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Identifying Target Genes For Novel Anti-epileptic Therapies In The Mouse
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$469,802.00
Summary
Epilepsy is a disease which affects 2-4% of the population. There are a wide range of drugs available to treat the condition but there is consistently 30-40% of patients who do not respond well to any of these drugs and who continue to have seizures. The reason that there are no drugs available for these people is that most of the drugs available have been designed along the same principles. A new set of principles is needed to develop new drugs which will be able to treat those people not respo ....Epilepsy is a disease which affects 2-4% of the population. There are a wide range of drugs available to treat the condition but there is consistently 30-40% of patients who do not respond well to any of these drugs and who continue to have seizures. The reason that there are no drugs available for these people is that most of the drugs available have been designed along the same principles. A new set of principles is needed to develop new drugs which will be able to treat those people not responding to current therapy. This project is designed to identify new biologic pathways which may be interrupted with drugs to prevent seizures in people with epilepsy. This project uses a procedure to induce mutations into genes in mice and then screens for mice which do not seize when challenged with a drug which generates seizures in mice. Genetic studies will identify the mutated genes and these will be used as potential targets for new therapies or will identify new biological pathway which should expand the use of future anti-epileptic drugs.Read moreRead less
Targeting RCAN1 To Treat Type 2 Diabetes And Obesity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$814,468.00
Summary
Obesity and impaired insulin secretion are significant contributors to Type 2 diabetes. In this project we demonstrate that a protein called RCAN1 contributes to both fat mass and insulin secretion and that this contribution is exacerbated in obesity and in Type 2 diabetes. We will identify how RCAN1 controls these major metabolic pathways with outcomes including the development of new therapeutics for obesity and Type 2 diabetes.
Topical peptide delivery for cosmetic and therapeutic benefits. Milk is a major Australian agricultural commodity and is now used in a number of topical products for the management of various skin conditions including chafing in babies, eczema and ageing skin. Hence, this work hopes to contribute to promoting and maintaining good health of Australians.
In addition, there is considerable research being conducted on peptide development for a range of diseases and there may be a possibility of ....Topical peptide delivery for cosmetic and therapeutic benefits. Milk is a major Australian agricultural commodity and is now used in a number of topical products for the management of various skin conditions including chafing in babies, eczema and ageing skin. Hence, this work hopes to contribute to promoting and maintaining good health of Australians.
In addition, there is considerable research being conducted on peptide development for a range of diseases and there may be a possibility of delivering these by the skin.
This work, in seeking to understand some of the fundamental determinants governing how exogenously applied peptides distribute in the skin, is also contributing to the development of Australian pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.Read moreRead less
Differentiation of Cord Blood Stem cells into Thymus (T) cells with regulatory phenotype and function. This project will develop technologies for a stem cell therapy platform based on cord blood stem cells, to enable treatment of autoimmune diseases or transplants. Building on the University of Adelaide's frontier demonstration of differentiation of regulatory Thymus (T) cells from cord blood stem cells, the project will develop techniques to expand the numbers of T cells generated. This has the ....Differentiation of Cord Blood Stem cells into Thymus (T) cells with regulatory phenotype and function. This project will develop technologies for a stem cell therapy platform based on cord blood stem cells, to enable treatment of autoimmune diseases or transplants. Building on the University of Adelaide's frontier demonstration of differentiation of regulatory Thymus (T) cells from cord blood stem cells, the project will develop techniques to expand the numbers of T cells generated. This has the potential to maintain Australia's lead in differentiation of cord blood stem cells and to provide a significant breakthrough in potential treatments of autoimmune diseases (e.g. type 1 diabetes) or transplantation. These diseases affect both a healthy start to life and healthy ageing, and an Australian invention to treat or cure them would have global impact.Read moreRead less
Design of novel nanoporous semiconductor materials for clean environment and energy. This project will develop a low cost nanoporous semiconductor device for the capture and conversion of CO2 into fuels by using water and sunlight. This novel approach will deliver a low cost technology that offers clean energy and will help to mitigate global warming.
How Scientific Theories are Confirmed: A History of Atomic Theories of Matter. This project addresses the question of how scientific theories are confirmed by experiment - a fundamentally important aspect of philosophy of science and science itself - that has yet to be definitively answered.
The research will explore the evolution of atomic theories of matter, from speculation in the seventeenth century to precise versions that were confirmed by experiment in the twentieth.
This research r ....How Scientific Theories are Confirmed: A History of Atomic Theories of Matter. This project addresses the question of how scientific theories are confirmed by experiment - a fundamentally important aspect of philosophy of science and science itself - that has yet to be definitively answered.
The research will explore the evolution of atomic theories of matter, from speculation in the seventeenth century to precise versions that were confirmed by experiment in the twentieth.
This research represents a much-needed combining of history and philosophy in this field. It will advance the understanding of how theories in the physical sciences are confirmed in a way that is anchored in an investigation of actual scientific practice.Read moreRead less
The Formation and Development of Chinese Philosophy as an Academic Discipline in Twentieth Century China. It is in Australia's national interest to pay close attention to the orientation of intellectual and political currents in China and to how these currents are increasingly merging and interacting. This project will enhance our capacity to interpret and engage with our regional environment by contributing to a clearer understanding of the changing relationship between Chinese intellectual tra ....The Formation and Development of Chinese Philosophy as an Academic Discipline in Twentieth Century China. It is in Australia's national interest to pay close attention to the orientation of intellectual and political currents in China and to how these currents are increasingly merging and interacting. This project will enhance our capacity to interpret and engage with our regional environment by contributing to a clearer understanding of the changing relationship between Chinese intellectual traditions and cultural identity. A commitment to understanding what Chinese philosophy means to China's educated elite also demonstrates a willingness to foster dialogue and communication that is sensitive to the intellectual and cultural traditions which are a source of pride and identity for several of our major regional partners. Read moreRead less
Beyond access: women, higher education and the quiet revolutions of the 1950s. This project challenges the standard narrative of women in the 1950s through a study of the intersections of higher education, gender and place. By studying women graduates in Australia and the United States within the context of demographic, employment and cultural change, it develops life histories of graduate women over several decades of their post-universtiy lives, drawing on comparative sources. It offers a new ....Beyond access: women, higher education and the quiet revolutions of the 1950s. This project challenges the standard narrative of women in the 1950s through a study of the intersections of higher education, gender and place. By studying women graduates in Australia and the United States within the context of demographic, employment and cultural change, it develops life histories of graduate women over several decades of their post-universtiy lives, drawing on comparative sources. It offers a new framework for women's educational history, one that goes beyond access and focuses on the new identities that were formed as graduate women negotiated the contradictions of higher education and the dominant femininity of the period.Read moreRead less
The Intellectual Construction of Confucianism in Contemporary China and Taiwan. Since the 1980s China and Taiwan have witnessed the most sustained resurgence of intellectual interest in Confucianism of the twentieth century. This project will provide the first critical analysis of that revival by addressing the complex interaction of institutional, philosophical and ideological factors, rather than study one or the other in isolation. This will enable us to understand the processes by which Chi ....The Intellectual Construction of Confucianism in Contemporary China and Taiwan. Since the 1980s China and Taiwan have witnessed the most sustained resurgence of intellectual interest in Confucianism of the twentieth century. This project will provide the first critical analysis of that revival by addressing the complex interaction of institutional, philosophical and ideological factors, rather than study one or the other in isolation. This will enable us to understand the processes by which Chinese intellectuals have sought to make Confucianism a viable philosophical and cultural resource in the modern world; and to evaluate how successful they have been in achieving these goals.
Results: One monograph; one edited volume; several essays.
Read moreRead less
Making plants better, making Australia better? A history of genetic modification science, policy, and community attitudes in Australia. This project will document and analyse the history of the development of genetic modification (GM) science and policy, and the associated community attitudes and activism efforts in Australia over the last 40 years, with a focus on the development of GM for food and agricultural purposes. In addition to producing a rich historical narrative of critical scientifi ....Making plants better, making Australia better? A history of genetic modification science, policy, and community attitudes in Australia. This project will document and analyse the history of the development of genetic modification (GM) science and policy, and the associated community attitudes and activism efforts in Australia over the last 40 years, with a focus on the development of GM for food and agricultural purposes. In addition to producing a rich historical narrative of critical scientific and policy developments associated with GM in Australia. This project will explore how Australians respond to new scientific ideas and technologies, and use this evidence as the basis for a case study of prospects for future community involvement in the development of science policy particularly in association with emerging technologies.Read moreRead less