Showing papers by "Flinders University published in 1987"
TL;DR: The mothers' responses to the disaster were better predictors of the presence of posttraumatic phenomena in children than the children's direct exposure to the disasters, and both the experience of intrusive memories by the mothers and a changed pattern of parenting seemed to account for this relationship.
Abstract: This longitudinal study examined the prevalence of posttraumatic phenomena and how they relate to symptomatic and behavioral disorders in a population of schoolchildren exposed to an Australian bushfire disaster. The prevalence of these phenomena did not change over an 18-month period, suggesting that they were markers of significant developmental trauma. The mothers' responses to the disaster were better predictors of the presence of posttraumatic phenomena in children than the children's direct exposure to the disaster. Both the experience of intrusive memories by the mothers and a changed pattern of parenting seemed to account for this relationship.
376 citations
TL;DR: Results clearly show that individual DRG neurons can contain many different neuropeptides, and the combination of neuropePTides found in any particular neuron is related to its peripheral projection.
Abstract: The co-existence of immunoreactivities to substance P (SP), calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), cholecystokinin (CCK) and dynorphin (DYN) in neurons of the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) of guinea-pigs has been investigated with a double-labelling immunofluorescence procedure. Four main populations of neurons could be identified that contained different combinations of these peptides and had distinctive peripheral projections: (1) Neurons that contained immunoreactivity to SP, CGRP, CCK and DYN were distributed mainly to the skin. (2) Neurons with immunoreactivity to SP, CGPR and CCK, but not DYN, were distributed mainly to the small blood vessels of skeletal muscles. (3) Neurons with immunoreactivity to SP, CGRP and DYN, but not CCK, were distributed mainly to pelvic viscera and airways. (4) Neurons containing immunoreactivity to SP and CGRP, but not CCK and DYN, were distributed mainly to the heart, systemic blood vessels, blood vessels of the abdominal viscera, airways and sympathetic ganglia. Other small populations of DRG neurons containing SP, CGRP or CCK alone also were detected. Perikarya containing these combinations of neuropeptides were not found in autonomic ganglia. The peripheral axons of neurons containing immunoreactivity to at least SP and CGRP were damaged by chronic treatment with capsaicin. However, some sensory neurons containing CCK alone were not affected morphologically by capsaicin. These results clearly show that individual DRG neurons can contain many different neuropeptides. Furthermore, the combination of neuropeptides found in any particular neuron is related to its peripheral projection.
351 citations
TL;DR: Phacl ofen may be useful in determining the physiological significance of central and peripheral bicuculline-insensitive receptors with which GABA and (-)-baclofen interact.
340 citations
TL;DR: Two-thirds of colchicine-treated patients improved after 48 hours, but only one-third of the patients receiving placebo demonstrated similar improvement; significant differences from placebo were shown after 18-30 hours.
Abstract: We have performed the first controlled study of colchicine in acute gout, to determine its efficacy and toxicity, and to define the natural history of acute gout. Two-thirds of colchicine-treated patients improved after 48 hours, but only one-third of the patients receiving placebo demonstrated similar improvement. The colchicine-treated patients responded earlier; significant differences from placebo were shown after 18-30 hours. All patients given colchicine developed diarrhea after a median time of 24 hours (mean dose of colchicine 6.7 mg). This side effect occurred before relief of pain in most patients.
259 citations
TL;DR: The underwater weighing method together with the measurement of residual volume by helium dilution were used to determine body density and the percent body fat (% BF) was then computed according to Siri.
Abstract: Ninety-one percent (n=182) of the female members of South Australian representative squads in 14 sports volunteered to act as subjects. Twenty-seven percent of them had represented Australia. The underwater weighing method together with the measurement of residual volume (RV) by helium dilution were used to determine body density (BD); the percent body fat (% BF) was then computed according to Siri. A stepwise multiple regression analysis yielded a correlation coefficient (R) of 0.863 between the criterion (BD) and the best weighted sum of predictors (anthropometric variables): BD (g·cm−3)=1.14075−0.04959 (log10 ∑ triceps, subscapular, supraspinale and calf skinfolds in mm)+0.00044 (age in decimal years)−0.000612 (waist girth in cm)+0.000284 (height in cm)−0.000505 (gluteal girth in cm)+0.000331 (breast girth in cm). Only those predictors which resulted in a statistically significant increase inR (p⩽0.05) were included. The standard error of estimate of 0.00597 g · cm−3 was equivalent to 2.7% BF at the mean. This equation was shown to be largely population specific. There was a range of 7.6–35.8% of BF and the overall mean of 18.5% was significantly lower (p<0.001) than that of 23.4% obtained on a moderately active reference sample of similar age (n=135). If group sizes of only one or two are regarded as too small for meaningful comparison, then the lowest mean of 13.5% was achieved by the long-distance runners (n=14). The highest averages were registered by the heavyweight rowers (24.2%;n=7) and soccer players (22.0%;n=11). The overall average for games players (n=107) was 19.4%.
240 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a study of a sample of unemployed people is reported in which survey interview data were used to examine the differential effects of different forms of deprivation, such as egoistic and fraternalistic relative deprivation, on the number of stress symptoms reported by the respondents and their orientation to social protest.
Abstract: A study of a sample of unemployed people is reported in which survey interview data were used to examine the differential effects of different forms of deprivation. Two outcome variables were operationalized: the number of stress symptoms reported by the respondents and the respondents' orientation to social protest. Two different measures of egoistic deprivation (the perceived gap between personal expectations and attainments) and two different measures of fraternalistic deprivation (the perceived gap between ingroup and outgroup attainment) were also obtained. It was hypothesized that the measures of egoistic relative deprivation would predict the number of stress symptoms reported better than would measures of fraternalistic relative deprivation. Conversely, fraternalistic relative deprivation measures were hypothesized to predict protest orientation better than would the egoistic relative deprivation measures. Multiple regression analyses bore out these hypotheses. The results underline the importance...
209 citations
TL;DR: This longitudinal study examined the psychological impact of a bushfire disaster on a group of 808 children aged from 5 to 12, finding the prevalence of behaviour and emotional problems 2 months after the fire was less than the prevalence in a carefully selected comparison group.
Abstract: This longitudinal study examined the psychological impact of a bushfire disaster on a group of 808 children aged from 5 to 12. Contrary to prediction, the prevalence of behaviour and emotional problems 2 months after the fire was less than the prevalence in a carefully selected comparison group. Rather than decrease with time, the prevalence of psychological morbidity increased significantly, being as great 26 months after the disaster as at 8 months.
197 citations
TL;DR: A review of the evidence for and against a DNA repair defect in AT is presented in this article, where the authors consider AT as a syndrome which is defective in the ability to respond to ionizing-radiation-type damage.
Abstract: This review summarizes the current research on the biochemical defect leading to ataxia-telangiectasia (AT). A DNA repair defect has been linked to AT, although the precise defect has not been found. A critical examination of the evidence for and against a DNA repair defect in AT is presented. Consideration of other recent data on AT raises the possibility that AT may not primarily be the result of a DNA repair defect. Therefore, in this review AT is approached as a syndrome which is defective in the ability to respond to ionizing-radiation-type damage, rather than defective in the ability to repair this damage. However, this does not necessarily exclude the potential involvement of a DNA repair defect in some of the genetically distinct subsets present in AT. Other recent anomalies found in AT, including an altered cell cycle and DNA synthesis profile following ionizing-radiation damage, are also assessed. A suggestion to account for the underlying defect in AT, based on the various research reports, is presented.
190 citations
TL;DR: Post-traumatic morbidity in parents was the major determinant of the observed changes in family functioning and the overprotection in disaster-affected families.
Abstract: The longitudinal impact of a natural disaster on the patterns of interaction in families with latency-aged children is examined. An 11-item questionnaire was developed and two factors were isolated: irritable distress and involvement. A group of 183 disaster-affected families were contrasted with 497 families who had not been exposed to the disaster. Eight months after the disaster, the interaction in the disaster-affected families was characterised by increased levels of conflict, irritability and withdrawal. Maternal overprotection was also a common feature of the pattern of care in these families. Post-traumatic morbidity in parents was the major determinant of the observed changes in family functioning and the overprotection.
187 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the impact of length of unemployment in two groups of unemployed men in Adelaide, South Australia, and found that more financial strain, less time structure, less self-esteem, and more psychological distress tended to accompany increasing length of unemployed but there was little evidence (apart from financial strain) that these relations were stronger for the older age group.
Abstract: The study investigated the impact of length of unemployment in two groups of unemployed men in Adelaide, South Australia. The two groups were selected so as to sample two different age ranges, 15 to 24 years and 30 to 49 years. Both groups completed scales concerned with job-seeking activity, employment commitment, self-esteem, psychological distress, use of time, and financial strain. The results indicated differences between the two age groups on some of these variables with more psychological distress, higher self-esteem, and greater employment commitment reported by subjects in the older group. Correlations involving data for all subjects (both groups combined) showed that more financial strain, less time structure, less self-esteem, and more psychological distress tended to accompany increasing length of unemployment but there was little evidence (apart from financial strain) that these relations were stronger for the older age group. In both groups employment commitment and financial strain acted as moderating influences on psychological distress. Results were related to findings from the Sheffield unemployment studies and it is suggested that future research involving different age groups would profit by more contact with theoretical frameworks and empirical findings from life-span developmental psychology.
178 citations
TL;DR: The Sunda-Banda arc is divided into four geochemical arc sectors with boundaries that correlate with major changes in regional tectonic setting and geological history as mentioned in this paper, and the most marked geochemical and isotopic variations shown by the arc volcanics are primarily due to the involvement of a third component, which is rich in K-group elements but has relatively low 87 Sr/86 Sr values.
TL;DR: CGRP itself may have a role in the mediation of responses to stimulation of at least two populations of sensory axons, and is a histochemical marker for a larger number of unmyelinated cutaneous afferents in human skin than is SP.
TL;DR: This analysis of combinations of peptides and enzymes contained in principal neurons of the paracervical ganglia allows us to identify as many as 11 different neuron populations, which suggests that different immunohistochemically defined classes of neurons represent different functional pathways.
Abstract: The patterns of colocalization of neuropeptides, catecholamines, and catecholamine-synthesizing enzymes were examined in principal neurons and nerve terminals in guinea pig paracervical ganglia using a double- labeling immunohistochemical procedure. A small proportion of nerve cell bodies (less than 10%) had the characteristics of catecholamine- synthesizing neurons and presumably were noradrenergic. Another 50% of the nerve cell bodies contained immunoreactivity (IR) to dopamine-beta- hydroxylase (DBH), but did not have any other characteristics of noradrenergic neurons; they did not contain detectable catecholamines, or IR to dopa decarboxylase (DDC) or tyrosine (TH) hydroxylase, nor did they take up exogenous catecholamines. Half of the catecholamine neurons had neuropeptide Y (NPY)-IR, and a small number (0.5% total neurons) had somatostatin (Som)-IR. Most of the non-noradrenergic neurons with DBH-IR (40–50% total neurons) contained IR for dynorphin (Dyn), NPY, and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), and about half of them (20–25% total) also contained Som-IR. Ten to twenty percent of neurons contained IR to Som, but not to any other antigen examined here. Nerve terminals with substance P (SP)-IR or enkephalin (Enk)-IR were prominent in all ganglia. SP-IR fibers formed dense baskets only around those neurons with DBH/Dyn/NPY/VIP (+/- Som)-IR, while fibers with very bright Enk-IR were associated selectively with those neurons with Som-IR alone. In addition, most TH-IR nerve cell bodies were surrounded by NPY-IR varicose nerve fibers. In conclusion, this analysis of combinations of peptides and enzymes contained in principal neurons of the paracervical ganglia allows us to identify as many as 11 different neuron populations. The functional significance of the presence of the same neuropeptide (e.g., NPY) in different neuron populations is as yet unknown. Some of these classes of neurons are associated specifically with immunohistochemically distinct types of presynaptic nerve fibers, which suggests that different immunohistochemically defined classes of neurons represent different functional pathways.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a method to identify the root cause of a problem.Abbreviations: [2]... ].., [3]
TL;DR: Overall, the animal and human studies reviewed indicate a role for central noradrenaline and dopamine in the early and late processing of information, respectively.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the construction of conformally invariant differential operators on a four-dimensional (pseudo-) Riemannian manifold, including the usual massless field equations for arbitrary helicity but there are many more besides.
Abstract: This article describes the construction of a natural family of conformally invariant differential operators on a four-dimensional (pseudo-)Riemannian manifold. Included in this family are the usual massless field equations for arbitrary helicity but there are many more besides. The article begins by classifying the invariant operators on flat space. This is a fairly straightforward task in representation theory best solved through the theory of Verma modules. The method generates conformally invariant operators in the curved case by means of Penrose's local twistor transport.
TL;DR: A new technique for determining the mass of a bound state from the BS equation, which avoids the need to numerically solve the integral equation, is introduced and its validity demonstrated by application to various meson states.
Abstract: Baryons in QCD are three-quark color-singlet bound states and any two of the quarks are necessarily in a 3-bar color state. These 3-bar diquark states form bound states which, if they are of sufficiently low mass, will play a significant dynamical role in the structure of baryons. Here we estimate these diquark masses by using an approximate homogeneous Bethe-Salpeter (BS) equation. A new technique for determining the mass of a bound state from the BS equation, which avoids the need to numerically solve the integral equation, is introduced and its validity demonstrated by application to various meson states. Our diquark mass values are compared with those determined from analysis of experimental data on inclusive production of protons.
TL;DR: It is concluded that galanin immunoreactivity occurs in several functionally distinct classes of enteric neurons, amongst which are neurons controlling motility, intestinal blood flow, and mucosal water and electrolyte transport.
Abstract: Galanin immunoreactivity was observed in nerve cell bodies and nerve fibres, but not in enteroendocrine cells, in the small intestine of the guinea-pig. Nerve terminals were found in the myenteric plexus, in the circular muscle, in submucous ganglia, around submucous arterioles, and in the mucosa. Lesion studies showed that all terminals were intrinsic to the intestine; those in myenteric ganglia arose from cell bodies in more orally placed ganglia. Myenteric nerve cells were also the source of terminals in the circular muscle. Galanin (GAL) was located in a population of submucous nerve cell bodies that also showed immunoreactivity for vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and in a separate population that was immunoreactive for neuropeptide Y (NPY). Processes of the GAL/VIP neurons supplied submucous arterioles and the mucosal epithelium. Processes of GAL/NPY neurons ran to the mucosa. It is concluded that galanin immunoreactivity occurs in several functionally distinct classes of enteric neurons, amongst which are neurons controlling (i) motility, (ii) intestinal blood flow, and (iii) mucosal water and electrolyte transport.
TL;DR: The results suggest that seasonal changes in the pattern of thermoregulation and torpor in small dasyurids may be more distinct than in larger species.
Abstract: Seasonal variation in the pattern of torpor and temperature regulation was investigated in the closely related arid zone dasyurid marsupialsSminthopsis crassicaudata (17 g),S. macroura (24 g), andDasyuroides byrnei (120 g). The tendency to enter torpor was greater, torpor commenced earlier, torpor duration was longer, and body temperatures (T
b) were lower inSminthopsis spp. than inD. byrnei. The minimum mass-specific rate of oxygen consumption (
$$\dot V_{O_2 } $$
) of torpid animals was similar among the three species despite the differences in minimumT
b. The mass-specific oxygen consumption of normothermic animals was reduced during winter when compared with the summer values in all species, but there was no seasonal variation in normothermicT
b in any species. The tendency to enter torpor was incrased during winter. TorpidSminthopsis spp. had lower values ofT
b and
$$\dot V_{O_2 } $$
during winter than during summer;D. byrnei did not show seasonal changes in these variables. These results suggest that seasonal changes in the pattern of thermoregulation and torpor in small dasyurids may be more distinct than in larger species.
TL;DR: It was concluded that both bombesin and TPA activated protein kinase C leading to activation of a phospholipase C specific for PC.
Abstract: Bombesin caused a marked stimulation of 32Pi into phosphatidylinositol (PI), with no apparent lag, and into phosphatidylcholine (PC), after a lag of about 20 min. Stimulation was blocked by the bombesin receptor antagonist, [D-Arg1, D-Pro2, D-Trp7,9, Leu11] substance P, indicating that the effects on both PI and PC were mediated through the same receptor. The tumor-promoting phorbol ester 12-0-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and dioctanoylglycerol (diC8) both directly activate protein kinase C and in this report were shown to stimulate 32Pi incorporation into PC but not into Pl. In addition, TPA stimulated the release of [3H]choline and [3H]phosphocholine and the accumulation of [3H]diacyglycerol from prelabelled cells. These results strongly suggest that TPA activates a phospholipase C specific for PC. Pretreatment of cells with phorbol-12, 13-dibutyrate (PDBu) for 24 h depleted cellular protein kinase C activity and inhibited the ability of TPA to induce these effects suggesting a direct involvement of protein kinase C. Similarly the bombesin stimulation of 32Pi into PC and of [3H]choline and [3H]phosphocholine release was inhibited by PDBu pretreatment. DiC8 and, to a lesser extent, TPA stimulated the translocation of CTP:phosphocholine cytidylytransferase from the cytosolic to the particulate fraction. DiC8 also stimulated this translocation in cells depleted of protein kinase C. It was concluded that both bombesin and TPA activated protein kinase C leading to activation of a phospholipase C specific for PC.
TL;DR: The results suggest that although the serotonin-containing neurons of the ventrolateral medulla are closely aligned with the Ventrolateral adrenaline area, the serotonin cell groups and the cells of the adrenaline area exert their pressor actions independently.
Abstract: Separate populations of serotonin- and adrenaline-containing neurons exist in the ventrolateral medulla oblongata and project to the intermediolateral cell column of the spinal cord. The medullary serotonin nuclei appear to constitute a heterogeneous group with diverse effects on arterial pressure. Microinjections of sodium glutamate (which excites cell bodies but not axons of passage) made in the area of the ventrolateral serotonin cells evokes an increase in arterial pressure which is abolished by prior 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT) treatment. In contrast, glutamate microinjection in the area of the serotonin-containing cell bodies in the midline of the medulla evokes falls in arterial pressure and these responses are attenuated by pretreatment with 5,7-DHT. Glutamate microinjection made in the ventrolateral medulla in the area of the adrenaline-containing cells, evokes increases in arterial pressure which are not altered by 5,7-DHT pretreatment. After ablation of the area of the adrenaline-containing cells by electrolytic lesion, the pressor function of the ventrolateral serotonin-containing cells is still observed. These results suggest that although the serotonin-containing neurons of the ventrolateral medulla are closely aligned with the ventrolateral adrenaline area, the serotonin cell groups and the cells of the adrenaline area exert their pressor actions independently.
TL;DR: It is shown that application of a single dose of TPA to mouse skin results in a rapid and complete loss of protein kinase C activity which is maintained for 3–4 days, associated with a loss of immunologically detectable proteinKinase C and the accumulation of a smaller protein detectable by antibodies recognizing the regulatory domain of protein Kinase C.
Abstract: It is now widely accepted that tumour-promoting phorbol esters activate a Ca2+- and phospholipid-dependent protein kinase (protein kinase C) both in vitro and in intact cells, and that the kinase represents a major cellular phorbol ester-binding protein. The phorbol esters act as analogues of diacylglycerol, a natural regulator of protein kinase C, and stabilize the membrane-association of the kinase. Although other molecular targets may exist, protein kinase C activation is probably important in mediating the diverse responses of cultured cells to phorbol esters and in promoting in vivo tumours. The enzyme comprises a family of closely related proteins and has been detected in extracts from mouse epidermal cells, the likely targets for two-stage carcinogenesis in mouse skin. In this report we show that application of a single dose of TPA (12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate) to mouse skin results in a rapid and complete loss of protein kinase C activity which is maintained for 3-4 days. This is associated with a loss of immunologically detectable protein kinase C and the accumulation of a smaller protein detectable by antibodies recognizing the regulatory domain of protein kinase C.
TL;DR: Differences in the effects of catecholamine active drugs on subjective state and measures of activation and arousal provide some support for the hypothesis that central noradrenaline and dopamine modulate the capacity for early and late processing of information, respectively, in humans.
TL;DR: It is found that pharmacological agents which lower arterial pressure by stimulating adrenoceptors in the rostral ventrolateral medulla may act on receptors which are not innervated by catecholamine-synthesizing perikarya located outside the C1-region.
TL;DR: Protein kinase C activity is reversibly regulated by diacylglycerol transiently generated by specific receptor binding or by phorbol esters, raising the possibility of new functions for this key enzyme.
TL;DR: This article showed that the two cardinal symptoms of poor attentional performance and high motor activity may be functionally and causally separate in a proportion of subjects that respond to psychostimulants and suggested strategies based on the neurobiological correlates of the cognitive style of ADDH subjects and septal function in the animal model of the hypertensive rat.
TL;DR: Double-labelling immunohistochemical studies demonstrated that fibers containing NPY-like immunoreactivity form a close association with vasopressin immunoreactive perikarya in the supraoptic nucleus of unanesthetized rats.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report a complete survey of the Spencer Gulf outflow during a period when salt exchange was both intense and well-defined, and the gravity current has been traced across the floor of the continental shelf to the point where it cascades over the shelf break until it finds its own density level at a depth of 250 m.
Abstract: Spencer Gulf, South Australia, forms a remarkable natural system in which marine gravity currents are regularly observed. The most intense of these forms every autumn, when the gulf waters, which are of high salinity after summer evaporation, are cooled to the point where they are much denser than the waters on the shelf. They then slip out of the gulf along the sea floor to be replaced by a surface inflow of less saline shelf water. Here we report the first complete survey of this outflow during a period when salt exchange was both intense and well-defined. The gravity current has been traced across the floor of the continental shelf to the point where it cascades over the shelf break until it finds its own density level at a depth of 250 m. The speed of the current is estimated to be in the region of 0.1 ms−1, and at that rate it would have to flow for three months to remove the salt accumulated in the gulf during summer. There is evidence that the flow is unsteady in character, and is possibly released in regular pulses.
TL;DR: There is an ordered pattern of projections of peptide-containing fibres in the canine intestine of peptides present in fibres supplying myenteric ganglia, whereas ENK and NPY were in orally directed pathways.
Abstract: The projections of nerve fibres with immunoreactivity for the peptides enkephalin (ENK), gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP), neuropeptide Y (NPY), somatostatin (SOM), substance P (SP) and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) were studied in canine small intestine by analysing the consequences of lesions of intrinsic and extrinsic nerves. Of peptides present in fibres supplying myenteric ganglia, GRP, SOM and VIP were in anally directed nerve pathways, whereas ENK and NPY were in orally directed pathways. Pathways ran for up to about 30 mm. SP fibres ran for short distances in both directions in the myenteric plexus. The circular muscle was supplied with ENK, NPY, SP and VIP fibres arising from the myenteric ganglia, whereas most mucosal SP and VIP fibres were deduced to arise from submucous ganglia. There were projections of fibres reactive for ENK, GRP, SOM, SP and VIP from myenteric ganglia to submucous ganglia. Antibodies to tyrosine hydroxylase were used to locate noradrenaline nerve fibres supplying the intestine; these fibres all disappeared when extrinsic nerves running through the mesentery to the small intestine were cut. It is deduced that there is an ordered pattern of projections of peptide-containing fibres in the canine intestine.
TL;DR: It is suggested that dopamine receptor agonists induce hypothermia by stimulation of the D-2 receptor subtype by attenuated and potentiated the hypothermic response, depending on the dose and time of administration of each drug.