From researcher to research participant

Professor David Tarlinton shares his motivations for participating
in the Baker Institute's EDCAD-PMS study. See video (1:09 mins)

Monash University’s Head of Immunology, Professor David Tarlinton, swapped roles from researcher to research participant when he took part in the Baker Institute’s heart disease prevention research to better understand his own risk, given significant family history. Now he’s encouraging others at the precinct to do the same. Read the story and see David's video.

Researchers develop a world-first antibody-drug delivery system

Schematic illustration of the new MOF Antibody crystals and their ability to specifically seek out cancer cells to detect them and deliver highly potent drugs with unprecedented precision. Credit: Dr Francesco Carraro and Prof Paolo Falcaro (Co-First and Co-Senior author on the Advanced Materials Paper)

It sounds like the stuff of science fiction: a man-made crystal that can be attached to antibodies and then supercharge them with potent drugs or imaging agents that can seek out diseased cells with the highest precision, resulting in fewer adverse effects for the patient.

However, that is precisely what researchers from the Australian Centre for Blood Diseases at Monash University in collaboration with the TU Graz (Austria) have developed: the world’s first metal-organic framework (MOFs) antibody-drug delivery system that has the potential to fast-track potent new therapies for cancer, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases.