The Consequences of Being a Gift

The issues of dislocated identity are epitomised in Mary's story. Brought from Papua New Guinea to Australia at a very young age as a ‘gift’, she grew up in a series of foster homes in Adelaide, South Australia. Now, as a teenager, Mary constitutes her identity through her body, emphasising her distinctive physical features, through idealised memories and through representations—photographs, cultural icons and people who ‘look like me’. The self she creates in this way sits uneasily along side another self; the Western adolescent self in trouble with the law, the self who struggles to be ‘one of the boys’ on the streets, one who ‘runs amuck’. This paper explores the process of ‘self-making’, the ‘serious play’ that Mary has employed to constitute her identity through her juggling of and reappropriation of cultural symbols. As a participant in a wider ethnographic study into Australian youth and representation, Mary portrayed the complexities of her growing up between worlds, embedded in neither and desperate to belong to her past.     

Discovery of a novel non-steroidal GR antagonist with in vivo efficacy in the olanzapine-induced weight gain model in the rat

We report the optimization of a series of non-steroidal GR antagonists that led to the identification of compound 7. This compound is efficacious when dosed orally in an olanzapine-induced weight gain model in rats.     

Differential mass spectrometry of rat plasma reveals proteins that are responsive to 17beta-estradiol and a selective estrogen receptor modulator PPT

Estrogens are a class of steroid hormones that interact with two related but distinct nuclear receptors, estrogen receptor (ER) alpha and beta. To identify potential ER biomarkers, we profiled the rat plasma glycoproteome after treatment with vehicle or 17beta-estradiol (E2) or an ERalpha-selective agonist PPT by differential mass spectrometry. Our comparative proteomic experiment identifies novel E2- and PPT-responsive proteins, such as serine protease inhibitor family members.     

Structural changes in the digestive glands of larval Antarctic krill (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Euphausia superba</Emphasis>) during starvation

The effects of starvation on ultrastructure of digestive gland cells were studied in furcilia larvae of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba: hereafter krill). Under laboratory conditions, larvae were starved for 0, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 days, and their R-cells were investigated by transmission electron microscope. R-cells are thought to play a role in the storage and absorption of nutrients. In fed larvae, numerous mitochondria scattered homogenously, and densely packed microvilli were observed on the apical surface of R-cells. After 5 days of starvation, mitochondria were swollen and were found concentrated in the apical region in R-cells. A decrease in cell volume and an increase in thickness of the basal lamina with many irregular infoldings were observed after 10–15 days of starvation. Lipid droplets were rarely found in the R-cells regardless of whether larvae had been fed or starved suggesting an inability to store lipid. Without the ability to store energy in the form of lipid, survival would be dependant on sourcing continuous food until maturation.     

Transglutaminases expression in human supraspinatus tendon ruptures and in mouse tendons

The ethiopathogenesis of rotator cuff disease remains poorly understood. Many studies advocate the importance of extra cellular matrix for the homeostasis of connective tissue. Transglutaminase enzymes family has been studied in the context of connective tissue formation and stabilisation. Here, we investigated transglutaminases expression pattern in biopsies of normal and injured supraspinatus tendons of human shoulders and in the Achilles tendons of transglutaminase 2 knock-out and wild-type mice. Our results show that different transglutaminase family members are differentially expressed in human and mouse tendons, and that transglutaminase 2 is down-regulated at mRNA and protein levels upon human supraspinatus tendon ruptures.     

Phytoestrogens as natural prodrugs in cancer prevention: dietary flavonoids

There are many reasons why vegetables and fruits may protect against cancer. As well as containing vitamins and minerals, which help keep the body healthy and strengthen the immune system, they are also good sources of biologically active compounds, which can help to protect cells in the body from damage that can lead to cancer. Notably, dietary flavonoids and other polyphenols are thought to have an important role as chemopreventive agents. Most studies on the possible mechanism of the chemopreventive action of dietary compounds have assumed that free hydroxyl groups of flavonoids and other polyphenols are necessary for their biological effects. However, in the human body dietary polyphenols are rapidly conjugated by glucuronosyltransferases and sulfotransferases, two enzymes that are abundantly present in the small intestine and liver, through which all of the oral dose must pass. Thus, most polyphenols that have been studied, e.g. quercetin, kaempferol, diosmetin, and resveratrol, would not be expected to reach internal organs beyond sites directly along the gastrointestinal tract. When the hydroxyl groups in polyphenols are methylated, the resulting compounds are much less prone to glucuronidation and sulfation. Thus methoxylated compounds are more metabolically stable, increasing their bioavailablity. The peel of various Citrus species can contain high concentrations of polymethoxyflavones, whereas the juice mainly contains hydroxylated flavones. At present, very little is known about the mechanisms by which methoxylated flavones may affect growth and development of tumour cells. Recently, it was shown that tumour specific enzymes can catalyze the O-demethylation of methoxylated flavones, resulting in the formation of flavones with free hydroxyl groups. We propose that demethylation of methoxylated flavones is another example of bioactivation of naturally occurring prodrugs.     

Screening Mosquito House Entry Points as a Potential Method for Integrated Control of Endophagic Filariasis,Arbovirus and Malaria Vectors

Background

Partial mosquito-proofing of houses with screens and ceilings has the potential to reduce indoor densities of malaria mosquitoes. We wish to measure whether it will also reduce indoor densities of vectors of neglected tropical diseases.

Methodology

The main house entry points preferred by anopheline and culicine vectors were determined through controlled experiments using specially designed experimental huts and village houses in Lupiro village, southern Tanzania. The benefit of screening different entry points (eaves, windows and doors) using PVC-coated fibre glass netting material in terms of reduced indoor densities of mosquitoes was evaluated compared to the control.

Findings

23,027 mosquitoes were caught with CDC light traps; 77.9% (17,929) were Anopheles gambiae sensu lato, of which 66.2% were An. arabiensis and 33.8% An. gambiae sensu stricto. The remainder comprised 0.2% (50) An. funestus, 10.2% (2359) Culex spp. and 11.6% (2664) Mansonia spp. Screening eaves reduced densities of Anopheles gambiae s. l. (Relative ratio (RR)  = 0.91; 95% CI = 0.84, 0.98; P = 0.01); Mansonia africana (RR = 0.43; 95% CI = 0.26, 0.76; P<0.001) and Mansonia uniformis (RR = 0.37; 95% CI = 0.25, 0.56; P<0.001) but not Culex quinquefasciatus, Cx. univittatus or Cx. theileri. Numbers of these species were reduced by screening windows and doors but this was not significant.

Significance

This study confirms that across Africa, screening eaves protects households against important mosquito vectors of filariasis, Rift Valley Fever and O''Nyong nyong as well as malaria. While full house screening is required to exclude Culex species mosquitoes, screening of eaves alone or fitting ceilings has considerable potential for integrated control of other vectors of filariasis, arbovirus and malaria.