Multiscale Analysis Of Plasma Membrane Microdomains In Health And Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$863,413.00
Summary
The cell surface encloses the cell in a protective barrier but it must also respond to signals coming from outside the cell. To accomplish this, the cell surface is made up of numerous regions each with a specialised role. This proposal aims to examine how lipids and proteins work together to make these specialised regions and aims to understand what goes wrong in diseases such as muscular dystrophy.
The regulation to early T cell signalling is a critical step in immune responses. Superimposed onto the biochemical pathways is a spatial organization that defines the immunological synapse. My research aims to map the principles of the spatial organization on the molecular scale to identify how lipids could unbalance the dynamic signalling equilibrium, for example in obese patients. To achieve this goal, my research group has developed single molecule microscopy approaches.
Development Of Membrane Protein Structural Biology In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$601,484.00
Summary
Membrane proteins are key components of all living organisms, constituting more than 30% of cellular proteins and representing more than 50% of all drug targets. Despite their medical importance our knowledge of membrane proteins is still extremely limited and requires further technological advances. This work will firmly establish membrane protein crystallography in Australia and provide a basis for training of new researchers in this important field.
Life needs energy. We breathe and eat to make the universal biological fuel adenosine triphosphate (ATP). We turn over our own body weight in ATP every day and imbalances in this process lead to severe disorders such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease as well as to ageing. For any real breakthroughs we need to understand the machinery behind biological energy conversion in molecular detail and this is what my laboratory is aiming to achieve.
Many bacterial pathogens invade host cells to replicate and avoid detection by the host. These pathogens interact with the host and by manipulating it to its benefit they establish an environment to survive in. A detailed understanding of the targeted hosts pathways and which are essential for pathogen survival is knowledge that will allow future development of therapeutic intervention strategies.