Development and application of flavonoid intake assessment methods and the impact of flavonoids on cognitive and physical outcomes

A growing body of evidence suggests that a diet rich in flavonoids, naturally occurring plant-based compounds, is associated with improved health outcomes. However, current knowledge relating to the measurement of dietary flavonoid intake is limited and studies assessing the association of flavonoid-rich food supplementation with cognitive and physical health outcomes are scarce. This doctoral thesis outlines six studies that were developed to address two main research questions. Firstly, what methods should be employed to measure flavonoid intake? Secondly, how does the consumption of dietary flavonoid impact cognitive and physical outcomes

Fashioning clothing with and for mature women: a small-scale sustainable design business model

Purpose: An ageing population in the developed world has become a significant topic in the contemporary research agenda. The aim of this paper is to report on the development of a new small-scale business model based on facilitating in-depth understanding and responding to mature female consumers' needs and expectations towards fashionable clothing. Design/methodology: Two complementary approaches are used: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) allows the researchers to employ the life-course perspective and to develop in-depth understanding of individuals' present experiences in relation to their past. Action Research offers the possibility to develop participatory, co-design processes based on collective creativity and mutual knowledge exchange between the stakeholders. Findings: The research finds a strong interest in fashionable clothing by women, irrespective of their age. The action based co-design process involving collaborative encounters with mature consumers creates a dynamic capability for alternative fashion design methodologies. This approach can contribute to a small-scale fashion business model for the mature women's fashion market. Practical implications: The women in the study stress the need for a more inclusive design process and expressed a willingness to buy from a brand/retailer who would offer them such a collaborative opportunity. There are practical implications for how a more flexible sizing approach to the design of fashion for older women could be implemented. Originality/value: This research makes a contribution to practice-based design solutions for mature women and a new inclusive business model based on emotional durability. The innovative methodological approach contributes to the field of ethical and sustainable fashion design

Development, validation and reproducibility of a food frequency questionnaire to measure flavonoid intake in older Australian adults

Aim: To develop and assess the validity and reproducibility of a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) to measure total flavonoid intake, and individual flavonoid subclasses, in older adults. Methods: Retrospective analysis of flavonoid intake in older adults informed the development of a FFQ to measure flavonoid intake and determine the flavonoid subclasses consumed (anthocyanins, flavan-3-ols, flavones, flavonols and flavanones). Older adults (n = 42, mean age 75.3 8.6 years) attended two interviews 1 month apart where anthropometrics (height and weight), blood pressure (BP), demographic data and a 93-item self-administered FFQ were collected. A 4-day food record (FR) was randomly administered between the two interview dates, and each food item was assigned a flavonoid and flavonoid subclass content using the United States Department of Agriculture flavonoid database. The criterion validity and reproducibility of the FFQ was assessed against a 4-day FR using the Wilcoxon signed-rank sum test, Spearman’s correlation coefficient (r), Bland-Altman Plots and Cohen’s kappa. Results: Total flavonoid intake was determined (median intake FFQ = 919.3 mg/day, FR = 781.4 mg/day). Tests of validity indicated that the FFQ consistently overestimated total flavonoid intake compared with the 4- day FR. There was a significant difference in estimates between the FFQ and the 4-day FR for total flavonoid intake (Wilcoxon signed-rank sum P 0.05; Spearman’s r 0.91, P < 0.001; Bland-Altman plots visually showed small, non-significant bias and wide limits of agreement; and Cohen’s kappa κ = 0.619, P < 0.001), with a small mean percentage difference (6.7%). For individual flavonoid subclasses, the tests of reproducibility between FFQ1 and FFQ2 showed similarly high reproducibility. Conclusions: The developed FFQ appears suitable for satisfactorily ranking individuals according to total flavonoid intake. The FFQ shows limitations for estimating absolute total flavonoid intake and intake of flavonoid subclasses in comparison to a 4-day FR in terms of overestimating intake. Refinement and further validation of this tool may be required

Shellharbour’s food environment

Mapping the food environment helps us understand if everyone can easily get healthy food. The healthiness of Shellharbour food environment matters because it directly impacts the dietary choices of local residents and, consequently, their overall health and well-being

Heat Treatment Control of Residual Stress and Microstructure of 3D-Printed 316L Stainless Steel

One of the major drawbacks of selective laser melting (SLM) as a form additive manufacturing is that it produces parts with severe residual stress that leads to poor mechanical performance due to the thermal cycling of the printing process. In this project, two different heat treatments (high temperature annealing and low temperature annealing) are applied to 316L stainless steel subsized tensile bars fabricated by SLM process to minimize the amount of residual stress in the samples. Residual stress is indirectly measured by X-ray diffraction (XRD), as well as microscopic analysis, hardness testing, and tensile testing are applied to characterize the samples. Unfortunately, the residual stress could not statistically be determined because of large measurement errors even though error corrections were applied. However, the HRB hardness values are determined to be 91.8 HRB for as-built samples, 80.7 HRB for after high temperature annealed samples, and 95.5 HRB for after low temperature annealed samples. The high temperature heat treatment followed by annealing showed a reduction in hardness values, as expected. The low temperature heat treatment appeared to show an increase in hardness. Optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that small dendritic structures, which are ubiquitously seen throughout as-built samples, are gone in the high temperature annealed samples

Trypanin, a Component of the Flagellar Dynein Regulatory Complex, Is Essential in Bloodstream Form African Trypanosomes

The Trypanosoma brucei flagellum is a multifunctional organelle with critical roles in motility, cellular morphogenesis, and cell division. Although motility is thought to be important throughout the trypanosome lifecycle, most studies of flagellum structure and function have been restricted to the procyclic lifecycle stage, and our knowledge of the bloodstream form flagellum is limited. We have previously shown that trypanin functions as part of a flagellar dynein regulatory system that transmits regulatory signals from the central pair apparatus and radial spokes to axonemal dyneins. Here we investigate the requirement for this dynein regulatory system in bloodstream form trypanosomes. We demonstrate that trypanin is localized to the flagellum of bloodstream form trypanosomes, in a pattern identical to that seen in procyclic cells. Surprisingly, trypanin RNA interference is lethal in the bloodstream form. These knockdown mutants fail to initiate cytokinesis, but undergo multiple rounds of organelle replication, accumulating multiple flagella, nuclei, kinetoplasts, mitochondria, and flagellum attachment zone structures. These findings suggest that normal flagellar beat is essential in bloodstream form trypanosomes and underscore the emerging concept that there is a dichotomy between trypanosome lifecycle stages with respect to factors that contribute to cell division and cell morphogenesis. This is the first time that a defined dynein regulatory complex has been shown to be essential in any organism and implicates the dynein regulatory complex and other enzymatic regulators of flagellar motility as candidate drug targets for the treatment of African sleeping sickness

Characterizing dietary intakes in rural Australian adults : a systematic literature review

Rural Australians experience a higher burden of diet-related chronic disease than their metropolitan counterparts. Dietary intake data is needed to understand priorities for nutrition initiatives that reduce disparities in the health of rural Australians. A systematic literature review aimed to synthesize the evidence on dietary intakes in adult populations residing in rural and remote Australia, to identify areas for intervention, and make recommendations for future research. A comprehensive search of five electronic databases was conducted and 22 articles were identified for inclusion. Half of the included studies (50%) collected dietary data using non-validated questionnaires and nearly half (41%) did not benchmark dietary intakes against public health guidelines. Most studies (95%) showed that rural populations have suboptimal dietary intakes. Despite the high level of preventable diet-related disease in rural and remote Australia, this review identified that there is insufficient high-quality dietary data available and a lack of consistency between dietary outcomes collected in research to inform priority areas for intervention. Further cross-sectional or longitudinal data should be collected across all remoteness areas, using robust, validated dietary assessment tools to adequately inform nutrition priorities and policies that reduce rural health disparities

Complex Spiral Structure in the HD 100546 Transitional Disk as Revealed by GPI and MagAO

We present optical and near-infrared high-contrast images of the transitional disk HD 100546 taken with the Magellan Adaptive Optics system (MagAO) and the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI). GPI data include both polarized intensity and total intensity imagery, and MagAO data are taken in Simultaneous Differential Imaging mode at Hα. The new GPI H-band total intensity data represent a significant enhancement in sensitivity and field rotation compared to previous data sets and enable a detailed exploration of substructure in the disk. The data are processed with a variety of differential imaging techniques (polarized, angular, reference, and simultaneous differential imaging) in an attempt to identify the disk structures that are most consistent across wavelengths, processing techniques, and algorithmic parameters. The inner disk cavity at 15 au is clearly resolved in multiple data sets, as are a variety of spiral features. While the cavity and spiral structures are identified at levels significantly distinct from the neighboring regions of the disk under several algorithms and with a range of algorithmic parameters, emission at the location of HD 100546 "c" varies from point-like under aggressive algorithmic parameters to a smooth continuous structure with conservative parameters, and is consistent with disk emission. Features identified in the HD 100546 disk bear qualitative similarity to computational models of a moderately inclined two-armed spiral disk, where projection effects and wrapping of the spiral arms around the star result in a number of truncated spiral features in forward-modeled images

Considerations for the Diagnosis of Personality Disorders in Adolescents

The diagnosis of personality disorders in adolescents is a controversial idea. Personality disorders can bring about a stigma and may create effects on quality of life. Developmental implications should be considered when diagnosing adolescents with personality disorders, or any other mental illness, due to the incomplete formation of identity during adolescent years. There is also evidence that attachment patterns may influence personality disorder symptoms and should also be considered as a way to conceptualize personality in general. The current diagnostic systems may not provide a complete framework from which to conceptualize adolescents and ideas for restructuring the diagnostic system is discussed. This paper will explore adolescent personality disorders from the perspectives of development, attachment, and trauma and will explain perceived flaws with the current diagnostic system