Engineer enzyme nanoparticles as antibiotic alternatives for agriculture. Antibiotic usage in agriculture contributes to spread of resistant bacteria. Existing antibiotic alternatives to minimize such usage are focused on growth promotion of animals and infection prevention, but lack efficient treatment. This project aims to engineer enzyme nanoparticles, with synergy from multiple enzymes, to confer better antibacterial abilities against livestock pathogens. It will combine protein engineering, ....Engineer enzyme nanoparticles as antibiotic alternatives for agriculture. Antibiotic usage in agriculture contributes to spread of resistant bacteria. Existing antibiotic alternatives to minimize such usage are focused on growth promotion of animals and infection prevention, but lack efficient treatment. This project aims to engineer enzyme nanoparticles, with synergy from multiple enzymes, to confer better antibacterial abilities against livestock pathogens. It will combine protein engineering, nanotechnology and biophysics to develop new enzyme nanoparticles that can be manufactured at low-cost through self-assembly process. The intended outcome is knowledge on molecular engineering of enzyme nanoparticles and innovative agriculture biotechnology for treatment of bacterial infectious diseases in livestock.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150101518
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$345,000.00
Summary
Cellular responses to nanoparticles from cells on micropatterned surfaces. The mechanisms underlying cell-nanoparticle interactions remain largely unknown. It has hampered the design and development of innovative nano devices to be used for drug delivery, biomarkers and diagnostics. This project aims to explore the influences of cell size, density, geometry, intercellular communication and substrate properties on cell-nanoparticle interactions. A micropatterning technology is applied to precisel ....Cellular responses to nanoparticles from cells on micropatterned surfaces. The mechanisms underlying cell-nanoparticle interactions remain largely unknown. It has hampered the design and development of innovative nano devices to be used for drug delivery, biomarkers and diagnostics. This project aims to explore the influences of cell size, density, geometry, intercellular communication and substrate properties on cell-nanoparticle interactions. A micropatterning technology is applied to precisely control cell behaviour and provide a novel in vitro cellular model for nanoparticle studies. This project aims to significantly improve the understanding of cell-nanoparticle interactions to provide new insight into nanoparticle design and improve the efficacy of nano devices.Read moreRead less
Enabling aerosol delivery of phages to defeat antibiotic-resistant bacteria. This project aims to explore the use of bacteriophages towards producing a safe, natural, and highly effective alternative to traditional antibiotics. Respiratory infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria are a major health problem worldwide, and cost Australia over $150 million annually. Some 5,000 Australians die each year from antibiotic resistant infections. The project aims to produce efficac ....Enabling aerosol delivery of phages to defeat antibiotic-resistant bacteria. This project aims to explore the use of bacteriophages towards producing a safe, natural, and highly effective alternative to traditional antibiotics. Respiratory infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria are a major health problem worldwide, and cost Australia over $150 million annually. Some 5,000 Australians die each year from antibiotic resistant infections. The project aims to produce efficacious and stable formulations of bacteriophages for easy delivery by inhalation as aerosols with a long shelf-life, making them a commercially viable product. The expected research outcome can lead to an economic and efficient technology to produce phage powders for novel treatment strategies of infections by inhalation.Read moreRead less
Production of nano-composite particles for inhalational delivery of combination drugs. The project seeks to create a new particle engineering process for pharmaceuticals. The successful outcome will i) enhance substantially the competitiveness of Australia’s research in functional nanomaterials and advanced biomaterials, and ii) benefit the Australian pharmaceutical industry in developing proprietary pharmaceutical formulations.
Novel nano-composite particles for controlled-release drugs via inhalation. This project will explore a novel nano-medicine technology using nanocrystals in liposomes to design new composite particles to enable optimal release of antibiotics delivered by inhalation. Respiratory infection caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria is a major health problem worldwide. Controlled-release products using liposomes simplify dose regimen and enhance bacterial killing. Currently, aerosolised liposomes are l ....Novel nano-composite particles for controlled-release drugs via inhalation. This project will explore a novel nano-medicine technology using nanocrystals in liposomes to design new composite particles to enable optimal release of antibiotics delivered by inhalation. Respiratory infection caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria is a major health problem worldwide. Controlled-release products using liposomes simplify dose regimen and enhance bacterial killing. Currently, aerosolised liposomes are limited to liquid forms with limited control over release and stability. The project will provide new technology on manufacturing composite powders of antibiotics that may ultimately lead to the development of effective new treatments against drug-resistant bacteria.Read moreRead less
Unlocking the potential of magnetic 2D materials with quantum microscopy. This project aims to create a universal, high-throughput platform to characterise magnetic 2D materials, by exploiting recently developed quantum diamond microscopy. It will enable the measurement of hitherto inaccessible magnetic properties of individual 2D microsheets, the imaging of device-relevant phenomena such as domain wall dynamics and skyrmionics, and the systematic screening of newly synthesised materials. Antici ....Unlocking the potential of magnetic 2D materials with quantum microscopy. This project aims to create a universal, high-throughput platform to characterise magnetic 2D materials, by exploiting recently developed quantum diamond microscopy. It will enable the measurement of hitherto inaccessible magnetic properties of individual 2D microsheets, the imaging of device-relevant phenomena such as domain wall dynamics and skyrmionics, and the systematic screening of newly synthesised materials. Anticipated outcomes include crucial new insights into 2D magnetism and the discovery of magnetic 2D materials compatible with real-world conditions. This should accelerate the development of future energy-efficient and flexible electronics and memory technologies, where magnetic 2D materials are expected to play a key role.
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Industrial Transformation Research Hubs - Grant ID: IH190100021
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$4,999,540.00
Summary
ARC Research Hub to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance. The ARC ITRP Research Hub to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance takes on the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for Australia through a world-first partnership between industry, researchers, and end users. The AMR Hub fosters a pre-commercialisation environment to address both social and laboratory-based preclinical challenges to provide a highly integrated diagnostic, pharmaceutical and end user solution to the problem of AMR. A ....ARC Research Hub to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance. The ARC ITRP Research Hub to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance takes on the global challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for Australia through a world-first partnership between industry, researchers, and end users. The AMR Hub fosters a pre-commercialisation environment to address both social and laboratory-based preclinical challenges to provide a highly integrated diagnostic, pharmaceutical and end user solution to the problem of AMR. A goal of the Hub is to support the development of new molecular diagnostic technology, improve the processes for identifying potential antibiotic compounds and assess and advise on antimicrobial stewardship with a vision to transform social and health outcomes globally.Read moreRead less
'Designer defects' - A new approach to functional oxide interfaces. The conventional approach to metal oxide interfaces is 'perfection at all costs' with growth tuned to minimise defects and unwanted chemical intermixing. This project aims to turn this approach on its head by creating interfaces with 'designer defects' that become the critical portion of a functional device. This project proposes that one can promote functionality by making use of new physical properties that arise from the deli ....'Designer defects' - A new approach to functional oxide interfaces. The conventional approach to metal oxide interfaces is 'perfection at all costs' with growth tuned to minimise defects and unwanted chemical intermixing. This project aims to turn this approach on its head by creating interfaces with 'designer defects' that become the critical portion of a functional device. This project proposes that one can promote functionality by making use of new physical properties that arise from the deliberate introduction of structural and electronic mismatches at an interface. Such purposely induced 'designer defects' in epitaxial oxide thin films will allow new properties to be achieved in nanoscale layers. This is expected to lead to a new class of functional materials to be used in sensors and nanoelectronics.Read moreRead less
Domain wall nanoelectronics : The wall is the device. This project investigates the nanofabrication and atomic-scale manipulation of domain walls in multiferroic oxide thin films. Proximal scanning probe writing in conjunction with nanolithography is exploited to precisely engineer domain wall configurations, to be used as functional elements. The experiments will be supported by the multiscale modeling theory of multiferroics. Domain wall control and engineering is proposed as the new paradigm ....Domain wall nanoelectronics : The wall is the device. This project investigates the nanofabrication and atomic-scale manipulation of domain walls in multiferroic oxide thin films. Proximal scanning probe writing in conjunction with nanolithography is exploited to precisely engineer domain wall configurations, to be used as functional elements. The experiments will be supported by the multiscale modeling theory of multiferroics. Domain wall control and engineering is proposed as the new paradigm for multiferroics used in future nanoelectronic devices. Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170100129
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
Two-dimensional spintronics probed with diamond quantum sensors. This project aims to understand the spintronic properties of graphene. Graphene, a ground-breaking two-dimensional material, has tremendous potential for the realisation of high-speed, low-power operation, spin-logic devices for next-generation electronics. However, for its full potential to be reached, techniques are needed to directly probe and image spins in operating devices. The project plans to exploit recently developed diam ....Two-dimensional spintronics probed with diamond quantum sensors. This project aims to understand the spintronic properties of graphene. Graphene, a ground-breaking two-dimensional material, has tremendous potential for the realisation of high-speed, low-power operation, spin-logic devices for next-generation electronics. However, for its full potential to be reached, techniques are needed to directly probe and image spins in operating devices. The project plans to exploit recently developed diamond quantum sensing technologies to characterise graphene spintronic devices. The results and methods are expected to clarify the underlying microscopic mechanisms and provide a route to design and optimise functional graphene spintronic devices.Read moreRead less