http://hdl.handle.net/2328/1525 2013-05-18T11:25:12Z http://hdl.handle.net/2328/26696 Title: HIV among immigrants living in high-income countries: a realist review of evidence to guide targeted approaches to behavioural HIV prevention Authors: McMahon, Tadgh; Ward, Paul Russell Abstract: Immigrants from developing and middle-income countries are an emerging priority in HIV prevention in high-income countries. This may be explained in part by accelerating international migration and population mobility. However, it may also be due to the vulnerabilities of immigrants including social exclusion along with socioeconomic, cultural and language barriers to HIV prevention. Contemporary thinking on effective HIV prevention stresses the need for targeted approaches that adapt HIV prevention interventions according to the cultural context and population being addressed. This review of evidence sought to generate insights into targeted approaches in this emerging area of HIV prevention. 2012-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/2328/26693 Title: The importance of relationship in understanding the experiences of spouse mental health carers Authors: Lawn, Sharon Joy; McMahon, Janne Abstract: The burden of caring for family members with mental illness has been researched extensively. However, knowledge of spouse carers’ experiences is limited. In this article, we explore this from a carers’ perspective, with 28 spouse carers, using qualitative open-ended semi-structured interviews using a grounded theory approach informed by the social interactionism tradition to collect and analyze the data. We present six interrelated themes around the central theme of this being “a real and genuine relationship”. The findings indicate that caring for a spouse with severe mental illness is a unique role compared with other caring roles. First and foremost, spouse carers strive for the relationship with their partner, and accommodate mental illness into their lives to protect the relationship. Because of this, they often lead surreal lives marked by significant emotional pressure and isolation. This has implications for how mental health service providers work with and support spouse carers. 2013-04-22T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/2328/26679 Title: Macroautophagy in sporadic and the genetic form of Parkinson’s disease with the A53T a-synuclein mutation Authors: Huang, Yue; Chegini, Fariba; Chua, Germaine; Murphy, Karen; Gai, Wei Ping; Halliday, Glenda M Abstract: The A53T mutation in the a-synuclein gene causes autosomal-dominant Lewy body Parkinson’s disease (PD). Cultured cell models have linked this mutation to increased cell macroautophagy, although evidence of enhanced macroautophagy in patients with this mutation has not been assessed. Objective: To determine whether macroautophagy is increased by the A53T a-synuclein gene mutation in PD patients and cell models. Methods: Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded 10 μm-thick tissue sections from the substantia nigra and anterior cingulate cortex of two PD patients with the A53T a-synuclein gene mutation were compared with four sporadic PD cases and four controls obtained from the Sydney Brain Bank. Lewy bodies were isolated from frontal cortex of a case with late stage PD (recruited from South Australian Brain Bank). Immunohistochemistry was performed for a-synuclein and the macroautophagy markers autophagy-specific gene (ATG) 5, ATG6/Beclin1 and ATG8/LC3. SHSY5Y cells were transfected with wild type or A53T mutant a-synuclein plasmids and observable changes in macroautophagy marker protein levels assessed using Western blotting. Results: a-Synuclein immunoreactive neurites and dots were more numerous in patients with A53T mutations compared with late stage sporadic PD patients, and perinuclear cytoplasmic a-synuclein aggregates were observed in the a-synuclein A53T gene transfected SH-SY5Y cells compared to wild type transfections. All PD patients (with or without A53T mutations) had increased immunohistochemical evidence for macroautophagy compared with controls, and the levels of the ATG5 complex were equally increased in wild type and A53T a-synuclein gene transfected cells compared to controls. Conclusion: Despite increased a-synuclein accumulation with A53T mutations, macroautophagy is not increased above that observed in sporadic patients with PD or in cells transfected with wild type a-synuclein, suggesting that mutated a-synuclein protein is not removed by macroautophagy. 2012-01-13T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/2328/26677 Title: Predictors of and reasons for pacifier use in first-time mothers: an observational study Authors: Mauch, Chelsea E; Scott, Jane Anne; Magarey, Anthea Margaret; Daniels, Lynne Allison Abstract: This study confirms the findings of earlier studies that the use of a pacifier is widespread in Australia and that the early introduction, and frequent use, of a pacifier is associated with shorter breastfeeding duration. Furthermore, it identifies an opportunity for educating new mothers and their support network, particularly grandmothers, with regards to potential risks associated with the early and frequent use of a pacifier, and alternative methods for soothing their infant, in order to reduce the use of pacifiers and the potentially negative effect associated with their use on breastfeeding duration. 2012-01-19T00:00:00Z