Identification Of Telomere-specific Recombination Pathways
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$540,075.00
Summary
Human cells stop to grow when the natural ends of chromosomes become too short. One way of how cancer cells evade this growth arrest is by using a copy-mechanism to extend short chromosome ends. Ironically, this copy mechanism is usually used by cells to keep the structure of chromosomes intact in order to prevent mutations that cause cancer. Here we will study a novel protein that contributes to the copy mechanism at short chromosome ends, but not as much in normal mutation prevention.
Identifying EQTLs And Endophenotyping Known CNVs In A Large Australian Schizophrenia Sample
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$902,472.00
Summary
This study hopes to identify genetic code variations associated with an increased risk of schizophrenia . We will study variation in gene expression levels in patients and healthy controls to identify underlying changes in the genetic code responsible. In a subset of patients with schizophrenia and known rare copy number variations (CNVs) in the genetic code we will conduct brain scans and psychological tests to characterize the effect of CNVs on brain structure and function in schizophrenia.
Molecular Epidemiology Of Ovarian Cancer: The Australian Ovarian Cancer Study National Clinical Follow-Up Core
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$883,244.00
Summary
Ovarian cancer is the seventh most common cancer in Australian women and fifth most common cause of cancer death, with approximately 1200 new cases diagnosed and 750 deaths each year. There is an urgent need to better understand the molecular, epidemiological and genetic characteristics of epithelial ovarian cancer and how these influence response to treatment and clinical outcome. Ovarian cancer is a histologically and clinically diverse disease and the variability in clinical outcome in ovaria ....Ovarian cancer is the seventh most common cancer in Australian women and fifth most common cause of cancer death, with approximately 1200 new cases diagnosed and 750 deaths each year. There is an urgent need to better understand the molecular, epidemiological and genetic characteristics of epithelial ovarian cancer and how these influence response to treatment and clinical outcome. Ovarian cancer is a histologically and clinically diverse disease and the variability in clinical outcome in ovarian cancer patients suggests that reliable predictive factors would be of clinical value. However, it is clear that the collection of hundreds of annotated biospecimens is essential if the interaction of genes and environment in the genesis of this disease is to be understood or the molecular features of this disease dissected. Recognizing that this can only be achieved through large-scale collaboration, the Australian Ovarian Cancer Study (AOCS) was established in 2000 by scientists from the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, the Queensland Institute for Medical Research, Melbourne University and Westmead Institute for Cancer Research in collaboration with clinicians across Australia. AOCS has recruited 1105 patients to date and this Research Proposal aims to complete the collection of clinical data on all AOCS patients nationally, to validate the use of microarray gene expression profiles to predict clinical outcome and to find genetic variants that may determine clinical outcome in individual patients. The creation of AOCS has provided a unique oportunity to collect one of the finest ovarian cancer biological sample sets in the world. We believe that this internationally significant study will shed light on the basis of response of ovarian cancer to treatment and provide an ongoing resource for research into the causes of ovarian cancer, and studies on the response to treatment.Read moreRead less
Lung cancer is the most frequent cause of cancer deaths in many Western countries, including ours. Lung cancer is the third leading cause of death of Australians and the fifth leading cause of burden of disease in Australia. With exposure to cancer-causing agents such as cigarette smoke, parts of the lung may suffer permanent damage that increases the risk of lung cancer. Many of these changes include the genes in air passages and lung tissue. A certain change (called methylation) affects some g ....Lung cancer is the most frequent cause of cancer deaths in many Western countries, including ours. Lung cancer is the third leading cause of death of Australians and the fifth leading cause of burden of disease in Australia. With exposure to cancer-causing agents such as cigarette smoke, parts of the lung may suffer permanent damage that increases the risk of lung cancer. Many of these changes include the genes in air passages and lung tissue. A certain change (called methylation) affects some genes in the lungs, but it is not yet known how common this change is or how it affects smokers and people who have developed lung cancer. We will collect blood and sputum specimens from lung cancer patients to test to see if methylation is present, and also specimens from when patients have a routine bronchoscopy as part of their initial tests. If they have an operation for lung cancer, then the part of the lung that is removed and not needed for diagnosis will also be tested for methylation. In this study, we will study whether methylation is an accurate test for lung cancer, whether it is present in parts of the lung near from the lung cancer, and whether it predicts better or worse results after treatment. We hope that this research study will provide new information about the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer.Read moreRead less