The NHMRC Ideas grants support a range of research from discovery science through to clinical research, health services and public health research.
We sincerely congratulate the following Florey researchers and recipients of NHMRC Idea Grants, and look forward to the high-impact discoveries their investigations will bring:
- Professor Ross Bathgate, co-leader of the discovery science theme and Head of the Neuropeptide Receptor group, will be investigating structural determination of the relaxin receptor to aid therapeutic development
- Professor Anthony Hannan, Head of the epigenetics and neural plasticity laboratory, will be investigating the intergenerational impacts of paternal immune activation on brain function and dysfunction
- Associate Professor Akhter Hossain, Head of the Insulin peptides group, will be developing novel peptide-based therapeutics and technologies to mitigate fibrosis
- Associate Professor Lucy Palmer, Head of the neural networks laboratory, will be investigating the cellular basis of synaptic integration and modulation in human pyramidal neurons
- Dr Sarah Gordon, Head of the presynaptic physiology laboratory, will be creating a phenotypic catalogue of synaptic vesicle cycling disorders
- Dr Christina Mo, Research Fellow in the epigenetics and neural plasticity laboratory, will be elucidating the role of transthalamic pathways in cortical processing
- Dr Rebecca Nisbet, Research Fellow in the neuropathology and neurodegeneration laboratory, will be investigating the development of an intracellular tau-specific antibody therapeutic for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease
- Dr Samantha Barton, Research Fellow in the Motor Neurone disease laboratory, will be investigating oligodendrocytes as a possible missing link in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis pathogenesis
- Dr Philip Ryan, Research Fellow in the addiction neuroscience laboratory, will be investigating the neural circuits which limit alcohol and soft drink intake
- Dr Leigh Walker, Research Officer in the addiction neuroscience laboratory, will be seeking to understanding sex differences in alcohol use disorder, including understanding the role of stress and neuropeptides
Florey researchers will also be contributing to other ideas grants through collaborations including:
- Professor Leeanne Carey, Professor Vincent Thijs and Professor Dominique Cadilhac who alongside researchers from La Trobe University will be personalising stroke recovery and rehabilitation through new technologies for people with stroke living at home
Professor Steven Petrou, Director of The Florey, welcomed the funding news.
“On behalf of The Florey, I thank the Australian Federal Government for their ongoing support of medical research into neuroscience and mental health. We are extremely proud of the high quality of our research and the impact that it makes to deliver both health and wealth impacts to the community.”
