The quality of management of rheumatic fever/ heart disease in the Kimberley.

Objective: To evaluate the quality of management of Kimberley patients with rheumatic fever (RF) and rheumatic heart disease (RHD).

Methods: A retrospective analysis of medical records for 215 residents of the Kimberley region of Western Australia, diagnosed with RF or RHD during the years 1982 to 1996.

Results: Among patients prescribed intramuscular penicillin for secondary prophylaxis, 67% of prescribed doses were given, with individuals receiving 8-100% of doses prescribed.

Epizootic activity of Murray Valley encephalitis virus in an aboriginal community in the southeast Kimberley region of Western Australia: results of cross-sectional and longitudinal serologic studies.

Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) virus is a mosquito-borne flavivirus causing severe encephalitis with a resultant high morbidity and mortality. In the period 1989-1993, we undertook a cross-sectional and longitudinal study by annually screening members of a small remote Aboriginal community in northwestern Australia for MVE virus antibodies. Of the estimated 250-300 people in the community, 249 were tested, and 52.

Cell membrane hybrid bilayers containing the G-protein-coupled receptor CCR5.

A hybrid bilayer membrane is a planar model membrane that is formed at an alkanethiol monolayer-coated gold surface by the spontaneous reorganization of phospholipid vesicles. Membrane vesicles from monkey kidney COS-1 cells also reorganize at an alkanethiol/lipid monolayer-coated surface resulting in the formation of a cell membrane hybrid bilayer. Atomic force microscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry indicate that the cell membrane layer is equivalent to the thickness of one leaflet of the membrane and is continuous over large areas.

Tuberculosis rates among migrants in Australia and Canada.

Multiple linear regression analysis was used to compare the regression coefficients for Australia and Canada on the association between tuberculosis (TB) rates among migrants and the estimated incidence in the country of birth. Regression coefficients predicting the rate of TB among migrants based on the incidence of TB in the country of birth are not significantly different between populations of migrants in Australia and Canada. Our findings support the ability of the incidence of TB in the country of birth to predict variation in the incidence of TB in migrants groups in two migration receiving countries.

Syntheses of depsipeptide analogues of the insect neuropeptide proctolin.

Four depsipeptide analogues of the insect neuropeptide proctolin (H-Arg-Tyr-Leu-Pro-Thr-OH) have been prepared, containing a single ester linkage between Arg(1) and Tyr(2), Tyr(2) and Leu(3), and between Pro(4) and Thr(5), respectively. A didepsipentapeptide containing an ester linkage between Tyr(2) and Leu(3) and between Pro(4) and Thr(5), has also been prepared. The depsipeptide 4 is the first example of a backbone-modified proctolin analogue which shows full myotropic activity.

Increased bone morphogenetic protein-6 expression in mouse long bones after estrogen administration.

High-dose estrogen administration is known to induce new bone formation in mouse long bones. To study the role of regulatory proteins in this response, we examined associated changes in femoral messenger RNA (mRNA) for candidate factors. 17beta-estradiol (E2) 0.

Predictors of tuberculin reactivity among prospective Vietnamese migrants: the effect of smoking.

We investigated the prevalence and predictors of positive tuberculin skin test (TST) results among prospective Vietnamese migrants. We interviewed and medically screened 1395 Vietnamese people aged over 15 years who had applied to migrate to Australia. Approximately 44% of applicants had an induration of 10 mm or more, and 18.

Effects of an industrial effluent on plant colonization and on the germination and post-germinative growth of seeds of terrestrial and aquatic plant species.

Major oil sands industrial companies are located in the Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit in northeastern Alberta, Canada. During the process used to extract light crude oil (via hot water digestion and flotation), gypsum is usually added to produce consolidated tails (CT) and CT release water. The vast volumes of process-treated waters (effluent) are held within large dyked tailings ponds.

Development of a Vietnamese version of the Short form-36 Health Survey.

We aimed to test the psychometric properties of a culturally relevant translation of the medical outcomes study short form-36 health survey (SF-36) with prospective Vietnamese migrants. The translated survey was interviewer-administered to 1610 Vietnamese aged over 15 years who had applied to migrate to Australia. All but two SF-36 items had good discriminant validity, and all eight scales of the Vietnamese version of the SFS-36 had good discriminant validity, which supports the use of SF-36 constructs to assess self-reported health status among Vietnamese migrants.

Estrogen-induced osteogenesis in mice is associated with the appearance of Cbfa1-expressing bone marrow cells.

Cbfa1 is a transcription factor recognised as being involved in early osteoblast differentiation during embryonic skeletogenesis. To determine whether Cbfa1 plays a similar role in bone formation in the adult, we analysed whether its expression is altered during estrogen-induced osteogenesis, following our recent studies which suggest that this response involves the generation of early osteoblast precursors within bone marrow. To facilitate identification of Cbfa1-expressing cells, these studies were performed in mice heterozygous for a cbfa1 gene deletion (cbfa1(+/-)) using beta-galactosidase (lacZ) as a genetic marker.

The general practice management of epilepsy in Perth, Western Australia.

Ninety randomly selected general practitioners from the Perth metropolitan area completed a self-administered postal questionnaire aiming to examine the extent of their involvement with epilepsy and how closely their management mirrored best practice guidelines. GPs saw a median of 6 patients with epilepsy, mainly adults. They perceived complementary roles for GPs and neurologists: the GP providing ongoing support and education, monitoring treatment and making dosage adjustments; with the neurologist largely making the formal diagnosis and other management decisions.

John Flynn Scholarship students: case studies of useful contributions to remote health care.

In 1997, the John Flynn Scholarship (JFS) program was launched as an initiative to increase recruitment of doctors to rural areas. These scholarships enable undergraduate medical students to spend 2 weeks each year for 4 years at the same rural location. Given the magnitude of Australia's unmet rural health needs, we asked whether the experience could be enhanced by ensuring the students undertook meaningful work that was useful for the community.

Where the data are deficient: a field evaluation of the effectiveness of pneumococcal vaccination in remote Australia.

The aims of the study were to: (i) determine whether a field evaluation of a pneumococcal vaccination program conducted in 1991-1993 could show whether the program was effective; and (ii) to describe the epidemiology of invasive pneumococcal disease using laboratory surveillance data. As part of quality assurance, we undertook a retrospective cohort study to compare the hospitalisation and mortality rates of a pneumococcal-vaccine-vaccinated and an unvaccinated group and a correlational study to compare the before- and after-vaccination hospitalisation rates for the vaccinated and unvaccinated groups. We used laboratory data to describe the epidemiology of invasive pneumococcal disease.

Syntheses of analogues of the insect neuropeptide proctolin containing an oxazole ring as an amide bond replacement.

[structure: see text]. Three oxazole analogues of the insect neuropeptide proctolin (H-Arg-Tyr-Leu-Pro-Thr-OH) have been prepared, containing a single oxazole between Tyr and Pro and between Pro and Thr, respectively. A compound containing an oxazole moiety between Tyr and Pro and between Pro and Thr has also been prepared.

Characterisation of the temporal sequence of osteoblast gene expression during estrogen-induced osteogenesis in female mice.

Osteoblast differentiation under in vitro conditions is associated with increased expression of non-collagenous bone proteins including osteocalcin, osteopontin, and osteonectin, the exact function of which remain poorly understood. To determine whether these proteins play an important role in the formation of mineralised bone matrix by osteoblasts in vivo, we analysed the time-course of their expression during estrogen-induced osteogenesis in female mice, and compared this with the formation of new cancellous bone. Female mice were sacrificed prior to or following treatment with 17beta-estradiol for up to 32 days (500 microg/animal/week).

A large outbreak of conjunctivitis caused by a single genotype of Neisseria gonorrhoeae distinct from those causing genital tract infections.

Several epidemics of gonococcal conjunctivitis have occurred in Aboriginal populations in Central Australia. In 1997, the first outbreak in the Kimberley region of Western Australia occurred, spreading to Central Australia with a total of 447 cases. A genotyping method was applied directly to DNA extracted from patient samples to characterize the gonococcus causing the epidemic and to compare it with contemporaneous genital isolates.

Effects of oil sands effluent on cattail and clover: photosynthesis and the level of stress proteins.

The oil sands industry located in northeastern Alberta, Canada, generates large volumes of effluent characterized by a high level of dissolved ions and naphthenic acids. The dikes used to store the effluent seep, creating wetlands which are subsequently invaded by obligate wetland flora such as cattail (Typha latifolia L.).

Shifting the balance between in-patient and out-patient care for tuberculosis results in economic savings.

Setting: Although hospitalisation is not always necessary for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB), in Australia 90% of TB patients have treatment initiated in hospital.

Objective: To calculate and compare the costs of in-patient and out-patient tuberculosis treatment, and to measure the impact of shifting care from in-patient to out-patient settings.

Methods: In a costing study performed in Victoria, Australia, the proportion of all notified TB cases who were hospitalised was calculated by matching coded state hospital morbidity data with the Victoria Notifiable Diseases database for the financial year 1994-1995.

A randomized trial of a problem-based learning approach for teaching epidemiology.

Purpose: To conduct a controlled trial of traditional and problem-based learning (PBL) methods of teaching epidemiology.

Method: All second-year medical students (n = 136) at The University of Western Australia Medical School were offered the chance to participate in a randomized controlled trial of teaching methods for an epidemiology course. Students who consented to participate (n = 80) were randomly assigned to either a PBL or a traditional course.

Trichiasis in Aboriginal people of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Background: Trachoma is a significant public health problem in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The prevalence of follicular trachoma in the region has been well documented and control of active trachoma is well established. In contrast, trichiasis prevalence in recent years is less well documented.

First-principles determination of hybrid bilayer membrane structure by phase-sensitive neutron reflectometry.

The application of a new, phase-sensitive neutron reflectometry method to reveal the compositional depth profiles of biomimetic membranes is reported. Determination of the complex reflection amplitude allows the related scattering length density (SLD) profile to be obtained by a first-principles inversion without the need for fitting or adjustable parameters. The SLD profile so obtained is unique for most membranes and can therefore be directly compared with the SLD profile corresponding to the chemical compositional profile of the film, as predicted, for example, by a molecular dynamics simulation.

Characterization of salt-induced changes in gene expression in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) roots and the role played by abscisic acid.

Examination of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill) root mRNA profiles by differential display-polymerase chain reaction (DD-PCR) revealed that a salt treatment induced, promoted or repressed the expression of a number of genes. The majority of the observed changes were indicative of a rapid and transient salt-induced alteration in gene expression. Twenty partial cDNAs corresponding primarily to salt-induced or up-regulated mRNAs were subsequently cloned and sequenced.

The cost-effectiveness of evidence-based guidelines and practice for screening and prevention of tuberculosis.

Introduction: The potential cost-effectiveness of screening depends on the risk of tuberculosis (TB) in the population being screened and the rate at which the screening outcome (prevention) is achieved.

Aims: To compare the cost-effectiveness of contact screening for TB for: (1) contact screening as it actually occurred in Victoria in 1991 (Model 1); (2) the process which should have occurred had the 1991 contact screening guidelines been followed (Model 2); (3) a hypothetical evidence-based model (Model 3).

Methods: Three models were constructed according to the aims.

The seed-specific transactivator, ABI3, induces oleosin gene expression.

A microspore-derived cell suspension culture of Brassica napus was used as a host for expression studies involving seed oleosin genes. The suspension culture was previously shown to display biochemistry and gene expression typical of zygotic embryos. Using a biolistic, transient expression approach we demonstrate that the seed-specific activator ABI3 promotes oleosin gene expression in these cultures.