CUTTING-EDGE KIWI RESEARCH

New Zealand punches above its weight when it comes to world-class medical and scientific discoveries. These new technologies, gene mutation findings and cell investigations promise hope for future patients.

CLINICAL AUDITING TOOL

The University of Otago-designed computer software known as DIVA is helping surgeons monitor how their patients are doing during their time in hospital. DIVA is a clinical auditing tool that allows medical staff to input and monitor information on patients during their surgical visit, reducing the risk of human error in record keeping, and saving time for medical staff in the process.

NEW HOPE FOR MENTAL DETERIORATION

Researchers from the University of Auckland have collaborated with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and other institutions to identify how certain gene mutations cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The pathway identified by the researchers may also be responsible for a certain form of dementia related to ALS. The finding could offer potential new approaches for treating the condition, which causes progressive, fatal paralysis and sometimes mental deterioration similar to Alzheimer’s disease. “Our new findings are exciting because similar acidification defects have been found in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Down syndrome,” said Dr Mervyn Monteiro. “This suggests that restoration of the defect could have broad implications for not only treating ALS, but possibly other neurodegenerative diseases as well.”

MISSING LINK BETWEEN STRESS & FERTILITY

Researchers from the University of Otago have found the ‘missing link between stress and infertility’. Published in The Journal of Neuroscience, and led by Professor Greg Anderson of the Centre for Neuroendocrinology, the research has confirmed in laboratory testing that a population of nerve cells near the base of the brain – the RFRP neurons – become active in stressful situations and then suppress the reproductive system. “A revolutionary step forward that has become available to neuroscientists in recent years is the ability to control the activity of selected groups of neurons – to either silence or ramp up their activity, and then monitor the outcomes,” says Professor Anderson. “We used cutting edge transgenic techniques to show that when the activity of the RFRP cells is increased, reproductive hormones are suppressed – in a similar manner to what happens during stress, or during exposure to the stress hormone cortisol.

“Amazingly, when we used cortisol to suppress the reproductive hormones but also silenced the RFRP neurons, the reproductive system continued to function as if cortisol wasn’t there at all – proving that the RFRP neurons are a critical piece of the puzzle in stress-induced suppression of reproduction. We have now shown that the RFRP neurons are indeed the missing link between stress and infertility. They become active in stressful situations – perhaps by sensing the increasing levels of cortisol – and they then suppress the reproductive system.”