South Australia Pathology

Jack Jumper ant (JJA) venom immunotherapy (VIT) is highly efficacious but the lowest effective dose is unknown. Delta-inulin adjuvant (Advax) is known to enhance honeybee VIT immunogenicity. This phase 1/2 single-blind, randomised controlled trial aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of JJA VIT with different doses of venom ± Advax. Adults aged 18-65 with a history of immediate systemic reaction (SR) to JJA stings were randomised to receive JJA VIT at a maintenance dose of 25 mcg or 50 mcg ± Advax; participants were blinded to treatment allocation. Primary outcomes were the response to sting challenges after 12 months and venom-specific IgE and IgG4 responses to treatment. Forty-nine of 50 screened subjects met inclusion criteria and were randomised; 44 started treatment (25 mcg n = 12; 25 mcg + Advax n = 13; 50mcg n = 12, 50 mcg + Advax n = 12). Subsequently, two withdrew due to SRs to treatment, and two withdrew due to unrelated factors. The higher JJA venom maintenance dose was associated with reduced likelihood of SRs (OR 0.53 (95% CI, 0.28-0.98)), while Advax did not have an effect (OR 1.17 (95% CI, 0.59-2.32)). Forty proceeded to sting challenge, with six developing SRs. There was no difference between groups for sting challenge outcome (p = 0.98), and the ORs for 25 mcg vs. 50 mcg venom dose (0.89, 95% CI, 0.38-2.09) and Advax vs. no Advax (0.99, 95% CI 0.42-2.33) indicated no effect. There were no differences between groups for venom sIgE (p = 0.78), sIgG4 (p = 0.25), sIgE/IgG4 ratio (p = 0.42), intradermal (p = 0.77), and basophil activation test (BAT) (p = 0.69) responses to treatment. Subjects with high baseline BAT sensitivity, which reduced markedly in response to treatment, were less likely to have a positive sting challenge (p = 0.006). Challenge outcomes were similar for all groups, with no significant difference found between 25 and 50 mcg maintenance dose or between treatment with and without Advax. Further research of low dose JJA VIT is warranted to confirm its efficacy and tolerability. NCT03066986.

Neutrophils are the first line of defense against fungal infection and other microbial pathogens. Through alternative pathway of complement activation in innate immunity, complement fragments (opsonin) generated promote phagocytosis of the yeast forms of fungal pathogens such as Candida albicans. However, when complement levels are limited, through consumption in disease and inflammation or where microbial pathogens employ mechanisms to degrade or inhibit complement components, phagocytosis may still proceed via innate receptors, in the absence of effective opsonisation. Mechanisms of innate phagocytosis of fungi via neutrophils remain ill-defined and controversial. We have addressed this issue and demonstrated that neutrophils show very little phagocytosis of zymosan. Interestingly, activation or priming of neutrophils with phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate, N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine, arachidonic acid, tumor necrosis factor, and granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor led to significant phagocytosis of the fungi. The result also demonstrated that priming led to a significant increase in the expression of the neutrophil Dectin-1, a receptor for β-glucan on zymosan. The increased phagocytosis induced by priming could be blocked with an anti-Dectin-1 antibody as well as the soluble β-glucan, laminarin, suggesting the importance of Dectin-1 in the phagocytosis of zymosan. The priming mechanism for phagocytosis and upregulation of Dectin-1 was examined using pharmacological inhibitors of protein kinase C (PKC) and p38 MAP kinase activation. The results showed that priming occurs in a PKC- p38-dependent as well as a PKC-independent p38-dependent manner. The findings demonstrate a highly regulated innate immune mechanism that potentially rapidly tackles microbial pathogens invading the bloodstream and tissues.

The increasing demand for high-performance composites has driven the need for sustainable alternatives to conventional petroleum-based resins. This research introduces a novel glycerol-derived bio-epoxy resin and investigates the effect of catalyst concentration on its curing behaviour, network structure, and thermomechanical performance. Four catalyst concentrations were evaluated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) combined with tensile, flexural, and compression testing. DSC results revealed that increasing the catalyst concentration significantly lowered the curing activation energy, shifting the exothermic peak temperature from 194.8 °C to 145.2 °C. DMA revealed that the glass transition temperature (Tg), crosslinking density, and stiffness consistently increased up to an optimal catalyst concentration, reaching a maximum Tg of 109.0 °C. Further increases in catalyst content led to slight reductions in Tg and crosslink density due to the formation of a heterogeneous network. The optimal concentration enhanced tensile and compressive strength by 32.8% and 9.3%, respectively. At excessive catalyst concentration, strength properties deteriorated despite increased material rigidity. These findings confirm the critical role of catalyst in governing polymerisation kinetics and network structure, demonstrating that an optimal catalyst percentage is essential for maximising strength and durability, making the bio-epoxy a viable, high-performance alternative for advanced composite manufacturing.

Eosinophilic pneumonia (EP) is a rare disease, comprising a group of heterogeneous diseases. The 2 main subtypes are acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP) and chronic eosinophilic pneumonia (CEP), both of which are characterized by accumulation of eosinophils in lung tissues, BAL fluid, and metabolically active nodular lesions in FDG PET-CT scan. Here we present a case of 67-year-old woman, diagnosed with carcinoma cervix and staging whole body PET-CT scan suggestive of metabolically active nodular lesions in bilateral lungs with perilesional ground-glass haziness apart from primary lesion in cervix and CT-guided biopsy confirming eosinophilic pneumonia with no evidence of malignancy.

Recent catastrophic climate events in Australia that have impacted millions of animals across a range of landscapes have initiated a need for planned and coordinated rescue responses. The platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is one of Australia’s most iconic and biologically significant species. At a workshop held at Healesville Sanctuary, Victoria, Australia in 2023, species experts discussed the greatest threats, scenarios where intervention may be required and the types of intervention options that may be suitable for platypuses. We consider drought to be the most concerning event for the species, along with the impact of cumulative events on their habitat over time. Here, we discuss how intervention criteria should consider the degree of habitat impact, the recovery time frame, the genetic importance and local extinction risk of a population, risks to animal welfare, and the capacity requirements and feasibility of resourcing any action. Suitable interventions are weighed against potential risks and include the rescue and rehabilitation of displaced individuals, in situ habitat support, and translocation to either temporary ex situ care or inter or intra catchment. Further research is required to address how the platypus responds during and after different climate events, to different interventions and to determine which populations are most at risk. The outcomes discussed here and the framework provided should aid in management response decision making after natural disasters that may impact platypus populations.

A common task in forensic biology is to interpret and evaluate short tandem repeat DNA profiles. The first step in these interpretations is to assign a number of contributors to the profiles, a task that is most often performed manually by a scientist using their knowledge of DNA profile behaviour. Studies using constructed DNA profiles have shown that as DNA profiles become more complex, and the number of DNA-donating individuals increases, the ability for scientists to assign the true number decreases. There have been a number of machine learning algorithms developed that seek to assign the number of contributors to a DNA profile, however due to practical limitations in being able to generate DNA profiles in a laboratory, the algorithms have been based on summaries of the available information. In this work we develop an analysis pipeline that simulates the electrophoretic signal of an STR profile, allowing virtually unlimited, pre-labelled training material to be generated. We show that by simulating 100 000 profiles and training a number of contributors estimation tool using a deep neural network architecture (in an algorithm named deepNoC) that a high level of performance is achieved (89 % for 1-10 contributors). The trained network can then have fine-tuning training performed with only a few hundred laboratory-produced profiles in order to achieve the same accuracy within a specific laboratory. We also build into deepNoC secondary outputs that provide a level of explainability to a user of the algorithm and show how they can be displayed in an intuitive manner.

• GRolls® demonstrated superior coarse particle flotation performance. • Rod mills were more effective at liberating intermediate-size particles. • Elongated particles improved coarse flotation grade; rounded particles increased fine gangue entrainment. • Fluidized bed behaviour was similar for both comminution products at comparable particle sizes. This study investigates the impact of comminution mechanisms of GRolls® and rod mills on particle characteristics and flotation performance. Particular focus is given to coarse particles flotation, aiming at energy reduction in the grinding circuit. Experiments were carried out using both HydroFloat™ and mechanically agitated cells using porphyry copper–gold ore. GRolls® demonstrated superior coarse particle flotation due to preferential breakage along mineral boundaries, producing better-liberated particles with higher Cu exposure. In the HydroFloat™, GRolls® products achieved a Cu grade of 3.6 % in the + 150 µm fraction, compared to 2.8 % for rod mill products. In mechanically agitated cells, GRolls® products also delivered superior performance in the + 150 µm fraction, with a Cu recovery of 60 % and grade of 5.8 %, while rod mill products achieved 52 % recovery and 3.9 % grade. Particle morphology also influenced the flotation performance, with elongated particles correlating with higher grades in coarser fractions and rounded particles linked to increased gangue entrainment in finer fractions. Fluidized bed properties in the HydroFloat™ were similar for both comminution methods, indicating that when particle size distributions are closely matched and relatively coarse particles are used at low superficial water velocities, particle morphology has minimal impact on bed dynamics. These findings highlight the importance of comminution strategies and particle shape in optimizing flotation performance for energy-efficient ore processing.

Jitter degrades a spacecraft's fine-pointing ability required for optical communication, earth observation, and space domain awareness. The development of jitter estimation and compensation algorithms requires high-fidelity sensor observations representative of on-board jitter. In this work, we present the <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Event-based Star Tracking Under Jitter</i> (e-STURT) dataset-the first event camera-based dataset of star observations under controlled jitter conditions. The special hardware employed for the dataset emulates an event camera undergoing on-board jitter. While the event camera provides asynchronous, high temporal resolution star observations, systematic and repeatable jitter is introduced using a micrometeraccurate piezoelectric actuator. Various jitter sources are simulated using distinct frequency bands and using both axes of motion. Ground-truth jitter is captured in the hardware of the piezoelectric actuator. The resulting dataset consists of 200 sequences and is made publicly available1. This work highlights the dataset generation process, technical challenges, and the resulting limitations. To serve as a baseline, we propose a high-frequency jitter estimation algorithm that operates directly on the event stream. The e-STURT dataset will enable the development of jitter-aware algorithms for mission-critical event-based space-sensing applications.

A 70-year-old man with primary hyperparathyroidism underwent 18F-choline PET/CT to localize a parathyroid adenoma before surgery. 18F-choline PET/CT confirmed the right superior parathyroid adenoma but also revealed skin uptake corresponding to an inflammatory epidermoid cyst of the left neck. Two months later, the patient underwent successful minimally invasive parathyroidectomy. The epidermoid cyst was also excised. Inflammatory epidermoid cysts can be a cause of false-positive 18F-choline skin uptake.