Griffith University

Interest point detection is one of the most fundamental and critical problems in computer vision and image processing. In this paper, we carry out a comprehensive review on image feature information (IFI) extraction techniques for interest point detection. To systematically introduce how the existing interest point detection methods extract IFI from an input image, we propose a taxonomy of the IFI extraction techniques for interest point detection. According to this taxonomy, we discuss different types of IFI extraction techniques for interest point detection. Furthermore, we identify the main unresolved issues related to the existing IFI extraction techniques for interest point detection and any interest point detection methods that have not been discussed before. The existing popular datasets and evaluation standards are provided and the performances for fifteen state-of-the-art approaches are evaluated and discussed. Moreover, future research directions on IFI extraction techniques for interest point detection are elaborated.

Little consideration has been given to the contemporary spatial configurations emerging from the expanding intersection between tourism and geopolitics, despite tourism's increasing ubiquity and accelerating geopolitical tension. Using a conceptual case study of China's Hainan Province, this research addresses this gap by introducing “touristrategic borderlands” to describe evolving borderland locations where state governments negotiate a balance between forces of globalisation and nationalism, and hard and soft power, to achieve territorialisation objectives. Reflecting a critical geopolitics of the “everyday”, touristrategic borderlands combine domestic and international tourism with special autonomous zones, amenity and economic migration, connective infrastructure, and militarisation, selectively “weaponising” tourism as strategically warranted. The validity of touristrategic borderlands as a more generally occurring phenomenon is demonstrated by the identification of 12 other candidate locations where all core characteristics except weaponisation (two locations) are found. A transformative governance approach is advocated for dealing with the complexities of touristrategic borderlands.

Despite effective combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), people living with HIV (PLWH) continue to harbor replication-competent and transcriptionally active virus in infected cells, which in turn can lead to ongoing viral antigen production, chronic inflammation, and increased risk of age-related comorbidities. To identify new agents that may inhibit post-integration HIV beyond cART, we screened a library of 512 pure compounds derived from natural products and identified (-)-hopeaphenol as an inhibitor of HIV post-integration transcription at low to sub-micromolar concentrations without cytotoxicity. Using a combination of global RNA sequencing, plasmid-based reporter assays, and enzyme activity studies, we document that hopeaphenol inhibits protein kinase C (PKC)-and downstream NF-k B-dependent HIV transcription as well as a subset of PKC-dependent T-cell activation markers, including interleukin-2 (IL-2) cytokine and CD25 and HLA-DRB1 RNA production. In contrast, it does not substantially inhibit the early PKC-mediated T-cell activation marker CD69 production of IL-6 or NF-k B signaling induced by tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-a). We further show that hopeaphenol can inhibit cyclin-dependent kinase 9 (CDK9) enzymatic activity required for HIV transcription. Finally, it inhibits HIV replication in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) infected in vitro and dampens viral reactivation in CD4 1 cells from PLWH. Our study identifies hopeaphenol as a novel inhibitor that targets a subset of PKC-mediated T-cell activation pathways in addition to CDK9 to block HIV expression. Hopeaphenol-based therapies could complement current antiretroviral therapy otherwise not targeting cell-associated HIV RNA and residual antigen production in PLWH.

Purpose: The primary aim of this study was to compare the attendance rates at a group lymphoedema education and same-day individual surveillance appointment between telehealth (TH) and in-person (IP) care for participants following breast cancer (BC) surgery. Secondary aims included evaluating participant satisfaction and costs between the two service models, while also determining the extent of technical issues and clinician satisfaction towards TH. Methods: Participants following axillary lymph node dissection surgery attended a group lymphoedema education and same-day 1:1 monitoring session via their preferred mode (TH or IP). Attendance rates, satisfaction and costs were recorded for both cohorts, and technical disruption and clinician satisfaction for the TH cohort. Results: Fifty-five individuals participated. All 28 participants who nominated the IP intervention attended, while 22/27 who nominated the TH intervention attended an appointment. Overall reported participant experience was positive with no significant differences between cohorts. All TH appointments were successfully completed. Clinicians reported high satisfaction for delivery of education (median = 4[IQR 4-5]) and individual assessment (median = 4[IQR 3-4]) via TH. Median attendance costs per participant were Australian $39.68 (Q1-Q3 $28.52-$68.64) for TH and Australian $154.26 (Q1-Q3 $81.89-$251.48) for the IP cohort. Conclusion: Telehealth-delivered lymphoedema education and assessment for individuals following BC surgery was associated with favourable satisfaction, cost savings and minimal technical issues despite lower attendance than IP care. This study contributes to the growing evidence for TH and its potential applicability to other populations where risk for cancer-related lymphoedema exists.

Background A precipitous decline in health status among people recently released from prison is common. In Victoria, Australia, opioid agonist treatment (OAT) in the community involves frequent contact with primary care, potentially facilitating broader use of primary healthcare services. Among a cohort of men who injected drugs regularly pre-imprisonment, we estimated differences in rates of primary healthcare use and medication dispensation between people who did and did not receive OAT post-release. Methods Data came from the Prison and Transition Health Cohort Study. Three-month post-release follow-up interviews were linked with primary care and medication dispensation records. Generalised linear models were fit with one exposure (OAT: none/partial/complete) for 13 outcomes relating to primary healthcare use, pathology testing, and medication dispensation, adjusted for other covariates. Coefficients were reported as adjusted incidence rate ratios (AIRR). Results Analyses included 255 participants. Compared to no OAT use, both partial and complete OAT use were associated with increased rates of standard (AIRR: 3.02, 95%CI: 1.88–4.86; AIRR: 3.66, 95%CI: 2.57–5.23), extended (AIRR: 2.56, 95%CI: 1.41–4.67; AIRR: 2.55, 95%CI: 1.60–4.07) and mental health-related (AIRR: 2.71, 95%CI: 1.42–5.20; AIRR: 2.27, 95%CI: 1.33–3.87) general practitioner (GP) consultations, total medication (AIRR: 1.88, 95%CI: 1.19–2.98; AIRR: 2.40, 95%CI: 1.71–3.37), benzodiazepine (AIRR: 4.99, 95%CI: 2.81–8.85; AIRR: 8.30, 95%CI: 5.28–13.04) and gabapentinoid (AIRR: 6.78, 95%CI: 3.34–13.77; AIRR: 4.34, 95%CI: 2.37–7.94) dispensations, respectively. Partial OAT use was also associated with increased after-hours GP consultations (AIRR: 4.61, 95%CI: 2.24–9.48) and complete OAT use? with increased pathology utilisation (e.g. haematological, chemical, microbiological or immunological tissue/sample testing; AIRR: 2.30, 95%CI: 1.52–3.48). Conclusion We observed higher rates of primary healthcare use and medication dispensation among people who reported partial and complete OAT use post-release. Findings suggest that access to OAT post-release may have a collateral benefit in supporting broader health service utilisation, underscoring the importance of retention in OAT after release from prison.

Refractory cardiogenic shock is increasingly being treated with veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V-A ECMO), without definitive proof of improved clinical outcomes. Recently, pulsatile V-A ECMO has been developed to address some of the shortcomings of contemporary continuous-flow devices. To describe current pulsatile V-A ECMO studies, we conducted a systematic review of all preclinical studies in this area. We adhered to PRISMA and Cochrane guidelines for conducting systematic reviews. The literature search was performed using Science Direct, Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed databases. All preclinical experimental studies investigating pulsatile V-A ECMO and published before July 26, 2022 were included. We extracted data relating to the 1) ECMO circuits, 2) pulsatile blood flow conditions, 3) key study outcomes, and 4) other relevant experimental conditions. Forty-five manuscripts of pulsatile V-A ECMO were included in this review detailing 26 in vitro, two in silico, and 17 in vivo experiments. Hemodynamic energy production was the most investigated outcome (69%). A total of 53% of studies used a diagonal pump to achieve pulsatile flow. Most literature on pulsatile V-A ECMO focuses on hemodynamic energy production, whereas its potential clinical effects such as favorable heart and brain function, end-organ microcirculation, and decreased inflammation remain inconclusive and limited.

Aims: The aim of this study was to critically evaluate implementation frameworks, strategies and/or outcomes used to optimise peripheral intravenous catheter (PIVC) care and/or promote guideline adherence. Background: Although a considerable volume of research has investigated the effectiveness of PIVC interventions and treatments to promote performance and prevent harm, how to best implement this evidence into dynamic clinical settings and populations is not well understood. Implementation science is central to translating evidence-based knowledge to the bedside; however, there is a gap in identifying the best implementation framework, strategies and/or outcomes to optimise PIVC care and/or guideline adherence. Design: A systematic review. Method: The review was conducted using innovative automation tools. Five databases and clinical trial registries were searched on 14 October 2021. Qualitative and quantitative PIVC intervention studies reporting implementation strategies were included in the review. Data were extracted independently by experienced researchers in pairs. The Mixed Method Appraisal tool was used to assess the quality of individual studies. Narrative synthesis was used to present the findings. The systematic review was reported following the PRISMA checklist. Results: Of 2189 references identified, 27 studies were included in the review. Implementation frameworks were used in 30% (n = 8) of studies, with most used during the preparation (n = 7, 26%) and delivery phase (n = 7, 26%) and then evaluation phase (n = 4, 15%). Multifaceted strategies were commonly adopted (n = 24, 89%) to promote PIVC care or study interventions which were clinician (n = 25, 93%) and patient-targeted (n = 15, 56%). The most commonly reported implementation outcomes were fidelity (n = 13, 48%) and adoption (n = 6, 22%). Most studies were scored as low quality (n = 18, 67%). Conclusion: We call for researchers and clinicians to work together and use implementation science frameworks to guide study design, implementation and evaluation in future PIVC studies, to improve evidence translation and thereby improve patient outcomes.

Background: Protecting all human rights of people with mental health conditions is globally important. However, to facilitate practical implementation of rights, it is often necessary to decide which of these rights should be given priority, especially when they conflict with each other. Aims: The aim of the Priorities of Human Rights and Mental Health (PHRAME) project is to develop a replicable approach to establish a proposed set of high-priority human rights of people with mental health conditions, to facilitate practical decision-making and implementation of such rights. Method: A two-stage Delphi-style study with stakeholders was conducted to generate a list of key rights of people with mental health conditions, and rank priorities among these rights in terms of feasibility, urgency and overall importance. Results: The stakeholders in this study consistently ranked three rights as top priorities: (a) the right to freedom from torture, cruel inhuman treatment and punishment; (b) the right to health and access to services/treatment; and (c) the right to protection and safety in emergency situations. Conclusions: Insights from PHRAME can support decision-making about the priority to be given to human rights, to guide practical action. This approach can also be used to assess how human rights are prioritised in different settings and by different stakeholders. This study identifies the clear need for a central voice for people with lived experience in research and implementation of decisions about the priority of human rights, ensuring that action respects the opinion of people whose rights are directly affected.

A lack of empathy for victimized individuals has been cited as a reason for why bystanders fail to intervene when they witness bullying. However, limited research has addressed how different empathic and compassionate responses could account for diverse bystander behaviors. In this study, we investigated the unique associations of empathic distress, empathic anger, and compassion with different ways that bystanders intend to respond to witnessing cyberbullying, including passive bystanding, aggressive defending, and prosocial defending. Participants were 270 Australian university students from diverse racial backgrounds ( M age = 20.34, SD = 2.78, age range 18 to 29 years, 74.8% females). Participants completed an online survey. As predicted, after controlling for gender, cybervictimization, cyberbullying, and social desirability, a multivariate path model revealed that empathic distress, empathic anger, and compassion had different associations with the three bystander behavioral intentions. Students higher in empathic distress and lower in empathic anger reported greater passive bystander intentions in response to witnessing cyberbullying, with those higher in empathic anger intending to use more aggressive and prosocial defending. Compassion was associated with lower aggressive defending intentions and higher prosocial defending intentions, making it unique in differentiating these two forms of defending. These findings emphasize the differential role of empathic distress, empathic anger, and compassion in predicting cyberbullying bystander behavioral intentions. Future research is needed to investigate how empathic anger and compassion can be targeted in interventions to help witnesses productively intervene to stop cyberbullying and support victimized individuals.

Noroviruses are the leading cause of outbreaks of acute gastroenteritis. These viruses usually interact with histo-blood group antigens (HBGAs), which are considered essential cofactors for norovirus infection. This study structurally characterizes nanobodies developed against the clinically important GII.4 and GII.17 noroviruses with a focus on the identification of novel nanobodies that efficiently block the HBGA binding site. Using X-ray crystallography, we have characterized nine different nanobodies that bound to the top, side, or bottom of the P domain. The eight nanobodies that bound to the top or side of the P domain were mainly genotype specific, while one nanobody that bound to the bottom cross-reacted against several genotypes and showed HBGA blocking potential. The four nanobodies that bound to the top of the P domain also inhibited HBGA binding, and structural analysis revealed that these nanobodies interacted with several GII.4 and GII.17 P domain residues that commonly engaged HBGAs. Moreover, these nanobody complementarity-determining regions (CDRs) extended completely into the cofactor pockets and would likely impede HBGA engagement. The atomic level information for these nanobodies and their corresponding binding sites provide a valuable template for the discovery of additional "designer" nanobodies. These next-generation nanobodies would be designed to target other important genotypes and variants, while maintaining cofactor interference. Finally, our results clearly demonstrate for the first time that nanobodies directly targeting the HBGA binding site can function as potent norovirus inhibitors. IMPORTANCE Human noroviruses are highly contagious and a major problem in closed institutions, such as schools, hospitals, and cruise ships. Reducing norovirus infections is challenging on multiple levels and includes the frequent emergence of antigenic variants, which complicates designing effective, broadly reactive capsid therapeutics. We successfully developed and characterized four norovirus nanobodies that bound at the HBGA pockets. Compared with previously developed norovirus nanobodies that inhibited HBGA through disrupted particle stability, these four novel nanobodies directly inhibited HBGA engagement and interacted with HBGA binding residues. Importantly, these new nanobodies specifically target two genotypes that have caused the majority of outbreaks worldwide and consequently would have an enormous benefit if they could be further developed as norovirus therapeutics. To date, we have structurally characterized 16 different GII nanobody complexes, a number of which block HBGA binding. These structural data could be used to design multivalent nanobody constructs with improved inhibition properties.

We understand that our thinking and creating is always in company. By musicking with others, we situate ourselves amongst an entangled web of human, nonhuman, and more-than-human co-creators; to recognise these external and internal influences is to become a companion. Our concept of companion thinking stems from companion texts according to Sara Ahmed (2017. Living a Feminist Life. Durham, NC: Duke University Press), which may ‘prompt you to hesitate or to question the direction in which you are going, or they might give you a sense that in going the way you are going, you are not alone’ (16). Companionship implies with: In this paper, we discuss how companions are vital to our improvisatory music practices by considering the co-creative relationships in which we operate. we analyse our artistic research from our perspectives as performers and improvisers and consider the processes of making music with beyond-human entities. Instead of the human-focused concept of collaboration, we posit companionship as an approach to thinking-with and sounding-with the more-than-human, other-than-human, and nonhuman. Our former selves, experiences, environments, and nonhuman critters and objects are always-already part of our musicking practices and communities. Performance is thus ecological, political, and personal; it is through this lens that we analyse the entanglements of our varied communities and explore how this concept can stretch beyond a music practice, to consider what it means to engage in creative practice as migrant-settlers on stolen Aboriginal land. This paper includes an investigation of what it means to be a companion and a discussion of a practice-based case study in which we implement—or practice—companion thinking. As friends, collaborators, and companions to one another, we each present our individual concepts of companionship through our own improvisation practices, addressing themes of situatedness, response-ability, surprise, stumbling, curiosity, and unmastery. We then analyse the entanglements of our work in performance. This process of thinking, making, and doing in-company offers the opportunity to consider an intersection of analysis and performance through an improvisatory musical practice.

Business strategy’s impact on firm cash holdings and dividend payouts has largely remained unexplored. We identify a fundamental and direct link between a firm’s business strategy and its cash holdings and dividend payouts. Analysing two large samples of data on U.S. firms over the period 1992-2017, we find strong evidence that prospectors (defenders) are likely to hold more (less) cash and pay less (more) dividends than other firms. Further analysis suggests that prospectors pay dividends less frequently than do defenders. The results are robust to a battery of robustness checks and additional analysis. Overall, the results suggest that identifying a firm’s business strategy significantly helps to understand a firm’s cash holdings and dividend payout decisions. This is an open access paper available at Wiley Online Library: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/acfi.13082

Objective People tend to live with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) for many years before receiving evidence-based treatment. This delay is partly due to a lack of access to information about which healthcare providers offer evidence-based treatment for OCD. This information was not easily accessible online for people in Australia. Methods In this study, we describe how an online directory of clinicians was developed and evaluated. We report on a needs analysis and survey of treatment-seeking histories among consumers and carers impacted by OCD. We describe the key features of the directory developed, and present survey feedback on its usability and utility. Results The results validated the need for a directory specific to clinicians who offer evidence-based treatment for OCD, and that it meets essential usability standards. Areas for improvement and further developments were identified. Conclusion This directory contributes to broader efforts invested to improve the treatment-seeking process for people living with OCD in Australia.

This article explores insights to be taken from the World Order Models Project (WOMP) for theorists seeking to advance the uptake of global citizenship and cosmopolitan principles. WOMP, lasting from 1968 to the 1990s, aimed to generate more inclusive academic dialogue on world order reforms and develop a programme of global education to build support for them. Insights from the project include ones for structuring a dialogue on global normative concerns that is diverse but not too diffuse. It also offers a model for promoting globally normative counter-narratives in ‘globoskeptical’ times – the Cold War then and the current era of right-wing populism. And, it directs attention to the possible importance of focusing on global-scale institutional reform alongside individual motivation to assume moral duties across national borders. Finally, it offers negative lessons on setting feasible aims and timelines, and on a need to move beyond academic work in promoting change.

The progress of effective and durable electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is urgent, which is essential to promote the overall efficiency of green hydrogen production. To improve the performance of spinel cobalt-based oxides, which serve as promising water oxidation electrocatalysts in alkaline electrolytes, most researches have been concentrated on cations modification. Here, an anionic regulation mechanism is employed to adopt sulfur(S) anion substitution to supplant NiCo2 O4 by NiCo2 S4 , which contributed to an impressive OER performance in alkali. It is revealed that the substitution of S constructs a sub-stable spinel structure that facilitates its reconstruction into active amorphous oxysulfide under OER conditions. More importantly, as the active phase in the actual reaction process, the hetero-anionic amorphous oxysulfide has an appropriately tuned electronic structure and efficient OER electrocatalytic activity. This work demonstrates a promising approach for achieving anion conditioning-based tunable structure reconstruction for robust and easy preparation spinel oxide OER electrocatalysts.

This study investigated the extent to which self-report and digital-trace measures of students’ self-regulated learning in blended course designs align with each other amongst 145 first-year computer science students in a blended “computer systems” course. A self-reported Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire was used to measure students’ self-efficacy, intrinsic motivation, test anxiety, and use of self-regulated learning strategies. Frequencies of interactions with six different online learning activities were digital-trace measures of students’ online learning interactions. Students’ course marks were used to represent their academic performance. SPSS 28 was used to analyse the data. A hierarchical cluster analysis using self-reported measures categorized students as better or poorer self-regulated learners; whereas a hierarchical cluster analysis using digital-trace measures clustered students as more active or less active online learners. One-way ANOVAs showed that: 1) better self-regulated learners had higher frequencies of interactions with three out of six online learning activities than poorer self-regulated learners. 2) More active online learners reported higher self-efficacy, higher intrinsic motivation, and more frequent use of positive self-regulated learning strategies, than less active online learners. Furthermore, a cross-tabulation showed significant (p < .01) but weak association between student clusters identified by self-reported and digital-trace measures, demonstrating self-reported and digital-trace descriptions of students’ self-regulated learning experiences were consistent to a limited extent. To help poorer self-regulated learners improve their learning experiences in blended course designs, teachers may invite better self-regulated learners to share how they approach learning in class.

Purpose Heavy metals (HMs), antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and their compound pollutions in manures present a serious threat to ecology and human health. A better solution is urgently sought. In this study, the dynamics change of chitosan addition in chicken manure composting on the profiles of antibiotics and their environmental risk, bio-available heavy metals, ARGs and bacterial communities were investigated. Materials and methods The high-performance liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry combined with solid-phase extraction, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry and Wafergen SmartChip Real-time PCR system were used in the scale of 100 kg chicken manure and mushroom bran (1.81:1, fresh weight) composting with chitosan addition. Results and discussion After composting, chitosan addition could completely remove chlortetracycline (CTC) and reduce ofloxacin (OFX) environmental risk to low level (HQ = 0.04) while improving the removal rate of bio-available Cu significantly. Furthermore, it reduced the abundance of pathogens, the amount (18) and absolute abundance (56.7%) of ARGs and the mobile genetic elements (MGEs) compared with traditional compost. Redundancy analysis (RDA) demonstrated that the ranking of environmental factors influencing bacterial community changes is temperature, bio-available Cd, pH, bio-available Cu, OFX and CTC. For the ARGs, bio-available Cu had higher influence than bio-available Cd, and CTC was higher than OFX. Conclusions Our study provides a new strategy on the ARGs, bio-available HMs and antibiotics compound pollution removal with chitosan addition in composting and may guide producing harmless compost production and reutilization of agricultural fishery wastes in the days ahead.

Diagnosis, disease control and prevention are the precursors to successful definitive restorative treatment of pathological tooth wear. This case series illustrates how proposed key clinical features can influence treatment complexity and provide the clinician with a logical sequence of treatment options for definitive management of tooth wear. Key points: Identification of the aetiology, risk management and prevention are fundamental steps before definitive restorative treatment. Treatment should be patient-centred, evidence-based and aim to minimise the lifelong restorative burden. Definitive restorative treatment complexity is illustrated in relation to key clinical factors.