Development Of Ultrahigh Resolution Brain Imaging For Investigating Neurological And Neurodegenerative Diseases
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$880,454.00
Summary
Understanding the structural and functional organisation of the human brain is the focus of enormous research effort. Neuroimaging is an extraordinarily important basic and clinical neuroscience discipline, and is unique in being able to provide direct in vivo measurements of the human brain, and crucially in individuals with brain and mind diseases. This research project will develop and utilise ultra-high resolution brain scanning to understand the mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases.
Stroke affects 1 in 6 Australians and often leads to lifelong disability. This Fellowship will support A/Prof Bernhardt to: 1) complete the world first, international clinical trial of very early rehabilitation for people with stroke (AVERT), which has the potential to reduce the global disability burden of this disease; 2) in a new acute exercise laboratory, complete studies that help refine existing early exercise interventions and 3) test new models of rehabilitation care that take advantage ....Stroke affects 1 in 6 Australians and often leads to lifelong disability. This Fellowship will support A/Prof Bernhardt to: 1) complete the world first, international clinical trial of very early rehabilitation for people with stroke (AVERT), which has the potential to reduce the global disability burden of this disease; 2) in a new acute exercise laboratory, complete studies that help refine existing early exercise interventions and 3) test new models of rehabilitation care that take advantage of advanced e-health capability.Read moreRead less
Mental illness is the largest single cause of disability in Australia. While mental illness is increasingly recognised as a disorder of the brain, a patient’s diagnosis, treatment and prediction of course of outcome is seldom guided by the results of a biological test. My research aims to combine the power of modern brain imaging and cutting-edge bioinformatics to enable a biological approach to the problem of mental illness.
I am a Molecular Biologist who has built up a large set of transgenic animal models based around the NPY system to use them in an integrated physiology approach to investigate important regulatory mechanisms in the interaction of the brain with peripheral
Obesity-associated diseases are a major health problem and treatments are ineffective. My team’s focus is to determine how a brain molecule called neuropeptide Y (NPY) controls appetite and body fat mass and how this is changed in obesity or in the other extreme, anorexia, which is common in late stage cancer. We will use genetically modified mouse models and investigate the role of NPY under different stress conditions and in cancer. This will tell us if targeting this NPY system with drugs may ....Obesity-associated diseases are a major health problem and treatments are ineffective. My team’s focus is to determine how a brain molecule called neuropeptide Y (NPY) controls appetite and body fat mass and how this is changed in obesity or in the other extreme, anorexia, which is common in late stage cancer. We will use genetically modified mouse models and investigate the role of NPY under different stress conditions and in cancer. This will tell us if targeting this NPY system with drugs may provide a treatment for these diseases.Read moreRead less
Human Movement Control: Basic And Applied Neurophysiology
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$948,684.00
Summary
My research targets mechanisms underlying human movement, ways in which they can be deranged, and ways in which interventions can diminish impairments. It focuses on gaps in understanding and in clinical practice. Work in our broad ‘Motor Impairment’ NHMRC Program underpin my research. It is supplemented by new work on respiratory neurophysiology which has already delivered basic and clinical insight into neural control of the main breathing muscles and more recently upper airway muscles.
I am a physiologist-pharmacologist examining fundamental mechanisms of chronic inflammatory disease. By defining these mechanisms, I seek to discover the underlying cause of disease and to identify novel strategies for diagnosis and therapy of chronic diseases that are worldwide causes of morbidity and mortality.
New Approaches For The Discovery Of Obesity Causing Genes
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$863,910.00
Summary
Obesity is a major health problem and treatments are ineffective. My team’s focus is to identify new candidate genes that control appetite and body fat mass and how this leads to the development of obesity or the other extreme, anorexia. We will use whole genome sequence analysis in humans and functionally validate the newly identified genes in model organisms like mice and flies. Results from this study will eventually form the basis for personalized and general health care in the future.