We aim to grow body tissues for surgery, including heart muscle, liver and pancreatic islets (for diabetes) and will investigate using stem cells to repair the brain after stroke. We will attempt to boost the expansion of blood vessels in growing tissues using molecular tools we have found crucial for cell signaling. In growing heart tissues and in stroke we will improve drugs that might boost the potential of stem cells to regenerate damaged tissues
The L-type Calcium Channel In Cardiovascular Health And Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$631,370.00
Summary
Calcium influx into cardiac muscle cells occurs via the L-type calcium channel. The channel is essential to life but when function is altered it can contribute to the development of sudden death and heart failure. I have made significant discoveries in understanding the role of the channel in disease and I have exploited this knowledge to design therapy including a novel class of calcium channel antagonists to prevent the development of heart failure.
Identifying And Developing Novel Therapeutic Approaches For Heart Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$638,517.00
Summary
Increasing rates of obesity, diabetes, and an ageing population increase the risk of heart disease & complications including heart failure (HF), atrial fibrillation (AF), and diabetic heart disease. There is a clinical need for i) improved therapies for patients with HF, AF, and diabetic heart, and ii) biomarkers which more effectively recognise people at risk of heart disease, to prevent clinical events. My research program is designed to develop novel therapies and identify new biomarkers.
Characterising The Effects Of Oxidative Stress On The Human L-type Ca2+ Channel Isoforms And Role In Human Pathology
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$250,805.00
Summary
Oxidative stress, poor energy production and increases in intracellular calcium are features of the failing heart. I have determined that the function of the L-type calcium channel, the primary protein responsible for calcium influx and contraction can be regulated by free radicals produced by the mitochondria (powerhouse of the cell). This proposal will determine the site of modification on the human L-type calcium channel and how communication between the channel and the mitochondria is altere ....Oxidative stress, poor energy production and increases in intracellular calcium are features of the failing heart. I have determined that the function of the L-type calcium channel, the primary protein responsible for calcium influx and contraction can be regulated by free radicals produced by the mitochondria (powerhouse of the cell). This proposal will determine the site of modification on the human L-type calcium channel and how communication between the channel and the mitochondria is altered in animal models of human disease.Read moreRead less
This fellowship support will allow A/Prof Xiao-Jun DU to pursue his recent pre-clinical research findings on novel therapeutic interventions for cardiovascular diseases. He will particularly focus on new treatment of accumulation of excessive scar tissues (fibrosis) in the heart and large arteries following disease and cardiac inflammation, factors knowing to play pivotal roles in progression of cardiovascular diseases.
System-based Approaches To Inform The Design Of Immunotherapies And Immunodiagnostics Against Chronic Pathogens
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$849,540.00
Summary
Chronic infectious diseases such as malaria are responsible for an enormous public health burden worldwide. New approaches to develop effective interventions against such pathogens are urgently required. Over the next 5 years, I will use innovative genome-based and systems-levels approaches to discover novel pathogen antigens and host immune pathways that underlie protective immunity, immunomodulatory pathways that can be then targeted for intervention, and biomarkers of immunity or disease.
Improving The Prevention, Treatment And Management Of Cardiovascular & Chronic Disease In The Community
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$774,540.00
Summary
The identification, prevention and management of cardiovascular and chronic disease risk factors and understanding impact on clinical outcomes is fundamental to improving health and well-being. The program of work encapsulated in this application utilises modern epidemiological research methods involving large scale clinical trials, registries and epidemiological modelling to advance our understanding and provide new directions for cardiovascular disease prevention and management.
Sudden Cardiac Arrest: Improving Detection Of Patients At Risk
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$838,845.00
Summary
Sudden cardiac death accounts for ~10% of deaths in our community. Many of these deaths occur in people who could otherwise have had many more years of productive life ahead of them. The aim of our research is to determine the underlying mechanisms so that we can develop better tools for detecting underlying problems before they become life threatening and potentially develop new treatments to modify the underlying causes.
The development of protective immunity is essential to fight infection. This depends on a small number of master regulatory transcription factors that drive the differentiation of precursor cells into mature immune cells such as NK, T and dendritic cells. This proposal will provide a fundamental advance in our understanding of immune cells and impact strategies aimed at the prevention and treatment of pathogen infections.
Delineating Immune Circuits For Innate And Adaptive Immune Protection
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$876,005.00
Summary
The immune system provides the essential frame-work to protect us against infection, disease and to heal tissues after trauma. This is achieved by a complex but elegant network of different types of white blood cells. Understanding the molecular wiring of these cells will provides fundamental insights to how the body fights pathogen infections and cancer and lays the foundation to therapeutic approaches to vaccination and disease treatments.