Gene Expression Biomarkers Predict Severe Asthma Inflammatory Phenotype, Activation Mechanisms And Treatment Response
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$465,627.00
Summary
Asthma is now recognised to be made up of several disease variants or phenotypes, which are likely to have different underlying causes and mechanisms. We lack understanding of how to identify phenotypes of asthma and how they work, and this is delaying research that will lead to improvements in treatments and patient care. This is particularly important in people with severe disease. This grant will establish a gene test to identify asthma phenotype, and further understand mechanisms and treatme ....Asthma is now recognised to be made up of several disease variants or phenotypes, which are likely to have different underlying causes and mechanisms. We lack understanding of how to identify phenotypes of asthma and how they work, and this is delaying research that will lead to improvements in treatments and patient care. This is particularly important in people with severe disease. This grant will establish a gene test to identify asthma phenotype, and further understand mechanisms and treatment responses.Read moreRead less
Mechanistic And Functional Analysis Of The Id4 Proto-oncogene In Breast And Ovarian Cancer
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$693,983.00
Summary
Cancer arises through damage to normal regulatory processes in cells. Understanding these damaged processes is essential to implement personalized medicine. This proposal explores the role of the proto-oncogene ID4 in the closely related cancers triple negative breast cancer and serous ovarian cancer. This research may lead to the development of new therapeutic strategies or the refinement of existing strategies for these poor prognosis cancers.
Protracted Bacterial Bronchitis: Long Term Outcomes, Systemic And Airway Predictors Of Recurrence
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$804,405.00
Summary
Our study will determine the long term clinical outcomes of children with protracted bacterial bronchitis (PBB), a common cause of chronic cough in children. We will also conduct novel experiments that were pioneered in Australia to evaluate recurrent PBB.
Four Dimensional Epigenome Remodelling: Implications For Endocrine Resistance In Breast Cancer
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$828,560.00
Summary
Patients with estrogen receptor positive breast cancer receive endocrine therapy, however half fail to respond and relapse. Endocrine resistant breast cancer currently represents the most significant challenge to breast cancer treatment. We suggest that three-dimensional epigenetic remodelling is an underlying mechanism that determines endocrine sensitivity that we will exploit as a novel therapeutic strategy to effectively treat patents with recurrent disease.
Glucocorticoid Resistance In Paediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$394,721.00
Summary
Glucocorticoids are among the most effective drugs used in the treatment of many haematological malignancies, including leukaemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma. However, the development of tumour cell resistance to these drugs remains a significant problem, and clinically relevant mechanisms of glucocorticoid resistance remain poorly understood. This project aims to define mechanisms of resistance to glucocorticoids and develop new drugs to reverse resistance.
Defining Epigenetic Predictors Of Long-term Outcomes Of Preterm Birth
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$409,408.00
Summary
On average, those born premature do worse health-wise than those born at term. However, some do worse than others. Our aim is to identify these people at birth to better help doctors and parents to closely monitor their health. For this, we will be “reading the diary of pregnancy” in the molecules added to chromosomes in blood during pregnancy in young adults with will characterised states of health. We will analyse DNA from blood that we will extract from stored heel prick spots.
A Phase III Trial Comparing Adjuvant Versus Salvage Radiotherapy For High Risk Patients Post Radical Prostatectomy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$819,138.00
Summary
About half of all patients Treated with an operation to remove their prostate cancer have a high chance of the cancer coming back. Giving immediate radiotherapy to all patients will improve cure rates but does not benefit all men and can cause significant side effects. This study explores whether it is safe to wait and only give radiotherapy when there is a rising PSA after surgery indicating active cancer. A total of 470 men from Australasia will enter this study comparing the two approaches.
Do Synaptic-like Mechanisms Control Insulin Secretion?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$593,235.00
Summary
An estimated 415 million people world-wide were diagnosed with diabetes in 2015. One of the causal factors in disease is the dysregulation of insulin secretion. We have developed new techniques to study insulin secretion that has led us to propose a new model for secretory control. This proposal sets out experiments to critically test this model. The outcomes could have wide-reaching impact on understanding and for future treatment and prevention of the diabetes.
The Structure And Function Of The Apical Domain In Insulin Secreting Beta Cells.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$571,741.00
Summary
Loss of control of insulin secretion is causal in diabetes and therefore its understanding is a key goal to shed light on the disease. We have recently identified a new domain in the insulin secreting cells, called the apical domain. This proposal will define the role of this apical domain in controlling insulin secretion. The outcomes could provide new insights into how diabetes develops and new targets for therapies.
Myeloma Plasma Cell Dormancy - 'Eradicating The Sleeping Giant'
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$834,428.00
Summary
Multiple myeloma is a fatal cancer that develops in the skeleton. Current therapies are initially effective, but patients develop resistance and the disease returns. This makes the search for drugs to overcome resistance a priority. Myeloma cells can hide in bone in a dormant state where they are insensitive to chemotherapy. We have identified new drug targets in dormant cells. We are investigating whether these new targets can be used eradicate myeloma cells and cure the disease.