Regulation Of The Tumour Suppressors APC And BRCA1 By Nuclear Export
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$530,874.00
Summary
Cancer cells lack the ability to control their own growth, and thus continously divide in their local environment, leading to tumour formation. Tumour suppressor proteins, like APC and BRCA1, normally function as regulators to help cells respond to outside signals and to stop growing when necessary. The inactivation and altered cellular localisation of tumour suppressor proteins can contribute to cancer development. We have found that the APC and BRCA1 proteins, whose inactivation leads to devel ....Cancer cells lack the ability to control their own growth, and thus continously divide in their local environment, leading to tumour formation. Tumour suppressor proteins, like APC and BRCA1, normally function as regulators to help cells respond to outside signals and to stop growing when necessary. The inactivation and altered cellular localisation of tumour suppressor proteins can contribute to cancer development. We have found that the APC and BRCA1 proteins, whose inactivation leads to development of colon cancer and breast cancer, respectively, contain signals that dictate their movement within the cell. Our novel preliminary findings reveal that APC and BRCA1 are able to move in and out of the cell nucleus. We aim to define how this occurs, and examine how the regulation of their cellular location affects the normal function of these cancer-suppressing proteins. Finally, abnormalities in the nuclear passage of APC or BRCA1 might explain their altered cellular location in cancer cells.Read moreRead less
Seafood Trade Advisory Group - Transitioning To A New Communications, Governance And Operating Model
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$444,000.00
Summary
The STAG has been operational since 2013 providing services to Australian abalone and rock lobster exporters to engage with government and to support in market access negotiations with unified and well researched considered input. The STAG has a track record of success based on a collaborative priority setting process and a clear focus on resolving the highest priority issues. While primarily focused on the issues faced by abalone and rock lobster exporters many of the STAG activities have be ....The STAG has been operational since 2013 providing services to Australian abalone and rock lobster exporters to engage with government and to support in market access negotiations with unified and well researched considered input. The STAG has a track record of success based on a collaborative priority setting process and a clear focus on resolving the highest priority issues. While primarily focused on the issues faced by abalone and rock lobster exporters many of the STAG activities have benefited the broader seafood exporter community eg the International Freight Assistance Mechanism, tracking and communicating impacts of the COVID pandemic on markets, facilitating an agreed priority listing for adding new species to the approved import list for China and establishing a market intelligence service has been established and weekly newsletters keep Australian seafood exporters up to date on market trends and consumer insights as well as technical market access issues.
Seafood Industry Australia has recently developed a Seafood Industry Export Plan. As part of that plan SIA is building capability and has received Australian Government funding through the ATMAC funding to deliver trade facilitation services.
There is an opportunity for the STAG to move to a new expanded business model under the auspices of SIA capitalising on the resources and capacities of both organisations. The new model will include communications, governance, operations and funding. What that looks like and how that transition should occur will be addressed through application.
While the transition plan is being developed, agreed and implemented it is important that the STAG to continue operations, providing services as agreed by the Partnership Group. The international trade environment is still extremely volatile, as it has been for the past two years. The STAG provides a valuable early warning and quick response mechanism for dealing with disruptions, a market intelligence service and international seafood trade expertise to support the Abalone and Rock Lobster sectors as they face the challenging task of regaining and maintaining China market access while pursuing market diversification strategies.
There is a need to build additional seafood specific international trade knowledge and capacity so the STAG and SIA will work together to identify opportunities to facilitate this. Objectives: 1. To develop and implement agreed arrangements to transition the STAG to a new business model (communications, governance, operations and funding) within the SIA 2. To deliver agreed trade and market access services according to the agreed Seafood Trade Agenda and Action Plan for Abalone and Rock Lobster Read moreRead less
Multidrug Resistance Regulatory Protein QacR From Staphylococcus Aureus
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$196,527.00
Summary
One of the most significant mechanisms of drug resistance is the export of antibiotics and other chemotherapeutic drugs from the cell. Drug export systems are an important medical problem due to their frequent occurrence in bacteria and parasites which cause human disease and in human cancer cells. Proteins which recognise and export a broad range of drugs from a cell are called multidrug efflux pumps. These multidrug efflux systems present a serious threat to patient care and to successful ther ....One of the most significant mechanisms of drug resistance is the export of antibiotics and other chemotherapeutic drugs from the cell. Drug export systems are an important medical problem due to their frequent occurrence in bacteria and parasites which cause human disease and in human cancer cells. Proteins which recognise and export a broad range of drugs from a cell are called multidrug efflux pumps. These multidrug efflux systems present a serious threat to patient care and to successful therapy, since the ability to produce a single protein simultaneously renders the cell or organism resistant to several different drugs. Strains of the bacterial pathogen Staphylococcus aureus or Golden Staph, which are endemic in hospitals world-wide, contain an example of such a multidrug exporter, the QacA multidrug efflux pump, which exports at least 30 different antimicrobial compounds, including antiseptics and disinfectants. Production of this protein is regulated by a sensor protein, QacR, which detects the presence of a number of these antimicrobial compounds. To understand how the QacR sensor protein can recognise such a wide variety of compounds, we will identify and structurally characterise the regions of the QacR multidrug regulatory protein which bind these compounds. Additionally, we will examine the means by which QacR regulates the production of the QacA pump protein. This project will provide fundamental knowledge that will not only help with understanding the important process of multidrug resistance but will also enable the rational design of more effective antibacterial compounds that either block or evade these multidrug efflux systems.Read moreRead less