Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989920
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$750,000.00
Summary
Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility. The Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility will rapidly establish itself as one of Australia's premier science facilities. It will provide the capacity to investigate the structure and molecular dynamics of viruses and microbial, human, animal and plant cells with unprecedented high resolution in both pure and applied research settings, guided by Australia's leading experts in many research strengths. This facility addresses a c ....Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility. The Microbial and Cellular Imaging and Analysis Facility will rapidly establish itself as one of Australia's premier science facilities. It will provide the capacity to investigate the structure and molecular dynamics of viruses and microbial, human, animal and plant cells with unprecedented high resolution in both pure and applied research settings, guided by Australia's leading experts in many research strengths. This facility addresses a current unmet need for scientists in this country and will provide cutting-edge technologies to Australian researchers so they can better detect, understand, and treat human, animal and plant diseases and the environmental impact of climate change.Read moreRead less
The biosynthesis of structural proteins in parasites. The socio-economic impact of parasitic diseases, in Australia and throughout the world, is enormous- they kill 2-3 million people per year and cost livestock industries billions of dollars per annum. Some are serious food and waterborne threats, such as the coccidia, because they are transmitted from person-to-person via the faecal-oral route, or via ingestion of contaminated water or food, or through the ingestion of cysts in raw or underco ....The biosynthesis of structural proteins in parasites. The socio-economic impact of parasitic diseases, in Australia and throughout the world, is enormous- they kill 2-3 million people per year and cost livestock industries billions of dollars per annum. Some are serious food and waterborne threats, such as the coccidia, because they are transmitted from person-to-person via the faecal-oral route, or via ingestion of contaminated water or food, or through the ingestion of cysts in raw or undercooked meat. They cause diarrhoea, which in some cases, can be life-threatening. We will understand how the coccidia protect themselves as they move from host to host and, through that understanding, develop new ways to control them and eliminate the suffering caused by parasitic diseases.Read moreRead less
Making Green Guard® greener: enhancing the efficacy of a biopesticide. The project aims to identify naturally occurring micro-organisms to increase the effectiveness of Green Guard ®, which is a biopesticide used against the Australian plague locust. The project will use next-generation sequencing and other molecular techniques to potentially identify candidate microbes or combinations of microbes that can be added to Green Guard to enhance locust susceptibility. The project also aims to quantif ....Making Green Guard® greener: enhancing the efficacy of a biopesticide. The project aims to identify naturally occurring micro-organisms to increase the effectiveness of Green Guard ®, which is a biopesticide used against the Australian plague locust. The project will use next-generation sequencing and other molecular techniques to potentially identify candidate microbes or combinations of microbes that can be added to Green Guard to enhance locust susceptibility. The project also aims to quantify the interactive impact of temperature and nutrition on immune function, disease resistance and host-plant quality of plague locusts; and to explore the combined effects of temperature, habitat and Green Guard, in combination with candidate microbes or pathogens, on the behaviour and collective movement of locusts. It is anticipated that this will have implications for management and control strategies.Read moreRead less
New mathematical and statistical methods that inform the control of infectious disease outbreaks. Emerging infectious diseases are an ever-present threat to our community, as highlighted by the recent SARS epidemic and current fears concerning avian influenza. The research proposed by this project will help policy makers implement effective border control and outbreak control against a variety of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, including SARS, influenza and the deliberate release o ....New mathematical and statistical methods that inform the control of infectious disease outbreaks. Emerging infectious diseases are an ever-present threat to our community, as highlighted by the recent SARS epidemic and current fears concerning avian influenza. The research proposed by this project will help policy makers implement effective border control and outbreak control against a variety of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, including SARS, influenza and the deliberate release of an infectious disease such as smallpox. The project will enhance preparedness through a better understanding of the relative merits of different control strategies, and provide new methodology that can dynamically guide border and outbreak control in the midst of an outbreak by making effective use of data. Read moreRead less
Ion transport in the malaria parasite and parasitised erythrocyte. This work will contribute to the national research effort in parasitology (an area in which the ARC has established a Research Network), as well as laying the groundwork for subsequent efforts (not part of this grant) to develop new antimalarial strategies. Although not yet endemic in Australia, malaria is a serious problem in the local region and, as the major developed nation in the region Australia has an obligation to make ....Ion transport in the malaria parasite and parasitised erythrocyte. This work will contribute to the national research effort in parasitology (an area in which the ARC has established a Research Network), as well as laying the groundwork for subsequent efforts (not part of this grant) to develop new antimalarial strategies. Although not yet endemic in Australia, malaria is a serious problem in the local region and, as the major developed nation in the region Australia has an obligation to make a significant contribution to research in this area. The work proposed here will contribute to Australia's meeting this obligation.Read moreRead less
Amino acid transporters and the chloroquine resistance transporter of the intracellular malaria parasite. This work entails an ongoing collaboration between three independent research groups with highly complementary expertise and experience. It will make a significant contribution to the maintenance of Australia's scientific capabilities and training opportunities. The project will yield important insights into the biology of the causative agent of a major human disease, and the mechanism by ....Amino acid transporters and the chloroquine resistance transporter of the intracellular malaria parasite. This work entails an ongoing collaboration between three independent research groups with highly complementary expertise and experience. It will make a significant contribution to the maintenance of Australia's scientific capabilities and training opportunities. The project will yield important insights into the biology of the causative agent of a major human disease, and the mechanism by which the malaria parasite has developed resistance to antimalarial drugs. Although not yet endemic in Australia, malaria is a serious problem in the local region and this work will help Australia meet its obligations to carry out high-quality research that advances our knowledge in this area.
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Ross River virus - identification of virulence determinants in clinical isolates from across Australia. In Australia, Ross River virus (RRV) is the most common insect borne virus that affects human health. There were more than 60,000 confirmed cases of RRV between 1993 and 2008. While not fatal, the disease is responsible for significant morbidity that has both social and economic costs for the individual, their family and the community. The project has several national benefits. It will elucida ....Ross River virus - identification of virulence determinants in clinical isolates from across Australia. In Australia, Ross River virus (RRV) is the most common insect borne virus that affects human health. There were more than 60,000 confirmed cases of RRV between 1993 and 2008. While not fatal, the disease is responsible for significant morbidity that has both social and economic costs for the individual, their family and the community. The project has several national benefits. It will elucidate whether there is any association between RRV strain and the severity of human disease. It will also identify viral markers that could assist public health officials in determining likely disease outcomes of outbreaks and could provide new avenues for the design of antiviral strategies.Read moreRead less
Signalling pathways for sexual differentiation of apicomplexan parasites. This project aims to study the sexual development of apicomplexan parasites, which cause major diseases in humans, livestock and wildlife, including malaria. Only sexually differentiated cells can survive in the mosquito vector and hence this development is essential for the parasite's life-cycle. This project will employ a new approach that separates female from male parasites, thus enabling new information to be gleaned ....Signalling pathways for sexual differentiation of apicomplexan parasites. This project aims to study the sexual development of apicomplexan parasites, which cause major diseases in humans, livestock and wildlife, including malaria. Only sexually differentiated cells can survive in the mosquito vector and hence this development is essential for the parasite's life-cycle. This project will employ a new approach that separates female from male parasites, thus enabling new information to be gleaned about the development of these parasites. The expected outcomes are an understanding of the mechanisms of sexual differentiation and a functional characterisation of novel sex-specific molecules. This will provide significant benefits, such as pivotal prerequisites for new approaches to parasite intervention.Read moreRead less
Mosquito-borne viruses - how they cause disease and novel approaches to prevention. In Australia, Ross River virus (RRV) is the most common insect borne virus that affects human health. There were more than 60,000 confirmed cases of RRV between 1993 and 2008. While not fatal, the disease is responsible for significant morbidity that has both social and economic costs for the individual, their family and the community. This project has several national benefits. It will elucidate whether there is ....Mosquito-borne viruses - how they cause disease and novel approaches to prevention. In Australia, Ross River virus (RRV) is the most common insect borne virus that affects human health. There were more than 60,000 confirmed cases of RRV between 1993 and 2008. While not fatal, the disease is responsible for significant morbidity that has both social and economic costs for the individual, their family and the community. This project has several national benefits. It will elucidate whether there is an association between RRV strain and the severity of disease and if there are human factors that affect the seriousness of symptoms. Knowledge of both of these could provide new avenues for the design of prevention and treatment strategies.Read moreRead less