Cancers of the skin are the most common tumours in humans, and their diagnosis and treatment impose the largest costs on Australia’s cancer budget. While much has been learned about the roles of sunlight and skin type as risk factors for skin cancer, relatively little is known about the genes conferring risk. This study will compare the genetic profiles of over 6000 patients with skin cancer to 3000 people without skin cancer to pinpoint the genes responsible for skin cancer.
The Older Australian Twins Study (OATS) Of Healthy Brain Ageing And Age-related Neurocognitive Disorders
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$940,960.00
Summary
Ageing is associated with cognitive decline and dementia. It is still not completely understood what relative contributions genes and environment play in these. This project is an extension of the Older Australian Twins Study to examine genetic and environmental factors associated with late life brain changes and dementia, and will establish an internationally significant cohort for novel discovery.
Modelling Of Clinic And Ambulatory Blood Pressure On Cardiovascular Risk And Outcomes
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$133,957.00
Summary
Whilst ambulatory blood pressure monitoring data has been shown to be a good predictor of cardiovascular events, there remains controversy as to its utility in clinical practice. This project will use data from existing population and clinical cohort studies to examine the role of ambulatory blood pressure in risk assessment and hypertension management in Australia and around the globe. The findings are likely to have a major impact on clinical guidelines for hypertension management.
Young Onset Colorectal Cancer: Genetics Pathology And Environment
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$439,180.00
Summary
There has been a steady increase since 2002, in the age-standardised incidence of CRC in males under 45 years in Australia, contrasting with the stabilisation in incidence of CRC in males of age 45 years and over. Persons under 50 years are not routinely screened unless they have a significant family history of CRC. Young-onset rectal cancer is associated with late presentations and with a higher mortality. This proposal will address the possible risk factors for young-onset CRC.
BRIDGET: BRain Imaging, Cognition, Dementia And Next Generation GEnomics: A Transdisciplinary Approach To Search For Risk And Protective Factors Of Neurodegenerative Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,081,489.00
Summary
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) begins many years before diagnosis and yet its aetiology is still poorly understood. The BRIDGET consortium aims to identify genetic variants that are associated with structural brain ageing, cognitive performance, and dementia risk in richly phenotyped international and Australian population-based samples. This work aims to provide crucial information on the molecular pathways leading to AD, potentially leading to improved health outcomes for our ageing population.
Do Exposures Before Conception Influence The Risk Of Asthma In Offspring?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$688,586.00
Summary
Asthma and poor lung function are major causes of public health issues. Emerging evidence suggests adverse exposures even before the conception of a child may cause these conditions. The proposed project is part of an international study across generations to identify these factors. This study will provide novel evidence to guide interventions and identify studies to advance this area further. These original findings will be of great importance both nationally and internationally.
Prevalence Of Dementia In The Torres Strait And Common Health Issues Of Later Life In The Torres Strait
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,000.00
Summary
The aim of the project is to assess the prevalence of dementia in people aged 45 years and over living in Torres Strait Islander communities and identify potential risk and protective factors associated with dementia risk. An additional aim is to revalidate a culturally appropriate cognitive assessment tool, the Kimberley Indigenous Cognitive Assessment (KICA) for use in the Torres Strait.
Predictors Of Outcome And Intervention In The ‘Ultra-High Risk’ For Psychosis Population
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$401,561.00
Summary
This area of research is concerned with improving our ability to identify young help-seeking patients who are most at risk of developing psychotic disorders and provide intervention to delay or prevent the onset of psychosis. A number of studies are planned, including researching disturbances in sense of self, neurocognitive factors, history of trauma and reaction to stress as predictive of future onset of psychosis, as well as a study of omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) as an intervention for the ....This area of research is concerned with improving our ability to identify young help-seeking patients who are most at risk of developing psychotic disorders and provide intervention to delay or prevent the onset of psychosis. A number of studies are planned, including researching disturbances in sense of self, neurocognitive factors, history of trauma and reaction to stress as predictive of future onset of psychosis, as well as a study of omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) as an intervention for these high risk young people.Read moreRead less
Developmental Origins Of Adult Cardiovascular Disease: Vascular Health In The Raine Cohort
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,087,427.00
Summary
The Raine study is a unique long term experiment that has collected extensive pre-birth and childhood data in ~3000 young Australians, who are now 27 years old. We plan to measure the artery health of 1200 of these volunteers and to determine what factors, both before and after birth, influence the presence of early atherosclerosis in humans. This study will guide strategies aimed at early prevention of heart attacks and stroke in humans, by defining the major risk factors.