Novel compounds to disrupt protein-protein interactions. Many diseases involve aberrant interactions between proteins. Strategies to inhibit such interactions have potential as tool reagents for biological research but also as new therapies. Most drugs currently used in the clinic are small organic molecules, though these typically are not effective at disrupting protein complexes, hence alternatives are required. This proposal to examine foldamers as a novel strategy for inhibiting protein: pro ....Novel compounds to disrupt protein-protein interactions. Many diseases involve aberrant interactions between proteins. Strategies to inhibit such interactions have potential as tool reagents for biological research but also as new therapies. Most drugs currently used in the clinic are small organic molecules, though these typically are not effective at disrupting protein complexes, hence alternatives are required. This proposal to examine foldamers as a novel strategy for inhibiting protein: protein interactions could lead to the development of new drugs for the treatment of diseases where the current traditional approaches have proven ineffective.Read moreRead less
Programming of appetite and bodyweight by the interaction of maternal diet and angiotensin during peri-natal life. The project describes a phenotype for appetite and body weight that can be altered by maternal dietary omega-3 PUFA (environmental factors), at a critical period during peri-natal life (developmental phase) and that the effect on body weight is opposite when endogenous angiotensin is increased (hormonal factor). The project aims to discover how these different factors interact to p ....Programming of appetite and bodyweight by the interaction of maternal diet and angiotensin during peri-natal life. The project describes a phenotype for appetite and body weight that can be altered by maternal dietary omega-3 PUFA (environmental factors), at a critical period during peri-natal life (developmental phase) and that the effect on body weight is opposite when endogenous angiotensin is increased (hormonal factor). The project aims to discover how these different factors interact to produce the phenotype by defining the critical period and systematically identifying genes that are expressed during this period. The effect of manipulating maternal dietary omega-3 PUFA and the role of angiotensin will then be examined. The project will discover how genetic, hormonal and environmental factors interact during the perinatal period of life to program food intake and body weight in adult life. Read moreRead less
Trust in Pacific Healthcare: Transforming research, policy and practice. Medical trust is vital to building positive healthcare engagement and improving health outcomes, yet is poorly understood in non-Western contexts. Focusing on crises of trust related to type 2 diabetes and COVID-19 interventions in the Pacific, this collaborative project aims to examine the social and cultural dynamics of medical (mis)trust in Vanuatu, Fiji, and Samoa. Providing the first cross-cultural study of medical tru ....Trust in Pacific Healthcare: Transforming research, policy and practice. Medical trust is vital to building positive healthcare engagement and improving health outcomes, yet is poorly understood in non-Western contexts. Focusing on crises of trust related to type 2 diabetes and COVID-19 interventions in the Pacific, this collaborative project aims to examine the social and cultural dynamics of medical (mis)trust in Vanuatu, Fiji, and Samoa. Providing the first cross-cultural study of medical trust, an international team of researchers will generate interdisciplinary scholarly outputs, policy resources and a documentary film. Findings will assist healthcare professionals and communities strengthen trust relationships and ultimately achieve improved health engagement and delivery in the Pacific and beyond.Read moreRead less
Identification of the basic elements of Plasmodium transcription. This Discovery Project falls under the NRP for safeguarding Australia. Australian troops stationed in malaria endemic areas face the threat of infection and require medical attention upon return.Any research on malaria will expand our knowledge on prevention and treatment. Australia near malariaendemic locations such as Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.These countries do not have the means to support effective basic research into ....Identification of the basic elements of Plasmodium transcription. This Discovery Project falls under the NRP for safeguarding Australia. Australian troops stationed in malaria endemic areas face the threat of infection and require medical attention upon return.Any research on malaria will expand our knowledge on prevention and treatment. Australia near malariaendemic locations such as Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.These countries do not have the means to support effective basic research into the disease and wealthier countries such as Australia have the responsibility to fill this void.Furthermore, the aims of this Discovery Project are unique within the Australian malaria research community and the results fully complement other studies on transcription regulation of antigenic genes. Read moreRead less
Novel target of amiloride analogues - picornaviral RNA polymerase. Picornaviruses cause a range of diseases such as poliomyelitis, meningitis, myocarditis, hepatitis A, neonatal sepsis and common cold. No antiviral treatment is available for these infections. Nearly 50% of antiviral drugs used in medicine are viral polymerase inhibitors; however picornaviral RNA polymerase has been largely overlooked as a drug target. We have discovered a group of compounds that inhibit picornaviral RNA polymera ....Novel target of amiloride analogues - picornaviral RNA polymerase. Picornaviruses cause a range of diseases such as poliomyelitis, meningitis, myocarditis, hepatitis A, neonatal sepsis and common cold. No antiviral treatment is available for these infections. Nearly 50% of antiviral drugs used in medicine are viral polymerase inhibitors; however picornaviral RNA polymerase has been largely overlooked as a drug target. We have discovered a group of compounds that inhibit picornaviral RNA polymerase. This project aims to define the inhibition mechanism and to evaluate a potential use of these compounds for antiviral drug development.Read moreRead less
Understanding the life and death of Mucosal-associated invariant T cells. Cell death of naïve T cells in lymphoid organs is well-understood. However, T cells only gain their function upon activation, and how activated T cells regulate their life or death remains unclear. Mucosal-associated Invariant T (MAIT) cells are abundant in non-lymphoid tissues as key local players in immunity, and share some features of activated conventional T cells. This project aims to define how MAIT cell survival and ....Understanding the life and death of Mucosal-associated invariant T cells. Cell death of naïve T cells in lymphoid organs is well-understood. However, T cells only gain their function upon activation, and how activated T cells regulate their life or death remains unclear. Mucosal-associated Invariant T (MAIT) cells are abundant in non-lymphoid tissues as key local players in immunity, and share some features of activated conventional T cells. This project aims to define how MAIT cell survival and death are controlled. It combines methods we developed to track MAIT cells in vivo with expertise in cell death analysis. This project is expected to elucidate the complex mechanisms controlling MAIT cell survival/death and increase our fundamental understanding of cell death mechanisms of activated T cells.Read moreRead less
Molecular characterization of stem cell differentiation and oocyte maturation using synchrotron infrared spectroscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy/Raman imaging. There are currently no molecular based methods to assess oocyte maturation and stem cell differentiation at the single cell level. Consequently the need for such techniques is critical in placing Australia at the forefront in this rapidly expanding field. Such technology would give Australia a leading edge in stem cell and oocyte researc ....Molecular characterization of stem cell differentiation and oocyte maturation using synchrotron infrared spectroscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy/Raman imaging. There are currently no molecular based methods to assess oocyte maturation and stem cell differentiation at the single cell level. Consequently the need for such techniques is critical in placing Australia at the forefront in this rapidly expanding field. Such technology would give Australia a leading edge in stem cell and oocyte research and ultimately assist in discovering disease cures for debilitating neurodegenerative diseases and spinal chord injury, while techniques for determining the viability of oocytes may have important implications for future in vitro fertilization programs. The intellectual property and technologies developed from this research could also have potential to impact on the global market.Read moreRead less
Drug targets in the relict plastid of malaria parasites. Malaria is a major world health problem and new drugs are needed urgently. Essential genes are potentially excellent targets for anti-malarial drugs. This project will use a novel strategy to identify genes that the parasite cannot exist without. Function and drug potential of these genes will be explored.
Understanding surface acoustic wave atomisation for pulmonary delivery of drug aerosols in personalised medicine. Delivering drugs via the lung is hampered by development costs and inadequate technology. This project will provide an understanding of atomisation in our unique respire system, enabling not only the delivery of new vaccines and drugs but also the rapid and cost effective development of new disease treatments personalised to the patient.
Imaging transcription factors in living mammalian embryos to reveal cell-to-cell variability. The mechanisms controlling how single cells activate different genes are typically studied in cells grown in culture dishes. This project will apply novel imaging methods to study how gene regulatory molecules control cells in living mouse embryos.