LITERATURE UPDATE ARTICLES

The adoption of digital pathology into routine histopathology practice is not without its problems in terms of implementation, changing work practices and staff acceptance. Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a selection of research devoted to such issues, and also examples of the value this technology offers to patient care and outcome.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, presenting as a gradual decline in memory, thinking, behaviour and social skills. New tests might be able to diagnose the disease when symptoms are very mild, so that the latest therapeutic advances in the field can be applied. Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of current research interest.

In the December 2023 issue of this magazine, Markus Meyer looked at how early and accurate identification can assist in controlling outbreaks of Candida auris, thanks to advances in polymerase chain reaction testing and strain typing technology. Here, to complement previous coverage, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of recent research interest in this important fungal agent.

There can be few medical scientists who have not heard of HeLa cells; the cultured cell line derived from the biopsy of a glandular cervical cancer from an American woman named Henrietta Lacks. The full history both of the lady and her immortal cells is charted eloquently by Rebecca Skloot in her book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Here, some 70 years since the tissue was taken, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of recent research undertaken using HeLa cells.

Kidney function tests on urine and blood are a ubiquitous feature of the workload in clinical chemistry laboratories. Disease often has no symptoms until damage to the kidney is at an advanced stage, hence pathology testing is a vital service. Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of recent research interest in nephrology.

The repeated replication of a focused segment of genetic material by polymerising nucleotides is just one concept applicable to numerous fields in modern molecular biology and related sciences. Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of recent research interest in this rapidly developing field.

Liquid biopsy is a minimally invasive approach to determine the presence of malignant tumours, looking for evidence of tumour cells and cancer cell DNA circulating in blood, and potentially also in body fluids such as urine, sputum and saliva. Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of recent research interest in this fascinating field.

In a post-pandemic world, it is perhaps counter-intuitive to suggest that viral agents could contribute to medicine’s fight against the rise of antimicrobial resistance. However, the use of bacteriophages against bacterial infection predates the antibiotic era, so what are some of the opportunities currently being explored? Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of recent research interest.

Relics of ancient viruses, endogenous retroviruses that can be found in human DNA, have recently found exposure in the media. But what range of applications can be found in the recent literature? Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of current research interest in the field.

Developments in lateral-flow assay technology have been highlighted by its ubiquitous use during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, but its utility covers a much wider spectrum of applications. Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of current research activity in the field.

Following the limiting effect that the various COVID-19 restrictions had on influenza rates over the past two years, infection due to this virus has return with a vengeance this winter. Here, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of current virology research activity.

Recent media coverage has highlighted the relatively new technology involving mRNA that has found application in COVID vaccination, but also in the treatment of cancer. The mRNA technology works by sending instructions to cells to produce an antigen or protein, thus enabling the immune system to target cells for destruction. Here, Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of activity in this important research.

Every September, Blood Cancer Awareness Month raises awareness and understanding of blood cancers, supported by the charity Blood Cancer UK. The focus in 2022 was on highlighting the symptoms and signs of the various diseases that fall under the umbrella term of blood cancer. To complement this, Pathology in Practice Science Editor Brian Nation compiles a small selection of current research activity.

While genomic methods are gaining importance across pathology, especially in infection sciences and tissue sciences, the application of routine staining methods continues to complement 21st-century technology. The following papers include the use of Christian Gram’s eponymous method or that named after two German doctors, the bacteriologist Franz Ziehl and pathologist Friedrich Neelsen.

Polio has returned to the media spotlight recently after the discovery of the virus in London sewage. The following is a selection of free-to-access research interest in this year’s scientific literature on the subject of this small, single-stranded RNA virus.

Although very small in number, recent cases of monkeypox viral infection in the UK had doubled. The following is a selection of free-to-access research interest in the current literature on the subject of this member of the Orthopoxvirus genus

Haemophilia is a rare condition that affects the blood's ability to clot. It is usually inherited and most people who have the disease are male. The following is a selection of research interest in the current literature.

he recent reporting in the media of one man’s gene editing treatment to reverse the effect of his sickle cell disease has thrust this condition into the limelight. The following are examples of open-access coverage of sickle cell genetics in the current literature.

Much has change across the research community over the past two years as a result of the ongoing pandemic. As an example, open-access publishing has been a beneficiary of the need to make the results of research available as quickly as possible.