Immune Privilege Of The Hair Follicle: Implications For Alopecia Areata
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Summary
The skin, the second largest organ in the body after the skeleton, is of primary importance to the survival of mammalian life. Hair follicles are complex skin appendages, problems of which have an impact on human health and emotional welfare disproportionate to their small dimensions. In this study we will investigate the role of the immune system in the hair loss disease, alopecia areata, one of the most common human autoimmune diseases with the aim of finding more effective avenues of treatmen ....The skin, the second largest organ in the body after the skeleton, is of primary importance to the survival of mammalian life. Hair follicles are complex skin appendages, problems of which have an impact on human health and emotional welfare disproportionate to their small dimensions. In this study we will investigate the role of the immune system in the hair loss disease, alopecia areata, one of the most common human autoimmune diseases with the aim of finding more effective avenues of treatment for this poorly understood disease.Read moreRead less
Mechanisms Underlying Efferent Feedback In The Vestibular System
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$491,475.00
Summary
The balance system has a remarkable, but poorly understood capacity for self-repair. An intrinsic feedback mechanism, the Efferent Vestibular System or EVS is thought to play a major role in this self-repair. Surprisingly, we know little about EVS function in animals or humans. We will study the EVS in mice and humans to gain a better understanding of how it works. This information will then drive the design of therapies that improve and restore balance in disease, injury, or ageing.
Gene Therapy For Preventing Progressive Sensorineural Hearing Loss And Restoring Hearing
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$549,848.00
Summary
This proposal aims to study the clinical feasibility and safety of gene therapy in the guinea pig cochlea for preventing progressive hearing loss and restoring hearing. Two cell survival genes (GDNF and BDNF) will be studied for preserving sensory (hair) cells and hearing nerves, while a gene called Atoh1 will be investigated for its ability to regenerate new hair cells and restore hearing after the onset of progressive hearing loss.
Our vestibular system provides us with the important sense of balance. When it fails we suffer debiltating bouts of vertigo and dizziness. A great deal is known about how balance signals are sent from the inner ear to our brains, but virtually nothing is known about the important signals the brain sends to the inner ear. In this study we will use a new perparation develped in our laboratory to examine how these essential brain signals control the function of our balance organs.
Normal hearing relies on the generation and transmission of electrical signals in the hearing organ, the inner ear. These electrical signals are generated by the action of specialized molecular ion channels in the cellular membranes of the inner ear and this research aims to charcterize these ion channels and detail their role in the hearing process. The results will impact on our understanding of human hearing disorders such as tinnitus, auditory neuropathy and disturbances of loudness sensatio ....Normal hearing relies on the generation and transmission of electrical signals in the hearing organ, the inner ear. These electrical signals are generated by the action of specialized molecular ion channels in the cellular membranes of the inner ear and this research aims to charcterize these ion channels and detail their role in the hearing process. The results will impact on our understanding of human hearing disorders such as tinnitus, auditory neuropathy and disturbances of loudness sensation.Read moreRead less