Joanne Packer

Western Sydney University · National Institute of Complementary Medicine (NICM)

Background: Customary medicine of Australia's Indigenous peoples draws upon knowledge developed through millennia of interaction with Australia's unique flora and fauna. Many Indigenous Australians are interested in developing modern medicinal and commercial translations of traditional knowledge; however, barriers of trust and benefit sharing ofte...

Objectives Australians are among the world's highest consumers of complementary medicine. Research is vital to ensure the safe and effective use of complementary medicines and practices and their appropriate integration into mainstream healthcare. In 2014, the National Institute of Complementary Medicine (NICM) undertook a survey to determine the e...

Traditional knowledge combined with modern science has the potential to improve healthcare and promote revitalisation of culture in Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Communities are increasingly seeking to utilize scientific methods to further understand their traditional knowledge and validate the role of Aboriginal and...

Litsea glutinosa is a traditional medicinal plant used by the Yirralka Miyalk (Women’s) Ranger (YMR) Group in the Laynhapuy Homelands, Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory, in several of their cosmeceutical bush products. The Rangers were keen to learn more about the traditional uses of their plant and whether it had been scientifically evaluated. As a pa...

This study is a collaboration between Macquarie University researchers and the Yaegl Aboriginal Community of northern NSW, Australia to investigate the antimicrobial potential of plants used in the topical treatment of wounds, sores and skin infections. Based on previously documented medicinal applications, aqueous and aqueous ethanolic extracts of...

Lophostemon suaveolens is a relatively unexplored endemic medicinal plant of Australia. Extracts of fresh leaves of L. suaveolens obtained from sequential extraction with n-hexane and dichloromethane exhibited antibacterial activity in the disc diffusion and MTT microdilution assays against Streptococcus pyogenes and methicillin sensitive and resis...

With growing international calls for the enhanced involvement of Indigenous peoples and their biocultural knowledge in managing conservation and the sustainable use of physical environment, it is timely to review the available literature and develop cross-cultural approaches to the management of biocultural resources. Online spatial databases are b...

Manuka honey, derived from the New Zealand flowering plant Leptospermum scoparium, shows promise as a topical antibacterial agent and effective chronic wound dressing. The aim of this study was to determine the non-peroxide antibacterial effects of this honey on the proteome of the common wound pathogen Staphylococcus aureus. Proteomic analysis was...

Documentation of Australian bush medicines is of utmost importance to the preservation of this disappearing and invaluable knowledge. This collaboration between the Yaegl Aboriginal community in northern New South Wales (NSW), Australia and an academic institution, demonstrates an effective means of preserving and adding value to this information....

Australia is one of the world’s 17 megadiverse countries (Williams et al. 2001). It is home to over 20,000 vascular and 14,000 nonvascular plants, ∼250,000 species of fungi, and over 3,000 lichens. Of all the vascular plant species and nine plant families, 85% are endemic to the continent (Orchard 1999). This biodiversity is due to the continent’s...

2-DE separations of protein extracts sometimes have problems with poor resolution and streaking. This problem is particularly apparent with microorganisms, most notably those with a large cell wall. Here we describe a novel, rapid protocol for the extraction of microorganisms in acidic conditions, leading to increased resolution and 2-D gel quality...