Use Of Snake Venom Prothrombin Activators In Blood Collection Tubes To Produce High Quality Serum To Improve Patient Outcomes
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$284,706.00
Summary
The timely availability of high quality serum and plasma samples are of the utmost importance for accurate biochemical analysis in a clinical setting. This requirement is particularly true for patients on anti-clotting therapeutic agents such as warfarin and heparin. In this study we will employ potent prothrombin activators purified from snake venom to enhance the clotting efficiency of blood for serum preparation for biochemical analysis.
Too few blood platelets leads to fatal haemorrhage, and patients with low platelet counts require transfusions to prevent bleeding. We have recently discovered the key to keeping platelets alive, and now propose the critical experiments which will teach us how to manipulate it and allow platelets to live longer. Our team leads the world in this field. If successful we expect to improve blood bank platelet storage, and boost the supply of platelets available to patients in need of transfusion.
Investigation Of Dok2 And Dok1 Adapter Proteins, In The Negative Regulation Of Integrin AIIbb3 Platelet Signalling.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$446,831.00
Summary
Blood platelets play a key role in blood clot formation, prevention of bleeding and are the principal elements contributing to thrombosis leading to heart attack and stroke. Numerous studies have defined pathways promoting platelet activity, however less is known about their negative regulation. In this grant we will examine the role for proteins, Dok2 and Dok1, in the negative regulation of platelets, hoping this leads to development of novel therapeutics for prevention of cardiac disease.
A Novel Genetic Element Controlling Adult Hemoglobin Production
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$493,907.00
Summary
Disorders of the blood protein hemoglobin are the commonest genetic diseases worldwide, and include thalassemia and sickle cell disease. In this proposal we study two novel mouse lines that exhibit thalassemia, but lack any of the known genetic mutations that cause this disease. These mice afford us the opportunity to make unique observations into how hemoglobin is produced, and thereby provide a platform for new therapeutic approaches in these devastating diseases of the blood.
Acute Traumatic Coagulopathy- Mechanisms And Measurement
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$188,226.00
Summary
Acute traumatic coagulopathy (ATC) refers to impaired blood clotting post major trauma and is associated with high, early mortality. Inability to predict this disorder and poor knowledge regarding its detailed biochemical mechanism has hindered development of evidence based guidelines to manage patients with ATC. This project aims to correlate early biochemical disorders with clinical management and outcomes post trauma to determine mechanisms leading to ATC and determine management strategies.
A Randomised Study To Optimise Clinical Outcomes In Patients With FLT3 Mutant AML
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,169,549.00
Summary
Acute myeloid leukaemia is a devastating blood cancer which affects almost 1000 Australians annually. One quarter have a mutation affecting a gene called FLT3, which results in aggressive leukaemia rarely cured by chemotherapy alone. Dr Andrew Wei from the Alfred Hospital will lead a nationwide randomised clinical trial through the Australasian Leukaemia and Lymphoma Group network to investigate whether a targeted FLT3 inhibitor small molecule called Sorafenib will improve outcomes for patients ....Acute myeloid leukaemia is a devastating blood cancer which affects almost 1000 Australians annually. One quarter have a mutation affecting a gene called FLT3, which results in aggressive leukaemia rarely cured by chemotherapy alone. Dr Andrew Wei from the Alfred Hospital will lead a nationwide randomised clinical trial through the Australasian Leukaemia and Lymphoma Group network to investigate whether a targeted FLT3 inhibitor small molecule called Sorafenib will improve outcomes for patients with this poor risk blood cancer.Read moreRead less
MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY LED DISCOVERY OF NEW TREATMENTS FOR HUMAN AFRICAN TRYPANOSOMIASIS AND BETA-THALASSEMIA
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$636,524.00
Summary
I am a medicinal chemist interested in finding new treatments for sleeping sickness, a parasitic disease, and the blood diseases sickle cell anaemia and beta-thalassemia. After testing more than 80,000 compounds, we have discovered some promising starting points for drug discovery. These so-called “screening hits” are too weak to be useful but I hope to use my medicinal chemistry expertise to make these more potent, more selective, and hence therapeutically useful.
Studying precancerous stem cells that cause T cell leukaemia. Recent research has identified abnormal stem cells that are the cause of T cell leukaemia. They are also resistant to therapeutics suggesting that they could be a cause of relapse. The aim of this project is to determine the abnormal pathways that cause these cells to become immortal and to determine new therapeutic strategies to eliminate them.