Vitamin E-bisphosphonate Conjugates: A New Therapeutic Approach Targeting Pathological Bone Loss Associated With Osteoporosis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$471,984.00
Summary
Approximately 2 million Australians have osteoporosis, a disease which increases the risk of fracture and whose monetary and social costs are large and growing. The objective of this proposal is to exploit the osteotropic properties of novel compounds of vitamin E (VE) derivatives (BPVE) conjugated to bisphosphonates (BP), which will have anti-oxidant, anti-osteolytic and bone anabolic properties, and will be taken up selectively in the skeleton for the treatment of osteoporosis.
Determining The Role Of Vitamin D In The Development Of Asthma And Allergic Diseases In High Risk Families
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$351,127.00
Summary
Allergic diseases like asthma, eczema and hay-fever, prevent our children from getting a healthy start to life, and we don’t know how to prevent these conditions. Vitamin D levels may be critical in the development of childhood asthma and allergies, and they can be easily modified! Using a group of 620 children who we have followed for 20 years, we will identify the role of vitamin D levels in the development of allergic conditions, and factors that modify these relationships.
Developmental Vitamin D Deficiency And Prefrontal Cortical Dysfunction
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$355,570.00
Summary
The cause of schizophrenia is unknown but is believed to be due to abnormal brain development. Dopamine abnormalities are central to schizophrenia. We have developed a model of maternal vitamin D deficiency in rats, based on disease epidemiology that shows individuals that have low levels of vitamin D at birth have an increased risk of developing schizophrenia later in life. We now also show dopamine systems in regions associated with cognition may develop abnormally in our animal model.
Development Of Clinical Algorithms To Diagnose And Predict Prognosis Of Food Allergy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$136,636.00
Summary
Australia has the highest rate of food allergy internationally. Despite ongoing research into the area, there is currently no cure, with patient avoidance the most effective mode for the prevention of food allergy. A food challenge still the gold standard for food allergy diagnosis, and although definitive, is associated with a risk of anaphylaxis. My research aims to identify the biological differences between active disease and being healthy to develop novel diagnostic methods for food allergy
Therapeutically Targeting The Major Genetic Risk Factor Of Alzheimer’s Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$530,069.00
Summary
The second greatest risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease (after age) is genetic variation in a protein called APOE, however it is unknown why APOE increases the risk of disease. We have new clinical and laboratory evidence that APOE incresase risk of Alzheimer’s disease by manipulating iron pathways in the brain. We plan to examine these pathways and apply a new theraputic we have developed that targets these pathways in animal models of Alzheimer’s disease.
Altered Myelin Sphingolipid Homeostasis In Alzheimer's Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$629,532.00
Summary
Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia, and its incidence is rising as the population ages. This project will provide a detailed analysis and explanation for the loss of particular lipid (fat) molecules that are essential for myelin integrity, in the brains of AD patients. Myelin is the insulating layer that surrounds brain cells, facilitating the transmission of electrical signals. This research will improve our understanding of how brain functions are impaired in AD.
The Developmental Vitamin D-deficiency Animal Model Of Schizophrenia:- Critical Window For Intervention And Optimal Dose
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,811.00
Summary
We have established that low levels of vitamin D at birth increase the risk of children developing schizophrenia in later life. Our studies indicate this risk is dose-dependent and may be enhanced if developmental vitamin D (DVD) deficiency is extended into postnatal life implying there may be an early critical vitamin D threshold and a critical window of exposure required to avert schizophrenia. This project will examine this and the effects of supplements using our DVD-deficiency animal model.
The Role Of Vitamin D In Placental Development And Pregnancy Success
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$723,235.00
Summary
Vitamin D deficiency affects about 1 billion people worldwide, including up to 80% of Australians depending on age, skin colour and sun exposure. Vitamin D deficiency has now been associated with a large number of common diseases of aging and with pregnancy complications. This proposal will use human pregnancy serum and placenta, as well as mouse gene knockout models, to determine the hitherto unknown roles of vitamin D in development of the placenta and health of mother and baby.
While is important to prevent vitamin D deficiency, controversies exist about optimal vitamin D intakes and concentrations. Our aim is to evaluate safety concerns with dosages of vitamin D which are routinely promoted for unsupervised public use with over the counter products. We will do this by evaluating long-term health effects for infant vitamin D supplementation, and by using a genetic approach to evaluate the causal effects of high vitamin D and calcium concentrations.