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The number of overweight or obese people in Australia has increased dramatically in recent years, increasing disease risk. The brain responds to palatable food in ways similar to the response to drugs of addiction, and this may explain why people find it hard to resist palatable food.

This project seeks to provide insights into new mechanisms that could be used to enhance or inhibit neuronal signalling. The family of pentameric neurotransmitter receptors that are key components in the process of neuronal signalling and are the target of this study.

Australian federalism needs urgent repair. Over 107 years it has become a costly and inefficient means of governance. This project will produce a framework against which proposals for the reform of our federal system can be judged.

This is a four-year Australian Research Council Discovery Grant which examines the history of medico-legal border control in the Asia-Pacific region.

A number of recent surveys have highlighted the prevalence of mental health and wellbeing issues among Australian lawyers. This project will be the first systematic empirical research on the culture and practice of Australian lawyers.

 

Chronic pain is a common debilitating symptom affecting between 50% and 80% of MS patients. However, despite its widespread occurrence, chronic pain is a rarely studied symptom of this disease.

Williams-Beuren Syndrome (WBS) is a neurdevelopmental genetic disorder characterized by specific cognitive and behavioural defects resulting in a unique debilitating personality profile.

The human face is a highly complex structure and the finished physiognomy and skin surface is of deep social and psychological significance because so much of human social behaviour is focused on facial recognition, the language of facial expression and the subjective perception of facial beauty.

Improvements in childhood cancer treatments have lead to a survival rate of more than 80%, but 2/3 of the survivors further develop at least one severe complication, notably metabolic disorders. Radiation therapy seems to be the most prominent risk factor.

This project is focused on applications like controlled delivery of softeners, nutrients, and drugs from droplets like those in a shampoo, food, or drug formulation.

Universal health coverage (UHC), which implies all people have access to needed services without the risk of financial ruin, has become a major goal for health reform in many countries.

BreastScreen Aotearoa (BSA) is the national breast screening programmen in New Zealand which aims to reduce cancer mortality through early diagnosis.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a major cause of illness and premature adult mortality (diseas burden) in many Pacific Island Countries (PICs).

We are an interdisciplinary group interested in understanding how viruses evolve under the host immune response. We take advantage of next generation sequencing technologies to study viral populations including low frequency variants.

Project 1: Mathematical modelling of T cell trafficking in the liver This project aims to design a mathematical model to study the trafficking of CD8 T cells in the full body of mice in the absence or presence of antigen.

This NHMRC CRE in Population Health Research commenced in 2012 and is focused on immunisation for vulnerable or marginalised population subgroups at increased disease risk.

Mitochondria are the major site for fuel oxidation in cells and strategies that stimulate mitochondria to burn more calories may prove beneficial for preventing obesity and insulin resistance.

There is a clear relationship between excess intake of dietary fat (particularly animal-based fats such as lard) and the development of obesity and insulin resistance.

Cancer cells reprogram their metabolism to use fuel (fat, protein and glucose) in a different way to normal cells. This adaptation is thought to allow cancer cells to make the building blocks (proteins, DNA, lipids) they need to grow and divide rapidly.

Excess fat in the diet typically leads to weight gain and inappropriate deposition of lipid in organs such as liver and skeletal muscle.

Algal and cyanobacteria blooms are of particular concern in drinking water resources due to their adverse impact on treatment processes, as well as their potential to release harmful toxins and taste and odour compounds into water supplies.

Potable source water frequently has a high organic matter (OM) content originating from decaying plants, soil and peat, bacterial activity, algal blooms and upstream treated effluent discharges.

Brain function is a delicate balance of neuronal excitation and inhibition. The schematic diagram above illustrates inhbitory neuronal responses mediated via the neurotransmitter GABA, and how these are affected by the neuronal Cl- transporters KCC2 and NKCC1.