Macrophage Inhibitory Cytokine-1 (MIC-1/GDF15), CCAAT/enhancer Binding Protein Delta (CEBPD) And Neuroinflammtion
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$459,270.00
Summary
I will develop new therapies for multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury. I will also evaluate diagnostic and therapeutic uses for macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1 (MIC-1/GDF15) that was discovered in Australia. I will confirm its use in screening for bowel cancer. Also, I will look at using it in the indigenous and wider Australian community to improve health and close the gap in life expectancy. Finally, I will conduct trials of MIC-1/GDF15 therapy of obesity and inflammation.
Practice- And Policy-relevant Research In Skin Cancer Epidemiology, Prevention And Screening
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$483,402.00
Summary
This Fellowship will enable me to lead an internationally-competitive program of research in skin cancer epidemiology, prevention & screening that will lead to improved patient and population health through impacts on clinical practice and health policy. My aim is to lead paradigm-shifting contributions in: ? Genetic epidemiology of melanoma, ? Precision skin cancer prevention & screening, and ? Public health genomics for cancer prevention.
Preventing Suicide In Young People: A Public Health Approach
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$425,048.00
Summary
Suicide is the leading cause of death in young Australians. This fellowship aims to lower risk for suicide by testing: a) whether improving the connectedness of adolescents in schools can improve help-seeking, b) whether parents can learn to recognise risk in their children, and c) whether school screening is an appropriate and effective strategy to reduce risk. Practical outcomes will be new programs for youth, new strategies for parents and a better integrated approach for Australian schools.
Evaluation Of New Screening Strategies For Prevention Of Cancer
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$251,144.00
Summary
Governments, clinicians and consumers have a need for accurate and up-to-date information about the cost-effectiveness, benefits and harms of cancer screening. This project will evaluate whether further changes to cervical screening will be needed after the release of next generation HPV vaccines, whether new screening programs should be implemented for lung cancer and Lynch syndrome, the potential role of new technologies for bowel screening, and whether prostate testing can be improved.
Significance Of Low-level Mosaicism To Intellectual Disability In Paediatric Disorders
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$483,402.00
Summary
My vision for the next 4 years is to improve outcomes for children and their families with inherited disorders associated with intellectual disability (ID) and autism through earlier diagnosis and intervention. This is of great importance with annual costs of ID close $14.72 billion to the Australian health system, and missed or delayed diagnoses being a significant problem, as ID is found in 1.7% of births, where a specific cause is currently identified in less than half.
Evaluation Of Future Cervical Cancer Prevention Strategies In Australia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$401,361.00
Summary
The overall aim of the project is to use simulation modelling to perform a detailed epidemiologic and economic evaluation of the role of primary HPV DNA testing in Australia in the context of HPV vaccination. The project involves a collaboration with investigators at the National Cancer Institute USA, to analyse data from large studies conducted around the world and to build an accurate simulation of HPV infection and the development of cervical cancer.
Understanding, Detecting, Monitoring And Treating Brain Dysfunctions Due To Chronic Immune Diseases
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$415,219.00
Summary
The role of immune burdens on the brain of middle-aged persons is not well understood. For example the combined brain effects of HIV and cardio-vascular diseases are unknown. Our research is about better understanding those processes using advanced neuropsychology and brain imaging methods. It is also about developing new instruments to detect problems as early as possible, to monitor them accurately and to better treat them in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.
Goodness-of-fit Testing And Extensions Of Relative Risk Models
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$380,558.00
Summary
Information about the health consequences of exposure to causal factors is obtained from mathematical models of observed data. Relative risk models are recommended for observations over time on a cohort of subjects, but it is not known how best to assess the adequacy of such models or whether they can be applied to ordered outcomes or multiple measurements on the same individuals. These research aims to address those issues, and thereby to increase the practical usefulness of these models.
Integrating Population Genetics, In Silico And Functional Data To Enable Precision Medicine In The Epilepsies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$425,048.00
Summary
Epilepsy has proven to be a very genetically tractable neurological disorder. However, while we now routinely identify causal mutations in out patient populations, the process of understanding which are contributing versus which are benign background variation becomes critical as we move towards a period where precision medicine is becoming a reality for some patients. This work will focus on bringing together multiple levels of data to explore integrated models of predicting epilepsy variants.