The development of vaccines and better treatments for HIV-AIDS and Hepatitis C are urgent global health priorities. This Program will undertake studies to better understand effective immunity against HIV and hepatitis C, allowing the rational design and testing of novel vaccines and treatments. The Program brings together a team of researchers with skills in basic virology and immunology with those providing expertise in translating findings in the laboratory into human clinical trials.
MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR PATHOGENESIS OF HUMAN LIVER DISEASE
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$4,928,323.00
Summary
n humans, chronic liver diseases cause cirrhosis of the liver in some but not all individuals. This leads to protracted ill-health, complications (fluid retention in the abdomen, confusion, bloodstream infections, kidney failure, liver cancer) resulting in hospitalisation, liver transplantation and premature death. In Australia, cirrhosis is an important cause of death and of years of potential life lost, while liver cancer has recently doubled and is predicted to treble by 2020. The common caus ....n humans, chronic liver diseases cause cirrhosis of the liver in some but not all individuals. This leads to protracted ill-health, complications (fluid retention in the abdomen, confusion, bloodstream infections, kidney failure, liver cancer) resulting in hospitalisation, liver transplantation and premature death. In Australia, cirrhosis is an important cause of death and of years of potential life lost, while liver cancer has recently doubled and is predicted to treble by 2020. The common causes are hepatitis C, fatty liver disorders, alcohol and hepatitis B; when 2 of these are present together, there is a higher risk of cirrhosis. This program aims to unravel the pathological processes which cause cirrhosis at the molecular and cellular levels, in order to understand why some people are at higher risk. These processes could result from genetic predisposition, other constitutional factors (age, gender) or from lifestyle factors (overnutrition, inactivity, alcohol). The 3 chief investigators from Westmead s Millennium Institute and the Centenary Institute of Royal Prince Alfred Hospital are international experts in hepatitis C, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and other fatty liver disorders, autoimmune hepatitis, liver transplantation, and scarring processes that lead to cirrhosis of the liver. The new knowledge that will result from these studies will be used to help prevent people developing severe forms of chronic liver disease, and for treating cirrhosis if it has already occurred.Read moreRead less
Interactions Between Adaptable Pathogens, Drugs And The Human Host
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$5,727,327.00
Summary
The Centre for Clinical Immunology and Biomedical Statistics (CCIBS) represents a collaboration between Royal Perth Hospital and Murdoch University that has brought together internationally recognised expertise in clinical immunology, experimental biology and innovation in biostatistics and computing. These resources have been applied to a broad range of research issues within the broad framework of HIV and hepatitis C disease and treatment. CCIBS has become a leading centre of research excellen ....The Centre for Clinical Immunology and Biomedical Statistics (CCIBS) represents a collaboration between Royal Perth Hospital and Murdoch University that has brought together internationally recognised expertise in clinical immunology, experimental biology and innovation in biostatistics and computing. These resources have been applied to a broad range of research issues within the broad framework of HIV and hepatitis C disease and treatment. CCIBS has become a leading centre of research excellence internationally, establishing a reputation for innovative approaches to host-viral interactions that are built on a long tradition of research into the population genetics of both human and viral genomes, combined with a willingness to negotiate complex computation and statistical challenges in order to faithfully reflect dynamic biological processes at a population level. An early recognition that large and integrated repositories of genetic and clinical data are fundamental to the research success in the genomic era has also led to the creation of the single most comprehensive repository of HIV genetic sequencing data in the world. The contributions that CCIBS has made to several distinct areas of research, including understanding viral adaptation to host immune responses, the development of genetic testing to predict drug hypersensitivity reactions, and causes of antiretroviral drug-associated toxicities, have been published in prestigious journals including Science, Nature, Nature Immunology, The Lancet, Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, and The American Journal of Human Genetics, and have also resulted in numerous international collaborations that recognise the unique attributes that CCIBS has been able to bring to the global research effort aimed at understanding fundamental aspects of HIV and hepatitis C biology and treatment.Read moreRead less
Immunological Therapies For Cancer, Chronic Infection And Autoimmunity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,891,788.00
Summary
The team comprises five leading scientists with a history of successful investigation into the role of the immune system in cancers, chronic viral infections, and autoimmune diseases. There is a large unmet need for effective solutions with fewer side effects in these diseases which cause a high disease burden in our society. In this program, we particularly seek to develop novel vaccines for chronic infections and autoimmune diseases, and to improve the safety of bone marrow transplantation.
Control Of Proteases In Infectious, Degenerative And Cardiovascular Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$11,668,789.00
Summary
Proteases are enzymes that control key processes in humans. The research in this program will result in major discoveries in the field of proteases and their inhibitors, with a focus on inflammatory, cardiovascular and degenerative disease. The knowledge gained from this strong foundation of fundamental research will underpin the translational outcomes necessary to combat the debilitating effects of immunological dysfunction, conformational and cardiovascular disease.
Health Outcomes Monitoring And Evaluation: Learning About Activity, Nutrition, Diet And Social Factors
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$7,486,989.00
Summary
Diabetes, Heart and Kidney disease occur in epidemic proportions among Indigenous Australians. Of particular concerns is the early age of onset of conditions that are to disease of older adulthood in the broader Australian community. While these chronic diseases are known to cause premature death and suffering in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, there are gaps in our knowledge. For example, we know very little about how these conditionsdevelop over time in different populations ....Diabetes, Heart and Kidney disease occur in epidemic proportions among Indigenous Australians. Of particular concerns is the early age of onset of conditions that are to disease of older adulthood in the broader Australian community. While these chronic diseases are known to cause premature death and suffering in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, there are gaps in our knowledge. For example, we know very little about how these conditionsdevelop over time in different populations. Probably the greatest knowledge gap is the area of effective intervention - both to prevent to prevent diabetes, kidney and heart disease in young people, and to treat existing cases effectivly. The main goal of this program is to bring together a multi skilled team of researchers to better understand the development of these chronic disease across the lifespan ( including differences between different populations), and to guuide the development of diet, lifestyle, and clinical interventions. Such interventions need to be simple, effective, acceptable to Indigenous people and able to be sustained over the long term. All interventions will be rigorously evaluated. The results will inform policies in ares such as quality and affordability of the food supply in remote communnities; infrastructure to promote physical activity; and provision of high quality primary health care focussing on early intervention and care of people at risk of chronic disease.Read moreRead less
Pathogenesis Of Persistent Human Virus Infections Of Global Significance
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$6,571,328.00
Summary
The study will investigate why humans cannot eradicate particular viruses (HIV-AIDS, cytomegalovirus and herpes simplex virus), the long term effects of these viruses and ways to improve control. Current treatments can only partly suppress the levels of these viruses, because they persist in certain parts of the body called reservoirs, only to resurge later causing disease. Thus, the overall aim of the research program is to discover the mechanisms by which these viruses are able to successfully ....The study will investigate why humans cannot eradicate particular viruses (HIV-AIDS, cytomegalovirus and herpes simplex virus), the long term effects of these viruses and ways to improve control. Current treatments can only partly suppress the levels of these viruses, because they persist in certain parts of the body called reservoirs, only to resurge later causing disease. Thus, the overall aim of the research program is to discover the mechanisms by which these viruses are able to successfully persist within reservoirs in the human body. The research program brings together a group of 6 leading scientists and clinicians located at 3 sites in 2 Australian cities. The team is comprised of experts in the study of HIV-AIDS, cytomegalovirus and herpes simplex virus who will combine their knowledge and expertise to speed up the process of research on these viruses that are of major health importance. Studies will also utilise a number of cutting edge technologies that now make it possible to much more rapidly and precisely determine how viruses cause disease. Advances in our understanding of how viruses persist may form the basis for treatments aimed at controlling persistent infections and the serious diseases caused by these viruses.Read moreRead less
Novel Therapeutic Strategies To Reduce The Burden Of Chronic Heart Failure
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$4,928,323.00
Summary
The broad aims of the Program are to develop novel strategies in the prevention and treatment of chronic heart failure. This will involve investigating new targets for pharmacological therapies, evaluating whether common co-morbid disease states such as diabetes alter the efficacy of these therapies and investigating the role of stem-cell therapy in this setting. The Program will also evaluate the contribution of non-heart failure drugs to the burden of heart failure, determine the impact of rur ....The broad aims of the Program are to develop novel strategies in the prevention and treatment of chronic heart failure. This will involve investigating new targets for pharmacological therapies, evaluating whether common co-morbid disease states such as diabetes alter the efficacy of these therapies and investigating the role of stem-cell therapy in this setting. The Program will also evaluate the contribution of non-heart failure drugs to the burden of heart failure, determine the impact of rurality on prescribing for this condition and explore systems of optimising delivery of best practice to the community. This research formalises the existing collaborative efforts of a team of investigators that span all aspects of research into the therapeutics of CHF from basic laboratory research to evaluation of patients in clinical trials and public health translational aspects of this condition. The Chief Investigators and Principal Investigators have an existing successful research collaboration which will be greatly expanded via Program.Read moreRead less
A major obstacle to the development of safer and more effective pain treatments is the poorly defined nature of the different pathways involved in chronic pain. The applicant team bring together a unique set of research expertise in using neurotoxins to define, at the molecular level, how the nervous system functions. The applicants also share a common interest in understanding and improving treatments for pain, especially chronic pain which continues to remain poorly managed Through a focus on ....A major obstacle to the development of safer and more effective pain treatments is the poorly defined nature of the different pathways involved in chronic pain. The applicant team bring together a unique set of research expertise in using neurotoxins to define, at the molecular level, how the nervous system functions. The applicants also share a common interest in understanding and improving treatments for pain, especially chronic pain which continues to remain poorly managed Through a focus on pain research, the Program will significantly enhance the scope of existing multidisciplinary collaborations between the Cis Lewis Alewood, Adams and Christie, which have already made a considerable impact in the fields of pharmacology and neuroscience. The CIs also have considerable experience in the development of pain therapeutics, having discovered two conopeptides now under commercial development with AMRAD (AM336) and Xenome Ltd (Xen2174). This Program will discover and use highly selective conopeptides such as these to dissect the pharmacology of peripheral pain pathways and their projections into the central nervous system, and to identify and characterise new targets amenable to drug intervention. The long-term goal of the Program is to discover new targets in pain pathways and develop conopeptides that act on these targets in animal models of chronic pain. These molecules will be optimised within the Program to the point where they can be considered for pre-clinical development in collaboration with commercial partners.Read moreRead less