Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100418
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,058.00
Summary
Novel chemical tools to study cathepsin X activation. This project aims to develop new chemical tools that can measure the specific activation of cathepsin X in cells, tissues, and live animals, as well as specific inhibitors for cathepsin X. The cysteine protease cathepsin X mediates basic biological functions that are essential for life, including cell communication, phagocytosis, immune maturation and neuritogenesis. The outcomes should benefit the wider research community. They could have lo ....Novel chemical tools to study cathepsin X activation. This project aims to develop new chemical tools that can measure the specific activation of cathepsin X in cells, tissues, and live animals, as well as specific inhibitors for cathepsin X. The cysteine protease cathepsin X mediates basic biological functions that are essential for life, including cell communication, phagocytosis, immune maturation and neuritogenesis. The outcomes should benefit the wider research community. They could have long-term implications for health and disease, and deliver economic benefits through commercialisation of the novel tools.Read moreRead less
Unlocking the secret chemistry of organosulfur biodegradation. The element sulfur is essential for life. Its transformation between organic-sulfur compounds to inorganic forms is a crucial part of the biogeochemical cycle. This project will elucidate the molecular details of the final leg of the biosulfur cycle: organosulfur breakdown into mineral form. An integrated chemical and biochemical approach will be used to illuminate how the carbon-sulfur bond is broken. This project will deliver a det ....Unlocking the secret chemistry of organosulfur biodegradation. The element sulfur is essential for life. Its transformation between organic-sulfur compounds to inorganic forms is a crucial part of the biogeochemical cycle. This project will elucidate the molecular details of the final leg of the biosulfur cycle: organosulfur breakdown into mineral form. An integrated chemical and biochemical approach will be used to illuminate how the carbon-sulfur bond is broken. This project will deliver a detailed molecular understanding of organosulfur breakdown to permit organosulfur recycling. Benefits of this research include potential biotechnology applications for breaking down xenobiotic organosulfonates and sustainable approaches to reduce dependence on agricultural fertilisers.Read moreRead less
A microbiological platform for the production of complex small molecules with important biological activities. Currently making complex chemicals such as medicines relies on harvesting rare natural resources or using complicated, energy intensive laboratory-based processes. This project will overcome these limitations by using a natural biological system to produce these chemicals, returning significant health and economic benefits to the nation.