The role of the immune system in pain is emerging from recent discoveries, and may hold the key to novel pain treatments. Most people experience brief gut infections from food or contagion without long-term consequences. Many others suffer symptoms for years afterwards - probably the best example of immune-based pain. Our project investigates how immune cells communicate with sensory nerves, and how these communications change from both angles after gut infection or inflammation.
Transient Receptor Potential Channels (TRPs) As Transducers And Targets In Primary Visceral Afferents
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$669,130.00
Summary
Transient receptor potential, or TRP channels, are involved in generating many of the sensations we perceive, such as heat, cold, touch and pain. Some TRP channels are specialized to signal pain from visceral organs, which we must investigate if we are to find treatments for visceral pain, which are currently lacking.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0882889
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$150,000.00
Summary
History, the archives and new technologies: developing the Australian women's archives project. This project will create and define generic tools and services to increase the productivity of those involved with the creation, maintenance and use of source material for humanities research. It will provide a pathway to move this infrastructure onto a more sustainable footing and address issues of information overload, authority and quality facing researchers in the networked digital age. This imper ....History, the archives and new technologies: developing the Australian women's archives project. This project will create and define generic tools and services to increase the productivity of those involved with the creation, maintenance and use of source material for humanities research. It will provide a pathway to move this infrastructure onto a more sustainable footing and address issues of information overload, authority and quality facing researchers in the networked digital age. This imperative is seen by scholars and representatives of the nation's major collecting institutions as a primary limiting factor in the contemporary research environment. The project will enhance Australia's reputation as a world leader in the development of web-based information infrastructure to support research and scholarship.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0347122
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$200,000.00
Summary
Australian Women's Archives Project (AWAP). Australian Women's Archives Project aims to enhance infrastructure for researchers in the field of women's and gender history by constructing appropriate data bases and a range of other electronic sources of information, and by improving the preservation and accessibility of records and archives relevant to this prominent and growing field. Project outcomes will include support for the production of cutting edge academic historical works and simultaneo ....Australian Women's Archives Project (AWAP). Australian Women's Archives Project aims to enhance infrastructure for researchers in the field of women's and gender history by constructing appropriate data bases and a range of other electronic sources of information, and by improving the preservation and accessibility of records and archives relevant to this prominent and growing field. Project outcomes will include support for the production of cutting edge academic historical works and simultaneously, the significant contribution of an essential information resource base for Australian women.
The Australian Women's Archives Project employs innovative technologies and adheres to state-of-the-art international standards for electronic management of historical information. The roles of AWAP's Chief Investigators reflect the use of these new forms of information management: CIs both create and utilise the products of each others' collaborative historical research.
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Attentional asymmetries for navigation in healthy and clinical groups. This project plans to investigate how differences in attentional capacity between the left and right sides of the brain affect the ability to walk or manoeuvre vehicles between obstacles. To navigate our environment and avoid obstacles, we need to attend to stimuli that are important and ignore those that are not. Unfortunately, the brain’s attentional capacity is limited, which can result in errors and collisions. Using the ....Attentional asymmetries for navigation in healthy and clinical groups. This project plans to investigate how differences in attentional capacity between the left and right sides of the brain affect the ability to walk or manoeuvre vehicles between obstacles. To navigate our environment and avoid obstacles, we need to attend to stimuli that are important and ignore those that are not. Unfortunately, the brain’s attentional capacity is limited, which can result in errors and collisions. Using the techniques of cognitive neuroscience, the project aims to provide a better understanding of the cognitive and neural mechanisms that govern attention in an applied setting. It expects to identify the factors that exacerbate lapses in attention and collisions. The effect of everyday impediments such as mobile phones, alcohol and fatigue will be investigated together with means of minimising these attentional lapses and improving safety.Read moreRead less
Closing the loop between salience and brain activity. This project aims to understand how animals exposed to an abundance of highly complex information decide what to attend to, that is, how they determine visual saliency. The project will approach this question by systematically tracking visual decision-making in the smallest animal brains, in closed-loop virtual reality environment. This approach will uncover basic working principles applicable to any system that needs to pay attention in a vi ....Closing the loop between salience and brain activity. This project aims to understand how animals exposed to an abundance of highly complex information decide what to attend to, that is, how they determine visual saliency. The project will approach this question by systematically tracking visual decision-making in the smallest animal brains, in closed-loop virtual reality environment. This approach will uncover basic working principles applicable to any system that needs to pay attention in a visually cluttered world, from insects to humans or autonomous vehicles.Read moreRead less
The relative impacts of sleep, wake and the internal body clock on human performance. The 24h society presents a number of challenges to the shiftworker. First, shiftworkers have to maintain a balance between the competing needs of work, family, leisure and social life. Second, shiftwork has been identified as a risk factor for obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Third, shiftworkers have an increased risk of injury and death at work. This project will use an innovative research protocol to prov ....The relative impacts of sleep, wake and the internal body clock on human performance. The 24h society presents a number of challenges to the shiftworker. First, shiftworkers have to maintain a balance between the competing needs of work, family, leisure and social life. Second, shiftwork has been identified as a risk factor for obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Third, shiftworkers have an increased risk of injury and death at work. This project will use an innovative research protocol to provide critical information about the independent and combined effects of sleep loss and body clock disruption on human performance. Work schedules designed on the basis of a better understanding of sleep loss and circadian disruption will result in healthier employees, safer workplaces, and reduced costs to the community.Read moreRead less
Sleeping for Gold: The Influence of Sleep on the Sports Performance of Elite Athletes. The aim of this project is to improve the performance of Australia's elite athletes by enhancing the amount and quality of sleep that they obtain. This project will have three major benefits. First, successful role models will encourage more Australian children and adults to participate in sport. This is critical given that the incidence of obesity (a major risk factor for diabetes, cardiovascular disease and ....Sleeping for Gold: The Influence of Sleep on the Sports Performance of Elite Athletes. The aim of this project is to improve the performance of Australia's elite athletes by enhancing the amount and quality of sleep that they obtain. This project will have three major benefits. First, successful role models will encourage more Australian children and adults to participate in sport. This is critical given that the incidence of obesity (a major risk factor for diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some cancers) has doubled in Australia in the last 15 years as participation in sport has dropped. Second, the success of our elite athletes will provide a source of pride in our achievements as a nation. Third, this research will enable the Australian Institute of Sport to remain as an international leader in sports science research.Read moreRead less