Assisted reproductive technologies and equity of access issues

In Australia and other countries, certain groups of women have traditionally been denied access to assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs). These typically are single heterosexual women, lesbians, poor women, and those whose ability to rear children is questioned, particularly women with certain disabilities or who are older. The arguments used to justify selection of women for ARTs are most often based on issues such as scarcity of resources, and absence of infertility ( in lesbians and single women), or on social concerns: that it goes against nature''; particular women might not make good mothers; unconventional families are not socially acceptable; or that children of older mothers might be orphaned at an early age. The social, medical, legal, and ethical reasoning that has traditionally promoted this lack of equity in access to ARTs, and whether the criteria used for client deselection are ethically appropriate in any particular case, are explored by this review. In addition, the issues of distribution and just gatekeeping'' practices associated with these sensitive medical services are examined.

Adhesion of microbes using 3-aminopropyl triethoxy silane and specimen stabilisation techniques for analytical transmission electron microscopy

A variety of adhesive support-films were tested for their ability to adhere various biological specimens for transmission electron microscopy. Support films primed with 3-amino-propyl triethoxy silane (APTES), poly-L-lysine, carbon and ultraviolet-B (UV-B)-irradiated carbon were tested for their ability to adhere a variety of biological specimens including axenic cultures of Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli and wild-type magnetotactic bacteria. The effects of UV-B irradiation on the support film in the presence of air and electrostatic charge on primer deposition were tested and the stability of adhered specimens on various surfaces was also compared. APTES-primed UV-B-irradiated Pioloform(TM) was consistently the best adhesive, especially for large cells, and when adhered specimens were UV-B irradiated they became remarkably stable under an electron beam. This assisted the acquisition of in situ phase-contrast lattice images from a variety of biominerals in magnetotactic bacteria, in particular metastable greigite magnetosomes. Washing tests indicated that specimens adhering to APTES-primed UV-B-irradiated Pioloform(TM) were covalently coupled. The electron beam stability was hypothesised to be the result of mechanical strengthening of the specimen and support film and the reduced electrical resistance in the specimen and support film due to their polymerization and covalent coupling.

Bernard Michael Bindon - reproductive physiologist, animal scientist, research leader

This paper is a foreword to a series of papers commissioned on 'the impact of science on the beef industry', where the Beef CRC-related collaborative scientific work of Professor Bernard Michael Bindon will be reviewed. These papers will be presented in March 2006, as part of a 'festschrift' to recognise his wider contributions to the Australian livestock industries for over 40 years. Bindon's career involved basic and applied research in many areas of reproductive physiology, genetics, immunology, nutrition, meat science and more recently genomics, in both sheep and cattle. Together with his collaborators, he made large contributions to animal science by improving the knowledge of mechanisms regulating reproductive functions and in elucidating the physiology and genetics of high fecundity livestock. His collaborative studies with many colleagues of the reproductive biology and genetics of the Booroola Merino were amongst the most extensive ever conducted on domestic livestock. He was instrumental in the development of immunological techniques to control ovulation rate and in examining the application of these and other techniques to increase beef cattle reproductive output. This paper tracks his investigations and achievements both within Australia and internationally. In the later stages of his career he was the major influence in attracting a large investment in Cooperative Research Centres for the Australian cattle industry, in which he directed a multi-disciplinary approach to investigate, develop and disseminate science and technology to improve commercial cattle productivity.

Fractionation of follicle stimulating hormone charge isoforms in their native form by preparative electrophoresis technology

Complex glycoprotein biopharmaceuticals, such as follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), erythropoietin and tissue plasminogen activator consist of a range of charge isoforms due to the extent of sialic acid capping of the glycoprotein glycans. Sialic acid occupies the terminal position on the oligosaccharide chain, masking the penultimate sugar residue, galactose from recognition and uptake by the hepatocyte asialoglycoprotein receptor. It is therefore well established that the more acidic charge isoforms of glycoprotein biopharmaceuticals have higher in vivo potencies than those of less acidic isoforms due to their longer serum half-life. Current strategies for manipulating glycoprotein charge isoform profile involve cell engineering or altering bioprocesss parameters to optimise expression of more acidic or basic isoforms, rather than downstream separation of isoforms. A method for the purification of a discrete range of bioactive recombinant human FSH (rhFSH) charge isoforms based on Gradiflow(TM) preparative electrophoresis technology is described. Gradiflow(TM) electrophoresis is scaleable, and incorporation into glycoprotein biopharmaceutical production bioprocesses as a potential final step facilitates the production of biopharmaceutical preparations of improved in vivo potency. (C) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comparison of palmtop-computer-assisted brief cognitive-behavioral treatment to cognitive-behavioral treatment for panic disorder

In the present study, the authors sought to determine whether the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) for panic disorder could be improved by adjunctive computer-assisted therapy. Eighteen participants who met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (3rd ed., revised; American Psychiatric Association, 1987) criteria for panic disorder were randomly assigned to a 12-session CBT (CBT12) condition (D. H. Barlow & M. G. Craske, 1989) or to a 4-session computer-assisted CBT (CBT4-CA) condition. Palmtop computers, with a program developed to incorporate basic principles of CBT, were used by CBT4-CA clients whenever they felt anxious or wanted to practice the therapy techniques and were used by all participants as a momentary assessment tool. CBT4-CA clients carried the computer at all times and continued to use it for 8 weeks after termination of therapy. Analyses of clinically significant change showed superiority of CBT12 at posttest on some measures; however, there were no differences at follow-up.

Development of ligase-assisted spacer addition for the measurement of microsatellites

Conventional methods for detecting differences in microsatellite repeat lengths rely on electrophoretic fractionation on long denaturing polyacrylamide gels, a time-consuming and labor-intensive method. Therefore, there is a need for the development of new and rapid approaches to routinely detect such length polymorphisms. The advent of techniques allowing the coupling of DNA molecules to solid surfaces has provided new prospects in the area of mutation. We describe here the development and optimization of the ligase-assisted spacer addition (LASA) method, a novel and rapid procedure based on an ELISA format to measure microsatellite repeat lengths. The LASA assay was successfully applied to a set of 11 bird samples to assess its capability as a genotyping method.

Taxonomy of Australian Funnel-web spiders using rp-HPLC/ESI-MS profiling techniques

The complex nature of venom from spider species offers a unique natural source of potential pharmacological tools and therapeutic leads. The increased interest in spider venom molecules requires reproducible and precise identification methods. The current taxonomy of the Australian Funnel-web spiders is incomplete, and therefore, accurate identification of these spiders is difficult. Here, we present a study of venom from numerous morphologically similar specimens of the Hadronyche infensa species group collected from a variety of geographic locations in southeast Queensland. Analysis of the crude venoms using online reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (rp-HPLC/ESI-MS) revealed that the venom profiles provide a useful means of specimen identification, from the species level to species variants. Tables defining the descriptor molecules for each group of specimens were constructed and provided a quick reference of the relationship between one specimen and another. The study revealed that the morphologically similar specimens from the southeast Queensland region are a number of different species/species variants. Furthermore, the study supports aspects of the current taxonomy with respect to the H. infensa species group. Analysis of Australian Funnel-web spider venom by rp-HPLC/ESI-MS provides a rapid and accurate method of species/species variant identification. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Computationally efficient solution techniques for adsorption problems involving steep gradients in bidisperse particles

A piecewise uniform fitted mesh method turns out to be sufficient for the solution of a surprisingly wide variety of singularly perturbed problems involving steep gradients. The technique is applied to a model of adsorption in bidisperse solids for which two fitted mesh techniques, a fitted-mesh finite difference method (FMFDM) and fitted mesh collocation method (FMCM) are presented. A combination (FMCMD) of FMCM and the DASSL integration package is found to be most effective in solving the problems. Numerical solutions (FMFDM and FMCMD) were found to match the analytical solution when the adsorption isotherm is linear, even under conditions involving steep gradients for which global collocation fails. In particular, FMCMD is highly efficient for macropore diffusion control or micropore diffusion control. These techniques are simple and there is no limit on the range of the parameters. The techniques can be applied to a variety of adsorption and desorption problems in bidisperse solids with non-linear isotherm and for arbitrary particle geometry.

From Midden to Sieve: The Impact of Differential Recovery and Quantification Techniques on Interpretations of Shellfish Remains in Australian Coastal Archaeology

Experimental mechanical sieving methods are applied to samples of shellfish remains from three sites in southeast Queensland, Seven Mile Creek Mound, Sandstone Point and One-Tree, to test the efficacy of various recovery and quantification procedures commonly applied to shellfish assemblages in Australia. There has been considerable debate regarding the most appropriate sieve sizes and quantification methods that should be applied in the recovery of vertebrate faunal remains. Few studies, however, have addressed the impact of recovery and quantification methods on the interpretation of invertebrates, specifically shellfish remains. In this study, five shellfish taxa representing four bivalves (Anadara trapezia, Trichomya hirsutus, Saccostrea glomerata, Donax deltoides) and one gastropod (Pyrazus ebeninus) common in eastern Australian midden assemblages are sieved through 10mm, 6.3mm and 3.15mm mesh. Results are quantified using MNI, NISP and weight. Analyses indicate that different structural properties and pre- and postdepositional factors affect recovery rates. Fragile taxa (T. hirsutus) or those with foliated structure (S. glomerata) tend to be overrepresented by NISP measures in smaller sieve fractions, while more robust taxa (A. trapezia and P. ebeninus) tend to be overrepresented by weight measures. Results demonstrate that for all quantification methods tested a 3mm sieve should be used on all sites to allow for regional comparability and to effectively collect all available information about the shellfish remains.