Biomedical subjects

C Mowbray

Publications and source records attributed to C Mowbray.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2001

Expression of BMP signalling pathway members in the developing zebrafish inner ear and lateral line.

In this paper we describe the mRNA expression patterns of members of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signalling pathway in the developing zebrafish ear. bmp2b, 4, and 7 are expressed in discrete areas of otic epithelium, some of which correspond to sensory patches. bmp2b and 4 mark the developing cristae before and during the appearance of differentiated hair cells. bmp4 is also expressed in a dorsal, non-sensory region of the ear. Expression of bmps in cristae is conserved between zebrafish, chick, and mouse, but there are also notable differences in ear expression patterns between these species. Of five zebrafish BMP antagonists, only one (follistatin) shows significant expression in the otic epithelium. The type I receptor bmpr-IB shows localised expression in the ear epithelium. Mediators of BMP signalling, smad1 and smad5, are expressed in statoacoustic and lateral line ganglia; smad5 is also expressed at low levels throughout the ear epithelium. An inhibitory smad, smad6, is expressed laterally in the ear epithelium. Lateral line primordia and neuromasts also express bmp2b, 4, follistatin, smad1, and smad5. The conservation of bmp expression in cristae among different species adds weight to the growing evidence that BMPs are required for the development of the vertebrate ear.

Animals↗

PubMed2001

The IAPSRS toolkit: development, utility, and relation to other performance measurement systems. Members of the IAPSRS Research Committee. International Association of Psychological Rehabilitation Services.

The current climate of economic constraint in community-based mental health services has all but required psychosocial rehabilitation (PSR) programs to demonstrate their effectiveness by adopting outcome assessment systems. Agencies of disparate size and varying degrees of sophistication are now responding to mandates to systematically monitor program outcomes. In doing so, however, PSR practitioners and administrators are faced with a bewildering array of competing measures, some of which are impractical, costly, or irrelevant for capturing the outcomes of PSR services (Blankertz & Cook, 1998). To acquaint readers with issues in performance measurement in PSR, this article describes a newly developed outcome measurement system created to document the achievements of service recipients in PSR programs and to monitor progress towards recovery. We discuss principles and logistical issues in performance measurement which are important to PSR agencies and which the Toolkit has been designed to address. Results of the pilot testing of the PSR Toolkit are presented to demonstrate the feasibility of its use, logistical problems in implementation, psychometric properties of the measures, and the Toolkit's sensitivity to change. We discuss next steps in the development of the Toolkit.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2000

The Michigan Supported Education Program.

With the advent of improved pharmacological treatments, empirically tested psychiatric rehabilitation techniques, and an increased emphasis on the empowerment of mental health consumers, many adults with psychiatric disabilities now have a realistic chance of reentering their communities and reestablishing meaningful and productive lives. Because work is a fundamental component of adjustment in adult life, helping individuals obtain and maintain jobs has been viewed as the sine qua non of psychiatric rehabilitation. More recently, however, rehabilitation practitioners have realized that many adults with psychiatric disabilities have the desire and the requisite motivation and educational background to attend college (1). Hence rehabilitation practitioners have recognized that helping individuals restart their postsecondary educational pursuits is a desirable, valid, and viable option (2,3). Supported education is being used increasingly to encourage adults with mental illness to enroll in and complete postsecondary education by providing assistance, preparation, and ongoing counseling (4). Several reports have suggested that supported education programs contribute to positive outcomes such as graduation, acquisition of marketable skills, employment, and positive self-esteem (5,6,7). In this month's column, Carol Mowbray, Ph.D., describes the Michigan Supported Education Program and provides a rationale and empirical validation for its inclusion as an integral modality of psychiatric rehabilitation.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Integrated health and education input in the development of educational resources about asthma for schools.

The development of educational packages on health-related topics has become common in school curricula. This paper describes an integrated health and education input in the development of an educational package about asthma for Year 8 high school students. Ownership and educational relevance of the package (ensuring its appropriateness for inclusion within the Personal Development/Health/Physical Education curriculum) was achieved by collaboration between teachers with an understanding of the principles of curriculum design and health professionals with content knowledge about asthma. The model used for the production of the package about asthma could be extended to other health topics.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Hair cells without supporting cells: further studies in the ear of the zebrafish mind bomb mutant.

Each sensory hair cell in the ear is normally surrounded by supporting cells, which separate it from the next hair cell. In the mind bomb mutant, as a result of a failure of lateral inhibition, cells that would normally become supporting cells differentiate as hair cells instead, creating sensory patches that consist of hair cells only. This provides a unique opportunity to pinpoint the functions for which supporting cells are required in normal hair cell development. We find that hair cells in the mutant develop an essentially normal cytoskeleton, with a correctly structured hair bundle and well-defined planar polarity, and form apical junctional complexes with one another in standard epithelial fashion. They fail, however, to form a basal lamina or to adhere properly to the adjacent non-sensory epithelial cells, which overgrow them. The hair cells are eventually expelled from the ear epithelium into the underlying mesenchyme, losing their hair bundles in the process. It is not clear whether they undergo apoptosis: many cells staining strongly with the TUNEL procedure are seen but do not appear apoptotic by other criteria. Supporting cells, therefore, are needed to hold hair cells in the otic epithelium and, perhaps, to keep them alive, but are not needed for the construction of normal hair bundles or to give the hair bundles a predictable polarity. Moreover, supporting cells are not absolutely required as a source of materials for otoliths, which, though small and deformed, still develop in their absence.

Animals↗