Probing sexual transformation of the human malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, using novel imaging modalities. Malaria parasites adopt a characteristic banana shape prior to sexual recombination; without this shape change disease transmission via mosquitoes cannot occur. This project will use advanced imaging technologies to study sexual recombination of malaria with a view to preventing the millions of deaths due to malaria each year.
Investigating the intercellular trafficking of proteins and RNA and its relevance to neurodegenerative diseases. Alzheimer's and prion diseases are neurodegenerative disorders associated with protein misfolding. This project brings together similar features of these diseases using novel cell- and animal-based studies to develop a greater understanding of the molecular basis of these disorders.
Composition, assembly and functions of the pellicle of apicomplexan parasites: a structure pivotal to disease transmission and progression. Apicomplexan parasites are successful agents of disease (e.g. malaria) due to their superb ability to quickly invade host cells and generate many more parasites. This project will study the dedicated structures beneath the parasite cell covering that are responsible for these abilities to help refine strategies for combating apicomplexan diseases.
Nanoimaging the cellular architecture of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. The immediate benefit of this work will be in the understanding and treatment of malaria - a disease that kills approximately 1 million children annually. The ability to image the three-dimensional structure of cells at high resolution will allow us to ask fundamental questions about the cellular architecture of the malaria parasite and to design novel antimalarial strategies. By developing new methods for cor ....Nanoimaging the cellular architecture of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum. The immediate benefit of this work will be in the understanding and treatment of malaria - a disease that kills approximately 1 million children annually. The ability to image the three-dimensional structure of cells at high resolution will allow us to ask fundamental questions about the cellular architecture of the malaria parasite and to design novel antimalarial strategies. By developing new methods for correlating structure and elemental location, the work in this proposal will offer a new paradigm for the study of cellular function and disease. This represents an important advance in the suite of investigative tools available to the biotechology sector and will see a corresponding improvement in our understanding of a wide range of disease states.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE130100090
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$700,000.00
Summary
Three-dimensional cryo electron microscopy facility. The three-dimensional cryo-electron microscopy facility will let us visualise plants, pathogens and nanomachines with resolution not previously possible allowing us to see into cells and diseases with vastly more detail. Our world-class experts will provide regional and national researchers access to cutting-edge technology complementary to the Australian Synchrotron.
Mitochondrial biogenesis in mammalian cells. This project aims to understand the inner workings of a molecular machine involved in mitochondrial protein biogenesis. Mitochondria are essential organelles that provide the bulk of cellular energy. Genesis of the organelle relies on the coordinated synthesis and transport of both proteins and lipids that make up the organelle. This project plans to define the architecture of the molecular machine, outline how its components function, and explore the ....Mitochondrial biogenesis in mammalian cells. This project aims to understand the inner workings of a molecular machine involved in mitochondrial protein biogenesis. Mitochondria are essential organelles that provide the bulk of cellular energy. Genesis of the organelle relies on the coordinated synthesis and transport of both proteins and lipids that make up the organelle. This project plans to define the architecture of the molecular machine, outline how its components function, and explore the relationship between proteins and lipids in mitochondrial genesis. These results are expected to provide knowledge about how mitochondrial creation is regulated.Read moreRead less
Trafficking inside the cell for effective immunity. This project aims to investigate how cargo is trafficked to the right destination inside cells. The project will investigate the trafficking routes and the critical machinery required. This project is expected to generate fundamental new knowledge in the areas of cell biology and immunology. Expected outcomes of this Project include scholarly publications and highly-trained personnel in cell biology and immunology. This project will provide sig ....Trafficking inside the cell for effective immunity. This project aims to investigate how cargo is trafficked to the right destination inside cells. The project will investigate the trafficking routes and the critical machinery required. This project is expected to generate fundamental new knowledge in the areas of cell biology and immunology. Expected outcomes of this Project include scholarly publications and highly-trained personnel in cell biology and immunology. This project will provide significant benefits such as advances to fundamental knowledge, training for higher research degree students, opportunities for the biotechnology sector and strengthened international (research collaborations.Read moreRead less
The biogenesis of bacterial outer membranes; how bacteria build their surface membranes. The outer membrane protects probiotic bacteria in the human intestine and enables pathogenic bacteria to cause infectious diseases. We will determine bacteria build their outer membranes - outstanding training opportunities come through cutting edge technology and the development of skills not common in Australia.
Investigating why malaria parasites have a unique translocon. This project aims to explore the mechanism that enables malaria parasites to thrive in their host cells. Parasites that cause the disease malaria reside inside erythrocytes, a very basic cell that lacks a vesicular trafficking pathway. To survive and thrive in this environment, the parasite has evolved a completely unique cell biological phenomenon termed PTEX to transport its proteins into the host cell. The aim of this project is to ....Investigating why malaria parasites have a unique translocon. This project aims to explore the mechanism that enables malaria parasites to thrive in their host cells. Parasites that cause the disease malaria reside inside erythrocytes, a very basic cell that lacks a vesicular trafficking pathway. To survive and thrive in this environment, the parasite has evolved a completely unique cell biological phenomenon termed PTEX to transport its proteins into the host cell. The aim of this project is to determine how this novel PTEX machinery exports proteins into erythrocytes and whether PTEX is also required for parasite survival during the initial stages of a host infection when malaria reside in hepatocytes.Read moreRead less
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.