Exploring the introduction of remote external clinical teaching visits into Australian general practice.

Background And Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way education was delivered. In Australian general practice training, external clinical teaching visits (ECTVs) had to be done remotely. This research explored that phenomenon from the point of view of the participants to answer questions about feasibility, acceptability and effectiveness.

Understanding barriers, enablers and motivational factors for Australian healthcare educators teaching university students on clinical placement using the validated Physician Teaching Motivation Questionnaire.

Background: In Australia, university clinical programs rely heavily on external healthcare professionals to provide a range of authentic clinical training and professional development opportunities for students. There is, however, a limited understanding of the factors that motivate these professionals to be educators and whether this varies across different healthcare disciplines within Australia. As the demand for clinical placements continues to increase, it is critical for the ongoing success of these programs that universities identify both the barriers associated with teaching and the benefits that enhance job satisfaction.

Prior degree and academic performance in medical school: evidence for prioritising health students and moving away from a bio-medical science-focused entry stream.

Background: Given the importance of the selection process, many medical schools are reviewing their selection criteria. The traditional pathway for post-graduate medicine has been from science-based undergraduate degrees, however some programs are expanding their criteria. In this study we investigated academic success across all years and themes of the Deakin University medical degree, based on the type of degree undertaken prior to admission.

Nutrition content of summative examinations within an Australian 4-year graduate entry medical course: 2013-2016.

Background: Poor nutrition is a major contributor to chronic disease, but the level of nutrition education in medical training is limited. Deakin University Medical School has been working to embed more nutrition into the curriculum since 2009.

Aim: To assess the nutrition content of all summative examinations in the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery over a 4-year period.

Impact of In-hospital and Outreach models for regional P.A.R.T.Y. Program participants.

Objective: This retrospective observational study aimed to compare the impact of the Prevent Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma Youth (P.A.R.

Competent with patients and populations: integrating public health into a medical program.

Background: As the global burden of chronic disease grows, and infectious disease threats loom large, the need for medical graduates with expertise in public health medicine (PHM) is growing. A recurrent challenge is integrating this broad knowledge into crowded medical curricula and making PHM relevant. This study describes the process of integrating public health content into an Australian graduate entry medical course.

The Australian Rural Clinical School (RCS) program supports rural medical workforce: evidence from a cross-sectional study of 12 RCSs.

Introduction: Many strategies have been implemented to address the shortage of medical practitioners in rural areas. One such strategy, the Rural Clinical School Program supporting 18 rural clinical schools (RCSs), represents a substantial financial investment by the Australian Government. This is the first collaborative RCS study summarising the rural work outcomes of multiple RCSs.

Effect of the Prevent Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth (P.A.R.T.Y.) Program among senior school students.

Objective: The Prevent Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth (P.A.R.

The role of leptin and ghrelin in appetite regulation in the Australian Spinifex hopping mouse, Notomys alexis, during long-term water deprivation.

Water deprivation of the Spinifex hopping mouse, Notomys alexis, induced a biphasic pattern of food intake with an initial hypophagia that was followed by an increased, and then sustained food intake. The mice lost approximately 20% of their body mass and there was a loss of white adipose tissue. Stomach ghrelin mRNA was significantly higher at day 2 of water deprivation but then returned to the same levels as water-replete (day 0) mice for the duration of the experiment.

RTKN2 Induces NF-KappaB Dependent Resistance to Intrinsic Apoptosis in HEK Cells and Regulates BCL-2 Genes in Human CD4(+) Lymphocytes.

The gene for Rhotekin 2 (RTKN2) was originally identified in a promyelocytic cell line resistant to oxysterol-induced apoptosis. It is differentially expressed in freshly isolated CD4(+) T-cells compared with other hematopoietic cells and is down-regulated following activation of the T-cell receptor. However, very little is known about the function of RTKN2 other than its homology to Rho-GTPase effector, rhotekin, and the possibility that they may have similar roles.

A review of psychosocial aspects of motor neurone disease.

Motor neurone disease (MND) is an illness involving the progressive degeneration of upper and lower motor neurones. There is no known cause or cure. The physical aspects of MND frequently receive the majority of attention, with psychosocial aspects accorded secondary importance.

Identification and expression of natriuretic peptide receptor type-A and -B mRNA in freshwater and seawater rainbow trout.

Natriuretic peptide receptors mediate the physiological response of natriuretic peptide hormones. One of the natriuretic peptide receptor types is the particulate guanylyl cyclase receptors, of which there are two identified: NPR-A and NPR-B. In fishes, these have been sequenced and characterized in eels, medaka, and dogfish shark (NPR-B only).

A comparison of psychosocial and physical functioning in patients with motor neurone disease and metastatic cancer.

Although their disease processes and treatments are different, patients with motor neurone disease (MND) and those with late-stage cancer share a common situation--one in which the quality of life, rather than a cure, becomes the focus of care. We report here a comparison of 126 patients with MND and 125 with metastatic cancer on a range of physical and psychosocial measures. Compared to cancer patients, MND patients were younger, had greater social contacts, but were more physically impaired.

Mechanisms of resistance to the cytotoxic effects of oxysterols in human leukemic cells.

We have developed hematopoietic cells resistant to the cytotoxic effects of oxysterols. Oxysterol-resistant HL60 cells were generated by continuous exposure to three different oxysterols-25-hydroxycholesterol (25-OHC), 7-beta-hydroxycholesterol (7beta-OHC) and 7-keto-cholesterol (7kappa-C). We investigated the effects of 25-OHC, 7beta-OHC, 7kappa-C and the apoptotic agent staurosporine on these cells.

Hereditary hyperferritinemia-cataract syndrome: prevalence, lens morphology, spectrum of mutations, and clinical presentations.

Objectives: To provide a comprehensive description of the clinical presentations, cataract morphology, and molecular basis of hereditary hyperferritinemia-cataract syndrome (HHCS) in 4 Australian pedigrees and to estimate its prevalence.

Methods: All known cases of HHCS in southeastern Australia were ascertained. Family members provided a medical history and underwent physical examination, lens photography, and venipuncture for measurement of serum ferritin levels and DNA extraction.

Mutation spectrum in Australian pedigrees with hereditary hyperferritinaemia-cataract syndrome reveals novel and de novo mutations.

Hereditary hyperferritinaemia-cataract syndrome (HHCS) (OMIM #600886) is a rare autosomal dominant condition identified by high serum ferritin levels with normal iron saturation and distinctive bilateral cataract. It may be misdiagnosed as haemochromatosis and such patients become anaemic as a result of inappropriate venesection. The elevated serum ferritin is due to a mutation in the iron-responsive element (IRE) of the l-ferritin gene, resulting in excessive l-ferritin production.

MERP1: a mammalian ependymin-related protein gene differentially expressed in hematopoietic cells.

We have utilized differential display polymerase chain reaction to investigate the gene expression of hematopoietic progenitor cells from adult bone marrow and umbilical cord blood. A differentially expressed gene was identified in CD34+ hematopoietic progenitor cells, with low expression in CD34- cells. We have obtained the full coding sequence of this gene which we designated human mammalian ependymin-related protein 1 (MERP1).