The genetic regulation of organogenesis: endoderm development in the Drosophila embryo. Embryonic development is an important research field in biology, not only for its extraordinary complexity but also because of the insights it provides into molecular processes that underpin a variety of diseases. This project aims to discover genes and molecules that regulate the normal development of one of the most important organs, the gut.
Development of novel therapies for the treatment of cancer. Both aging and obesity are significant risk factors for cancer and are becoming a burden on the health care budget. The proposed novel cancer therapy will improve current cancer treatments by enhancing their efficacy, thereby reducing the required dose and minimizing side effects. Such an outcome would not only benefit the well being of the individual but would achieve significant health care cost savings.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0668241
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$824,610.00
Summary
A Facility for High-Throughput, Functional Gene Discovery Using Arrayed Retroviral Expression Cloning. The proposed facility will represent world-leading technology in functional genomics and provide Australian scientists with unique opportunities to identify genes involved in a broad range of biological processes. This will contribute to fundamental knowledge in mammalian biology, and equally importantly, is likely to identify genes involved in important health problems such as cancer, inflamma ....A Facility for High-Throughput, Functional Gene Discovery Using Arrayed Retroviral Expression Cloning. The proposed facility will represent world-leading technology in functional genomics and provide Australian scientists with unique opportunities to identify genes involved in a broad range of biological processes. This will contribute to fundamental knowledge in mammalian biology, and equally importantly, is likely to identify genes involved in important health problems such as cancer, inflammatory disease, brain damage and diabetes. Such genes may in turn constitute targets against which new therapies may be developed. This endeavour will contribute to national research priorities in both the health and scientific/technological development arenas.Read moreRead less
Cell death by self-eating: Autophagy-dependent tissue removal. This project aims to study the mechanisms and regulation of autophagy-dependent cell death. Cell death maintains cell and tissue homeostasis. Although most cell death is mediated by apoptosis, other modes of cell deletion have emerged recently. One form of cell death involves autophagy, the catabolic process of cellular self-digestion through lysosomal enzymes. As autophagy is a default mechanism of cell survival under stress, the id ....Cell death by self-eating: Autophagy-dependent tissue removal. This project aims to study the mechanisms and regulation of autophagy-dependent cell death. Cell death maintains cell and tissue homeostasis. Although most cell death is mediated by apoptosis, other modes of cell deletion have emerged recently. One form of cell death involves autophagy, the catabolic process of cellular self-digestion through lysosomal enzymes. As autophagy is a default mechanism of cell survival under stress, the idea of autophagy-dependent cell death has been controversial. This proposal aims to resolve this question and provide highly topical knowledge of broad biological significance.Read moreRead less
Identification of Biological pathways regulated by circular RNAs. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a, recently discovered molecule. circRNAs are highly abundant and expressed in a tissue and disease specific manner. Yet, currently the understanding of how circRNAs regulate biological processes is very poor. This project aims to use pooled shRNA libraries to screen a large panel of cell lines and systematically identify cellular activities that are regulated by circRNAs. The expected outcome of this ....Identification of Biological pathways regulated by circular RNAs. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a, recently discovered molecule. circRNAs are highly abundant and expressed in a tissue and disease specific manner. Yet, currently the understanding of how circRNAs regulate biological processes is very poor. This project aims to use pooled shRNA libraries to screen a large panel of cell lines and systematically identify cellular activities that are regulated by circRNAs. The expected outcome of this study will be a catalogue of functionally active circRNAs. Over the past decades, the wealth of knowledge on the function of linear mRNAs has had a significant impact on medicine and agriculture. Similarly understanding how circRNAs regulate cellular activities may have an analogous impact on humans.Read moreRead less
Genetic control of spermatogenesis: defining the role of SOX3 in spermatogonial progenitor cells. The transcription factor (TF) SOX3 is a key regulator of neural stem/progenitor cells. Recently, this project has also shown that SOX3 is active in sperm progenitors (spermatogonia) and is required for spermatogenesis. Using our Sox3 KO mouse model and extensive expertise in spermatogonial cell culture, ChIP-seq technology and bioinformatics, this project will investigate crucial aspects of SOX3 fun ....Genetic control of spermatogenesis: defining the role of SOX3 in spermatogonial progenitor cells. The transcription factor (TF) SOX3 is a key regulator of neural stem/progenitor cells. Recently, this project has also shown that SOX3 is active in sperm progenitors (spermatogonia) and is required for spermatogenesis. Using our Sox3 KO mouse model and extensive expertise in spermatogonial cell culture, ChIP-seq technology and bioinformatics, this project will investigate crucial aspects of SOX3 function in the testes including stem versus progenitor cell activity and genome-wide target gene regulation. These studies will uncover the molecular and cellular mechanism by which SOX3 controls spermatogenesis and provide unique insight into how a single TF controls context-dependent differentiation in sperm versus brain progenitor cells.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE180100202
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$255,120.00
Summary
Three-dimensional cryo correlative light and electron microscopy facility. This project aims to establish a three-dimensional (3D) cryo-correlative light and electron microscopy facility. The facility will integrate light microscopy with high resolution cryo-electron tomography and 3D slice-and-view focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy. The open access facility should create new capabilities for Australian researchers to tag biological events and structures with fluorescence markers and ....Three-dimensional cryo correlative light and electron microscopy facility. This project aims to establish a three-dimensional (3D) cryo-correlative light and electron microscopy facility. The facility will integrate light microscopy with high resolution cryo-electron tomography and 3D slice-and-view focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy. The open access facility should create new capabilities for Australian researchers to tag biological events and structures with fluorescence markers and image them using the currently highest resolution 3D imaging techniques for biological matter. The facility expects to reveal fundamental insights into cell and structural biology, and help drive innovation in agriculture, pharmaceutics, and biomaterials.Read moreRead less
Hippo signalling control of transcription in lymphatic vascular development. Lymphatic vasculature forms complex, branched networks present in almost all vertebrate tissues and organs. Signalling in lymphatic endothelial cells determines the fate, structure and function of these complex and essential networks. This project follows our recent discovery of a major role for the Hippo signalling pathway in lymphatic vascular development. It aims to investigate how Hippo signalling regulates essenti ....Hippo signalling control of transcription in lymphatic vascular development. Lymphatic vasculature forms complex, branched networks present in almost all vertebrate tissues and organs. Signalling in lymphatic endothelial cells determines the fate, structure and function of these complex and essential networks. This project follows our recent discovery of a major role for the Hippo signalling pathway in lymphatic vascular development. It aims to investigate how Hippo signalling regulates essential target genes that drive lymphatic development. The project expects to generate fundamental knowledge in vascular signalling, transcription and the control of vascular network growth and expansion. Outcomes may provide significant benefits in new approaches in stem cell biology, tissue engineering and regenerative biology. Read moreRead less
Post-translational control of cell fate decision. Deciphering the multi-layered regulation of cell fate decisions is challenging. While progress has been made in understanding the role of transcriptional regulation, the influence of post-translational modification is poorly understood. Neural precursor cell expressed developmentally down-regulated protein 4 (NEDD4)-mediated ubiquitination is absolute necessary for sex determination, a unique model of cell fate decision where gonadal cell precurs ....Post-translational control of cell fate decision. Deciphering the multi-layered regulation of cell fate decisions is challenging. While progress has been made in understanding the role of transcriptional regulation, the influence of post-translational modification is poorly understood. Neural precursor cell expressed developmentally down-regulated protein 4 (NEDD4)-mediated ubiquitination is absolute necessary for sex determination, a unique model of cell fate decision where gonadal cell precursors differentiate either along the male or the female pathway. Thus, this project aims to analyse in detail at which stage NEDD4 action is required and what are the crucial target proteins. This project could provide a deeper understanding of how post-translational modifications influence cell fate decisions during embryogenesis.Read moreRead less
Using genetics to recover Australia's lost history. This project aims to use historic hair samples collected by anthropological expeditions in the early 20th Century to generate the first genetic map of Aboriginal Australia – in order to reconstruct Australia’s pre-European genetic and cultural past. The map and the detailed contextual and genealogical information from museum archives will assist Aboriginal communities and individuals to reconstruct their personal and family history and trace an ....Using genetics to recover Australia's lost history. This project aims to use historic hair samples collected by anthropological expeditions in the early 20th Century to generate the first genetic map of Aboriginal Australia – in order to reconstruct Australia’s pre-European genetic and cultural past. The map and the detailed contextual and genealogical information from museum archives will assist Aboriginal communities and individuals to reconstruct their personal and family history and trace ancestry and augment oral or written records. The combination of cutting-edge science, detailed archival research, and a comprehensive family outreach and reporting program will be a step change in assisting Australia’s reconciliation process, the Stolen Generation, and repatriation of Indigenous remains.Read moreRead less