STEM Outreach in Northern Queensland: The Importance of Providing Professional Development and Networking Opportunities to Educators

Teachers play a significant role as advocates for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) professions and through their work students are encouraged and enabled to progress to STEM related fields in higher education. In 2014, a multi-disciplinary team of tertiary educators provided professional development, capacity-building and networking experiences for STEM secondary educators in regional Northern Queensland. This Higher Education Participation and Partnership Program (HEPPP) funded outreach initiative focused on two key areas of the HEPPP strategic priorities of professional development; engagement and capacity building, to support the teachers in delivering science and science-related curriculum concepts. Hurdles arose between the professional development objectives and the situation of secondary schools in rural and remote regions experiencing social and economic challenges, seeking to leverage opportunities for enrichment and engagement with STEM initiatives and expertise. This paper is a retrospective account of the initiative’s successes and challenges, paying particular attention to the complexities in STEM education in rural-remote locations and the importance of capacity building through networking opportunities

Potential animal reservoir of Mycobacterium ulcerans: a systematic review

Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of Buruli ulcer, also known in Australia as Daintree ulcer or Bairnsdale ulcer. This destructive skin disease is characterized by extensive and painless necrosis of the skin and soft tissue with the formation of large ulcers, commonly on the leg or arm. To date, 33 countries with tropical, subtropical and temperate climates in Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Western Pacific have reported cases of Buruli ulcer. The disease is rarely fatal, although it may lead to permanent disability and/or disfigurement if not treated appropriately or in time. It is the third most common mycobacterial infection in the world after tuberculosis and leprosy. The precise mode of transmission of M. ulcerans is yet to be elucidated. Nevertheless, it is possible that the mode of transmission varies with different geographical areas and epidemiological settings. The knowledge about the possible routes of transmission and potential animal reservoirs of M. ulcerans is poorly understood and still remains patchy. Infectious diseases arise from the interaction of agent, host and environment. The majority of emerging or remerging infectious disease in human populations is spread by animals: either wildlife, livestock or pets. Animals may act as hosts or reservoirs and subsequently spread the organism to the environment or directly to the human population. The reservoirs may or may not be the direct source of infection for the hosts; however, they play a major role in maintenance of the organism in the environment, and in the mode of transmission. This remains valid for M. ulcerans. Possums have been suggested as one of the reservoir of M. ulcerans in south-eastern Australia, where possums ingest M. ulcerans from the environment, amplify them and shed the organism through their faeces. We conducted a systematic review with selected key words on PubMed and INFORMIT databases to aggregate available published data on animal reservoirs of M. ulcerans around the world. After certain inclusion and exclusion criteria were implemented, a total of 17 studies was included in the review. A variety of animals around the world e.g., rodents, shrews, possums (ringtail and brushtail), horses, dogs, alpacas, koalas and Indian flap-shelled turtles have been recorded as being infected with M. ulcerans. The majority of studies included in this review identified animal reservoirs as predisposing to the emergence and reemergence of M. ulcerans infection. Taken together, from the selected studies in this systematic review, it is clear that exotic wildlife and native mammals play a significant role as reservoirs for M. ulceran

Design and Development of an Internationally Applicable Educational Video to Increase Community Awareness in Regions with High Prevalence of Melioidosis and Diabetes

Melioidosis is a neglected tropical disease that causes high morbidity and mortality. Public health awareness is essential for both prevention and early detection of the infection. This project aimed to develop an internationally applicable educational tool to increase community awareness in regions with high prevalence of diabetes and melioidosis. The animation was created with international collaboration. Sixty-four delegates from different cultural backgrounds participated in the survey to evaluate the animation. Feedback was positive, with 85% agreeing that they would use this video for public education and 82% agreeing that the video was culturally appropriate to them in the context of their region. The animation was refined after feedback. To supplement the 3-minute animation, a 13-minute film footage of interviews with clinicians, researchers and patients was also created. These materials have been made available online through the International Melioidosis Network and can be readily downloaded or subtitled in any language using publicly available software, demonstrating the utility of developing low-cost adaptable health education material targeted for widespread use internationally

Molecular characterisation and classification of Burkholderia pseudomallei

Melioidosis presents with a broad spectrum of clinical presentations. Discussions on the correlations of disease presentation and severity with factors such as isolate virulence, host status and geographical location have been long and many. Additional issues such as latency and disease relapse serve to further complicate the picture. Molecular typing methods have been used to support a number of theories relating to such questions. They have also provided data regarding the evolutionary origins of Burkholderia pseudomallei isolates, in addition to defining the degree of clonality of multiple isolates from individual patients. More recently, molecular technology has been used in the search for biomarkers, molecular fingerprints used as diagnostic indicators of disease.\ud © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

STEM outreach in Northern Queensland: the importance of providing professional development and networking opportunities to educators

Teachers play a significant role as advocates for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)professions and through their work students are encouraged and enabled to progress to STEM related fields in higher education. In 2014, a multi-disciplinary team of tertiary educators provided professional development, capacity-building and networking experiences for STEM secondary educators in regional Northern Queensland. This Higher Education Participation and Partnership Program (HEPPP) funded outreach initiative focused on two key areas of the HEPPP strategic priorities of professional development; engagement and capacity building, to support the teachers in delivering science and science-related curriculum concepts. Hurdles arose between the professional development objectives and the situation of secondary schools in rural and remote regions experiencing social and economic challenges, seeking to leverage opportunities for enrichment and engagement with STEM initiatives and expertise. This paper is a retrospective account of the initiative’s successes and challenges, paying particular attention to the complexities in STEM education in rural-remote locations and the importance of capacity building through networking opportunitie

The effect of different Burkholderia pseudomallei isolates of varying levels of virulence on toll-like-receptor expression

The purpose of this investigation was to ascertain the degree of toll-like-receptor (TLR) activation by Burkholderia pseudomallei isolates with varying levels of virulence 2 h post infection. Standard antibiotic protection assays were performed on RAW 264.7 macrophages and peritoneal exudate cells (PEC) challenged with B. pseudomallei. Real-time PCR (RT-PCR) was performed to determine TLR2, TLR4, TLR5 and TLR9 expression. Internalization and killing of bacteria were determined 2h post infection. ELISAs were performed to determine the levels of TNF-α from cultured supernatants. Nitrate levels were determined by Griess assays. Up to 2h post infection, B. pseudomallei failed to significantly increase TLR4, TLR5 and TLR9 expression in both cell types. However, TLR2 expression was increased in RAW 264.7 macrophages, irrespective of isolate virulence. The levels of TNF-α and nitrate were significantly attenuated in RAW 264.7 macrophages, and no correlation was found between the level of virulence of the infecting strain and TLR expression, bacterial uptake, or killing. The ability of B. pseudomallei to evade detection by macrophages may in part be due to possible signal dampening of TLRs at very early stages of infection

B- and T-Cell Responses in Group A Streptococcus M-Protein- or Peptide-Induced Experimental Carditis▿

The etiology of rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease (RF/RHD) is believed to be autoimmune, involving immune responses initiated between streptococcal and host tissue proteins through a molecular mimicry mechanism(s). We sought to investigate the humoral and cellular responses elicited in a Lewis rat model of group A streptococcus M-protein- or peptide-induced experimental valvulitis/carditis, a recently developed animal model which may, in part, represent human rheumatic carditis. Recombinant streptococcal M5 protein elicited opsonic antibodies in Lewis rats, and anti-M5 antisera recognized epitopes within the B- and C-repeat regions of M5. One peptide from the streptococcal M5 protein B-repeat region (M5-B.6, amino acids 161 to 180) induced lymphocytes that responded to both recombinant M5 and cardiac myosin. Rats immunized with streptococcal M5 protein developed valvular lesions, distinguished by infiltration of CD3+, CD4+, and CD68+ cells into valve tissue, consistent with human studies that suggest that RF/RHD are mediated by inflammatory CD4+ T cells and CD68+ macrophages. The current study provides additional information that supports the use of the rat autoimmune valvulitis model for investigating RF/RHD

Overrepresentation of Diabetes in Soft Tissue Nontuberculous Mycobacterial Infections

Diabetes predisposes patients to bacterial infections. Although diabetes confers susceptibility to tuberculosis, the association between nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infections and diabetes remains unknown. A retrospective chart analysis of patients in northern Australia during a 20-year period with soft tissue NTM infections revealed that patients with diabetes were three times overrepresented in comparison to the general population (odds ratio = 3.13). There was a statistically significant association between NTM infections and diabetes in this patient cohort (P = 0.0082)