ARC Centre of Excellence for the Mathematical Analysis of Cellular Systems. ARC Centre of Excellence for the Mathematical Analysis of Cellular Systems. The ARC Centre for the Mathematical Analysis of Cellular Systems aims to deliver the mathematics required to compute life. The Centre will deliver innovation in computational and mathematical biology and establish in silico biology alongside in vivo and in vitro biology. These models will allow us to understand the complexity of life at the cellu ....ARC Centre of Excellence for the Mathematical Analysis of Cellular Systems. ARC Centre of Excellence for the Mathematical Analysis of Cellular Systems. The ARC Centre for the Mathematical Analysis of Cellular Systems aims to deliver the mathematics required to compute life. The Centre will deliver innovation in computational and mathematical biology and establish in silico biology alongside in vivo and in vitro biology. These models will allow us to understand the complexity of life at the cellular level and enable new ways of combining diverse and heterogenous data. This will allow us to understand the mechanisms underlying cellular behaviour, and to apply rational design engineering methods in order to control the dynamics of biological systems. Read moreRead less
Neural circuit control of effort under stress . This Project aims to investigate how the ‘decision’ to persist in exerting effort to obtain a reward is encoded in the the brain and affected by stress. This work will generate new knowledge on the neural mechanisms through which stress modifies neural activity to control decision making processes underpinning adaptive behaviours essential for survival. The expected outcomes of this work include enhanced capacity at the interface of behavioural a ....Neural circuit control of effort under stress . This Project aims to investigate how the ‘decision’ to persist in exerting effort to obtain a reward is encoded in the the brain and affected by stress. This work will generate new knowledge on the neural mechanisms through which stress modifies neural activity to control decision making processes underpinning adaptive behaviours essential for survival. The expected outcomes of this work include enhanced capacity at the interface of behavioural and computational neuroscience, that will in turn provide significant benefits through greater insight into brain functions essential for survival, with long ranging implications for performance optimisation and brain-inspired computing. Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354636
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$30,000.00
Summary
Australian Computational Molecular Science Network. Computational Molecular Science (CMS) involves the use of theory and computational methods to simulate and visualise molecular systems ranging from small atmospheric species to proteins, nucleic acids, chemical polymers and materials. It represents our most incisive expression of what we understand about the molecular basis of nature. The CMS network will integrate and cross-fertilize both fundamental and application-based expertize in molecula ....Australian Computational Molecular Science Network. Computational Molecular Science (CMS) involves the use of theory and computational methods to simulate and visualise molecular systems ranging from small atmospheric species to proteins, nucleic acids, chemical polymers and materials. It represents our most incisive expression of what we understand about the molecular basis of nature. The CMS network will integrate and cross-fertilize both fundamental and application-based expertize in molecular scale computations in the fields of nanoscience, biomaterials, biotechnology, biomedical science and environmental science. It will uncover and explore critical new interdisciplinary science and create new molecular-based paradigms that will drive advances in these fields over the next decade.Read moreRead less
Unpacking the immune system with applied mathematics. This project aims to model immune interactions across cells and structures spanning scales of nanometres to millimetres. It expects to develop innovative mathematical insights, improve our understanding of immunology, and consolidate collaborations with top American and European laboratories and groups. Expected outcomes include cutting-edge techniques for multiscale biological modelling and improved prediction and analysis of immune dynami ....Unpacking the immune system with applied mathematics. This project aims to model immune interactions across cells and structures spanning scales of nanometres to millimetres. It expects to develop innovative mathematical insights, improve our understanding of immunology, and consolidate collaborations with top American and European laboratories and groups. Expected outcomes include cutting-edge techniques for multiscale biological modelling and improved prediction and analysis of immune dynamics. The project should provide benefits to industries where highly organised behaviours are important, for example those interested in robot swarming, optimal transportation, and epidemic management. It should also benefit Australian students and researchers with novel overseas training opportunities.Read moreRead less
An interdisciplinary approach to host-pathogen interactions in infection. This project aims to understand the molecular and cellular interactions between host and parasite, as well as providing a quantitative framework for analysing infection dynamics in other systems. Infection involves a complex interaction between the host and the parasite, which is very dynamic and therefore difficult to study by traditional sampling and analysis approaches. This project has combined mathematical modelling w ....An interdisciplinary approach to host-pathogen interactions in infection. This project aims to understand the molecular and cellular interactions between host and parasite, as well as providing a quantitative framework for analysing infection dynamics in other systems. Infection involves a complex interaction between the host and the parasite, which is very dynamic and therefore difficult to study by traditional sampling and analysis approaches. This project has combined mathematical modelling with a novel experimental protocol to allow the study of kinetics of parasite replication in vivo. Expected outcomes will provide significant benefits, such as new avenues for vaccination and immune intervention.Read moreRead less
Defining mechanisms of action of novel alpha-conotoxins at nicotinic receptor-channels. Marine snails from the waters off the Australian coast produce an amazing variety of mini-proteins in their venoms called conotoxins that they use to capture prey. These conotoxins bind very specifically to receptors in our body associated with the transmission of nerve signals. We will use natural and synthetically modified conotoxins to selectively block particular types of neuronal 'receptors' to gain a gr ....Defining mechanisms of action of novel alpha-conotoxins at nicotinic receptor-channels. Marine snails from the waters off the Australian coast produce an amazing variety of mini-proteins in their venoms called conotoxins that they use to capture prey. These conotoxins bind very specifically to receptors in our body associated with the transmission of nerve signals. We will use natural and synthetically modified conotoxins to selectively block particular types of neuronal 'receptors' to gain a greater understanding of how the nervous system functions. This knowledge will help in the design of new drugs to treat a variety of diseases and disorders. Essentially we will use a chemical armoury developed by the cone snail to design state-of-the-art mini-protein drugs.Read moreRead less
Novel Babesia proteins and their roles in the pathogenesis of tick fever. This project aims at gaining a deep understanding of the biology of Babesia parasites and how they cause tick fever in cattle. The project expects to discover novel parasite proteins involved in the development and persistence of tick fever and identify their functional role in infection. The main expected outcome is the discovery of parasite proteins that are critical for infection and pathogenesis of cattle tick fever. T ....Novel Babesia proteins and their roles in the pathogenesis of tick fever. This project aims at gaining a deep understanding of the biology of Babesia parasites and how they cause tick fever in cattle. The project expects to discover novel parasite proteins involved in the development and persistence of tick fever and identify their functional role in infection. The main expected outcome is the discovery of parasite proteins that are critical for infection and pathogenesis of cattle tick fever. The findings will contribute to the development of future novel vaccines to control tick fever, with significant economic benefits for the beef and dairy industries worldwide.Read moreRead less
Uncovering the molecular mechanisms of potassium channel activity. The aim of this project is to determine the mechanisms of protein-mediated potassium ion transport across cell membranes. It will combine advanced simulations, structural biology and electrophysiology to describe the detailed molecular processes underscoring calcium-activated potassium channel conduction, gating and inactivation. The expected outcome is an improved description of how ion channels recognise and respond to physiolo ....Uncovering the molecular mechanisms of potassium channel activity. The aim of this project is to determine the mechanisms of protein-mediated potassium ion transport across cell membranes. It will combine advanced simulations, structural biology and electrophysiology to describe the detailed molecular processes underscoring calcium-activated potassium channel conduction, gating and inactivation. The expected outcome is an improved description of how ion channels recognise and respond to physiological stimuli to control electrical signalling the body. Our results will provide benefits in the form of basic understanding relevant to ion transport phenomena in biological systems, and atomic-level views of nervous system function to guide future directions in pharmacology.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE180100066
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$443,311.00
Summary
Electrophysiology facility for cell phenotyping and drug discovery. This project aims to establish a high-throughput, automated patch clamp facility to enable research at the forefront of cell phenotyping and drug discovery. Ion channels are membrane proteins that underlie cell function and are therefore important drug targets. The patch clamp technique is the most powerful tool available to functionally characterise cells and study the function of ion channels. The significant advance provided ....Electrophysiology facility for cell phenotyping and drug discovery. This project aims to establish a high-throughput, automated patch clamp facility to enable research at the forefront of cell phenotyping and drug discovery. Ion channels are membrane proteins that underlie cell function and are therefore important drug targets. The patch clamp technique is the most powerful tool available to functionally characterise cells and study the function of ion channels. The significant advance provided by the high-throughput, automated patch clamp system is that it allows up to 384 cells to be recorded simultaneously. This project expects to enhance capacity to automate and standardise the quality of recordings, substantially increase the rate of data production, and enable greater access to patch clamp technology.Read moreRead less