The Mechanism Of Conjugative Transfer Of Antibiotic Resistance Genes In Gram Positive Pathogens
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$628,459.00
Summary
Antibiotic resistant bacteria pose a serious threat to the health of Australians. We will determine how antibiotic resistance genes spread from one bacterium to another. Using a disease-causing bacterium as model we will determine the mechanism by which this gene transfer process occurs and the structure and function of the key components. The result will be major advances in our understanding of the evolution of the antibiotic resistant bacteria that are major causes of human disease.
Role In Disease Of A Novel Epigenetic Regulator Associated With The Hypervirulent Neisseria Meningitidis Clonal Complex 41/44
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$403,249.00
Summary
Neisseria meningitis is a major cause of meningococcal septicaemia and meningitis worldwide. We have identified a phase variable DNA methyltransferase present in disease isolates, some of which have caused meningococcal epidemics. This methyltransferase is involved in the regulation of proteins involved in infection and disease processes. We will investigate whether this regulation increases the ability of the bacteria to adapt to changing host environments and cause disease.
Identification Of Novel Gonococcal Virulence Factors And Vaccine Antigens Based On Their Expression During Host Cell Contact And Their Role In Association, Invasion And Survival In Cervical Epithelia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$371,922.00
Summary
The sexually transmitted infection gonorrhoea is a significant health problem worldwide. Control of gonorrhoea depends on the development of a vaccine due to the continuing increase of antibiotic resistance and the staggering outcomes of infection, including infertility and increased transmission of HIV. My research aims to discover new vaccine targets by identifying gonococcal proteins that are required for interaction with human cervical cells.
Inhibition Of Haemostasis As A Novel Host-directed Therapy For Tuberculosis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$528,471.00
Summary
Mycobacterium tuberculosis-induced vasculopathy is an important cause of stroke worldwide, and stroke is a common (~20%) complication of tuberculous meningitis, the most dangerous presentation of tuberculosis. Blood clotting may also speed the growth tuberculosis in the body further worsening the situation. We will use zebrafish find out if clotting can be targeted to slow the growth of mycobacteria and then translate our findings to a mouse model of pulmonary tuberculosis.
Genes Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Essential For Latent Tuberculosis Infection
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$590,103.00
Summary
One third of the worlds population is latently infected with M. tuberculosis, the bacteria which causes TB. We have identified key genes in M. tuberculosis that enable the bacterium to shut-down and become latent. This project will investigate these genes, identify their role and yield vital information for a new paradigm of drug and vaccine development. Improved vaccines and drugs which can target and inhibit latency would be of enormous benefit to the global community.
Understanding The Role Of O-linked Glycosylation In Burkholderia Cenocepica For Host Survival Using Proteomic Approaches
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$222,004.00
Summary
The bacteria Burkholderia cenocepecia (Bc) is a common infection of Cystic Fibrosis suffers in Australia. ~20% CF patients infected with Bc will die due to lung failure. Due to this high death rate there is an urgent need to understand how Bc survives and causes disease in the host. This grant aims to understand how the attachment of sugars, a process known as glycosylation, affects the ability of Bc to survive in mammalian cells.
Host-pathogen Interactions In Clostridial Myonecrosis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$897,617.00
Summary
This project will show how the bacteria that cause gas gangrene interact with host cells in an infection. We will examine the expression of genes from both the host and the pathogen in a mouse disease model. The aims are to determine the impact of bacterial genes that are differentially regulated in an infected lesion, how gene expression of both the host and pathogen is modulated throughout the course of an infection and the role of host pathways in controlling the infection process.
The Glyco-interactome Of Pathogenic Neisseria: Understanding Disease And Defining Vaccine Targets
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$431,012.00
Summary
In order to infect humans and cause disease, many bacteria rely on interactions with carbohydrate (sugar) structures on human cells. This project aims to characterise the sugar interactions that enable Neisseria meningitidis (causes meningitis, sepsis) and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (causes gonorrhoea, associated with infertility and increased transmission of HIV) to cause disease. This will increase our understanding of host-pathogen interactions and aid development of new vaccines and therapeutics.
Role Of IS26 In Antibiotic Resistance Gene Recruitment, Dissemination And Expression
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$457,879.00
Summary
Antibiotic resistance is increasing, compromising the efficacy of front-line antibiotics. Untreatable infections due to bacteria that are resistant to all available antibiotics are being seen more often. To control the spread of resistance, an understanding of how resistance arises and is spread among bacteria is needed. This requires information about how the genetic elements that mobilize them work. This project will study one of the most important of these elements.