Chemotherapy causes a massive depletion of blood-producing cells in the bone marrow. This results in a condition known as myelosuppression that has many harmful side effects for cancer patients. Our aim is to develop a safe and inexpensive approach that will specifically protect the blood-producing cells from chemotherapy but leave the cancer cells sensitive. If this treatment shows significant benefits in mouse models of cancer then the establishment of clinical trials will be initiated.
The Targeting Of Flt3, C-Kit And Src As Therapies For C-Cbl-associated Myeloid Malignancies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$535,416.00
Summary
Most leukaemias are incurable so it is important to find new treatments. For this to occur it is essential that the mutated genes causing leukaemia are identified. We have generated a mouse with a mutation in a gene, c-Cbl, that promotes the activation of a number of proteins involved in leukaemia development. By treating c-Cbl mutant mice with drugs that target these proteins we intend to identify the most effective treatments for human leukaemias associated with c-Cbl mutations.
Investigation Of Regulators That Control The Pro-survival Molecule MCL1 And Its Stabililty In Lymphoma And Myeloma Cells
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$169,162.00
Summary
B cell malignancies are common and in many cases result in mortality. The BCL-2 family protein MCL-1 has been shown to be over-expressed in many B cell malignancies. However, the regulation and biology of MCL-1 in these cancers remains largely unknown. We aim to define mechanisms that control regulation of MCL-1 expression in cancer cells at the transcriptional and protein level and hence identify new therapeutic targets.
Improving Patient Outcomes In Leukaemia By Targeting Cancer Stem Cells
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$294,763.00
Summary
Blood cancers such as acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) are among the most deadly types of cancer and new treatments are desperately needed to improve patient’s survival in these diseases. AML cancer-causing stem cells survive by turning on immortalization programs and we hope to specifically kill these AML stem cells by blocking these crucial pathways. This includes things that control the way the cells divide and the way they respond to genetic damage as well as other novel pathways.
Identification Of Genes That Predict Outcomes In Acute Leukaemia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Summary
This study aims to identify genetic factors that contribute to the resistance of acute leukaemias to treatment, and to poor outcomes in patients with acute leukaemias.
Regulation Of Megakaryocyte And Platelet Survival In Malignancy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$536,914.00
Summary
In this grant we will investigate how blood cells called platelets are produced in normal conditions and during disease. Platelets are blood cells that stop us from bleeding when we get a cut. When too many platelets accumulate, there is an increased risk of blood clots forming. This project grant will help us learn how platelet numbers swell in response to some blood and ovarian cancers, and the mechanisms that control cell death in platelets and the cells that produce them.
Controlling The Pro-survival Protein Mcl-1: Discovering Novel Opportunities And Developing Innovative Approaches To Target Mcl-1 For Treating Cancers
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$749,415.00
Summary
Cancer cells are often sustained by evading cell death. Thus, a promising approach to develop new cancer treatments aims to restore their ability to commit cell suicide. Proteins related to Bcl-2 are, in this regard, attractive targets because they are prominent barriers to cell death. This project seeks to uncover how a Bcl-2 relative, Mcl-1, is regulated, and to explore how the mechanisms that underpin these processes can be targeted in cancers (melanomas, leukemias) that it sustains.