Targeting The NLRP3 Inflammasome And Interleukin-18 In Hypertensive Heart Failure
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,241,115.00
Summary
Heart failure is a common complication of hypertension and a major cause of death and disability worldwide. This project will characterise a newly identified inflammatory pathway that we believe to be a major cause of the enlargement and scarring of the heart that accompanies hypertension. We will also trial drugs that block this inflammatory pathway to determine their suitability as future therapies for this devastating disease.
Influenza A Viral Infection And Pregnancy Complications
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,346,858.00
Summary
Pregnant women who contract influenza are 5 times more likely to be hospitalised than the general population. Babies of mothers with influenza are also associated with increased perinatal mortality rates. We hypothesise that influenza infection in pregnancy significantly impairs the maternal vascular system resulting in maternal and foetal morbidity. Outcomes from this research may change current treatment modalities to improve maternal and foetal outcomes complicated by influenza infection.
Integrating Biology And Medicine To Develop 3D-structure Guided Drug Design For Treatment Of Cardiovascular Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$978,832.00
Summary
Calcium channel inhibitors are commonly prescribed for the treatment of heart disorders such as angina, hypertension, arrhythmias and hypertrophic heart disease. This class of drugs is one of the leading causes of drug-related fatalities. The impediment to designing better drugs is a lack of understanding of the 3 dimensional (3D) structure of the calcium channel. We will enable for the first time a 3D structure blueprint for the design of safe and highly selective calcium channel therapeutics.
Neural Circuits Which Limit Alcohol And Soft Drink Intake
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$523,949.00
Summary
Alcohol and soft drinks are ubiquitous, and often harmful, particularly in excess. This project will examine the specific roles of fluid and food satiation neural circuits in suppressing intake, to determine whether either or both could be therapeutic targets for alcohol/soft drink overconsumption, especially as cessation aids for binge-drinking behaviour.
A Cellular Identity Crisis: Deciphering How Mammary Epithelial Cells Form And Maintain Their Identity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$843,826.00
Summary
The ability to regenerate human organs from adult cells efficiently and without error is a major goal of biomedical research in Australia, with significant economic benefits. As one of the most regenerative organs in a woman's body, the breast is an excellent model to study mechanisms that underpin tissue growth and regrowth. Moreover, as these pathways are often hijacked by cancer, this research has important implications for the development of new targeted therapies to treat breast cancer.