The Molecular Basis Of Bacterial Infectious Diseases
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$16,230,996.00
Summary
Bacterial infectious diseases are a serious threat to human health, accounting for over 10 million deaths each year. This multidisciplinary collaborative team is investigating the complex interactions between major disease-causing bacteria and their human hosts, in order to determine how they cause disease. These studies will make a major contribution to fundamental knowledge in this field. This information is also essential for the development of cheaper and more effective vaccines, as well as ....Bacterial infectious diseases are a serious threat to human health, accounting for over 10 million deaths each year. This multidisciplinary collaborative team is investigating the complex interactions between major disease-causing bacteria and their human hosts, in order to determine how they cause disease. These studies will make a major contribution to fundamental knowledge in this field. This information is also essential for the development of cheaper and more effective vaccines, as well as novel drugs. These are urgently needed to reduce death and illness due to bacterial infectious diseases in the 21st century. 11Read moreRead less
Functional Genomics Of Malaria Liver Infection And Transmission
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$470,144.00
Summary
Chemotherapy is the front line defense against malaria but resistance is emerging. The WHO has advised that new drugs should target parasite stages that perpetuate the transmission of malaria to break the cycle of infection. We have identified proteins that are essential for the two transmissive stages of the most deadly parasite to infect their hosts. We will determine the precise function of these proteins and the mechanisms they govern. This may guide the development of new interventions.
Antibiotic resistance is a looming public health crisis. New antibiotics with new mechanisms of action are desperately needed. The long-term goal of this research is to develop new drugs that disarm bacteria to overcome the problem of antibiotic resistance.
At least 6 young Australians are diagnosed each day with type 1 diabetes. This Program aims to change the way type 1 diabetes is managed by proactively treating its underlying mechanisms. We will develop safer and more effective immune therapies, develop islet transplantation, look for better markers of disease, and identify ways to preserve insulin-producing cells. The Program aims to propel type 1 diabetes research forward to reach the goals of prevention and cure.
ROLE OF RIP KINASES & IAPs IN MUCOSAL IMMUNE DEFENCE
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$631,168.00
Summary
Pathogenic bacteria are master manipulators of the inflammatory signalling pathways designed to thwart them. Understanding how they do this will allow us to develop drugs that limit their ability to infect. We have shown that pathogenic bacteria inject a protein called EspL into human cells to promote the destruction of a family of human proteins, called RIP Kinases (RIPK), that co-ordinate the inflammatory response and aim now to discover how EspL causes RIPK degradation and thereby promotes in ....Pathogenic bacteria are master manipulators of the inflammatory signalling pathways designed to thwart them. Understanding how they do this will allow us to develop drugs that limit their ability to infect. We have shown that pathogenic bacteria inject a protein called EspL into human cells to promote the destruction of a family of human proteins, called RIP Kinases (RIPK), that co-ordinate the inflammatory response and aim now to discover how EspL causes RIPK degradation and thereby promotes infection.Read moreRead less
The team has been at the forefront of research on type 1 diabetes for over a decade. This form of diabetes is a major chronic disease from childhood, as well as accounting for at least 10% of adult-onset diabetes. It occurs when the body�s immune system attacks and destroys the beta cells in the pancreas that make insulin, the hormone that controls the level of glucose in the blood. The team was one of the first in the world, and is the only one in Australia, to develop screening programs to tes ....The team has been at the forefront of research on type 1 diabetes for over a decade. This form of diabetes is a major chronic disease from childhood, as well as accounting for at least 10% of adult-onset diabetes. It occurs when the body�s immune system attacks and destroys the beta cells in the pancreas that make insulin, the hormone that controls the level of glucose in the blood. The team was one of the first in the world, and is the only one in Australia, to develop screening programs to test and identify people at risk for type 1 diabetes. They showed that the underlying disease could start years before symptoms occurred and discovered genes that determine the rate at which the underlying disease progresses. They have also found evidence that the disease may be triggered by gut viruses called rotaviruses in genetically-susceptible individuals. They showed that type 1 diabetes could be prevented in a mouse model by getting the immune system to make a protective response to insulin, and then went on to apply this in at-risk humans in a controlled trial of intranasal insulin, the first of its kind. They have used genetic techniques not only to pinpoint the mechanisms responsible for killing the beta cells but also to modify the beta cells to make them resistant to attack by these mechanisms. The multidisciplinary approach of the team will be directed to further understanding the genetic and environmental factors underlying type 1 diabetes and the immune mechanisms, particularly involving special white blood cells called T cells, that kill beta cells. A molecular target of the immune attack, the parent of insulin called proinsulin, will be used, paradoxically, as a tool to regulate the immune system and avert the attack. This will be achieved by giving proinsulin via the mucosa of the naso-respiratory tract or via the bone marrow-derived stem cells, initiallyin the mouse model as a test of feasibility for human application. In parallel with these approaches to prevention, specially constructed viruses will be used to transfer several new genes into beta cells to improve their resistance to immune attack, so that they can be transplanted into people with established diabetes without the need for potentially toxic drugs that suppress the immune system overall. The integrated research of the team is helping to provide a sound, rational base for the eventual prevention and cure of type 1 diabetes.Read moreRead less
Infectious diseases plague mankind; with infections responsible for approximately 20% of all deaths worldwide. New strategies are urgently needed and we have positioned our research to address questions around how to forestall bacterial pathogens in the initial phases of invasion of human tissues and provide full understanding of the key molecules on the surfaces of bacterial cells. This fundamental knowledge is crucial to new drugs, vaccines and infection-resistant medical devices.
Characterization Of HOXA-expressing Human Haematopoietic Cells Generated From Embryonic Stem Cells
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$622,464.00
Summary
Blood stem cell transplants are used for treating a range of human blood disorders such as leukaemias. However, for many patients, suitable donors cannot be found. We are searching for ways in which embryonic stem cells can be turned into blood stem cells in the laboratory to provide a new source of these cells that could then be used to treat patients.
A Genome-wide Association Study In 2000 Glaucoma Cases With Matched Controls Using Equimoloar DNA Pools
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$610,267.00
Summary
Glaucoma is a common cause of loss of vision worldwide but we are unable to predict which people are at high risk of blindness. We aim to discover the genetic risk factors for glaucoma. We will use cutting edge genetic technology to assess the whole genome in thousands of patients with glaucoma. We hope to identify important new glaucoma genes, which could lead to the development of diagnostic tests and treatments which will provide the most cost-efficient ways to prevent glaucoma blindness.