Developing Molecularly Targeted Therapeutics And Diagnostics For Pregnancy Complications
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$321,489.00
Summary
Pregnancy complications still causes the death of mothers, and their babies. During this fellowship, we will be developing new treatments and clinical tests for three important complications of pregnancy. We will run clinical trials of a new medication based treatment to cure ectopic pregnancies. We will also develop a blood test that can identify those babies still in the womb but suffering dangerously low oxygen levels. Lastly, we will develop drugs to treat preeclampsia, a serious condition o ....Pregnancy complications still causes the death of mothers, and their babies. During this fellowship, we will be developing new treatments and clinical tests for three important complications of pregnancy. We will run clinical trials of a new medication based treatment to cure ectopic pregnancies. We will also develop a blood test that can identify those babies still in the womb but suffering dangerously low oxygen levels. Lastly, we will develop drugs to treat preeclampsia, a serious condition of pregnancy.Read moreRead less
Development Of Novel Medical Therapies To Cure Ectopic Pregnancies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$601,156.00
Summary
Ectopic pregnancies are conceptions implanting outside the womb, mainly the fallopian tube. They are pathological, and can erode straight through the tube into large blood vessels causing fatal bleeding and death. We plan to assess three medication based approaches to treat this condition that would avoid surgery entirely. If we succeed, and subsequently translate one or more of these treatments to the clinic, it would revolutionise management of this serious gynaecological emergency.
Measuring Hypoxia Induced MRNA In Maternal Blood To Monitor Wellbeing Of Growth-restricted Fetuses
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$421,358.00
Summary
Severely growth restricted fetuses are at peril of stillbirth from low oxygenation. While ultrasound monitoring improves outcomes, babies are still lost. Better ways to monitor the health the unborn baby are needed. We have recently discovered fetuses’ starved of oxygen leak RNA into mother's blood. Thus, measuring RNA molecules in blood could be used to assess fetal health. We will examine whether measuring mRNA in maternal blood could be used to monitor wellbeing of growth-restricted fetuses.
From Pathogenesis To Therapeutics: Targeting Two Signalling Pathways As A Therapeutic Strategy To Treat Preeclampsia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$499,048.00
Summary
Preeclampsia is a serious complication of pregnancy that claims the lives of thousands of mothers and babies each year. There is no efficacious medical treatment besides delivery of the baby and placenta. Our lack of therapeutics is largely a result of our poor understanding of the disease. In this application we plan to thoroughly characterise two pathways we believe responsible for preeclampsia, effectively identifying many points at which new therapies could be targeted.
Improving The Prediction And Detection Of Contributors To Term Stillbirth
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$570,358.00
Summary
Stillbirths are a global human tragedy, with 1 in 130 of all pregnancies in Australia ending in stillbirth. We propose to use ultrasound and blood markers to improve the detection of babies who are not growing well, a leading risk factor for stillbirth. Sleep position has also been associated with stillbirth, so we will study fetal heart rate responses during an overnight sleep study to see if breathing events overnight may be an important contributor to stillbirth in growth restricted fetuses.
Endocrine And Molecular Regulation Of Placental CRH Expression
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$466,980.00
Summary
Approximately 70% of infant death is associated with premature birth. Preterm birth occurs in 6-10% of pregnancies, and there has been no reduction in the rates of premature birth in the last 30 years. This is largely because we remain ignorant of how normal and abnormal birth is controlled. Understanding the physiology of human pregnancy is a critical step in the development of ways to detect and prevent preterm birth. Our group has demonstrated a link between production of a hormone (corticotr ....Approximately 70% of infant death is associated with premature birth. Preterm birth occurs in 6-10% of pregnancies, and there has been no reduction in the rates of premature birth in the last 30 years. This is largely because we remain ignorant of how normal and abnormal birth is controlled. Understanding the physiology of human pregnancy is a critical step in the development of ways to detect and prevent preterm birth. Our group has demonstrated a link between production of a hormone (corticotrophin releasing hormone, CRH) in the placenta and the length of time the baby is carried in the mother. In women who will deliver prematurely a rise in CRH occurs earlier in the pregnancy and more rapidly, while in women who deliver late the rise occurs more slowly. This work has given rise to the concept of a biological clock that determines the length of time the fetus will be carried by the mother before birth, and in which production of CRH in the placenta plays a central role. We have been studying how the CRH gene is controlled in placental cells. We have discovered some regions in the DNA of the CRH gene which have important roles in controlling how much CRH is made by the placenta. The experiments described in this research project will determine the molecular mechanisms that control the production of CRH in the human placenta. This will be done in two ways: (1) by examining the DNA sequences involved in controlling expression of the CRH gene and (2) by identifying the proteins that actually perform the regulating functions that result in either increased or decreased amounts of CRH being produced by the placenta. This important information will help us better understand how normal and abnormal birth is controlled, and from that knowledge new ways to detect and prevent premature birth can be invented.Read moreRead less
Advancement Of A Personalised Approach To Minimising Infective Complications In Cancer Care
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$265,138.00
Summary
Managing infections in patients with cancer have become more difficult and unpredictable because of new generation cancer therapies. Measuring the response of the immune system (immune profiling) will allow us to predict which patients will develop infection so that action such as vaccination can be taken to reduce their risk. This program will refine immune profiling to personalise infection care for cancer patients and to introduce it into hospital practice.
Signaling Pathways To Enhance Potency Of AMPK-targeting Drugs
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$661,966.00
Summary
Sedentary lifestyles and consumption of high energy foods has led to epidemics of obesity-related metabolic diseases that place enormous financial and medical burden on the Australian economy. An attractive drug target to treat these diseases is AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) which functions as both a cellular fuel gauge and co-ordinator of whole-body metabolism. Our goal is to improve AMPK drug potency by identifying novel processes that sensitize AMPK to drugs.
UTILITY OF NOVEL BIOMARKERS IN THE PREDICTION OF MAJOR COMPLICATIONS OF TYPE II DIABETES MELLITUS
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$510,639.00
Summary
Diabetes is increasingly common. It can cause a variety of complications, the most serious being heart and kidney disease. The reasons why some patients develop such complications are not fully understood so it is difficult to predict who will be affected. The current project will use samples from a large international study of patients with diabetes to assess whether levels of specific markers in the blood help to predict major complications and clarify why they occur.
Effects Of Replacement And Withdrawal Of Testosterone In Human Males On Muscle, Bone And Fat
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$156,682.00
Summary
Male sex hormone or androgen deficiency (AD) is a common, but under-diagnosed condition. AD decreases well being and contributes to muscle weakness, bone fragility and weight gain. Cutting edge technology will be used to help explain how AD may relate to these negative effects, particularly on muscle function. Given the importance of aging, frailty, osteoporosis and obesity, understanding the role of hormones in these conditions may have major implications for prevention and treatment.