Bismuth Compounds And Materials As Antibacterial Agents
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$476,535.00
Summary
Antimicrobial resistance has been identified by the World Health Organisation as one of the greatest threats we face globally. The amount of effective antibacterial agents is rapidly diminishing. The threat of antimicrobial resistance is greatest in hospitals and health-care facilities. Our project aims to produce a new range of bismuth based antibacterial materials, which will be used in devices, coatings and surfaces in the clinic, to combat the rise of infections caused by resistant bacteria.
Optimisation Of A Potent And Fast Acting Antimalarial Class That Is Orally Efficacious In Vivo
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$683,916.00
Summary
Malaria is a devastating disease that results in 600 000 deaths annually. Current therapeutics used to combat malaria have a limited duration of use in the clinic due to the onset of resistance. We have identified a highly active antimalarial series that we propose to further develop to meet the prerequisites required for partnership with the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) for progression into the clinic.
Development Of A Modified Gp130 Ligand To Treat Obesity-induced Insulin Resistance
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$438,533.00
Summary
IC7 is a mixture of two naturally occurring proteins, CNTF and IL-6. These gp130 receptor ligands have been shown to have positive metabolic effects in humans, but individually they are not suitable for therapeutic use. IC7, the novel molecule this technology is based upon, is a combination of CNTF and IL-6 in a specific design to avoid the negative effects. Preliminary results suggest that IC7 has positive metabolic effects but further development is required to increase its effectiveness in tr ....IC7 is a mixture of two naturally occurring proteins, CNTF and IL-6. These gp130 receptor ligands have been shown to have positive metabolic effects in humans, but individually they are not suitable for therapeutic use. IC7, the novel molecule this technology is based upon, is a combination of CNTF and IL-6 in a specific design to avoid the negative effects. Preliminary results suggest that IC7 has positive metabolic effects but further development is required to increase its effectiveness in treating insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.Read moreRead less
Pre-clinical Development Of A Novel Second Generation Chemotherapeutic For Cancer Therapy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$584,907.00
Summary
Cancer cells have a high iron requirement for DNA synthesis and many clinical trials have shown that iron chelators are effective anti-cancer drugs. Their potential to act as anti-tumour agents has been confirmed by the entrance of the iron chelator, Triapine, into widespread NCI clinical trials. In this NHMRC Development Grant, we will perform toxicological studies to enable clinical trials of our most potent and selective anti-cancer agent to commence.
Chronic pain from damage to the nervous system is extremely debilitating and notoriously difficult to treat. The current drug of choice, gabapentin, has serious side effects and only works in two-thirds of patients. We have developed a drug, derived from sea snail venom, that exhibits ten times the activity of gabapentin. This proposal seeks to progress our drug to clinical trials and attract a commercial partner for its development into the market.
Development Of A New Class Of Broad-Stage Antimalarial Agents
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$729,037.00
Summary
In 2017, there were almost 220 million cases of malaria across 90 different countries, associated with 435,000 deaths, and with 65-70% of all malaria deaths tragically being children under the age of 5 years old. No significant progress in reducing global malaria cases has been made over the last 4 years and the need for new and better treatments remains dire. In this research and development plan, we will develop novel and safer drugs for the treatment of drug resistant malaria.
Prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) is a key driver of asthma and allergic rhinitis. We have developed drug-like compounds that block the synthesis of PGD2 by inhibiting the hematopoietic prostaglandin D2 synthase (HPGD2S) enzyme. This project aims to develop these compounds further to ultimately treat a subset of the asthma population that are not well treated, refractory asthmatics.
TBK1 Inhibitors As Novel Therapeutics For Rheumatoid Arthritis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$511,722.00
Summary
A key feature of rheumatoid arthritis is inflammation in affected joints causing pain and immobility. New drugs that selectively block processes that are dysregulated in rheumatoid arthritis are needed to better treat this disease. The protein called TBK1 is a key regulator of inflammation and we aim to develop drugs that inhibit TBK1 activity thereby blocking the inflammation and symptoms associated with rheumatoid arthritis.
Novel NLRP3 Inhibitors For Steroid Resistant Asthma
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$927,117.00
Summary
Asthma causes 40,000 hospitalisations p.a. with 5-10% of asthmatics having severe steroid resistant asthma, a common and debilitating disease, where current treatments do not work. Effective therapies are urgently required. Based on our research, we have novel molecules showing high level of efficacy in models of severe steroid resistant asthma. These molecules will be further investigated to deliver a drug candidate for commercialisation within 3 years.
The Development Of Human Hematopoietic Prostaglandin D2 Synthase Inhibitors In Allergic Asthma And Related Disorders
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$428,071.00
Summary
Prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) is a key mediator of asthma and allergic rhinitis. We have developed drug-like compounds that block the synthesis of PGD2 by inhibiting the hematopoietic prostaglandin D2 synthase (HPGD2S) enzyme. This project aims to evaluate the potential of these compounds to treat asthma and to further optimize the drug-like characteristics of our lead molecules.