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BACKGROUND Outbreaks of circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPVs) pose a threat to the eventual eradication of all polioviruses. In 2017, an outbreak of cVDPV type 2 (cVDPV2) occurred in the midst of a war in Syria. We describe vaccination-based risk factors for and the successful response to the outbreak. METHODS We performed a descriptive analysis of cVDPV2 cases and key indicators of poliovirus surveillance and vaccination activities during 2016-2018. In the absence of reliable subnational coverage data, we used the caregiver-reported vaccination status of children with non-polio acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) as a proxy for vaccination coverage. We then estimated the relative odds of being unvaccinated against polio, comparing children in areas affected by the outbreak to children in other parts of Syria in order to establish the presence of poliovirus immunity gaps in outbreak affected areas. FINDINGS A total of 74 cVDPV2 cases were reported, with paralysis onset ranging from 3 March to 21 September 2017. All but three cases were reported from Deir-ez-Zor governorate and 84% had received

The Biochemical Society's Policy Network looks into immigration policies to support science and innovation.

June 2018 saw the successful launch of the UK's first Evidence Week, a collaboration between Sense About Science, The House of Commons Library, and the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST). A week-long event filled to bursting with high-profile speakers, workshops and roundtable discussions, Evidence Week highlighted the importance of evidence-based policy making in the heart of Parliament. Members of both Houses couldn't escape the stands, the banners and the Voice of Young Science Network who were enthusiastically sharing the importance of evidence against a broad backdrop of issues ranging from solving the UK housing crisis to regulating genome editing.

‘We’ve shifted the deadline - what I hoped to achieve for my daughter I now hope to achieve for my granddaughter' These were the poignant words spoken by Professor Lesley Yellowlees CBE, at the launch of the Royal Society of Chemistry's most recent diversity report ‘Diversity landscape of the chemical sciences’ in February 2018.

On 20 November 2017 the European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced their intention to relocate from London to Amsterdam due to the UK's decision to leave the European Union. It is nearly 12-months to the day since this announcement, and, other than the movement of a major regulatory headquarters, the UK is no closer to knowing what impact Brexit is likely to have on the regulation of medicines and healthcare products in the UK.

Social media are seen as a new marketing tool in the service industry. Digital marketing communication is nowadays interactive and marketers are looking at social media as a means to reach a wider audience. After reviewing current practices and measurement techniques, this study investigates how events companies are exploiting this new communication means. The research has been designed with a case study approach: different marketing figures in three different companies have been interviewed. Results show the importance of social media in events companies and the lack of professional measurements. Furthermore, results show the importance of senior management commitment towards the use of social media as marketing tool.