The effect of acupuncture on people with hepatitis C virus : a randomised controlled pilot study

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Science.Background: The use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) in Australia has been steadily increasing. This has resulted in many people infected with Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) consulting CAM practitioners in the hope of alleviating some of the debilitating symptoms associated with this viral infection. Chronic symptoms often lead to a reduction in everyday functional health producing a lower quality of life compared with healthy population norms or patients with other forms of liver disease. Current recommended pharmaceutical treatment has a sustained virological response in approximately 50-60% of patients. Also large numbers of people are either not suitable candidates or intolerant to treatment or do not choose this option. In the mid 1990s, HCV residents in a Sydney alcohol and drug rehabilitation centre who were also receiving auricular (ear) acupuncture as part of their rehabilitation program, verbally reported decrease in their alanine aminotransferase (ALT) blood levels after approximately 16 acupuncture treatments administered over a three month period (Berle 1997). Objective: To investigate whether 24 acupuncture treatments over a twelve week period has an effect on the health outcomes of people with HCV. Design: A randomised single blind controlled pilot study with two parallel arms. Participants: Sixteen applicants who met the eligibility criteria and agreed to participate in the study were randomised into either treatment or control group. Outcome measures: The primary outcome measure was ALT blood levels at the completion of treatment (week 12), weeks 16 and 20. The secondary outcomes were HCV PCR quantitative (viral load test) and hepatitis quality of life (QoL) questionnaire. In addition a HCV Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) pattern questionnaire, acupuncture treatment credibility questionnaire and acupuncture needling sensation questionnaire were administered. Setting: Participants were offered treatment at two clinic locations; a private clinic at Guildford and at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) city campus. Blinded serum pathology/testing was conducted through independent Douglass Hanly Moir Pathology clinics. Treatment: Sixteen HCV participants were randomly allocated to two groups; one group receiving verum acupuncture treatment and the other receiving invasive sham acupuncture treatment. The treatment methodology involved the development of a TCM pattern differentiation diagnostic/outcome measure which identified 17 TCM/HCV patterns. One participant (treatment group) left the study after eight treatments due to work commitments. Results: No significant change was found between the two groups for ALTs, viral load or any domains of the QoL measure. The TCM pattern questionnaire identified the primary, secondary and tertiary TCM pattern expressions for HCV within the study group. On completion of the treatment phase there was a significant reduction in the secondary and tertiary TCM pattern expression for the treatment group (p=0.045 and 0.037 respectively). No significant change was found for the control group. The acupuncture credibility questionnaire identified that neither the treatment nor control group identified the type of treatment they had received; however the treatment group did perceive their treatment as more credible than the control group at week 12. There was no significant difference found between or within the two groups for the acupuncture needling sensation questionnaire. Conclusions: Despite the small number of participants and no significant changes for ALTs, viral load or any domains of the QoL there was a significant difference in the secondary and tertiary TCM patterns

Effects of photoperiod regimes and salinity on Na+, K+-ATPase α-isoform expression in gills and kidney during smoltification in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) in recirculating aquaculture systems

Understanding the molecular mechanisms of smoltification and seawater adaptation in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) is crucial for optimizing smolt production in aquaculture. This study investigated the expression patterns of Na+/K+-ATPase (NKA) subunits during smoltification in domesticated salmon under different light regimes and salinities in gills and kidney. The experiment was carried out in four photoperiodic treatments: 1) No Winter (NW): continuous light (24L:0D), 2) Early Winter (EW): Standard production light regime (6 weeks winter signal (12L:12D) followed by summer signal (24L:0D)), 3) Late Winter (LW): Delayed winter signal using standard production light regime (6 weeks winter signal (12L:12D) followed by summer signal (24L:0D)) and 4) Late Long Winter (LLW): Delayed and prolonged winter signal (20 weeks winter signal (12L:12D) followed by summer signal (24L:0D)). There were initially 8 tanks with freshwater (FW) (0-1 ppt) which split into brackish water (BW) (12 ppt) for all photoperiodic light regimes after summer signal was initiated. NKAa1a mRNA abundance in gills decreased during smoltification in all groups. NKAa1b mRNA abundance in gills did not increase as expected in gills, but NKAa1b protein levels increased. NKAa1c and NKAa3 isoforms had low and stable expression in the gills in FW. NKAa1c may have a compensatory function under specific conditions. In the kidney, NKAa1c was the most abundant isoform. NKAa1b mRNA abundance in the gills increased with higher salinity, supporting its role in salinity adaptation. NKAa1a mRNA expression increased in response to brackish water in the kidney, while NKAa1b showed no significant changes. NKAa1c and NKAa3 had minimal responses to salinity in the kidney. Monitoring the decrease in NKAa1a mRNA abundance may indicate smolt readiness and seawater tolerance. The increase in NKAa1b mRNA and protein abundance is associated with salinity tolerance and can therefore be a indicator for successful smoltification.Masteroppgave i biologiBIO399MAMN-HAVSJMAMN-BI

3D Modelling of Brain Metastasis Microenvironment for Evaluation of Tumour-Stromal Interactions

Brain metastases (BM) occur when cancer cells from the primary location spread to the brain through the bloodstream. BM affects approximately 20-40 % of cancer patients, with the majority originating from lung, breast, and skin cancers. If left untreated, the median survival time is usually only one month, and aggressive treatment only extends survival to around four months. Despite the advances in modern medicine, the blood-brain barrier (BBB) poses a significant challenge in treating BM, restricting the entry of approximately 98 % of chemotherapeutic drugs into the brain. Thus, better model systems are needed to understand the complex interplay between cancer cells and normal brain cells. In order to generate novel models, a range of cell lines derived from lung, breast and skin BM were characterized to understand their behaviour in vitro. Subsequently, their distinguishing features were analyzed to identify the most suitable candidates for generating three-dimensional models, which can later be used for drug testing. We found that LBM1, derived from a lung cancer BM, and H16, developed from a melanoma BM, were the best candidates for spheroid formation. The two cell lines underwent treatment with thioridazine, an antipsychotic drug that has been previously tested by our group on various melanoma BM cell lines and demonstrated a significant reduction in their viability. Comparable results were seen with LBM1 and H16 cells. The potential of LBM1- and H16-derived exosomes to serve as imaging agents was also investigated, with focus on iron oxide labelling using carboxyl-coated superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs), through electroporation. To verify the electroporation, further investigation is necessary to confirm the presence of the iron oxide particles within the exosomes. However, dextran-coated SPIONs were successfully internalised by LBM1 cells following 24 h incubation, suggesting its potential labelling attributes and potential uptake by LBM1-derived exosomes. Lastly, LBM1 and H16 cells were injected intracardially into four non-obese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient (NOD-SCID) mice each for evaluation of their tumourigenic potential. Despite a small sample size, H16-injected mice demonstrated a 23 % increased survival time compared to LBM1-injected mice, but no tumours were observed at week 4. In contrast, 3 out of 4 LBM1-injected mice displayed brain tumours four weeks following injection, thus demonstrating its potential as a model system for future BM research.Masteroppgave i biomedisinBMED395MAMD-MEDB

Foreword

My father, Adolf A. Berle Jr., was quoted in the Washington Post of February 6, 2011, as saying, “Great men have two lives, one which occurs while they work on this Earth; a second which begins at the day of their death and continues as long as their ideas and conceptions remain powerful.” The Berle Law Center at Seattle University is an example of the way in which my father’s ideas have continued to influence thought across the country and around the world since his death in 1971. I believe he would be pleased with his “second life” so far

Intrusion-based reasoning and depression: Cross-sectional and prospective relationships

Intrusion-based reasoning refers to the tendency to form interpretations about oneself or a situation based on the occurrence of a negative intrusive autobiographical memory. Intrusion-based reasoning characterises post-traumatic stress disorder, but has not yet been investigated in depression. We report two studies that aimed to investigate this. In Study 1 both high (n = 42) and low (n = 28) dysphoric participants demonstrated intrusion-based reasoning. High-dysphoric individuals engaged in self-referent intrusion-based reasoning to a greater extent than did low-dysphoric participants. In Study 2 there were no significant differences in intrusion-based reasoning between currently depressed (n = 27) and non-depressed (n = 51) participants, and intrusion-based reasoning did not predict depressive symptoms at 6-month follow-up. Interestingly, previously (n = 26) but not currently (n = 27) depressed participants engaged in intrusion-based reasoning to a greater extent than never-depressed participants (n = 25), indicating the possibility that intrusion-based reasoning may serve as a "scar" from previous episodes. The implications of these findings are discussed. © 2013 © 2013 Taylor & Francis

Parental Trajectories of PTSD and Child Adjustment: Findings From the Building a New Life in Australia Study

© 2019 Global Alliance for Behavioral Health and Social Justice. Evidence suggests that the psychosocial adjustment of children of refugees may be compromised when a parent has symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We sought to determine whether trajectories of parental PTSD symptoms might relate to child adjustment and whether there is an additive effect when both parents, as opposed to just one, has prominent PTSD symptoms. We report data from the first three years of a prospective study of recent Australian humanitarian migrants: the Building a New Life in Australia study. Parental PTSD symptoms were assessed on three occasions, and latent class growth analysis was used to identify homogenous groups of parents based on their PTSD symptoms. The Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire was administered to assess child psychosocial adjustment. Regression analyses were then conducted to determine whether trajectories of parental PTSD symptoms predicted child adjustment. After controlling for child age and gender, the presence of either one or both parents with persistently high PTSD symptoms was associated with children's having greater emotional difficulties and poorer overall psychosocial adjustment. Children with both parents with persistently high PTSD had higher levels of emotional difficulties than did children with a single parent with high PTSD symptoms. For emotional difficulties, though not other domains of child psychosocial adjustment, there indeed appears to be an additive impact of having two parents, rather than just one, with persistently high PTSD symptoms, although the magnitude of these effects was small. The clinical and service provision implications of these findings are discussed