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!

How a very simple test can help clinicians see subtle cognitive changes in multiple sclerosis

L-R: Dr Daniel Merlo , Prof Helmut Butzkueven and A/Prof Anneke
Van Der Walt are first and senior authors on a paper describing a tool
they have developed for assessing cognitive function in MS.

More than 50% of people living with multiple sclerosis (MS) experience cognitive problems as part of their disease. These cognitive problems subtly worsen with time and can be difficult to measure with standard neuropsychological assessments. Hence, it can be challenging for neurologists to monitor and detect small changes in cognitive function in day-to-day practice.

Monash researchers have developed a simple set of tests to detect subtle changes in cognitive function in people living with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). The tests are collectively known as ‘MSReactor’.

Congratulations to Justin Cole, Daniel Merlo and Lin Zhang on their graduate research degree completions!

L-R: Daniel Merlo, Justin Cole and Lin Zhang have recently
completed their graduate research degrees.

Congratulations to Justin Cole, Daniel Merlo and Lin Zhang on completing respectively their graduate research degrees! The awards were conferred on 11 June for Daniel Merlo, 29 September for Lin Zhang and 6 October for Justin Cole.