Understanding Tendon Response to Sport and Exercise: Implications for Optimising Training, Injury Prevention and Accelerated Rehabilitation. This research will use frontier technologies to establish the effect of physical activity on tendon adaptation and injury. It will address National Research Priorities and lead to contemporary evidence-based physical activity practices to optimise health and fitness, prevent injury, and expedite rehabilitation after injury. Given the significant national in ....Understanding Tendon Response to Sport and Exercise: Implications for Optimising Training, Injury Prevention and Accelerated Rehabilitation. This research will use frontier technologies to establish the effect of physical activity on tendon adaptation and injury. It will address National Research Priorities and lead to contemporary evidence-based physical activity practices to optimise health and fitness, prevent injury, and expedite rehabilitation after injury. Given the significant national investment in sport, the rise in obesity, and the immense cost of sedentary behaviour and sport-related injuries, this research will have applications for enhancing physical activity recommendations that maintain health for all Australians. It will enhance Australia's leading position in international sport and sport science research and have beneficial applications for occupational health.Read moreRead less
Citizen engagement: Listening to citizens' views about Australia's health system and prevention. This project will yield new and important perspectives from citizens on preventive health and health promotion, which can be used to develop better targeted and more effective prevention and promotion policies and strategies. Citizens views will be investigated in relation to vexed issues such as: new approaches to financing and program delivery, reorienting the health insurance sector, reorienting ....Citizen engagement: Listening to citizens' views about Australia's health system and prevention. This project will yield new and important perspectives from citizens on preventive health and health promotion, which can be used to develop better targeted and more effective prevention and promotion policies and strategies. Citizens views will be investigated in relation to vexed issues such as: new approaches to financing and program delivery, reorienting the health insurance sector, reorienting the health system to focus more on prevention and health promotion, improving current approaches of consumer participation in prevention and chronic disease management, tackling broader issues in public policy trade-offs between health and non-health, diversifying workforce roles and involving health professionals in prevention and promotion.Read moreRead less
Long term economic impacts of disease on older workers to 2030: Costs to government and individuals and opportunities for intervention. This project will fill substantial gaps in Australian evidence about the health conditions of the future that will keep older workers out of the labour market and diminish their own immediate and long-term livings standards, thereby reducing funds available to government. We will address one of the most significant issues resulting from the fundamental changes t ....Long term economic impacts of disease on older workers to 2030: Costs to government and individuals and opportunities for intervention. This project will fill substantial gaps in Australian evidence about the health conditions of the future that will keep older workers out of the labour market and diminish their own immediate and long-term livings standards, thereby reducing funds available to government. We will address one of the most significant issues resulting from the fundamental changes to the demography of the Australian labour market and one that is regularly raised by the government following the release of the 2002 and 2007 Intergenerational Reports. This project will also examine the interventions that would improve the health of older workers and increase labour force participation over the long term.Read moreRead less
Planning female and male vaccination and cervical screening strategies to achieve optimal prevention of HPV-related disease. The findings from this research will inform the development of public health policy on the most cost-effective utilisation of resources for preventing cervical, anogenital and head/neck cancers, and genital warts, in women and men, due to human papillomavirus (HPV). We will evaluate strategies for using emerging screening and vaccine technologies to prevent HPV-related dis ....Planning female and male vaccination and cervical screening strategies to achieve optimal prevention of HPV-related disease. The findings from this research will inform the development of public health policy on the most cost-effective utilisation of resources for preventing cervical, anogenital and head/neck cancers, and genital warts, in women and men, due to human papillomavirus (HPV). We will evaluate strategies for using emerging screening and vaccine technologies to prevent HPV-related disease, and assess potential adverse outcomes of vaccination. Men are currently not covered by routine vaccination or screening programs; this research will assess the benefit to men of vaccinating women only, and will consider the impact of vaccination and other interventions targeted towards men.Read moreRead less
Tracking the musculoskeletal health and performance of talented adolescent female athletes. The vision is to gain an innovative understanding of risk factors for the early detection or prevention of injury, and to identify factors that promote participation longevity in young athletes. The biomechanics explored in this study will provide a basis for larger studies in future years. Large economic and social benefits can be gained from increased knowledge of injury prevention early in life. Lowere ....Tracking the musculoskeletal health and performance of talented adolescent female athletes. The vision is to gain an innovative understanding of risk factors for the early detection or prevention of injury, and to identify factors that promote participation longevity in young athletes. The biomechanics explored in this study will provide a basis for larger studies in future years. Large economic and social benefits can be gained from increased knowledge of injury prevention early in life. Lowered injury costs provide immediate cost benefits to the nation. Ultimately, in a nation familiar with the high costs of cardiovascular and musculoskeletal diseases, the health sector of Australia will be the greatest benefactor of this project.Read moreRead less
Mechanosensitive properties and modulation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors by lipid environment. This project will provide new information about the molecular determinants which influence NMDA receptor channel gating that will significantly advance our understanding of a link between NMDA receptor function and many neurodegenerative diseases as well as pain and learning and memory. The outcomes of this project may lead to the discovery of novel lipid-based biomaterials for application i ....Mechanosensitive properties and modulation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors by lipid environment. This project will provide new information about the molecular determinants which influence NMDA receptor channel gating that will significantly advance our understanding of a link between NMDA receptor function and many neurodegenerative diseases as well as pain and learning and memory. The outcomes of this project may lead to the discovery of novel lipid-based biomaterials for application in medicine and the drug industry. This research is highly significant in relation to human health. The biological and nutritional aspects of polyunsaturated lipids and dietary fish oils have long been recognized. Thus this project will provide further knowledge that could benefit the health of the nation with consequent reduced health care costs.Read moreRead less
Neuromuscular adaptations to training, cross training and passive physical interventions: A neurophysiological approach to understanding human performance and musculoskeletal injury. The expected national benefit arising from this research is three fold: (i) developing knowledge of approaches taken to improve exercise performance across the spectrum of novice to elite levels of participation, (ii) improved understanding of the physiological basis for widely applied interventions used to facilita ....Neuromuscular adaptations to training, cross training and passive physical interventions: A neurophysiological approach to understanding human performance and musculoskeletal injury. The expected national benefit arising from this research is three fold: (i) developing knowledge of approaches taken to improve exercise performance across the spectrum of novice to elite levels of participation, (ii) improved understanding of the physiological basis for widely applied interventions used to facilitate exercise, performance, as well as injury prevention and rehabilitation, and (iii) increasing the pool of world-class researchers who will make a substantial difference to the health and wellbeing of the community through one post-doctoral and two doctoral programs. This project will cement existing tertiary-industry sector collaboration, which will ensure long-standing benefits to the community.Read moreRead less
Chemical and Biochemical Characterisation of Novel Iron Chelators with Therapeutic Potential. Iron is essential for life, but iron-overload is a potentially fatal condition. There is no natural mechanism to excrete iron in humans, so patients suffering from iron-overload disorders are treated with the chelator Desferal to enable iron excretion typically from an early age. Desferal is orally ineffective and must be given by subcutaneous infusion (12-24h, 5-6 days/week) resulting in poor patient c ....Chemical and Biochemical Characterisation of Novel Iron Chelators with Therapeutic Potential. Iron is essential for life, but iron-overload is a potentially fatal condition. There is no natural mechanism to excrete iron in humans, so patients suffering from iron-overload disorders are treated with the chelator Desferal to enable iron excretion typically from an early age. Desferal is orally ineffective and must be given by subcutaneous infusion (12-24h, 5-6 days/week) resulting in poor patient compliance. We will conduct critical chemical and biological experiments with a new series of potentially orally active iron chelators identified in our lab. The results from this project will be vital for the development of these compounds as pharmaceuticals.Read moreRead less
Disposable microfluidic diagnostics for new generation foods, beverages and oral care products. The outcomes of this project will lead to the establishment of a new paradigm in designing foods, beverages and oral care products that have tailored health and vitality benefits (e.g. reduced levels of fat, sugar and salt). In addition, these foods will contain beneficial additives (e.g. anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients) targeted to specific consumer groups according to their lifesty ....Disposable microfluidic diagnostics for new generation foods, beverages and oral care products. The outcomes of this project will lead to the establishment of a new paradigm in designing foods, beverages and oral care products that have tailored health and vitality benefits (e.g. reduced levels of fat, sugar and salt). In addition, these foods will contain beneficial additives (e.g. anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients) targeted to specific consumer groups according to their lifestyle, age, medical condition or requirement for nutritional/nourishment efficacy, thereby contributing to healthy ageing. It is foreseen that this novel approach to designing foods will be extended to products intended for consumers whose sensory perception is compromised by existing medical therapeutic practices (such as radiation therapy).Read moreRead less
Implementing guidelines to prevent chronic disease in the community. The burden of chronic disease in Australia has resulted in prevention of chronic disease being an important priority for the Australian health system. High quality evidence for preventing chronic disease exists; however the practice falls short of the evidence. Finding ways to implement the evidence for preventing chronic disease is an urgent national need. This study aims to apply the evidence for preventing chronic disease in ....Implementing guidelines to prevent chronic disease in the community. The burden of chronic disease in Australia has resulted in prevention of chronic disease being an important priority for the Australian health system. High quality evidence for preventing chronic disease exists; however the practice falls short of the evidence. Finding ways to implement the evidence for preventing chronic disease is an urgent national need. This study aims to apply the evidence for preventing chronic disease in practice. It will generate data and validate a model on how to effectively improve the uptake of guidelines by both practitioners and consumers. This project is of national and community benefit because it will enable the potential of preventing chronic disease to be realised.Read moreRead less