Australian Sea Anemone Venoms: Bioprospecting & Evolution. Australian sea anemones are a highly promising and largely unexplored source of peptides and proteins with potential therapeutic and diagnostic applications. This project aims to evaluate this potential by undertaking transcriptomic analyses of a number species of anemones from Australian waters and identifying peptides and proteins in their venoms by mass spectrometry. It will also demonstrate the value of transcriptomics in informing t ....Australian Sea Anemone Venoms: Bioprospecting & Evolution. Australian sea anemones are a highly promising and largely unexplored source of peptides and proteins with potential therapeutic and diagnostic applications. This project aims to evaluate this potential by undertaking transcriptomic analyses of a number species of anemones from Australian waters and identifying peptides and proteins in their venoms by mass spectrometry. It will also demonstrate the value of transcriptomics in informing taxonomic classification of anemones. In addition this project will assess toxin diversity within and between species based on nematocyst function from specific tissue sources and provide a clearer understanding of the evolution of venoms in Australian Actiniaria.Read moreRead less
Development of Insulin-like peptide 5 (INSL5) peptide analogues as novel therapeutics. Insulin-like peptide 5 (INSL5) is a naturally-occurring hormone in the body that likely plays a role in the control of appetite. This project aims to develop new molecules based on INSL5 that could be suitable for use as drugs to treat various appetite-related disorders, such as obesity (where patients eat too much) or anorexia (where patients eat too little).
In vivo molecular imaging using engineered affinity reagents and fluorescent laser scanning confocal endomicroscopy. The goal of this project is to develop laser scanning confocal endomicroscopy as a tool for basic scientific discovery and rapid detection of disease biomarkers. The cutting-edge instrument and associated technologies will provide scientists with unprecedented access to dynamic biological processes as they occur in real-time. In addition, it will enable the development of virtual ....In vivo molecular imaging using engineered affinity reagents and fluorescent laser scanning confocal endomicroscopy. The goal of this project is to develop laser scanning confocal endomicroscopy as a tool for basic scientific discovery and rapid detection of disease biomarkers. The cutting-edge instrument and associated technologies will provide scientists with unprecedented access to dynamic biological processes as they occur in real-time. In addition, it will enable the development of virtual biopsies and instant diagnosis without the need for costly and time-consuming histopathological reports. Thus, it will not only drive transformative research but also transform health care delivery. It will also be a major boost to the Australian biotechnology industry with potential for enormous economic benefits.Read moreRead less
Grafted peptide constructs - a new platform for delivering stable bioactive peptides. The project will develop a new strategy to overcome the lack of bioavailability of peptides. The project will design an effective drug delivery vehicle and facilitate drug development as highly active peptides will become attractive drug targets.
Gut Absorption of Constrained Peptides for Local and Systemic Targeting. Aims: This project aims to investigate how peptides are absorbed across the intestinal wall and distributed to organs and fluids in a rodent model by combining bio-analysis and pharmacokinetics with high-resolution microscopy and imaging.
Significance: This project expects to generate the most comprehensive survey to date of the pathways and mechanisms of peptide absorption, biodistribution and immune cell targeting, by ....Gut Absorption of Constrained Peptides for Local and Systemic Targeting. Aims: This project aims to investigate how peptides are absorbed across the intestinal wall and distributed to organs and fluids in a rodent model by combining bio-analysis and pharmacokinetics with high-resolution microscopy and imaging.
Significance: This project expects to generate the most comprehensive survey to date of the pathways and mechanisms of peptide absorption, biodistribution and immune cell targeting, by implementing innovative approaches.
Expected Outcomes: Expected outcomes include significant new knowledge and a new multi-disciplinary platform for measuring peptide absorption.
Benefits: This should provide significant benefits by informing the future design of peptides for supplements, therapeutics and carriers. Read moreRead less
Innovations in peptide-based drug design. This project will aim to develop new types of drugs that fill a gap between existing small molecule drugs, which are relatively inexpensive and stable, but often have side-effects, and biologics which are very expensive and require injection. Our new generation of peptide-based drugs promise to be applicable to diseases that are not treatable by current drugs.
Synthesis and Structure-Function Studies of the Glycoprotein Adiponectin. This project aims to understand the role of carbohydrate modifications on the structure and function of the fat cell-derived hormone adiponectin, which has shown protective effects against obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Advancing knowledge of the molecular mechanisms that regulate fat is crucial to unravelling the processes involved in the development of these diseases. The project plans to use novel ....Synthesis and Structure-Function Studies of the Glycoprotein Adiponectin. This project aims to understand the role of carbohydrate modifications on the structure and function of the fat cell-derived hormone adiponectin, which has shown protective effects against obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Advancing knowledge of the molecular mechanisms that regulate fat is crucial to unravelling the processes involved in the development of these diseases. The project plans to use novel synthetic technologies to access a library of adiponectins with defined patterns of carbohydrates attached to the peptide backbone, thus potentially enabling detailed dissection of the role of these modifications on structure, cell signalling and insulin sensitising activities.Read moreRead less
New Conus-derived alpha-conotoxin analgesics for the treatment of chronic pain: structure, mode of action, delivery and disposition. Current product deficiencies in the area of pain management are forcing the pharmaceutical industry to develop new strategies for achieving analgesia and reduce their dependence on traditional, addictive opiate-based products. Structural modification of cone snail derived peptides will provide exciting new leads for achieving effective analgesia.
Novel green scalable chemical peptide synthesis and enzyme immobilization. The Project aims to address the critical issue of developing green processes for the chemical production of peptides including on an industrial scale. It will use unique, biocompatible solid supports that have been invented by our partner SpheriTech Ltd together with other reagents to allow synthesis to be conducted in water rather than toxic organic solvents. Expected outcomes of the Project include an international part ....Novel green scalable chemical peptide synthesis and enzyme immobilization. The Project aims to address the critical issue of developing green processes for the chemical production of peptides including on an industrial scale. It will use unique, biocompatible solid supports that have been invented by our partner SpheriTech Ltd together with other reagents to allow synthesis to be conducted in water rather than toxic organic solvents. Expected outcomes of the Project include an international partnership in highly efficient environmentally-friendly assembly of peptides and of their analogues by both solid phase synthesis and immobilized enzyme-mediated ligation. The clear benefit will be the first novel, water-based, scalable green synthesis of peptides as biological probes and potential therapeutic agents.Read moreRead less
Novel chemoenzymatic synthesis and bioconjugation of peptides and proteins. This project aims to solve the critical difficulty of producing the complex peptide insulin and related insulin-like peptides (INSLs) and their analogues. The project will use unique, recyclable enzymes which ligate smaller peptide segments with extraordinary site and substrate selectivity. The expected outcome of the project is novel, cheaper and scalable, enzyme-mediated engineering of this critical class of peptides a ....Novel chemoenzymatic synthesis and bioconjugation of peptides and proteins. This project aims to solve the critical difficulty of producing the complex peptide insulin and related insulin-like peptides (INSLs) and their analogues. The project will use unique, recyclable enzymes which ligate smaller peptide segments with extraordinary site and substrate selectivity. The expected outcome of the project is novel, cheaper and scalable, enzyme-mediated engineering of this critical class of peptides as biological probes and potential therapeutic agents.Read moreRead less