Topical Vitamin D May Modulate Human Sinonasal Mucosal Responses to House Dust Mite Antigen.

Background: Respiratory epithelium is a key defense against inhaled pathogens. Vitamin D3 (VD) has been suggested to modulate airway inflammation; however, its effect on innate airway defenses, the physical barrier, mucociliary apparatus, and cytokine release remains unclear.

Objective: To investigate the outcomes of VD application prior to challenge in an in vitro model of human sinonasal epithelium, through assessment of epithelial transepithelial resistance (TER), cilia beat frequency (CBF), and interleukin (IL)-6 release, and secondarily to determine whether topical VD is beneficial to patients with inflammatory sinonasal pathology.

An integrated approach to inherited platelet disorders: results from a research collaborative, the Sydney Platelet Group.

Inherited disorders of platelet function (IPFD) and/or number (IPND) are heterogeneous conditions that result in variable mucocutaneous bleeding symptoms as a result of deranged primary haemostasis caused by platelet dysfunction or thrombocytopenia. Diagnosis is important to guide post-operative bleeding prophylactic strategies, to avoid treatment with inappropriate medications, and inform prognosis. Achieving an accurate diagnosis has traditionally been hampered by the requirement of multiple, often complex, laboratory tests that are not always available at single centres.

Hormone Therapy and Effects on Sporadic Alzheimer's Disease in Postmenopausal Women: Importance of Nomenclature.

Numerous observational studies have suggested that hormone therapy (HT) might protect postmenopausal women against cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, because of the significant disparity between results, especially those between observational and randomized controlled trials (RCT), this postulate remains unproven. A significant contributing factor to these inconsistencies is the loose use of the generic definitions of estrogens and progestogens with most studies not delineating the clear differences between non-endogenous and endogenously identical (bioidentical) hormones, their molecular binding affinities and actions, and resultant metabolites.

A physician-initiated double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, phase 2 study evaluating the efficacy and safety of inhibition of NADPH oxidase with the first-in-class Nox-1/4 inhibitor, GKT137831, in adults with type 1 diabetes and persistently elevated urinary albumin excretion: Protocol and statistical considerations.

Purpose: Kidney disease caused by type 1 diabetes can progress to end stage renal disease and can increase mortality risk. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase (Nox) plays a major role in producing oxidative stress in the kidney in diabetes, and its activity is attenuated by GKT137831, an oral Nox inhibitor with predominant inhibitory action on Nox-1 and Nox - 4. Previous studies have demonstrated renoprotective effects with GKT137831 in various experimental models of type 1 diabetes-related kidney disease.

Management of Australian Adults with Bronchiectasis in Tertiary Care: Evidence-Based or Access-Driven?

Purpose: Australian data regarding the management of patients with bronchiectasis is scarce. We sought to compare the management of adults with bronchiectasis attending tertiary Australian centres with recent national and international guidelines.

Methods: The Australian Bronchiectasis Registry is a centralised database of patients with radiologically confirmed bronchiectasis unrelated to cystic fibrosis recruited from 14 tertiary Australian hospitals.

Early mother-child dyadic pathways to childhood obesity risk: A conceptual model.

Understanding the emotional quality of the mother-child dyadic relationship and parent-child feeding interactions may further clarify early developmental pathways to eating behaviours and obesity risk. The quality of parent-child relationships fosters all aspects of child development but has not yet been extensively examined in relation to childhood weight gain. The aim of this paper is to propose a conceptual model, which outlines early mother-child dyadic pathways linking parent-child feeding interactions to child body mass index, where parent-child relationships have a central role.

Australian adults with bronchiectasis: The first report from the Australian Bronchiectasis Registry.

Background: /objective: There are no large, multi-centre studies of Australians with bronchiectasis. The Australian Bronchiectasis Registry (ABR) was established in 2015 to create a longitudinal research platform. We aimed to describe the baseline characteristics of adult ABR participants and assess the impact of disease severity and exacerbation phenotype on quality of life (QoL).

Real-time foot clearance biofeedback to assist gait rehabilitation following stroke: a randomized controlled trial protocol.

Background: The risk of falling is significantly higher in people with chronic stroke and it is, therefore, important to design interventions to improve mobility and decrease falls risk. Minimum toe clearance (MTC) is the key gait cycle event for predicting tripping-falls because it occurs mid-swing during the walking cycle where forward velocity of the foot is maximum. High forward velocity coupled with low MTC increases the probability of unanticipated foot-ground contacts.

Perinatal anxiety and depression: Awareness and attitudes in Australia.

Background: Better community mental health literacy is associated with positive help-seeking behaviours and reduced stigma. There are relatively few published surveys of perinatal mental health literacy.

Aims: To provide a profile of current awareness, knowledge and attitudes in relation to the mental health of women and men in the perinatal period.

Associations of Impaired Renal Function With Declines in Muscle Strength and Muscle Function in Older Men: Findings From the CHAMP Study.

Background: Advanced kidney disease is associated with reduced muscle strength and physical performance. However, associations between early stages of renal impairment and physical outcomes are unclear.

Methods: The Concord Health and Ageing in Men Project is a prospective study of 1,705 community-dwelling men aged 70 years and older.

Secondary Diffuse Choroid Plexus B-Cell Lymphoma: Case Report and Review of Literature.

Background: Central nervous system (CNS) relapse is an uncommon complication of diffuse large B cell lymphoma and is associated with significant mortality and morbidity. It is becoming a more prevalent pathologic entity in the rituximab era. Our case provides insight into the pathophysiology, diagnosis, prevention, and management of secondary intraventricular CNS lymphomas.

Recessive DES cardio/myopathy without myofibrillar aggregates: intronic splice variant silences one allele leaving only missense L190P-desmin.

We establish autosomal recessive DES variants p.(Leu190Pro) and a deep intronic splice variant causing inclusion of a frameshift-inducing artificial exon/intronic fragment, as the likely cause of myopathy with cardiac involvement in female siblings. Both sisters presented in their twenties with slowly progressive limb girdle weakness, severe systolic dysfunction, and progressive, severe respiratory weakness.

The impact of progressive chronic kidney disease on health-related quality-of-life: a 12-year community cohort study.

Purpose: Quality-of-life is poor in end-stage kidney disease; however, the relationships between earlier stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and are poorly understood. This study explored longitudinal quality-of-life changes in a community-based CKD cohort and assessed associations between CKD and quality-of-life over time, and between baseline quality-of-life and CKD outcomes.

Methods: We used the Australian diabetes, obesity and lifestyle study-a nationally representative, prospective cohort with data collected at baseline, year 5 and year 12-to examine the relationships between CKD stage, quality-of-life and outcomes.

Prognostic Differences in ISUP Grade Group 4: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The ISUP (Internal Society of Urologic Pathology) recently adopted a five-tiered prognostication system. There is evidence to suggest that the ISUP grade group 4 is a heterogeneous entity regarding prognosis. Our aim was to systematically examine the existing evidence to determine if outcome differences exist within the ISUP grade group 4.

Predicting the need for transfer and interventional angiography for patients with acute colonic haemorrhage in a regional setting.

Background: Radiological angioembolization is an important strategy in management of acute colonic bleeding. Due to requirement for specialized interventional radiology, many hospitals rely on transfer for this service. This study aimed to identify patient and clinical factors associated with positive (blush) computed tomography mesenteric angiogram (CTMA) or need for invasive angiography.

Motor Neuron Abnormalities Correlate with Impaired Movement in Zebrafish that Express Mutant Superoxide Dismutase 1.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive loss of motor neurons. ALS can be modeled in zebrafish (Danio rerio) through the expression of human ALS-causing genes, such as superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1). Overexpression of mutated human SOD1 protein causes aberrant branching and shortening of spinal motor axons.

Neuronal cell culture from transgenic zebrafish models of neurodegenerative disease.

We describe a protocol for culturing neurons from transgenic zebrafish embryos to investigate the subcellular distribution and protein aggregation status of neurodegenerative disease-causing proteins. The utility of the protocol was demonstrated on cell cultures from zebrafish that transgenically express disease-causing variants of human fused in sarcoma (FUS) and ataxin-3 proteins, in order to study amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and spinocerebellar ataxia type-3 (SCA3), respectively. A mixture of neuronal subtypes, including motor neurons, exhibited differentiation and neurite outgrowth in the cultures.

The role of prehabilitation in frail surgical patients: A systematic review.

Introduction: Increasing emphasis is being placed on the detection of frailty in the pre-operative setting given its association with surgical morbidity and mortality. Prehabilitation seeks to increase the physiological reserve of frail patients, attenuating the risk of irreversible functional decline following surgery.

Aim/hypothesis: This systematic review appraises the evidence available for prehabilitation in frail surgical patients.

Depression, fatigue and neurocognitive deficits in chronic hepatitis C.

Patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection experience a range of symptoms including depression, fatigue and neurocognitive deficits, impairing quality of life. Depression, in particular, may be reactive to increased psychosocial stress, and the physical symptoms of advanced HCV or associated comorbidities. However, even patients at an early stage of HCV infection, with minimal hepatic inflammation or comorbidities, report more depressive symptoms and fatigue than the general population.