Chemical Insights to Peptide Helix-Sheet-Nanofibre Equilibria. We live in an ageing community that is experiencing exponential growth in neurological diseases that require full time carers and place significant burdens on our health system. Many such diseases are caused by (apparently) abnormal folding of proteins that aggregate into insoluble materials. The chemistry behind these processes is not sufficiently well understood to know precisely why the diseases are caused and how they might be tr ....Chemical Insights to Peptide Helix-Sheet-Nanofibre Equilibria. We live in an ageing community that is experiencing exponential growth in neurological diseases that require full time carers and place significant burdens on our health system. Many such diseases are caused by (apparently) abnormal folding of proteins that aggregate into insoluble materials. The chemistry behind these processes is not sufficiently well understood to know precisely why the diseases are caused and how they might be treated. This project will use new strategies to control peptide folding, provide important new information relevant to understanding such processes/diseases, and teach us how to engineer important new biomaterials that can advance nanotechnology. Read moreRead less
Design and discovery of novel conotoxins that target ion channels and receptors. The national benefits that may arise include (i) new knowledge of biologically active peptides and their mode of action that will be protected through patent applications and provide a competitive edge for Australian biotechnology (ii) the training of a new generation of skilled researchers in chemical and structural biology that will sustain the biotechnology industry (iii) economic benefits from licensing and roya ....Design and discovery of novel conotoxins that target ion channels and receptors. The national benefits that may arise include (i) new knowledge of biologically active peptides and their mode of action that will be protected through patent applications and provide a competitive edge for Australian biotechnology (ii) the training of a new generation of skilled researchers in chemical and structural biology that will sustain the biotechnology industry (iii) economic benefits from licensing and royalty returns on drug leads that may arise from this program (iv) environmental benefits from the development of more sensitive analytical methods that obviate over collection of endangered species and (v) social benefits from a reduction in suffering from diseases for which drugs are developed as a result of this program.Read moreRead less
Theoretical and computational approaches to accurately predict the structures of a unique family of circular and knotted proteins. The primary outcome will be a fundamental new knowledge on cyclotide structures and a new protein engineering method to design stabilised proteins. Because cyclotides have significantly higher stabilities than conventional proteins, they have a range of pharmaceutical and agricultural applications. Both fields of use have the potential for very great economic and soc ....Theoretical and computational approaches to accurately predict the structures of a unique family of circular and knotted proteins. The primary outcome will be a fundamental new knowledge on cyclotide structures and a new protein engineering method to design stabilised proteins. Because cyclotides have significantly higher stabilities than conventional proteins, they have a range of pharmaceutical and agricultural applications. Both fields of use have the potential for very great economic and social benefits for Australia. From a pharmaceutical perspective our computing development will greatly facilitate the design of stabilised peptide-based drugs using the cyclotide framework. Such drugs have potential sales of several billion dollars per annum and the royalty returns from successful commercialisation of IP can be substantial.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354500
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
ARC Research Network in Microarray Technology. The primary aim of this proposal is to transform the premier genomic technology into a standard research tool; microarrays are now a priority for anyone studying the genetics underlying key biological processes. A principal challenge for the Australian research community is to capture all aspects of microarray technology and make them readily available. We will address these needs by developing a network to:
-establish regular research meetings,
- ....ARC Research Network in Microarray Technology. The primary aim of this proposal is to transform the premier genomic technology into a standard research tool; microarrays are now a priority for anyone studying the genetics underlying key biological processes. A principal challenge for the Australian research community is to capture all aspects of microarray technology and make them readily available. We will address these needs by developing a network to:
-establish regular research meetings,
-facilitate training in array methodologies and bioinformatics,
-co-ordinate innovation of technologies,-provide centralised data warehousing,
-provide access to automated high-level gene annotation,
-provide data mining tools,
-set standards for data management and exchangeRead moreRead less
Sequencing the mammalian transcriptome in toto. The mammalian genome projects have provided a huge leap forward for biological research by giving the framework to study genes on a global scale. This project will provide human genome project scale information for every major tissue in mammals and will provide the research community with a world class resource to further genomic research. It will also investigate parts of gene regulation which have been invisible to researchers in the past. Discov ....Sequencing the mammalian transcriptome in toto. The mammalian genome projects have provided a huge leap forward for biological research by giving the framework to study genes on a global scale. This project will provide human genome project scale information for every major tissue in mammals and will provide the research community with a world class resource to further genomic research. It will also investigate parts of gene regulation which have been invisible to researchers in the past. Discovering these rules will provide novel insights in pathology with a genetic component and provide a further boost to biotechnological approaches to obtain expression of specific sets of genes in model systems. Read moreRead less
Intravital super-resolution imaging via Stimulated Emission Depletion microscopy (STED)-microendoscopy. We will develop a new technology to enable the imaging of sub-cellular structures within a biological specimen, with super-resolution. This intravital super-resolution imaging technology will build off world leading techniques to image objects with super-resolution and to perform this within a specimen, with minimal invasion. The broad ramifications of this technology apply to biology, medical ....Intravital super-resolution imaging via Stimulated Emission Depletion microscopy (STED)-microendoscopy. We will develop a new technology to enable the imaging of sub-cellular structures within a biological specimen, with super-resolution. This intravital super-resolution imaging technology will build off world leading techniques to image objects with super-resolution and to perform this within a specimen, with minimal invasion. The broad ramifications of this technology apply to biology, medical science, imaging and sensing. Important applications include the early detection of debilitating diseases and the advancement of understanding of cellular biology. This research will raise Australia's profile as a world leader in science and technology, building on our emerging presence in the biophysical sciences.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354892
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$40,000.00
Summary
The Australian Protease Network. Proteases are pivotal enzymes during birth, life, ageing and death of all organisms. Proteases regulate most physiological processes by controlling protein activation, synthesis and turnover and are essential for replication and spread of viruses, bacteria and parasites that cause infectious diseases. Blockbuster drugs and diagnostics already target a few proteases. Australians have made innovative contributions individually to understanding and regulating these ....The Australian Protease Network. Proteases are pivotal enzymes during birth, life, ageing and death of all organisms. Proteases regulate most physiological processes by controlling protein activation, synthesis and turnover and are essential for replication and spread of viruses, bacteria and parasites that cause infectious diseases. Blockbuster drugs and diagnostics already target a few proteases. Australians have made innovative contributions individually to understanding and regulating these enzymes. However this initiative aims to network their efforts by value-adding to the current protease research through promoting national and international collaborations to improve our understanding of biology, and encourage exploitation of proteases/inhibitors/receptors for pharmaceutical and industrial applications.Read moreRead less
BIOCATALYSTS MINED FROM CYTOCHROME P450 LIBRARIES: AN INNOVATIVE TOOL FOR ACCELERATING DRUG DEVELOPMENT. The cytochrome P450s (P450s) are a family of enzymes that are perhaps the most versatile biological catalysts known. DNA shuffling is an emerging technique that takes the genes encoding families of enzymes and creates libraries of catalysts with both improved and novel properties. We will obtain proof of concept that shuffled P450 libraries can be screened and optimized for use as biocatalys ....BIOCATALYSTS MINED FROM CYTOCHROME P450 LIBRARIES: AN INNOVATIVE TOOL FOR ACCELERATING DRUG DEVELOPMENT. The cytochrome P450s (P450s) are a family of enzymes that are perhaps the most versatile biological catalysts known. DNA shuffling is an emerging technique that takes the genes encoding families of enzymes and creates libraries of catalysts with both improved and novel properties. We will obtain proof of concept that shuffled P450 libraries can be screened and optimized for use as biocatalysts in drug development. The methodologies developed here will overcome two critical bottlenecks in current drug development: the optimisation and metabolic profiling of new drug candidates. This will yield important benefits in accelerating the optimisation and safety testing of drugs under development.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354751
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
Australian Bio-Metals Research Network. The aim of the Bio-Metals Research Network is to connect the extensive Australian expertise in the study of metal ions in relation to the Environment, Health and Frontier Technologies. The Network is inter-disciplinary and brings together over 50 group leaders in the biological, biomedical and physical sciences. A major aim of the Network will be to provide a molecular understanding of biological and environmental processes and disease states as well as pr ....Australian Bio-Metals Research Network. The aim of the Bio-Metals Research Network is to connect the extensive Australian expertise in the study of metal ions in relation to the Environment, Health and Frontier Technologies. The Network is inter-disciplinary and brings together over 50 group leaders in the biological, biomedical and physical sciences. A major aim of the Network will be to provide a molecular understanding of biological and environmental processes and disease states as well as providing new materials for the development of new technologies. The Network will interact in research and education with Bio-Metals groups around the world and will develop collaborative funding proposalsRead moreRead less
A New Window into Transgene Silencing in Plants: mechanisms of copy-number independent, 5' sequence dependent, post-transcriptional silencing in a complex polyploid. Silencing of introduced genes is a major problem limiting plant molecular improvement. Sugarcane, a complex polyploid, shows the most efficient transgene silencing ever observed in plants. Silencing operates on the RNA, depends on the upstream sequence of the gene, and is independent of copy number. Other plant species develop endop ....A New Window into Transgene Silencing in Plants: mechanisms of copy-number independent, 5' sequence dependent, post-transcriptional silencing in a complex polyploid. Silencing of introduced genes is a major problem limiting plant molecular improvement. Sugarcane, a complex polyploid, shows the most efficient transgene silencing ever observed in plants. Silencing operates on the RNA, depends on the upstream sequence of the gene, and is independent of copy number. Other plant species develop endopolyploidy with age, and show unpredictable or patchy silencing. We speculate that differential silencing is a natural control mechanism in the exploitation of polyploidy in plants. The sugarcane system provides an exceptional opportunity to identify the sequences that trigger and protect from silencing, and to develop approaches to avoid the problem.Read moreRead less