Noncoding Variations in the Gene Encoding Ceramide Synthase 6 are Associated with Type 2 Diabetes in a Large Indigenous Australian Pedigree.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a chronic disease that disproportionately affects Indigenous Australians. We have previously reported the localization of a novel T2D locus by linkage analysis to chromosome 2q24 in a large admixed Indigenous Australian pedigree (Busfield et al. (2002).

Observation of a novel Babesia spp. in Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) in Australia.

The roles and epidemiological features of tick-borne protozoans are not well elicited in wildlife. Babesia spp. are documented in many domestic animals, including cattle, horses, pigs, dogs and cats.

Coronavirus infection in intensively managed cattle with respiratory disease.

Background: A detailed laboratory investigation identified bovine coronavirus (BCoV) as the aetiological agent in an outbreak of respiratory disease at a semi-intensive beef cattle feedlot in south-east Australia. The outbreak caused 30% morbidity in the resident population and also affected two cohorts of cattle that were newly introduced to the property.

Methods: At slaughter, pulmonary consolidation and inflammatory lesions in the trachea were identified in 15 of 49 animals.

Familial isolated hyperparathyroidism is linked to a 1.7 Mb region on chromosome 2p13.3-14.

Background: Familial isolated hyperparathyroidism (FIHP) is an autosomal dominantly inherited form of primary hyperparathyroidism. Although comprising only about 1% of cases of primary hyperparathyroidism, identification and functional analysis of a causative gene for FIHP is likely to advance our understanding of parathyroid physiology and pathophysiology.

Methods: A genome-wide screen of DNA from seven pedigrees with FIHP was undertaken in order to identify a region of genetic linkage with the disorder.

Carotid artery intimal medial thickness, brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation and cardiovascular risk factors in diabetic and non-diabetic indigenous Australians.

Background: Indigenous Australians are at high risk for cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Carotid artery intimal medial thickness (CIMT) and brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) are ultrasound imaging based surrogate markers of cardiovascular risk. This study examines the relative contributions of traditional cardiovascular risk factors on CIMT and FMD in adult Indigenous Australians with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus.