A Balancing Act: A Three-pronged Approach To Vestibular Assessment
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$419,180.00
Summary
Vertigo and imbalance are common and disabling symptoms of vestibular (balance) dysfunction. This project will investigate three aspects of vestibular function: by searching for new balance reflexes, revealing the pattern of vestibular deficits in patients with a common form of vertigo caused by migraine, and exploring the impact of vestibular disease on thinking and memory. This research will improve our understanding of the vestibular system and facilitate the diagnosis of episodic vertigo.
Importance Of CGRP Alpha In Pain Processing From The Large Intestine
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$548,289.00
Summary
This project will determine the mechanisms by which sensory nerve endings detect painful stimuli in the large intestine. The project will use a novel genetically modified mouse (that is only available in our laboratory) which allows us, for the first time, to visualize and record directly from the sensory nerve endings that detect painful stimuli and work out how this process occurs. We also identify a specific gene that is essential for detecting painful stimuli from this organ.
A Novel Technique For Prolonged Silencing Of Visceral Pain Without Opiates
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$637,383.00
Summary
There has been substantial interest in the community for pain relief without opiates. This project demonstrates a new strategy to suppress pain at the source for prolonged periods, by suppressing activity in the sensory nerve endings that detect pain, not by acting in central pathways like opiates. To do this, we use a harmless virus to shut down a vital sodium channel for pain perception. These experiments use techniques that were recently developed in our lab and cant be performed elsewhere.