Central Clinical School participates in Rare Disease Day 2022

See video featuring patient advocates and CCS researchers

Hear from patient advocates and medical researchers as part of the Central Clinical School Consumer and Researcher Engagement (CCS CaRE) program for 28 February Rare Disease Day 2022. The diseases we talk about are Myeloproliferative Neoplasms, Autoimmune Encephalitis,  Friedreich's Ataxia, Visual Snow, Primary Immunodeficiency and brain cancer, including glioblastoma. We will be publishing our complete playlist on 28 February and will update this description with a link to the playlist.

See more:

• www.monash.edu/medicine/ccs/community-engagement
• www.rarediseaseday.org/countries/australia/

Welcome to our 2022 Honours students!

We welcomed our new groups of general Honours (56 enrolled) and Bachelor of Medical Science Honours (14 enrolled) this week, so if you've seen lots of fresh faces being escorted around our various and many locations, that's who they are! See our group photos below. 

Honours 

Rare disease funds to boost pancreatic and blood cancer studies: Rare Disease Day feature

Adj A/Prof Charles Pilgrim and Prof Andrew Spencer describe

their newly funded MRFF research and how it will help patients.

Early this month Central Clinical School researchers were awarded funding under the MRFF’s 2021 Rare Cancers, Rare Diseases and Unmet Need (RCRDUN) program. 

As part of Rare Disease Day today, we asked two CCS researchers - Charles Pilgrim from the Department of Surgery, and Andrew Spencer from the Australian Centre for Blood Diseases - working with rare diseases about the research being funded.

Brain wave signatures enable faster diagnosis of autoimmune encephalitis

L-R: Drs Mastura Monif, Nabil Seery and Robb Wesselingh

by Dr Loretta Piccenna

Researchers from the Neuroimmunology, Neurology, Neuroinflammation Laboratory led by Dr Mastura Monif in the Department of Neuroscience have identified electroclinical biomarkers that differentiate one particular type of autoimmune encephalitis (AE), known as N-methyl D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) antibody-associated encephalitis (anti-NMDAR) from other subtypes of AE. 

AE is a brain inflammation disorder caused by antibodies. A person’s immune system mistakenly targets different proteins in their brain causing damage and inflammation. This can result in different neurological symptoms including seizures and memory problems. AE can be classified into different subtypes based on the brain protein targeted by the antibodies produced. 

New anti-inflammatory approach may damage kidneys, Monash scientists find

L-R: First co-authors Drs Jay Jha and Jakob Østergaard,
lead author Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm, CCS Diabetes

by Anne Crawford

A study by Monash University Department of Diabetes researchers suggests that a new anti-inflammatory drug approach developed to counter inflammation and heart disease may be harmful to kidneys.

Dec 2021 - 13 Feb 2022 Central Clinical School recent publications

Fasting high blood sugar levels indicate a higher risk of
adverse outcomes from COVID-19 infection: Study

Recent publications featuring research as notified by PubMed during December 2021 - 13 February 2022 from Central Clinical School affiliated researchers in the following departments. The below is not a comprehensive list, there are too many!

 The most recent validated publications for the school and departments can be seen on their publications pages, linked to from the headings below. Otherwise, read down the entry for recent notifications.

CCS researchers win MS Australia grant for multiple sclerosis research

L-R: CCS's Associate Professor Anneke van der Walt, Dr Yi Chao Foong, 

Dr Daniel Merlo, Dr Steven Petratos,  and BDI's Dr Hugh Reid

MS Australia will make an intensive bid to urgently find ways to repair nerve fibres and their protective covering (myelin), which are damaged in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The bid will launch this year thanks to $6.9 million in new research grants announced 15 February (see their research snapshot and detail of all grants).

This is the largest research investment in MS Australia’s 50-year history, taking the total amount provided for local investigator-led scientific projects in MS to $54 million since the organisation began in 1972.

Monash University researchers received a total of $754,000 in MS Australia’s 2022 round of funding. They included four Central Clinical School (CCS) researchers and one Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) researcher. Congratulations to CCS's Associate Professor Anneke van der Walt, Dr Yi Chao Foong, Dr Daniel Merlo, Dr Steven Petratos,  and BDI's Dr Hugh Reid!