We will investigate malaria, a parasitic disease that kills over 2 million people a year. We will explore how the parasite identifies, invades and remodels the host cells in which it lives, scavenging nutrients and hiding from the immune system. We will characterize the proteins involved in these critical events, as they are potential targets for drugs and vaccines. We will study how parasites cause disease and how the host responds to infection.
Recombinant Bacteria Expressing Oligosaccharide Receptor Mimics For Prevention Of Enteric Infections
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$451,056.00
Summary
Gastrointestinal infectious diseases kill more than 3 million people each year. The principal microbial pathogens responsible for these infections are known to exploit oligosaccharides on the surface of host cells as receptors for ahesins or toxins. We have developed (and patented) a novel anti-infective strategy, based on mimicry of oligosaccharide receptors for toxins and adhesins produced by enteric pathogens on the surface of harmless carrier bacteria. Oral administration of such recombinant ....Gastrointestinal infectious diseases kill more than 3 million people each year. The principal microbial pathogens responsible for these infections are known to exploit oligosaccharides on the surface of host cells as receptors for ahesins or toxins. We have developed (and patented) a novel anti-infective strategy, based on mimicry of oligosaccharide receptors for toxins and adhesins produced by enteric pathogens on the surface of harmless carrier bacteria. Oral administration of such recombinant probiotics has the potential to prevent enteric infections by binding and neutralizing toxins in the gut lumen and by blocking adherence of the pathogen to intestinal epithelial cells. As a prototypic example, we have developed a bacterium capable of preventing the serious consequences of Shiga toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) infections; this agent binds Shiga toxin with very high efficiency and is 100% protective in animal models. The strategy has very broad applications, however, and receptors for virtually any pathogen can be mimicked by expression of appropriate glycosyl transferases in a suitable harmless host bacterium. This proposal involves extension of our existing work to develop therapeutic agents for other important life threatening diarrhoeal diseases including cholera, travellers' diarrhoea, dysentery, antibiotic-associated colitis, rotavirus, etc.Read moreRead less
Structural Basis For Helicobacter Pylori Adhesion To Host Epithelial Cells
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$665,328.00
Summary
The aim of this grant is to understand how the bacteria that cause gastric cancer and ulcers interact with the cells that line the stomach. This information will be used to develop new treatments to combat disease.
Halting The Spread Multidrug Resistant Uropathogenic E. Coli
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$687,975.00
Summary
Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is a major cause of urinary tract infection (UTI) and increasingly associated with resistance to multiple antibiotics. This project will study the virulence of multidrug resistant UPEC and use this knowledge to develop new approaches to treat and prevent UTI. The outcomes will be applicable to one of the most common infectious diseases of humans and have broad-reaching impact on our understanding of other infections caused by Gram-negative pathogens.
The Current Multidrug Resistant Escherichia Coli Pandemic: Exploring Novel Therapies Against The Predominant Culprit E. Coli ST131.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$512,223.00
Summary
Escherichia coli ST131 is a pandemic superbug. Like MRSA, E. coli ST131 infections are resistant to multiple antibiotics and can become life threatening. This study will show how adhesion can be the 'Achilles' heel' of this global pathogen and how blocking E. coli ST131 adhesion offers an alternative therapy for multidrug resistant human infections. As we are left with no effective antimicrobials to treat E. coli ST131 infections, this work will provide novel outcomes that are sorely needed.