The Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) invites you to participate in a short survey about your
interaction with the ARDC and use of our national research infrastructure and services. The survey will take
approximately 5 minutes and is anonymous. It’s open to anyone who uses our digital research infrastructure
services including Reasearch Link Australia.
We will use the information you provide to improve the national research infrastructure and services we
deliver and to report on user satisfaction to the Australian Government’s National Collaborative Research
Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) program.
Please take a few minutes to provide your input. The survey closes COB Friday 29 May 2026.
Complete the 5 min survey now by clicking on the link below.
Development Of Improved Preventative Therapeutic Strategies For The Control Of Infectious Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$4,000,000.00
Summary
A major objective of this Australia Fellowship application is to provide a mechanism whereby, for the first time in my career, I can devote myself full-time to my program of research. This program addresses an issue of global significance, namely the control of bacterial infectious diseases. These continue to cause massive global morbidity and mortality and constitute a profound threat to human health, in spite of the availability of antimicrobial drugs for over 60 years. WHO estimates that bact ....A major objective of this Australia Fellowship application is to provide a mechanism whereby, for the first time in my career, I can devote myself full-time to my program of research. This program addresses an issue of global significance, namely the control of bacterial infectious diseases. These continue to cause massive global morbidity and mortality and constitute a profound threat to human health, in spite of the availability of antimicrobial drugs for over 60 years. WHO estimates that bacterial infections are responsible for >10 million deaths p.a., and the economic impact is inestimable. For most major pathogens, vaccines are either unavailable or have serious shortcomings. Resistance to commonly used antimicrobials is increasing at an alarming rate, and modern travel has assisted the rapid global dissemination of highly resistant and virulent clones. Morbidity and mortality are also predicted to increase as a consequence of human-induced environmental changes and the growing proportion of the population with increased susceptibility to infection. Effective management of bacterial infectious diseases in the 21st century will require a two-pronged approach involving the development of cheaper and more effective vaccines, as well as novel anti-infectives refractory to known resistance mechanisms. However, formulation of optimal therapeutic and preventative strategies demands a thorough understanding of the biology of disease, particularly the complex interactions between bacterial pathogens and their human hosts. I have also played a leadership role in establishing the Pneumococcal Vaccine Consortium, which has just submitted a co-ordinated suite of multicentre proposals to PATH Vaccine Solutions to fund final preclinical testing, GMP scale-up and Phase I-II-III trials of protein-based pneumococcal vaccines that we have developed. The PATH accelerated pneumococcal vaccine development program is of enormous potential significance, because there is now a very real probability of pneumococcal protein vaccines being fast-tracked into human trials. Our aim is to create a direct pipeline from antigen discovery in the collaborators’ laboratories into the clinic. If successful, these vaccines could save millions of lives. This will be of enormous satisfaction to me personally, as it was I who originally proposed and demonstrated “proof of principle” for the vaccine potential of pneumococcal proteins, and I have been advocating assessment of their protective efficacy in humans for over 20 years. Thus, receipt of an Australia Fellowship will undoubtedly further support the internationalisation of Australian medical research.Read moreRead less
The Australia Fellowship will enable Prof Good to pursue the development of vaccines for two major pathogens – malaria and group A streptococcus (GAS). Both research programs are entering exciting phases as we move into Phase I clinical trials. At the same time, the Fellowship will enable us to explore the development of the next generation vaccine candidates for these diseases. Malaria is responsible for approximately 1 million deaths per year, mainly of children under 5 years of age, while dis ....The Australia Fellowship will enable Prof Good to pursue the development of vaccines for two major pathogens – malaria and group A streptococcus (GAS). Both research programs are entering exciting phases as we move into Phase I clinical trials. At the same time, the Fellowship will enable us to explore the development of the next generation vaccine candidates for these diseases. Malaria is responsible for approximately 1 million deaths per year, mainly of children under 5 years of age, while diseases caused by group A streptococcus (such as rheumatic heart disease [RHD] and RHD-related stroke) are responsible for at least 500,000 deaths per year. Australia’s Indigenous population suffer the highest documented rate of RHD in the world. We have strong international support and collaboration for these vaccine research programs and have approached the US FDA for a license to conduct the trial for a GAS vaccine and will soon approach them for a licence to undertake the malaria vaccine trial.Read moreRead less
I am a physician-scientist whose research involves the role of monocyte-macrophages in HIV pathogenesis and low cost methods for monitoring HIV infection in resource-constrained countries
Discovery And Exploitation Of Novel Biophysical Methods For Charcterising Molecular Pathways Invld In Disease Progression
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$4,000,000.00
Summary
Dr Cooper has conducted groundbreaking research into the progression and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens. Utilising a strongly multidisciplinary approach, he will use his Fellowship to expand upon this research in the area of antibiotic resistance and will supplement this focus with research into biofilms formed by bacterial pathogens on medical implants, cannulas and catheters. Dr Cooper’s Australia Fellowship will also assist his research into the changes that occur in cells ....Dr Cooper has conducted groundbreaking research into the progression and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens. Utilising a strongly multidisciplinary approach, he will use his Fellowship to expand upon this research in the area of antibiotic resistance and will supplement this focus with research into biofilms formed by bacterial pathogens on medical implants, cannulas and catheters. Dr Cooper’s Australia Fellowship will also assist his research into the changes that occur in cells during the initiation and evolution of cancer.Read moreRead less
I am a neuroscientist working on determining the different pathogenic mechanisms occurring in neurodegenerative movement disorders and dementias, and translating these findings for clinical neurologists and neuropathologists.
I am a geneticist using multidisciplinary genetic and genomic approaches to study transcriptional mechanisms and molecular pathogenesis in autoimmunity and haematological malignancies.