The microbiome and the pathophysiology of asthma

Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease whose prevalence is increasing in the western world. Recently research has begun to focus on the role the microbiome plays in asthma pathogenesis in the hope of further understanding this respiratory disorder. Considered sterile until recently, the lungs have revealed themselves to contain a unique microbiota. A shift towards molecular methods for the quantification and sequencing of microbial DNA has revealed that the airways harbour a unique microbiota with apparent, reproducible differences present between healthy and diseased lungs. There is a hope that in classifying the microbial load of the asthmatic airway an insight may be afforded as to the possible role pulmonary microbes may have in propagating an asthmatic airway response. This could potentially pave the way for new therapeutic strategies for the treatment of chronic lung conditions such as asthma.

The relevance of bacterial isoprenoid biosynthetic pathways for host-microbe interactions

This thesis was undertaken to investigate the relevance of two bacterial isoprenoid biosynthetic pathways (Mevalonate (MVAL) and 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP)) for host-microbe interactions. We determined a significant reduction in microbial diversity in the murine gut microbiota (by next generation sequencing) following oral administration of a common anti-cholesterol drug Rosuvastatin (RSV) that targets mammalian and bacterial HMG-CoA reductase (HMG-R) for inhibition of MVAL formation. In tandem we identified significant hepatic and intestinal off-target alterations to the murine metabolome indicating alterations in inflammation, bile acid profiles and antimicrobial peptide synthesis with implications on community structure of the gastrointestinal microbiota in statin-treated animals. However we found no effect on local Short Chain Fatty Acid biosynthesis (metabolic health marker in our model). We demonstrated direct inhibition of bacterial growth in-vitro by RSV which correlated with reductions in bacterial MVAL formation. However this was only at high doses of RSV. Our observations demonstrate a significant RSV-associated impact on the gut microbiota prompting similar human analysis. Successful deletion of another MVAL pathway enzyme (HMG-CoA synthase (mvaS)) involved in Listeria monocytogenes EGDe isoprenoid biosynthesis determined that the enzyme is non-essential for normal growth and in-vivo pathogenesis of this pathogen. We highlight potential evidence for alternative means of synthesis of the HMG-CoA substrate that could render mvaS activity redundant under our test conditions. Finally, we showed by global gene expression analysis (Massive Analysis of cDNA Ends (MACE RNA-seq) a significant role for the penultimate MEP pathway metabolite (E)-4-hydroxy-3-methyl-2-but-2-enyl pyrophosphate (HMBPP) in significant up regulation of genes of immunity and antigen presentation in THP-1 cells at nanomolar levels. We infected THP-1 cells with wild type or HMBPP under/over-producing L. monoctyogenes EGDe mutants and determined subtle effects of HMBPP upon overall host responses to Listeria infection. Overall our findings provide greater insights regarding bacterial isoprenoid biosynthetic pathways for host-microbe/microbe-host dialogue.

The need for dialogue between the vocational psychological and organisational perspectives on career

As editors of the recently published Vocational psychological and organisational perspectives on career: Towards a multidisciplinary dialogue (Collin & Patton, 2009), we have considerable interest in this particular issue of the Australian Journal of Career Development. This short piece will first present the purpose and thesis of that book and, in the light of them, will then comment on the four papers. The book suggests that to understand the multidimensional and multilayered nature of career, “it has to be studied in a similarly multilayered and multi-perspectival way, and, indeed, it has been” (p. 3). Scholars have pointed out that there is a wide array of disciplines including economics, sociology, anthropology, geography, political science, various branches of psychology (e.g. industrial/organisational (I/O), vocational, counselling), psychiatry, education, organisation studies, organisational behaviour, personnel/human resource management, industrial relations, and more, all of which have something to say about career. Of these, the most influential, according to Peiperl and Arthur (2000), have been psychology, sociology, education and management. These many disciplinary perspectives on career constitute the rich field of career studies.

Vocational psychological and organisational perspectives on career : towards a multidisciplinary dialogue

It has long been lamented that, although several disciplines contribute to career scholarship, they work in isolation from one another, thus denying career theory, research, and practice the benefits that multidisciplinary collaboration would bring. This constitutes a lost opportunity at a time when new understandings and approaches are needed in order to respond effectively to global changes in society and work. This book takes a major step towards remedying this situation by bringing together two key perspectives on career, the vocational psychological and the organisational (interpreted broadly to include organisation behaviour and human resource management). Written by international experts, the book opens by identifying some of the “tributaries” that flow into the “great delta of careers scholarship”, and noting the need to link what are at present separate “islands” of scholarship. It is structured to allow comparison between the ways in which the two perspectives address career development and career management theory, research and interventions. It concludes by pointing to the possibilities for dialogue, and even collaboration, between these perspectives, and suggesting ways in which these could be brought about. The book will be essential reading for career scholars because, with its potential to stimulate new thinking and developments in theory and research and also, importantly, in practice (with beneficial spin-offs for policy-makers), this dialogue could open a new phase in career scholarship. With its overviews of the history, theory, research and practice of both perspectives, the book will also be a valuable resource for students of both perspectives.

Mediating cultural politics : a dialogue with Georgina Born

The following dialogue is based on an interview conducted as part of Professor Born’s visit to Brisbane in 2006, which included three public seminars at the University of Queensland (UQ) and Queensland University of Technology (QUT). The following dialogue provides a counterpoint to these events and to Born’s work as a whole, drawing together and extending key themes in the cultural politics of both public service broadcasting and new media technologies. It begins by discussing the possibilities of public sphere theory to provide useful models of institutional design. The discussion moves from there to SBS Television – an example of Public Service Broadcasting that provides an interesting contrast to the BBC, especially by virtue of SBS’s relationship with the politics of multiculturalism in Australia. The second half of the interview draws out the issues around cultural value, cultural power and the politics of technology in relation to new media, and concludes by focusing especially on the problems and potentialities of ‘user-generated content’.

Corporate social responsibility and the parameters of dialogue with vulnerable others

This article presents a case study of corporate dialogue with vulnerable others. Dialogue with marginalized external groups is increasingly presented in the business literature as the key to making corporate social responsibility possible in particular through corporate learning. Corporate public communications at the same time promote community engagement as a core aspect of corporate social responsibility. This article examines the possibilities for and conditions underpinning corporate dialogue with marginalized stakeholders as occurred around the unexpected and sudden closure in January 2009 of the AU$2.2 billion BHP Billiton Ravensthorpe Nickel mine in rural Western Australia. In doing so we draw on John Roberts’ notion of dialogue with vulnerable others, and apply a discourse analysis approach to data spanning corporate public communications and interviews with residents affected by the decision to close the mine. In presenting this case study we contribute to the as yet limited organizational research concerned directly with marginalized stakeholders and argue that corporate social responsibility discourse and vulnerable other dialogue not only affirms the primacy of business interests but also co-opts vulnerable others in the pursuit of these interests. In conclusion we consider case study implications for critical understandings of corporate dialogue with vulnerable others.

Jogging alongside or bumping off? oral history and fiction in dialogue

This paper emerges from my practice-led PhD thesis investigating the ways fiction writers can enter a dialogue with the project of oral history in Australia. In this paper, I survey the current literature in order to identify the status of fiction within the practice of oral history in Australia. I argue that oral historians and fiction writers are, among other things, both concerned with understanding subjectivity. I consider how one of the specific qualities of fiction, that of character, can provide a space to explore subjectivity, and rely on my own writing practice in order to demonstrate how oral history theory can enrich fictive writings. This paper, while positioned in the field of oral history, exists within a wider debate around how the past can legitimately be represented; I argue oral historians and fiction writers can enter a dialogue around shared concerns.

Building shared situational awareness in surgery through distributed dialogue

Background Failure to convey time-critical information to team members during surgery diminishes members’ perception of the dynamic information relevant to their task, and compromises shared situational awareness. This research reports the dialog around clinical decisions made by team members in the time-pressured and high-risk context of surgery, and the impact of these communications on shared situational awareness. Methods Fieldwork methods were used to capture the dynamic integration of individual and situational elements in surgery that provided the backdrop for clinical decisions. Nineteen semi structured interviews were performed with 24 participants from anaesthesia, surgery, and nursing in the operating rooms of a large metropolitan hospital in Queensland, Australia. Thematic analysis was used. Results: The domain “coordinating decisions in surgery” was generated from textual data. Within this domain, three themes illustrated the dialog of clinical decisions, i.e., synchronizing and strategizing actions, sharing local knowledge, and planning contingency decisions based on priority. Conclusion Strategies used to convey decisions that enhanced shared situational awareness included the use of “self-talk”, closed-loop communications, and “overhearing” conversations that occurred at the operating table. Behaviours’ that compromised a team’s shared situational awareness included tunnelling and fixating on one aspect of the situation.