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Neuroprotection By Ndfip1 In Brain Injury - Identifying Targets And Understanding Mechanisms
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$836,225.00
Summary
Brain injury from trauma and motor vehicle accidents is a serious health issue, affecting approximately 30,000 Australians per year. About 10% of the victims suffer serious long term consequences, including mental, physical and behavioural impairment. We have discovered a new brain protein capable of preventing neurons from dying following injury. This grant will improve our understanding of how this protein works, and provide a scientific foundation for devising therapies.
The Neural Reaction To Injury: Clues To The Cause And Prevention Of Acquired Brain Damage And Alzheimer's Disease.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$390,326.00
Summary
The cellular mechanism underlying neuronal degeneration following head trauma and Alzheimer?s disease is not known and represents the major impediment to developing therapeutic strategies to protect nerve cells. This grant application will utilise a variety of modern research methods to determine the key changes in the brain that are associated with the response of nerve cells to physical trauma. These include not only the structural alterations that immediately follow such injury, but the compl ....The cellular mechanism underlying neuronal degeneration following head trauma and Alzheimer?s disease is not known and represents the major impediment to developing therapeutic strategies to protect nerve cells. This grant application will utilise a variety of modern research methods to determine the key changes in the brain that are associated with the response of nerve cells to physical trauma. These include not only the structural alterations that immediately follow such injury, but the complex cellular and gene expression changes that determine the ultimate fate of the cell. Both acquired brain injury and degenerative conditions such as Alzheimer?s disease represent an enormous health, social and economic burden. Furthermore, with predictions that Alzheimer?s disease will increase by 3-4 times by the middle of the next century due to the Oaging? of the population, it is becoming even more crucial to establish effective therapeutic interventions. The animal models investigated in this project can be used to unravel the crucial neuronal alterations associated with head trauma and the early stages of Alzheimer?s disease and, more importantly, may be the key to discovering novel strategies to prevent neuronal degeneration in these conditions.Read moreRead less
Therapeutic Development Of A Novel EphA4 Antagonist For Spinal Cord Injuries
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$687,105.00
Summary
Spinal cord injuries impose a significant burden on patients and their carers. At present, there are no treatments for spinal cord injury that provide functional improvement. This research program will develop a novel therapeutic molecule, EphA4-Fc, which promotes axonal regeneration and delivers significant functional improvement. We will determine the most effective protocol for EphA4-Fc administration and the physiological and functional outcomes of these treatment regimes.
Cellular And Molecular Mechanisms Of Development And Regeneration In The Olfactory System
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$345,773.00
Summary
During development of the fetal brain, cells are wired together. The correct wiring patterns are essential for normal function of the brain. Growth and formation of new connections decreases after birth. For this reason, the repair of the damaged adult nervous system is limited. However, there is one region in the nervous system that exhibits continual growth and repair throughout life. This is the nerve that is responsible for smell and connects the nose to the brain. The aim of this study is t ....During development of the fetal brain, cells are wired together. The correct wiring patterns are essential for normal function of the brain. Growth and formation of new connections decreases after birth. For this reason, the repair of the damaged adult nervous system is limited. However, there is one region in the nervous system that exhibits continual growth and repair throughout life. This is the nerve that is responsible for smell and connects the nose to the brain. The aim of this study is to identify the processes that permit continual growth within this region of the nervous system.Read moreRead less
Regulation Of Dendritic Ion Channels And Its Role In Intrinsic Neuronal Excitability In Health And Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$402,810.00
Summary
Nerve cells are able to regulate their activity to maintain the reliable transfer of information between cells. By conducting detailed electrical and chemical analysis of nerve cells this project will increase our understanding of how nerve cells regulate their activity, and provide important information on how this activity may be altered in brain disorders like epilepsy. The results of this research may also lead to the development of new more effective drugs to treat many brain disorders.
Validating Novel Serum Markers Of Neurodegeneration In Multiple Sclerosis Patients.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$516,304.00
Summary
In multiple sclerosis (MS), permanent disability occurs when brain cells known as neurons are damaged following an immune attack. Current treatments reduce the number and severity of immune attacks, but they do not prevent neuron damage or permanent disability in many patients. There is currently no direct way to measure neuron damage in humans, so it is difficult to develop new drugs to prevent it. To address this need, we will trial a new blood test for measuring neuron damage in MS patients.
Determining The Cellular Mechanism Underlying Diffuse Axonal Injury Following Brain Trauma
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$400,885.00
Summary
Traumatic head injury causes transient stretch injury to the nerve cell processes within the brain. This leads to a poorly understood series of cellular changes within nerve cells which may ultimately lead to their breakage and subsequent neurological disability. This project seeks to understand how this nerve cell damage forms, and explores new potential interventions which may protect the brain.
Interactions Between Injured Neurons, Astrocytes And Metallothionein
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$478,067.00
Summary
We have found that the protein, metallothionein, which protects the brain after injury or during neurodegenerative disease acts in a more complex way than previously thought, including a direct action on injured neurons as well as on the originating cell, astrocytes. Elucidating each component of metallothionein action will help us understand how cells interact in the brain after injury, and excitingly, offers an opportunity to develop an enhanced therapeutic strategy based on this protein.