Understanding the critical processes that control cell death and using this knowledge to kill cells that have evaded death. Cell death is essential for protecting the body against cancer, and defects in cell death pathways contribute to cancer progression. To design new and better cancer therapies we must understand the critical processes which control cell death, and develop effective ways to either reset, or bypass, defects in cell death pathways that contribute to cancer. The program as outl ....Understanding the critical processes that control cell death and using this knowledge to kill cells that have evaded death. Cell death is essential for protecting the body against cancer, and defects in cell death pathways contribute to cancer progression. To design new and better cancer therapies we must understand the critical processes which control cell death, and develop effective ways to either reset, or bypass, defects in cell death pathways that contribute to cancer. The program as outlined will elucidate the process of mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization, a critical event in cell death by apoptosis, and determine how to kill cells in which this event is blocked.Read moreRead less
Function and regulation of the Schlafen gene family: novel regulators of blood cell proliferation and function. The immediate outcomes of the proposed research will be in fundamental knowledge and understanding of important cellular and biological processes in which the Schlafen genes are involved. In particular, Schlafen genes are likely to play a role in inflammatory responses and in blood cell growth. These process clearly have relevance to a range of major human (and animal) diseases includ ....Function and regulation of the Schlafen gene family: novel regulators of blood cell proliferation and function. The immediate outcomes of the proposed research will be in fundamental knowledge and understanding of important cellular and biological processes in which the Schlafen genes are involved. In particular, Schlafen genes are likely to play a role in inflammatory responses and in blood cell growth. These process clearly have relevance to a range of major human (and animal) diseases including infectious disease, auto-immune disease and leukaemia, and thus a long-term outcome may be improved treatments for such disease. Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989744
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$500,000.00
Summary
7-laser BD LSR-II and Cellomics ArrayScan VTi, to enhance capability and throughput for the NSW Advanced Cytometry Facility. The scientific advances that will be possible with the acquisition of these complementary cutting-edge instruments will enhance the research outputs of all investigators using it. Projects where investigation of either suspended or adherent live cells is used to elucidate basic life processes of eukaryotic cells across all species of animals, including the investigation of ....7-laser BD LSR-II and Cellomics ArrayScan VTi, to enhance capability and throughput for the NSW Advanced Cytometry Facility. The scientific advances that will be possible with the acquisition of these complementary cutting-edge instruments will enhance the research outputs of all investigators using it. Projects where investigation of either suspended or adherent live cells is used to elucidate basic life processes of eukaryotic cells across all species of animals, including the investigation of both normal and abnormal function, will be immeasurably enhanced by both the qualitative and quantitative statistical information about these processes that is generated by this instrumentation. This in turn will inform new approaches to improve and maintain the health of both humans and animals.Read moreRead less
GENOMIC/PHENOMIC IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF NOVEL HEMATOPOIETIC REGULATORS. Blood cells are fundamental to health. They play a vital role in maintaining the condition of tissues and organs, fight infections and are essential players in the body's response to injury. Understanding how blood cells are produced and how they function is critical to improving the treatment of disease. With the sequencing of the genome, we now have the tools we need to find the genes controlling these proc ....GENOMIC/PHENOMIC IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF NOVEL HEMATOPOIETIC REGULATORS. Blood cells are fundamental to health. They play a vital role in maintaining the condition of tissues and organs, fight infections and are essential players in the body's response to injury. Understanding how blood cells are produced and how they function is critical to improving the treatment of disease. With the sequencing of the genome, we now have the tools we need to find the genes controlling these processes. This project will harness the power of modern genetic technologies to dissect the role of novel genes involved in blood cell formation and function, and will open up new therapeutic opportunities for treating the many diseases associated with dysregulation of this important cell system. Read moreRead less
The molecular basis of macropinocytosis in mammalian cells: the composition of endosome proteins and their function. Individual cells communicate with their immediate environment by the process of macropinocytosis, a process that involves the exchange of materials between the extracellular space and a specialised region of the cell termed endosomes. It is an important process in mammalian cells being essential to the correct functioning of many tissues. This project will advance understanding of ....The molecular basis of macropinocytosis in mammalian cells: the composition of endosome proteins and their function. Individual cells communicate with their immediate environment by the process of macropinocytosis, a process that involves the exchange of materials between the extracellular space and a specialised region of the cell termed endosomes. It is an important process in mammalian cells being essential to the correct functioning of many tissues. This project will advance understanding of macropinocytosis at a molecular level. The project is relevant to understanding the functioning of normal cells and the means by which some pathogens can enter cells and also understanding processes involved in tumour progression and metastasis.Read moreRead less
A shipload of consequences: studying the impact of Old World diseases on native South American populations via ancient DNA. This pioneering project will give the first real-time picture of the genetic changes induced by epidemics in human populations. This will reveal important new information about the likely impact of future epidemics on the genetic diversity of the immune system in modern human populations and will be of substantial use in building epidemiological models. By proposing to comb ....A shipload of consequences: studying the impact of Old World diseases on native South American populations via ancient DNA. This pioneering project will give the first real-time picture of the genetic changes induced by epidemics in human populations. This will reveal important new information about the likely impact of future epidemics on the genetic diversity of the immune system in modern human populations and will be of substantial use in building epidemiological models. By proposing to combine state-of-the-art science with global problems of humanity, we will address Australia's interests in expanding scientific expertise beyond its borders and place Australia at the leading edge of disease impact studies.Read moreRead less
Regulation of DNA replication initiation during Drosophila development. This proposal addresses the fundamental issue of the regulation of DNA
replication during development, using the animal model system, Drosophila melanogaster. This research uses a whole animal genetic and cell biological approach to explore DNA replication regulatory mechanisms that are present in multicellular organisms but not in yeast. The work undertaken here will make a significant contribution to our understanding of ....Regulation of DNA replication initiation during Drosophila development. This proposal addresses the fundamental issue of the regulation of DNA
replication during development, using the animal model system, Drosophila melanogaster. This research uses a whole animal genetic and cell biological approach to explore DNA replication regulatory mechanisms that are present in multicellular organisms but not in yeast. The work undertaken here will make a significant contribution to our understanding of DNA replication regulation within a developing organism that will be relevant to all animals.Read moreRead less
Unveiling and characterisation of a fundamental pathway important in cell division. This work will have a major impact by producing top quality research that addresses a fundamental biological question of relevance to all organisms. The research will advance understanding of genetic factors important in foetal and early childhood development and proliferative disorders that occur during ageing. This work will provide intellectual and practical training to Honours and PhD students and postdoctora ....Unveiling and characterisation of a fundamental pathway important in cell division. This work will have a major impact by producing top quality research that addresses a fundamental biological question of relevance to all organisms. The research will advance understanding of genetic factors important in foetal and early childhood development and proliferative disorders that occur during ageing. This work will provide intellectual and practical training to Honours and PhD students and postdoctoral researchers in the disciplines of Molecular Genetics, Molecular & Cellular Biology, Developmental Cell Biology, Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, which will be of immense benefit to their scientific careers and the Australian scientific community.Read moreRead less
The roles of novel pathways in the activation and regulation of the adaptive immune response in health and disease. The immune system is designed to protect us against infection and vaccines exploit this with great success in preventing many infections. However, the immune system can also 'fail' and attack the body in a process called autoimmunity e.g. destroying joints in rheumatoid arthritis. This proposal will define how white blood cells work to make better vaccines against infection and ho ....The roles of novel pathways in the activation and regulation of the adaptive immune response in health and disease. The immune system is designed to protect us against infection and vaccines exploit this with great success in preventing many infections. However, the immune system can also 'fail' and attack the body in a process called autoimmunity e.g. destroying joints in rheumatoid arthritis. This proposal will define how white blood cells work to make better vaccines against infection and how these same immune cells can malfunction to create autoimmune diseases like Crohn's disease.Read moreRead less
Genetic control of plant organ growth. Plants organs, such as leaves and petals, have a distinct size and shape reflecting differences in growth. Despite its importance, very little is known about the mechanisms that regulate growth. The objectives of this proposal are a) to test whether organ growth depends on cell-cell signalling and b) to identifying genes that regulate growth, and to characterize their molecular function.