Strikingly, the chemokine interferon-γ-inducible protein-10 (IP-10; CXCL10) was significantly reduced under enfuvirtide-based therapy (Fig. 5). The IP-10 level was inversely correlated with CD4 cell counts, and the drop

in IP-10 level was correlated with the drop in VL (r=0.51; P=0.005) (Fig. 6). Regarding the impact of enfuvirtide-based therapy on circulating cytokines, Figure 5 shows those detected by the 24 multiplex. IL-12 was the only cytokine whose level of expression was affected by enfuvirtide-based therapy, Alpelisib mouse progressively decreasing from week 4 to week 48 (Fig. 5). Furthermore, strong positive correlations were found between the level of circulating IL-12 and (i) plasma VL, (ii) the drop in plasma VL and (iii) the increase in CD4 cell count, and a negative correlation was found with CD4 cell count (Fig. 6). A sustained CD4 T-cell response despite persistent

viraemia in patients receiving enfuvirtide has been demonstrated [23,24]. To assess whether this could translate into an immunological benefit, we performed a comprehensive study of immune restoration in enfuvirtide-treated patients. We report that salvage therapy in patients with low baseline CD4 cell counts and multiple treatment failures produced a significant immunological benefit characterized by rapid changes in CD4 T-cell subsets, particularly naïve and central memory T cells, which progressively increased during the 48 weeks of therapy. Parameters of immune activation, including CD38 and

HLA-DR expression, progressively decreased, in parallel to a slight decline in the fraction of dividing cells in CD8 subsets, while a selleck chemicals llc transient increase in the percentage of dividing naïve and central memory CD4 T-cells occurred. Important changes in the level of proinflammatory mediators occurred Ribonucleotide reductase concomitantly, characterized by a significant suppression of IL-12 expression, and decreased levels of the circulating chemokines MIP-1α, MIP-1β, MIG and IP-10. The decline in circulating IL-12 and IP-10 was strongly correlated with the reduction in VL. Chronic systemic immune activation is one of the strongest predictors of disease progression [11,25–27], and it is a critical factor that distinguishes pathogenic from nonpathogenic simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) infection [28]. Its manifestations include increased T-cell turnover [29], increased frequencies of T cells expressing HLA-DR and CD38 [27], and increased circulating proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines [30]. Immune activation results in attrition of the memory CD4 T-cell pools (increased AICD and direct destruction by HIV) and in the loss of naïve T cells as a result of their differentiation into memory cells [31]. Moreover, it was recently reported that early changes in T-cell activation, as determined by measuring CD38 or CD95 expression, predict viral suppression in salvage therapy [32].

With recent developments in

viral metagenomics, characterization of viral bioaerosol communities provides an opportunity for high-impact future research. However, there remain significant challenges for the study of viral bioaerosols compared with viruses in other matrices, such as water, the human gut, and soil. Collecting enough biomass is essential for successful metagenomic analysis, but this is a challenge with viral bioaerosols. Herein, we provide a perspective on the importance of studying viral bioaerosols, the challenges of studying viral community structure, and the potential opportunities for improvements in methods to study viruses in indoor and outdoor air. “
“Ribosomal genes are strongly regulated dependent on growth phase in all organisms, but this regulation is poorly understood in Archaea. Moreover, very little is known about growth phase-dependent gene regulation in Archaea. SSV1-based www.selleckchem.com/products/BIBF1120.html lacS reporter gene constructs containing the Sulfolobus 16S/23S rRNA gene core promoter, the TF55α core promoter, or the native lacS promoter were tested in Sulfolobus solfataricus cells lacking the lacS gene. The 42-bp 16S/23S rRNA gene and 39-bp TF55α core promoters are sufficient for gene expression in S. solfataricus. However, only gene expression driven by the 16S/23S rRNA gene core promoter is dependent on the culture growth phase.

This is the smallest known regulated promoter in Sulfolobus. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show growth phase-dependent rRNA gene regulation in Archaea. Regulation of rRNA transcription is critical for cellular life and has been investigated Ceritinib manufacturer extensively in Bacteria and Eukarya, where it is tightly regulated by multiple and overlapping mechanisms including growth phase-dependent regulation (Nomura, 1999; Schneider et al., 2003). However, little is known about rRNA transcriptional regulation in Archaea. rRNA genes in Archaea are frequently linked, containing the 23S rRNA gene downstream of the 16S rRNA gene (http://archaea.ucsc.edu). Sulfolobus solfataricus and Sulfolobus shibatae contain single 16S/23S rRNA gene operons that have been previously studied in vivo and in vitro (Reiter et al., 1990; Qureshi et al.,

1997). The basal transcriptional apparatus of Archaea is similar to that of Eukaryotes (reviewed in Bartlett, 2005). 2-hydroxyphytanoyl-CoA lyase However, most putative transcriptional regulators are homologues of bacterial transcription factors and appear to act similarly, by either preventing or facilitating the assembly of the transcriptional preinitiation complex (Bell, 2005; Peng et al., 2011). How the regulators function in vivo is unclear partly due to the lack of efficient genetic systems for many Archaea. The majority of transcriptional regulation analyses in Archaea, particularly thermoacidophilic Archaea, have been performed in vitro. This is changing with the development of genetic tools for S. solfataricus (Wagner et al., 2009), Sulfolobus islandicus (Peng et al.

With recent developments in

viral metagenomics, characterization of viral bioaerosol communities provides an opportunity for high-impact future research. However, there remain significant challenges for the study of viral bioaerosols compared with viruses in other matrices, such as water, the human gut, and soil. Collecting enough biomass is essential for successful metagenomic analysis, but this is a challenge with viral bioaerosols. Herein, we provide a perspective on the importance of studying viral bioaerosols, the challenges of studying viral community structure, and the potential opportunities for improvements in methods to study viruses in indoor and outdoor air. “
“Ribosomal genes are strongly regulated dependent on growth phase in all organisms, but this regulation is poorly understood in Archaea. Moreover, very little is known about growth phase-dependent gene regulation in Archaea. SSV1-based Selleckchem C225 lacS reporter gene constructs containing the Sulfolobus 16S/23S rRNA gene core promoter, the TF55α core promoter, or the native lacS promoter were tested in Sulfolobus solfataricus cells lacking the lacS gene. The 42-bp 16S/23S rRNA gene and 39-bp TF55α core promoters are sufficient for gene expression in S. solfataricus. However, only gene expression driven by the 16S/23S rRNA gene core promoter is dependent on the culture growth phase.

This is the smallest known regulated promoter in Sulfolobus. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show growth phase-dependent rRNA gene regulation in Archaea. Regulation of rRNA transcription is critical for cellular life and has been investigated DAPT in vivo extensively in Bacteria and Eukarya, where it is tightly regulated by multiple and overlapping mechanisms including growth phase-dependent regulation (Nomura, 1999; Schneider et al., 2003). However, little is known about rRNA transcriptional regulation in Archaea. rRNA genes in Archaea are frequently linked, containing the 23S rRNA gene downstream of the 16S rRNA gene (http://archaea.ucsc.edu). Sulfolobus solfataricus and Sulfolobus shibatae contain single 16S/23S rRNA gene operons that have been previously studied in vivo and in vitro (Reiter et al., 1990; Qureshi et al.,

1997). The basal transcriptional apparatus of Archaea is similar to that of Eukaryotes (reviewed in Bartlett, 2005). Selleck HA-1077 However, most putative transcriptional regulators are homologues of bacterial transcription factors and appear to act similarly, by either preventing or facilitating the assembly of the transcriptional preinitiation complex (Bell, 2005; Peng et al., 2011). How the regulators function in vivo is unclear partly due to the lack of efficient genetic systems for many Archaea. The majority of transcriptional regulation analyses in Archaea, particularly thermoacidophilic Archaea, have been performed in vitro. This is changing with the development of genetic tools for S. solfataricus (Wagner et al., 2009), Sulfolobus islandicus (Peng et al.

More risk-seeking

behavior was seen in solo travelers compared to non-solo travelers. Also, solo travelers had significantly lower protection rates than non-solo travelers to high-risk destinations (Table 2). The composite risk estimate of the KAP of solo travelers suggested a substantial increase in relative risk for hepatitis A for solo travelers to high-risk destinations (Table 3). Business travelers to either high- (p Ganetespib mouse < 0.001) or low-to-intermediate-risk destinations (p < 0.001) less frequently sought travel health advice than non-business travelers. Business travelers to high-risk destinations had more intended risk behavior than non-business travelers, but had comparable protection rates against hepatitis A and risk perception as non-business travelers, irrespective of the risk profile of the destination (Table 2). As a consequence, the KAP profile of business travelers to high-risk destinations slightly increased the relative risk for hepatitis A (Table 3). Last-minute travelers had comparable travel health preparation in comparison to regular travelers (high-risk destinations p = 0.199; low-to-intermediate-risk destinations p = 0.111). The risk perception of last-minute travelers to either high- or low-to-intermediate-risk destinations

was significantly lower than that of regular travelers (Table 2). Last-minute travelers to high-risk this website destinations had more intended risk-taking behavior than regular travelers. Last-minute travelers to either high- or low-to-intermediate-risk destinations had significantly lower hepatitis A protection rates than regular travelers

to the same risk destinations. As a consequence, the KAP profile of last-minute travelers to high-risk destinations was estimated to substantially increase the relative risk for hepatitis A, whereas the relative NADPH-cytochrome-c2 reductase risk was moderately increased for last-minute travelers to low-to-intermediate-risk destinations (Table 3). VFRs sought travel health advice less frequently than non-VFR travelers (high-risk destinations p < 0.001; low-risk destinations p < 0.001). In this study, VFRs traveled more frequently to low-to-intermediate-risk destinations (Table 1). VFRs to both high- and low-to-intermediate-risk destinations had lower protection rates and less adequate risk perceptions than non-VFR travelers and had more intended risk-taking behavior than non-VFR travelers (Table 2). As a consequence, the KAP profile of VFRs substantially increased the relative risk for hepatitis A, irrespective of the actual hepatitis A risk of their destination (Table 3). Logistic regression analyses showed that an age >60 years was the only significant determinant for improvement of risk perception. However, over the years there were no significant trends in travelers’ knowledge, defined as an accurate risk perception of hepatitis A, neither for the group as a whole nor for the pre-defined risk groups.

However, several variations in the life cycle occur among Ustilaginaceae

species. For instance, their systemic growth ability differs according to the plant organ infected (root, leaf or flower) (see Vánky, 1994). Among these variations, the role of solopathogenic strains was poorly investigated although such strains were considered as useful genetic tools. In the literature, solopathogenic strains of Ustilaginaceae were isolated from the progeny of in vitro mated haploid and compatible yeast strains, either wild types (Ehrlich, 1958; Puhalla, 1968) or auxotrophic mutants (Holliday, 1974; Smad cancer Harrison & Sherwood, 1994). Our strategy was to isolate solopathogenic strains from germinating teliospores to evaluate and compare the production of such spores under control conditions by three different smut fungi. In Ustilaginaceae,

dikaryotic cells are unstable and revert to haploid yeasts (Trueheart & Herskowitz, 1992), whereas solopathogenic strains are stable in axenic culture. AG-014699 clinical trial This characteristic was used to eliminate fuzzy-dikaryotic strains from successive subcultures. Using this protocol, here we report the first isolation of a naturally occurring solopathogenic strain of S. reilianum, SRZS1. Nucleus staining revealed that SRZS1 is monokaryotic. The amplification and restriction enzyme digestion of mating type genes showed that SRZS1 has the two MATb alleles provided by the parental strains SRZM (MATb2) and SRZN (MATb1). This result is in agreement with the hypothesis that this monokaryotic strain is diploid. However, the strategy used did not allow us to exclude that the presence of the compatible

allele could also be the result of a parasexual transfer leading to the formation of a merodiploid strain (Zeigler et al., 1997), although such a mechanism has not been observed as yet in solopathogenic strains of U. maydis. Using specific primers of S. reilianum, PCR detection of SRZS1 in caulinar apices after crown infection showed that the strain is infectious. Its pathogenicity is weak as colonization did not lead to the formation of a sorus. We obtained similar conclusions with two other solopathogenic strains isolated from a poly-teliosporal sample (Table 1): inoculated plants present symptoms (dwarf Vildagliptin plants and/or chlorotic spots on leaves), but did not develop smutted ears. Although they are infectious, the solopathogenic strains of S. reilianum seem unable to perform the entire life cycle of the fungus. We compared the ability of teliospores from M. penicillariae, S. reilianum and U. maydis to form solopathogenic cells. Surprisingly, all strains formed by the M. penicillariae were solopathogenic. It has already been described that monoisolates of this species can be infectious (Wilson & Bondari, 1990). Under our assay conditions, the solopathogenicity of monoisolates formed after teliospore germination is the usual cell status.

056). Cause of death information was available for 1879 deaths: 452 (84.8%) of 533 deaths in patients infected via IDU and 1427 (90.4%) of 1564 deaths in non-IDU patients. Among these, causes of death could be assigned for 1600 (85%) deaths (379 IDUs and 1221 non-IDUs). Figure 1 shows percentages of deaths from

specific causes in patients who were and were not infected via IDU. The risk of death from each cause was higher in IDUs than non-IDUs, with particularly marked increases in the risks of liver-related deaths, and deaths from violence and non-AIDS infection. Figure 2 shows the estimated cumulative incidence of deaths from SB203580 mouse AIDS, liver-related disease (including hepatitis), violence (including suicide and overdose) and other causes up to 8 years after starting cART, separately for IDUs and non-IDUs. By 8 years after initiation of cART, the cumulative incidence of death was 16.3% in patients infected via IDU, compared with 7.3% in other

patients. By the end of follow-up, the largest differences in the cumulative incidence of cause-specific death between IDUs and non-IDUs were in deaths resulting from hepatitis [0.72 vs. 0.08%, respectively; adjusted hazard ratio (AHR) 8.8; 95% CI 5.0–15.5], liver disease (0.38 vs. 0.09%; AHR 4.6; 95% CI 2.5–8.7) and substance abuse (0.54 vs. 0.04%; AHR 6.7; 95% CI 3.4–13.4). Mortality of unknown cause (1.46 vs. 0.60%; AHR 3.1; 95% CI 2.3–4.1) was also higher in the IDU group than in the non-IDU group. In the subset of patients with information on both HCV coinfection and causes of death (n=13 203), the hazard ratio for death from liver disease was attenuated Galunisertib solubility dmso from 4.08 (95% CI 2.24–7.44) to 1.02 (95% CI 0.50–2.09) on adjustment for coinfection with HCV. In this analysis involving 14 cohort studies and 44 043 participants, individuals infected via IDU experienced higher rates of death and AIDS, compared with other patients, from the time that

they started cART. Although associations for patient characteristics at initiation Sclareol of cART with subsequent disease progression were largely similar between the two groups, the inverse association of baseline CD4 with subsequent disease progression appeared weaker in patients infected via IDU. By contrast, associations of baseline HIV-1 RNA and AIDS diagnosis before baseline with subsequent rates of AIDS appeared stronger in patients infected via IDU. Compared with other patients, those infected via IDU were at greater risk of all of the specific causes of death we examined, with the greatest differences seen for deaths as a result of hepatitis and liver failure and deaths as a result of substance abuse. The differences we observed were not explained by differences in baseline characteristics between IDUs and non-IDUs. However, the association with liver-related death appeared to be explained by coinfection with HCV.

The structure of the characteristic ABT-888 lactone ring will not be destroyed in the MS process to produce a characteristic fragment of m/z 102, which corresponds to the homoserine lactone moiety (Bruhn et al., 2004). Based on the characteristic ion peak m/z 102, 3 AHL candidates have been detected at retention time 25.7, 27.7, and 39.2 min. One of them has been identified possibly to be a AHL with a CH3CH(OH)CH2CO- unit in the alkyl chain. However, the precise structure of the deduced compound has not been fully elucidated because of the limited amount of the metabolites in M. aeruginosa. The method of synthetic the compound has should be researched to further verify the accuracy of deduced compound

and its function. SEM photographs of M. aeruginosa revealed that the algal cells experienced free-living within 20 days and appeared a biofilm-like membrane at 30 days after inoculation, which led to a strong aggregation of the cells (Fig. 3). The coincident appearance of the biofilm-like membrane and the AHL indicates that QS might play an important role in morphological changes in M. aeruginosa for environmental adaptation. Compared with those in the fresh BG-11, algal cells cultured in BG-11 medium

containing AHLs extracts (about 20 nM relative to the reference OOHL) had an earlier and thicker formation of biofilm-like membrane, which provided strong evidence that M. aeruginosa had a QS system regulating colony formation because of the biofilm-like membranes. In fact, many reports indicate that the biofilm is regulated by QS. For instance, Davies et al. (1998) reported that Pseudomonas aeruginosa GSK458 research buy formed undifferentiated and thin biofilms in comparison with the wild type many when the QS system–encoding genes of lasR-lasI and rhlR-rhlI had mutated. Similar phenomena have been observed in the species of Burkholderia cepacia (Huber et al., 2001) and Aeromonas hydrophila (Lynch et al., 2002). Therefore, the formation of a biofilm-like

membrane, an important physiological characteristic of Microcystis, can not only help Microcystis acquire a better niche (Cheng & Qiu, 2006) and capture plenty of light and nutrients in the aquatic ecosystem, but also play an important role in resistance to zooplankton prey (Lynch & Shapiro, 1981), which is important for Microcystis to stay as the dominant species and for outbreak of blooms. This work was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2008CB418004), the Jiangsu Science and Technology Support Program (BE2011355, BE2012372), the Special Fund for the Public Service Sector of the National Environmental Protection Ministry (201009023), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (1082020803, 1092020804), and the National Training Program for Fundamental Scientists (J1103512). “
“Different features can protect bacteria against protozoan grazing, for example large size, rapid movement, and production of secondary metabolites.

In our investigation, the emm12 genotype was the most frequently isolated of all S. pyogenes strains collected from recurrent streptococcal pharyngitis cases, with significant

distributions of emm1 and emm28 strains also found (Table 3). In several previous studies as well, the emm12 genotype was the most frequently isolated from patients with S. pyogenes infections (Murakami et al., 2002; Michos et al., 2009). Analysis of the emm, speA, speB, and speC genotypes, as well as PFGE patterns in the present BMS-354825 in vitro study revealed that the genotypes detected in more than half of the episodes (27 of 49) following treatment were different from those of the initially detected strains (Table 1, Fig. 2). PFGE has been reported to have a better discriminatory power than emm genotyping of S. pyogenes (Chiou et al., 2004). In the present study, PFGE analysis showed different banding patterns only in cases in which both strains were found to have the same emm Rapamycin cell line genotype, which is in agreement with that previous study. On the other hand, streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxins are virulence factors of S. pyogenes (Roggiani et al., 2000). Four isotypes of speA have been reported: speA1, speA2, speA3, and speA4. The newer variants, speA2 and speA3, differ from the older speA1 by a single amino acid, whereas

speA4, the most recently described isotype, was shown to have only 91% homology with other allelic variants (Nelson et al., 1991). In addition, speB and speC were found to have 39 and five alleles, respectively (Kapur et al., 1993; Bessen et al., 1999). Musser et al. (1992) reported that one-third of their patients were infected with a heterologous strain after therapy, which presumably represented reinfection on the basis of spe genotyping, which is supported by our findings. In the present study,

16 of 38 cases were judged to have a strain different from that isolated at the initial onset because of a difference in spe possession or genotype. However, PCR analysis results are not adequate to conclude that spe genes are absent in the genome. Thus, further discriminatory examination techniques are needed. Our findings suggest that some cases diagnosed as recurrent pharyngitis were actually reinfection that caused streptococcal pharyngitis. Furthermore, they indicate that a number of reinfection cases may be confused with recurrent cases enough in clinical diagnoses, because of a lack of distinguishing criteria. On the other hand, it has been shown that specific emm genotypes have associations with particular clinical syndromes (Bisno et al., 2003; Cohen-Poradosu & Kasper, 2007). Although biofilm formation is not one of the traits associated with isolates from recurrent or reinfection cases, the period from initial to secondary onset is a possible clinical indication for distinguishing recurrence from reinfection before performing a detailed bacterial test. Recurrent onset should be suspected when the period from initial to following onset is <4 weeks.

In our investigation, the emm12 genotype was the most frequently isolated of all S. pyogenes strains collected from recurrent streptococcal pharyngitis cases, with significant

distributions of emm1 and emm28 strains also found (Table 3). In several previous studies as well, the emm12 genotype was the most frequently isolated from patients with S. pyogenes infections (Murakami et al., 2002; Michos et al., 2009). Analysis of the emm, speA, speB, and speC genotypes, as well as PFGE patterns in the present selleck compound study revealed that the genotypes detected in more than half of the episodes (27 of 49) following treatment were different from those of the initially detected strains (Table 1, Fig. 2). PFGE has been reported to have a better discriminatory power than emm genotyping of S. pyogenes (Chiou et al., 2004). In the present study, PFGE analysis showed different banding patterns only in cases in which both strains were found to have the same emm Cobimetinib nmr genotype, which is in agreement with that previous study. On the other hand, streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxins are virulence factors of S. pyogenes (Roggiani et al., 2000). Four isotypes of speA have been reported: speA1, speA2, speA3, and speA4. The newer variants, speA2 and speA3, differ from the older speA1 by a single amino acid, whereas

speA4, the most recently described isotype, was shown to have only 91% homology with other allelic variants (Nelson et al., 1991). In addition, speB and speC were found to have 39 and five alleles, respectively (Kapur et al., 1993; Bessen et al., 1999). Musser et al. (1992) reported that one-third of their patients were infected with a heterologous strain after therapy, which presumably represented reinfection on the basis of spe genotyping, which is supported by our findings. In the present study,

16 of 38 cases were judged to have a strain different from that isolated at the initial onset because of a difference in spe possession or genotype. However, PCR analysis results are not adequate to conclude that spe genes are absent in the genome. Thus, further discriminatory examination techniques are needed. Our findings suggest that some cases diagnosed as recurrent pharyngitis were actually reinfection that caused streptococcal pharyngitis. Furthermore, they indicate that a number of reinfection cases may be confused with recurrent cases crotamiton in clinical diagnoses, because of a lack of distinguishing criteria. On the other hand, it has been shown that specific emm genotypes have associations with particular clinical syndromes (Bisno et al., 2003; Cohen-Poradosu & Kasper, 2007). Although biofilm formation is not one of the traits associated with isolates from recurrent or reinfection cases, the period from initial to secondary onset is a possible clinical indication for distinguishing recurrence from reinfection before performing a detailed bacterial test. Recurrent onset should be suspected when the period from initial to following onset is <4 weeks.

The major themes for each are shown below: The intrinsic influences were enjoyment of science; pharmacy the subject-i.e. the course content;

Cyclopamine an interest in the action of medicines; and, a desire to help people by delivering healthcare. The extrinsic influences were: good career opportunities; family influence; pharmacy the profession i.e. a professional course leading to be an ‘expert in medicines’; and the pay. The results show a variety of influences affecting student choice to study pharmacy. Enjoyment of science was cited by many students as an influence for studying pharmacy.1,2 It therefore appears that students still perceive pharmacy as a science-based course. However, students also identified pharmacy with ‘care’ i.e. delivering healthcare and aligns with the profession moving towards a more clinically, patient-facing role. The course content also appeared to influence students; given that the course is longer than most degrees it is important that students enjoy the course and continue to be motivated to study pharmacy. Pharmacy was considered to offer good career opportunities and be a well-paid

career; given the financial burden now placed on students it is not unsurprising that they choose a degree which they perceived would yield a return on investment. The results however R428 manufacturer may be biased by a social desirability effect; where students’ responses are influenced by what they think the researcher wants to hear. 1. Roller L. Intrinsic and extrinsic factors in choosing pharmacy as a course of study at Monash University 1999–2004. Y-27632 2HCl 13th International Social Pharmacy Workshop. Pharmacy Education, 2004; 4: 199. 2. Willis SC, Shann P, Hassell K. Report 4: Early Choices: studying pharmacy: who, when, how, why?

What next. 2006. Anne Hinchliffe1, Fiona Davies2, Chris Powell2, Richard Whitfield2 1Public Health Wales, Wales, UK, 2Welsh Ambulance Service, Wales, UK Which medicines do people most frequently call NHS Direct Wales (NHSDW) about? Central nervous system (CNS) medicines and antimicrobials accounted for more than half (55%) the questions asked The majority of medicines-related calls dealt with by NHSDW could be managed appropriately by community pharmacy To gain maximum benefit from medicines, people need some knowledge about them. An awareness of the questions people have is important if pharmacists are to proactively respond to patients’ information needs. The aim of this study was to analyse medicines-related calls answered by NHSDW nurse advisors during 2010/11. The primary objective was to find out which medicines people most frequently asked about and a secondary objective was to report the disposition assigned to each call by the nurse advisor. The study did not evaluate the quality of advice provided by NHSDW. Each call to NHSDW is recorded electronically and coded for future differentiation. Medicines-related calls were identified and 12% calls from each Health Board (n = 7) were selected using a random number generator.