The employment of foreign mercenary troops in the French royal armies, 1415-1470

In the early years of the fifteenth century, the impact of English invasion, civil war and military defeat forced the French monarchy to seek military assistance from its allies abroad. Large numbers of men from this source served in French armies throughout the century, and this thesis sets out to examine this rather neglected phenomenon. The first part is a chronological survey of the history of this involvement, which can be divided into three phases. In the first, large foreign armies operated as separate units alongside the French and were involved in the major battles of the period such as Bauge, Cravant and Verneuil. After the siege of Orleans, these arm~es broke up into a host of smaller companies without any close central organisation and only under very limited royal control. After the reforms of 1445, the system of Compagnies d'Ordonnance restored this and tied the soldiers into the royal patronage network, giving the king a theorexical monopoly of organised military force. In the second half, various themes are studied in more detail; the close involvement of French diplomacy with matters of recruitment, the or~g~ns of the soldiers and the potential rewards and problems which service of the French crown might bring them. It then studies the alternatives to royal serv~ce, the problems of discipline and the political dangers which these posed. A re-examination of the actual effects of the 1445 reforms leads into an attempt to comprehend the realities of the life of soldier and captain on a day to day basis, concluding with an e~~ination of the relationship between the soldiers and the native French population. The thesis concludes that the role of foreign troops in sustaining the Valois dynasty was considerable and their experiences illuminate the realities of military service in the later middle ages

Observing Data-Driven Approaches to Covid-19: Reflections from a Distributed, Remote, Interdisciplinary Research Project

The Observatory for Monitoring Data-Driven Approaches to Covid-19 (OMDDAC) is an Arts and Humanities Research Council funded research project investigating data-driven approaches to Covid-19, focused upon legal, ethical, policy and operational challenges. The project is a collaboration between Northumbria University (Law School, Department of Computing and Information Sciences, Department of Mathematics) and the Royal United Services Institute, a defence and security think-tank, and aims to carry out integrated interdisciplinary research, regarded as the most challenging type of interdisciplinarity but where the outputs can be the most impactful. Due to the constraints of the pandemic, the project has been carried out in a fully distributed and remote manner, with some team members never having met in person. The subject of the research is continually changing and developing, creating unique project management issues, with the impact of the pandemic pervasive in the lives of the researchers. This article takes the form of a series of reflections from the points of view of individual project researchers – the specialist legal researcher, the think-tank Co-Investigator, the post-doctoral researcher, statistical and data science researchers, and the Principal Investigator – and organised under two main themes - project management and internal communication; and methodologies/interdisciplinary research. We thus draw out lessons for future remote and distributed research, focused upon interdisciplinarity, the benefits and challenges of remote research methodologies, and issues of collegiality. Finally, we warn that it will be a false economy for universities and funders to assume that research projects can continue to be conducted in a mainly remote manner and therefore, that budgetary savings can be made by reducing time allocations, travel and academic networking

Guidelines from the expert advisory committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs ( SaBTO ) on patient consent and shared decision‐making for blood transfusion

Summary: Evidence from national audits of practice indicates that the provision of information to patients about transfusion and the taking of consent to transfusion have not improved in recent years. Although the final report of the Infected Blood Inquiry did not make a specific recommendation about consent to transfusion, it emphasised the need for cultural change, the importance of openness and giving patients a voice. The purpose of these updated Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs (SaBTO) guidelines is to enhance the provision of information to patients about blood transfusion, ensure an effective process for obtaining patients' consent and support shared decision‐making. The guidelines emphasise that there is a duty on staff administering a transfusion to check that the documentation for consent is present and valid before commencing the transfusion. Hospitals and other healthcare facilities must facilitate this step by ensuring that documentation for consent can be easily found in a standard format and location in the patient's paper or preferably their electronic record. They should employ mechanisms through their arrangements for clinical governance to support the training of all staff who may take consent to transfusion and monitor the implementation and compliance with these SaBTO recommendations with subsequent improvement plans developed and implemented if necessary

OMDDAC Practitioner Guidelines

These practitioner guidelines are presented by the AHRC funded ‘Observatory for Monitoring Data-Driven Approaches to COVID-19’ (OMDDAC) project. OMDDAC is a collaboration between Northumbria University and the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), researching the data-driven approaches to COVID-19, with a focus upon legal, ethical, policy and operational challenges. OMDDAC has analysed key data-driven responses to COVID-19, collating lessons learned in ‘real time’ throughout the pandemic by way of representative public surveys, case study analysis and interviews with key stakeholders from a range of sectors (including local and central government, regulators, law enforcement, the medical and legal profession, charities and the third sector, the private sector, and an interdisciplinary range of academics). These practitioner guidelines have been informed by our research findings. The guidelines are relevant specifically to practitioners who work with data in the health and social care sector and in the law enforcement sector

Data-Driven Responses to COVID-19: Lessons Learned: OMDDAC Research Compendium

Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council under the UKRI COVID-19 Rapid Response call, the Observatory for Monitoring Data-Driven Approaches to COVID-19 (OMDDAC) is a collaboration between Northumbria University and the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). This project has involved a multidisciplinary team of researchers (with expertise in the law on technology, data protection, and medicine as well as practical ethics, computer science, data science, applied statistics in health, technology and security studies and behavioural science) to investigate the legal, ethical, policy and operationalchallenges encountered in relation to key data-driven responses to the pandemic.The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the consideration of several priorities in the data and technology space, which are reflected in the UK Government’s present strategies. The National Data Strategy, in particular, pledges to take account of the lessons learned from the COVID-19 response and draw uponthe UK’s values of transparency, accountability and inclusion. Seeking to inform the lessons learned from the pandemic, the project used a mixed-methods research design that included case study analysis, interviews with key stakeholders (individuals with relevant expertise and/or experience in relation to the data-driven pandemic response), representative public surveys, and engagement with young people through a children’s rights charity. OMDDAC has published four snapshot reports focused on data-driven public policy, tech-driven approaches to public health, policing and public safety and key findings from the public perceptions survey. The emerging issues identified in those reports align closely with the four pillars of the National Data Strategy, which form the framework for this final project report:1. Data Foundations (data quality issues and infrastructure);2. Data Skills (data literacy of decision-makers);3. Data Availability (data sharing); and4. Responsibility (law, ethics, transparency, and public trust)

Spacer devices for inhaled therapy: why use them, and how?

We present an extensive review of the literature to date pertaining to the rationale for using a spacer/valved holding chamber (VHC) to deliver inhaled therapy from a pressurised, metered-dose inhaler, a discussion of how the properties of individual devices may vary according to their physical characteristics and materials of manufacture, the potential risks and benefits of ancillaries such as valves, and the evidence that they contribute tangibly to the delivery of therapy. We also reiterate practical recommendations for the correct usage and maintenance of spacers/VHCs, which we trust offer practical help and advice to patients and healthcare professionals alike

Novel intranasal phage-CaEDTA-ceftazidime/avibactam triple combination therapy demonstrates remarkable efficacy in treating Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection

Given the rise of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections, alternative treatments are needed. Anti-pseudomonal phage therapy shows promise, but its clinical application is limited due to the development of resistance and a lack of biofilm penetration. Recently, adjuvants like CaEDTA have shown the ability to enhance the effectiveness of combined antimicrobial agents. Here, we tested a phage-adjuvant combination and demonstrated the effectiveness of intranasally inhaled phage (KKP10) + CaEDTA in addition to ceftazidime/avibactam (CZA) for chronic P. aeruginosa lung infections. The results emphasize that intranasal inhalation of phage along with CaEDTA can successfully re-sensitize MDR P. aeruginosa to CZA in a triple combination treatment. This promising approach shows potential as a therapy for chronic respiratory tract infections.publishedVersio

Antibody-Based Sensors: Principles, Problems and Potential for Detection of Pathogens and Associated Toxins

Antibody-based sensors permit the rapid and sensitive analysis of a range of pathogens and associated toxins. A critical assessment of the implementation of such formats is provided, with reference to their principles, problems and potential for ‘on-site’ analysis. Particular emphasis is placed on the detection of foodborne bacterial pathogens, such as Escherichia coli and Listeria monocytogenes, and additional examples relating to the monitoring of fungal pathogens, viruses, mycotoxins, marine toxins and parasites are also provided

tesG expression as a potential clinical biomarker for chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa pulmonary biofilm infections

Background Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections in the lungs affect millions of children and adults worldwide. To our knowledge, no clinically validated prognostic biomarkers for chronic pulmonary P. aeruginosa infections exist. Therefore, this study aims to identify potential prognostic markers for chronic P. aeruginosa biofilm lung infections. Methods Here, we screened the expression of 11 P. aeruginosa regulatory genes (tesG, algD, lasR, lasA, lasB, pelB, phzF, rhlA, rsmY, rsmZ, and sagS) to identify associations between clinical status and chronic biofilm infection. Results RNA was extracted from 210 sputum samples from patients (n = 70) with chronic P. aeruginosa lung infections (mean age; 29.3–56.2 years; 33 female). Strong biofilm formation was correlated with prolonged hospital stays (212.2 days vs. 44.4 days) and increased mortality (46.2% (18)). Strong biofilm formation is associated with increased tesG expression (P = 0.001), influencing extended intensive care unit (P = 0.002) or hospitalisation stays (P = 0.001), pneumonia risk (P = 0.006), and mortality (P = 0.001). Notably, tesG expression is linked to the modulation of systemic and sputum inflammatory responses and predicts biofilm biomass. Conclusions This study provides the first clinical dataset of tesG expression levels as a predictive biomarker for chronic P. aeruginosa pulmonary infections