novel Approach in the Treatment of Diabetes

Ole Schmitz
Dec 1, 2004; 53:S233-S238
Section V: The Incretin Pathway




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The High-Fat Diet-Fed Mouse: A Model for Studying Mechanisms and Treatment of Impaired Glucose Tolerance and Type 2 Diabetes

Maria Sörhede Winzell
Dec 1, 2004; 53:S215-S219
Section V: The Incretin Pathway




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The Incretin Approach for Diabetes Treatment: Modulation of Islet Hormone Release by GLP-1 Agonism

Jens Juul Holst
Dec 1, 2004; 53:S197-S204
Section V: The Incretin Pathway




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From the Triumvirate to the Ominous Octet: A New Paradigm for the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Ralph A. DeFronzo
Apr 1, 2009; 58:773-795
Banting Lecture




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Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults: Definition, Prevalence, {beta}-Cell Function, and Treatment

Gunnar Stenström
Dec 1, 2005; 54:S68-S72
Section II: Type 1-Related Forms of Diabetes




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Correction: A dual druggable genome-wide siRNA and compound library screening approach identifies modulators of parkin recruitment to mitochondria. [Additions and Corrections]

VOLUME 295 (2020) PAGES 3285–3300An incorrect graph was used in Fig. 5C. This error has now been corrected. Additionally, some of the statistics reported in the legend and text referring to Fig. 5C were incorrect. The F statistics for Fig. 5C should state Fken(3,16) = 7.454, p < 0.01; FCCCP(1,16) = 102.9, p < 0.0001; Finteraction(3,16) = 7.480, p < 0.01. This correction does not affect the results or conclusions of this work.jbc;295/17/5835/F5F1F5Figure 5C.




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Combination upstream and downstream treatment modalities for RECOVERY from COVID-19




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Exploring the Obstacles and Opportunities for Expanded UK-Latin American Trade and Investment

Invitation Only Research Event

14 January 2020 - 8:30am to 11:00am

Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE

Trade and investment between the UK and Latin America is woefully underdeveloped. Latin America’s agricultural powerhouses Brazil and Argentina only accounted for a total of 1.6% of the UK’s agricultural market across eight sectors in 2018, all of those areas in which Argentina and Brazil have substantial comparative advantages. 

Conversely, UK exports to the large Latin American economies remain far below their potential.  To cite a few examples, in 2018 in the electrical equipment sector, the UK only exported $95.7 million of those products to Brazil, making the ninth largest economy in the world only the 42nd export market for those goods from the UK; Mexico only imported $91.4 million of UK-made electrical goods, placing it directly behind Brazil as UK’s market for those goods.

As we look to the future, any improvement to the relationship will depend on two factors: 1) how the UK leaves the EU and 2) whether Latin American agricultural producers can improve their environmental practices and can meet the production standards established by the EU and likely maintained by a potential post-Brexit Britain.

In the first meeting of the working group,  Chatham House convened a range of policymakers, practitioners and academics to explore this topic in depth, identify the key issues driving this trend, and begin to consider how improvements might best be made. Subsequent meetings will focus on specific sectors in commerce and investment.

We would like to thank BTG Pactual, Cairn Energy plc, Diageo, Equinor, Fresnillo Management Services, HSBC Holdings plc and Wintershall Dea for their generous support of the Latin America Initiative.

Event attributes

Chatham House Rule

US and Americas Programme




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Emergency departments must not return to pre-covid days of overcrowding and lack of safety, says college




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Med Treatments India | Medical Tourism in India | Healthcare India

Med Treatments India offers one stop solution for medical healthcare services and most affordable treatments facility with best hospitals & alternative treatments in India.



  • Sports and Health

tm

varicose veins treatment in hyderabad

Dr shailesh kumar garge is an Vascular specialist and surgeons in Hyderabad with high success rate. Experienced endovascular and micro vascular specialist in gachibowli, hitech city | vascular surgeon in



  • Sports and Health

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Lukashenka’s Commitment to Belarusian Sovereignty Is Overstated

18 February 2020

Ryhor Astapenia

Robert Bosch Stiftung Academy Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Programme
Although President Lukashenka has recently shown assertiveness in relations with Russia, overall he has done very little to ensure his country’s freedom of action.

2020-02-18-LP.jpg

Putin and Lukashenka play ice hockey in Sochi after a day of talks in February. Photo: Getty Images.

Earlier this month, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo became the highest-ranking US official to visit Belarus since Bill Clinton in 1994. After meetings with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka – who Condoleezza Rice once memorably described as ‘Europe’s last dictator’ – Pompeo said he was ‘optimistic about our strengthened relationship’. 

The EU and its member states have also changed their tune, at least a little. Previously, prosecutions of democratic activists led to sanctions against the Lukashenka regime. But his less-than-liberal manner of governance did not prevent him from visiting Austria last November or from receiving invitations to Brussels. 

Eight years ago, most EU contacts with Belarusian officials were frozen. Now, Western diplomats regularly meet with Belarusian officials again. This year, a US ambassador to Belarus will be appointed after a 12-year break.

The West is also more willing to support Belarus financially. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development invested a record-breaking $433 million in the country in 2019. The European Investment Bank only began working with the country in 2017 but already has a portfolio of $600 million.

Certain policymakers in the EU and US now, at least publicly, appear to regard Lukashenka as one of the sources of regional security and a defender of Belarusian sovereignty against Russia.

There is some truth in this. He has taken a neutral position in Russia’s conflict with Ukraine, and he has consistently resisted pressure from the Kremlin to establish a military base in Belarus.

Now, amid Moscow’s demands for deeper integration in exchange for the continuation of Russian energy subsidies, Lukashenka has shown reluctance to sell his autonomy. In a token attempt to portray sovereignty Belarus even started buying oil from Norway, although this makes no economic sense.

But Lukashenka’s long-term record shows he has done little to ensure the country’s sovereignty. Lukashenka has resisted reforms that would have strengthened the economy (because they would have weakened his own position). The political system is also dependent on Russia because Lukashenka has been unwilling to build better relations with the West. Belarusians are still strongly influenced by Russian culture and media because the authorities marginalize their own national identity.

Since the conflict in Ukraine in 2014, Lukashenka’s primary goal has not been to strengthen the sovereignty of Belarus, but to preserve his absolute control over the country.

For example, when in 2018 Russia started pressing Belarus to deepen its integration in order to retain economic support, Minsk did not reject this approach outright; instead, it discussed no less than 31 ‘road maps’ for deepening integration for more than a year, hoping to receive more benefits. For Lukashenka, greater dependency on Russia is a matter of price and conditions, not principle. 

None of this is to say Belarus has illusions about Russia. It is just that Lukashenka does not take long-term steps to protect the country’s sovereignty or to strengthen relations with the West.

Belarus needs to start economic reform with the support of the International Monetary Fund, but this cannot happen without Lukashenka’s genuine commitment to transform the economy. Absence of cross-sectoral reform has led to the deterioration of the education system as well as unprecedented emigration. Few Belarusian experts are optimistic about their country’s future. Lukashenka knows all this, but does not change his system, fearing it would damage the stability of his regime.  

The West should therefore adopt a broader policy. Lukashenka is unlikely to still be president in 10–15 years, so policymakers should develop relations with the broader ruling elite, which will remain after he leaves, and try to be present in Belarus as much as possible helping it to improve public governance and develop private businesses.

The West should also support the country’s civil society and independent media, for whom Belarusian independence is a matter of principle rather than something to be bargained away.

Lukashenka may be a strong leader, but the state he has built is weak.




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Unlocking Finance for Clean Energy: The Need for 'Investment Grade' Policy

1 December 2009

Kirsty Hamilton

Associate Fellow, Energy, Environment and Resources Programme

As the international community looks to the period beyond the UN Copenhagen agreements on climate change, attention is focusing on the finance for implementing global emissions reductions on the ground. The requirement for significantly scaled-up investment into the solutions to climate change is a central issue, often characterized as investment flows into 'low carbon technologies'.

This paper draws on five years of insights from mainstream financiers leading the exponential growth in renewable energy investment, and key issues for policy-makers seeking to foster conditions for even greater investment are identified.




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Windies players lack commitment – Benjamin

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC): Former Windies fast bowler Kenny Benjamin says that cricket in the Caribbean is suffering from players’ lack of loyalty and commitment and that intervention is required to save the sport. The Antiguan called for coaches...




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Diagnosis and treatment of hepatic encephalopathy

Hepatic encephalopathy constitutes a spectrum of neuropsychiatric abnormalities, beginning with subtle psychomotor changes and progressing to confusion with asterixis, somnolence, and then coma, arising in patients with impaired liver function. In this podcast, Tim Cross, a consultant hepatologist from the Royal Liverpool University Hospital,...




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The diagnosis and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder

PTSD may develop after exposure to exceptionally threatening or horrifying events. About 3% of the adult population has PTSD at any one time, and more than 50% in survivors of rape. In this podcast Jonathan Bisson, professor of psychiatry at the School of Medicine in Cardiff joins us to talk about the evidence for diagnosis and treatment, and...




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"What has convinced me is the evidence" - why mandatory treatment for drug use is a bad idea

Global evidence indicates that mandated treatment of drug dependence conflicts with drug users’ human rights and is not effective in treating addiction. Karsten Lunze, associate professor at the Boston University School of Medicine, joins us to describe the evidence, and why he is convinced seemingly counter intuitive hard reduction...




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Christmas 2016 - ideologies and moralities

In an ideal world, policies would be evidence based - but governments are made of humans, who have positions and ideologies and moral bases. In this podcast Anthony Painter, from the RSA will be talking about why universal basic income may work, but who’s proponents cross ideological barriers, and writer and philosopher AC Grayling explains how...




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Christmas 2016 - Health and happiness

Underneath all of our civilisation and science, we’re still primates - and the connection between patient and doctor can be reinforced by simply taking a hand. Robin Youngson, cofounder of hearts in healthcare, and Mitzi Blennerhassett, who has written extensively on patient engagement, have co-authored an editorial calling for the humanisation...




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neoadjuvant treatment for breast cancer - not living up to the promise

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer is a new strategy that was introduced towards the end of the 20th century with the aim of reducing tumour size - rendering an otherwise inoperable tumour operable, allowing more conservative surgery, and hopefully improving overall survival. Although data indicate that the first rationale remains valid,...




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The diagnosis and treatment of dyspareunia

Dyspareunia is a common but poorly understood problem affecting around 7.5% of sexually active women. It is an important and neglected area of female health, associated with substantial morbidity and distress. Women may be seen by several clinicians before a diagnosis is reached, There are also specialist psychosexual clinics, where men and women...




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Christmas Food 2018

the Christmas BMJ season is upon us - if you’re to go to our website now, you’ll see that it’s been a bumper year. In the podcast, we’re going to be bringing you a select few - we’ll be looking at motherhood. Trying to figure out what 17th Century causes of death were, and - as it’s christmas - in this pod we’ll be looking at food. We talk to...




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Women in medicine at Christmas

2018 will go down in history as a year of reckoning as the year that that some men’s behaviour came back to bite them. The continuing impact of #MeToo across the world has prompted another round of thinking about women’s experiences in medicine, which can be seen this year’s christmas journal In this podcast, Esther Choo and Eleni Lenos, join us...




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Coding at Christmas

For many of you Christmas is over and, you’re back to work. Admin piled up over christmas? Feeling resentful for all those forms, and the weird codes they make you put in them? In this podcast I hope we can explain why that’s important, with 17th century death, the esoteria of reed codes, and why the WHO cares about spaceship...




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I have never encountered an organisation as vicious in its treatment of whistleblowers as the NHS

Margaret Heffernan has thought a lot about whistleblowing, and why companies don't respond well to it. She wrote the "Book Wilful Blindness: Why We Ignore the Obvious at our Peril". In this podcast she talks about how culture, and groupthink, leads to a culture where whistleblowers are ignored, and why the NHS needs to change the way it treats...




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Behind the campaign promises - GP numbers, and appointment slots

A UK general election has been called - polling day is on the 12th of December, and from now until then we’re going to be bringing you a weekly election-themed podcast. We want to help you make sense of the promises and pledges, claims and counter-claims, that are being made around healthcare and the NHS out on the campaign trail. This week has...




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Surviving childhood cancer treatment

In a British cohort, 30% of patients who had survived childhood cancer had died within 45 years of diagnosis; only 6% were expected to have died. 51% had developed a new primary cancer, but a 26% died of cardiovascular disease - thought to be caused by their treatment. Consequently, efforts to reduce long term mortality have focused on reducing...




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Prevalence and treatment of precocious puberty

Precocious puberty, that is puberty that starts before age 8 in girls and 9 in boys seems to be on the rise, but whether that’s because of an increase in incidence, or greater attention is unknown - what we do know that precocious puberty in girls is commonly idiopathic, while in boys is a red flag for pathology. But either way ther first point of...




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Thiazolidinediones in the Treatment of Insulin Resistance and Type II Diabetes

Alan R Saltiel
Dec 1, 1996; 45:1661-1669
Perspectives in Diabetes




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From the Triumvirate to the Ominous Octet: A New Paradigm for the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Ralph A. DeFronzo
Apr 1, 2009; 58:773-795
Banting Lecture




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Preservation of Pancreatic {beta}-Cell Function and Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes by Pharmacological Treatment of Insulin Resistance in High-Risk Hispanic Women

Thomas A. Buchanan
Sep 1, 2002; 51:2796-2803
Pathophysiology




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Nigeria’s Solid Minerals Sector: Alternative Investment Opportunities

Research Event

19 May 2016 - 2:00pm to 4:00pm

UK Houses of Parliament, Westminster, London

Event participants

HE Dr Kayode Fayemi, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Nigeria
HE Aminu Bello Masari, Governor of Katsina State, Nigeria
Chair: Chi Onwurah MP, Vice Chair, All Party Parliamentary Group on Nigeria

As Nigeria seeks to diversify its economy, the federal government is prioritizing the development of the solid minerals sector, in order to enhance foreign investment, create local job opportunities and build technological capacity and expertise in mining.

At this event, Minister for Solid Minerals Development HE Dr Kayode Fayemi, will discuss plans and priorities for the solid minerals sector including the strengthening of regulatory frameworks and opportunities for investment. Following this, HE Aminu Bello Masari, governor of Katsina State, will discuss state initiatives for solid minerals sector development in northern Nigeria.

This event is now full and registration is closed.

Department/project




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Greinke discusses commitment to D-backs

Despite a stiff neck, which he says came on a recent airplane flight, D-backs ace Zack Greinke said Saturday that he feels much better physically than he did last year when he reported to Spring Training. Here are five takeaways from Greinke's Saturday session with reporters.




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Appropriate Use Criteria for Imaging Evaluation of Biochemical Recurrence of Prostate Cancer After Definitive Primary Treatment




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18F-FET PET Imaging in Differentiating Glioma Progression from Treatment-Related Changes: A Single-Center Experience

In glioma patients, differentiation between tumor progression (TP) and treatment-related changes (TRCs) remains challenging. Difficulties in classifying imaging alterations may result in a delay or an unnecessary discontinuation of treatment. PET using O-(2-18F-fluoroethyl)-l-tyrosine (18F-FET) has been shown to be a useful tool for detecting TP and TRCs. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 127 consecutive patients with World Health Organization grade II–IV glioma who underwent 18F-FET PET imaging to distinguish between TP and TRCs. 18F-FET PET findings were verified by neuropathology (40 patients) or clinicoradiologic follow-up (87 patients). Maximum tumor-to-brain ratios (TBRmax) of 18F-FET uptake and the slope of the time–activity curves (20–50 min after injection) were determined. The diagnostic accuracy of 18F-FET PET parameters was evaluated by receiver-operating-characteristic analysis and 2 testing. The prognostic value of 18F-FET PET was estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method. Results: TP was diagnosed in 94 patients (74%) and TRCs in 33 (26%). For differentiating TP from TRCs, receiver-operating-characteristic analysis yielded an optimal 18F-FET TBRmax cutoff of 1.95 (sensitivity, 70%; specificity, 71%; accuracy, 70%; area under the curve, 0.75 ± 0.05). The highest accuracy was achieved by a combination of TBRmax and slope (sensitivity, 86%; specificity, 67%; accuracy, 81%). However, accuracy was poorer when tumors harbored isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutations (91% in IDH-wild-type tumors, 67% in IDH-mutant tumors, P < 0.001). 18F-FET PET results correlated with overall survival (P < 0.001). Conclusion: In our neurooncology department, the diagnostic performance of 18F-FET PET was convincing but slightly inferior to that of previous reports.




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Diagnostic Accuracy of PET Tracers for the Differentiation of Tumor Progression from Treatment-Related Changes in High-Grade Glioma: A Systematic Review and Metaanalysis

Posttreatment high-grade gliomas are usually monitored with contrast-enhanced MRI, but its diagnostic accuracy is limited as it cannot adequately distinguish between true tumor progression and treatment-related changes. According to recent Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology recommendations, PET overcomes this limitation. However, it is currently unknown which tracer yields the best results. Therefore, a systematic review and metaanalysis were performed to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the different PET tracers in differentiating tumor progression from treatment-related changes in high-grade glioma patients. Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase were searched systematically. Study selection, data extraction, and quality assessment were performed independently by 2 authors. Metaanalysis was performed using a bivariate random-effects model when at least 5 studies were included. Results: The systematic review included 39 studies (11 tracers). 18F-FDG (12 studies, 171 lesions) showed a pooled sensitivity and specificity of 84% (95% confidence interval, 72%–92%) and 84% (95% confidence interval, 69%–93%), respectively. O-(2-18F-fluoroethyl)-l-tyrosine (18F-FET) (7 studies, 172 lesions) demonstrated a sensitivity of 90% (95% confidence interval, 81%–95%) and specificity of 85% (95% confidence interval, 71%–93%). For S-11C-methyl)-l-methionine (11C-MET) (8 studies, 151 lesions), sensitivity was 93% (95% confidence interval, 80%–98%) and specificity was 82% (95% confidence interval, 68%–91%). The numbers of included studies for the other tracers were too low to combine, but sensitivity and specificity ranged between 93%–100% and 0%–100%, respectively, for 18F-FLT; 85%–100% and 72%–100%, respectively, for 3,4-dihydroxy-6-18F-fluoro-l-phenylalanine (18F-FDOPA); and 100% and 70%–88%, respectively, for 11C-choline. Conclusion: 18F-FET and 11C-MET, both amino-acid tracers, showed a comparably higher sensitivity than 18F-FDG in the differentiation between tumor progression and treatment-related changes in high-grade glioma patients. The evidence for other tracers is limited; thus, 18F-FET and 11C-MET are preferred when available. Our results support the incorporation of amino-acid PET tracers for the treatment evaluation of high-grade gliomas.




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Patient Travel Concerns After Treatment with 177Lu-DOTATATE




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Opioid agonist treatment and risk of mortality during opioid overdose public health emergency: population based retrospective cohort study