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High Blood Pressure Research Council of Australia |
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HBPRCA
Email Newsletter
September
2007
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Please note that the abstract deadline has been extended until
Wednesday the 19th so there is still time to put in that last minute “late breaking”
abstract. Students note the special symposium this year (see Enzo’s article).
A bumper e-news with a comprehensive feature article from
South Australian hypertension researchers collated by our own Lyndon Wing.
It’s an impressive description of contributions from Adelaide, Flinders
University, the University of South
Australia and the Royal Adelaide
Hospital. Read on! With best wishes, Associate Professor
Geoffrey A Head |
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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE from Stephen Harrap With the excitement building
towards our Annual Scientific Meeting in Adelaide this year, your Executive
has also been turning its attention to our meeting in 2008.
We also wanted to recognise the
history of the Council in our 30th year and the Executive thought that it
would be a great opportunity to build the “family tree” of the Council. For
this purpose, we shall be contacting existing and past members of the Council
to ask them to nominate the people who had a major direct impact (as mentor,
supervisor, role model) in their own blood pressure-related careers. Where
possible we’d also request photographs, so that the younger generations can
put faces to the notable names.
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MEETING NEWS from Jaye Chin Dusting Only one item to
announce this month: get your abstracts into me now!! You may only submit
your abstracts online. Please click here and use your details
below to login to the Meetings First website. CLOSE OF ABSTRACTS IS WEDNESDAY 19 SEPTEMBER 2007 CLOSE OF EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION IS WEDNESDAY 31 OCTOBER 2007 |
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MEMBERSHIP
NEWS from Doug
McKitrick With the HBPRCA annual general
meeting coming up we once again remind supervisors that your graduate students
can enjoy free membership in the HBPRCA. This year the annual meeting will be
run as a joint meeting with the Australian Society for Clinical and
Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists (ASCEPT). This will provide
regular members and student members with an even greater opportunity for
sharing ideas and making new national and international contacts, making the
meeting an event that your post docs and graduate students won't want to
miss. Details of how your students or colleagues
can join our growing Society are available on the HBPRCA website (www.hbprca.com.au).
But hurry, the early bird registration deadline for the 2007 Annual Meeting
is fast approaching. |
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STUDENT NEWS from Enzo Porrello This year’s HBPRCA meeting will
feature a student symposium: “A Career in
Cardiovascular Research: The Years Post Doc”. The student
symposium will be held on Wednesday 5 December
from 5:15 – 6:15pm at the Adelaide Hilton and will be followed by drinks at
the Hilton bar, before the conference dinner at 7pm. The symposium
will feature 3 speakers: an eminent scientist (Prof Ian Frazer), an early career
investigator (Dr Alyson Miller) and somebody with experience in industry (to
be confirmed). The 3 speakers will reflect on their own careers and
experiences in science and provide a personal perspective on what it takes to
“make it”. The symposium will be interactive and informal, and will maximise
opportunities for young researchers to ask questions about career options in
science. We are very fortunate to have Professor Ian
Frazer and Dr Alyson Miller as our guest speakers at this year’s student
event. Professor Frazer is Director of the Diamantina Institute of Cancer
Immunology and Metabolic Medicine a research institute of the University of
Queensland at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane. Since 1983, he has
pursued an interest in development of vaccines to prevent human
papillomavirus (HPV) infection and related human cancers in the cervix and
elsewhere. In 2006, he was chosen as the Australian of the Year. Dr Miller is
a HBPRCA postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Pharmacology at Monash
University. She has made major contributions to the field of oxidative stress
and reactive oxygen species and is the recipient of numerous national and
international early career awards. This is a fantastic opportunity for all HBPRCA
students to get a first-hand insight into scientific career paths and a great
chance to get to know each other. I hope that many of you will be able to
attend. |
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SEPTEMBER
FEATURE ARTICLE – Cardiovascular
Research in South Australia 2007 With the Annual Scientific Meeting of the High Blood
Pressure Council of Australia coming back to Adelaide this December for the
first time since the early 1990s, it is timely to give members an overview of
the significant range of cardiovascular research which is currently active in
South Australia. The major sites
engaged in such research are the Flinders University School of Medicine and
Flinders Medical Centre, the Royal Adelaide and Queen Elizabeth Hospitals
linked with the University of Adelaide Medical School, the University of
Adelaide Department of Public Health and the University of South Australia
Faculty of Health Sciences. ANBP2 A key research activity linked to the Council, which has
been led from South Australia since its inception in the early 1990s is the
Second Australian National Blood Pressure Study (ANBP2). Professor Lindon Wing, who has recently
retired from the Deanship of the Flinders University School of Medicine,
continues as Chair of the ANBP2 Management Committee. The Data Management Centre for ANBP2
continues to be led by Professor Phil Ryan and Kristyn Willson in the
Department of Public Health at the University of Adelaide. The study is still actively working on
publications from the various associated sub-studies and together with
Associate Professor Chris Reid in the Department of Epidemiology and
Preventive Medicine at Monash University is engaged in a 10-year follow-up of
participants. FLINDERS
UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE / FLINDERS MEDICAL CENTRE There
are a number of groups in the joint Flinders University School of Medicine/Flinders
Medical Centre complex with major cardiovascular interests. These include groups led by Professor Ian
Gibbins and Associate Professor Judy Morris, Professor Bill Blessing, Dr
Eugene Nalivaiko, Associate Professor Ida Llewellyn-Smith, Dr Arduino Mangoni
and Professor Phillip Aylward. Ian Gibbins and Judy Morris’ group Ian
Gibbins is Professor and Head of Anatomy and Histology, Flinders
University. Judy Morris is an
Associate Professor in the same department.
Low
magnification confocal view of part of a guinea-pig coeliac ganglion. The green neurons (green = neuropeptide Y)
on the left are mostly vasoconstrictor neurons innervating the mesenteric
circulation. The blue neurons (blue =
somatostatin) inhibit the activity of secretomotor neurons in the gut; their
activity is enhanced by activation of peptide-containing visceral afferents,
as well as direct projections from neurons in the gut (pink = vasoactive
intestinal peptide in the endings of those neurons). (Adapted from Fig 1a in: Gibbins IL, Teo
EH, Jobling P, Morris JL (2003) Synaptic density, convergence and dendritic
complexity of prevertebral sympathetic neurons. Journal of Comparative
Neurology 455: 285-298). Recent publications -
Morris JL, Koenig P, Shimizu T, Jobling P, Gibbins
IL (2005) Most peptide-containing sensory neurons lack proteins for
exocytotic release and vesicular transport of glutamate. Journal of
Comparative Neurology 483: 1-16 (with cover illustration). -
Morris JL, Gibbins IL, Jobling P (2005)
Post-stimulus potentiation of transmission in pelvic ganglia enhances sympathetic
dilatation of guinea-pig uterine artery. Journal of Physiology 566: 189-203
(with editorial commentary). -
Gibbins IL, Teo EH, Jobling P, Morris JL (2003)
Synaptic density, convergence and dendritic complexity of prevertebral
sympathetic neurons. Journal of Comparative Neurology 455: 285-298 [with
cover illustration and editorial commentary]. -
Gibbins IL, Jobling P, Teo EH, Matthew SE, Morris
JL (2003) Heterogeneous expression of SNAP-25 and synaptic vesicle proteins
by convergent synaptic inputs to sympathetic neurons. Journal of Comparative
Neurology 459: 25-43 [with cover illustration]. -
Baker SJ, Morris JL, Gibbins IL (2003) Cloning of a
C-terminally truncated NK-1 receptor. Molecular Brain Res 111:136-147. Bill Blessing’s group Bill Blessing is a NH&MRC Senior Principal Research Fellow
and Professor in the Department of Human Physiology. He is Head of the Neurology Laboratory in
the Department. Bill’s lab is interested in measuring
biological variables indicative of brain control of thermoregulation and
energy balance, and to use their findings to elucidate higher brain functions
relevant to mental disorders including schizophrenia. They use a variety of experimental
approaches including electrophysiology, neurotransmitter receptor pharmacology,
neuroanatomy with combined immunohistochemistry and tract tracing (viral and
conventional), together with experience in creating neurotransmitter-specific
lesions using retrograde transport of neurotoxic lectins coupled to
neurotransmitter specific antibodies.
Clozapine reverses MDMA-elicited
vasoconstriction in the rabbit ear (from data published in Blessing WW,
Seaman B, Pedersen NP, Ootsuka Y. (2003). Clozapine reverses hyperthermia and
sympathetically mediated cutaneous vasoconstriction induced by
3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (Ecstasy) in rabbits and rats. J Neuroscience 23 (15):6385-6391). Recent publications -
Blessing WW and Ootsuka Y. (2007) Activation of dopamine D(2)
receptors in the CNS inhibits sympathetic cutaneous vasomotor alerting
responses (SCVARs), contributing to clozapine's SCVAR-inhibiting action. Progress in Neuropsychopharmacology and
Biological Psychiatry. 31: 328-336. IF=2.8 -
Ootsuka Y and Blessing WW. (2006) Activation of 5-HT1A
receptors in rostral medullary raphe inhibits cutaneous vasoconstriction
elicited by cold exposure in rabbits. Brain Research 1073-1074: 252-61. IF=2.3 -
Blessing WW, Zilm A and Ootsuka Y. (2006) Clozapine reverses increased
brown adipose tissue thermogenesis induced by
3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine and by cold exposure in conscious rats. Neuroscience 141: 2067-2073. IF=3.4 -
Ootsuka Y and McAllen RM. (2006) Comparison between two rat
sympathetic pathways activated in cold defense. American Journal of Physiology, 291(3):R589-95 -
Toth IE, Toth DE, Boldogkoi Z, Hornyak
A, Palkovits M and Blessing WW. (2006)
Serotonin-synthesizing neurons in the rostral medullary raphe/parapyramidal
region transneuronally labelled after injection of pseudorabies virus into
the rat tail. Neurochemical
Research 31: 277-286. IF=2.2 (1) -
Ootsuka Y and Blessing WW. (2006) Thermogenesis in brown
adipose tissue: increase by 5-HT2A receptor activation and decrease by 5-HT1A
receptor activation in conscious rats. Neuroscience Letters 395: 170-174. IF=1.9
(2) Eugene Nalivaiko’s group
Recent publications Animal studies -
Salomé N, Ngampramuan S, Nalivaiko E (2007) Intra-amygdala
injection of GABAA agonist, muscimol, reduces tachycardia and
modifies cardiac sympatho-vagal balance during restraint stress in rats. Neuroscience (in press). -
Nalivaiko E, De Pasquale CG, Blessing WW (2004)
Ventricular arrhythmia triggered by alerting stimuli in conscious rabbits
pre-treated with dofetilide. Basic
Research in Cardiology 99:142-151. -
Nalivaiko E, Blessing WW (2004) CRF1 receptor
antagonist CP-154,526 reduces cardiovascular responses during acute
psychological stress in rabbits. Brain
Research 1017: 234-237. -
Nalivaiko E. Ootsuka Y. and Blessing WW. (2005) Activation
of 5-HT1A receptors reduces cardiovascular changes elicited by acute psychological
and inflammatory stresses in rabbits. Am.
J. Physiol. 289: R596-R604. Human studies -
Nalivaiko E, Catcheside PG, Adams A, Jordan
AS, Eckert DJ and McEvoy RD
(2007) Cardiac changes during
spontaneous and sound-induced arousals during non-REM sleep in healthy
volunteers. Am. J. Physiol. 292: 1320-1327. Invited reviews -
Nalivaiko E. (2006) 5-HT1A receptors in
stress-induced cardiac changes: a possible link between mental and cardiac
disorders. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol
33: 1259-1264. -
Paton JFR, Boscan P,
Pickering AE and Nalivaiko E (2005) The ying and yang of cardiac autonomic
control: vago-sympathetic interactions revisited. Brain Research Reviews 49: 555-565. Flinders Cardiology group The principal investigators in
this group are Professor Phillip,
Associate Professor Derek Chew, Dr Carmine De Pasquale and Dr Joseph
Selvanayagam. For some years Phillip Aylward has led a team
interested involved in multicentre clinical trials relating to antithrombotic
therapy in acute coronary syndromes and atrial fibrillation. Recent
completed studies in which the group has had a major role are ACUITY (NEJM
2006, 355, 2203-16) and STEEPLE (NEJM 2006 355, 106-117) which looked at the preferred antithrombin in acute
coronary syndromes and PCI (ACUITY) and elective angioplasty (STEEPLE). Ongoing studies by the group are of the
clopidogrel-like drugs prasugrel, cangrelor and AZD6140 in various
populations but predominantly related to coronary stenting. Atrial fibrillation is also becoming a
major focus and they are involved in two studies looking at different oral
antithrombins to replace warfarin. Derek Chew’s
current interests are in the application of current evidence and new
technologies to the management of acute and stable coronary artery disease. These have included a national audit of
acute coronary syndrome management extending to the evaluation of risk among
these patients and how well therapy matches this risk. In addition, his group is currently
exploring the factors associated with late stent thrombosis in the era of
drug-eluting stents. Recent
publications -
Chew DP, Amerena
J, Coverdale S, Rankin J, Astley C, Brieger D. (2007) Current management of acute coronary syndromes in Australia:
observations from the acute coronary syndromes prospective audit (ACACIA). Internal Medicine Journal (accepted). -
Shishehbor MH, Lauer MS, Singh IM, Chew DP, Karha J, Brener SJ, Moliterno DJ, Ellis SG, Topol EJ,
Bhatt DL. (2007) In unstable angina
or non-ST-segment ACS, should patients with multivessel coronary artery
disease undergo multivessel or culprit-only stenting? JACC 49 (8): 849-54 -
Worthley S, Farouque O, Meredith IT, Baldi M, Chew DP, Worthley M. (2006). The RADI pressure wire high-sensitivity
thermistor and culprit lesion temperature in patients with acute coronary
syndromes. The Journal of Invasive
Cardiology. 18(11):528-31. -
White HD, Kleiman NS, Mahaffey KW, Lokhnygina Y, Pieper
KS, Chiswell K, Cohen M, Harrington RA, Chew DP, Petersen JL, Berdan LG, Aylward PEG, Ferguson JJ,
Califf RM. (2006) Efficacy and safety
of percutaneous coronary intervention in high-risk non-ST-elevation acute
coronary syndromes treated with enoxaparin or unfractionated heparin in the
superior yield of the new strategy of enoxaparin revascularization and
glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors (SYNERGY) trial. Am Heart J. 152(6): 1042-50. -
Chew DP. (2005) If only all things were equal:
Cost-effectiveness of drug-eluting stents. (Editorial). Medical
Journal of Australia 81:376-377. -
Chew DP, Aylward
PEG, White HD. (2005) Facilitated
percutaneous coronary intervention: is this strategy ready for
implementation? Current Cardiology Reports 7:235-241. Carmine De
Pasquale is responsible for the group’s ongoing research in
relation to heart failure.
L to R: Dr Dani-Louise
Bryan, Professor Andrew Bersten, Dr Carmine de Pasquale The group’s major research is at the basic science
level. With Professor Andrew Bersten
they are in their second year of a NH&MRC grant funding investigating the
effect of chronic heart failure on respiratory function. They are using a rat model of
infarct-induced congestive heart failure (CHF) and are performing respiratory
mechanics, surfactant analysis and pressure volume-loops on CHF lungs. They have found that CHF lungs have normal
mechanics until the effect of surfactant is removed they then have reduced
compliance compared to controls. Furthermore,
CHF lungs have increased lavage surfactant suggesting there is a homeostatic
mechanism in play in CHF to maintain normal respiratory mechanics. We have presented this work and the
manuscript is in preparation for submission. De Pasquale CG*, Bryan D-L, De Smet H, Bersten
AD. Reduced surface tension
normalises lung mechanics in a rodent chronic heart failure model. Presented
at the American Thoracic Society International Conference, San Francisco, May
2007 and the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand, Christchurch,
August 2007. The group’s also has a
clinical research and is engaged in multicentre clinical trials in heart
failure. Their PhD student, Rebecca Perry is exploring the ability
of high-resolution transthoracic echocardiography of the left anterior
descending coronary artery to act as a marker of coronary atherosclerosis. Perry R, De Pasquale CG, Chew DP, Aylward PE, Joseph
MX. (2007) High-resolution
transthoracic echocardiography of the left anterior descending coronary
artery: a novel non-invasive assessment of coronary vasoreactivity. J Am Soc
Echocard (in press). In regard to multicentre clinical trials in heart failure,
the group is currently involved in the RED-HF study which is a
morbidity-mortality trial of the use of darbepoetin in anaemia in CHF; in the
SHIFT study, another morbidity-mortality trial of the use of ivabradine (a
novel potassium channel blocking drug which slows the sinus node) in CHF; in
the ASCEND HF trial a morbidity-mortality trial of the use of nesiritide in
acute decompensated CHF; in the REVIVE study of levosimendan in acute
decompensated CHF; in the FUSION II study of twice weekly nesiritide
infusions in out-patients with CHF; and in the Universe trial of rosuvastatin
in CHF, which is exploring the beneficial effects of high dose statins on
left ventricular function in non-ischaemic CHF. Krum
H. Ashton E. Reid C. Kalff V. Rogers J. Amarena J. Singh B. Tonkin A. (2007)
Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of high-dose
HMG CoA reductase inhibitor therapy on ventricular remodeling,
pro-inflammatory cytokines and neurohormonal parameters
in patients with chronic systolic heart failure. J Card Fail. 13(1):1-7, Joseph
Selvanayagam has recently joined the group. He has been working with Hugh Watkins in
Oxford and has developed a major research interest in MRI cardiac imaging. Arduino
Mangoni’s group Arduino Mangoni is Senior
Lecturer in Clinical Pharmacology in the Flinders University School of
Medicine and Consultant Physician in Clinical Pharmacology and General
Medicine at Flinders Medical Centre.
He runs a clinical research laboratory. Arduino’s laboratory is interested
in the identification of pharmacological and non-pharmacological
interventions affecting endothelial function, arterial stiffness and blood
pressure. Current research projects
include: acute effects of NSAIDs on
endothelial function and blood pressure; acute effects of haemodialysis on
endothelial function and predictors of intradialytic hypotension; and acute
and chronic effects of folic acid and tetrahydrobiopterin in patients with
ischaemic heart disease. They have
recently developed a new protocol for the combined assessment of peripheral
and coronary vasoreactivity. Recent
publications: -
Hewitson CL, Whiting MJ, Barbara JA, Mangoni AA. (2007)
Acute effects of haemodialysis on biochemical modulators of
endothelial function. J Intern Med (in press). -
Perry R, Joseph MX, De Pasquale CG, Chew DP, Yiu D,
Aylward PEG, Mangoni AA. (2007) High resolution transthoracic
echocardiography of the left anterior descending coronary artery: a novel
non-invasive assessment of coronary vasoreactivity. J Am Soc Echocard (in press). -
Paul B, Gieroba Z, Mangoni AA. (2007) Influence of
comorbidities and medication use on tilt table test outcome in elderly
patients. Pacing Clin Electrophysiol
30: 540-543. -
Jarmuzewska EA, Ghidoni A, Mangoni AA. (2007)
Hypertension and sensorimotor peripheral neuropathy. Eur
Neurol 57: 91-95. -
Hart S, Mangoni AA, Swift CG, Jackson SHD. (2006)
The effect of methionine loading on endothelial function in elderly
volunteers. Heart Lung Circ 15:
358-361. -
Hart S, Mangoni AA, Swift CG, Jackson SHD. (2006)
The effect of methionine loading on pulse-wave velocity in elderly
volunteers. Postgrad Med J 82:
524-527. -
Pathansali R, Mangoni AA, Creagh-Brown B, Lan ZC, Ngow GL,
Yuan XF, Ouldred EL, Sherwood RA, Swift CG, Jackson SHD. (2006)
Effects of folic acis supplementation on psychomotor performance and
hemorheology in healthy elderly subjects.
Arch Gerontol Geriatr 43: 127-137. -
Mangoni AA, Folic acid and inflammation in
atherosclerosis: false hopes or the need for better trials? Chim
Clin Acta 367: 11-19. Professor Paddy
Phillips and Flinders Centre for Clinical Change and Health Services Research Professor Paddy
Phillips is a member of the High Blood Pressure Research Council of
Australia. He is co-leader of the Flinders
Centre for Clinical Change & Health Care Research (FCCCHCR), a
93-membered Area of Strategic Research Investment at Flinders
University. Members of FCCCHCR share
a common goal: to develop and disseminate evidence to inform optimum and
cost-effective health care interventions.
Rigorous assessment of clinical and health system interventions and
outcomes is complemented by original research to gain better understanding,
and to effect knowledge transfer.
The group’s four key areas of research focus are: Evidence based
clinical practice; Later life care; End-of-life care; and Chronic disease
management. A number of members
of the FCCCHCR have a focus of current research in South Australia relevant
to the cardiovascular system in health and disease and more specifically
research which relates to blood pressure and its control, to hypertension, to
cardiovascular risk factors in general, and to vascular structure, physiology
and disease. Further details are
available at http://clinicalchange.flinders.edu.au/index.html. ROYAL ADELAIDE HOSPITAL / UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE The major active cardiovascular
research groups at the Royal Adelaide Hospital are those led by Professor
Stephen Worthley, Helpmann Professor of Cardiology, and by Professor Prash
Sanders, Knapman Professor of Cardiology. Stephen Worthley’s
group The group’s major interest is in
cardiac MRI imaging. They have
recently completed the Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (MCR) sub-study of a
large multi-centre trial in infarct angioplasty. Previous CMR sub-study involvement with trials such as
ONTARGET, STITCH and TELMAR has positioned the group as a centre of
excellence in this area. The group’s major research foci
have expanded to include the development of a ‘one stop shop’ of vascular and
ventricular structure and function with CMR, with particular diseases of
interest including obesity, diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney
disease. They have established unique
protocols assessing myocardial T2 relaxometry, a novel marker of myocardial
iron overload in beta-thalassaemia.
Their core research work, in the field of atherosclerosis imaging,
continues with co-registration work with magnetic resonance imaging and
multidetector CT imaging of carotid and bypass graft atherosclerosis,
including high resolution invasive imaging with intravascular ultrasound (IR
IVUS). The group’s imaging expertise
has evolved to assess atrial structure and function and several patents have
resulted. In collaboration with Dr
Andrew Zannettino and Dr Stan Gronthos at the Hanson Institute, the group has
established large animal models of ischaemic and non-ischaemic left
ventricular dysfunction and are utilising high resolution CMR to assess
mechanisms of benefit of immuno-selected bone marrow stromal stem cell
therapy in these groups. Recent
publications: -
Worthley SG, Helt G, Corti R, Worthley MI, Chew DP,
Fayad ZA, Zaman AG, Fallon JT, Fuster V, Badimon JJ. (2007)
Statin therapy alone and in combination with an acyl-CoA:cholesterol-o-acyltransferase
inhibitor on experimental atherosclerosis.
Pathophysiol Thromb Haemost
(in press) -
Worthley SG, Reis ED, Helft G, Worthley MI, Fayad
ZA, Siddiqui M, Nusbaum A, Hollier L.
(2007) Serial magnetic
resonance imaging predicts clinical outcome in an experimental model of
spinal cord ischemia. Stroke (in press). -
Psaltis PJ, Dundon BK, Teo KSL, Worthley SG. (2007)
Delayed presentation of right heart failure secondary to
intro-myocardial dissection and ventricular septal defect: utility of cardiac
magnetic resonance imaging. Heart Lung and Circulation (in press). -
Duncan
RF, Teo KSL, Worthley SG. (2007) Cardiac magnetic resonance documentation
of a double atrial septal defect before and after percutaneous closure with
an Amplatzer septal occluder. Int J Card (in press). -
Duncan
RF, Brown MA, Worthley SG.
(2007) Increasing
identification of isolated left ventricular non-compaction with
cardiovascular magnetic resonance: A
mini case series highlighting variable clinical presentation. Heart Lung and Circulation (in press). -
Dundon BK, Yeend RAS, Worthley SG. (2007)
Percutaneous closure of a post-surgical left ventricular
pseudoaneurysm. Heart (in press). -
Duncan
RF, Brown MA, Worthley SG.
(2007) Recurrent, multiple
cardiac myxoma. Heart Lung and Circulation
(in press). -
Dundon BK, Worthley MI, Worthley SG. (2007)
Very late drug-eluting
stent thrombosis. Heart, Lung and
Circulation (in press). Prash Sanders’ group Professor Prash Sanders heads a group with
major interests in cardiac electrophysiology. University of
South Australia Professor Peter Howe is Director of the Nutritional
Physiology Research Centre, which is part of the ATN Centre for Metabolic
Fitness, a national research collaboration comprising researchers from the
University of South Australia, Curtin University of Technology, Queensland
University of Technology, University of Technology Sydney and RMIT
University. The research focus of the
ATN Centre for Metabolic Fitness is the optimisation of health through
lifestyle modification. The
Nutritional Physiology Research Centre also collaborates with the University
of Adelaide, Spencer Gulf Rural Health School, CSIRO Human Nutrition, Queen
Elizabeth Hospital, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Institute of Medical and
Veterinary Science, University of Western Australia and University of
Wollongong. It has active research partnerships with the food industry
supported by ARC Linkage grants and consultancies, as well as research
programs supported by the NHMRC, National Heart Foundation and Diabetes
Australia. The research focus of the group is in cardiovascular, metabolic, anti-inflammatory and mental health benefits of diet and physical activity and the underlying mechanisms. Physiological effects of a range of bioactive nutrients (e.g. omega-3 fats, phyto-estrogens, antioxidants) and other dietary modifications are evaluated, alone or in combination with regular exercise in human trials. Assessments include physical and mental performance (mood, behaviour and cognition), non-invasive cardiovascular risk factors (ambulatory blood pressure, baroreflex function, arterial elasticity, endothelial function) and circulating biomarkers (lipids, eicosanoids, cytokines) and body composition indices (total body fat, abdominal adiposity and bone density).
Recent publications -
Grenyer
BF, Crowe T, Meyer B, Owen AJ, Grigonis-Deane EM, Caputi P, Howe PR. (2007)
Fish oil supplementation in the treatment of major depression: A
randomised double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. (in press). -
Hill AM,
Buckley JD, Murphy KJ, Howe PR.
(2007) Combining fish-oil
supplements with regular aerobic exercise improves body composition and
cardiovascular disease risk factors.
Am J Clin Nutr. 85(5):1267-74. -
Meyer
BJ, Hammervold T, Rustan AC, Howe PR.
(2007) Dose-dependent effects
of docosahexaenoic acid supplementation on blood lipids in statin-treated
hyperlipidaemic subjects. Lipids.
42(2):109-15. -
Hill AM,
Worthley C, Murphy KJ, Buckley JD, Ferrante A, Howe PR. (2007)
n-3 fatty acid supplementation and regular moderate exercise:
differential effects of a combined intervention on neutrophil function. Br J Nutr. 98(2):300-9. -
Murphy
KJ, Meyer BJ, Mori TA, Burke V, Mansour J, Patch CS, Tapsell LC, Noakes M, Clifton PA, Barden A, Puddey IB, Beilin
LJ, Howe PR. (2007). Impact of foods
enriched with n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids on erythrocyte n-3
levels and cardiovascular risk factors.
Br J Nutr 97(4):749-57. -
Hill AM,
LaForgia J, Coates AM, Buckley JD, Howe PR.
(2007) Estimating abdominal adipose tissue with DXA and
anthropometry. Obesity (Silver
Spring). 15(2):504-10. Coates AM,
Howe PR. (2007) Edible nuts and metabolic health. Curr Opin Lipidol. 18(1):25-30. -
Buckley
JD, Thorp AA, Murphy KJ, Howe PR.
(2006) Dose-dependent
inhibition of the post-prandial glycaemic response to a standard carbohydrate
meal following incorporation of alpha-cyclodextrin. Ann Nutr Metab. 108-14. -
Patch
CS, Tapsell LC, Mori TA, Meyer BJ, Murphy KJ, Mansour J, Noakes M, Clifton
PM, Puddey IB, Beilin LJ, Annison G, Howe PR. (2005) The use of novel foods enriched with long-chain n-3
fatty acids to increase dietary intake: a comparison of methodologies
assessing nutrient intake. J Am Diet
Assoc. 105(12):1918-26. |
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HEART
FOUNDATION RESEARCHER WINS PRESTIGIOUS AWARD Dr James
Armitage, of Monash University in Melbourne, was recently presented with the prestigious
John Shaw Award. The award,
sponsored by Merck Sharp & Dohme (Australia), is named in memory of
Professor John Shaw, a well known academic and clinical pharmacologist with
an outstanding record in clinical pharmacology practice, teaching and
research. Professor Shaw was the Medical Director of Merck Sharp & Dohme
until he died after a long illness in August 1997. The John
Shaw Award is presented to the highest ranked Heart Foundation Postdoctoral
Research Fellow. Dr Armitage’s
research aims to understand high blood pressure in people with obesity. This
will lead to better treatment of this condition and stress-related high blood
pressure in the future. It may also lead to a reduction of the risk of stroke
and heart attack.
The
ceremony was very well attended by representatives from Merck, Sharp &
Dohme, the Heart Foundation, the Baker Heart Research Institute and Monash
University. Many of Dr Armitage’s
colleagues were there along with his family to see him presented with the
prestigious award. We were also
honored by the attendance of Robin Shaw who had traveled from Sydney to be
there. Congratulations
Dr Armitage on this fantastic achievement and good luck with your research
career. We are very grateful to
Merck, Sharp and Dohme for supporting this award in honour of John Shaw and
look forward to a long and productive alliance with them through the Heart
Foundation Pharmaceutical Roundtable. |
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THE AUSTRALIAN SOCIETY FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH News August 2007 Newsletter To view the ASMR August 2007
Newsletter, please click here. The ASMR Research Awards The Australian Society for Medical Research invites applications
for “The ASMR Research Awards”. Each award ($5000 international or $2000
domestic) will support a postgraduate student member of the Society nearing
completion of their studies or a recently graduated postdoctoral member to
undertake a short period of research in a laboratory outside their home city. The award specifically excludes support for conference
attendance and travel for an extended period of postdoctoral studies. Applicants for “The ASMR Research Awards” must have been
members of the ASMR for at least 12 months immediately preceding the year in
which the Award application is to be considered. Applicants must have no more
than 3 years active research post their highest degree (career interruptions
will be considered). The Award must be taken up during the first 6 months of
the following year. The recipients of the Award will be announced at the
National Scientific Conference of the Society. A condition of receipt of the
Award is that the recipients will be available to present their data at the
National Scientific Conference of the Society in the year of the Award.
Further, the recipients will provide an article about their research for
inclusion in the November issue of the newsletter of the Society in the year
of the Award. Any publications resulting from work supported by the Award
should acknowledge the financial contribution of “The ASMR Research Award”. APPLICATION DETAILS -
Complete the Application Form, making clear
whether it is for an international or a domestic Award -
Provide on a maximum of 2 A4 pages (pages in excess of this limit will be removed - use 12
point font, minimum 2cm borders) a description of your current research
activities, the proposed use of the award and an indication of how the award
will advance your studies. Quotes for airfares should be attached. -
Include a brief (1 page) curriculum vitae
[including Scholarships and Awards] with publications listed as
follows i) peer-reviewed publications, ii) book chapters or invited reviews,
iii) patents and iv) proceedings and conference abstracts. -
Applicants must provide with their application a
letter of support from the proposed laboratory to be visited. If the proposal
requires additional financial support other than that provided by the award,
evidence of availability of that support must be provided. The award will be judged on the
following criteria -
One International and one
Domestic Award is offered annually. ASMR reserves the right not to offer an Award in either category in any
given year The original application
and four copies should be sent to: The Honorary Secretary, ASMR, 145
Macquarie Street, Sydney, NSW, 2000. Applications must be received by the closing
date (5:00pm, Friday September 28, 2007). Facsimiles will not be accepted. Please click here for
application form. |
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______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Athina Patti at Meetings First t 61 3
9739 7697 f 61 3 9739 7076 |
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HBPRCA would like to acknowledge the support of the
following sponsors: CORPORATE MEMBERS
CORPORATE SPONSORS
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MEETINGS IN 2007 |
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The
2nd International Conference on Frontiers in Vascular Medicine Rydges Hotel, Melbourne CBD Click here for meeting website |
6th
Congress of the Asian-Pacific Society of Hypertension 16 – 19
November 2007 Beijing,
China Click here for
meeting website |
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High
Blood Pressure Research Council of Australia’s Annual Scientific Meeting 5 – 7
December 2007 Adelaide,
South Australia Click here for
meeting website |
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MEETINGS IN 2008 |
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Western
Pharmacological Society Meeting 27 – 31 January 2008 Kona Coast, Hawaii Further
information coming soon! |
The
International Conference on Fixed Combination in the Treatment of
Hypertension and Dyslipidemia 7 –
10 February 2008 Budapest,
Hungary Click here for
meeting website |
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2nd
International Conference on Hypertension, Lipids, Diabetes and Stroke
Prevention 6 – 8 March 2008 Prague, Czech Republic Click here for meeting website |
ISH
2008 – The 22nd Scientific Meeting of the International Society of
Hypertension 14 – 19 June 2008 Click here for meeting website |
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13th
International SHR Symposium 20 - 22 June 2008 Prague, Czech Republic |
Annual
Scientific Meeting of the British Hypertension Society Click here for meeting website |
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2nd
International Symposium on Pheochromocytoma 17 – 20 September 2008 Click here for meeting website |
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