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Indigenisation of the New Zealand Library and Information Sector: Implications for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
No full textThis essay examines the evolving ethnic landscape of New Zealand and its implications for the library and information management sector. Since its early colonisation, New Zealand has transformed demographically, with a notable decline in the proportion of New Zealand Europeans due to population growth among Māori and increasing migration from Pacific nations and Asia. As the ethnic makeup shifts, library institutions, predominantly staffed by New Zealand Europeans, face significant challenges in meeting the diverse information needs of the population. The essay highlights the urgency of re-evaluating library staffing, recruitment, and training to enhance cultural competency and inclusivity. It also discusses how New Zealand's library and information studies curricula have increasingly integrated Māori knowledge and perspectives over the past 30 years, aligning with Treaty of Waitangi obligations. However, the representation of other ethnic communities remains insufficient. The essay advocates for a more inclusive curriculum that not only prioritises mātauranga Māori but also encompasses the diverse needs of all cultural groups, arguing that addressing Indigenous perspectives can serve as a foundation for equitable information access for all New Zealanders
Immunomodulatory Effect of Kappa Opioid Receptor Agonists on Mast Cells and Food Allergy Models
No full textMast cells are tissue-resident immune cells widely present in various tissues, such as the gastrointestinal lining, skin, and respiratory epithelium. Their ability to store and rapidly release potent mediators, including inflammatory cytokines and proteases, within minutes of activation makes mast cells a crucial first line of defence in protecting the host against threats and regulating pathological conditions such as food allergies.During food allergy, mast cells release a variety of inflammatory mediators responsible for the rapid onset of gastrointestinal symptoms, including diarrhoea, abdominal pain, and vomiting. Currently, there is no cure for food allergies, and existing treatments focus primarily on symptom management, often with side effects like drowsiness, nausea, and headaches. Consequently, allergen avoidance remains the most effective strategy, but it can lead to nutritional deficiencies, particularly in children allergic to milk and eggs. Thus, alternative and more effective treatments are urgently needed.Kappa opioid receptors (KORs) are widely expressed throughout the human body, including in the brain, spinal cord, gastrointestinal tract, and on various immune cells. Previous studies have shown that KOR modulation using KOR-stimulating compounds significantly improved allergic diarrhoea in a mouse model, and this beneficial effect was prevented when KOR was blocked. These findings highlight the potential role of KOR in food allergy. Although the underlying mechanisms of KOR modulation in food allergy remain unclear, it is hypothesised that KOR activation may alleviate allergic reactions by regulating immune cells, particularly mast cells, and by directly affecting gastrointestinal processes such as motility and fluid absorption.In this thesis, I investigated the effects of KOR modulation using high-affinity KOR agonists, such as U50,488H and nalfurafine, in both in vitro and in vivo models. I optimised a high-purity and functional protocol for generating bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs) to explore the direct effects of KOR agonists on mast cell activation in vitro. All tested KOR agonists, including nalfurafine and U50,488H, successfully inhibited mast cell activation to levels comparable to the positive control, clemastine fumarate. Notably, nalfurafine emerged as the most potent agonist, effectively inhibiting mast cell activation at a concentration as low as 0.5 nM, while U50,488H required a much higher concentration of 1000 nM to achieve similar effects. Interestingly, both agonists exhibited an inverted bell-shaped dose-response curve, with high efficacy at lower concentrations but diminished effects at higher concentrations. Moreover, the inhibitory effects of KOR agonists on mast cell activation were abolished in KOR-deficient BMMCs, confirming that the effects were mediated through the KOR pathway and validating the specificity of the agonists.In addition to the in vitro experiments, I developed a food allergy model to evaluate the in vivo effects of nalfurafine and U50,488H. Both agonists significantly improved clinical symptoms during disease onset, demonstrating their potential as therapeutic agents for managing food allergy symptoms. However, when nalfurafine was administered prophylactically before immunisation, there was no significant effect on the manifestation of food allergies. This suggests that while nalfurafine is effective at alleviating symptoms once the disease is established, it does not prevent the initial sensitisation process that drives food allergies.This thesis also highlights the impact of genetic differences between inbred mouse strains C57BL/6 and BALB/cByJ in both BMMC cultures and the food allergy model. BMMCs from the BALB/cByJ strain were less efficient in culture generation compared to those from the C57BL/6 strain. Conversely, in the food allergy model, C57BL/6 mice exhibited milder food allergy symptoms compared to BALB/cByJ mice. These findings underscore the importance of considering genetic background when designing and interpreting immunological experiments.Overall, the findings presented in this thesis provide valuable insights into the role of KOR in modulating immune responses, particularly in the context of mast cell activation and food allergy. Furthermore, the study emphasises the influence of genetic background on experimental outcomes, with notable differences between C57BL/6 and BALB/cByJ mice in both BMMC culture efficiency and the severity of food allergy symptoms. These findings advance our understanding of KOR modulation in immune responses and suggest potential avenues for developing targeted therapies to manage food allergy and other mast cell-related conditions.</p
Interactive Effects of Light, Temperature and Water Movement on Wellington Fucales and Laminariales Physiology and Community Structure
No full textHabitat-forming macroalgae like Fucales and Laminarians are essential intertidal ecosystem engineers. However, the intertidal cover of brown algae in New Zealand could change due to anthropogenic effects. Environmental conditions vary significantly between the intertidal zones inside the harbour and on the south coast of Wellington, where the harbour has high sediment loads, causing coastal darkening and low water flow; the south coast has the opposite. Intertidal field surveys over six years showed a trend of increased bleaching of calcifying species and gradual invasion of non-native Undaria pinnatifida following several marine heatwaves in the summer of 2022–2023. Invasive Asian Kelp Undaria pinnatifida is increasing with the decrease in canopy-forming native algae, raising concerns that it will overrun ecosystems that have experienced mortality events from heat waves due to its fast proliferation. The bleaching of calcifying species and slow recovery from 2023 surveys indicate prolonged marine heatwaves significantly decrease species diversity and percentage cover where the gaps in the community are filled by Undaria pinnatifida. A multi-stressor marine heatwave, water velocity and light intensity experiment on Fucales species Carpophyllum maschalocarpum and Cystophora torulosa indicated temperature is the primary driver of physiological changes and mortality of these species. C. maschalocarpum experienced significant relative length and weight loss because of oxidation of the blades from overproduction of reactive oxygen species because of physiological stress to temperature. C. torulosa experienced significant oxidation, relative length and weight loss from exposure to temperature and lack of irradiance due to sedimentation. Physiological impacts extend far into the recovery period, suggesting the effects of a marine heatwave do not stop at the end of the marine heatwave, increasing the likelihood of mortality and long-term physiological damage. The species responses indicated that although both species are often described as occupying the same environment, the two species can withstand different ecological conditions, with C. maschalocarpum living in low light and low water velocity and C. torulosa living in high light and increased water velocity.</p
Investigating the b-lyase activity of the brewer’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae
No full textThis study investigates how thiol release is affected by the genetics of the brewer’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Polyfunctional thiols are sulphur-containing compounds that contribute desirable tropical fruit aromas to beer and wine. The release of thiols like 4-methyl-4-sulfanyl-pentan- 2-one (4MSP), 3-sulfanyl-hexan-1-ol (3SH), and 3-sulfanyl-hexyl acetate (3SHA) has been linked to the activity of the β-lyase enzyme Irc7p in S. cerevisiae during fermentation. This enzyme cleaves the carbon-sulphur bond of amino acid-bound thiol precursors, releasing free volatile thiols and assimilable nitrogen. However, within yeast, there exists a common 38 bp deletion in the IRC7 gene, as well as other deleterious SNPs, which negatively impact enzyme function and thiol release. Another factor that limits Irc7p activity is transcriptional repression via the nitrogen catabolite repression (NCR) pathway. In the presence of freely assimilable nitrogen, Ure2p inactivates the transcription factors Gln3p and Gat1p, which subsequently reduces IRC7 transcription. Due to the nitrogen-rich environment during beer and wine fermentation, NCR is activated and IRC7 expression is repressed.To develop an informed approach for developing strains with increased varietal thiol release, the genetic variation of URE2 and IRC7 was investigated in a diverse S. cerevisiae population. Several variant alleles were identified in IRC7 and URE2, which distinguished a full-length, functional IRC7 allele and a number of URE2 variants. To compare β-lyase (Irc7p) activity between different strains’ genetics, IRC7 transcript abundance was measured and a β-lyase-dependent growth assay, using S-methyl-L-cysteine (SMC) as a sole nitrogen source, was developed. Methylamine was used in these growth assays to trigger the NCR response present during industrial fermentations without providing utilisable nitrogen.Furthermore, several URE2 variants were selected for their potential to disrupt NCR. The URE2 variants were then introduced, using CRISPR-Cas9, into a lab strain (BY4741) expressing a functional IRC7 allele. These variants were characterised by measuring IRC7 expression (regulated by URE2 and NCR), and through the novel β-lyase-dependent growth experiments. Of the three URE2 variants introduced, there was one variant (E74G) that increased IRC7 expression by 5-fold. Overall, my results show that the methods established can be used to identify genetic variants, in non-GMO yeast strains, that contribute to increased volatile thiol release, and can enable the development of strains with enhanced thiol aroma profiles for winemaking and beer fermentation.</p
New Zealand Primary School Educators' Perceptions of Trauma-Informed Education and Interventions
No full textDespite the vast international research on trauma, its effects on children and growing interest in trauma-informed education, including school-based interventions, little is known of the perspectives and perceptions of New Zealand educators who are tasked with their implementation. Research has identified some promising school-based trauma-informed programmes and approaches, while also highlighting implementation challenges. These interventions aim to support students’ self-regulation and learning, requiring shifts in educator thinking that move away from punitive approaches and invest in staff training and self-care. Research to date has not included a broad range of educators (e.g., school leadership, classroom teachers, and support staff) involved in implementing trauma-informed education, nor has it been conducted in New Zealand to explore some of the deeper issues from educators’ perspectives. This small descriptive qualitative study explored the views and perspectives of 10 primary school educators from Palmerston North, New Zealand, who have been involved in planning or implementing trauma-informed education. Reflective thematic analysis of the data led to the construction of four major themes that focused on factors that supported and hindered the trauma-informed journey these educators were on: (i) reasons why (motivation), (ii) necessary conditions (what was needed), (iii) roadblocks and barriers to implementation and (iv) best-case scenario (what trauma-informed change could look like). The findings contribute to our understanding of educators' perceptions, experiences, and needs related to trauma-informed education and its specific application in New Zealand primary schools. Implications for policy, practice and programmes are discussed.</p
Reconstructing the first record of historical microplastic accumulation from lake sediments in Aotearoa New Zealand: A case study at Lake Wiritoa.
No full textMicroplastics are widespread anthropogenic contaminants found in the modern environment. By defini- tion, these are particles smaller than five millimetres and are predominantly derived from the mechanical breakdown of larger plastic debris. Sediments in rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal and marine settings are important sinks for environmental microplastics. The burial of microplastics in these sediments can produce historical records of plastic production, usage, and release into the environment. Profiling the abundance and characteristics of microplastics in sediment can inform the extent of contamination and reflect the preferential accumulation of specific polymer types. These archives provide ideal opportunities to study biotic interaction and toxic impacts to aquatic life at all levels of the food chain, and potential consequences to human health. This thesis aims to contribute a better understanding of the history and extent of microplastic pollution in New Zealand’s environment.Firstly, a method for reliably recovering microplastics from sediment is developed, motivated by the lack of harmonized microplastic extraction procedures among existing literature. Density separation is the most commonly applied technique, where sediment containing microplastics is mixed with a solution of intermediate density, allowing lighter microplastics to float out. The primary objective was to adapt or develop a separation method to robustly extract and quantify microplastics in fine-grained lake sediments, while minimizing cost and hazard. I compared recoverable proportions of eight types of microplastics varied by use of three brine solutions that spanned a density gradient. The results show that the densest solution (composed of 25% sodium polytungstate and 75% saturated sodium chloride) yields significantly higher recovery rates for denser microplastics, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), plasticised polyvinyl chloride (PVC-P), and polylactic acid (PLA) (p0.05). The relative density between the separation medium and the microplastics is a significant predictor of recovery rate, but the precursor material, size, and shape (fragment or fibres) of the particle also play a role. A solution with a density of approximately 1.46 g/cm3, ideally a mixture of denser sodium polytungstate diluted with non-toxic sodium bromide or sodium chloride, is recommended for recovering microplastics from fine-grained lacustrine sediments. At this density and with these materials, the chemical costs and hazards are minimized while the expected recovery rates for most common polymers remain high.The chosen method for density separation was then applied to a sediment core from Lake Wiritoa, a small lowland lake approximately six kilometers southeast of Whanganui in New Zealand’s Manawatu region. Lake Wiritoa has both agricultural and recreational land use in its 171-hectare catchment and is situated downwind of the Whanganui urban centre. The use of plastics for farming (e.g., mulch films) in the terrestrial catchment, proximal recreational plastic littering, and downwind deposition of small plastic particles are three likely sources of microplastics for Lake Wiritoa. Pyrolysis methods are used to identify and quantify recovered trace-markers of microplastics, allowing for the novel analysis of small masses of lake sediment and replacing the need for large bulk sieving. The microplastic concentration profiles from Lake Wiritoa’s core show a typical trend of increasing concentration towards present day, reflecting temporal changes in the transport and accumulation of plastic debris. However, the profiles did not match the exponential increase in plastic consumption well-described from the early 1950s in Europe and North America. Instead, microplastics first occur in c. 1947 CE (polyethylene, polystyrene) but do not significantly increase in concentration until c. 2000 CE (p<0.05). Polyethylene is the most abundant polymer with a peak concentration of 1158.97 μg per g sediment in 2020, whereas polypropylene was not detected until the 2000s but reaches a peak of 567.9 μg per g sediment also in surface sediments. The profile from Lake Wiritoa represents the first record of temporal microplastic accumulation in New Zealand, extending otherwise limited direct environmental monitoring back to a first occurrence.</p
Drawing Erasure
No full textArchitectural practice is often a project in asserting control over the natural environment in pursuit of permanence and stability, but what if erasure could disrupt this? What new forms, spatial configurations, programmes, and material expressions might emerge when architectural practices are unsettled by acts of erasure?This thesis investigates erasure as both a concept and an act within architectural drawing, emphasising its generative potential through stimulating dialogues between authorial intent, material agencies, and site conditions. Situated within the broader discourse of architectural drawing—where drawing bridges conceptual thought and built form—this research frames erasure as an act of drawing rather than a metaphor for suppression or correction. The removal or smudging of a line is considered as generative as its creation, with the dynamic exchange between mark-making and erasure opening creative possibilities.This thesis asks: can erasure destabilise architecture? This question is pursued through three interconnected speculative design experiments, each increasing in scale and complexity, with insights from one woven into the next. By exploring erasure’s role in dissolving fixed forms and meanings, the research examines how drawing enables continual re-formation and reinterpretation. Through cycles of making, erasing, and remaking, the body of work in this thesis becomes a layered record of transformation, developing creative practices of erasure that embrace instability and fluidity to challenge architecture’s fixation on permanence.Extending this discussion, the thesis introduces the concept of erasing with site, where the intertwined gestures of the author and the more-than-human dissolve into one another. This builds on Donna Haraway’s notion of sympoíēsis, or making with, which rejects human-centered narratives of control and instead prioritises our entangled existence. This approach highlights the creative potential of engaging more-than-human agents in acts of making and erasing marks, advocating for participatory architectural processes that move beyond human-centered authorship.The thesis situates these themes within a broader exploration of architectural drawing as a tool for articulating ideas, fostering creative possibilities, and expanding the architect’s role. Here, the architect is not a master designer but an active participant in an interconnected web of agents, where materials and the natural environment co-author the work. Drawing becomes an act of listening and responding to site’s ephemeral and material conditions.The body of work in Drawing Erasure examines drawing as a collaborative act, where human intentionality is placed in dialogue with the agency of rocks, leaves, seaweed, tidal movements, and wind patterns—each imprinting themselves onto the creative process. Political overtones ‘haunt’ the work (Ballard, 2021), with anthropogenic impacts on site and its dynamics ever-present, and the work aligns with Donna Haraway’s expression “staying with the trouble”, encouraging us to engage with the complexities of our entangled existence in the Anthropocene (Haraway, 2016).By exploring erasure through a sensitive, reciprocal engagement with site, this research de-centers the human in creative practices, fostering care and rethinking architectural practice as an open-ended process within a broader ecological and material system.</p
The Journey to HIV Diagnosis: Private and Public Lives
No full textBackground: Late Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) diagnosis remains a critical public health concern in Aotearoa/New Zealand (NZ) and globally, with 25–55% of new cases worldwide and 38% in Aotearoa/NZ classified as late. Late diagnosis, defined by a CD4 cell count below 350 cells/mm³, often signifies undiagnosed HIV infection spanning six to eight years. This delay exacerbates health complications and increases the risk of onward transmission. Despite advancements in HIV prevention and treatment, barriers to early diagnosis persist.Aim: To investigate the factors contributing to late HIV diagnosis, focusing on health-seeking behaviours, risk perceptions, and delays experienced during the diagnostic process.Methodology: Using qualitative interpretive description methodology, this research explored the pre-diagnostic experiences of 22 individuals living with HIV. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 participants diagnosed late, including four women and five diagnosed promptly. Data analysis employed both inductive and deductive approaches within the framework of the Health Belief Model, focusing on the decision-making processes that influence diagnosis.Findings: Four key themes emerged: (1) Risk-profiling of patients - many participants were incorrectly perceived as outside conventional categories at-risk of HIV; (2) HIV-related health literacy was low, even among high-risk individuals, compromising their ability to recognise risk and seek earlier testing; (3) Misconceptions about HIV even during healthcare engagement often resulted in HIV testing being overlooked even when participants explicitly requested sexually transmitted infection screening; (4) Participants’ recommendations for improving testing processes.Implications: The findings highlight the need to enhance HIV health literacy and advocate for universal, proactive testing strategies. Routine inclusion of HIV testing in sexual health assessments and testing individuals with unexplained illnesses, irrespective of traditional risk profiles, is essential to minimising diagnostic delays and improving health outcomes.</p
Consenting and developing solar farms in Aotearoa New Zealand: challenges and way forward
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Together for a flourishing Aotearoa
No full textThis article presents Me Tū ā-Uru, an action plan developed under the New Zealand Biological Heritage National Science Challenge, with a focus on reshaping our relationships, governance and policy to best care for our environment in Aotearoa New Zealand. Inspired by existing action plans and reports, the authors formed a working group comprising Māori researchers and environmental practitioners. The authors discuss the rationale behind creating an action plan to address the multifaceted crises facing Aotearoa, including climate change and biodiversity decline. In this article we argue the importance of co-creating our research through wānanga and then communicating this research in inspiring and action-oriented ways. This article provides the context, background and methods used for the creation of our plan and relational framework, as well as some practical examples of it in action
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