Validating And Optimising The Analysis Of Magnetic Resonance Physiology Data
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$91,725.00
Summary
Combined electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is used to detect the anatomical areas in the brain that show electrical activity. Several centres worldwide use this technique to localise the seizure focus in patients with epilepsy. However, there is a lack of validation of the currently applied techniques. Current analysis methods have been developed and validated for other fMRI paradigms, such as motor tasks. It is not known whether the same principles ar ....Combined electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is used to detect the anatomical areas in the brain that show electrical activity. Several centres worldwide use this technique to localise the seizure focus in patients with epilepsy. However, there is a lack of validation of the currently applied techniques. Current analysis methods have been developed and validated for other fMRI paradigms, such as motor tasks. It is not known whether the same principles are applicable and optimal for fMRI-EEG data. The proposed project aims at validating and optimising the analysis strategies for fMRI-EEG data.Read moreRead less
The Identification Of A Novel NIDDM Susceptibility Gene Localised To Human Chromosome 12q
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$438,055.00
Summary
Non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (adult-onset diabetes) is very common in Australia and is a major public health problem. It is a leading cause of kidney failure, blindness, heart attacks, strokes and amputations. Over 3% of the Australian population have adult-onset diabetes, and very few Australians have not been touched in some way by the shadow of diabetes. The precise cause of diabetes is unknown, however we do know that it tends to run in families, indicating that an inherited tende ....Non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (adult-onset diabetes) is very common in Australia and is a major public health problem. It is a leading cause of kidney failure, blindness, heart attacks, strokes and amputations. Over 3% of the Australian population have adult-onset diabetes, and very few Australians have not been touched in some way by the shadow of diabetes. The precise cause of diabetes is unknown, however we do know that it tends to run in families, indicating that an inherited tendency is important. By finding genes which cause diabetes we have the opportunity to unravel much of the mystery of this condition. This research program will find genes which cause diabetes by searching for them in large pedigrees in which many family members are affected by diabetes. Finding the genes which cause diabetes will have a significant impact in at least three major ways. Firstly, it will increase our understanding of the disease process. Secondly, it will be possible to develop tests to identify people at risk of diabetes at a very early stage so that therapy can be introduced and complications averted. Thirdly, it will be possible to develop new and more effective approaches for the prevention and treatment of diabetes.Read moreRead less
A Clinical And Experimental Study Of The Biomechanical Factors Associated With Tooth Destruction
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$241,527.00
Summary
This project investigates the influence of biting force on the development of non-carious and carious defects of teeth. Strain gauges will be cemented to the neck region of extracted teeth and teeth in the mouth, forces applied to the biting surfaces of the teeth, and the stress which results will be measured by the strain gauge. A profiling technique and high-power microscopy will be used to determine the amount of tooth structure lost as a result of applying the forces in the presence of acid. ....This project investigates the influence of biting force on the development of non-carious and carious defects of teeth. Strain gauges will be cemented to the neck region of extracted teeth and teeth in the mouth, forces applied to the biting surfaces of the teeth, and the stress which results will be measured by the strain gauge. A profiling technique and high-power microscopy will be used to determine the amount of tooth structure lost as a result of applying the forces in the presence of acid. In addition, a computer model will be generated, to determine whether it can be used to predict the stresses. In a clinical study, patients with and without non-carious defects will be followed for three years in order to assess the morphological changes and measure the volume loss of tooth structure which occurs.Read moreRead less
The Policy Response To Indigenous Petrol Sniffing - And How To Improve It
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$105,770.00
Summary
Petrol sniffing is a form of volatile substance misuse that occurs in some Aboriginal communities in Australia, as well as some Indigenous communities in the US, Canada and NZ. Although the practice is restricted to small numbers of young people, chronic sniffing leads to serious (and sometimes irreversible) harm to the health of sniffers. It also exacerbates inter-generational problems in families and, through its association with unsafe sex and property offences, creates problems for communiti ....Petrol sniffing is a form of volatile substance misuse that occurs in some Aboriginal communities in Australia, as well as some Indigenous communities in the US, Canada and NZ. Although the practice is restricted to small numbers of young people, chronic sniffing leads to serious (and sometimes irreversible) harm to the health of sniffers. It also exacerbates inter-generational problems in families and, through its association with unsafe sex and property offences, creates problems for communities disproportionate to its prevalence. Throughout 1980s and 1990s, commonwealth and state-territory governments made a number of attempts to formulate and implement a coordinated policy response to the prevention and treatment of petrol sniffing. Although some of these initiatives generated short term funding for innovative programs, they have not given rise to sustained evidence-based policies, or even to an accumulation of knowledge upon which funding decisions might be based. Programs continue to be funded on an ad hoc basis; few are evaluated, and there is little evidence that findings from evaluations inform ongoing policy decision-making. The primary purpose of this project is to determine why this should be so, and to identify practicable changes that could reasonably be expected to lead both to the accumulation of knowledge about effective interventions, and to the formulation of sustainable, evidence-based policies and programs. The project utilises a policy analysis methodology to examine a number of case studies of attempts by various governments to respond to Indigenous petrol sniffing. Data will be collected from examination of documentary sources and interviews with key informants. The focus of the project is on the policy-making process, rather than on petrol sniffing itself. The findings will be used to make recommendations designed to improve the capacity of governments to respond more effectively, and thereby to reduce the harm caused by petrol sniffing.Read moreRead less
A Prospective Single Arm Trial Of Involved-field Radiotherapy For Stage I-II Low Grade Nongastric Marginal Zone Lymphoma
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$363,869.00
Summary
This is an international, multicentre study that will, for the first time, prospectively measure the curative potential of radiotherapy in localised marginal zone lymphoma (MZL). Most MZL arises in mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT), either in the stomach or in a range of other organs such as salivary glands, the tissues around the eye or the thyroid. Many stomach MALT lymphomas are caused by infection with Helicobacter Pylori. This infection can also be associated with non-gastric MALT ly ....This is an international, multicentre study that will, for the first time, prospectively measure the curative potential of radiotherapy in localised marginal zone lymphoma (MZL). Most MZL arises in mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT), either in the stomach or in a range of other organs such as salivary glands, the tissues around the eye or the thyroid. Many stomach MALT lymphomas are caused by infection with Helicobacter Pylori. This infection can also be associated with non-gastric MALT lymphomas, but the association has never been prospectively studied. Chlamydia Psittaci infection can cause MALT lymphoma in the orbit. The management of localised MZL outside the stomach is controversial and there have been no large prospective studies of any of the commonly-used treatments (radiotherapy, chemotherapy, surgery). No prospective studies have looked at the role of infection with Helicobacter pylori or the role of autoantibodies in these diseases. Radiotherapy is the best-characterised therapy in the literature and appears to have a high cure rate with low toxicity. The disease seems exquisitely radiosensitive. Management of localised MZL in Australia can be ad hoc and we have often seen patients who have undergone unnecessary mutilating surgery or ineffective chemotherapy. It has been reported that localised non-gastric MZL (stage I and II) can be cured with radiotherapy in a high percentage of patients (usually >70%) in retrospective studies from large centres such as Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto. Workers from that centre will participate in this study. This study will: Prospectively report efficacy and toxicity for radiotherapy in MZL for the first time Definitively document Helicobacter Pylori status in all cases and Chlamydia status in orbital cases Provide a gold standard against which to compare new therapies This study won the award for the most highly supported study in its year at the TROG annual scientific meeting.Read moreRead less
Adult non-Hodgkin?s lymphoma (NHL) is one of the most rapidly increasing cancers of recent times. The rise has occurred worldwide in men and women of all ages. The reason for most of the rise is unknown. It has recently been proposed that part of the upsurge may be due to increases in sun exposure which have occurred during the same period. There is some indirect evidence to support this hypothesis. For example, the rate of occurrence of NHL is higher closer to the equator in Australia than it i ....Adult non-Hodgkin?s lymphoma (NHL) is one of the most rapidly increasing cancers of recent times. The rise has occurred worldwide in men and women of all ages. The reason for most of the rise is unknown. It has recently been proposed that part of the upsurge may be due to increases in sun exposure which have occurred during the same period. There is some indirect evidence to support this hypothesis. For example, the rate of occurrence of NHL is higher closer to the equator in Australia than it is in England and Wales, and NHL is diagnosed more frequently among British migrants to Victoria than it is in their homeland. The sunlight hypothesis will be tested by comparing the pattern of sun exposure in Tasmanians diagnosed with NHL during the years 1998-2001 and in a sample of Tasmanians without the disease. tasmania has been chosen because levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation are low there in all but the summer months, when it approaches the levels of Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. There is therefore a greater difference in UV exposure between the most exposed and the least exposed in Tasmania, making it an ideal location to test the hypothesis. The link between NHL and a measure of melanin pigmentation in the skin will also be studied. The incidence of NHL is higher in lighter-skinned ethnic groups than it is in darker-skinned people living at the same latitude, but it is not known whether risk varies within Caucasian populations. A new measure of melanin in the skin, developed at the Menzies Centre for Population Health Research in Hobart, will better allow the effects of skin colour to be studied.Read moreRead less
Non-alcoholic steato-hepatitis (NASH) is a common disease of liver inflammation and scarring, which may progress to cirrhosis or liver cancer. While type 2 diabetes causes a higher rate of NASH and more rapid NASH progression the reasons for this are not clear. We have developed a novel animal model of NASH with diabetes added to dietary induced obesity. We show that a growth factor is elevated in the affected livers. We plan to block the growth factor to see if we can prevent NASH worsening.
MECHANISMS OF MOTILITY AND METASTASIS In BREAST CANCER
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$209,505.00
Summary
The broad aim of this proposal is to elucidate novel molecular mechanisms of breast cancer cell motility that are relevant to metastasis or the spread of cancer. The function of two genes will be studied. We propose that (1) reduced on-random motile (ROM) regulates the speed of cancer cell movement, and (2) Neural Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein (N-WASP) regulates the directional component of cell movement. We will relate the function of ROM and N-WASP to rapid, linear walking along collagen fi ....The broad aim of this proposal is to elucidate novel molecular mechanisms of breast cancer cell motility that are relevant to metastasis or the spread of cancer. The function of two genes will be studied. We propose that (1) reduced on-random motile (ROM) regulates the speed of cancer cell movement, and (2) Neural Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein (N-WASP) regulates the directional component of cell movement. We will relate the function of ROM and N-WASP to rapid, linear walking along collagen fibres in live tumours and to breast cancer metastasis to the lung. ROM will be inhibited in breast cancer cells and we expect increases in both the speed of cell movement and metastasis. Therefore, ROM functions as a suppressor of metastasis. Inhibition of N-WASP, however, is expected to compromise both the directionality of cell movement and metastasis. N-WASP is therefore, a promoter of metastasis. At the completion of this work, the regulatory mechanisms of motility and metastasis by ROM and N-WASP will be defined. This will facilitate the development of biologically targeted agents for ROM and N-WASP that can be used to control metastasis. In addition, these agents that target the motility pathway are appropriate for use in combined therapy with agents that target a different pathway such as survival or growth. This will significantly improve disease control rates or the proportion of patients with partial or complete disease regression. This proposal addresses the National Health Priority, cancer, and related National Research Priority, ageing well and ageing productively, where in the longer term, we will be able to create new and much needed therapy for metastasis.Read moreRead less