Herbicide impacts on exotic grasses and a population of the critically endangered herb "Calystegia affinis" (Convolvulaceae) on Lord Howe Island

Introduced perennial grasses are capable of altering the habitat of native species, causing reductions in population size and vigour, and potentially affecting life-history processes such as survival, pollination and seedling recruitment. We examined the utility of herbicide treatment on two exotic grasses, Pennisetum clandestinum (Kikuyu) and Stenotaphrum secundatum (Buffalo grass) to restore the habitat of Calystegia affinis, a critically endangered species endemic to Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands. Using two herbicides, Asset (designed to affect only grasses) and Glyphosate (a general herbicide), we compared effectiveness in reducing grass cover on a population of Calystegia affinis. We protected Calystegia plants from the herbicides by ensuring their leaves were covered by plastic bags during herbicide application. Both herbicides were similarly effective in reducing grass cover after four weeks and had no noticeable adverse affect on Calystegia (suggesting the plastic bag protection was effective). After 26 weeks, Glyphosate was more effective in maintaining a reduced grass cover. Plots treated with either herbicide had a greater relative increase in abundance of Calystegia stems compared to untreated controls. The Glyphosate treatment resulted in the greatest relative increase in stem abundance, but this was not significantly greater than in the Asset treatment. We consider that spraying with Glyphosate treatment, with follow-up monitoring and spot-spraying, will assist the recovery of the Calystegia affinis population. Ultimately, the maintenance of a weed-free zone at the forest edge will provide suitable habitat for additional recruitment of this and other native species

The nature and frequency of genital injuries sustained by female rape victims in Johannesburg

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Emergency Medicine. MScMed (Emergency Medicine) Johannesburg, November 2013Background: Little research has addressed the types and meaning of genital injury in South African rape victims. In South Africa, rape victims in private practice are examined using gross visualisation and a light source only. Research has shown that the use of toluidine blue and/ or a colposcope increases the number of injuries seen. Objective: To determine rape victim demographics and describe the genital injuries and other associated injuries reported during medico-legal examination of female rape victims older than 15 in four private Johannesburg hospitals between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2009, as well as to determine any associations between these variables and the race or age of the victim. Method: A retrospective chart review of 310 sexual assault victims seen at these hospitals. Results: Black victims made up 62% of the study. One genital injury was recorded for 27% of the victims, while 21% had between 2 and 8 of a possible 11 injuries. The most commonly injured sites were the posterior fourchette, the hymen and the fossa navicularis. Bruising was the most common associated injury. Alcohol was reported in just fewer than 10% of cases. Conclusion: The incidence of positive genital injury documented is comparable to other research. Genital injuries are not inevitable consequences of sexual assault

Disruption of recruitment in two endemic palms on Lord Howe Island by invasive rats

Invasive species may have negative impacts on many narrow range endemics and species restricted to oceanic islands. Predicting recent impacts of invasive species on long-lived trees is difficult because the presence of adult plants may mask population changes. We examined the impact of introduced black rats (Rattus rattus) on two palm species restricted to cloud forests and endemic to Lord Howe Island, a small oceanic island in the southern Pacific. We combined estimates of the standing size distribution of these palms with the proximal impacts of rats on fruit survival in areas baited to control rats and in unbaited areas. The size distribution of palms with trunks was comparable across baited and unbaited sites. Small juvenile palms lacking a trunk (\50 cm tall) were abundant in baited areas, but rare in unbaited sites for Lepidorrhachis mooreana, and rare or absent in 3 out of 4 unbaited Hedyscepe canterburyana sites. All ripe fruits were lost to rats in the small fruited L. mooreana. Fruitremoval was widespread but less (20–54%) in H. canterburyana. Both palms showed evidence of a reduced capacity to maintain a juvenile bank of palms through regular recruitment as a consequence of over 90 years of rat impact. This will limit the ability of these species to take advantage of episodic canopy gaps. Baiting for rat control reduced fruit losses and resulted in the re-establishment of a juvenile palm bank. Conservation of both endemic palms necessitates control (or eradication) of rat populations on the unique cloud forest summits of the island

Flaunting it on Facebook: Young adults, drinking cultures and the cult of celebrity

Copyright © Antonia Lyons; Tim McCreanor; Fiona Hutton; Ian Goodwin; Helen Moewaka Barnes; Christine Griffin; Kerryellen Vroman; Acushla Dee O’Carroll; Patricia Niland; Lina Samu Print publication available from: http://www.drinkingcultures.info/Young adults in Aotearoa/New Zealand (NZ) regularly engage in heavy drinking episodes with groups of friends within a collective culture of intoxication to ‘have fun’ and ‘be sociable’. This population has also rapidly increased their use of new social networking technologies (e.g. mobile camera/ video phones; Facebook and YouTube) and are said to be obsessed with identity, image and celebrity. This research project explored the ways in which new technologies are being used by a range of young people (and others, including marketers) in drinking practices and drinking cultures in Aotearoa/NZ. It also explored how these technologies impact on young adults’ behaviours and identities, and how this varies across young adults of diverse ethnicities (Maori [indigenous people of NZ], Pasifika [people descended from the Pacific Islands] and Pakeha [people of European descent]), social classes and genders. We collected data from a large and diverse sample of young adults aged 18-25 years employing novel and innovative methodologies across three data collection stages. In total 141 participants took part in 34 friendship focus group discussions (12 Pakeha, 12 Maori and 10 Pasifika groups) while 23 young adults showed and discussed their Facebook pages during an individual interview that involved screencapture software and video recordings. Popular online material regarding drinking alcohol was also collected (via groups, interviews, and web searches), providing a database of 487 links to relevant material (including websites, apps, and games). Critical and in-depth qualitative analyses across these multimodal datasets were undertaken. Key findings demonstrated that social technologies play a crucial role in young adults’ drinking cultures and processes of identity construction. Consuming alcohol to a point of intoxication was a commonplace leisure-time activity for most of the young adult participants, and social network technologies were fully integrated into their drinking cultures. Facebook was employed by all participants and was used before, during and following drinking episodes. Uploading and sharing photos on Facebook was particularly central to young people’s drinking cultures and the ongoing creation of their identities. This involved a great deal of Facebook ‘work’ to ensure appropriate identity displays such as tagging (the addition of explanatory or identifying labels) and untagging photos. Being visible online was crucial for many young adults, and they put significant amounts of time and energy into updating and maintaining Facebook pages, particularly with material regarding drinking practices and events. However this was not consistent across the sample, and our findings revealed nuanced and complex ways in which people from different ethnicities, genders and social classes engaged with drinking cultures and new technologies in different ways, reflecting their positioning within the social structure. Pakeha shared their drinking practices online with relatively little reflection, while Pasifika and Maori participants were more likely to discuss avoiding online displays of drinking and demonstrated greater reflexive self-surveillance. Females spoke of being more aware of normative expectations around gender than males, and described particular forms of online identity displays (e.g. moderated intake, controlled selfdetermination). Participants from upper socio-economic groups expressed less concern than others about both drinking and posting material online. Celebrity culture was actively engaged with, in part at least, as a means of expressing what it is to be a young adult in contemporary society, and reinforcing the need for young people to engage in their own everyday practices of ‘celebritising’ themselves through drinking cultures online. Alcohol companies employed social media to market their products to young people in sophisticated ways that meant the campaigns and actions were rarely perceived as marketing. Online alcohol marketing initiatives were actively appropriated by young people and reproduced within their Facebook pages to present tastes and preferences, facilitate social interaction, construct identities, and more generally develop cultural capital. These commercial activities within the commercial platforms that constitute social networking systems contribute heavily to a general ‘culture of intoxication’ while simultaneously allowing young people to ‘create’ and ‘produce’ themselves online via the sharing of consumption ‘choices’, online interactions and activities

Progranulin in frontotemporal lobar degeneration and neuroinflammation

Progranulin (PGRN) is a pleiotropic protein that has gained the attention of the neuroscience community with recent discoveries of mutations in the gene for PGRN that cause frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD). Pathogenic mutations in PGRN result in null alleles, and the disease is likely the result of haploinsufficiency. Little is known about the normal function of PGRN in the central nervous system apart from a role in brain development. It is expressed by microglia and neurons. In the periphery, PGRN is involved in wound repair and inflammation. High PGRN expression has been associated with more aggressive growth of various tumors. The properties of full length PGRN are distinct from those of proteolytically derived peptides, referred to as granulins (GRNs). While PGRN has trophic properties, GRNs are more akin to inflammatory mediators such as cytokines. Loss of the neurotrophic properties of PGRN may play a role in selective neuronal degeneration in FTLD, but neuroinflammation may also be important. Gene expression studies suggest that PGRN is up-regulated in a variety of neuroinflammatory conditions, and increased PGRN expression by microglia may play a pivotal role in the response to brain injury, neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration

Design of a low-dose, stationary, tomographic Molecular Breast Imaging system using 3D position sensitive CZT detectors

Molecular Breast Imaging (MBI) has been shown to have high sensitivity for lesion detection, particularly in patients with dense breasts where conventional mammography is limited. However, relatively high radiation dose and long imaging time are limiting factors. Most current MBI systems are based on planar imaging. Improved performance can be achieved using tomographic techniques, which normally involve detector motion. Our goal is to develop a low-dose stationary tomographic MBI system with similar or better performance in terms of lesion detection compared to planar MBI. The proposed system utilizes two opposing CZT detectors with high intrinsic resolution and depth of interaction (DOI) capability, combined with densely packed multi-pinhole collimators. This leads to improved efficiency and adequate angular sampling, but also to significant multiplexing (MX), which can result in artefacts. We have developed de-MX algorithms that take advantage of the DOI information. We have performed both analytic and Monte Carlo simulations to demonstrate the feasibility, optimize the design and investigate the expected performance of the proposed system. Lesion detectability was preserved with reduction of acquisition time (or radiation dose) by a factor of 2 compared to planar images at the lowest reported dose. The first prototype is under evaluation at Kromek

Assessing the conservation status of the grass Elymus multiflorus subsp. kingianus on Lord Howe Island, NSW

The grass Elymus multiflorus subsp. kingianus (family Poaceae) is considered to be endemic to Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands. We assessed the conservation status of the taxon on Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, and undertook targeted field surveys across three years and several seasons in suitable habitat, based on the single previously recorded location. We found the species occurrence on Lord Howe Island was highly restricted, with only a few plants found at 2 locations in close proximity. A number of exotic grasses pose a threat to the long-term conservation of the taxon, which was assessed as being eligible for listing as critically endangered under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995

Changes in technology and imperfect detection of nest contents impedes reliable estimates of population trends in burrowing seabirds

One of the most fundamental aspects of conservation biology is understanding trends in the abundance of species and populations. This influences conservation interventions, threat abatement, and management by implicitly or explicitly setting targets for favourable conservation states, such as an increasing or stable population. Burrow-nesting seabirds present many challenges for determining abundance reliably, which is further hampered by variability in the quality of previous surveys. We used burrow scopes to determine the population status of Flesh-footed Shearwaters (Ardenna carneipes) at their largest colony on Lord Howe Island, Australia, in 2018. We estimated a breeding population of 22,654 breeding pairs (95% CI: 8159–37,909). Comparing burrow scope models used in 2018 found more than half of burrow contents (20/36 burrows examined) were classified differently. If this detection probability is applied retroactively to surveys in 2002 and 2009, we estimate that the Flesh-footed Shearwater population on Lord Howe has decreased by up to 50% in the last decade, but uncertainty around previous surveys’ ability to reliably determine burrow contents means a direct comparison is not possible. The decline in burrow density between 2018 and previous years adds further evidence that the population may not be stable. Our results highlight a need for regular surveys to quantify detection probability so that as video technology advances, previous population estimates remain comparable. We urge caution when comparing population counts of burrowing seabirds using different technologies, to ensure comparisons are meaningful.Copyright © 2019 TheAuthors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). The attached file is the published version of the article.NHM Repositor

Patient perceptions and expectations regarding imaging for metastatic disease in early stage breast cancer

Abstract Purpose The probability of detecting radiologically evident metastatic disease in asymptomatic women with newly diagnosed operable breast cancer is low. Despite the recommendations of most practice guidelines imaging is still frequently performed. Relatively little is known about what patients believe is important when it comes to radiologic staging. Methods Patients with early stage breast cancer who had completed their definitive breast surgery were surveyed about their personal experiences, perceptions, and expectations on the issue of perioperative imaging for distant metastatic disease. Results Over a 3 month period, 245 women with primary operable breast cancer completed the questionnaire (87.0% response rate) and 80.8% indicated having had at least one imaging test for distant metastatic disease. These were either of the thorax (72.2%), abdomen (55.9%) or skeleton (65.3%) with a total of 701 imaging tests (average of 3.5 tests per patient imaged) performed. Overall, 57.1% indicated that they would want imaging done if the chance of detecting metastases was ≤10%. Although 80.0% of patients indicated that, “doing whatever their doctor recommended” was important to them, 70.4% also noted that they would be uncomfortable if their physician did not order imaging, even if this was in keeping with practice guidelines. Conclusions Most patients with early stage breast cancer recall having imaging tests for distant metastases. Given the choice, most would prefer having imaging performed, even if this is not in line with current guidelines. If patient expectations are, in part, driving excessive imaging, new strategies addressing this are required