Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0775529
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$300,000.00
Summary
Structural elucidation by chemical degradation mass spectrometry using a linear ion trap with electron transfer dissociation. The mass spectrometric instrumentation that we plan to acquire represents a true breakthrough in technology, and will be the first of its kind in operation in Australia. The instrument to be purchased will improve the ability of a wide cross section of researchers to characterize compounds important in fields as varied as medical research, agricultural biotechnology, and ....Structural elucidation by chemical degradation mass spectrometry using a linear ion trap with electron transfer dissociation. The mass spectrometric instrumentation that we plan to acquire represents a true breakthrough in technology, and will be the first of its kind in operation in Australia. The instrument to be purchased will improve the ability of a wide cross section of researchers to characterize compounds important in fields as varied as medical research, agricultural biotechnology, and natural product characterization. All types of chemical research, from fundamental to applied, will benefit from access to this system, which has clearly positive implications with regard to societal impact. Implementing this type of frontier technology is an essential step in maintaining the world class capabilities of the Australian research community.Read moreRead less
Mechanistic studies on the oxidation of amino acids, peptides and proteins and its biological consequences. Exposure of amino acids and proteins to radicals, oxidants, UV light, and metal ions results in oxidation, with consequent alteration to protein structure and function. It has been shown that these reactions occur during food spoilage, exposure of plants to excess UV light, and in a number of human diseases (e.g. heart disease and cancer). Despite evidence for a key role for protein oxidat ....Mechanistic studies on the oxidation of amino acids, peptides and proteins and its biological consequences. Exposure of amino acids and proteins to radicals, oxidants, UV light, and metal ions results in oxidation, with consequent alteration to protein structure and function. It has been shown that these reactions occur during food spoilage, exposure of plants to excess UV light, and in a number of human diseases (e.g. heart disease and cancer). Despite evidence for a key role for protein oxidation in these events, the fundamental chemistry and biochemistry of protein oxidation is incompletely understood. This is addressed in this project. Knowledge of the mechanisms of these reactions is a vital pre-requisite to the rational design of preventative strategies that might enhance food quality, minimise UV damage and enhance human health.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0561041
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$347,358.00
Summary
A New Generation Biosensor and Fluorescence Facility for Proteomics. The complete DNA sequence (the genome) is now known for many organisms and advances are being made to identify the complement of messenger RNA (the transcriptome) and the resultant collection of proteins (the proteome). The genome is largely fixed while the transcriptome and proteome differ between cell types in an organism and constantly vary to adapt the cell to changing conditions. The mediators of these variations are prote ....A New Generation Biosensor and Fluorescence Facility for Proteomics. The complete DNA sequence (the genome) is now known for many organisms and advances are being made to identify the complement of messenger RNA (the transcriptome) and the resultant collection of proteins (the proteome). The genome is largely fixed while the transcriptome and proteome differ between cell types in an organism and constantly vary to adapt the cell to changing conditions. The mediators of these variations are proteins, interacting with each other and with signal molecules. The next frontier in molecular biology is to identify and quantify these protein interactions. Our two institutions have a very large cohort of biologists whose research on proteins would be greatly facilitated by the Biacore 3000 and the ISS K2.Read moreRead less
O-GlcNAc-phosphorylation: a novel post-translational modification regulating vesicle recycling. We will determine a biological role for our discovery of a hybrid protein modification (both carbohydrate and phosphate) on a brain protein that is involved in nerve cell communication. If this modification is more widespread, then we will have discovered a new level of cellular regulation. This discovery is likely to have a broad benefit. It will advance the understanding of carbohydrate and phosphat ....O-GlcNAc-phosphorylation: a novel post-translational modification regulating vesicle recycling. We will determine a biological role for our discovery of a hybrid protein modification (both carbohydrate and phosphate) on a brain protein that is involved in nerve cell communication. If this modification is more widespread, then we will have discovered a new level of cellular regulation. This discovery is likely to have a broad benefit. It will advance the understanding of carbohydrate and phosphate modified proteins. For example, there may be consequences for the model of hyperphosphorylated and carbohydrate modified proteins involved in neurodegeneration. There will also be a targeted benefit. An improved understanding of the mechanism of neurotransmission will benefit in designing compounds to fight diseases of neurotransmission.Read moreRead less
Functional Dissection of the Bacterial Replisome. We now have the complete sequences of genes in humans and many other organisms, but we know much less about how the protein products of the genes communicate with each other to create and grow cells. Australia has recently invested heavily in state-of-the-art instruments that can be used to tackle these problems. This project will involve close interaction of four laboratories to use new instruments to determine how a large assembly of proteins i ....Functional Dissection of the Bacterial Replisome. We now have the complete sequences of genes in humans and many other organisms, but we know much less about how the protein products of the genes communicate with each other to create and grow cells. Australia has recently invested heavily in state-of-the-art instruments that can be used to tackle these problems. This project will involve close interaction of four laboratories to use new instruments to determine how a large assembly of proteins interact in a biological machine that makes DNA. This process occurs in similar ways in all organisms, and is essential for life. Understanding how DNA is made will help scientists to develop new antibacterial drugs, and learn how to make practical use of molecular machines that imitate biology.Read moreRead less
Mapping Protein Contacts and Conformational Changes in Macromolecular Assemblies. We now have a great deal of information about the structures of proteins that interact to do much of the chemistry that governs the lives of cells and organisms, but are just beginning to understand how proteins communicate with each other in the large, dynamic molecular machines that carry out many cellular functions. Australia has invested in expensive instrumentation that can be used in conjunction with new labo ....Mapping Protein Contacts and Conformational Changes in Macromolecular Assemblies. We now have a great deal of information about the structures of proteins that interact to do much of the chemistry that governs the lives of cells and organisms, but are just beginning to understand how proteins communicate with each other in the large, dynamic molecular machines that carry out many cellular functions. Australia has invested in expensive instrumentation that can be used in conjunction with new laboratory methods to develop better understanding of how these machines work, and how they malfunction in disease. This project will bring together four scientists with a unique combination of expertise and novel technologies to develop understanding of changes in structure of a large protein complex in different functional states.Read moreRead less
Molecular Interactions in the Eubacterial Replisome: A Paradigm for Study of Dynamic Macromolecular Machines. Many pathogenic bacteria have developed resistance to antibiotics in common use, and new drugs are urgently required to kill them. Copying of their chromosomes before they divide into two new cells is essential for bacteria to live, so DNA synthesis is a good process to target for development of new antibiotics. This project will use state-of-the-art equipment available in several labora ....Molecular Interactions in the Eubacterial Replisome: A Paradigm for Study of Dynamic Macromolecular Machines. Many pathogenic bacteria have developed resistance to antibiotics in common use, and new drugs are urgently required to kill them. Copying of their chromosomes before they divide into two new cells is essential for bacteria to live, so DNA synthesis is a good process to target for development of new antibiotics. This project will use state-of-the-art equipment available in several laboratories in Australia and overseas to develop new understanding of how the molecular machine that copies DNA works. This k nowledge could lead to new drugs, and will give us new information about how cellular machines function.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0214135
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$492,000.00
Summary
High performance protein crystallography. This proposal will provide state of the art high performance facilities for protein crystallography, bringing together the major structural biology groups in NSW and the ACT. A renewed focus on protein crystal structures will stimulate new interpretation and utilization of the vast amount of data that has come from genomics, especially the sequencing of the human genome. The proposed facility will generate new research collaborations between the partn ....High performance protein crystallography. This proposal will provide state of the art high performance facilities for protein crystallography, bringing together the major structural biology groups in NSW and the ACT. A renewed focus on protein crystal structures will stimulate new interpretation and utilization of the vast amount of data that has come from genomics, especially the sequencing of the human genome. The proposed facility will generate new research collaborations between the partner institutions which will result in advances in basic life sciences, biotechnology and biopharmaceuticals. The facility will complement regional initiatives in functional genomics, bioinformatics, proteomics and high-field NMR spectroscopy.Read moreRead less
Fragment Based Screening for new Antibiotics by Protein X-Ray Crystallography. Due in part to rising levels of antibiotic resistance, the death toll from pathogenic bacteria is expected to skyrocket over the next 15 years. There is therefore a pressing need for new antibiotics to treat bacterial infection. This project will use a relatively new discovery tool called fragment based screening to discover a new generation of antibacterial agents. This tool will allow for the rapid economical discov ....Fragment Based Screening for new Antibiotics by Protein X-Ray Crystallography. Due in part to rising levels of antibiotic resistance, the death toll from pathogenic bacteria is expected to skyrocket over the next 15 years. There is therefore a pressing need for new antibiotics to treat bacterial infection. This project will use a relatively new discovery tool called fragment based screening to discover a new generation of antibacterial agents. This tool will allow for the rapid economical discovery of new drugs, and will complement other investments in Australian biotechnology infrastructure.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0668382
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,000,000.00
Summary
e-Research Infrastructure for the Molecular and Materials Structure Sciences. Understanding molecular and materials structure in atomic detail is vital to a knowledge-based economy and a healthy society. The development of smart materials, nanotechnological devices, hydrogen storage materials, molecular switches, magnets and sensors, for example, depends on knowledge of three-dimensional atomic structure. Cures for illnesses such as SARS, AIDS and Alzheimer's disease and understanding the aging ....e-Research Infrastructure for the Molecular and Materials Structure Sciences. Understanding molecular and materials structure in atomic detail is vital to a knowledge-based economy and a healthy society. The development of smart materials, nanotechnological devices, hydrogen storage materials, molecular switches, magnets and sensors, for example, depends on knowledge of three-dimensional atomic structure. Cures for illnesses such as SARS, AIDS and Alzheimer's disease and understanding the aging process depends on knowledge of biomolecular structure. The deployment and development of automation-enhanced remote access to structural instruments through the web will greatly enhance Australian structure-based research, and make this science accessible to the public. Read moreRead less