Accounting Profession in Australia; Professional Accounting in Foreign Country Series

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The subpopulation of microglia sensitive to neurotransmitters/neurohormones is modulated by stimulation with LPS, interferon-γ, and IL-4

Recently, neurotransmitters/neurohormones have been identified as factors controlling the function of microglia, the immune competent cells of the central nervous system. In this study, we compared the responsiveness of microglia to neurotransmitters/neurohormones. We freshly isolated microglia from healthy adult C57Bl/6 mice and found that only a small fraction (1-20%) responded to the application of endothelin, histamine, substance P, serotonin, galanin, somatostatin, angiotensin II, vasopressin, neurotensin, dopamine, or nicotine. In cultured microglia from neonatal and adult mice, a similarly small population of cells responded to these neurotransmitters/neurohormones. To induce a proinflammatory phenotype, we applied lipopolysaccaride (LPS) or interferon-gamma (IFN-{gamma}) to the cultures for 24 h. Several of the responding populations increased; however, there was no uniform pattern when comparing adult with neonatal microglia or LPS with IFN-{gamma} treatment. IL-4 as an anti-inflammatory substance increased the histamine-, substance P-, and somatostatin-sensitive populations only in microglia from adult, but not in neonatal cells. We also found that the expression of different receptors was not strongly correlated, indicating that there are many different populations of microglia with a distinct set of receptors. Our results demonstrate that microglial cells are a heterogeneous population with respect to their sensitivity to neurotransmitters/neurohormones and that they are more responsive in defined activation states

Book reviews

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Trauma is danger

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Trauma is one of the leading causes of death in young adult patients. Many pre-clinical and clinical studies attempt to investigate the immunological pathways involved, however the true mediators remain to be elucidated. Herein, we attempt to describe the immunologic response to systemic trauma in the context of the Danger model.</p> <p>Data Sources</p> <p>A literature search using PubMed was used to identify pertinent articles describing the Danger model in relation to trauma.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our knowledge of Danger signals in relation to traumatic injury is still limited. Danger/alarmin signals are the most proximal molecules in the immune response that have many possibilities for effector function in the innate and acquired immune systems. Having a full understanding of these molecules and their pathways would give us the ability to intervene at such an early stage and may prove to be more effective in blunting the post-injury inflammatory response unlike previously failed cytokine experiments.</p

The role of lateral and vertical herkogamy in the divergence of the blue- And red-flowered lineages of Lysimachia arvensis

Background and Aims: Herkogamy, or anther-stigma separation, is known to reduce self-pollen deposition, but little is known about the relative efficacy of different modes or conformations of herkogamy. We assessed the effectiveness of vertical versus lateral herkogamy in preventing or promoting self-pollen deposition in the annual herb Lysimachia arvensis, a plant with lineages that differ in flower colour, and in which flowers first display lateral and then vertical herkogamy. Because mating between the two lineages compromises fitness through the production of low-quality hybrid offspring, we tested the prediction that individuals sampled from sites occupied by both lineages should have flowers that promote autonomous self-pollen deposition and self-fertilization as a result of selection to reduce deleterious reproductive interference. Methods: We characterized variation in herkogamy within and among 25 pure and mixed populations of L. arvensis in its European range and assessed the effectiveness of lateral versus vertical herkogamy in avoiding self-pollen deposition. Results: Lateral herkogamy was more effective than vertical herkogamy in limiting self-pollen deposition. In the case of vertical herkogamy, only approach herkogamy was effective. Lineages showed consistent differences in herkogamy traits. In general, angles were smaller for blue than red flowers in most populations, and blue flowers showed approach herkogamy, while red flowers showed predominantly reverse herkogamy. In sympatry, the red lineage showed a reduction of both herkogamy traits while for the blue lineage only lateral herkogamy was reduced. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that pollen deposition is affected not only by the degree but also the spatial conformation of herkogamy. They also highlight reduced herkogamy as a potential mechanism for promoting reproductive assurance under pollen limitation, as well as for avoiding reproductive interference between genetically divergent lineages.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad CGL2012-33270, CGL2015-63827, BES-2013-062859, EEBB-C-15-0067

Using natural resource inventory data to improve the management of dryland salinity in the Great Southern, Western Australia

The synoptic assessment of salinity risk and the likely costs and benefits associated with various management options is crucial to natural resource management decision-making in southern Australia. A variety of methods have been proposed and tested for assessing various aspects of salinity risks and costs, but no large region of Australia has ever had a comprehensive risk assessment across the range of biophysical and economic issues with forecasts of the effectiveness of different levels of intervention. This National Land and Water Resources Audit Implementation Project (referred to locally as Salt Scenarios 2020, or SS2020 for short) attempted to provide such an assessment (at a scale of around 1:100,000). The existing methods of monitoring and predicting salinity (based on variables derived from widely-available Landsat TM data and existing contour data; albeit with improved variable extraction from the DEMs) are being applied to the rest of the agricultural area of WA as part of the Land Monitor Project, funded in part by NHT. Collecting accurate contour data (2-metre) is a major part of the NHT project. This Audit project was proposed to allow other fundamental data sets, and especially groundwater levels from bore-hole data, to be used to significantly improve predictions in lower-rainfall areas as well as refine the predictions in the high rainfall areas. The Great Southern is an area of considerable economic and environmental value populated by 60,000 people. In 1996, it was estimated that about 30% of the cleared land and associated vegetation and water resources are at risk from becoming salt-affected over the next 30 years unless high-water use farming systems and farm forestry are adopted over large parts of the region(Ferdowsian et al., 1996). Four key questions arise with respect to the future of this region as affected by dryland salinity: •How large will the problem eventually be under current land practices? How large might it be in the year 2020? •What is at risk if the area under threat grows that large? •To what degree can we change the eventual extent of salinity with land use alternatives that are both feasible and available? •What are the costs and benefits of intervening with these alternative land uses? Ultimately, the SS2020 Project aimed to provide some guidance to state, regional and local planners and managers regarding salinity risk in the Great Southern. The analyses underpinning this guidance were based on similar data employed by NLWRA projects under Theme 2 – Dryland Salinit

Scoping Research Report on Assistive Technology - On The Road For Universal Assistive Technology Coverage

Over one billion people – largely disabled people and older people – are currently in need of Assistive Technology (AT). By 2050, this number is predicted to double. Despite the proven advantages of AT for disabled and older people, their families, and society, there is still a vast and stubborn gap between the need and the supply; currently only 10% of those who need AT currently have access to it. This Scoping Research Report on Assistive Technology (AT) seeks to unpick and understand the multi-layered and multifaceted ways in which economic, social, and political factors interplay and interact to create barriers to AT for those who need it the most. Through primary and secondary research, they explore the current landscape, the limitations, and current initiatives, ultimately answering the question: “How best should a target intervention around AT sphere affect positive change for poor, disabled and older people in Global South priority countries?”. To understand this question, the research team asked two specific questions: What are the barriers which prevent access to AT for the people that need it, with a focus on those living in low resource settings within DFID priority Global South countries? How should DFID, in partnership with others best direct its intervention toward overcoming these barriers? The work reveals that, while levels of AT market development vary across countries, key barriers are common. These barriers can be classified into 5 main categories related to both supply and demand factors and across the 5Ps of People, Products, Provision, Personnel, and Policy. This work is part of the ‘Frontier Technology Livestreaming’ programm

Macroalgae Decrease Growth and Alter Microbial Community Structure of the Reef-Building Coral, Porites astreoides

This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by the Public Library of Science and can be found at: http://www.plosone.org/home.action.With the continued and unprecedented decline of coral reefs worldwide, evaluating the factors that contribute to coral demise is of critical importance. As coral cover declines, macroalgae are becoming more common on tropical reefs. Interactions between these macroalgae and corals may alter the coral microbiome, which is thought to play an important role in colony health and survival. Together, such changes in benthic macroalgae and in the coral microbiome may result in a feedback mechanism that contributes to additional coral cover loss. To determine if macroalgae alter the coral microbiome, we conducted a field-based experiment in which the coral Porites astreoides was placed in competition with five species of macroalgae. Macroalgal contact increased variance in the coral-associated microbial community, and two algal species significantly altered microbial community composition. All macroalgae caused the disappearance of a γ-proteobacterium previously hypothesized to be an important mutualist of P. astreoides. Macroalgal contact also triggered: 1) increases or 2) decreases in microbial taxa already present in corals, 3) establishment of new taxa to the coral microbiome, and 4) vectoring and growth of microbial taxa from the macroalgae to the coral. Furthermore, macroalgal competition decreased coral growth rates by an average of 36.8%. Overall, this study found that competition between corals and certain species of macroalgae leads to an altered coral microbiome, providing a potential mechanism by which macroalgae-coral interactions reduce coral health and lead to coral loss on impacted reefs

A p53-dependent mechanism underlies macrocytic anemia in a mouse model of human 5q- syndrome.

The identification of the genes associated with chromosomal translocation breakpoints has fundamentally changed understanding of the molecular basis of hematological malignancies. By contrast, the study of chromosomal deletions has been hampered by the large number of genes deleted and the complexity of their analysis. We report the generation of a mouse model for human 5q- syndrome using large-scale chromosomal engineering. Haploinsufficiency of the Cd74-Nid67 interval (containing Rps14, encoding the ribosomal protein S14) caused macrocytic anemia, prominent erythroid dysplasia and monolobulated megakaryocytes in the bone marrow. These effects were associated with defective bone marrow progenitor development, the appearance of bone marrow cells expressing high amounts of the tumor suppressor p53 and increased bone marrow cell apoptosis. Notably, intercrossing with p53-deficient mice completely rescued the progenitor cell defect, restoring common myeloid progenitor and megakaryocytic-erythroid progenitor, granulocyte-monocyte progenitor and hematopoietic stem cell bone marrow populations. This mouse model suggests that a p53-dependent mechanism underlies the pathophysiology of the 5q- syndrome

High genetic diversity at the extreme range edge: nucleotide variation at nuclear loci in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) in Scotland

Nucleotide polymorphism at 12 nuclear loci was studied in Scots pine populations across an environmental gradient in Scotland, to evaluate the impacts of demographic history and selection on genetic diversity. At eight loci, diversity patterns were compared between Scottish and continental European populations. At these loci, a similar level of diversity (θsil=~0.01) was found in Scottish vs mainland European populations, contrary to expectations for recent colonization, however, less rapid decay of linkage disequilibrium was observed in the former (ρ=0.0086±0.0009, ρ=0.0245±0.0022, respectively). Scottish populations also showed a deficit of rare nucleotide variants (multi-locus Tajima's D=0.316 vs D=−0.379) and differed significantly from mainland populations in allelic frequency and/or haplotype structure at several loci. Within Scotland, western populations showed slightly reduced nucleotide diversity (πtot=0.0068) compared with those from the south and east (0.0079 and 0.0083, respectively) and about three times higher recombination to diversity ratio (ρ/θ=0.71 vs 0.15 and 0.18, respectively). By comparison with results from coalescent simulations, the observed allelic frequency spectrum in the western populations was compatible with a relatively recent bottleneck (0.00175 × 4Ne generations) that reduced the population to about 2% of the present size. However, heterogeneity in the allelic frequency distribution among geographical regions in Scotland suggests that subsequent admixture of populations with different demographic histories may also have played a role