Control of blood vessel development by SOX transcription factors

Funding Activity

Website
http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/301018

Funding Status
Closed

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Funded Activity Summary

Cardiovascular disease is Australia s greatest health problem, with an estimated 3 million Australians suffering a spectrum of conditions from hypertension through to heart failure. Improper development of blood vessels in the embryo can compromise survival of the embryo, and predispose patients to vascular disease after birth. The growth of new blood vessels (angiogenesis) is also an important factor in the ability of solid tumours to grow during the progression of cancer. It is therefore of fundamental importance in the health sciences to gain an understanding of how blood vessels form and regenerate. We discovered a gene, Sox18, that appears to regulate blood vessel development by controlling the formation and-or properties of endothelial cells, which line the blood vessels and make them impermeable. Our research so far indicates that MICE WITH DEFECTS IN SOX18 DIE FROM VASCULAR DEFECTS, underlining the importance of this gene. THIS PROJECT IS CONCERNED WITH FINDING OUT HOW SOX18 WORKS - exactly what goes wrong in mice lacking this gene, whether Sox18 can influence endothelial cell behaviour in cell culture, how Sox18 comes to be active in endothelial cells, what genes are switched on by Sox18, and what genes Sox18 co-operates with in its role in endothelial cells. The answers to these questions will not only provide fundamental basic information about how blood vessels development is controlled, but also sow the seeds for possible future therapies in which blood vessel development could be stimulated (eg in wound healing) or suppressed (eg in tumour progression) by drug treatments.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2004

End Date: 01-01-2006

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $495,750.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Genetic Development (Incl. Sex Determination)

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

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Other Keywords

Defects in embryonic development | Developmental genes | Embryonic development | Genetics | Knockout mice | Murine models | Peripheral vascular disease | Transcription factors

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