New models of mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation disorders. Mitochondrial disease can affect both children and adults and is often fatal. This project will study mitochondrial function in cell types of the heart and brain to better understand how they generate energy in these tissues. This will provide new insights into mitochondrial metabolism and how defects in this process cause mitochondrial disease.
Endocardial sprouting and mechano-signalling in heart trabeculation. This project aims to understand how the ventricles, the pumping chambers of the mammalian heart, form during embryonic life. Critical is the elaboration of trabeculae, myocardial projections that form a sponge-like layer on the inner surface of the chamber wall and which play vital roles in contraction, oxygen and nutrient exchange, conduction and septation. The project expects to develop a deeper understanding of trabeculation ....Endocardial sprouting and mechano-signalling in heart trabeculation. This project aims to understand how the ventricles, the pumping chambers of the mammalian heart, form during embryonic life. Critical is the elaboration of trabeculae, myocardial projections that form a sponge-like layer on the inner surface of the chamber wall and which play vital roles in contraction, oxygen and nutrient exchange, conduction and septation. The project expects to develop a deeper understanding of trabeculation using high resolution, single cell methodologies, and to investigate how bio-mechanical forces from contraction or blood flow influence chambers formation.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100984
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,058.00
Summary
Unravelling the cell biology of a blood vessel. This project aims to understand the molecular mechanisms of vascular regeneration in adult homeostasis. Maintaining a viable circulatory system is essential for organ survival and function. The data generated from this project has the capacity to significantly impact our fundamental understanding of cardiovascular repair and regeneration. This will be of future benefit to many industries including science, bioengineering, healthcare technologies, a ....Unravelling the cell biology of a blood vessel. This project aims to understand the molecular mechanisms of vascular regeneration in adult homeostasis. Maintaining a viable circulatory system is essential for organ survival and function. The data generated from this project has the capacity to significantly impact our fundamental understanding of cardiovascular repair and regeneration. This will be of future benefit to many industries including science, bioengineering, healthcare technologies, and ensuring significant economic outcomes and benefit the Australian community.Read moreRead less
Understanding the differentiation of the endocardium. The project aims to understand the genetic regulation of endocardial development. The heart is essential for survival, its beat the indicator of life. The endocardium, the heart’s inner lining, is required for signalling during heart development and is a major component of the valves, septa and trabeculae. Despite its indispensable role, little is known about how it forms or develops. This project integrates two complementary approaches that ....Understanding the differentiation of the endocardium. The project aims to understand the genetic regulation of endocardial development. The heart is essential for survival, its beat the indicator of life. The endocardium, the heart’s inner lining, is required for signalling during heart development and is a major component of the valves, septa and trabeculae. Despite its indispensable role, little is known about how it forms or develops. This project integrates two complementary approaches that have identified the earliest marker of endocardial differentiation and devised the method to make endocardium from stem cells. Knowledge from this work will inform future research into growing and regenerating damaged tissue.Read moreRead less
Arterial stiffness: mechanistic role of interaction of cellular processes and the extracellular matrix. Arterial stiffness causes high blood pressure with age, so with more people living longer it is important to understand why arteries become stiff. This investigation uses genetically engineered mice to study how changes in nitric oxide in the cells of the artery wall can lead to changes in the wall material and so affect arterial stiffness.
A role for the actin cytoskeleton in suppression of prion pathology in yeast. The discovery that proteins as well as DNA carry genetic information is leading to a re-think of the mechanisms that program cell behaviour. There is a link between proteins that suppress cancer and protein inheritance. This project explores how heritable changes in proteins control cell behaviour and the implications of this for the origin of cancer.
Novel mass spectrometry methods to assess cellular oxidative stress. This project will provide fundamental understanding to the biology of cell stress that may lead to novel approaches for treating age-related diseases. It has the potential to have a significant economic and social impact nationally and internationally and provide Australian scientists with new technologies to study challenging issues in biology.
Determining the molecular regulation of blood vessel development and angiogenesis. Abnormal blood vessel growth is associated with diseases including cancer, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and chronic inflammation. This project focuses on understanding normal blood vessel growth in order to gather clues to help discover ways of preventing abnormal blood vessel growth during disease.
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR1101002
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$21,000,000.00
Summary
Stem Cells Australia. Despite progress in stem cell research, scientists do not understand how stem cells “decide” what to become. Stem Cells Australia will draw upon strengths within Australia’s premier stem cell research universities and institutes. This collaboration between leading bioengineering, nanotechnology, stem cell and advanced molecular analysis experts, will fast-track efforts to deliver a fundamental understanding of the mechanisms of stem cell regulation and differentiation, and ....Stem Cells Australia. Despite progress in stem cell research, scientists do not understand how stem cells “decide” what to become. Stem Cells Australia will draw upon strengths within Australia’s premier stem cell research universities and institutes. This collaboration between leading bioengineering, nanotechnology, stem cell and advanced molecular analysis experts, will fast-track efforts to deliver a fundamental understanding of the mechanisms of stem cell regulation and differentiation, and the ability to control and influence this process. Stem Cells Australia will deliver new methods for stem cell propagation and manipulation, new translational technologies for therapeutic applications, and will prepare Australia’s future stem cell scientific leaders.Read moreRead less
Novel mechanisms controlling signaling by adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase, central regulator of energy homeostasis. Sedentary lifestyles and consumption of high energy foods have led to dramatic increases in the incidence of obesity-related metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, placing enormous financial and medical burden on the Australian economy. An attractive drug target to treat these diseases is AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which fu ....Novel mechanisms controlling signaling by adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase, central regulator of energy homeostasis. Sedentary lifestyles and consumption of high energy foods have led to dramatic increases in the incidence of obesity-related metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, placing 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. Building on recent breakthroughs made at St. Vincent's Institute, this project will produce innovative research into novel mechanisms that control AMPK. These discoveries will greatly increase our understanding of AMPK regulation by cellular processes, and aid the design of more effective AMPK drugs.Read moreRead less