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ACE2 expression is elevated in airway epithelial cells from older and male healthy individuals but reduced in asthmaCOVID-19 is complicated by acute lung injury, and death in some individuals. It is caused by SARS-CoV-2 that requires the ACE2 receptor and serine proteases to enter AEC. We determined what factors are associated with ACE2 expression particularly in patients with asthma and COPD. We obtained lower AEC from 145 people from two independent cohorts, aged 2-89 years, Newcastle (n = 115) and Perth (n = 30), Australia. The Newcastle cohort was enriched with people with asthma (n = 37) and COPD (n = 38). Gene expression for ACE2 and other genes potentially associated with SARS-CoV-2 cell entry was assessed by qPCR, and protein expression was confirmed with immunohistochemistry on endobronchial biopsies and cultured AEC.
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Use of administrative record linkage to examine patterns of universal early childhood health and education service use from birth to Kindergarten (age 4 years) and developmental vulnerability in the Preparatory Year (age 5 years) in Tasmania, AustraliaIn Australia, the health and education sectors provide universal early childhood services for the same population of children. Therefore, there is a strong imperative to view service use and outcomes through a cross-sectoral lens to better understand and address the service needs of young children and their families.
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Parental Perspectives on Children’s School Readiness: An Ethnographic StudySchool readiness is a construct used by educators and policy makers to describe a range of abilities that are beneficial for children transitioning to school. The association of socioeconomic disadvantage with developmental vulnerability when children start school is well established. Parents play a crucial role in supporting children’s transition to school and are acknowledged as their child’s first and foremost teacher.
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Aerosolized drug delivery in awake and anesthetized children to treat bronchospasmBronchospasm is a common respiratory adverse event in pediatric anesthesia. First-line treatment commonly includes inhaled salbutamol. This review focuses on the current best practice to deliver aerosolized medications to awake as well as anesthetized pediatric patients and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of various administration techniques.
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Universal Subsidized Continuous Glucose Monitoring Funding for Young People With Type 1 Diabetes: Uptake and Outcomes Over 2 Years, a Population-Based StudyContinuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is increasingly used in type 1 diabetes management; however, funding models vary. This study determined the uptake rate and glycemic outcomes following a change in national health policy to introduce universal subsidized CGM funding for people with type 1 diabetes aged <21 years.
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Quantifying the effectiveness of betaherpesvirus-vectored transmissible vaccinesTransmissible vaccines have the potential to revolutionize how zoonotic pathogens are controlled within wildlife reservoirs. A key challenge that must be overcome is identifying viral vectors that can rapidly spread immunity through a reservoir population.
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4CMenB vaccine and its role in preventing transmission and inducing herd immunityVaccination is the most effective method of protecting people from invasive meningococcal disease (IMD). Of all the capsular groups, B is the most common cause of invasive meningococcal disease in many parts of the world. Despite this, adolescent meningococcal B vaccine programs have not been implemented globally, partly due to the lack of evidence for herd immunity afforded by meningococcal B vaccines.
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Magic Hats and Teddy Bear picnics: Language and visuospatial lateralisation tasks for childrenThe behavioural outcomes associated with atypical cerebral lateralization during the early stages of cognitive development is an interesting research venture. However, there are few tasks for assessing lateralization in young children. The current study describes the Magic Hat task and the Teddy Bear Picnic task, which were designed to measure the lateralization of language and visuospatial attention, respectively, in children as young as three years old.
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Understanding Current Staff Experiences, Practices and Needs in Supporting Young People with Neurodevelopmental Disorders in the Queensland Youth Justice SystemYoung people with neurodevelopmental disorders are overrepresented in the youth justice system and face many disadvantages due to their impairments. The current study investigated what factors predict and contribute to the behavior of youth justice professionals working in the Queensland (QLD) youth justice system, utilizing a behavior change wheel framework.
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A Parent-Mediated Intervention for Newborns at Familial Likelihood of Autism: Initial Feasibility Study in the General PopulationDevelopmental theory and previous studies support the potential value of prodromal interventions for infants at elevated likelihood of developing autism. Past research has supported the efficacy of parent-mediated prodromal therapies with infants from as early as 7 months. We outline the rationale for implementing interventions following this model from even earlier in development and report on the feasibility of a novel intervention developed following this model of parent-mediated infant interventions.