(Formerly known as Central Clinical School)
Congratulations to Professor Merlin Thomas, Department of Diabetes, who has been awarded a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Development grant.
Prof Thomas has been awarded $998,513 over three years for his application, "Splice switching oligonucleotides for the treatment of chronic kidney disease".
 |
| L-R: Dr Omer Gilan, A/Prof Margaret Hibbs, Prof Vaughan Macefield and Prof Merlin Thomas |
Congratulations to Central Clinical School's (CCS) four National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) awardees Professor Vaughan Macefield, Associate Professor Margaret Hibbs, Professor Merlin Thomas and Dr Omer Gilan in this very difficult round.
See detail below of CCS research and see all Monash Faculty winners here.
We are seeking participants for our study, which is undertaking the functional identification of cortical and subcortical sites responsible for neurogenic hypertension in humans.
That is, we are looking at how the brain controls blood pressure in hypertension.
 |
| Both telerehabilitation and unsupervised training exercises work to improve COPD patients' health: Study |
 |
| Associate Professor Bruce Davis and his wife |
From Professor Wendy Brown, Head of Department of Surgery, Central Clinical School
It is with great sadness that I pass on the news that A/Prof Bruce Davis has passed away.
Assoc. Prof. Bruce Braham Davis was appointed to the Cardio-Thoracic Surgical Unit at the Alfred Hospital in 1971 and also worked at Cabrini from 1985.
 |
| Dr Ashwini Kannan (left) and Mrs Ema Krpic (right) |
from Dr Michelle Zajac, Senior Research & Operations Manager, Central Clinical School:
Dear Colleagues,
I'm an delighted to introduce two new members of the Research Administration Team who have recently started at CCS.
Ema Krpic has stepped into the Research Administration Officer position, taking over from Kate Thompson, who left recently after 6 years in the position, and Dr Ashwini Kannan has stepped into the role of Research Administration Coordinator.
 |
| Schematic of overall experimental design for the proteomics analysis. CSF = cerebrospinal fluid; TBI = traumatic brain injury; TMT = tandem mass tag labeling. Image: Fig. 1 in the study |
It remains a significant clinical challenge to accurately predict long-term outcomes for a patient who sustains a severe traumatic brain injury.
 |
| L-R: Estelle Hamson and Jason Ray |
Congratulations to Dr Jason Ray and Ms Estelle Hamson on their recognition from Alfred Health.
They were awarded Alfred Health's Recognising Excellence Awards 2022 for respectively, Positive & Productive Culture; and Education & Training (individual).
 |
| Dr Vilija Jokubaitis is first author on the Brain paper |
by Dr Loretta Piccenna
Researchers from the Department of Neuroscience at Central Clinical School have found that no common genetic variations (those found in 5% or more of the population) are strongly linked to disease severity in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS).
Published in one of the top neuroscience journals, Brain, the multicentre study instead revealed that multiple genetic loci with small effect sizes were associated with clinical outcomes in people with RRMS. Further, a machine learning algorithm using this information, together with clinical and demographic variables available at disease onset, accurately predicted the severity of the disease.
 |
| L-R: Dr Karen Alt and Dr Chyn Chua |
Focussing principally on the talent within Clinical Haematology and ACBD, the symposium showcased both senior as well as early and mid-career researchers. CLICK HERE to find out more about all achievements at the ACBD that were highlighted at the symposium.
 |
| A/Prof Indi Rasaratnam receiving his service award from the Monash University Chancellor, Mr Simon McKeon AO. |
Prof Rasaratnam said, "I remember 25 years ago, delivering lectures in the old Monash Building Lecture Theatre at the Alfred near the helipad, using 35 mm slides on a carousel that would get stuck half-way through the lecture and having to run to the back of the lecture theatre to fix the projector! We have come a long way since - delivering lectures via Zoom!"
 |
| The Big MS Data Network was used for analysis showing that people with primary progressive MS progressed at different rates during their disease. Image: Big MS Data Network |
by Dr Loretta Piccenna, Research Manager, Department of Neuroscience, Monash University
Background
People who have primary and secondary progressive forms of multiple sclerosis require great consideration both in clinical practice and research due to huge unmet needs.
Primary and secondary progressive MS are forms in which disability from the disease continues to get worse (with time without experiencing relapses) and does not resolve. So, these forms do not respond in the same way to treatment used for the more common form, relapsing-remitting MS.
 |
| The video is available for CCS staff and students via the CCS intranet: Link |
On Wednesday 30 November 30 2022, the CCS’s Consumer and Researcher Engagement (CaRE) program committee hosted an informative webinar entitled ”Engaging consumers in grant success.”
Professor Purton generously shared her experiences as a disabled academic in STEMM and offered suggestions and tips on how we can make presentations, conferences, and publications more accessible to people with disability. As Louise pointed out, equity covers all types of underrepresented groups, not just women (and non-binary people).
 |
| Professor Jenny Hoy |
The challenges faced by women living with HIV will be the focus of the Victorian HIV Service at The Alfred this World Aids Day.
Victorian HIV Service Director and Monash University Department of Infectious Diseases Professor Jenny Hoy said that while Australia has made significant inroads in reducing transmission of the virus in men who have sex with men, reducing transmission among women has not been as successful.
 |
| A/Prof Gemma Sharp with the Paul Bourke award |
A/Prof Sharp is an exceptional early career researcher who is known for pioneering research in body image, eating disorders and digital mental health interventions. She has published more than 55 research outputs in high quality journals and amassed more than $5 million in research funding. Her research excellence has been recognised with over 50 awards including the US-based Association for Psychological Science Rising Star Award (2021).
 |
| Prof Andrew Way AM (Alfred CEO), A/Prof Eric Chow and Ms Venus Sopikiotis (Maxxia Group Executive Client Strategy and Engagement) - Eric accepted the award on behalf of the whole team. |
The team members are Professor Kit Fairley, Professor Catriona Bradshaw, Associate Professor Eric Chow, Professor Marcus Chen and Associate Professor Jason Ong). The award ceremony was held at the Victorian Pride Centre on 1 December 2022.
 |
| L-R: Antonia Reale, Himawan Fernando and Sabrina Salberg |
 |
| The use of resistant starch as an adjunct therapy for diabetic kidney disease may provide a novel treatment strategy: Review |
See the most recent validated publications for the school. Otherwise, read down the entry under department headings for recent PubMed notifications. The below is not a comprehensive list.
Migraine is, according to the World Health Organisation Global Burden of Disease studies, the second most disabling condition worldwide, and is estimated to affect 1.3 billion people.
 |
| L-R: Rhiannon Grant, Liam Ta and Ebony Blight |
Rhiannon Grant presented on "p-cresol sulfate acts on epithelial cells to reduce allergic airway inflammation"; Liam Ta on "Component-resolved diagnosis of peanut allergy through flowcytometric staining of basophils (CytoBas)"; and Ebony Blight on "Functional assessment of genetic variants affecting the NOD2 signalling pathway in patients with primary immunodeficiency".
See detail of posters here.
 |
| Associate Professor Melinda Coughlan has won a REDI Fellowship |
Congratulations to Associate Professor Melinda Coughlan, who heads a research group in Central Clinical School's Department of Diabetes, who will undertake a six-month project with AstraZeneca, a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company in Cambridge, UK. She will work with the Renal R&D team developing industry-related skills and increasing commercial knowledge. A/Prof Coughlan will focus on targeting mitochondria therapeutically to suppress the development of or reversal of kidney disease in diabetes and other chronic kidney diseases.
See MTPConnect story.
 |
| The more daily steps taken, the better it is for reducing the risk of falls: Study |
See the most recent validated publications for the school. Otherwise, read down the entry under department headings for recent PubMed notifications. The below is not a comprehensive list.
 |
| Professor Anton Peleg, Head of Department of Infectious Diseases, The Alfred Hospital and Central Clinical School, Monash University) is lead investigator on the MRFF funded Superbug Ai Flagship project. |
The Honourable Mark Butler MP, Minister for Health said, "I would like to take this opportunity to highlight the work of Professor Anton Peleg.
"Professor Peleg researches ways to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which occurs when germs change over time and no longer respond to medicines like antibiotics.
.jpg) |
| Participants sought for endometriosis and IBS study |
Endometriosis affects around 1 in 10 Australian women and many of these women also suffer from IBS and/or gastrointestinal symptoms (e.g. bloating, abdominal pain, constipation and diarrhoea). Currently, we do not know what causes the gastrointestinal symptoms associated with endometriosis.
To express your interest, take the screening survey (via QR code) or see below for more detail and contact information.
Read the full Lens story here.
Download the 'Pride in STEM' poster for sticking up around your area.
 |
| Download the 'Pride in STEM' A3 poster |
 |
| GEDI and LGBTQIA+ advocates Elan L'Estrange-Stranieri and Rhiannon Grant putting up a poster. |
To combat this, CCS departments have placed 'Pride in STEM' posters at their entrances to signify to all staff and students that they are an LGBTQIA+ friendly workplace.
If CCS Departments/Labs would like to have a poster to display to welcome and support LGBT+ coworkers, that they can download it here, or email Elan L'Estrange-Stranieri, Jessica Borger or the ccs.gedi@monash.edu role account. Elan is the CCS GEDI Executive Officer, and has led the initative.
 |
| A/Prof Gemma Sharp joins CCS's Department of Neuroscience |
We are delighted to announce that Gemma Sharp has been promoted to Associate Professor, and she and her research group have joined the Department of Neuroscience. Welcome Gemma!
Associate Professor Sharp is a researcher, lecturer and clinical psychologist who is very well known for pioneering research in body image, eating disorders and digital mental health interventions (e.g. chatbots and mobile apps).
The SLG is a group of 20 international MS experts who develop the MSBase strategic plan, are the data custodians who oversee data access and set all data policies globally. It is the first time that a scientist has been chosen to lead this peak governance and strategic MSBase body.
 |
| HDR stipend sit-in protest. L-R: Giulia Iacono, Gemma Hartley leading and just behind, Elan L'Estrange-Stranieri and Rhiannon Grant. Photo: MGA |
As of March 2022, the Monash Research Training Program (RTP) stipend rate of $30,000 per annum for Higher Degree Research (HDR) students officially fell below the Henderson Poverty Line, being 20% lower than the minimum wage ($36,931) after tax1,2, and the third lowest rate offered by Group of 8 (Go8) universities (see Figure 1: 2022 below).
Associate Professor Eric Chow has won the Australian Society for Medical Research (ASMR) Peter Doherty Leading Light Award, announced at the 61st ASMR National Scientific Conference 2022.This Award is named in recognition of Nobel Laureate, Professor Peter Doherty, whose scientific achievements and commitment to science advocacy continues to inspire the research community. This award celebrates the achievements of mid-career researchers (5 - 12 year post-doctoral) in Australia. The award recognises a single piece of work undertaken by a mid-career researcher within the past 5 years.
 |
| L-R: Drs Zhoujie Ding, Matt Hudson and Robb Wesselingh |
Matt, Zhoujie and Rob were awarded funding in the fourth and final round for 2022 of the GIN Hub's Pitch for their project, "Developing the first Australian mouse model of anti-NMDAR autoimmune encephalitis". We look forward to seeing the results of this collaboration between the Neuroscience and Immunology and Pathology departments.
 |
| Figure 1 in the paper: Components of pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for implementing intercultural competencies (ICC) in global classrooms |
by Dr Jessica Borger
Digital technology was a catalyst for global learning and fostering cultural understanding. In response to the COVID pandemic in 2020, there was a worldwide pivot of education, government and industry to online communication and the utilisation of diverse digital technologies as alternatives for face-to-face communication. |
| CCS's graduate research students organised and held the 15th annual symposium. View photo gallery. |
The annual Central Clinical School graduate research symposium was very successful, with student wins all round, including the staff-student debate. Congratulations to all participants, and to our winners in all the different segments, and to the organising committee, who did a wonderful job.
See all our winners below.
 |
| CCS CaRE is holding a webinar on engaging consumers for grant success: Register here |
Funding agencies are increasingly requesting researchers to provide detail on how consumers have been involved in the preparation of grant applications and how they will be involved in proposed projects.
 |
| Distance is a deterrent to seeking help for STIs: study |
Sexual health epidemiologist Associate Professor Eric Chow said the recent study of more than 7,000 patients revealed that distance rather than socioeconomic status was the main contributing factor behind delayed presentation to a Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) service.
 |
| The MSBase Foundation allows global monitoring of outcomes for people with MS |
 |
| Why is bariatric surgery so poorly provided for in the public health system? Prof Wendy Brown is senior author on an MJA paper looking at the question |
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. The below is not a comprehensive list.
 |
| L-R: Valma Edwards (David's mother), Vikki Edwards (his wife), Associate Professor Priscilla Johanesen, Professor Robyn Slattery and Professor Terry O'Brien, with a photo of David Edwards in the screen projection |
David was a PhD student in Professor Kathryn (Kat) Holt's group.
Professor Terry O'Brien, Head of Central Clinical School and Professor Robyn Slattery on behalf of Professor Kat Holt both spoke at the ceremony.
David enrolled in the PhD at Monash, after completing a Masters in Bioinformatics under the supervision of Professor Kathryn Holt.
Dr Butler has been awarded the Albert Baikie Memorial Medal from the Haematology Society of Australia and New Zealand (HSANZ) for the best young investigator at the national annual Blood 2022 meeting in Sydney in September. The award is given to recognise the best presentation, either oral or poster, at the Annual Scientific Meeting by a new investigator who is a financial member of HSANZ. The winner receives a $5,000 prize and is presented with the Albert Baikie Memorial Medal. This prestigious award is open to new investigators who were awarded their postgraduate qualification (MSc, FRACP, FRCPA or PhD) within the past 5 years.
 |
| Associate Professor Gemma Sharp in clinic |
Associate Professor Gemma Sharp, Department of Neuroscience, has been recognised by the College of Clinical Psychologists (Vic) with a Significant Contribution Award.
A/Prof Sharp's contribution spanned all areas, particularly her work in the field of body image related disorders including eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder. She is particularly well known for leading the development of a world-first set of practice guidelines focused on the psychological evaluation of patients seeking cosmetic procedures with the Australian Psychological Society. These guidelines were first published in 2018 and she is currently leading the update of these guidelines to be released in late 2022/early 2023. A/Prof Sharp was kindly nominated for the award by her post-doc Dr Kathleen de Boer.
 |
| See the video of this year's public lecture by Prof Srikanth on dementia and the ageing brain: Youtube 58:28mins |
Central Clinical School (CCS), Monash University's annual public lecture in 2022 was presented by Professor Velandai Srikanth, Director of the National Centre for Healthy Ageing, Director of Research, Peninsula Health and Professor of Medicine at CCS.
Professor Srikanth explores why the brain ages and what causes dementia. Importantly, he asks, what can we do about it?
The video of the presentation is now published:
 |
| Plasma B-cell making antibody: Shutterstock |
Vaccines work their magic by effectively creating immune cells that are long-lived, often for over decades. These immune cells create both a protective barrier that can prevent or minimize re-infection and a memory that allows us to recognize an old invader like a virus and to kill it before it causes disease. The antibody making the barrier in our blood is itself made by long-lived plasma cells. While the importance of these cells has always been known, how and when they are generated following a vaccination has remained a mystery.
See faculty story
See Monash Lens story featuring Professor Jayashri Kulkarni, published 20 October.
 |
| Professor Johannes Kern, new joint appointment for Monash University and Alfred Health |
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Johannes Kern (MD, PhD, ICDP-UEMS (Dermpath), FEBDV, FACD) to the joint clinical academic appointment between Alfred Health and Monash University as Professor and Deputy Director, Dermatology. He is also Vice President and Board Director of the Skin Health Institute.
 |
| L-R: Krystal Bergin, Christopher Groombridge, Sarah Janssens and Andrew Ma |
 |
| Community representatives were very engaged with the presentation |
by Dr Juliana de Castro, CaRE committee member
The Community and Researcher Engagement (CaRE) program from the Central Clinical School at Monash University hosted a hybrid seminar called ‘Myeloproliferative Neoplasms – Towards Precision Medicine’ at the Betty & John Laidlaw Education & Innovation Hub on Thursday, 13 October 2022.
 |
| Monash University is part of a global consortium to study why stimulating the vagus nerve is effective for controlling epilepsy |
Since the early 90’s electrical stimulation of the human vagus nerve, via surgically implanted electrodes wrapped around the nerve, has been established as an important treatment for selected patients with drug-resistant epilepsy. How it works is poorly understood, but Monash University has joined forces with a global consortium funded USD$21M to find out more.
See faculty story