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Border and Migration Studies Online explores border disputes and cross-border migrations around the world from the nineteenth through twenty-first centuries from a variety of disciplinary perspectives and through a variety of source types. Universities with comprehensive degree programs and/or faculty research in migration studies should prioritize purchase, but institutions without in-depth programs in this area will likely find it optional. Pricing is in the moderate to high range for perpetual licensing only. The interface is well designed to support researchers all along the experience spectrum.

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Background Measuring hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA in serum or plasma may underestimate the true HCV burden. Extracting viral RNA from whole blood (WB) with a cationic surfactant (Catrimox-14) has resulted in HCV RNA concentrations up to 1000-fold higher than from serum or plasma in some studies, but not others. We compared the Catrimox-14 WB assay with a standard serum assay. Methods Seventy-two chronic HCV patients received 48 weeks of standard or pegylated interferon alpha-2b and ribavirin therapy. Catrimox-14-treated WB and corresponding serum samples were obtained at baseline and weeks 12, 24, 48 and 72. HCV RNA concentrations from WB and serum were quantified by a previously validated RT-PCR assay. Results Overall mean (±SD) baseline serum log10 HCV RNA concentration was 6.5 ((±0.58) copies/ml. Out of 72 patients, 33 had no detectable virus at 72 weeks. Neither assay detected virus in these patients at 12 weeks and neither WB nor serum assays detected virus at end-of-treatment in the 10 patients who subsequently relapsed at 72 weeks. HCV RNA concentrations from WB and serum assays were linearly correlated (R2=0.73; P<0.001), although mean serum HCV RNA concentrations were 0.5 log10 copies/ml higher in serum than in WB [6.0 (±0.82) vs 5.5 ((±0.84), respectively, P=0.12]. Conclusions Catrimox-14-treated WB assays detect changes in HCV RNA, but do not offer clinical advantage over a conventional serum RT-PCR based assay.