The Future of the Australian-U.S. Security Relationship

Australia is an increasingly important ally for the United States. It is willing to be part of challenging global missions, and its strong economy and growing self-confi dence suggest a more prominent role in both global and regional affairs. Moreover, its government has worked hard to strengthen the link between Canberra and Washington. Political and strategic affi nities between the two countries have been refl ected in--and complemented by--practiced military interoperability, as the two allies have sustained a pattern of security cooperation in relation to East Timor, Afghanistan and Iraq in the last 4 years. This growing collaboration between the two countries suggests that a reinvention of the traditional bilateral security relationship is taking place. At the core of this process lies an agreement about the need for engaging in more proactive strategic behavior in the changing global security environment, and a mutual acceptance of looming military and technological interdependence. But this new alliance relationship is already testing the boundaries of bipartisan support for security policy within Australia. Issues of strategic doctrine, defense planning, and procurement are becoming topics of fi erce policy debate. Such discussion is likely to be sharpened in the years ahead as Australia’s security relationship with the United States settles into a new framework.

Both beta(2)- and beta(1)-adrenergic receptors mediate hastened relaxation and phosphorylation of phospholamban and troponin I in ventricular myocardium of fallot infants, consistent with selective coupling of beta(2)-adrenergic receptors to G(s)-protein

Background-In adult human heart, both beta(1)- and beta(2)-adrenergic receptors mediate hastening of relaxation; however, it is unknown whether this also occurs in infant heart. We compared the effects of stimulation of beta(1)- and beta(2)-adrenergic receptors on relaxation and phosphorylation of phospholamban and troponin I in ventricle obtained from infants with tetralogy of Fallot. Methods and Results-Myocardium dissected from the right ventricular outflow tract of 27 infants (age range 2-1/2 to 35 months) with tetralogy of Fallot was set up to contract 60 times per minute. Selective stimulation of beta(1)-adrenergic receptors with (-)-norepinephrine (NE) and beta(2)-adrenergic receptors with (-)-epinephrine (EPI) evoked phosphorylation of phospholamban (at serine-16 and threonine-17) and troponin I and caused concentration-dependent increases in contractile force (-log EC50 [mol/L] NE 5.5+/-0.1, n=12; -EPI 5.6+/-0.1, n=13 patients), hastening of the time to reach peak force (-log EC50 [mol/L] NE 5.8+/--0.2; EPI 5.8+/-0.2) and 50% relaxation (-log EC50 [mol/L] NE 5.7+/-0.2: EPI 5.8+/-0.1), Ventricular membranes from Fallot infants, labeled with (-)-[I-125]-cyanopindolol, revealed a greater percentage of beta(1)- (71%) than beta(2)-adrenergic receptors (29%). Binding of (-)-epinephrine to beta(2)-receptors underwent greater GTP shifts than binding of (-)-norepinephrine to beta(1)-receptors. Conclusions-Despite their low density, beta(2)-adrenergic receptors are nearly as effective as beta(1)-adrenergic receptors of infant Fallot ventricle in enhancing contraction, relaxation, and phosphorylation of phospholamban and troponin I, consistent with selective coupling to G(s)-protein.

Thomasius on the toleration of heresy

Over two thousand years the Christian Church identified a wider range and a greater number of heresies than most other religions and, when secular authorities did not protected the heretics, took drastic measures to persuade the heretic to recant and to extirpate the false doctrine. Heresy, of course, is a word like a box [End Page 201] that at different times may hold many different ideas and so some articles are dealing with definitions and identifications that are not the same. The editors suggest that the articles show a profound change in culture in the eighteenth century which means that present day scholars can barely imagine the mind-set that produced medieval attitudes to heresy. This is the task some of the authors have set themselves while others seek to explain how the change came about as part of the historical search for truth.

Outpatient cognitive behavioural therapy programme for alcohol dependence impact of naltrexone use on outcome

Objective: Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) has been effectively used in the treatment of alcohol dependence. Clinical studies report that the anticraving drug naltrexone, is a useful adjunct to treatment. Currently, few data are available on the impact of adding this medication to programmes in more typical, outpatient, and rehabilitation settings. The objective of this study was to examine the impact on outcome of adding naltrexone to an established outpatient alcohol rehabilitation program which employed CBT. Method: Fifty patients participated in an established 12-week, outpatient, 'contract'-based alcohol abstinence programme which employed CBT. They also received naltrexone 50 mg orally daily (CBT + naltrexone). Outcomes were compared with 50 historical, matched controls, all of whom participated in the same programme without an anticraving medication (CBT alone). All patients met DSM-IV criteria for alcohol dependence. Results: Programme attendance across the eight treatment sessions was lower in the CBT alone group (p < 0.001). Relapse to alcohol use occurred sooner and more frequently in the CBT alone group (p < 0.001). Rehabilitation programme completion at 12 weeks was 88% (CBT + naltrexone) compared with 36% for (CBT alone) (p < 0.001). Alcohol abstinence at 12 weeks was 76% (CBT + naltrexone) compared with 18% (CBT alone) (p < 0.001). Conclusion: When employing the same outpatient rehabilitation programme and comparing outcomes using matched historical controls, the addition of naltrexone substantially improves programme attendance, programme completion and reported alcohol abstinence. In a typical outpatient programme, naltrexone addition was associated with significantly improved programme participation, better outcomes and was well tolerated.

The use of perineal ultrasound to quantify levator activity and teach pelvic floor muscle exercises

Perineal ultrasound was used to detect and quantify levator activity by measuring the displacement of the internal urethral meatus against the inferoposterior margin of the symphysis pubis, Women who had previously been instructed in pelvic floor muscle exercises were more likely to contract the levator muscle when asked to do so than were those without previous instruction (P

Differential activities of decapeptide agonists of human C5a: the conformational effects of backbone N-methylation

Analogues of the potent, conformationally biased, decapeptide agonist of human C5a anaphylatoxin, C5a(65-74)Y65,F67,P69,P71,D-Ala73 (YSFKPMPLaR, peptide 54), were synthesized with methyl groups occupying specific C5a,, amide nitrogen atoms along the peptide backbone. This N-methylation induced crucial extended backbone conformations in a manner similar to the two Pro residues, but without eliminating the contributions made by the side-chain of the residue for which Pro was substituted. The presence of backbone N-methyl groups on peptide 54 analogues had pronounced detrimental effects on the ability to bind and activate C5aRs expressed on human PMNs, but not on the ability to contract smooth muscle of human umbilical artery. Several N-methylated analogues of peptide 54 (peptides 56, 67, 124, 125, and 137) were significantly more selective for smooth muscle contraction, which is mediated by tissue resident macrophages, than for enzyme release from PMNs. Indeed, peptide 67, YSFKDMP(MeL)aR was almost 3000-fold more selective for smooth muscle contraction than for PMN enzyme release. Consistent with these differential activities was the observation that peptide 67 expressed a significantly greater binding affinity to C5aRs expressed on rat macrophages than on rat PMNs. This differential activity was also observed in vivo in the rat where peptide 67 induced a hypotensive response similar to peptide 54 and rhuC5a, but without accompanying neutropenia. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

The role of the church in developing the law

The church and other community organisations have a legitimate role to play in influencing public policy. However, intervention by the church and other religious bodies in recent litigation in Australia and the United Kingdom raises questions about the appropriateness of such bodies being permitted to intervene directly in the court process as amici curiae. We argue that there are dangers in such bodies insinuating their doctrine under the guise of legal argument in civil proceedings, but find it difficult to enunciate a principled distinction between doctrine and legal argument. We advise that judges should exercise caution in dealing with amicus submissions.

America's nuclear deterrence in the age of terrorism

The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the US and the leakage of the Nuclear Posture Report (NPR) spur a complete review of the nuclear doctrine under Pres George W. Bush's administration. Kampmark discusses the contrariness of NPR in relation to America's deterrence of nuclear weapons and the possible proliferation of tactical offensive weapons as compared to strategic nuclear weapons.