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This research and evaluation report undertaken by Dr Liz Curran of the Australian National University (pro bono) looks at research over the two years of the life of a family violence project (with base line data collected in a First Phase Report in November 217) examining a Secondary Consultation (SC) service integrated with Training and Outreach program as well as capacity for strategic advocacy. The Consumer Action Law Centre project (with part funding from the Victorian Department of Justice & Regulation) aims to overcome barriers for people experiencing family violence identified in previous studies. The research findings (detailed in this report) are that legal assistance services, such as this one of the Consumer Action Law Centre, working with trusted community professionals (to whom people experiencing family violence are likely to turn) if done in a holistic, integrated and seamless, respectful way can enable credit & debt legal issues to be addressed in a timely, creative and effective way. It does this by breaking down barriers that exist to those needing legal help. The report provides some universal insights into the plight and impacts of family violence and ways for effective service delivery without ignoring the challenges for both individuals and a variety of services in providing critical support for victim/survivors of family violence and their family.

Rebuilding of infarcted myocardium by mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) has not been successful because of poor cell survival due in part to insufficient blood supply after myocardial infarction (MI). We hypothesize that targeted delivery of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) to MI can help regenerate vasculature in support of MSC therapy in a rat model of MI. VEGF-encapsulated immunoliposomes targeting overexpressed P-selectin in MI tissue were infused by tail vein immediately after MI. One week later, MSCs were injected intramyocardially. The cardiac function loss was moderated slightly by targeted delivery of VEGF or MSC treatment. Targeted VEGF+MSC combination treatment showed highest attenuation in cardiac function loss. The combination treatment also increased blood vessel density (80%) and decreased collagen content in post-MI tissue (33%). Engraftment of MSCs in the combination treatment group was significantly increased and the engrafted cells contributed to the restoration of blood vessels. From the Clinical Editor VEGF immunoliposomes targeting myocardial infarction tissue resulted in significantly higher attenuation of cardiac function loss when used in combination with mesenchymal stem cells. MSCs were previously found to have poor ability to restore cardiac tissue, likely as a result of poor blood supply in the affected areas. This new method counterbalances that weakness by the known effects of VEGF, as demonstrated in a rat model.

This report was commisioned by Bendigo Community Health Service and Loddon Campapse Community Legal Centre

This report documents the reasons for health justice partnerships, the literature, the methodology, the field research which used a participatory action research approach with a continuous learning and development framework. This Draft Working Paper sets out the summary of qualitative and quantitative data, the findings, conclusions lessons and recommendation emerging from this longitudinal study on the Bendigo Health Justice Partnership, in advance of the Full Final Research and Evaluation Report which will be released in 2017.ARC Justice (specifically one of its programs, the Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre (LCCLC)) and the Bendigo Community Health Service formed a partnership in 2013 to commence a Health Justice Partnership (HJP) in January 2014 to better reach those clients experiencing disadvantage.ANU (through the author Dr Liz Curran) was commissioned to conduct empirical research and an evaluation of the pilot project's impact on the social determinants of health, its outcomes and the effectiveness of Health Justice Partnerships in reaching clients who would otherwise not gain legal help with a range of problems capable of a legal solution.This Draft Working Paper is released, in advance of the Full Final Report, so that agencies, researchers and funders and policy makers developing or working in Health Justice Partnerships or multi-disciplinary practices can benefit and be informed by the research and evaluation given the wide range of issues emerging from the research canvasses while the Full Final Report is finalised.The Full Final Research & Evaluation Report will be released in 2017 but, in the interim, people using SSRN can utilise the research for their work. This responds to the numerous requests to share the research at the earliest opportunity so as to inform service delivery and funding applications which may occur before the release of the Final Report.

This Report details research undertaken by Dr Liz Curran on behalf of Legal Aid ACT. The research looked at Legal Aid ACT and the quality of its legal services to clients.The study, after it was commissioned, ended up coinciding with indications by the Commonwealth Attorney General’s Office that it is to review and measure the outcomes of legal assistance services under a recent National Partnership Agreement (NPA) between the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments. The research for this report anticipates this review by trying to provide a definition and approach to the measurement of ‘successful outcomes’ in a legal aid services context, as referred to in the NPA. Service delivery and humanitarian agencies world-wide are increasingly being asked to report and measure results-based outcomes. Although there has been surprisingly little outcome measurement undertaken internationally or domestically, there is some literature detailing how it might be done. The literature overwhelmingly concludes that results-based outcomes are difficult and challenging areas to measure. Therefore, while the main purpose of this project is to measure and enhance the quality of legal aid services delivered by Legal Aid ACT, this Report has wider importance and broader implications for other agencies. Legal Aid ACT has demonstrated foresight in commissioning this research early, somewhat in anticipation of the need to define outcomes for legal aid services.It is hoped that this Report will both assist Legal Aid ACT and inform public debate, helping shape realistic accountabilities, policy development and – most importantly – good and effective service delivery on behalf legal aid service sector clients and the wider community.

The GM2 gangliosidoses are lysosomal storage disorders that encompass both Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff diseases. These diseases are associated with deficiencies in the lysosomal enzyme β-N-acetylhexosaminidase (HexA). These deficiencies result in accumulation of GM2 ganglioside (GM2) in the central nervous system leading to neuronal dysfunction and death. HexA is a heterodimer composed of α and β subunits encoded by HEXA and HEXB genes respectively. Gene therapy approaches using direct injection of AAV vectors into the brain of both small and large disease models (mice, cats, and sheep) have all been successful in treating CNS pathology as well as extending lifespan. These studies utilized two AAVrh8 vectors encoding species-specific alpha and beta subunits of HexA under a CBA promoter with a WPRE (CBA-HexA-WPRE). However, when preclinical safety studies were performed in cynomolgus macaques (cm) using the same strategy, severe neurotoxicity was observed for doses 0.1-3.2E12 vg, which are comparable to those tested in other species on a vg/kg brain weight basis. We hypothesized that the cause of unexpected toxicity was due to high expression of HexA. In order to reduce expression of HexA while maintaining our AAV dose (1.78E12-5.34E13 vg/kg brain weight), we generated a series of new vectors with different combinations of promoters and expression elements with a gradient of HexA expression levels. We tested 7 designs of AAVrh8 vectors encoding cm HexA subunits in athymic nude mice (3.3 E13 vg/kg brain weight). In mice injected with the original vector, AAVrh8-CBA-cmHexA-WPRE, we observed increased levels of reactive astrocytes (GFAP) and activated microglia (Iba1) at the injection site. We used this as a screen to test the other vectors for lower gliosis while expressing HexA activity above normal. Three vector designs emerged and were tested in cynomolgus macaques (n=2, 90 days) infused bilaterally into the thalamus and cerebral lateral ventricle at the intermediate dose (5.34 E12 vg/kg brain weight) as in the first study. The behavior of all monkeys remained normal throughout the study. An abnormal T2 weighted MRI signal was documented at day 90 post-injection in one injection site in a monkey in the cohort with the highest HexA activity (up to 88 fold over normal). This signal was absent in day 30 and 60 brain MRI. Neurohistopathological examination revealed considerable neurodegeneration at this site. The other two cohorts had minimal to no neurotoxicity associated with increased HexA expression (up to 9 fold). Two new AAV vectors have been identified for safe overexpression of HexA in the primate brain.