Enabling Technologies For Design And Delivery Of Novel Vaccines Against Infectious Diseases And Cancer.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$925,346.00
Summary
This grant will support research necessary to develop the next generation of vaccines. These will combat diseases caused by bacteria and viruses and can also be used to fight cancer. The broad range of application is made possible through the incorporation of simple molecular features that activate the immune system. The intellectual property that has been developed is protected by a patent portfolio some patents of which are already licenced to the pharmaceutical industry.
Immunological Control Of Cysticercosis And Hydatid Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$828,300.00
Summary
In this project the world’s most effective vaccines against diseases caused by parasites will be translated from the laboratory to the clinic. The vaccines prevent transmission of parasites from livestock animals to humans. During the next 5 years the vaccines will be produced on a large scale and evaluated in field trials. The products of this research program will make a major contribution to reducing the number of people suffering from parasitic cysts.
We will investigate malaria, a parasitic disease that kills over 600,000 people a year. We will explore how the parasite identifies, invades and remodels the host cells in which it lives, scavenging nutrients and hiding from the immune system. We will characterize the proteins involved in these critical events, as they are potential targets for drugs and vaccines. We will study how parasites cause disease and how the host responds to infection.
My research is directed to the prevention of diabetes, across the spectrum from type 1 to type 2 diabetes. It is based on understanding immune-inflammatory mechanisms that contribute to dysfunction and death of pancreatic insulin-secreting beta cells and tissue resistance to the action of insulin. I study these mechanisms in rodent models and in humans in the context of relevant environmental factors and genes, with the aim of manipulating them for therapeutic benefit.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) and Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infect 200 million and 50 million people world-wide, respectively, and there are no preventative vaccines. The work outlined in this fellowship seeks to understand the structure and function of the major surface proteins of these viruses, their ability to be recognised by the immune system and to develop a novel vaccine for the prevention of HCV.
Helminth Secretomes: From Vaccines To Novel Anti-inflammatory Biologics
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$938,910.00
Summary
Billions of people in developing countries are infected with parasitic worms, but they have been eradicated from industrialised nations. Humans co-evolved with worms, so their recent removal has deprived us of signals required to keep inflammation in check. My research focuses on worm molecules that can be used to (1) develop vaccines to combat these parasitic infections in developing countries, and (2) as a novel platform of anti-inflammatory therapeutics for use in industrialised nations.
Helminth Secreted Proteins – From Anthelmintic Vaccines To Therapies For Autoimmunity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$739,893.00
Summary
Human helminths (worms) cause chronic disease in developing countries, yet their disappearance from developed countries has been accompanied by an increase in the prevalence of autoimmune and allergic diseases. My resesarch focuses on the proteins these worms secrete and their use in (1) the development of anthelmintic vaccines, and (2) the development of novel anti-inflammatory molecules to treat autoimmunity, particularly diseases affecting the gut.
This an integrated program of basic research on antigen discovery and immune mechanisms, and preclinical research on novel vaccine platforms, formulations or delivery systems for the rational design and clinical testing of a next generation vaccine against malaria. This interdisciplinary research fosters strong national and international links and offers the potential for significant economic benefit to Australia.