Identification of causal variants for complex traits. The aim of this project is to identify causal variants for complex traits in cattle and humans. Although most important traits in agriculture, medicine and evolution are complex traits, very few of the genetic variants affecting these traits are known and this undermines our understanding of how genetic variants affect a trait and practical uses of this knowledge. Huge datasets of individuals with genome sequence and phenotypes and new statis ....Identification of causal variants for complex traits. The aim of this project is to identify causal variants for complex traits in cattle and humans. Although most important traits in agriculture, medicine and evolution are complex traits, very few of the genetic variants affecting these traits are known and this undermines our understanding of how genetic variants affect a trait and practical uses of this knowledge. Huge datasets of individuals with genome sequence and phenotypes and new statistical methods provide the opportunity to close this gap. The outcome will be identification of many genomic variants causing variation in complex traits. This will benefit scientific understanding of complex traits and the ability to predict traits for individuals from their genome sequence.Read moreRead less
Most eye diseases have a genetic contribution, whether rare disorders affecting children such as retinoblastoma or congenital cataracts through to common disorders of older people such as myopia, age-related macular degeneration or glaucoma. We will continue our successful research to find genes that cause these diseases and use this to improve patient care and prevent blindness. We will work out how families can use this genetic information to participate in trials to develop new treatments.
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354576
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$30,000.00
Summary
Spatially Integrated Social Science Research in Australia. Rapid change across society has resulted in shifts to the scope of social science research including the emergence of space and place as an important concept. Across research fields the result has been that a range of innovative and unique techniques, methodologies and theories that are space based are now being developed. While research is progressing rapidly, it is undertaken in parallel by researchers who can not always collaborate. ....Spatially Integrated Social Science Research in Australia. Rapid change across society has resulted in shifts to the scope of social science research including the emergence of space and place as an important concept. Across research fields the result has been that a range of innovative and unique techniques, methodologies and theories that are space based are now being developed. While research is progressing rapidly, it is undertaken in parallel by researchers who can not always collaborate. Recognising these advances, this initiative focuses on harnessing Australia's capacity and potential in the use of spatially based methods and theories and brings researchers together in collaboration across a number of fields. Read moreRead less
ARC Research Network in Spatially Integrated Social Science. The ARC Research Network in Spatially Integrated Social Science (SISS) builds Australia's capacity and capability for innovative, collaborative, cross-disciplinary effort to investigate the impacts of change on the behaviour and well-being of people and the fortunes of places. SISS theories and research tools permit the integration of diverse and complex databases, the generation of new synthetic datasets, the incorporation of spatial ....ARC Research Network in Spatially Integrated Social Science. The ARC Research Network in Spatially Integrated Social Science (SISS) builds Australia's capacity and capability for innovative, collaborative, cross-disciplinary effort to investigate the impacts of change on the behaviour and well-being of people and the fortunes of places. SISS theories and research tools permit the integration of diverse and complex databases, the generation of new synthetic datasets, the incorporation of spatial concepts into statistical analysis and modelling, powerful visualisation of information, and the building spatial decision support systems, to provide an improved evidence base and better informed decision-making to address the significant challenges facing Australia's people and its places.Read moreRead less
Understanding contested human-plant geographies for urban greening success. Urban greening is vital for sustainable, liveable and climate-adapted cities. However, conflicts over urban greening continue to cause delays and even failure of initiatives. Such disputes, and the diverse socio-cultural relations that drive them, remain poorly understood. In ground-breaking research employing innovative concepts and methods developed by the team, this project aims to generate new knowledge about how peo ....Understanding contested human-plant geographies for urban greening success. Urban greening is vital for sustainable, liveable and climate-adapted cities. However, conflicts over urban greening continue to cause delays and even failure of initiatives. Such disputes, and the diverse socio-cultural relations that drive them, remain poorly understood. In ground-breaking research employing innovative concepts and methods developed by the team, this project aims to generate new knowledge about how people experience urban greening in their everyday lives and how urban greening is contested in three Australian cities. Expected outcomes include new, crucial understandings of key human-plant relationships, facilitated international collaborations, and significant findings for improving urban greening policies and governance.Read moreRead less
Disability and ability: how young people with impairments make the transition to adulthood. Compared to their able-bodied peers, 15-29 year olds with disabilities have an increased risk of negative social, physical and mental health outcomes. By analysing the life histories of 100 young people with physical impairments and tracking their development over four years, this project will explore how to reduce these risks.
Endocrine And Molecular Regulation Of Placental CRH Expression
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$466,980.00
Summary
Approximately 70% of infant death is associated with premature birth. Preterm birth occurs in 6-10% of pregnancies, and there has been no reduction in the rates of premature birth in the last 30 years. This is largely because we remain ignorant of how normal and abnormal birth is controlled. Understanding the physiology of human pregnancy is a critical step in the development of ways to detect and prevent preterm birth. Our group has demonstrated a link between production of a hormone (corticotr ....Approximately 70% of infant death is associated with premature birth. Preterm birth occurs in 6-10% of pregnancies, and there has been no reduction in the rates of premature birth in the last 30 years. This is largely because we remain ignorant of how normal and abnormal birth is controlled. Understanding the physiology of human pregnancy is a critical step in the development of ways to detect and prevent preterm birth. Our group has demonstrated a link between production of a hormone (corticotrophin releasing hormone, CRH) in the placenta and the length of time the baby is carried in the mother. In women who will deliver prematurely a rise in CRH occurs earlier in the pregnancy and more rapidly, while in women who deliver late the rise occurs more slowly. This work has given rise to the concept of a biological clock that determines the length of time the fetus will be carried by the mother before birth, and in which production of CRH in the placenta plays a central role. We have been studying how the CRH gene is controlled in placental cells. We have discovered some regions in the DNA of the CRH gene which have important roles in controlling how much CRH is made by the placenta. The experiments described in this research project will determine the molecular mechanisms that control the production of CRH in the human placenta. This will be done in two ways: (1) by examining the DNA sequences involved in controlling expression of the CRH gene and (2) by identifying the proteins that actually perform the regulating functions that result in either increased or decreased amounts of CRH being produced by the placenta. This important information will help us better understand how normal and abnormal birth is controlled, and from that knowledge new ways to detect and prevent premature birth can be invented.Read moreRead less
ARC Centre for Kangaroo Genome. In this Australian-led Kangaroo Genome Project, we will map and characterize the tammar wallaby genome at the molecular level. Marsupial genomes are uniquely valuable because they provide comparisons that reveal new human genes, regulatory sequences and marsupial-specific genes. These will deliver new products and information useful for medicine, industry, agriculture and conservation. We will construct integrated genetic and physical maps of the genome, clone the ....ARC Centre for Kangaroo Genome. In this Australian-led Kangaroo Genome Project, we will map and characterize the tammar wallaby genome at the molecular level. Marsupial genomes are uniquely valuable because they provide comparisons that reveal new human genes, regulatory sequences and marsupial-specific genes. These will deliver new products and information useful for medicine, industry, agriculture and conservation. We will construct integrated genetic and physical maps of the genome, clone the whole genome as large inserts in BAC vectors, and build a "golden path" with minimal overlap. We will construct libraries of expressed genes from tammar tissues and array them for use in analysing gene expression.Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC170100016
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,123,492.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies. The ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies aims to create and develop the skills and technology to benefit from the transformative impacts that cell/organ-on-a-chip technology will have on the medtech/pharma industries. By combining microfluidics-based/real-time technologies with personalised medicine the Training Centre will provide industry growth opportunities through improved screening of potential therap ....ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies. The ARC Training Centre for Personalised Therapeutics Technologies aims to create and develop the skills and technology to benefit from the transformative impacts that cell/organ-on-a-chip technology will have on the medtech/pharma industries. By combining microfluidics-based/real-time technologies with personalised medicine the Training Centre will provide industry growth opportunities through improved screening of potential therapeutics. The use of an individual patient’s cellular and molecular research findings will ultimately enable personalised diagnostic and therapeutic decisions.Read moreRead less
Ethical and Social Issues in Translating Epigenetics into Antenatal Care. This project aims to investigate how knowledge about the intergenerational transmission of health and disease is shaping antenatal care in Australia. It expects to generate new knowledge about how the science of epigenetics can be used to address social inequality and is anticipated to have impact across the social sciences, bioethics and public health. Expected outcomes of the project include novel theoretical approaches ....Ethical and Social Issues in Translating Epigenetics into Antenatal Care. This project aims to investigate how knowledge about the intergenerational transmission of health and disease is shaping antenatal care in Australia. It expects to generate new knowledge about how the science of epigenetics can be used to address social inequality and is anticipated to have impact across the social sciences, bioethics and public health. Expected outcomes of the project include novel theoretical approaches to the ethics of pregnancy, along with guidance tools to shape the use of epigenetics in antenatal care and social policy to reduce social inequalities. This should provide significant benefits, improving information and support available to vulnerable women as they negotiate maternal health and social services. Read moreRead less