Development of an effective vaccine for chlamydial infection: optimisation of a non-toxic cholera toxin-based adjuvant to generate a protective mucosal response. Chlamydial genital infections are the most common sexually transmitted infection in Australia and the world and impose a major health burden on the community. Chlamydial infections are also associated with cardiovascular disease, Australia's biggest killer and asthma, another condition that has increased significantly in prevalence in t ....Development of an effective vaccine for chlamydial infection: optimisation of a non-toxic cholera toxin-based adjuvant to generate a protective mucosal response. Chlamydial genital infections are the most common sexually transmitted infection in Australia and the world and impose a major health burden on the community. Chlamydial infections are also associated with cardiovascular disease, Australia's biggest killer and asthma, another condition that has increased significantly in prevalence in the past 10 years. This project will evaluate the effectiveness of a new adjuvant as a first step towards the development of a vaccine to target these important infections.Read moreRead less
Development of chaperonin 10-based second generation biopharmaceuticals for treatment of inflammatory diseases. Diseases caused by malfunctioning of the body's immune system (inflammatory diseases) such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and Crohn's disease cause illness in all cultures and societies, and impose financial strain on health care providers. Current treatment relies on biopharmaceuticals that block inflammatory mediators in the body or with pharmaceuticals such as anti-inflammatory ....Development of chaperonin 10-based second generation biopharmaceuticals for treatment of inflammatory diseases. Diseases caused by malfunctioning of the body's immune system (inflammatory diseases) such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and Crohn's disease cause illness in all cultures and societies, and impose financial strain on health care providers. Current treatment relies on biopharmaceuticals that block inflammatory mediators in the body or with pharmaceuticals such as anti-inflammatory drugs; both these treatments may have serious side effects. Cpn10 suppresses the body's inflammatory response while maintaining immune function to combat infections. The project seeks to develop new, safe and effective biopharmaceuticals based on Cpn10 for the treatment of a variety of chronic inflammatory diseases and autoimmune disorders.Read moreRead less
Characterisation of the anti-inflammatory pathway targeted by chaperonin 10 (Cpn10). Diseases associated with excessive or inappropriate inflammation represent an enormous socioeconomic burden, and there is currently an urgent need to identify new targets for the development of more efficacious and safe treatments. This research seeks to provide such targets. The research may also lead to improvements in chaperonin 10 (Cpn10) treatment, which has already showing marked success in chronic inflamm ....Characterisation of the anti-inflammatory pathway targeted by chaperonin 10 (Cpn10). Diseases associated with excessive or inappropriate inflammation represent an enormous socioeconomic burden, and there is currently an urgent need to identify new targets for the development of more efficacious and safe treatments. This research seeks to provide such targets. The research may also lead to improvements in chaperonin 10 (Cpn10) treatment, which has already showing marked success in chronic inflammatory disease trials. Importantly, Cpn10 appears to be anti-inflammatory rather than immunosuppressive; a critical advantage over many current anti-inflammatory interventions. Immunosuppression can lead to increased infections, which can have serious consequences, especially in elderly patients.Read moreRead less
Novel lipid-based adjuvants for induction of mucosal immunity. The project will determine if needle-free oral and transcutaneous immunisation using LipoVax, a novel lipid-based antigen delivery system developed by the industry partner, can protect mice against the mucosal pathogens Chlamydia and Helicobacter. We expect to show that this immunisation method can induce protective mucosal immunity against two of the most common infectious organisms affecting mankind. If successful this will allow u ....Novel lipid-based adjuvants for induction of mucosal immunity. The project will determine if needle-free oral and transcutaneous immunisation using LipoVax, a novel lipid-based antigen delivery system developed by the industry partner, can protect mice against the mucosal pathogens Chlamydia and Helicobacter. We expect to show that this immunisation method can induce protective mucosal immunity against two of the most common infectious organisms affecting mankind. If successful this will allow us to develop LipoVax as a new platform technology that can be applied to the development of human vaccines, veterinary vaccines, vaccines for companion animals and vaccines to target infections in feral animals and native wildlife population populations.Read moreRead less
Application of in vivo electroporation to DNA immunisation. The in vivo delivery of plasmid DNA induces immune responses to the encoded protein vaccine. In large animals including humans, DNA vaccination needs to be further improved before becoming a commercial reality, at least partially due to the very low levels of expression in vivo. In vivo electroporation has proven to be an effective way to enhance the level of protein expression and increase DNA vaccine efficacy. We combine enhanced in ....Application of in vivo electroporation to DNA immunisation. The in vivo delivery of plasmid DNA induces immune responses to the encoded protein vaccine. In large animals including humans, DNA vaccination needs to be further improved before becoming a commercial reality, at least partially due to the very low levels of expression in vivo. In vivo electroporation has proven to be an effective way to enhance the level of protein expression and increase DNA vaccine efficacy. We combine enhanced in vivo expression using electroporation with the co-delivery of plasmids encoding cytokines to enhance and modulate DNA vaccine in sheep. We will apply our findings to bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV), both as an animal model for humans and as an economically important diseases of livestock.Read moreRead less
Development of purified antibodies that kill virus infected cells. This proposal will develop panels of purified and monoclonal antibodies that kill virus infected cells. These antibodies may show efficacy in preventing HIV infection. This is new technology that could subsequently be harnessed to protect or limit the devastating effects of chronic viruses such as HIV.
Characterisation and development of adjuvants for new generation veterinary and human vaccines. Vaccination is the most successful and cost-effective means of combating infectious diseases in both veterinary and human medicine. This project will increase our understanding of how vaccines work and will help the development of new vaccines against infections in both animals and man. The results of these studies will also increase the competitiveness of Australian scientists in the field of vaccine ....Characterisation and development of adjuvants for new generation veterinary and human vaccines. Vaccination is the most successful and cost-effective means of combating infectious diseases in both veterinary and human medicine. This project will increase our understanding of how vaccines work and will help the development of new vaccines against infections in both animals and man. The results of these studies will also increase the competitiveness of Australian scientists in the field of vaccine research and development.Read moreRead less
Engineering of anti-platelet antibodies for the diagnosis and therapy of infants with bleeding disorders. Foeto-maternal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (FMAIT) is a serious clinical condition where infants suffer potentially fatal bleeding disorders from 14 weeks gestation to 1-2 weeks post delivery. The cause of the disease is through maternal antibodies destroying foetal platelets. Our aim is to produce human antibodies, which will be used as diagnostic agents to screen for the condition in preg ....Engineering of anti-platelet antibodies for the diagnosis and therapy of infants with bleeding disorders. Foeto-maternal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (FMAIT) is a serious clinical condition where infants suffer potentially fatal bleeding disorders from 14 weeks gestation to 1-2 weeks post delivery. The cause of the disease is through maternal antibodies destroying foetal platelets. Our aim is to produce human antibodies, which will be used as diagnostic agents to screen for the condition in pregnant women, and to further develop such antibodies for therapy. Identification of mothers at risk of FMAIT and the development of a specific therapy are vital to the management and prevention of this serious condition.Read moreRead less