Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354803
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
Interdisciplinary Network for Research into the Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects of Health (ELSAH). Australia lacks a national academic forum to consider issues involving biotechnology, health resource allocation, (bio)ethics and citizenship. This project will
- establish an interdisciplinary network for research into the social, legal and ethical dimensions of healthcare, biotechnology and medical science;
- co-ordinate this expertise in the national interest;
- assist policy makers, resear ....Interdisciplinary Network for Research into the Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects of Health (ELSAH). Australia lacks a national academic forum to consider issues involving biotechnology, health resource allocation, (bio)ethics and citizenship. This project will
- establish an interdisciplinary network for research into the social, legal and ethical dimensions of healthcare, biotechnology and medical science;
- co-ordinate this expertise in the national interest;
- assist policy makers, researchers, technology developers and communities to make informed decisions, and
- make health systems more equitable and socially acceptable.
This in turn will build trust, foster informed debate, increase community input into health policy, and help us understand complex social systems and examine the values embedded in them.
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Public and Proprietary Knowledge in Biotechnology: An Historical and Sociological Analysis of First Generation Recombinant DNA Pharmaceuticals Development. The 'biotechnology revolution' of the 1980s was a formative period that set the present pattern of links between university life science and commerce. A clearer analysis of the shifting boundary between public and proprietary scientific knowledge in this key recent episode will thus provide valuable insight into the social role of university- ....Public and Proprietary Knowledge in Biotechnology: An Historical and Sociological Analysis of First Generation Recombinant DNA Pharmaceuticals Development. The 'biotechnology revolution' of the 1980s was a formative period that set the present pattern of links between university life science and commerce. A clearer analysis of the shifting boundary between public and proprietary scientific knowledge in this key recent episode will thus provide valuable insight into the social role of university-based science today. In addition to matters of science policy and sociology, this more accurate account of the scientific initiatives, commercial strategies, and relationships with universities among the first biotechnology firms may also contribute to business scholarship aiming to foster success in the life science sector.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0882563
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$120,000.00
Summary
A Multi-Function Eye-Tracker Facility. Eye-tracking data will provide crucial insights into fundamental issues in the areas of (a) decision processes in eyewitness identification, (b) attentional deficits in autism, and (c) the role of saccades in goal-oriented movements. In turn, these advances have important ramifications for (a) the administration of justice, (b) understanding autism and ameliorating its consequences, and (c) the control of movement in normal and disabled populations. The Fa ....A Multi-Function Eye-Tracker Facility. Eye-tracking data will provide crucial insights into fundamental issues in the areas of (a) decision processes in eyewitness identification, (b) attentional deficits in autism, and (c) the role of saccades in goal-oriented movements. In turn, these advances have important ramifications for (a) the administration of justice, (b) understanding autism and ameliorating its consequences, and (c) the control of movement in normal and disabled populations. The Facility brings together a diverse group of established and early career researchers, many of whom have already demonstrated a capacity to collaborate effectively, providing exciting new collaborative research directions that will enhance Australian science and PhD student training.Read moreRead less
A Century of Drugs: Science, Medicine, and Industry in the Development of Pharmaceuticals. This project explores collaborations between life scientists, physicians, and industrialists in the discovery of six major new drugs, between the 1890s and 1990s. The aim is to develop a primary source-based history, and two books as well as other writings communicating findings, on the mutual influences between academic life science, medicine, and the drug industry that have flowed from such collaboration ....A Century of Drugs: Science, Medicine, and Industry in the Development of Pharmaceuticals. This project explores collaborations between life scientists, physicians, and industrialists in the discovery of six major new drugs, between the 1890s and 1990s. The aim is to develop a primary source-based history, and two books as well as other writings communicating findings, on the mutual influences between academic life science, medicine, and the drug industry that have flowed from such collaborations. This history will provide fundamental insights into the relationship between biological knowledge and medical practice, and the social and intellectual consequences of the pharmaceutical industry's involvement with both clinical research and biological science.Read moreRead less
How IGFBP-3 improves cancer cell responsiveness to DNA-damaging therapies. A protein called IGFBP-3 can modulate the way cancer cells respond to treatments such as radiotherapy and certain chemotherapy drugs. These therapies, which act by damaging cells' DNA, play an important role in the treatment of many cancers, but their effectiveness is limited by the ability of cells to oppose the treatment by repairing damaged DNA. This project aims to discover how IGFBP-3 acts to change cancer cells' res ....How IGFBP-3 improves cancer cell responsiveness to DNA-damaging therapies. A protein called IGFBP-3 can modulate the way cancer cells respond to treatments such as radiotherapy and certain chemotherapy drugs. These therapies, which act by damaging cells' DNA, play an important role in the treatment of many cancers, but their effectiveness is limited by the ability of cells to oppose the treatment by repairing damaged DNA. This project aims to discover how IGFBP-3 acts to change cancer cells' response to treatment, using breast cancer cells growing in culture as a model system. This work has the potential to lead to improvements in the treatment of cancer patients by increasing our understanding of what happens when cancer cells are exposed to radio- or chemotherapy.Read moreRead less
Structure-based inhibitor design of VAP-1/SSAO for the treatment of respiratory dirsorders and other major inflammatory diseases. Inflammatory diseases, such as asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis, are widespread and often poorly treated in Australia and elsewhere. Inhibitors of the recently studied VAP-1/SSAO protein are predicted to effectively treat the inflammation symptoms of one or more of these diseases. A structure-based approach to discover these new medicines should pro ....Structure-based inhibitor design of VAP-1/SSAO for the treatment of respiratory dirsorders and other major inflammatory diseases. Inflammatory diseases, such as asthma, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis, are widespread and often poorly treated in Australia and elsewhere. Inhibitors of the recently studied VAP-1/SSAO protein are predicted to effectively treat the inflammation symptoms of one or more of these diseases. A structure-based approach to discover these new medicines should provide a means to identify patentable compounds, with high potency, efficacy and safety. If this approach is successful, an Australian pharmaceutical company will be one of the first to the market with this new medicine to treat these chronic diseases.Read moreRead less
Topical peptide delivery for cosmetic and therapeutic benefits. Milk is a major Australian agricultural commodity and is now used in a number of topical products for the management of various skin conditions including chafing in babies, eczema and ageing skin. Hence, this work hopes to contribute to promoting and maintaining good health of Australians.
In addition, there is considerable research being conducted on peptide development for a range of diseases and there may be a possibility of ....Topical peptide delivery for cosmetic and therapeutic benefits. Milk is a major Australian agricultural commodity and is now used in a number of topical products for the management of various skin conditions including chafing in babies, eczema and ageing skin. Hence, this work hopes to contribute to promoting and maintaining good health of Australians.
In addition, there is considerable research being conducted on peptide development for a range of diseases and there may be a possibility of delivering these by the skin.
This work, in seeking to understand some of the fundamental determinants governing how exogenously applied peptides distribute in the skin, is also contributing to the development of Australian pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.Read moreRead less
Novel Vitamin E Analogues with Enhanced Specificity for Malignant Cells. The aim of this project is to synthesise and characterise novel compounds based on vitamin E succinate that are capable of efficiently and selectively killing cancer cells. The new compounds will be tested for their ability to induce programmed cell death in cancer cells and the most active of them will be also tested for anti-cancer effect in a pre-clinical model. We believe that novel analogues based on vitamin E succinat ....Novel Vitamin E Analogues with Enhanced Specificity for Malignant Cells. The aim of this project is to synthesise and characterise novel compounds based on vitamin E succinate that are capable of efficiently and selectively killing cancer cells. The new compounds will be tested for their ability to induce programmed cell death in cancer cells and the most active of them will be also tested for anti-cancer effect in a pre-clinical model. We believe that novel analogues based on vitamin E succinate can lead to the discovery of very effcient and selective anti-cancer drugs with no side-effects that may be used for patient treatment in the future. This makes our project of exceptional significance.Read moreRead less
Structure-activity relationships in the development of new bioactive isoflavonoids. This project aims to develop new chemical substances based on the structure of a group of naturally occuring compounds called isoflavones. Biological activity related to chronic inflammatory (eg arthritis) and heart disease will be examined in cells and animal models. This information will be used to design compounds with enhanced activity. The eventual aim is to develop potential therapeutic agents to treat chr ....Structure-activity relationships in the development of new bioactive isoflavonoids. This project aims to develop new chemical substances based on the structure of a group of naturally occuring compounds called isoflavones. Biological activity related to chronic inflammatory (eg arthritis) and heart disease will be examined in cells and animal models. This information will be used to design compounds with enhanced activity. The eventual aim is to develop potential therapeutic agents to treat chronic inflammatory and cardiovascular disease.Read moreRead less
Development of Multivalent Hyaluronan Derivative Therapeutics. Over-expression of the hyaluronan receptor CD44 has been identified at pathological sites of diseases such as cancer, psoriasis, arthritis and asthma. The research described in this proposal aims to develop novel therapeutic compounds which target CD44 whilst eliciting a therapeutic index. The design of these new therapeutics is based on a template structure which incorporates known cytotoxic or anti-fungal agentsas well as hyalu ....Development of Multivalent Hyaluronan Derivative Therapeutics. Over-expression of the hyaluronan receptor CD44 has been identified at pathological sites of diseases such as cancer, psoriasis, arthritis and asthma. The research described in this proposal aims to develop novel therapeutic compounds which target CD44 whilst eliciting a therapeutic index. The design of these new therapeutics is based on a template structure which incorporates known cytotoxic or anti-fungal agentsas well as hyaluronan, a naturally occurring carbohydrate, ubiquitous in nature.Read moreRead less