Proteomic and Transcriptional Profiling of Cartilage. Gene expression and signalling pathways that regulate cartilage formation, and its orderly transition to bone, are poorly described. Our studies will, for the first time, combine two complementary cutting-edge approaches, protein identification by proteomic analysis, and mRNA profiling by microarray analysis, to define these pathways and develop a comprehensive catalogue of proteins and gene expression patterns during cartilage development a ....Proteomic and Transcriptional Profiling of Cartilage. Gene expression and signalling pathways that regulate cartilage formation, and its orderly transition to bone, are poorly described. Our studies will, for the first time, combine two complementary cutting-edge approaches, protein identification by proteomic analysis, and mRNA profiling by microarray analysis, to define these pathways and develop a comprehensive catalogue of proteins and gene expression patterns during cartilage development and bone formation. This information will provide insight into the regulation of cartilage differentiation, maturation and structure, and will provide a critical platform for the development of more sophisticated cartilage and bone biomaterials for improved tissue repair and regeneration.Read moreRead less
Molecular mechanisms of stem cell self-renewal. Muscle growth and regeneration is critically dependent on its stem cell compartment. We have discovered that the p38 MAPK pathway is essential for stem cell self-renewal in the C2C12 myogenic cell line. This proposal seeks to understand the molecular basis of stem cell self-renewal in skeletal muscles, data that may be applicable to many stem cell systems, and to the enormous promise of stem cell therapies for injury and diseases of the aged. We wi ....Molecular mechanisms of stem cell self-renewal. Muscle growth and regeneration is critically dependent on its stem cell compartment. We have discovered that the p38 MAPK pathway is essential for stem cell self-renewal in the C2C12 myogenic cell line. This proposal seeks to understand the molecular basis of stem cell self-renewal in skeletal muscles, data that may be applicable to many stem cell systems, and to the enormous promise of stem cell therapies for injury and diseases of the aged. We will attempt to alter the balance of stem cell production by enforced p38 expression, and take microarray and proteomics approaches to define stem cell pathways.Read moreRead less
Regulation of mammalian heart development by transcription factors FHL2, GATA-4 & FOG-2. FHL2 is involved in many biological processes including intracellular signaling and gene transcription. GATA and FOG proteins are critical for the development of diverse tissues, including the heart. Knowledge gained in this project will advance our understanding of many cellular processes, including heart development, and will contribute to our knowledge in Biology, Zoology and Veterinary Science. More spe ....Regulation of mammalian heart development by transcription factors FHL2, GATA-4 & FOG-2. FHL2 is involved in many biological processes including intracellular signaling and gene transcription. GATA and FOG proteins are critical for the development of diverse tissues, including the heart. Knowledge gained in this project will advance our understanding of many cellular processes, including heart development, and will contribute to our knowledge in Biology, Zoology and Veterinary Science. More specifically, it will contribute to Stem Cell research, a 'hot' area in the biotechnology industry, particularly towards building a strong base of expertise, skills and technological capability in this new field, and may even lead to the development of a commercial product e.g. a heart muscle cell-coated biomaterial to aid failing heart.Read moreRead less