Compartmental Analysis Of T-cell Responses In Thoracic Malignancies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$851,403.00
Summary
To improve immune therapy for cancer we have to be able to determine how cancer patients ‘see’ mutated cancer proteins. Blood is the easiest & most useful source of immune ‘killer’ cells for that task, but the lymph node that drains the tumour and the fluid that bathes a tumour probably contain a much higher number of these killer cells than blood. If so, studying them would help us better track responses to therapy and enable us to choose the best mutated proteins for a vaccine.
The Relationship Between Cancer Surgery, Lymph Nodes, T Cells And Immunotherapy.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$960,585.00
Summary
Cancer treatment involves surgery for millions of patients annually, however, many patients do relapse. Surgery often involves removal of cancer-associated lymph nodes at the site. To improve surgical outcomes new immunotherapy strategies aim to activate the patients’ immune cells to eradicate tumours. However the main repository for these immune cells is in the very lymph tissue removed at surgery. This project will investigate the role of remaining lymph nodes in patient recovery/response.
Testing the Flood Pulse Concept for rivers with variable flow regimes. For floodplain rivers the major unifying conceptual model linking hydrology, biogeochemistry and ecology is the Flood Pulse Concept (FPC). The model is based on rivers that have a seasonally predictable and long duration inundation of floodplain habitats. Recent reviews of the FPC indicate that the model needs to be broadened to describe the function of rivers with more variable flow regimes. This project will test some of th ....Testing the Flood Pulse Concept for rivers with variable flow regimes. For floodplain rivers the major unifying conceptual model linking hydrology, biogeochemistry and ecology is the Flood Pulse Concept (FPC). The model is based on rivers that have a seasonally predictable and long duration inundation of floodplain habitats. Recent reviews of the FPC indicate that the model needs to be broadened to describe the function of rivers with more variable flow regimes. This project will test some of the predictions of the FPC for variable dryland rivers by investigating how food webs in the channels of a floodplain reach respond to flows of different magnitude, seasonal timing and duration.Read moreRead less
Risks to human health and the ecosystem from feral pigs in Perth metropolitan water catchments. This project aims to investigate the potential risk feral pigs pose to public health through the dissemination of water borne pathogens within water catchment areas, and to investigate their role in the maintenance and spread of diseases of public and animal health concern in the south west of Western Australia. As well as providing a frontline approach to protecting our water supplies, this project ....Risks to human health and the ecosystem from feral pigs in Perth metropolitan water catchments. This project aims to investigate the potential risk feral pigs pose to public health through the dissemination of water borne pathogens within water catchment areas, and to investigate their role in the maintenance and spread of diseases of public and animal health concern in the south west of Western Australia. As well as providing a frontline approach to protecting our water supplies, this project will also provide valuable data on the nature and extent of the risk feral pigs pose to biodiversity conservation and the environment generally. The outcomes of this research will provide a scientific basis for the development of prioritised strategies for the control of feral pigs in Western Australia.Read moreRead less
Improving Interpreting For Dementia Assessments: The MINDSET Study
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$271,586.00
Summary
The MINDSET Study aims to improve the quality of communication in an interpreter mediated cognitive assessment for dementia. Working with interpreters, clinicians, culturally and linguistically diverse people with dementia, and their carers we will co-design, trial, and implement national online training targeted at interpreters. This training will enable interpreters to be prepared and confident in performing their role impartially, effectively, and accurately.
Authentic digital representation of creative works in education: addressing the challenges of digitisation and assessment. This project will investigate the digitisation and marking of portfolios for the purposes of summative assessment in the visual arts and design senior secondary school courses. The aim is to enhance moderation, compare between media and course contexts, compare methods of marking, and generally increase the authenticity of the assessment.
Environmental risk assessment of acid sulfate soil formation and pollutant generation in Swan Coastal Plain. The urgency and importance of securing water sources for human use in a sustainable manner is dictated by drying climate and rapid population expansion in Australia. Dropping groundwater levels (less recharge, increased abstraction, enhanced drainage) result in formation of acid sulfate soils in oxidised layers that contain acid-bearing minerals. This project will produce an environmental ....Environmental risk assessment of acid sulfate soil formation and pollutant generation in Swan Coastal Plain. The urgency and importance of securing water sources for human use in a sustainable manner is dictated by drying climate and rapid population expansion in Australia. Dropping groundwater levels (less recharge, increased abstraction, enhanced drainage) result in formation of acid sulfate soils in oxidised layers that contain acid-bearing minerals. This project will produce an environmental risk assessment framework as a basis for (i) educated decisions regarding land development and soil disturbance vs conservation as well as (ii) identifying areas suitable for water abstraction from groundwater resources. This will ensure sustainable use of precious groundwater resources in this drying continent of ours.Read moreRead less
Mining, irrigation, and groundwater: Towards a reliable protocol for assessing the impacts of extraction on groundwater fauna and ecology. Groundwater fluctuations associated with mining and increased irrigation demands, potentially threaten many of Australia's unique groundwater invertebrates (stygofauna) with extinction. Stygofauna represent a hidden store of biodiversity and are thought to have a critical, but poorly understood, role in enhancing groundwater quality. Environmentally sustainab ....Mining, irrigation, and groundwater: Towards a reliable protocol for assessing the impacts of extraction on groundwater fauna and ecology. Groundwater fluctuations associated with mining and increased irrigation demands, potentially threaten many of Australia's unique groundwater invertebrates (stygofauna) with extinction. Stygofauna represent a hidden store of biodiversity and are thought to have a critical, but poorly understood, role in enhancing groundwater quality. Environmentally sustainable development of groundwater resources is hampered by a dearth of information on the ecological needs of stygofauna and how they respond to human-induced change. Using field and laboratory experiments, we aim to determine how water table fluctuations threaten stygofauna. From our results we will develop sampling and management protocols to monitor and protect stygofauna communities.Read moreRead less
Exposure To Diesel Exhaust And Lung Cancer Risk In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$581,519.00
Summary
Exposure to diesel exhaust increases the risk of lung cancer. One in five Australians is exposed to diesel exhaust in the workplace. This project will provide an exposure-response relation between diesel exhaust and lung cancer based on Australia-specific data. We will also estimate the number of lung cancer cases due to diesel exhaust exposure in Australia. We will do this by studying all miners in WA in the last 15 years, by linking several databases that are available in WA.
STEM education: Student attitudes, teacher relationships & emotional climate. This project aims to improve science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) outcomes in schools, especially among females. This study will develop and validate a questionnaire to assess classroom emotional climate and investigate its mediating influence on teacher-student interactions and students’ effective outcomes. Focus groups will provide input into the interpretation and triangulation of questionnaire f ....STEM education: Student attitudes, teacher relationships & emotional climate. This project aims to improve science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) outcomes in schools, especially among females. This study will develop and validate a questionnaire to assess classroom emotional climate and investigate its mediating influence on teacher-student interactions and students’ effective outcomes. Focus groups will provide input into the interpretation and triangulation of questionnaire findings and permit causal inferences. Expected outcomes include practical, research-based guidance to teachers for enhancing classroom emotional climate and motivating further study in STEM disciplines.Read moreRead less