Natural killer cells, an immune cell that has consistently reported to be reduced in function in Long COVID patients and coincidently is consistently reduced in its function in ME patients.
Researchers from Griffith University’s National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases (NCNED) have made a groundbreaking discovery that could bring relief to those struggling with Long COVID.
In a world-first finding, they’ve identified a way to restore the faulty function of ion channels on immune cells using a well-known drug typically used for other medical purposes.
PhD candidate Etianne Sasso
This significant breakthrough, published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology, builds on previous research showing Long COVID patients share similar issues with ion channels as those with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (also known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or ME/CFS).
The team had previously shown success in restoring ion channel function in ME/CFS patients using a drug called Naltrexone, and now they’ve achieved similar results with Long COVID patients.
First author PhD candidate Etianne Sasso said the research team had previously reported restoring the function of these ion channels of immune cells in laboratory trials.
“Ion channels are integral membrane proteins that facilitate the passage of ions (charged particles) across the cell membrane,” Ms Sasso said.
“We found that by restoring the function of these ion channels, important ions such as calcium were again able to move in and out of immune cells, controlling many of the body’s biological processes.”
This breakthrough offers hope for alleviating various ME/CFS symptoms, including brain fog, muscle fatigue, and issues with the cardiovascular and gastrointestinal systems.
Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik
Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik, senior author and Director of NCNED, said the significance of this discovery, achieved through the gold standard test called electrophysiology, will help in better understanding Long COVID and ME/CFS paving the way for potential therapies.
The NCNED is preparing to launch two clinical trials, one for Long COVID and another for ME/CFS, testing the effectiveness of low-dose Naltrexone.
This drug, typically used for opioid addiction, has shown promising results in restoring ion channel function in previous research and in anecdotal reports from patients.
“We will be undertaking two clinical trials testing the efficacy of low dose naltrexone where the first will be in Long COVID patients while the second trial will, for the first time, be in ME/CFS patients,” Professor Marshall-Gradisnik said.
“Should these trials prove successful, it could mean a vastly improved quality of life for countless individuals struggling with Long COVID and ME/CFS.”
Griffith University has been awarded $2.2 million across the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator Grants.
Congratulations to Associate Professor Bronwyn Griffin from the School of Nursing and Midwifery, and Dr Yun Shi from the Institute for Glycomics.
Associate Professor Griffin will receive a $1.6 million Investigator Grant which will be used for her project into a new implementable early burn care intervention strategy for children across Australia.
Children with burns require special, often complex treatments within 24 hours of injury to effectively reduce the impact of injury and minimise chronic physical and emotional scars.
Unfortunately, treatments are often not implemented, such as first aid, are too complex (emerging technologies), or patients are too far away (e.g. in regional and remote areas of Australia).
Associate Professor Griffin’s research aims to test simple new technologies to make sure every child, no matter where they live, gets the best care.
Dr Shi will receive a $674,000 Investigator Grant for his project which looks at molecular characterisation of NMNAT2 activity and regulation for neuroprotection.
Dr Yun Shi
Dr Shi’s project aims to study a brain biomolecule that protects nerve cells in the context of neurodegenerative disorders.
With an interdisciplinary approach developed in his biochemistry program, Dr Shi will determine the molecular and structural basis underlying the activity and regulation of this biomolecule and design chemicals to preserve its neuroprotective activities.
This project will lay a fundamental framework to target this biomolecule to treat neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Location of Tongtianyan cave (Liujiang) in Guangxi Province, southern China, together with the location of other key fossils of Homo sapiens in China. Frontal view of the Liujiang cranial and postcranial elements.
The emergence of Homo sapiens in Eastern Asia has long been a subject of intense research interest, with the scarcity of well-preserved and dated human fossils posing significant challenges.
Professor Michael Petraglia
Tongtianyan cave, located in the Liujiang District of Liuzhou City, Southern China, has been a focal point of this research, housing one of the most significant fossil finds of Homo sapiens. However, the age of the fossils found within has been a matter of debate – until now.
In a new international study in Nature Communications, with contributions by Griffith University, researchers have provided new age estimates and revised provenance information for the Liujiang human fossils, shedding light on the presence of Homo sapiens in the region.
Using advanced dating techniques including U-series dating on human fossils, and radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dating on fossil-bearing sediments, the study revealed new ages ranging from approximately 33,000 to 23,000 years ago. Previously, studies had reported ages of up to 227,000 years of age for the skeleton.
“These revised age estimates align with dates from other human fossils in northern China, suggesting a geographically widespread presence of H. sapiens across Eastern Asia after 40,000 years ago,” said Professor Michael Petraglia, study co-author and Director of Griffith’s Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution.
Tongtianyan cave stratigraphy with chronological age estimates.
Dr Junyi Ge, of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and lead author of the study, said: “This finding holds significant implications for understanding human dispersals and adaptations in the region. It challenges previous interpretations and provides insights into the occupation history of China.”
The Liujiang skeletal remains, discovered in 1958, have long been considered among the most significant human fossils from Eastern Asia.
With their excellent preservation, the cranial, dental, and postcranial remains have been the subjects of extensive biological and morphological comparisons across Eurasia.
Dr Qingfeng Shao, of the Nanjing Normal University added: “The findings of this study overturn earlier age estimates and palaeoanthropological interpretations, emphasising the need for robust dating methods and proper provenance documentation in the study of human evolution.”
The study’s comprehensive dating analyses highlights the importance of accurate age estimates in advancing our understanding of modern human origins and dispersals.
A competitive male herd off La Paz, Mexico. Credit: Henley Spiers
Australia’s East Coast will soon see the arrival of thousands of humpback whales on their northward migration to warmer waters.
Dr Olaf Meynecke used suction tags to track humpback whales alongside fellow researchers. Credit: Henley Spiers
But an Australian-based researcher who was privy to an exclusive view of humpback whales off the Baja California Sur waters of La Paz, Mexico, said there are global signs of the upcoming migration season’s highs and lows.
Dr Olaf Meynecke, Lead Researcher and Manager of the Whales and Climate Research Program at Griffith University, was part of a research expedition earlier this year in which he was tracking humpback whales using suction tags collecting data on swim speed, dive profiles, direction, sound and vision in the deep waters off the Gulf of Mexico that plunge down to 3000m depths.
Throughout the expedition, Dr Meynecke witnessed behaviours and encounters he had not yet seen off Australia’s East Coast in such intensity.
“We were amongst highly competitive males aiming for the best position next to a female. About 20 humpback whales were involved in this intensive heat run. The sound of the exhausted whales breathing out and their fast swim speeds felt like trains rushing by our boat,” Dr Meynecke said.
A graceful breach off La Paz, Mexico. Credit: Henley Spiers
“These whales were tagged with suction cup tags to study their complex underwater behaviour. Much to our surprise, we also saw short, deep dives, down to almost 200m depth, followed by fast swim speeds and underwater battles among these individuals.”
During the whale migration in Australia, humpback whales generally don’t have the option to make deep dives as the continental shelf extends widely from the coast.
Studying heat runs and competitive groups allows Dr Meynecke to continue to learn more about the complex dynamics in these groups. There are various positions male humpbacks whales in a group adopt such as primary escort, challengers and observers. Males work together against each other and vary their techniques to deter competitors.
But not all encounters were as joyful and dynamic. During the 10-day expedition, Dr Meynecke and the team encountered a young and sick humpback and another entangled in fishing gear, underlining the “clear signs of increasing impacts on this species”.
Dr Meynecke needs to be quick to deploy the suction tags. Credit: Henley Spiers
“The scarring on whales like this from previous entanglements tells a story about the scale of the issue globally, with many whales having to battle for their survival when trapped in nets and lines.”
“There are a lot of human-driven impacts on global whale populations. One recent study from the Northern Hemisphere confirmed the deadly toll climate change can take; food shortages have led to a decline in Hawaiian humpback whale populations – how much pressure can these populations withstand before we start seeing declines and related cascade impacts on ecosystems?”
Meanwhile, the first humpback whales on the 2024 migration season have been sighted on the east coast of Australia – but, with the recent experience fresh in his mind, what does Dr Meynecke expect to see in the coming months?
“We will see an earlier than average start of the main migration from mid-May onwards and also see again a number of entangled whales in fishing gear move up the coast. Sadly, they are just the tip of the iceberg with many of them remaining unseen and unable to track.”
Following this migration allowed Dr Meynecke to see rarely studied competitive behaviours. Credit: Henley Spiers
For Dr Meynecke, there is much still to study and document regarding humpback whale behaviour and the issues impacting him. Research that will also benefit other whale species by developing new methods.
However, what holds Dr Meynecke and the Whales and Climate Research Program team back from performing consistent and comprehensive studies around the world is significant investment into this important research area.
“For our Whales and Climate Research Program, my aim is to advance our current outcomes to a global initiative that safeguards whales into the future encompassing the Northern Hemisphere.
“We are now a UN Ocean Decade endorsed research group, with our Phase 2 research program seeing an expansion to South America until our funding ceases.
Dr Meynecke gets a suction tag prepared.
“The generous philanthropic funding WCP has received to date has fuelled and empowered our research teams in South Africa and South America to undertake vital studies on humpback whales and climate impacts.
“But for this work and our findings to truly make an impact on whale populations globally, we need to expand to the Northern Hemisphere.
“My vision and dream is to bring this very successful work we have been doing for whales to the global level, creating a whale data portal/tool that is accessible to the public, but most importantly policy makers.
“We need to be ambitious about our work as we are facing never experienced challenges with climate change in regard to whale protection.”
A team of conservation and policy researchers have called for a logging loophole within the proposed Great Koala National Park to be urgently remedied to stem the tide of harmful outcomes impacting the South East Australian koala population.
Dr Tim Cadman is a Research Fellow with the Law Futures Centre and the Institute for Ethics, Governance and Law at Griffith.
Dr Cadman said the plans needed to also consider the integrity of the broader reserve habitat system and be accorded the requisite status of World Heritage.
The Great Koala National Park is set to cover 300,000 hectares of state forest and existing national parks from Grafton to Kempsey in Northern New South Wales.
The Park, to act as a safe haven for east coast koala populations impacted by bushfires, development and logging, was proposed more than a decade ago, with the current New South Wales Labor Government putting the plans into action.
However, a loophole that allowed logging to continue in areas zoned plantation was contradictory to the overall purpose of the park proposal, according to Dr Cadman.
“Creating a park which includes forestry presents a permanent threat to koalas. They live in the best habitat, and could end up being caught in a logging zone,” he said.
“Pressure has mounted on successive governments to take decisive action to protect these iconic creatures from further decline, and yet the current proposal could actually make the situation worse.
“We need an integrated approach that protects koalas at the landscape level. This is essential in the face of expanding human populations and escalating environmental threats posed by climate change.”
Dr Cadman added that the existing natural and planted forests represented a diverse mix of eucalypt and rainforest species, along with a mosaic of forest age-classes and interconnected habitat, which was crucial for the park’s integrity and the koalas’ viability.
“The integrity of the proposed park must be considered, and the best way to ensure that is World Heritage. We can’t have a park full of holes,” he said.
“An assessment that focuses on the habitat the koala lives in will be critical to the integrity and viability of the Great Koala National Park. We have to think like a koala. If they don’t discriminate between a natural forest or a plantation, then neither should we.
“The time to act is now. Protecting koalas requires a concerted effort from government to support First Nation communities and local residents through job creation and sustainable infrastructure development. Culture is as important as nature if we want the park to be a success.
“By establishing a conservation-effective national park and prioritising habitat protection at the same time, we can secure a future where koalas thrive in their natural environment.”
Dr Alex Cristino from Griffith Institute for Drug Discovery.
A multidisciplinary research team comprising the Griffith Institute for Drug Discovery (GRIDD, Griffith University), Mater Research (based at the Translational Research Institute) and The University of Queensland’s (UQ) Frazer Institute, have made a breakthrough discovery in the body’s immune response to the blood cancer Hodgkin Lymphoma.
Led by GRIDD’s Dr Alex Cristino and Mater Research’s Professor Maher Gandhi, the study shows the detection of a novel molecular mechanism contributing to Natural Killer (NK) cell dysfunction in Hodgkin Lymphoma patients.
NK cells are innate immune response cells that play a critical role in identifying and eliminating cancerous or abnormal cells.
Dr Cristino said: “akin to soldiers at the body’s front line of defence, NK cells activation is disrupted by Hodgkin Lymphoma, confusing the essential IRE1α pathway with conflicting signals of ‘attack’ and ‘hold back’ messages simultaneously.”
“Our study identifies a gene network connecting a central cellular stress sensor (IRE1α/XBP1 pathway) to directly affect the regulation of small RNAs involved in the control of the immune checkpoint inhibitor called Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1), a key molecule that revolutionised immunotherapy for cancer treatment.”
Professor Maher Gandhi added that cancer cells can evade the immune system by expressing another ligand to the immune checkpoint PD-1, named PD-L1 (or programmed death-ligand 1), which the cancer cells essentially use as a shield.
“PD-L1 on cancer cells interacts with PD-1 on immune cells, essentially tricking them into ignoring the cancerous threat with current immunotherapies relying on antibodies to block this interaction,” he said.
The “kiss of death”, when NK cells are disrupted by the blood cancer cell.
Dr Cristino explained whilst current immunotherapies may be effective in many cases, they can be overly aggressive on the body, prompting severe side effects, and do not address how immune cells produce PD-1 in the first place.
The research team, which included UQ PhD students Karolina Bednarska and Gayathri Thillaiyampalam, identified a specific gene network involving key molecules such as XBP1 and microRNA-34a that regulates PD-1 production, providing a new target for potential novel immunotherapies.
Dr Cristino said: “by gaining insight into the mechanism of production of PD-1, we can investigate novel approaches to interfere with the inhibitory interactions between cancer and immune cells, potentially enhancing the innate immune response to cancers and developing targeted treatments that minimise side effects.”
Professor Gandhi suggested the study is relevant for effective development in cancer immunotherapy, harnessing NK cells and immune checkpoint inhibitors.
“Our research not only sheds light on the underlying causes of NK cell dysfunction in Hodgkin Lymphoma but also opens the door to exploring innovative immunotherapeutic strategies targeting blood cancers,” he said.
The study has been published in Acta Haematologica, an internationally recognised clinically oriented journal documenting hematology research.
Lakes are considered the lifeblood of numerous ecosystems worldwide and are facing a health crisis that could potentially impact the millions of people dependent on their services.
Now a study co-authored by Griffith University has underscored the urgent need for coordinated action to address the issues jeopardising lake ecosystems globally.
“Lakes, in their varied sizes, shapes, and hues, are vital storytellers of geological evolution and environmental significance,” Professor Hamilton said.
“However, the health of these bodies of water is under siege from a plethora of ailments, including thermal, circulatory, respiratory, nutritional, and metabolic challenges, as well as infections and pollution.
“The ramifications of neglecting lake health are profound. Without timely intervention and preventative measures, these issues could escalate into chronic conditions, imperilling essential ecosystem services that millions of people rely upon.”
Australia has around 11,400 lakes with the majority being salty due to high rates of evaporation, alongside other areas such as parts of Africa and Central Asia, which evaporate much more water than they receive.
Of concern among the findings was the widespread phenomenon of lake drying, exacerbated by human stressors and climate change. This is also impacting the availability of water stored in artificial reservoirs and dams.
About 115,000 lakes globally are evaporating at an alarming rate, posing risks to the more than 153 million people who reside nearby.
To avert an ecological catastrophe, the study advocated for a comprehensive approach encompassing improved sewage treatment, climate mitigation, prevention of non-native species introductions and curbing chemical pollution.
Professor Hamilton stressed the necessity of applying strategies akin to human healthcare to lake management.
“Early identification, regular screening, and remediation efforts are crucial to preserving the health of our lakes,” he said.
“Lakes need to be recognised as living systems that can suffer from a large variety of health issues which are similar in many ways to human health issues.
“Despite increasing preventative and treatment efforts in many countries, evidence for substantial improvement in the overall global lake health status remains elusive. Thus, there is a high risk that more and more lake health issues will become chronic and difficult to treat.”
