Role Of Placental Retroviral Protein Syncytin Carried On Exosomes In Mediating Vulnerability Of Pregnant Women To Influenza
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$645,145.00
Summary
50% of the women who died due to swine flu were pregnant. This project will examine if factors produced by the placenta make the pregnant woman more susceptible to influenza.
Epigenetic Regulation Of Inflammatory Genes In The Fetal Membranes: Role In Term And Preterm Birth
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$468,534.00
Summary
Preterm birth is the leading cause of death among newborns and the biggest contributor to disability among infants. Here we propose research to define the mechanism that controls the length of pregnancy and is disrupted in preterm birth. Specifically, we will determine what causes the repression of the labour-promoting inflammatory genes in the uterus during pregnancy and what activates them at labour. We will identify new targets for interventions to block or prevent preterm birth.
How The Placental Protein Syncytin Impairs Maternal Immune Responses To Influenza
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$609,862.00
Summary
Pregnant women are known to be highly susceptible to certain viral infections, especially influenza, which results in severe illness and even death. The reason for this transitory susceptibility are unknown. We have found that a protein, Syncytin, has the ability to impair maternal immune responses to influenza We now will determine how it does this and discover potential interventions to reverse these effects.
Disrupted Neurosteroid Synthesis Mediates The Adverse Effects Of Prenatal Stress
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$695,973.00
Summary
Maternal anxiety and related stress in pregnancy influences the fetus causing developmental changes that adversely affect the offspring leading to behavioural problems in childhood. However, mechanisms which transfer maternal changes to the fetus are unclear. We propose that disruption of the fetal-placental neurosteroid system is a major link. We will identify the deficits in this system caused by maternal stress and then examine therapies to reverse these disruptions.
Functional Contribution Of Fetal Microchimeric Cells In Transgenic Models Of Maternal Tissue Repair In And After Pregnancy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$542,462.00
Summary
Fetal stem cells cross into the mother during pregnancy and persist lifelong in her tissues. To determine whether helpful or harmful, we will study how these cells contribute to healing both after acute injury and in chronic genetic models like brittle-bone disease and muscular dystrophy. This research will inform long-term consequences of pregnancy, important for women's health and longevity, and help develop a promising form of stem cell therapy.
Treatment Of Asymptomatic Candidiasis In Pregnant Women For The Prevention Of Preterm Birth: A Randomised Trial
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,120,373.00
Summary
Being born too early is a leading cause of perinatal death and morbidity. This trial seeks to determine whether screening for and treating candidiasis in pregnancy reduces the risk of this serious health problem. The trial will discover whether a simple treatment in pregnancy can reduce preterm birth. If positive, the results will be relevant to the management of every pregnancy.
Pathways Of Neurosteroid-mediated Protection Following Compromised Pregnancy And Preterm Birth
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$565,785.00
Summary
The hormonal environment of pregnancy is essential for normal development of the fetal brain. Levels of key hormones fall following premature birth and are further suppressed if the fetus is small or subjected to stress. This leads developmental problems in infants from the pregnancies. This project will examine effectiveness of replacement and supplementation treatments with critical neurosteroid hormones in reversing the adverse neurological effects of these complications of pregnancy.
The Australian Maternity Outcomes Surveillance System: Improving Safety And Quality Of Maternity Care In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$820,438.00
Summary
There is currently no Australian system of monitoring severe complications of pregnancy. Many of these complications are rare, making them difficult to study and limiting knowledge as to their true frequency, cause and best treatment. We intend to introduce a national reporting system- Australian Maternity Outcomes Surveillance System which would provide the research structure to study these rare conditions, thus aiming to improve the safety and quality of maternity care provided in Australia.
Mechanisms Of Escape From Progesterone-induced Suppression: Role In Normal And Preterm Birth
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$547,970.00
Summary
Prematurity caused by preterm birth is the leading cause of death and disease among newborns in Australia. Here we will define how the length of pregnancy is determined by the opposing actions of progesterone, which maintains pregnancy, and prostaglandins, which induce labour. We will demonstrate the mechanism by which the actions of the two hormones are balanced in normal pregnancy and disrupted in preterm labour. We will show that preterm birth can be prevented by correcting the disorder.
Non-invasive Detection Of Hypoglycaemia In People With Diabetes Using Brain Wave Activity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$330,447.00
Summary
Hypoglycaemia remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in people with both type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes who require insulin therapy. Current treatments for nocturnal hypoglycaemia are usually ineffective. Combining brain wave recording and artificial intelligence, we will identify the changes that precipitate an episode of hypoglycaemia allowing the development of a non-invasive device to prevent or alleviate these fearful and potentially life-threatening events.