Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989920
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$750,000.00
Summary
Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility. The Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility will rapidly establish itself as one of Australia's premier science facilities. It will provide the capacity to investigate the structure and molecular dynamics of viruses and microbial, human, animal and plant cells with unprecedented high resolution in both pure and applied research settings, guided by Australia's leading experts in many research strengths. This facility addresses a c ....Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility. The Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility will rapidly establish itself as one of Australia's premier science facilities. It will provide the capacity to investigate the structure and molecular dynamics of viruses and microbial, human, animal and plant cells with unprecedented high resolution in both pure and applied research settings, guided by Australia's leading experts in many research strengths. This facility addresses a current unmet need for scientists in this country and will provide cutting-edge technologies to Australian researchers so they can better detect, understand, and treat human, animal and plant diseases and the environmental impact of climate change.Read moreRead less
Detection and viability of waterborne pathogens using a gut-on-chip. This project aims to resolve a significant problem for water utilities. Microbial pathogens Cryptosporidium, norovirus and adenovirus are the main public health concern for drinking water in developed nations. Water monitoring is limited by the lack of fast, reliable detection methods and viability assays for these pathogens. This project will use a novel gut-on-a-chip to develop for the first time rapid infectivity assays for ....Detection and viability of waterborne pathogens using a gut-on-chip. This project aims to resolve a significant problem for water utilities. Microbial pathogens Cryptosporidium, norovirus and adenovirus are the main public health concern for drinking water in developed nations. Water monitoring is limited by the lack of fast, reliable detection methods and viability assays for these pathogens. This project will use a novel gut-on-a-chip to develop for the first time rapid infectivity assays for Cryptosporidium, norovirus and adenovirus. Significant benefits include improved diagnostics and water disinfection assays, improved water treatment and reduced costs with global impact.Read moreRead less
Maintaining fidelity in viral Ribonucleic acid (RNA) polymerases. This project will provide informed insights into the dynamics of viruses that currently impact a healthy start to life, ageing well and productively, and preventative healthcare. The analysis of viruses that cause gastroenteritis outbreaks will increase our understanding of how these viruses replicate and spread.
Development of SELEX technology (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment). A recently developed in vitro genetic selection technique has allowed the isolation of oligonucleotides that can bind target molecules with high affinity and specificity. The strategy know as SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment) uses protein biochemistry and PCR technology, with subsequent repeated rounds of selection and amplification, to screen vast libraries of oligonucle ....Development of SELEX technology (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment). A recently developed in vitro genetic selection technique has allowed the isolation of oligonucleotides that can bind target molecules with high affinity and specificity. The strategy know as SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment) uses protein biochemistry and PCR technology, with subsequent repeated rounds of selection and amplification, to screen vast libraries of oligonucleotides (RNA or DNA) for their ability to bind target proteins. This procedure will be developed by UNSW in collaboration with the biotech company BTF Plc., Ltd., to be used in two applications. The first is the research interest of UNSW and involves the development of aptamers against hepatitis C virus. The second lies within the interests of BTF and will involve the development of aptamers against the water borne pathogen Cryptosporidium parvum.Read moreRead less
Making Green Guard® greener: enhancing the efficacy of a biopesticide. The project aims to identify naturally occurring micro-organisms to increase the effectiveness of Green Guard ®, which is a biopesticide used against the Australian plague locust. The project will use next-generation sequencing and other molecular techniques to potentially identify candidate microbes or combinations of microbes that can be added to Green Guard to enhance locust susceptibility. The project also aims to quantif ....Making Green Guard® greener: enhancing the efficacy of a biopesticide. The project aims to identify naturally occurring micro-organisms to increase the effectiveness of Green Guard ®, which is a biopesticide used against the Australian plague locust. The project will use next-generation sequencing and other molecular techniques to potentially identify candidate microbes or combinations of microbes that can be added to Green Guard to enhance locust susceptibility. The project also aims to quantify the interactive impact of temperature and nutrition on immune function, disease resistance and host-plant quality of plague locusts; and to explore the combined effects of temperature, habitat and Green Guard, in combination with candidate microbes or pathogens, on the behaviour and collective movement of locusts. It is anticipated that this will have implications for management and control strategies.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
Using molecular tools to understand and control the transmission of Cryptosporidium. Cryptosporidium is the major public health concern of water utilities as the parasite has a global impact on the health and survival of millions of people and animals worldwide. It is resistant to chlorine and there are no effective drugs against it. Control strategies therefore rely on understanding how it is transmitted. This project will conduct a comprehensive study utilising molecular tools to determine if ....Using molecular tools to understand and control the transmission of Cryptosporidium. Cryptosporidium is the major public health concern of water utilities as the parasite has a global impact on the health and survival of millions of people and animals worldwide. It is resistant to chlorine and there are no effective drugs against it. Control strategies therefore rely on understanding how it is transmitted. This project will conduct a comprehensive study utilising molecular tools to determine if the Cryptosporidium in humans is the same as that derived from water contamination sources (animals, sewage etc). The outcomes of this project will result in the development of more targeted, cost-effective preventive measures to minimize exposures to infections, accurate risk assessment, and scientific management of the watershed.Read moreRead less
CD4 T cell programming by neonatal and early-life infection. T lymphocytes (T cells) are white blood cells that play a critical role in protecting the body from infection. Before T cells can function they need to be programmed so that they can specifically respond to an infectious agent (a type of bacteria or virus). Inappropriate programming can lead to disease. Whether T cells respond to an infectious agent or foreign substance in a protective or destructive manner may critically depend on the ....CD4 T cell programming by neonatal and early-life infection. T lymphocytes (T cells) are white blood cells that play a critical role in protecting the body from infection. Before T cells can function they need to be programmed so that they can specifically respond to an infectious agent (a type of bacteria or virus). Inappropriate programming can lead to disease. Whether T cells respond to an infectious agent or foreign substance in a protective or destructive manner may critically depend on the age that an individual first encounters the infection. Our project will identify critical periods in life that direct T cell programming to subsequent protective or destructive responses, providing new insights into the developing immune system that may be exploited to treat disease or develop vaccines.Read moreRead less
Effect of predation on virulence traits of opportunistic pathogens. The project aims to determine if increased fitness of bacteria in animal or human hosts (increased virulence) can occur due to indirect rather than direct selective pressure, particularly pressure on bacteria arising from predation by protozoa. Protozoa feed on many pathogenic bacteria (e.g. those that cause cholera and chronic infections) in the ocean, and warming oceans are predicted to increase predation. Knowing the effect o ....Effect of predation on virulence traits of opportunistic pathogens. The project aims to determine if increased fitness of bacteria in animal or human hosts (increased virulence) can occur due to indirect rather than direct selective pressure, particularly pressure on bacteria arising from predation by protozoa. Protozoa feed on many pathogenic bacteria (e.g. those that cause cholera and chronic infections) in the ocean, and warming oceans are predicted to increase predation. Knowing the effect of warming oceans on marine bacteria and the emergence of virulence in bacteria that are subject to predation in the environment can inform design of tools for monitoring the risk of infection outbreaks. Benefits would be realised by academic researchers, clinicians and policy-makers interested in optimising the tracking of infection threats.Read moreRead less
Anthocyanin Inhibitors to the Influenza Virus. The increasing resistance of circulating influenza strains to current anti-viral inhibitors has prompted an investigation to screen, design, synthesize and evaluate a new class of natural product based inhibitors to the virus employing novel and innovative mass spectrometry, computational and structural approaches. Preliminary studies reveal they offer benefits in terms of a different mode of binding to influenza neuraminidase, remote from many know ....Anthocyanin Inhibitors to the Influenza Virus. The increasing resistance of circulating influenza strains to current anti-viral inhibitors has prompted an investigation to screen, design, synthesize and evaluate a new class of natural product based inhibitors to the virus employing novel and innovative mass spectrometry, computational and structural approaches. Preliminary studies reveal they offer benefits in terms of a different mode of binding to influenza neuraminidase, remote from many known resistance mutations, and may have specific practicality against N1 neuraminidase in H1N1 and H5N1 viruses responsible for all pandemics of the 20th and 21st centuries. The research will enable the potential of these inhibitors to be fully assessed at the molecular level for the first time.Read moreRead less