Federal Court Rules 027 r 11 - Subpoena to give evidence

In Australian Prudential Regulation Authority v Rural and General Insurance Let [2004] FCA 933, Gyles J considered what he described as "a novel question", namely, whether taking steps to prepare to give oral evidence when subpoenaed to attend for that purpose, including the obtaining of legal advice and assistance, could be recovered by the witness under O 27 r 11 of the Federal Court Rules

Ring-opening polymerisation of silver-diphosphine [M2L3] coordination cages to give [M2L3](infinity) coordination polymers

[M2L3] coordination cages and linear [M2L3]infinity polymers of the rigid, bridging diphosphines bis(diphenylphosphino)acetylene (dppa) and trans-1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethylene (dppet) with silver(I) salts have been investigated in the solution and solid states. Unlike flexible diphosphines, 1:1 dppa/AgX mixtures do not selectively form discrete [Ag2(diphos)2(X)2] macrocycles; instead dynamic mixtures of one-, two- and three-coordinate complexes are formed. However, 3:2 dppa/AgX ratios (X = SbF6. BF4, O3SCF3 or NO3) do lead selectively to new [M2L3] triply bridged cage complexes [Ag2(dppa)3(X)2] 1a-d (X = SbF6 a, BF4 b, O3SCF3 c, NO3 d), which do not exhibit Ag-P bond dissociation at room temperature on the NMR time scale (121 MHz). Complexes la-d were characterised by X-ray crystallography and were found to have small internal cavities, helical conformations and multiple intramolecular aromatic interactions. The nucleophilicity of the anion subtly influences the cage shape: Increasing nucleophilicity from SbF6 (1a) through BF4 (1b) and O3SCF3 (1c) to NO3 (1d) increases the pyramidal distortion at the AgP3 centres, stretching the cage framework (with Ag...Ag distances increasing from 5.48 in 1a to 6.21 A in 1d) and giving thinner internal cavities. Crystal packing strongly affected the size of the helical twist angle, and no correlation between this parameter and the Ag-Ag distance was observed. When crystalline 1c was stored in its supernatant for 16 weeks, conversion occured to the isostoichiometric [M2L3]infinity coordination polymer [Ag(dppa)2Ag(dppa)(O3SCF3)2]infinity (1c'). X-ray crystallography revealed a structure with ten-membered Ag2(dppa)2 rings linked into infinite one-dimensional chains by a third dppa unit. The clear structural relationship between this polymer and the precursor cage 1c suggests a novel example of ring-opening polymerisation. With dppet, evidence for discrete [M2L3] cages was also found in solution, although 31P NMR spectroscopy suggested some Ag-P bond dissociation. On crystallisation, only the corresponding ring-opened polymeric structures [M2L3]infinity could be obtained. This may be because the greater steric bulk of dppet versus dppa destabilises the cage and favours the ring-opening polymerisation.

From hematopoiesis to neuropoiesis: Evidence of overlapping genetic programs

It is reasonable to propose that gene expression profiles of purified stem cells could give clues for the molecular mechanisms of stem cell behavior. We took advantage of cDNA subtraction to identify a set of genes selectively expressed in mouse adult hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) as opposed to bone marrow (BM). Analysis of HSC-enriched genes revealed several key regulatory gene candidates, including two novel seven transmembrane (7TM) receptors. Furthermore, by using cDNA microarray techniques we found a large set of HSC-enriched genes that are expressed in mouse neurospheres (a population greatly enriched for neural progenitor cells), but not present in terminally differentiated neural cells. In situ hybridization demonstrated that many of them, including one HSC-enriched 7TM receptor, were selectively expressed in the germinal zones of fetal and adult brain, the regions harboring mouse neural stem cells. We propose that at least some of the transcripts that are selectively and commonly expressed in two or more types of stem cells define a functionally conserved group of genes evolved to participate in basic stem cell functions, including stem cell self-renewal.

Developing a culture of enquiry to sustain evidence-based practice

Evidence-based practice (EBP) is having a significant effect on the health service environment. It constructs a language that bridges the healthcare disciplines and the clinical and managerial components of health services. Most experienced clinicians in nursing, medicine and allied health now recognise that the contemporary healthcare environment calls for our practice to be justified by sound, credible evidence. There is pressure on all clinicians to accommodate innovation, while at the same time ensuring their practice is effective, safe and efficient (Forbes & Griffiths 2002). Consequently, EBP in healthcare is having a profound effect on nursing and the way we think about nursing. There are many available models for research utilisation that are dependent on organisational strategies for change. This chapter describes the relationship between organisation and culture, and explores the notion of cultural change; that is, developing a culture of inquiry that can sustain evidence-based practice. We begin this chapter with a clear conception of what we mean by EBP and what we mean by ‘culture’.

One approach to finding evidence for the effectiveness of scientific visualisations in high school physics and chemistry education

Enormous amounts of money and energy are being devoted to the development, use and organisation of computer-based scientific visualisations (e.g. animations and simulations) in science education. It seems plausible that visualisations that enable students to gain visual access to scientific phenomena that are too large, too small or occur too quickly or too slowly to be seen by the naked eye, or to scientific concepts and models, would yield enhanced conceptual learning. When the literature is searched, however, it quickly becomes apparent that there is a dearth of quantitative evidence for the effectiveness of scientific visualisations in enhancing students’ learning of science concepts. This paper outlines an Australian project that is using innovative research methodology to gather evidence on this question in physics and chemistry classrooms.

Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002 s 27(1) – duty of respondent to give information and documents

In Hare v Mount Isa City Council [2009] QDC 39 McGill DCJ examined the scope of s 27(1) of the Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002 (Qld) and its interpretation by the Court of Appeal in Haug v Jupiters Ltd [2008] 1 Qd R 276. The judge expressed a number of concerns about the Act and the Regulation made under it, that are worthy of consideration by the Legislature.

The potential role of lycopene for the prevention and therapy of prostate cancer : from molecular mechanisms to clinical evidence

Lycopene is a phytochemical that belongs to a group of pigments known as carotenoids. It is red, lipophilic and naturally occurring in many fruits and vegetables, with tomatoes and tomato-based products containing the highest concentrations of bioavailable lycopene. Several epidemiological studies have linked increased lycopene consumption with decreased prostate cancer risk. These findings are supported by in vitro and in vivo experiments showing that lycopene not only enhances the antioxidant response of prostate cells, but that it is even able to inhibit proliferation, induce apoptosis and decrease the metastatic capacity of prostate cancer cells. However, there is still no clearly proven clinical evidence supporting the use of lycopene in the prevention or treatment of prostate cancer, due to the only limited number of published randomized clinical trials and the varying quality of existing studies. The scope of this article is to discuss the potential impact of lycopene on prostate cancer by giving an overview about its molecular mechanisms and clinical effects. © 2013 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

Accused cleric link to top music school probe

THE senior Anglican clergyman at the centre of an international child sex scandal was also a governor of a prestigious English music college that is under investigation for the alleged abuse of scores of its students across decades. Robert Waddington, who is alleged to have sexually assaulted students and choirboys in Britain and Australia, was a governor of the scandal-hit Chetham's School of Music for nine years. Waddington recruited students from the school for his choir at Manchester Cathedral, and allegedly abused at least three of the boys until he retired in 1993. The police investigation into the school, which began after the conviction in February of Michael Brewer, a former Chetham's music director, for the sexual abuse of female students, has not previously looked at Waddington. A victim has told The Weekend Australian that he was aware Waddington abused several boys from Chetham's who, like him, had been in the choir. The Cambridge University-educated business analyst, who has offered to give evidence under oath to police and the Church of England's inquiry into Waddington, said the clergyman had kept a collection of pictures in his house of boys he had abused.

Feasibility of using technology to disseminate evidence to rural nurses and improve patient outcomes

Background: Rural African American women receive less frequent mammography screening and die of breast cancer at a higher rate than is seen in the general population. To overcome this disparity, it is necessary to assist rural providers in their efforts to influence women to obtain screening. Method: This study examined the feasibility of using distance education to disseminate knowledge about timely and appropriate mammography screening to rural nurses, using patient outcome data to evaluate the effectiveness of this intervention. Results: Overall, there was a decline in referrals and mammography screening, but the intervention group centers showed a smaller decline after the educational intervention than did the control group. Conclusion: The findings show the effect of dissemination of information and the feasibility of using patient outcome data for educational evaluation. Neighboring academic health centers and nursing schools should include in their mission the provision of educational programs for relatively isolated rural nurses.

'How much love are you going to give this brand?' Lifestyle journalists on commercial influences in their work

The news increasingly provides help, advice, guidance, and information about the management of self and everyday life, in addition to its traditional role in political communication. Yet such forms of journalism are still regularly denigrated in scholarly discussions, as they often deviate from normative ideals. This is particularly true in lifestyle journalism, where few studies have examined the impact of commercial influences. Through in-depth interviews with 89 Australian and German lifestyle journalists, this paper explores the ways in which journalists experience how the lifestyle industries try to shape their daily work, and how these journalists deal with these influences. We find that lifestyle journalists are in a constant struggle over the control of editorial content, and their responses to increasing commercial pressures vary between resistance and resignation. This has implications for our understanding of journalism as a whole in that it broadens it beyond traditional conceptualizations associated with political journalism.

Liver genomic responses to ciguatoxin: evidence for activation of Phase I and Phase II detoxification pathways following an acute hypothermic response in mice

Ciguatoxins (CTX) are polyether neurotoxins that target voltage-gated sodium channels and are responsible for ciguatera, the most common fish-borne food poisoning in humans. This study characterizes the global transcriptional response of mouse liver to a symptomatic dose (0.26 ng/g) of the highly potent Pacific ciguatoxin-1 (P-CTX-1). At 1 h post-exposure 2.4% of features on a 44K whole genome array were differentially expressed (p ≤ 0.0001), increasing to 5.2% at 4 h and decreasing to 1.4% by 24 h post-CTX exposure. Data were filtered (|fold change| ≥ 1.5 and p ≤ 0.0001 in at least one time point) and a trend set of 1550 genes were used for further analysis. Early gene expression was likely influenced prominently by an acute 4°C decline in core body temperature by 1 h, which resolved by 8 h following exposure. An initial downregulation of 32 different solute carriers, many involved in sodium transport, was observed. Differential gene expression in pathways involving eicosanoid biosynthesis and cholesterol homeostasis was also noted. Cytochrome P450s (Cyps) were of particular interest due to their role in xenobiotic metabolism. Twenty-seven genes, mostly members of Cyp2 and Cyp4 families, showed significant changes in expression. Many Cyps underwent an initial downregulation at 1 h but were quickly and strongly upregulated at 4 and 24 h post-exposure. In addition to Cyps, increases in several glutathione S-transferases were observed, an indication that both phase I and phase II metabolic reactions are involved in the hepatic response to CTX in mice.

Getting to zero: evidence-based healthcare risk management is key.

In this article we call for a new approach to patient safety improvement, one based on the emerging field of evidence-based healthcare risk management (EBHRM). We explore EBHRM in the broader context of the evidence-based healthcare movement, assess the benefits and challenges that might arise in adopting an evidence-based approach, and make recommendations for meeting those challenges and realizing the benefits of a more scientific approach.