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    Emetic toxin production of Bacillus cereus in a biofilm
    (Elsevier Ltd, 2022-01-15) Huang Y; Flint SH; Loo TS; Palmer JS
    Bacillus cereus sensu stricto (B. cereus) belongs to the B. cereus group, and is a well-known foodborne pathogen causing human disease including emesis which is caused by an emetic toxin, cereulide, with 105-108 cells per gram required to cause disease. The presence of this highly heat, pH and protease-resistant toxin presents a serious challenge to the food industry, as the bacteria itself may be eliminated during processing but the cereulide toxin will survive most food processing techniques. This study shows that cereulide toxin is associated with cells and biofilm structures rather than suspended in the surrounding liquid phase or environment. This is the first report investigating the cereulide toxin production in the presence of biofilms of B. cereus, showing that the cereulide toxin produced is associated with biofilm complex and also attaches to the substrate such as glass and stainless-steel on which the biofilm grows. The RT-qPCR showed that the expression of cesA and cesB were comparable between planktonic cells and biofilms. This study contributes a better understanding of food safety issues in the industry caused by cereulide toxin produced by B. cereus, and provides valuable information for developing control methods for cereulide toxin in the food industry.
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    Effective intimacy? : Evaluating intimacy focused therapy for 'out-of-control' sexual behaviour : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Philosophy at Massey University, Manawatu campus, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2015) Faisandier, Karen Marie
    Difficulties with intimacy are considered to be important to the development and maintenance of ‘out of control’ sexual behaviours (OCSB) yet the small body of research into OCSB therapies has not included an intimacy-based therapy approach (Reid & Woolley, 2006). Specialist service Sex Therapy New Zealand (STNZ) uses such an approach which was formalised by the researcher and termed ‘Intimacy Focused Therapy’ (IFT) for the purposes of being evaluated in the current study. A single-case design with non-concurrent multiple baseline across participants was used with 12 volunteer men with OCSB who completed up to 12 sessions of IFT with STNZ therapists. Participants rated their sexual behaviour, negative consequences of sex, adult attachment, and fear of intimacy at baseline, post-therapy, and over a three-month follow-up phase. Weekly self-report data was collected on the duration and frequency of sexual activity as well as associated distress. Compared to baseline, there were improvements in participants’ control over their sexual behaviour, reductions in negative consequences experienced, as well as reduced distress regarding sexual behaviour post-treatment. Changes in fear of intimacy and attachment were less obvious, although dismissing and preoccupied attachment each slightly reduced or increased for several participants. Secure and fearful attachment showed limited change in either direction. Weekly sexual behaviour did not follow a clear pattern of change, although some behaviour’s reduced for some participants over therapy while others stayed the same or increased. Follow-up data showed that changes at the end of therapy were largely maintained or continued over three months post-therapy. These individual outcomes support the potential effectiveness of IFT as a treatment for OCSB, but do not support the notion that improvements to fear of intimacy or attachment are affected by this approach. Future research that examines IFT over a longer duration of time, utilising measures that capture the mechanisms that effect change in this therapy approach, are recommended to establish the role of intimacy and attachment in therapy for OCSB.
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    Mothers and infants : early interaction and consequences
    (Massey University, 1979) Page, A. E.
    A prospective study was designed to investigate Bowlby's (1958, 1969) theory that the development of the affectional bond between mother and infant - generally termed "attachment" - is the result of certain species-specific stimuli being prepotent as elicitors of instinctual responses in mothers and infants, and to contrast this approach with a reformulation by the author which attempts to include recent evidence pertaining to the receptor capabilities of neonates. In brief the author's formulation is that because of an evolutionary process the human infant discriminates certain visual and auditory stimulus dimensions more readily, these stimulus dimensions being particularly well represented by the caretaker's face and voice and thus once orientated to these stimulus sources selective attention will occur at a high rate. Initial orientation is seen as the result of the caretaker's proximity occurring because of response to infant signals and nutritional requirements. To test the appropriateness of the two approaches thirty primiparous women between the ages of 20 and 32 were obtained at Nelson Hospital, Nelson, New Zealand, during the first week after having given birth to a healthy infant, the group being subjected to a 17 minute film designed to teach the mothers to emit certain behaviours. These behaviours were selected as those which would provide either the infant with stimuli Bowlby (1958, 1969) suggests will elicit instinctive responses (mother's face, voice and ventral surface) or the mother with stimuli which elicit instinctive responding (infant crying, smiling and vocalizing). A second group of thirty mothers matched with the first on a number of relevant variables acted as a control group. Specific hypotheses were made which would enable the attachment relationship of the two groups to be compared, and differentiation between the two formulations to be made. The experimental manipulation was successful in producing desired infant and mother behaviours, the outcome in terms of the quality of interaction of mother and infant, and infant and stranger clearly favouring the experimental group. Specifically the mothers and infants of the experimental group engaged in more reciprocal interaction in which each was responding in a manner complementary to that of the other, such interaction beginning early during the observation, being unbroken and relatively enduring. The mutual orientation of mother and infant which brought this about was the result of infant response to the mother's presenting of her smiling, moving, talking face within the infant's visual field, this stimulus complex rather than maternal responses to signals from the infant operating. While maternal response to signals was not a significant factor in relation to maternal orientation to the infant, none-the-less it was the mother who initiated and maintained the continuing exchange and thus maternal or infant variables other than those measured must have been responsible for maintaining maternal responding. The infants in the experimental group were initially significantly more sociable to a male stranger, but by six months of age this positive response had changed to marked negative reaction for most of the infants, with some even having passed through this stage. This was in contrast to the control group whose responsiveness to the stranger was minimal at both three and six months and only rarely negative, none of the infants having passed through the stage of negative reactions to strangers. The appropriateness of current models of the attachment relationship in describing attachment was tested. All were able to describe the relationship of mother and infant in a manner which differentiated the two groups, this result being considered to give evidence of their basic similarity. The results were found to support the author's reformulation that the mother's face and voice have special stimulus characteristics in attracting high rates of attention from the infant, the resulting mutual orientation of mother and infant giving rise to attachment interaction. Thus the mother's face and voice and infant orientation towards them can be described as "precursors of attachment". Support for the mother's face, voice and ventral surface as elicitors of instinctive responses from the infant and infant signals eliciting instinctive responses from the mother was not forthcoming.
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    Attachment and conflict in close relationships : the association of attachment with conflict resolution styles, conflict beliefs, communication accuracy and relationship satisfaction : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2006) Du Plessis, Karin
    The present research aims to obtain a more complete view of couple relationships. In particular, it investigated the manner in which attachment styles (and more specifically the combination of attachment styles to one’s partner and one’s primary caregiver, such as the mother) are related to conflict beliefs, conflict resolution styles, relationship satisfaction and communication accuracy. Two studies were conducted to explore these relationships. In Study 1 individuals in couples relationships (N = 83) were asked to participate in an online questionnaire regarding primary caregiver and partner attachment, conflict resolution, and conflict beliefs. Study 2 saw the recruitment of twenty-two couples from public advertisements. Couples were asked to participate in a ten minute videotaped discussion around a major disagreement. The discussion exercise and accompanying self-report questionnaires indicated each couple’s communication accuracy. Trained post-graduate raters also coded the observable conflict styles of the couples on a scale developed for the purpose of this research. These were compared with self-reported conflict resolution styles. Couples were also asked to complete questionnaires individually to identify their parent and partner attachment styles, relationship satisfaction, conflict resolution styles and conflict beliefs. Qualitative questions around attachment and conflict resolution provided a more in-depth perspective of more and less securely attached individuals’ relationships. Results from both studies indicated that there is some difference between ongoing influence from current models of primary caregiver attachment and the influence from current models of partner attachment on relationship variables. Relationship satisfaction and conflict beliefs were influenced by specific attachment to the partner. Conversely, conflict resolution styles, in particular positive problem solving, withdrawal and compliance, were heavily influenced by more general current conceptualizations of primary caregiver attachment. Additional results regarding quantitative and qualitative findings, including gender differences are discussed in the thesis. Finally, limitations regarding both studies are noted, and suggestions for future research are made.