Stimulant laxatives are widely used and usually very effective in the short term, but how they work is very poorly understood. Our recent work has shown that they selectively excite sensory pathways from the colon which then trigger defaecation. This points to an undiscovered mechanism that potently affects colonic sensation and motility. This is likely to be a target for new treatments for other colonic disorders such as Irritable bowel syndrome and faecal incontinence.
Looking Forward - Moving Forward Project: Transforming Systems To Improve Mental Health And Drug And Alcohol Outcomes For Aboriginal Peoples
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,304,508.00
Summary
Despite the clear need for support, Aboriginal people do not access mental health and drug and alcohol services at a level that corresponds with their need. We need to know how services can respond appropriately to this high-risk group of people. This project brings together Perth-based services, researchers and local Aboriginal Elders to implement and evaluate a framework for organisational change that will transform the way in which services respond to Aboriginal people.
Development And Evaluation Of Novel Anti-inflammatory Products Derived From An Indigenous Medicinal Plant
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$276,598.00
Summary
This collaborative project between researchers at the University of South Australia and Indigenous traditional owners from Northern Kaanju homelands (Cape York Peninsula, Qld) will develop and evaluate products derived from the Northern Kaanju medicinal plant Dodonaea polyandra. Extracts of the plant and novel compounds isolated from it have anti-inflammatory activity. These have the potential to be used in inflammatory diseases such as dermatitis, arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease.
The Kids in Communities Study: national investigation of community level effects on children's developmental outcomes. This project (a cross-disciplinary collaboration) will investigate community level factors influencing early childhood developmental outcomes using a mixed methods approach in up to 10 communities across Australia. This will result in a potential set of measures or indicators that reflect communities that are good for children.
The emotional construction of self representation. This project develops and defends the novel idea that self representation is an artefact of emotional processing. The account will involve case studies of psychiatric disorder characterised by developmental or acquired problems of self representation such as depersonalisation disorder and personality disorders.
The ownership of minds. This project aims to research the awareness of a conscious state as the subject's own. This is at the heart of a perennial debate about consciousness: whether we are aware of our conscious states as our own, or are merely aware of their occurrence. The project will collaborate internationally and across disciplines and institutions to develop a conceptual distinction between two components of consciousness. It will also provide an analysis of the nature of three mental di ....The ownership of minds. This project aims to research the awareness of a conscious state as the subject's own. This is at the heart of a perennial debate about consciousness: whether we are aware of our conscious states as our own, or are merely aware of their occurrence. The project will collaborate internationally and across disciplines and institutions to develop a conceptual distinction between two components of consciousness. It will also provide an analysis of the nature of three mental disorders in which the two components seem to come apart. These outcomes are expected to constitute a significant innovation in the study of consciousness and, more generally, in the philosophy of mind.Read moreRead less
The truth about false memory. This project is aimed at determining whether reports of long-forgotten episodes of sexual abuse arising during psychotherapy should be regarded as memories or not. This issue hinges on a number of conceptual questions about memory. The project will illuminate the debate on recovered memories of sexual abuse by addressing those questions.
People, Pumps and Pipes: A social study of change in the collaborative supply of irrigation services. The research addresses key National Priorities and Priority Goals relating to improved sustainable water management in Australia's foremost river system. The research offers deeper understanding of the social dimensions of National Water Initiative reforms, and specifically motivations for irrigators' decisions contributing to more sustainable water use following legislative reforms. The project ....People, Pumps and Pipes: A social study of change in the collaborative supply of irrigation services. The research addresses key National Priorities and Priority Goals relating to improved sustainable water management in Australia's foremost river system. The research offers deeper understanding of the social dimensions of National Water Initiative reforms, and specifically motivations for irrigators' decisions contributing to more sustainable water use following legislative reforms. The project links understanding of the nexus between policy and environmental behaviour to advance knowledge of more sustainable water use. Given the current demands on water in the Murray-Darling system and the systems national significance, the research will make a vital contribution to management of this critical national resource.Read moreRead less
Managing risk in community services. A preliminary study of the impacts of risk management on Victorian services and clients. Most older people and those with a disability or a mental illness now live in the community. They receive help from a vast range of community services, which are also expected to keep them safe, and their workers and the wider community safe. Risk management is now an important part of the work of all services and businesses involved in community care. This project will s ....Managing risk in community services. A preliminary study of the impacts of risk management on Victorian services and clients. Most older people and those with a disability or a mental illness now live in the community. They receive help from a vast range of community services, which are also expected to keep them safe, and their workers and the wider community safe. Risk management is now an important part of the work of all services and businesses involved in community care. This project will study the unforeseen impacts and costs of the new risk management, identify the problems, and explore the ways risk management can achieve its goals without reducing services and limiting the lives of the clients.Read moreRead less
Communities, trust, governance and partnerships: The role of Local Government in community management and development in areas of social disadvantage. This project is significant as much contemporary social policy is predicated on normative assumptions of 'community' 'trust' 'collective efficacy' 'social capital', which are contested, contextual concepts. Importantly there are differences in meaning and practice of 'community' between areas of advantage and disadvantage. In being based on thes ....Communities, trust, governance and partnerships: The role of Local Government in community management and development in areas of social disadvantage. This project is significant as much contemporary social policy is predicated on normative assumptions of 'community' 'trust' 'collective efficacy' 'social capital', which are contested, contextual concepts. Importantly there are differences in meaning and practice of 'community' between areas of advantage and disadvantage. In being based on these assumptions policy implementation, which increasingly relies on community capacity, infrastructure and human resources, may have the unintended outcome of exacerbating disadvantage. This project examines these contested concepts and explores Local Government's role in creating local partnership options and modes of governance to facilitate equitable outcomes for disadvantaged communitiesRead moreRead less