Novel tractography-guided MRI methods for studying healthy brain ageing. Advances in imaging, and particularly Magnetic Resonance Imaging, have opened a new era in the study of the brain enabling a myriad of neuroscience discoveries. This project aims to develop new analysis methods to study and understand the variability in the human brain during ageing, exploiting the wealth of information contained in the so-called tractogram, a mapping of the brain’s wiring. This project expects to develop i ....Novel tractography-guided MRI methods for studying healthy brain ageing. Advances in imaging, and particularly Magnetic Resonance Imaging, have opened a new era in the study of the brain enabling a myriad of neuroscience discoveries. This project aims to develop new analysis methods to study and understand the variability in the human brain during ageing, exploiting the wealth of information contained in the so-called tractogram, a mapping of the brain’s wiring. This project expects to develop innovative imaging biomarkers to characterise the brain changes in the course of healthy brain ageing. Expected outcomes include novel imaging tools for neuroscience, which should allow us to map trajectories of normative healthy brain ageing and use them to identify lifestyle factors that impact these trajectories.Read moreRead less
Understanding how an old heart gets stiff. Aging is accompanied by a stiffening of the heart and reduced function, which is accelerated by cardiovascular disease and leads to heart failure. How the heart stiffens is poorly understood. A new mechanism is proposed here, involving structural membrane proteins (termed caveolae and cavins) and a signalling molecule (nitric oxide). The current research aims to unravel the interplay between cardiac cells and these proteins/signals to cause stiffness an ....Understanding how an old heart gets stiff. Aging is accompanied by a stiffening of the heart and reduced function, which is accelerated by cardiovascular disease and leads to heart failure. How the heart stiffens is poorly understood. A new mechanism is proposed here, involving structural membrane proteins (termed caveolae and cavins) and a signalling molecule (nitric oxide). The current research aims to unravel the interplay between cardiac cells and these proteins/signals to cause stiffness and to determine whether this process governs normal aging of the heart. This work will advance understanding of how heart function is determined and reveal how the human heart changes with normal aging. Read moreRead less
An autonomously controlled ankle exoskeleton for gait rehabilitation. This project addresses a critical problem in gait rehabilitation; predicting unstable locomotion and designing interventions to augment limb-joint function. The project will develop an autonomous ankle-foot assistive device to actively increase ground clearance when high-risk foot trajectory is detected. Using wearable sensor data, machine learning algorithms will predict high-risk gait and compute an actuator-induced ankle to ....An autonomously controlled ankle exoskeleton for gait rehabilitation. This project addresses a critical problem in gait rehabilitation; predicting unstable locomotion and designing interventions to augment limb-joint function. The project will develop an autonomous ankle-foot assistive device to actively increase ground clearance when high-risk foot trajectory is detected. Using wearable sensor data, machine learning algorithms will predict high-risk gait and compute an actuator-induced ankle torque to maintain safe foot-ground clearance. A wearable autonomous joint-actuation system will contribute significantly to rehabilitation across a range of gait-impaired populations. The project's scientific and technological innovations will provide the opportunity for future developments in assistive technologies. Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150101180
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$362,000.00
Summary
The neuroethics of cognitive ageing. As the workforce ages, Australian and international governments are prioritising brain health, seeking to increase economic productivity and reduce the costs of age-related cognitive decline. In addition to healthy lifestyle habits, certain neurotechnologies are being promoted as the means to protect cognitive performance. This project aims to explore the ethical issues and social pressures that ageing individuals experience as a result of cognitive ageing. U ....The neuroethics of cognitive ageing. As the workforce ages, Australian and international governments are prioritising brain health, seeking to increase economic productivity and reduce the costs of age-related cognitive decline. In addition to healthy lifestyle habits, certain neurotechnologies are being promoted as the means to protect cognitive performance. This project aims to explore the ethical issues and social pressures that ageing individuals experience as a result of cognitive ageing. Understanding later life from the perspective of ageing individuals may enable society to meet the ethical and policy challenges raised by emphasising cognitive wellbeing above other aspects in the ageing process.Read moreRead less
Understanding Ageism in Australia. Ageism refers to stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination towards people based on their age. This project aims to generate new knowledge in relation to older Australians’ experiences of ageism by conducting a population-based survey of ageism and examining its links with mental health and wellbeing. The project will also use intensive longitudinal methods to study everyday ageism. Expected outcomes include identification of at-risk groups that can be used to i ....Understanding Ageism in Australia. Ageism refers to stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination towards people based on their age. This project aims to generate new knowledge in relation to older Australians’ experiences of ageism by conducting a population-based survey of ageism and examining its links with mental health and wellbeing. The project will also use intensive longitudinal methods to study everyday ageism. Expected outcomes include identification of at-risk groups that can be used to inform government policy responses to tackling ageism and will inform the development of interventions and education programs to reduce ageism in the community. This should provide significant benefits for social inclusion, intergenerational solidarity and economic participation Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL200100220
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,364,492.00
Summary
Understanding host-microbiome signalling axes in ageing. Ageing is an inevitable biological phenomenon and is characterised by alterations in multiple biochemical, immunological and mechanical processes, which are influenced by the gut bacteria. Poor ageing exerts a heavy socioeconomic burden both nationally and globally. The aim of this proposal is to deepen understanding of host-microbiome signalling in ageing by bringing together next generation sequencing technologies to characterise age-ass ....Understanding host-microbiome signalling axes in ageing. Ageing is an inevitable biological phenomenon and is characterised by alterations in multiple biochemical, immunological and mechanical processes, which are influenced by the gut bacteria. Poor ageing exerts a heavy socioeconomic burden both nationally and globally. The aim of this proposal is to deepen understanding of host-microbiome signalling in ageing by bringing together next generation sequencing technologies to characterise age-associated change in gut bacterial composition, metabolic profiling to identify changes in functionality of the ageing microbiome and a combination of in vitro and in vivo screening approaches to establish molecular mechanisms. The new knowledge will facilitate development of improved models of health care.Read moreRead less
Improving aged care with memory conversations. This project aims to investigate conversational techniques known as "elaborative reminiscing" as a tool for aged care staff to practice relationship-based care in their day-to-day interactions with older clients. The project expects to generate new knowledge about which specific techniques increase reminiscing during routine care, and how these tools have ongoing benefits for aged care clients. Expected outcomes include an evidence-based training pr ....Improving aged care with memory conversations. This project aims to investigate conversational techniques known as "elaborative reminiscing" as a tool for aged care staff to practice relationship-based care in their day-to-day interactions with older clients. The project expects to generate new knowledge about which specific techniques increase reminiscing during routine care, and how these tools have ongoing benefits for aged care clients. Expected outcomes include an evidence-based training program and improved understanding of facilitators and barriers to meeting aged care clients' social needs. This should provide significant benefits by improving wellbeing of clients in aged care, reducing hospitalisations, and enabling aged care providers to meet new industry standards.Read moreRead less
Co-designing Innovations in Digital Storytelling with Older Adults. This project aims to investigate how emerging technologies can be leveraged to provide innovative ways for older adults to create and share their life stories to foster social wellbeing. Later life can be a time of considerable change, leaving people feeling disconnected from the people, places, and life events that are important to them. Autobiographical storytelling can help create links with one's past, but little is known ab ....Co-designing Innovations in Digital Storytelling with Older Adults. This project aims to investigate how emerging technologies can be leveraged to provide innovative ways for older adults to create and share their life stories to foster social wellbeing. Later life can be a time of considerable change, leaving people feeling disconnected from the people, places, and life events that are important to them. Autobiographical storytelling can help create links with one's past, but little is known about how technologies such as digital games and virtual reality can be used to enable older adults to share stories about their lives in a way that supports ongoing social interactions. This project is expected to co-design new forms of digital storytelling to improve social wellbeing of older adults. Read moreRead less
Understanding the determinants of age-related muscle wasting in females . This project aims to investigate the fundamental mechanisms underlying age-related muscle wasting in females. Females live longer than males and are more susceptible to the consequences of muscle ageing. Yet, our current knowledge is overwhelmingly inferred from findings from male cohorts. By comprehensively mapping the functional, molecular and epigenetic mechanisms of ageing in female muscle, this project will generate n ....Understanding the determinants of age-related muscle wasting in females . This project aims to investigate the fundamental mechanisms underlying age-related muscle wasting in females. Females live longer than males and are more susceptible to the consequences of muscle ageing. Yet, our current knowledge is overwhelmingly inferred from findings from male cohorts. By comprehensively mapping the functional, molecular and epigenetic mechanisms of ageing in female muscle, this project will generate new, fundamental knowledge that will allow a unique interpretation of previous research through a sex-specific lens. This knowledge will contribute to better inform sex-specific models of research and practice in the future, ultimately delivering economic and social benefits for Australia and international communities.Read moreRead less
A digital twin framework for human mobility measurement in the home setting. Mobility is essential to maintain quality of life and healthy ageing, yet we do not have the capability to perform accurate long-term mobility assessments of a person in their home or community. This project will overcome this engineering challenge by developing a user-friendly ‘digital twin’ that combines wearable sensors, 3D mapping and artificial intelligence to predict and visualise real-time human joint motion and ....A digital twin framework for human mobility measurement in the home setting. Mobility is essential to maintain quality of life and healthy ageing, yet we do not have the capability to perform accurate long-term mobility assessments of a person in their home or community. This project will overcome this engineering challenge by developing a user-friendly ‘digital twin’ that combines wearable sensors, 3D mapping and artificial intelligence to predict and visualise real-time human joint motion and mobility in any location. This digital twin framework will benefit next-generation healthcare for older Australians, including telemedicine and remote rehabilitation for isolated communities, performance monitoring of elite athletes and military personnel, and the gaming and film/animation industries.Read moreRead less