Light-activated Bioconjugates for Applications in Synthesis and Biosensing. This project will allow the Australian biotechnology industry to develop better diagnostic biosensors that are controlled using light, making them cheaper and faster than the current generation of electronically controlled biosensors. Improvements in the response time of biosensors can be a matter of life and death, for instance, during a surgical operation. The project will benefit the pharmaceutical industry as it will ....Light-activated Bioconjugates for Applications in Synthesis and Biosensing. This project will allow the Australian biotechnology industry to develop better diagnostic biosensors that are controlled using light, making them cheaper and faster than the current generation of electronically controlled biosensors. Improvements in the response time of biosensors can be a matter of life and death, for instance, during a surgical operation. The project will benefit the pharmaceutical industry as it will allow the making of so-called chiral drugs cheaper and safer but problems with the purity of chiral drugs have in the past caused serious side-effects such as in the tragic case of thalidomide.Read moreRead less
Investigations into the Versatility of Peptide Nucleic Acid Conjugates. Neurodegeneration and cancer are two of the greatest frontiers in modern medicine. They impose significant medical, financial and social burdens on sufferers, carers and the wider community. Novel technologies with the ability to help diagnosis, enlighten researchers to the biological principles governing the disease and that can make a contribution to prevention, quality of life issues and survival of sufferers are of utmos ....Investigations into the Versatility of Peptide Nucleic Acid Conjugates. Neurodegeneration and cancer are two of the greatest frontiers in modern medicine. They impose significant medical, financial and social burdens on sufferers, carers and the wider community. Novel technologies with the ability to help diagnosis, enlighten researchers to the biological principles governing the disease and that can make a contribution to prevention, quality of life issues and survival of sufferers are of utmost importance. This project aims to make a significant contribution to these areas using antisense technologies against some previously studied targets.Read moreRead less
Molecular UV-A Sunscreen Filters: A Systematic Chemical Study. Australia has the world's highest melanoma and and non-melanoma skin cancer rate, with the latter representing the highest healthcare cost of any cancer. Current sunscreen formulations provide limited protection against solar ultraviolet-A radiation. This project is designed to improve this situation through developing new sunscreen filters for improved protection against ultraviolet-A radiation.
Peptide Nucleic Acid Based Sensors and Devices - An Investigation into PNA Versatility for Emerging Gene Technologies. Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) are analogues of DNA that may have important implications as therapeutic agents for the cure of diseases based on genetic defects. The attributes of PNAs that make them potentially viable as a drug are also well suited to their development as sensors and molecular devices. In this proposal, we wish to develop a series of PNAs containing photoactive ....Peptide Nucleic Acid Based Sensors and Devices - An Investigation into PNA Versatility for Emerging Gene Technologies. Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) are analogues of DNA that may have important implications as therapeutic agents for the cure of diseases based on genetic defects. The attributes of PNAs that make them potentially viable as a drug are also well suited to their development as sensors and molecular devices. In this proposal, we wish to develop a series of PNAs containing photoactive elements (a) as alternatives to commercially-available fluorophores, (b) for the early detection of neurodegenerative diseases and (c) to contribute to one of Science's most debated issues i.e. "does DNA mediate electron transport?"Read moreRead less