3,934 research outputs found
Role of the gerontological nurse practitioner in Australia.
The role of an aged care nurse practitioner (ACNP) is well recognised internationally however, in Australia, the implementation of this advanced role is still in its infancy
with few gerontological nursing experts registered as nurse practitioners (NP). This single Victorian facility 2002 study was the first to consider the role of an ACNP in Australia and the first to describe the clinical and social benefits or otherwise of ACNP interventions in an Australian context. NP Studies in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) from 1999 ā 2002 investigated the role in other nursing domains followed by an ACNP study conducted over 2004-2005. A subsequent national ACNP study in 2005 provided complementary results to this first Australian ACNP study which created the framework for these subsequent projects.
This study aimed to establish: clinical or other outcomes that a gerontological nurse practitioner (ACNPs) could achieve for older persons in an Australian residential aged care facility, factors that impacted upon the introduction of such a role, a definition of the role and to establish whether such a role would benefit older persons in Australia.
Various methods were used to determine the numerous outcomes which were to be studied in this project. A quantitative analysis of the functional and social status of residents who participated in the project, pre and post the ANCP interventions was undertaken. A quantitative analysis of the satisfaction of residents or their representatives pre and post the interventions is also presented. A qualitative analysis via focus groups, of the views of staff, residents and health professionals involved in the project was undertaken. Hospital rates pre and post the interventions and case studies are presented as additional information only.
The team involved in this Victorian Government Department of Human Services funded aged care nurse practitioner project at Greensborough Private Nursing Home included this researcher, the ACNP candidate, the Director of Nursing (DON) and Deputy DON. The team jointly managed the complex legal framework, to ensure
interventions were implemented safely for all residents with the support of the residentsā general practitioners and other health professionals working for the nursing home.
Statistically significant improvements in the residentās functional and social status were demonstrated for residents treated by the ACNP. Additionally, the resident and representative satisfaction survey revealed a higher overall level of satisfaction with the home following the projectās completion. The results demonstrated that the ACNPsā interventions were of high quality, led to improvements in resident health outcomes, improved residentsā quality of life and reduced hospitalisation rates. This was achieved by intervening in a timely manner when residents required relief of their physical and psychological symptoms through targeted interventions and one-on-one specialist medical nursing attention.
In summary, this study identified interventions an ACNP could undertake and therefore the role they could play in an Australian residential aged care facility, given the national legislation governing all aspects of an aged care facility. This study demonstrated that the role was feasible and achieved positive resident outcomes despite the factors that impeded its introduction.Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Population Health and Clinical Practice, 200
Z-FIRE: ISM properties of the z = 2.095 COSMOS Cluster
We investigate the ISM properties of 13 star-forming galaxies within the z~2
COSMOS cluster. We show that the cluster members have [NII]/Ha and [OIII]/Hb
emission-line ratios similar to z~2 field galaxies, yet systematically
different emission-line ratios (by ~0.17 dex) from the majority of local
star-forming galaxies. We find no statistically significant difference in the
[NII]/Ha and [OIII]/Hb line ratios or ISM pressures among the z~2 cluster
galaxies and field galaxies at the same redshift. We show that our cluster
galaxies have significantly larger ionization parameters (by up to an order of
magnitude) than local star-forming galaxies. We hypothesize that these high
ionization parameters may be associated with large specific star formation
rates (i.e. a large star formation rate per unit stellar mass). If this
hypothesis is correct, then this relationship would have important implications
for the geometry and/or the mass of stars contained within individual star
clusters as a function of redshift.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
ZFIRE: The Evolution of the Stellar Mass Tully-Fisher Relation to Redshift 2.0 < Z < 2.5 with MOSFIRE
Using observations made with MOSFIRE on Keck I as part of the ZFIRE survey,
we present the stellar mass Tully-Fisher relation at 2.0 < z < 2.5. The sample
was drawn from a stellar mass limited, Ks-band selected catalog from ZFOURGE
over the CANDELS area in the COSMOS field. We model the shear of the Halpha
emission line to derive rotational velocities at 2.2X the scale radius of an
exponential disk (V2.2). We correct for the blurring effect of a
two-dimensional PSF and the fact that the MOSFIRE PSF is better approximated by
a Moffat than a Gaussian, which is more typically assumed for natural seeing.
We find for the Tully-Fisher relation at 2.0 < z < 2.5 that logV2.2 =(2.18 +/-
0.051)+(0.193 +/- 0.108)(logM/Msun - 10) and infer an evolution of the
zeropoint of Delta M/Msun = -0.25 +/- 0.16 dex or Delta M/Msun = -0.39 +/- 0.21
dex compared to z = 0 when adopting a fixed slope of 0.29 or 1/4.5,
respectively. We also derive the alternative kinematic estimator S0.5, with a
best-fit relation logS0.5 =(2.06 +/- 0.032)+(0.211 +/- 0.086)(logM/Msun - 10),
and infer an evolution of Delta M/Msun= -0.45 +/- 0.13 dex compared to z < 1.2
if we adopt a fixed slope. We investigate and review various systematics,
ranging from PSF effects, projection effects, systematics related to stellar
mass derivation, selection biases and slope. We find that discrepancies between
the various literature values are reduced when taking these into account. Our
observations correspond well with the gradual evolution predicted by
semi-analytic models.Comment: 21 pages, 14 figures, 1 appendix. Accepted for publication by Apj,
February 28, 201
Proteomic analysis identifies interleukin 11 regulated plasma membrane proteins in human endometrial epithelial cells in vitro
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>During the peri-implantation period, the embryo adheres to an adequately prepared or receptive endometrial surface epithelium. Abnormal embryo adhesion to the endometrium results in embryo implantation failure and infertility. Endometrial epithelial cell plasma membrane proteins critical in regulating adhesion may potentially be infertility biomarkers or targets for treating infertility. Interleukin (IL) 11 regulates human endometrial epithelial cells (hEEC) adhesion. Its production is abnormal in women with infertility. The objective of the study was to identify IL11 regulated plasma membrane proteins in hEEC <it>in vitro </it>using a proteomic approach.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Using a 2D-differential in-gel electrophoresis (DIGE) electrophoresis combined with LCMS/MS mass spectrometry approach, we identified 20 unique plasma membrane proteins differentially regulated by IL11 in ECC-1 cells, a hEEC derived cell line. Two IL11 regulated proteins with known roles in cell adhesion, annexin A2 (ANXA2) and flotillin-1 (FLOT1), were validated by Western blot and immunocytochemistry in hEEC lines (ECC-1 and an additional cell line, Ishikawa) and primary hEEC. Flotilin-1 was further validated by immunohistochemistry in human endometrium throughout the menstrual cycle (<it>n = 6-8/cycle</it>).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>2D-DIGE analysis identified 4 spots that were significantly different between control and IL11 treated group. Of these 4 spots, there were 20 proteins that were identified with LCMS/MS. Two proteins; ANXA2 and FLOT1 were chosen for further analyses and have found to be significantly up-regulated following IL11 treatment. Western blot analysis showed a 2-fold and a 2.5-fold increase of ANXA2 in hEEC membrane fraction of ECC-1 and Ishikawa cells respectively. Similarly, a 1.8-fold and a 2.3/2.4-fold increase was also observed for FLOT1 in hEEC membrane fraction of ECC-1 and Ishikawa cells respectively. <it>In vitro</it>, IL11 induced stronger ANXA2 expression on cell surface of primary hEEC and ECC-1 whilst, the lipid-raft protein FLOT1 demonstrated punctate staining in the apical surface of ECC-1 plasma membranes and was upregulated in the epithelium in the receptive phase of the menstrual cycle (p lower or equal 0.05).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This is the first study to use a proteomics approach to identify hEEC plasma membrane proteins that may be useful as infertility markers or pharmacological targets for fertility regulation.</p
ZFIRE: Using H equivalent widths to investigate the in situ initial mass function at z~2
We use the ZFIRE survey (http://zfire.swinburne.edu.au) to investigate the
high mass slope of the initial mass function (IMF) for a mass-complete
(log10(M/M)~9.3) sample of 102 star-forming galaxies at z~2 using
their H equivalent widths (H-EW) and rest-frame optical
colours. We compare dust-corrected H-EW distributions with predictions
of star-formation histories (SFH) from PEGASE.2 and Starburst99 synthetic
stellar population models. We find an excess of high H-EW galaxies that
are up to 0.3--0.5 dex above the model-predicted Salpeter IMF locus and the
H-EW distribution is much broader (10--500 \AA) than can easily be
explained by a simple monotonic SFH with a standard Salpeter-slope IMF. Though
this discrepancy is somewhat alleviated when it is assumed that there is no
relative attenuation difference between stars and nebular lines, the result is
robust against observational biases, and no single IMF (i.e. non-Salpeter
slope) can reproduce the data. We show using both spectral stacking and Monte
Carlo simulations that starbursts cannot explain the EW distribution. We
investigate other physical mechanisms including models with variations in
stellar rotation, binary star evolution, metallicity, and the IMF upper-mass
cutoff. IMF variations and/or highly rotating extreme metal poor stars
(Z~0.1Z) with binary interactions are the most plausible explanations
for our data. If the IMF varies, then the highest H-EWs would require
very shallow slopes (>-1.0) with no one slope able to reproduce the
data. Thus, the IMF would have to vary stochastically. We conclude that the
stellar populations at z~2 show distinct differences from local populations and
there is no simple physical model to explain the large variation in
H-EWs at z~2.Comment: Accepted to MNRAS. 43 pages, 27 Figures. Survey website:
http://zfire.swinburne.edu.au
ZFIRE: A KECK/MOSFIRE Spectroscopic Survey of Galaxies in Rich Environments at z~2
We present an overview and the first data release of ZFIRE, a spectroscopic
redshift survey of star-forming galaxies that utilizes the MOSFIRE instrument
on Keck-I to study galaxy properties in rich environments at . ZFIRE
measures accurate spectroscopic redshifts and basic galaxy properties derived
from multiple emission lines. The galaxies are selected from a stellar mass
limited sample based on deep near infra-red imaging () and
precise photometric redshifts from the ZFOURGE and UKIDSS surveys as well as
grism redshifts from 3DHST. Between 2013--2015 ZFIRE has observed the COSMOS
and UDS legacy fields over 13 nights and has obtained 211 galaxy redshifts over
from a combination of nebular emission lines (such as \Halpha,
\NII, \Hbeta, \OII, \OIII, \SII) observed at 1--2\micron. Based on our
medium-band NIR photometry, we are able to spectrophotometrically flux
calibrate our spectra to \around10\% accuracy. ZFIRE reaches emission
line flux limits of \around with a
resolving power of and reaches masses down to \around10\msol. We
confirm that the primary input survey, ZFOURGE, has produced photometric
redshifts for star-forming galaxies (including highly attenuated ones) accurate
to with outliers. We measure a
slight redshift bias of , and we note that the redshift bias tends to
be larger at higher masses. We also examine the role of redshift on the
derivation of rest-frame colours and stellar population parameters from SED
fitting techniques. The ZFIRE survey extends spectroscopically-confirmed samples across a richer range of environments, here we make available the
first public release of the data for use by the
community.\footnote{\url{http://zfire.swinburne.edu.au}}Comment: Published in ApJ. Data available at http://zfire.swinburne.edu.au,
Code for figures at https://github.com/themiyan/zfire_survey, 31 pages, 24
figure
Comparison of Safety and Efficacy of Insulin Glargine and Neutral Protamine Hagedorn Insulin in Older Adults with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Results from a Pooled Analysis
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90150/1/jgs3773.pd
Human Tra2 proteins jointly control a CHEK1 splicing switch among alternative and constitutive target exons
Alternative splicingāthe production of multiple messenger RNA isoforms from a single geneāis regulated in part by RNA binding proteins. While the RBPs transformer2 alpha (Tra2Ī±) and Tra2Ī² have both been implicated in the regulation of alternative splicing, their relative contributions to this process are not well understood. Here we find simultaneousābut not individualādepletion of Tra2Ī± and Tra2Ī² induces substantial shifts in splicing of endogenous Tra2Ī² target exons, and that both constitutive and alternative target exons are under dual Tra2Ī±āTra2Ī² control. Target exons are enriched in genes associated with chromosome biology including CHEK1, which encodes a key DNA damage response protein. Dual Tra2 protein depletion reduces expression of full-length CHK1 protein, results in the accumulation of the DNA damage marker Ī³H2AX and decreased cell viability. We conclude Tra2 proteins jointly control constitutive and alternative splicing patterns via paralog compensation to control pathways essential to the maintenance of cell viability
Self-assembly of a silicon-containing side-chain liquid crystalline block copolymer in bulk and in thin films: kinetic pathway of a cylinder to sphere transition
The self-assembly of a high-Ļ silicon-containing side-chain liquid crystalline block copolymer (LC BCP) in bulk and in thin films is reported, and the structural transition process from the hexagonally packed cylinder (HEX) to the body-centered cubic structure (BCC) in thin films was examined by both reciprocal and real space experimental methods. The block copolymer, poly(dimethylsiloxane-b-11-(4ā²-cyanobiphenyl-4-yloxy)undecylmethacrylate) (PDMS-b-P(4CNB11C)MA) with a molecular weight of 19.5 kg molā1 and a volume fraction of PDMS 27% self-assembled in bulk into a hierarchical nanostructure of sub-20 nm HEX cylinders of PDMS with the P(4CNB11C)MA block exhibiting a smectic LC phase with a 1.61 nm period. The structure remained HEX as the P(4CNB11C)MA block transformed to an isotropic phase at ā¼120 Ā°C. In the thin films, the PDMS cylindrical microdomains were oriented in layers parallel to the substrate surface. The LC block formed a smectic LC phase which transformed to an isotropic phase at ā¼120 Ā°C, and the microphase-separated nanostructure transformed from HEX to BCC spheres at ā¼160 Ā°C. The hierarchical structure as well as the dynamic structural transition of the thin films were characterized using in situ grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering and grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering. The transient morphologies from the HEX to BCC structure in thin films were captured by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy, and the transition pathway was described.National Science Foundation (U.S.) (DMR-1606911)National Natural Science Foundation (China) (Grant 51403132)National Natural Science Foundation (China) (Grant 51773124
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