Development of an effective vaccine for chlamydial infection: optimisation of a non-toxic cholera toxin-based adjuvant to generate a protective mucosal response. Chlamydial genital infections are the most common sexually transmitted infection in Australia and the world and impose a major health burden on the community. Chlamydial infections are also associated with cardiovascular disease, Australia's biggest killer and asthma, another condition that has increased significantly in prevalence in t ....Development of an effective vaccine for chlamydial infection: optimisation of a non-toxic cholera toxin-based adjuvant to generate a protective mucosal response. Chlamydial genital infections are the most common sexually transmitted infection in Australia and the world and impose a major health burden on the community. Chlamydial infections are also associated with cardiovascular disease, Australia's biggest killer and asthma, another condition that has increased significantly in prevalence in the past 10 years. This project will evaluate the effectiveness of a new adjuvant as a first step towards the development of a vaccine to target these important infections.Read moreRead less
Foreign DNA is a danger signal for mammalian cells. This project investigates how cells normally respond to foreign DNA, and is relevant to understanding how the body fights infections, particularly by viruses. The results will help us to design more effective treatments for infectious disease. Studying responses to DNA will also promote the design of new treatments for the autoimmune disease lupus, and help improve technologies or treatments where DNA is introduced into cells or tissues. This ....Foreign DNA is a danger signal for mammalian cells. This project investigates how cells normally respond to foreign DNA, and is relevant to understanding how the body fights infections, particularly by viruses. The results will help us to design more effective treatments for infectious disease. Studying responses to DNA will also promote the design of new treatments for the autoimmune disease lupus, and help improve technologies or treatments where DNA is introduced into cells or tissues. This includes gene therapy, new strategies for vaccination, and the production of proteins as drugs by biotechnology. The project will promote National Research Priorities in the areas of preventative healthcare, ageing well ageing productively, breakthrough science and new technologies.Read moreRead less
Development of an anti-Chlamydia vaccine for the koala. The koala is one of Australia's main icons and a major drawcard for tourists. However, it suffers from debilitating disease due to the bacterium Chlamydia, which can lead to severe conjunctivitis, eventual blindness in both sexes, and the females develop untreatable cysts and can become infertile. This project will develop a Chlamydia vaccine to be administered to healthy and diseased koalas in zoos, sanctuaries, koala care centres, relocat ....Development of an anti-Chlamydia vaccine for the koala. The koala is one of Australia's main icons and a major drawcard for tourists. However, it suffers from debilitating disease due to the bacterium Chlamydia, which can lead to severe conjunctivitis, eventual blindness in both sexes, and the females develop untreatable cysts and can become infertile. This project will develop a Chlamydia vaccine to be administered to healthy and diseased koalas in zoos, sanctuaries, koala care centres, relocation programs and eventually perhaps even wild populations. The vaccine findings may also be transferable to other animals and may also even assist the development of a human Chlamydia vaccine.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0668450
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$150,000.00
Summary
Upgrade of comparative phenotypical and functional cell analysis at James Cook University. North Queensland is a fast growing region with significant need for the development of a world-class research facility. James Cook University has recently established the Comparative Genomics Centre at the School of Pharmacy and Molecular Sciences, which will contribute to education and basic research in the region. The research outcomes from the projects of the Comparative Genomics Centre and affiliated l ....Upgrade of comparative phenotypical and functional cell analysis at James Cook University. North Queensland is a fast growing region with significant need for the development of a world-class research facility. James Cook University has recently established the Comparative Genomics Centre at the School of Pharmacy and Molecular Sciences, which will contribute to education and basic research in the region. The research outcomes from the projects of the Comparative Genomics Centre and affiliated laboratories facilitated by the analytical flow cytometer will support the definition and identification of the interactions between genetic and environmental factors in disease and will help to attract researchers. Results from this work will aid the search for therapies for specific health problems.Read moreRead less
Improving immune response to vaccines by selective targeting of epithelial regions with the Nanopatch. Vaccination protects us from infections like measles and flu. In principle, it could protect us from all diseases, even from skin cancer and arthritis. In practice, however, vaccines to diseases like cancer have largely proved ineffective. One problem is that we don't really understand how the body's immune system responds to vaccination. Our aim, therefore, is to investigate changes in the imm ....Improving immune response to vaccines by selective targeting of epithelial regions with the Nanopatch. Vaccination protects us from infections like measles and flu. In principle, it could protect us from all diseases, even from skin cancer and arthritis. In practice, however, vaccines to diseases like cancer have largely proved ineffective. One problem is that we don't really understand how the body's immune system responds to vaccination. Our aim, therefore, is to investigate changes in the immune system when a vaccine enters the skin, as might happen by injection. Experimenting with laboratory mice and a special vaccine-injecting Nanopatch that is attached to each mouse's ear, we are starting to understand how a vaccine affects the immune cells in the skin. In the future we plan to apply this knowledge to improve vaccination in people.Read moreRead less
Optimising the body's immune response with a Nanopatch that delivers biomolecules to the skin. The team is developing a new improved way to vaccinate against deadly infectious diseases such as influenza and malaria. They believe their Nanopatch technology will boost the power of seasonal influenza vaccination and could even solve vaccine shortages in an influenza pandemic. This is because the Nanopatch needs much less vaccine per person than a conventional syringe. They also predict that vaccine ....Optimising the body's immune response with a Nanopatch that delivers biomolecules to the skin. The team is developing a new improved way to vaccinate against deadly infectious diseases such as influenza and malaria. They believe their Nanopatch technology will boost the power of seasonal influenza vaccination and could even solve vaccine shortages in an influenza pandemic. This is because the Nanopatch needs much less vaccine per person than a conventional syringe. They also predict that vaccines delivered with a Nanopatch will require less refrigeration than conventional vaccines and can be safely administered by individuals without medical training, making the benefits of vaccination accessible to more people more cheaply, even in remote areas.Read moreRead less