This program of research is firmly focussed on the basic mechanisms involved in normal functioning of cells and tissues, followed by a step by step process to understand the abnormal or the diseased. The disease states we are investigating involve the blood and blood vessels, and when there is malfunction it may contribute to conditions as diverse as atherosclerosis, thrombosis, inflammation and cancer. The program thus addresses the fundamentals of diseases which are responsible for most deaths ....This program of research is firmly focussed on the basic mechanisms involved in normal functioning of cells and tissues, followed by a step by step process to understand the abnormal or the diseased. The disease states we are investigating involve the blood and blood vessels, and when there is malfunction it may contribute to conditions as diverse as atherosclerosis, thrombosis, inflammation and cancer. The program thus addresses the fundamentals of diseases which are responsible for most deaths in our society. We will use technology which is proven to provide precise information, the molecular and biochemical processes responsible for cell function (or malfunction). However in each individual project there will be a clear path to a clinical use, diagnostic or therapeutic. Indeed in a number of the components of the program there are already potential treatments and diagnostics in development and trial.Read moreRead less
Determining the social value of extreme, mixed-use urban developments. Using an Adelaide case study, UCity, this project will investigate the social benefit of building mixed-use vertical communities in the Australian urban context. Using an innovative Social Value Framework, the project will establish and demonstrate the multi-dimensional impacts of such developments in practice. The project utilises citizen science for real time auditing of the built environment by residents and users; smart t ....Determining the social value of extreme, mixed-use urban developments. Using an Adelaide case study, UCity, this project will investigate the social benefit of building mixed-use vertical communities in the Australian urban context. Using an innovative Social Value Framework, the project will establish and demonstrate the multi-dimensional impacts of such developments in practice. The project utilises citizen science for real time auditing of the built environment by residents and users; smart technologies for environmental and behavioural monitoring; and data analytics and design automation for spatial analysis of building use. The results will inform new models of sustainable high-rise, mixed-use buildings; providing evidence for a Social Value Framework to become a core consideration in Australian industry.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE160100174
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$805,000.00
Summary
Urban Analytics Data Infrastructure. Urban analytics data infrastructure:
This project aims to develop an urban analytics data infrastructure that builds on the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network. This digital data infrastructure intends to enable the integration, harmonisation, connectivity and scalability of multi-source urban datasets. This infrastructure is required to underpin the next generation of data-driven modelling and decision-support tools to enable the design of smar ....Urban Analytics Data Infrastructure. Urban analytics data infrastructure:
This project aims to develop an urban analytics data infrastructure that builds on the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network. This digital data infrastructure intends to enable the integration, harmonisation, connectivity and scalability of multi-source urban datasets. This infrastructure is required to underpin the next generation of data-driven modelling and decision-support tools to enable the design of smart, productive and resilient cities. These capabilities are predicated on the adoption of ISO standards, development of new ontological frameworks and an urban data dictionary to enable semantic inferencing of datasets and the development of data structures and services. This framework would then be applied to data relevant to people, land and urban infrastructure to support comparative and multi-dimensional analytics. Read moreRead less
A Population-based Cohort Investigation Of Postnatal Microbial Experience, Immune Programming And Allergic Disease Risk
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,511,471.00
Summary
This is a population-based longitudinal investigation of the early life host-environment interactions that influence development of the immune system, and the risk of allergic disease. Importantly, this is one of the first studies designed to examine epigenetic programming of the infant immune system in the population setting. Thus we will be able to conduct robust tests of several critical hypotheses that will inform the prevention of allergic disease.
Genomic Analysis Of DNA Binding And Gene Regulation By The Chromatin Remodelling Factor UBF
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$624,254.00
Summary
Synthesis of ribosomes, the cellular protein synthetic machinery, is the major anabolic event of a growing cell and is frequently dysregulated during disease such as cancer. This grant will examine a protein termed UBF that we think plays an important role in orchestrating the cellular response to dysregulated ribosome biogenesis. By understanding how UBF functions we hope to uncover novel therapeutic approaches to treat diseases associated with ribosome stress .
Platelets are key blood elements that are essential for the prevention of bleeding in response to injury or infection. Overactive or spontaneously active platelets cause thrombosis and blood clot formation. My laboratory has identified new physiological pathways of activation of platelet metalloproteinases, the enzymes that regulate surface levels of the prothrombotic platelet receptors. By understanding this mechanism of receptor regulation, we can uniquely target platelet receptors in people w ....Platelets are key blood elements that are essential for the prevention of bleeding in response to injury or infection. Overactive or spontaneously active platelets cause thrombosis and blood clot formation. My laboratory has identified new physiological pathways of activation of platelet metalloproteinases, the enzymes that regulate surface levels of the prothrombotic platelet receptors. By understanding this mechanism of receptor regulation, we can uniquely target platelet receptors in people with prothrombotic pathologies.Read moreRead less
Regulation Of Ribosomal RNA Gene Chromatin During Malignant Transformation.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$882,486.00
Summary
The overarching goal of this proposal is to determine the molecular basis for tumour cell dependence on activated ribosomal RNA gene repeats (rDNA). Our working model posits that rDNA repeats become activated through changes in rDNA chromatin structure that include increased binding of the RNA Polymerase I transcription factor UBF.
Novel gas-liquid columns for liquefied natural gas (LNG) production. Novel gas-liquid columns for liquefied natural gas (LNG) production. This project aims to design distillation and absorption columns, perhaps the most important unit operations in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant, and whose optimization is integral to overall performance of any LNG plant. This project will use 3D printers to rapidly prototype concepts of columns and their internals, and test them using flow characterization ....Novel gas-liquid columns for liquefied natural gas (LNG) production. Novel gas-liquid columns for liquefied natural gas (LNG) production. This project aims to design distillation and absorption columns, perhaps the most important unit operations in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant, and whose optimization is integral to overall performance of any LNG plant. This project will use 3D printers to rapidly prototype concepts of columns and their internals, and test them using flow characterization tools and numerical models. The final outcome of the project will be a set of designs of the columns, which should be more efficient, safer and cheaper to operate, and have smaller physical and environmental footprints, thus helping the Australian LNG industry to stay globally competitive.Read moreRead less
Epigenetic Regulation By PKC-theta In Human Breast Cancer Stem Cells.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$818,132.00
Summary
Treating women with advanced breast cancer is difficult, and new drugs are needed to kill the cancer stem cells that cause recurrence. We think that a newly discovered protein, PKC-?, plays an important role in recurring breast cancer and can be targeted using novel ‘epigenetic’ drugs. Here, we will use cutting-edge DNA techniques to learn how this protein controls how cancer cells grow and produce the necessary data to show that targeting this protein is likely to be effective in real patients.
How Does NF-kB2 Regulate Thymic Selection To Prevent Organ-specific Autoimmune Disease?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$787,600.00
Summary
Autoimmune diseases like type 1 diabetes and thyroiditis arise from defects that cause the immune system to confuse self and non-self. Normally, this distinction is programmed in the thymus. We recently identified the gene that causes a form of autoimmune disease. We also made an important discovery about how the thymus gland regulates self-non-self discrimination. We will build on these two discoveries to gain a precise understanding of how the immune system normally avoids autoimmune disease.