The Role Of Novel And Essential Bromodomain Proteins In Coordinating Malaria Parasite Gene Regulation And Their Potential As Anti-malarial Targets
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$689,034.00
Summary
Malaria kills over 400,000 people a year and new therapies are needed. Malaria parasites activate groups of genes by novel mechanisms that could be targeted by drugs. We will characterise a novel group of proteins to identify those that activate genes essential for parasite survival. We will also search for molecules that inhibit the proteins and kill malaria parasites. Thus we will discover how parasites control their genes and identify drug targets and inhibitors for drug development.
Functional Dissection Of The Malaria RhopH Complex And Its Contribution To New Permeation Pathways
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$604,718.00
Summary
The ability of Plasmodium to invade and remodel its host erythrocyte are the most significant contributors to its ability to cause the disease malaria. This project aims to understand how proteins secreted from a specialized rhoptry organelle during erythrocyte invasion help Plasmodium to remodel the erythrocyte so that the parasite can gain access to the vital nutrients it requires for survival. This research will validate whether drugs targeting the rhoptry proteins are viable drug targets.
Hydatid infection is caused by a parasite that is transmitted by livestock animals. This project will develop a treatment for livestock animals which, when used in combination with a vaccine against the parasite, will improve the effectiveness of efforts to prevent the disease being transmitted through animals. I indirectly this will lead to a reduction in the number of new cases of hydatid disease world wide.
Immunological Prevention Of Cysticercosis And Hydatid Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$567,868.00
Summary
Cysticercosis and hydatid disease are caused by infections with the larval stages of tapeworm parasites. They are life-threatening zoonotic diseases, transmitted to humans from animals and are most common in people living in poor countries. This project aims to develop practical vaccines to assist with the prevention of these diseases in humans. We will vaccinate the parasites' natural animal hosts and break the parasite life-cycles, thereby indirectly and inexpensively preventing the diseases b ....Cysticercosis and hydatid disease are caused by infections with the larval stages of tapeworm parasites. They are life-threatening zoonotic diseases, transmitted to humans from animals and are most common in people living in poor countries. This project aims to develop practical vaccines to assist with the prevention of these diseases in humans. We will vaccinate the parasites' natural animal hosts and break the parasite life-cycles, thereby indirectly and inexpensively preventing the diseases being passed to humans.Read moreRead less
Identifying Malaria PfEMP1 Proteins That Elicit Antibodies Associated With Protection From Cerebral Malaria
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$494,117.00
Summary
The malaria parasite changes molecules it uses to cause disease, this alters its appearance so it can escape people's immune response. However some of these molecules are similar in the parasites that cause the most severe disease. We aim to identify these similar molecules because they may make useful vaccines for protecting people from severe malaria disease.
Genome-based Tools To Support Urogenital Schistosomiasis Control
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$429,644.00
Summary
More than 100 million sub-Saharan Africans have urogenital schistosomiasis, a disease that promotes malignant cancer and HIV/AIDS. Control depends on a single drug, making resistance an imminent threat. We will deliver new molecular tools to assess parasite genetic diversity and to prioritise a panel of anti-parasitic drug targets and vaccine candidates. These outcomes will deliver the next generation of interventions against urogenital schistosomiasis.
A Targeted Molecular Approach To Treating Scabies And Associated Bacterial Infections.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$518,334.00
Summary
Chronic infestation of human skin with parasitic scabies mites is a severe health burden in Australian Indigenous communities and other disadvantaged communities around the world. Secondary infections with bacteria exacerbate this skin problem, with long-term, systemic and often fatal consequences including rheumatic heart disease. Analyses of the scabies mite genome and associated bacteria will accelerate biomedical research toward improved treatment and control of this neglected disease.
The Differential Contribution Of Programmed Death-1 Ligands To Malarial Immunity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$327,784.00
Summary
This research aims to understand how the Malaria parasite, which causes one of the world’s deadliest diseases, evades immunity. It will provide a significant advance in our knowledge of immunity against malaria and impact on current strategies to develop an efficacious vaccine or treatment for malaria.
Functional Dissection Of Invasion Motor Regulation In Toxoplasma Gondii
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$500,396.00
Summary
The single-celled intracellular parasite Toxoplasma gondii is the cause of Toxoplasmosis and can be the basis of illness in immunocompromised individuals, eye disease and congenital birth defects. After host cell recognition Toxoplasma needs to activate the invasion machinery to establish a successful infection. We will reveal, at the molecular level, how Toxoplasma achieves this and then screen for drugs that inhibit this process. Compounds identified in this project could act as lead compounds ....The single-celled intracellular parasite Toxoplasma gondii is the cause of Toxoplasmosis and can be the basis of illness in immunocompromised individuals, eye disease and congenital birth defects. After host cell recognition Toxoplasma needs to activate the invasion machinery to establish a successful infection. We will reveal, at the molecular level, how Toxoplasma achieves this and then screen for drugs that inhibit this process. Compounds identified in this project could act as lead compounds to develop new treatments for Toxoplasmosis.Read moreRead less
Population Genomics Of Plasmodium Vivax In Papua New Guinea
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$597,238.00
Summary
Plasmodium vivax malaria is a serious global public health problem that has not received the attention it deserves, despite having serious clinical implications and presenting a major problem for regional malaria control programmes. In a study of people living in a malarious area of PNG, we aim to investigate the diversity of natural parasite populations, to better understand the possible effects of malaria control interventions on transmission and human immunity.