Engineering Tissues And Organs In Vivo From Stem Cells
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$549,480.00
Summary
Tissue engineering is an exciting new area of medical research. We have developed a unique animal model of tissue engineering where new tissue spontaneously sprouts from the surface of a vascular loop enclosed inside a plastic chamber. The tissue thus created has its own blood supply. By adding cultured cells or altering the environment of the chamber we have been able to grow new specific tissues such as fat and muscle. This technology potentially allows the generation of spare body parts to re ....Tissue engineering is an exciting new area of medical research. We have developed a unique animal model of tissue engineering where new tissue spontaneously sprouts from the surface of a vascular loop enclosed inside a plastic chamber. The tissue thus created has its own blood supply. By adding cultured cells or altering the environment of the chamber we have been able to grow new specific tissues such as fat and muscle. This technology potentially allows the generation of spare body parts to replace lost or worn out organs and tissues. We have recently reproduced this model in the mouse to be able to screen a range of mouse and human stem cells. These cells have the ability to change (i.e. differentiate) into many different types of cell depending on how they are stimulated. In Part 1 of this project we will determine in the mouse chamber the growth characteristics and survival rates of these stem cells. A chamber encapsulating a flowing blood vessel will be implanted subcutaneously in each groin. In one chamber we will inject fluorescently labelled stem cells in a growth medium and in the other growth medium alone. Tissue will be analysed at 1, 2 and 4 weeks. In Part 2 we will inject a variety of Rosa26 labelled mouse stem cells obtained from several different tissues. Through the aid of naturally occurring growth and differentiation factors they will differentiate into one of several different tissues including fat, cartilage, bone, neural tissue, blood vessels, liver, etc, which will be identified by histology and cell culture. In one experiment we will genetically alter cells injected into the chamber so that they produce only skeletal muscle. In Part 3 we will grow new human tissues by injecting human stem cells into the same tissue engineering chambers in mice which will tolerate cells from other mammals (these are known as SCID mice). Success in novel method would be the precursor for the production of new human tissues to repair specific defects.Read moreRead less
In Vivo Tissue Engineering Of Adipose Tissue For Reconstructive Surgery
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$713,545.00
Summary
We are able to grow vascularised tissue in implanted plastic chambers to a predetermined size and shape in the rat and mouse (NHMRC Project Grant 01-03; #145782; CIA Morrison). The basis of this growth is blood vessel sprouting from the surface of the vessel bundle or loop, followed by synthesis of structural molecules and the migration of surrounding cells into the vascularised network to form a stable tissue. Unlike other in vivo models of tissue engineering, the tissue grows spontaneously and ....We are able to grow vascularised tissue in implanted plastic chambers to a predetermined size and shape in the rat and mouse (NHMRC Project Grant 01-03; #145782; CIA Morrison). The basis of this growth is blood vessel sprouting from the surface of the vessel bundle or loop, followed by synthesis of structural molecules and the migration of surrounding cells into the vascularised network to form a stable tissue. Unlike other in vivo models of tissue engineering, the tissue grows spontaneously and is densely vascularised, enabling continuous growth and surgically transfer to another part of the body, or to another animal. In this renewal application of the above NHMRC grant, we propose to direct these findings towards the development of vascularised fat tissue which would be ideal for reconstructive surgery as a stable, inert tissue filler. Our efforts to grow fat tissue in vivo to date have identified 4 major requirements: a fat precursor cell source; an instructive basement membrane matrix (which may include growth-differentiation factors); space into which the tissue can grow; a stable blood supply. We will focus here on optimising the precursor cell source and instructive matrix to generate vascularised fat tissue around the blood supply we can engender in our tissue engineering chamber. We have found Matrigel, a mouse tumor-derived matrix rich in basement membrane components, to be instructive for growing fat, and will also build on preliminary observations that either muscle or fat tissue can provide the appropriate precursor cells for this process. Finally we propose to adapt and upsize the vascularised fat tissue chamber to the pig, in a step towards human use, and assess its transplantability and longevity. The clinical application of our work is to produce breast reconstruction tissue and lipo filling for contour deformities resulting from trauma, congenital deformity, ageing and cancer surgery, particularly breast reconstruction.Read moreRead less
Minimising Plastic In The Western Rock Lobster Industry (Phase 1 – Scope And Identify)
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$72,525.00
Summary
It was recently noted (in FISH Magazine Volume 27-1) that:
“Recent studies have estimated that approximately eight million tonnes of plastic end up in the world’s oceans every year. This contributes to the deaths of the marine animals that become entangled. Plastic can also find its way into the stomachs of seabirds, sea mammals, fish and other marine life, affecting the entire food chain. The attributes of plastic that make it so attractive as a material, including its durability, ....It was recently noted (in FISH Magazine Volume 27-1) that:
“Recent studies have estimated that approximately eight million tonnes of plastic end up in the world’s oceans every year. This contributes to the deaths of the marine animals that become entangled. Plastic can also find its way into the stomachs of seabirds, sea mammals, fish and other marine life, affecting the entire food chain. The attributes of plastic that make it so attractive as a material, including its durability, are also the attributes that make it so dangerous and long-lived. Products might break down, but the plastic itself remains in the environment. Greenpeace researchers have found plastics in water and snow samples in areas as remote as Antarctica.
CSIRO research has identified that almost three-quarters of the rubbish on Australia’s coastline is plastic, and that it comes from Australian sources. Research from the Australian Institute of Marine Science has also reported widespread microplastic contamination of waters in north-western Australia. More recently, a study of juvenile Coral Trout from the Great Barrier Reef has identified that tropical fish are ingesting both plastic and non-plastic marine microdebris (particles of less than five millimetres).”
WRL’s vision (as noted in its Strategic Plan 2018-2021) is to be “an iconic global leader in sustainable fisheries management, with one of its strategic objectives to “ensure long term access to the sustainable resource”. WRL continually strives to improve its sustainability practices for the western rock lobster industry, with practices with the ability to transfer to and assist other fisheries being particularly attractive. The research developed through this project will allow greater knowledge and understanding of:
(1) how and where plastic is used within the western rock lobster industry; and (2) viable and environmentally friendly alternatives to the plastic currently in use. This will form the basis for Phase 2 of this project, which will allow for the development, trial and implementation of plastic alternatives to combat and reduce the harm to the marine environment, and ultimately lead to a more sustainable fishery.
Objectives: 1. Identify where and why plastic is used in the western rock lobster industry. 2. Identify viable environmentally friendly plastic alternatives. Read moreRead less
The Role Of Dysregulated VEGFs In Lymphatic And Non-lymphatic Vascular Malformations
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$389,486.00
Summary
Vascular malformations are abnormal growths of blood vessels that affect hundreds of children born in Australia every year. They range from small birthmarks to large destructive growths that cause chronic pain, bleeding and major deformity. This is the largest ever study to systematically look for the biological drivers that cause these growths so that drug treatments will ultimately be able to replace surgery as the first line treatment.
Circular Economy Opportunities For Fisheries And Aquaculture In Australia
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$158,000.00
Summary
Current resource use challenges sustainability and resilience of industries. Circular value chains allow management of waste losses and maximise resource recovery. A circular economy (CE) mimics the cycles in nature in which there is no waste. Maximum value and utility of products and materials is maintained in CE through a combination of extending product lifetimes, increasing resource use intensity, and end-of-life material recycling. CE includes the idea of regenerative development, i.e. as ....Current resource use challenges sustainability and resilience of industries. Circular value chains allow management of waste losses and maximise resource recovery. A circular economy (CE) mimics the cycles in nature in which there is no waste. Maximum value and utility of products and materials is maintained in CE through a combination of extending product lifetimes, increasing resource use intensity, and end-of-life material recycling. CE includes the idea of regenerative development, i.e. as the earth’s resources cycle as materials through the economy they restore and enhance, rather than deplete, natural capital.
Economic opportunities of circularity are well identified, the World Economic Forum estimates global adoption of CE principles would deliver cost savings of US$1trillion dollars per annum by 2025. A recent UTS:ISF study estimated an Australian CE could be worth AU$2 billion by 2025. However, current knowledge gaps constrain how CE may develop, at what scale it makes sense to close loops, and the strategies, policy mix and incentives needed to promote circularity.
For fisheries and aquaculture, CE adoption addresses waste challenges through the creation of new value chains for fish/shell waste and substitution or recycling plastics and provides co-benefits of resource efficiency, contributions to healthy aquatic eco-systems and creation of added value and new employment. Frameworks to guide ‘CE thinking’ exist e.g. Ellen Macarthur Foundation’s 10R’s and ReSOLVE (see Supplementary Material), but have not been explored, are often omitted in food innovation debates (Pagotto and Halog 2015), and opportunities for implementation within the sector are still emerging (e.g., replacement of fish-feed for abalone with wine production waste or repurposing mussel shells as high-nutrient fertiliser). The need to understand the context, opportunity and benefit of CE innovations and to identify strategic approaches to sectoral circularity at scale are apparent.
Objectives: 1. 1. Develop increased knowledge of how the concept of circular economy relates to fishing and aquaculture, including downstream activities such as post-harvest processing and packaging. 2. 2. Develop increased knowledge of how circular practices being applied in other sectors and industries relate to the fishing and aquaculture sectors and could be adopted by fishing and aquaculture businesses. This includes opportunities for fisheries/aquaculture industries to develop circular linkages with other marine and land based sectors. 3. 3. Identify opportunities that are available and areas for exploration in the short, medium and longer term to progress a circular economy for fisheries and aquaculture. 4. 4. Identify barriers to adopting circularity within the fisheries/aquaculture sector, and known strategies for addressing those barriers. Read moreRead less
Outcomes Of The Arterial Switch Operation: A Multi-centre Study
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$86,733.00
Summary
The arterial switch operation is the surgery of choice for children born with transposition of the great arteries, a congenital heart defect where the main two vessels of the heart arise from wrong pumping chambers of the heart. There are very few studies looking at adults after this operation. We aim to study all patients who have had an arterial switch. The results of this study will further increase our knowledge of the long term consequences of having the arterial switch operation.
Superior Surgical Fixation Using A Novel Orthopaedic Expandable Fastener
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$414,076.00
Summary
Surgeons repair bone fractures using metal plates and screws. Sometimes the screws loosen and the surgery needs to be repeated. Expandable screws are stronger, but more difficult and sometimes impossible to remove. The research team will test a new type of screw that holds the bones together with greater strength (our current work shows 40% stronger) but can be removed easily if necessary. This grant will allow extensive mechanical testing in preparation for a first-in-human clinical trial.
Development And Clinical Evaluation Of A Depth Of Anaesthesia Monitor
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$424,785.00
Summary
Waking up during surgery (awareness under anaesthesia) is a frightening reality for some patients. Although uncommon (occurring in about 1 in 1000 operations), it remains one of the main concerns of patients before their surgery. Recent studies (including our own) have demonstrated that processed EEG monitoring using bispectral index (BIS) can markedly reduce the risk of awareness. Other EEG monitors are being developed, but each have weaknesses. As approximately two million Australians have a g ....Waking up during surgery (awareness under anaesthesia) is a frightening reality for some patients. Although uncommon (occurring in about 1 in 1000 operations), it remains one of the main concerns of patients before their surgery. Recent studies (including our own) have demonstrated that processed EEG monitoring using bispectral index (BIS) can markedly reduce the risk of awareness. Other EEG monitors are being developed, but each have weaknesses. As approximately two million Australians have a general anaesthetic each year, about 2000 will suffer an episode of awareness. More than 60 million people around the world have an anaesthetic, and so the problem is substantial. This suggests the potential benefits (health outcomes, commercial gains) are very great. In 2000 less than 5% of US hospitals used BIS monitoring; the current figure in the US is about 69% of the best-rated hospitals (US News and World Report) and 78% of teaching hospitals. A similar rapid growth is occurring in Australia and Europe. We are working with a successful Australian Company (Compumedics Ltd) to develop a better awareness monitor. We plan studies in groups of patients have surgery.Read moreRead less
Combined Randomised And Observational Study Of Type B Ankle Fracture Treatment
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$117,331.00
Summary
Ankle fractures are frequently seen in emergency departments, and isolated AO type B fibula fractures are the most common type of ankle fracture. Current treatment is equally divided between surgical, and non-surgical, as per surgeon preference. When managed surgically, these fractures consume considerable healthcare resources and expose patients to risks. This study will determine if surgery improves outcomes for patients with type B ankle fractures when compared with non-surgical management.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is one of the most common complications of obesity and is independently associated with a reduced quality of life and cardiovascular disease. This project aims to identify the underlying factors linking obesity with OSA by examining how weight loss surgery can improve these factors. These important findings will contribute greatly to our understanding of OSA pathophysiology and are necessary to find better treatments for obesity-associated OSA.