Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100607
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$400,877.00
Summary
Hidden in the margins: the lives and trajectories of young carers. This project aims to examine the social, educational, economic and health-related experiences of young informal carers. One of the most unrecognised groups in Australian society, young carers are likely to experience enduring effects of their caring role across many domains. This project is particularly critical in light of the NDIS roll-out. It expects to improve understanding of young carers by developing and applying innovativ ....Hidden in the margins: the lives and trajectories of young carers. This project aims to examine the social, educational, economic and health-related experiences of young informal carers. One of the most unrecognised groups in Australian society, young carers are likely to experience enduring effects of their caring role across many domains. This project is particularly critical in light of the NDIS roll-out. It expects to improve understanding of young carers by developing and applying innovative analytic models that will lead to quantification of the determinants and consequences of being a young carer in Australia. This will identify ways to best support young carers, and in doing so, will inform the implementation of programs and policies that will deliver significant benefits to young carers. Read moreRead less
Caring for older parents: Investigating the role of attachment security. The project aims to investigate the relationship between child–parent bonds and care for older parents. Children of older parents provide extensive and often unrecognised care to thousands of Australians, and many report excessive burden. The project aims to investigate how attachment bonds between adult children and older parents influence the parental care provided by children in later life, the carer burden and parents’ ....Caring for older parents: Investigating the role of attachment security. The project aims to investigate the relationship between child–parent bonds and care for older parents. Children of older parents provide extensive and often unrecognised care to thousands of Australians, and many report excessive burden. The project aims to investigate how attachment bonds between adult children and older parents influence the parental care provided by children in later life, the carer burden and parents’ satisfaction with care; and the effects of enhancing carers’ attachment security on caregiving interactions and carer burden. This project is expected to provide insights into strategies to strengthen family bonds and services required to support caregivers and care recipients and improve the sustainability of aged care in the community.Read moreRead less
THE EFFECT OF STRESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENRICHMENT ON DISEASE PROGRESSION IN MESIAL TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$578,201.00
Summary
Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy, the most common form of drug-resistant epilepsy in adults, is a progressive neurodegenerative condition for which there is currently no effective disease modifying treatment. This proposal will explore whether co-morbid stress accelerates disease progression in MTLE, and whether targeting stress pathways by medical and environmental manipulations can mitigate against this.
C-Jun N-terminal Kinase Actions In The Response To Stress
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$480,127.00
Summary
All cells in our body sense and respond to stressful changes in our environment. We are focused on enzymes called JNKs that relay this information, and so form part of the key response pathways. JNKs are now being evaluated as new drug targets for the treatment of diseases including diabetes and stroke, but we know very little about how JNKs work in stressed cells. We will define new partners for the JNKs and in so doing reveal new information on the stress-activated events they regulate.
Mitochondrial Damage Following Fetal Hypoxia Or Birth Asphyxia: Using Creatine To Preserve Mitochondrial Function
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$838,726.00
Summary
There is a need for a therapy that can be given before a mother gives birth to protect the baby should ‘oxygen starvation’ threaten the baby’s brain and other organs such as the heart, kidney, lungs, and the ability to breathe properly. We are suggesting that an increased intake of creatine is a very effective treatment against this threat, and its proven safety and ease of use recommends it for wide application, particularly in countries where the access to medical resources is poor.
Stress-induced Genomic Instability As A Driver Of Adaptive Responses In Human Cancer Cells
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$690,426.00
Summary
Growing experimental evidence suggests human cancer cells use evolutionary conserved programs to regulate their mutation rates in response to pharmacological agents, accelerating adaptation and the emergence of resistance. The purpose of our study is to identify the common molecular pathways and genetic mechanisms driving the regulation of mutation rates. Targeting of these pathways using a new generation of “anti-evolution” drugs is an attractive possibility for novel therapeutic approaches.
The Role Of Presenilin In Metal Homeostasis And Alzheimers Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$86,335.00
Summary
Presenilin, a protein involved in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), may regulate copper and zinc levels. Copper and zinc are essential nutrients however a deficiency or excess can cause disease. Promising metal-altering AD drugs, are in various stages of clinical trial. I aim to characterize the interaction of Presenilin and metals using both mouse and cultured human cell models that are deficient in Presenilin. Understanding this interaction should lead to better drug design and treatment of AD.
Healing The Past By Nurturing The Future: Learning How To Identify And Support Indigenous Parents Who Have Experienced Complex Childhood Trauma
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,193,719.00
Summary
Complex childhood trauma causes profound and long-lasting effects on physical, social and emotional wellbeing, which can be triggered during the transition to parenthood and impede the capacity of parents to nurture their children. The transition offers a unique opportunity for healing and preventing intergenerational transmission of trauma. This project co-designs and evaluates acceptability and feasibility of screening and support for Indigenous parents experiencing complex trauma.
Norovirus Infection At The Stress Granule-PKR-p-elF2α Axis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$505,967.00
Summary
This project application will aim to investigate and understand how viruses that cause vomiting and diarrhoea are able to infect, proliferate and spread within the human body. It aims to address how viruses are able to avoid and replicate in the presence of an effective immune response. We have evidence showing that Noroviruses are able to exploit certain antiviral proteins to paradoxically aid in virus replication and survival.