Lipid Rafts, Amyloid Neurotoxicity And Alzheimer's Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$318,267.00
Summary
Alzheimer's disease is the major cause of dementia in the elderly. Individuals with Alzheimer's disease exhibit a slow decline in cognition which usually results in prolonged institutionalisation. This creates an enormous burden on society. The project aims to identify mechanisms which cause Alzheimer's disease. Specifically, it will examine how a component of the brain, known as the amyloid protein, contributes to nerve cell degeneration. It is hoped that by identifying these mechanisms, new ta ....Alzheimer's disease is the major cause of dementia in the elderly. Individuals with Alzheimer's disease exhibit a slow decline in cognition which usually results in prolonged institutionalisation. This creates an enormous burden on society. The project aims to identify mechanisms which cause Alzheimer's disease. Specifically, it will examine how a component of the brain, known as the amyloid protein, contributes to nerve cell degeneration. It is hoped that by identifying these mechanisms, new targets for drug development will be found.Read moreRead less
THE CMRF-35 FAMILY OF MOLECULES: GENE STRUCTURE, EXPRESSION AND FUNCTION
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$367,669.00
Summary
White blood cells are the army which fights invasion by foreign organisms or cancer cells. Their main artillery and communication systems are located on the cell surface as protein molecules. These recognize foreign material and danger signals, and signal into the cell to direct interactions with other cells- soluble molecules in the immune system. We have discovered a new group of molecules called the CMRF-35 family which are found on the surface of different white blood cells. We have characte ....White blood cells are the army which fights invasion by foreign organisms or cancer cells. Their main artillery and communication systems are located on the cell surface as protein molecules. These recognize foreign material and danger signals, and signal into the cell to direct interactions with other cells- soluble molecules in the immune system. We have discovered a new group of molecules called the CMRF-35 family which are found on the surface of different white blood cells. We have characterized two members of the CMRF-35 family by studying the structure of their genes and the cells which express them. These studies will determine if the known CMRF-35 molecules are able to send signals from the cell surface into the cell to activate or inhibit a functional response by cells that express them. We hope to identify the triggers that initiate a signal from CMRF-35 molecules into the cell and whether there are molecules which bind CMRF-35 molecules and then get moved from the surface to inside the cell. Our data suggests that there are other unknown members of this family. We will determine how many members there are in this family by studying the DNA of genes that are related to the known CMRF-35 molecules. This will allow us to charactertize novel molecules that may be important for white cell function. Discovering new white cell surface molecules and determining their function increases our understanding of how the immune response works. If these CMRF-35 molecules represent a large family, it is highly likely that they have important roles in the immune response. By understanding the signals these molecules send to the cell nucleus we may be able to exploit their function to fight disease. For example where the immune system has not recognized cancer cells as dangerous, we might use the activating CMRF-35 molecules to stimulate a response. In the case of auto-immunity we may be able to reduce the responses via inhibitory CMRF-35 molecules.Read moreRead less