Initiating Events In The Development Of Allergic Airway Inflammation
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$452,545.00
Summary
Despite recent advances we still do not understand the basic mechanisms which underlie the development of allergic airway inflammatory diseases such as rhinitis and asthma. It has been previously shown that when pollen are exposed to water they release a large number of very small starch granules which contain a number of potent allergens as well as plant steroids. In addition house dust mite allergens which are strongly associated with asthma are mostly located in small faecal pellets. Both the ....Despite recent advances we still do not understand the basic mechanisms which underlie the development of allergic airway inflammatory diseases such as rhinitis and asthma. It has been previously shown that when pollen are exposed to water they release a large number of very small starch granules which contain a number of potent allergens as well as plant steroids. In addition house dust mite allergens which are strongly associated with asthma are mostly located in small faecal pellets. Both these particles are ideally sized to enter the respiratory tract and initiate inflammatory responses. We have shown that these responses appear to be of the type that is needed to initiate allergic reactions. We intend to further study the interactions of these small inhaled allergen containing particles with cells of the respiratory tract. In this proposal we will look at both alveolar macrophages and respiratory epithelial cells. These approaches will not only provide new information about the processes of airway inflammation caused by allergens but may also define new therapeutic approaches to the treatment of these diseases.Read moreRead less
Perth Aboriginal Breast Feeding Study: Reasons For Not Breast Feeding And For The Early Cessation Of Breast Feeding.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$207,237.00
Summary
Perth Aboriginal Breast Feeding Study : Reasons for not Breast Feeding and for the Early Cessation of Breast Feeding. Breastfeeding has many advantages for the nutrition and health of infants and mothers. Recent research has shown the importance of longitudinal studies of breast feeding and the importance of family support systems, especially the attitude of the baby's father. In urban Aboriginal families the rate of breast feeding is lower and the duration is shorter than for those living in ru ....Perth Aboriginal Breast Feeding Study : Reasons for not Breast Feeding and for the Early Cessation of Breast Feeding. Breastfeeding has many advantages for the nutrition and health of infants and mothers. Recent research has shown the importance of longitudinal studies of breast feeding and the importance of family support systems, especially the attitude of the baby's father. In urban Aboriginal families the rate of breast feeding is lower and the duration is shorter than for those living in rural areas. There have been no longitudinal studies exploring the factors involved in the initiation and the continuation of breast feeding by Aboriginal women. A sample of 440 Aboriginal women will be recruited from Perth maternity hospitals. After an initial interview the women will be followed up at monthly intervals to find out their progress with breast feeding. In addition a number of focus group discussions will explore attitudes of Aboriginal women and men to breast feeding. The outcome of the studies will be information to feed back to the community through Aboriginal organisations. It will provide the basis for specifically targeted health promotion programs to maintain and to improve breast feeding rates in the Aboriginal community.Read moreRead less
Role Of Post-traumatic Hypoxia In The Exacerbation Of Cerebral Inflammatory Response Elicited By Brain Injury
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$397,535.00
Summary
Traumatic brain injury is the major cause of death in the young population below the age of 40 years. Approximately 25% of patients that survive head injury remain with permanent neurological disabilities with considerable family, professional and economic costs. Extensive research has shown that not all brain damage occurs at the time of injury, but rather evolves over the hours and days following trauma. Secondary injury may result from various factors including hypoxia (insufficient oxygen) a ....Traumatic brain injury is the major cause of death in the young population below the age of 40 years. Approximately 25% of patients that survive head injury remain with permanent neurological disabilities with considerable family, professional and economic costs. Extensive research has shown that not all brain damage occurs at the time of injury, but rather evolves over the hours and days following trauma. Secondary injury may result from various factors including hypoxia (insufficient oxygen) as a consequence of respiratory distress that occurs in about 50% of patients with severe head trauma. Hypoxia is known to significantly worsen the neurological impairment and potentially lead to death. Brain injury and hypoxia have the ability to separately trigger cerebral inflammation. A dual role has been attributed to inflammation: to promote tissue repair but also add further damage through the release of neurotoxic substances. We hypothesise that hypoxia occurring after traumatic brain injury enhances the inflammatory response in the brain and aggravate tissue damage as well as neurological dysfunction. This hypothesis will be tested on a rat model of brain injury whereby the animals will be exposed to moderate-severe hypoxia immediately after trauma. The production of multiple inflammatory mediators will be quantified in the brain tissue and also in cerebrospinal fluid. The concentration of these mediators will be compared with the levels of cellular injury proteins known to increase following injury to determine whether a correlation exists. In a clinical study on patients, we will measure the same inflammatory mediators and proteins in the cerebrospinal fluid and blood of individuals with severe head injury. The suitability of these factors for potential use as diagnostic-prognostic markers of either hypoxia or injury will be determined.Read moreRead less
The Effect Of Innate Immune Responses On The Induction Of Protective Immunity In Murine Typhoid Fever
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$136,500.00
Summary
Salmonella are important pathogens of humans causing diseases ranging from gastroenteritis, typhoid fever to arthritis. Like most if not all infections, the early interaction between the host and the bacterium is characterised by very non-specific symptoms. These non-specific symptoms arise because the so-called innate immune system is activated by the infection. The purpose of this grant is to establish whether these non-specific symptoms, caused by the release of immunological homrones called ....Salmonella are important pathogens of humans causing diseases ranging from gastroenteritis, typhoid fever to arthritis. Like most if not all infections, the early interaction between the host and the bacterium is characterised by very non-specific symptoms. These non-specific symptoms arise because the so-called innate immune system is activated by the infection. The purpose of this grant is to establish whether these non-specific symptoms, caused by the release of immunological homrones called cytokines, are essential to the development of an effective immune response which can protect against subsequent re-infection. This study has important implications for vaccines, of our understanding of how bacteria cause disease, and the role-capacity of the innate immune system in the development of immunity.Read moreRead less