SEX DIFFERENCES IN HORMONE EXPOSURE LINKED TO ANXIETY ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) recipient, Dr Bronwyn Graham, an Associate Professor in the School of Psychology at The University of New South Wales, has investigated the role of sex hormones in anxiety disorders, with implications for how diagnostic and treatment decisions are made for women. Although anxiety disorders are known to be up to two-fold higher in women compared to men, the cause for this difference is uncertain. Separating environmental and societal causes from neurobiological causes has been a focus of Dr Graham’s research. Unlike males, postpubertal females experience dynamic fluctuations in sex hormones on a monthly basis and across their lifespan due to hormonal contraceptive use, pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause. A number of studies led by Dr Graham, including one that tested the responsiveness of subjects to treatment for spider phobia, have suggested that these hormonal fluctuations can be linked to the pathogenesis of anxiety. Dr Graham’s research has led to a number of recommendations for clinicians to consider when assessing anxiety symptoms, including sex and hormonal events as biological variables, as well as more generally increasing women’s awareness of the link between hormones and anxiety. Dr Graham’s studies have found that the dynamic fluctuations of sex hormones in women, which are of higher magnitude than those in men, can be linked to mental activities such as catastrophic thoughts, which maintain and compound the symptoms of anxiety.
DIAMOND COATING BRINGS BONE-BLING TO BIOMEDICAL IMPLANTS ARC-supported researchers at RMIT University have discovered that the body is less likely to reject titanium implants when they are coated with diamonds. The development is the first step toward 3D printed diamond implants for biomedical uses and orthopaedics—surgical procedures involving the human musculoskeletal system. The research team, including ARC Future Fellow, Professor Andrew Greentree, and ARC Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities grant recipient, Associate Professor Kate Fox, has discovered that the coating not only promotes better cellular attachment to the underlying diamond-titanium layer, but encourages the proliferation of mammalian cells. The researchers say that the diamond enhances the integration between the living bone and the artificial implant, reducing bacterial attachment over an extended period. Remarkably, the diamond coating is also cheaper than titanium powder. The discovery opens new opportunities for novel coatings on all kinds of titanium devices, as well as those with biomedical applications. The breakthrough involved researchers from a range of disciplines at RMIT, other Australian universities, the ARC Centre of Excellence for Nanoscale BioPhotonics and the ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Additive Biomanufacturing .
IMPROVING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING 64
IMPROVING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING 65
Girl looking through the window. Credit: iStock.com/martin-dm.
A polycrystalline diamond coated titanium implant fabricated using selective laser melting. Credit: Kate Fox.
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