Mechanisms Controlling Sympathetic Nerve Activity To The Heart
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$101,220.00
Summary
In heart failure there is a large increase in sympathetic nerve activity to the heart and the kidney that has detrimental effects which is related to mortality in patients. The areas in the brain causing the increased nerve activity to the heart are unknown. We will investigate the role of two key brain areas in mediating this increase. In addition we will also focus on local mechanisms that are responsible for the increase in noradrenaline spillover.
A Life Course Approach To Improving The Health And Well-being Of Young People With Chronic Kidney Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$193,360.00
Summary
Children with kidney disease suffers from profound ill-health and adopt a restrictive lifestyle, including dietary restriction, absences from school and other co-curricular activities. New knowledge and interventions are needed to address the pressing needs including of these children and their caregivers. This program of work will adopt a life-course approach to determine the protective and risk factors that affect the overall health and well-being of children with chronic kidney disease.
If stem cell transplantation is to be useful to repair brain injury, advancement must be made to improve the delivery, survival and differentiation of transplanted cells so that they can sufficiently integrate into the host brain. Here, self-assembling peptides will be developed to provide physical and biochemical support for stem cells and neurones in cell culture (which may be useful for drug discovery) and following transplantation into the injured brain.
A pressure pulse may be felt at the wrist with every heart beat. New technology allows the analysis of this pulse and provides information that may help doctors make decisions about a patients risk related to blood pressure as well as the effect of drug treatment. The research aims to determine the clinical significance of pressure pulse analysis at rest and during light exercise. It is expected that the new technology will improve the way people with high blood pressure are treated.
Group A streptococcal diseases, including rheumatic heart disease, are major causes of illness globally, mostly in developing countries. This proposal is an investigation into how best to tackle control these diseases. It focuses on 1) a novel way to detect rheumatic heart disease in its earliest phases using ultrasound, 2) using a single drug once per year to stop streptococcal skin sores by controlling scabies infestation in whole communities and 3) developing a new vaccine that is applicable ....Group A streptococcal diseases, including rheumatic heart disease, are major causes of illness globally, mostly in developing countries. This proposal is an investigation into how best to tackle control these diseases. It focuses on 1) a novel way to detect rheumatic heart disease in its earliest phases using ultrasound, 2) using a single drug once per year to stop streptococcal skin sores by controlling scabies infestation in whole communities and 3) developing a new vaccine that is applicable across all regions of the world.Read moreRead less
Overcoming Immunosenescence For Effective Stem Cell Therapies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$419,180.00
Summary
An established treatment for blood cancers involves a stem cell transplant to replace the blood stem cells that are damaged by radiation and chemotherapy. However, treatment success is limited with advancing age due to multiple defects in the immune system. We will use new technologies to investigate how the ageing immune system copes with stem cell transplantation and explore new methods for improving recovery and immunity after HSCT.
Bridging The Fields Of Cartilage, Bone Marrow And Cancer Research
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$470,144.00
Summary
This Fellowship will bring together technologies and expertise in cartilage tissue engineering, in vitro haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) self-renewal, HSC transplantation, and in platform development for the study of prostate cancer bone metastasis. By exploiting the intersection of multiple diseases and tissue platforms, we hope to be able to contribute significantly to improved cartilage repair, bone marrow/cord blood stem cell transplants, and the treatment of metastatic prostate cancer.
Unravelling Gene Networks In Heart Development And Congenital Heart Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$397,724.00
Summary
One in 100 Australian babies are affected by heart malformations. The heart is a complex organ and its formation is likewise orchestrated by a complex network of genes. As our current knowledge of this network is limited, I aim to employ cutting-edge bioinformatics approaches to draw a comprehensive picture of genes required to build a healthy heart and to reveal which gene interactions are altered in congenital heart disease, thereby opening new perspectives for network biology-based therapies.