Urinary continence and incontinence in men: New insight through new technologies. Healthy ageing in men is largely overlooked. Disorders of continence are surprisingly common with increasing age, and are socially debilitating. To understand changes in continence and address healthy ageing it is first necessary to gain an understanding of continence mechanisms in healthy men. Continence in women has received wide attention, but anatomy and function differ, as do the challenges throughout life (ch ....Urinary continence and incontinence in men: New insight through new technologies. Healthy ageing in men is largely overlooked. Disorders of continence are surprisingly common with increasing age, and are socially debilitating. To understand changes in continence and address healthy ageing it is first necessary to gain an understanding of continence mechanisms in healthy men. Continence in women has received wide attention, but anatomy and function differ, as do the challenges throughout life (childbirth vs. prostate disease). Using novel methods we will test a new hypothesis of male continence with the goal to provide new physiological discoveries, new methods, and baseline data upon which strategies to enhance healthy ageing and reduce the economic burden of disorders of continence can be developed and refined. Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE130100035
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$300,000.00
Summary
Hyperpolarised gas functional lung and molecular imaging. This project will produce a polariser to generate magnetised gas for research with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This allows imaging of normal and abnormal lung ventilation and circulation in animal and humans. The use of these hyperpolarised gases can also be used to tag specific molecules and increase understanding of lung metabolism.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE200100122
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$620,000.00
Summary
Returning WA Rapid Acquisition Fluorescent Microscopy to the cutting edge. The equipment proposal aims to establish West Australia's only super-rapid-speed, high throughput confocal microscopy facility. The technology will provide researchers in biotechnology, medicine, environmental biology and agriculture with contemporary state-of-art opportunities to analyse living cells and/or large-area tissue specimens in three-dimensions with the highest possible speed and high-resolution. West Australia ....Returning WA Rapid Acquisition Fluorescent Microscopy to the cutting edge. The equipment proposal aims to establish West Australia's only super-rapid-speed, high throughput confocal microscopy facility. The technology will provide researchers in biotechnology, medicine, environmental biology and agriculture with contemporary state-of-art opportunities to analyse living cells and/or large-area tissue specimens in three-dimensions with the highest possible speed and high-resolution. West Australia hosts 1 twelve-year old historic rapid-acquisition confocal microscope that is heavily subscribed, no longer manufactured and prone to regular, prolonged, costly breakdowns. Accessing high-speed confocal systems in other states is not a viable option putting WA-based researchers at a significant disadvantage.Read moreRead less
Electrophysiological and Anatomical Characterization of the Coronary Sinus Musculature and its Relationship to the Atria. This series of experiments will characterise the normal coronary sinus musculature and its connectivity to the atria of the heart and establish their electrical relationships. The underlying characteristics of the muscular connections will also be evaluated with a view to possible future manipulations of the system. Understanding normal heart impulse propagation is paramount ....Electrophysiological and Anatomical Characterization of the Coronary Sinus Musculature and its Relationship to the Atria. This series of experiments will characterise the normal coronary sinus musculature and its connectivity to the atria of the heart and establish their electrical relationships. The underlying characteristics of the muscular connections will also be evaluated with a view to possible future manipulations of the system. Understanding normal heart impulse propagation is paramount before we can understand and develop treatments for dealing with heart problems. This information will facilitate the development of techniques to treat and prevent heart rhythm disorders that are a common cause of morbidity in the community.Read moreRead less
Microparticles as effectors of microvascular alterations in brain inflammation. Cerebral malaria (CM) kills many children worldwide, but we do not understand why their small blood vessels in the brain become obstructed. We found that tiny elements detached from cell membranes, called microparticles (MP), are dramatically elevated in the blood during CM. Our results strongly suggest that these MP are important in CM development. We have found that some drugs block the release of MP and the stick ....Microparticles as effectors of microvascular alterations in brain inflammation. Cerebral malaria (CM) kills many children worldwide, but we do not understand why their small blood vessels in the brain become obstructed. We found that tiny elements detached from cell membranes, called microparticles (MP), are dramatically elevated in the blood during CM. Our results strongly suggest that these MP are important in CM development. We have found that some drugs block the release of MP and the stickiness of malaria parasites to blood vessels. Our project will tackle the conditions of MP production and define new drugs to prevent it. It also will explain how the brain becomes affected by high numbers of MP. Our results will cast new light on why the brain functions abnormally when its blood vessels become modified.Read moreRead less
Blood flow routes in muscle. Ageing well, ageing productively. The Australian population is ageing. The proportion of the population over the age of 65 is expected to greatly increase, reaching 22% by the year 2030. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes in this older population is thought to be ~20%, compared to ~6% in younger populations. An initial cause of type 2 diabetes may be microvascular dysfunction brought on by physical inactivity. Therefore this project addresses the concepts of microvasc ....Blood flow routes in muscle. Ageing well, ageing productively. The Australian population is ageing. The proportion of the population over the age of 65 is expected to greatly increase, reaching 22% by the year 2030. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes in this older population is thought to be ~20%, compared to ~6% in younger populations. An initial cause of type 2 diabetes may be microvascular dysfunction brought on by physical inactivity. Therefore this project addresses the concepts of microvascular function and microvascular fitness by using the latest technology to map blood flow routes in muscle under a number of relevant situations. Read moreRead less
Examining the links between obesity and insulin resistance. Obesity prevalence is rapidly increasing in Australia and contributes to the onset of many chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. This project will examine how obesity contributes to disease risk and how modifying nutrient delivery and other interventions that protect from cellular stress reduces these risks.
Modulating the molecular and cellular physiology of ageing skeletal muscle. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of how ageing affects muscle is of increasing importance to the community as the number of older persons in the population continues to escalate and the age of retirement increases. Old muscles are slower and weaker than young muscles, and are more easily injured. This proposal is focussed on developing safe therapies to prevent or reverse these age-related effects. Making old musc ....Modulating the molecular and cellular physiology of ageing skeletal muscle. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of how ageing affects muscle is of increasing importance to the community as the number of older persons in the population continues to escalate and the age of retirement increases. Old muscles are slower and weaker than young muscles, and are more easily injured. This proposal is focussed on developing safe therapies to prevent or reverse these age-related effects. Making old muscles young again, is a research strategy that will promote healthy ageing and enable older Australians to enjoy a better quality of life.Read moreRead less
Microdialysis for monitoring changes in microvascular flow patterns in muscle. Microdialysis is a technique for sampling interstitial fluid. Factors altering vascular delivery and removal of nutrients and hormones can affect muscle metabolism by altering exchange with the interstitium. This project focuses on microdialysis for assessing the impact of microvascular blood flow patterns on skeletal muscle metabolism and contractility. The aim is to develop and refine the technology, including equat ....Microdialysis for monitoring changes in microvascular flow patterns in muscle. Microdialysis is a technique for sampling interstitial fluid. Factors altering vascular delivery and removal of nutrients and hormones can affect muscle metabolism by altering exchange with the interstitium. This project focuses on microdialysis for assessing the impact of microvascular blood flow patterns on skeletal muscle metabolism and contractility. The aim is to develop and refine the technology, including equations, specifically for monitoring the nutritive fraction of blood flow in muscle by agents and factors relating to health and disease. This technique could be used for screening drugs in the treatment of diseases such as type 2 diabetes and related conditions.Read moreRead less
Estrogen signalling in gonadotropes. Estrogen action is a normal prerequisite for cyclic function of reproduction in the female, but little is known about how this important hormone acts in the relevant cells of the pituitary gland (gonadotropes). In order to gain information on normal function, we will conduct studies on gonadotropes treated with estrogen in a range of paradigms. The information will be valuable in understanding normal reproduction, but will also form the basis of further studi ....Estrogen signalling in gonadotropes. Estrogen action is a normal prerequisite for cyclic function of reproduction in the female, but little is known about how this important hormone acts in the relevant cells of the pituitary gland (gonadotropes). In order to gain information on normal function, we will conduct studies on gonadotropes treated with estrogen in a range of paradigms. The information will be valuable in understanding normal reproduction, but will also form the basis of further studies to investigate the effects of drugs that affect estrogen action and environmental estrogens. Read moreRead less