This Program Grant has three investigators, Professor Denis Moss, Dr Rajiv Khanna and Dr Scott Burrows, each of whom has collaborated on two previous Program Grants. The group is well known in the area of herpesvirus immunology and have published numerous scientific papers in leading medical journals. This program grant focuses on two human herpesviruses. The first is called Epstein-Barr virus which causes glandular fever and is associated with arange of human cancers. The second virus is human ....This Program Grant has three investigators, Professor Denis Moss, Dr Rajiv Khanna and Dr Scott Burrows, each of whom has collaborated on two previous Program Grants. The group is well known in the area of herpesvirus immunology and have published numerous scientific papers in leading medical journals. This program grant focuses on two human herpesviruses. The first is called Epstein-Barr virus which causes glandular fever and is associated with arange of human cancers. The second virus is human cytomegalovirus which can cause birth defects and problems in transplant patients. In this program we are investigating how the body�s immune system controls these viruses to exploit this information to develop new treatments.Read moreRead less
While current influenza vaccines blunt winter epidemics, they must be updated frequently to keep up with virus mutation and they do not protect against pandemics caused by new flu viruses (such as bird flu). This program will define how flu virus interacts with the immune system to generate immunity mediated particularly by “killer” T cells. We will use this knowledge to develop and evaluate vaccines that induce long-lasting T-cell immunity that can protect against both seasonal and pandemic flu ....While current influenza vaccines blunt winter epidemics, they must be updated frequently to keep up with virus mutation and they do not protect against pandemics caused by new flu viruses (such as bird flu). This program will define how flu virus interacts with the immune system to generate immunity mediated particularly by “killer” T cells. We will use this knowledge to develop and evaluate vaccines that induce long-lasting T-cell immunity that can protect against both seasonal and pandemic flu.Read moreRead less
This program brings together a team of researchers from The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research to study how the body regulates antibody production to fight disease. Antibodies are made by B-cells and are essential for a functional immune system. B cells circulate in the body, searching for signs of infection. When they encounter an invader, they mature, with the help of other immune cells, into antibody-producing cells. A small proportion of the cells are set aside as _memory� c ....This program brings together a team of researchers from The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research to study how the body regulates antibody production to fight disease. Antibodies are made by B-cells and are essential for a functional immune system. B cells circulate in the body, searching for signs of infection. When they encounter an invader, they mature, with the help of other immune cells, into antibody-producing cells. A small proportion of the cells are set aside as _memory� cells that can rapidly become antibodyproducing cells should the same infection occur again in the future. This is the basis of vaccination. This program aims to understand how a B cell changes into an antibody-producing cell, by studying the genes that are known to be required for the cells to form, or to do their work. We will study animals whose immune systems are under- or over-active, to find out what part of the antibody-producing process is faulty. Using this information, we hope eventually to be able to study diseases of antibody producing cells in humans (as occur in allergy, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and leukaemia), to be able to identify the precise cause of the problem, and to suggest a therapy. This information may also be used to improve the outcome of vaccination where an enhanced antibody response is desired.Read moreRead less
Immunological Therapies For Cancer, Chronic Infection And Autoimmunity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,891,788.00
Summary
The team comprises five leading scientists with a history of successful investigation into the role of the immune system in cancers, chronic viral infections, and autoimmune diseases. There is a large unmet need for effective solutions with fewer side effects in these diseases which cause a high disease burden in our society. In this program, we particularly seek to develop novel vaccines for chronic infections and autoimmune diseases, and to improve the safety of bone marrow transplantation.
Understanding G Protein-Coupled Receptors (GPCRs): Accelerating Discovery From Concept To Clinic.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$6,871,789.00
Summary
G Protein-Coupled Receptors (GPCRs) form the largest family of receptors (and thus drug targets) in living organisms. Currently, the major reason that new drugs fail to reach the clinic is lack of appropriate drug effect (approx. 30%). Thus, we need a better understanding of how GPCRs work and how this relates to disease. Our Program addresses this knowledge gap, using GPCR models that are relevant to treatment of metabolic, cardiovascular and central nervous system disease.
Molecular Regulation Of Blood Cell Production And Function
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$18,333,174.00
Summary
The blood-forming system is an intricately controlled balance of cell proliferation, maturation and functional activity that is essential for oxygen transport throughout the body, blood clotting, and effective immune responses. Defining the genes and molecules that orchestrate blood cell production and function is crucial, not only for understanding the role of blood in health, but for establishing the bases of blood cell disorders such as autoimmunity and leukaemia, and for devising new clinica ....The blood-forming system is an intricately controlled balance of cell proliferation, maturation and functional activity that is essential for oxygen transport throughout the body, blood clotting, and effective immune responses. Defining the genes and molecules that orchestrate blood cell production and function is crucial, not only for understanding the role of blood in health, but for establishing the bases of blood cell disorders such as autoimmunity and leukaemia, and for devising new clinical strategies for fighting these lethal diseases. This program is conducted by a large, established team of investigators that have made world-class contributions to understanding blood cell formation and function for more than 30 years. Their work established the modern era of molecular haematology via discovery and analysis of blood cell hormones (colony-stimulating factors or CSFs), their receptors and intracellular mediators, which resulted in development of treatments for millions of cancer patients. The program is a multidisciplinary, team approach to fundamental biological questions with a focus on potential clinical and commercial outcomes involving collaborations with clinical medicine and the pharmaceutical industry. Research will focus on meshing novel genetic approaches in mice with translation studies in humans to identify new validated targets for therapeutic intervention in blood cell diseases, as well as building on the team s expertise in cytokine action with emphasis on the actions of the suppressor of cytokine signalling (SOCS) molecules, a key family of proteins that controls cytokine actions.Read moreRead less
Roles Of Impaired Apoptosis And Differentiation In Tumourigenesis And Therapy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$21,656,910.00
Summary
The ten scientific laboratories in this program have joined forces to investigate two ways in which tumours develop. Both are of particular interest, because they suggest new ways in which cancer might be overcome. Most of our tissues are continually renewed throughout life by production of new cells. Therefore many of the old cells in each tissue must die off to maintain the proper cell numbers. To eliminate cells that are no longer needed or have become damaged, the body has developed a remark ....The ten scientific laboratories in this program have joined forces to investigate two ways in which tumours develop. Both are of particular interest, because they suggest new ways in which cancer might be overcome. Most of our tissues are continually renewed throughout life by production of new cells. Therefore many of the old cells in each tissue must die off to maintain the proper cell numbers. To eliminate cells that are no longer needed or have become damaged, the body has developed a remarkable cell suicide process termed apoptosis. Unfortunately, however, occasionally a random accident to the genes in one of our cells prevents the machinery for apoptosis from being turned on. In that case, the cell will not die when it should and, by continually dividing, it may eventually give rise to a cancer. Since most cancer cells still retain most of the machinery for apoptosis, however, a drug that could switch on this natural cell death machinery would provide a promising new approach to cancer therapy. Identifying and developing such drugs is one major long-term goal of this program. The other focus of our program concerns stem cells. These are rare cells with the remarkable ability to generate an entire tissue. For example, one of our laboratories has identified stem cells that can generate all the cells in the breast. The almost unlimited regenerative capacity of stem cells has a built-in danger. If a stem cell acquires the ability to proliferate excessively, it can go on to form a tumour. Indeed, many cancer researchers now suspect that rare stem cells within a tumour cause its inexorable growth. If tumour growth is maintained by stem cells, it will be essential to develop new forms of therapy that target these rare cancer stem cells rather than merely the bulk of the tumour cells. This is another key long-term goal of our program.Read moreRead less