Congratulations to Merlin Thomas on NHMRC Development grant

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".

Congratulations to our 2022 NHMRC Ideas grant awardees

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.

Reducing the high rate of chronic kidney disease in First Nations communities

Why are First Nations people more vulnerable to developing CKD?
An MRFF funded study is finding out. Image: Shutterstock

Indigenous-led research is using advanced multi-omics technology to reduce the high rate of chronic kidney disease in First Nations communities.

In 2020 a team of Monash, Baker and SAHMRI researchers received MRFF funding of $2M to investigate chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Indigenous populations for their project entitled "Reducing the burden of chronic kidney disease in the Indigenous population - the PROPHECY CKD study" to investigate why First Nations Peoples have one of the highest rates of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in the world. 

Two years on, they know more as they follow up on close to 1500 First Nations donors of blood samples.

See faculty story.

New diabetic kidney disease target raises hopes

Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm and Dr Jay Chandra Jha

by Anne Crawford

Monash University scientists are developing what could be a promising new therapeutic target to combat diabetic kidney disease. 

The Central Clinical School researchers led by Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm and Dr Jay Chandra Jha, together with an international collaboration, recently revealed details of the predominantly pathological role of the pro-oxidant enzyme NOX5 in diabetic complications, particularly diabetic kidney disease (DKD), and are working on small molecule inhibitors to target it. 

Monash Department of Diabetes shines in research awards

L-R: Dr Muthukumar Mohan, Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm
and Dr Carlos Rosado have each been awarded funds under the
2022 Diabetes Australia Research Program (DARP)

Congratulations to the Department of Diabetes’ Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm, Dr Muthukumar Mohan and Dr Carlos Rosado who have each been awarded funds under the 2022 Diabetes Australia Research Program (DARP).

The Department of Diabetes recipients were among 31 Victorian-based researchers, including eight from Monash University, awarded more than $2 million under DARP this year.

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.

Congratulations to Jacques Ma on Translational Research Symposium poster win!

Congratulations to Jacques Ma on her winning the best poster presentation at the Translational Research Symposium held 12 July. Her presentation was titled, "Cell Penetrating Peptides for Therapeutic Protein Delivery". 

Jacques is a PhD student in Central Clinical School's Department of Diabetes, and is supervised by Dr Carlos Rosado and Professor Merlin Thomas. Jacques was also runner up in this year's CCS 3MT heat.

Identifying those at risk of developing complications from diabetes

Professor Sam El-Osta is part of a Danish-
Australian collaboration investigating diabetic
complications. See full story

Danish and Australian researchers are teaming up with the goal of better understanding the relationship between the risks for and actual development of complications arising from diabetes, including diabetic kidney disease (DKD).

“Our goal is to understand the burden, natural history and propensity of the Danish population, with or at risk of diabetes, to develop complications,” they say. “We want to outline the clinical, metabolic and epigenetic correlates of diseases in order ultimately to predict, treat and prevent diabetic kidney disease.” An important associated goal of the group is to find those patients with diabetic kidney disease who need more aggressive treatment. 

Discovery for turning on cell repair in tissues and organs

Model of demethylation mediated reprogramming

Monash University researchers have uncovered the barrier to β-cell (beta cell) regeneration that could pave the way for improved treatments for diabetes and diseases that involve organ and tissue damage.

The human body doesn’t repair itself very well, with our liver the only organ that can regenerate efficiently.  We have limited capacity to regenerate new cells or tissue after birth as the genes involved in development are switched off.

Faculty 3MT Week starts now: 3-10 July - voting closes 11 am Fri 10 July

Faculty 3MT Week is on! Friday 3 July - 11am Friday 10 July. Please watch and vote for your favourite!

Our people's choice (of course) is Alex Dimitropoulos, in Central Clinical School's Department of Diabetes, with her topic, "A spoon full of GLO makes the years go down". What's not to like about that?
See:

• Alex's video
• All videos sites.google.com/monash.edu/mnhsgrresources/3mt
• People's vote link

Monash researchers find key to blocking replication of COVID virus

Coronavirus (round gold objects) as seen under an
 electron microscope. Image: Tom Karagiannis

by Tania Ewing

Monash researchers have conducted extensive modelling of a new antiviral drug to show it has significant blocking ability against the virus that causes COVID-19.

To date, there is an absence of a vaccine and a lack of effective antiviral therapeutics against SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19. Therefore, there is an intense interest in identifying compounds that may interact with key viral molecular targets, preventing infection or treating symptoms of the disease.

Dr Tom Karagiannis, from Monash University’s Central Clinical School, and his team recently published data in the Computational Biology Chemistry Journal, showing that a designer molecule called α-ketoamide blocks one of the key proteins needed by the SARS-CoV-2 virus to replicate.

$2M MRFF grant win for reducing chronic kidney disease in Australia's Indigenous population

The MRFF Indigenous Health CKD team members L-R: CIA Prof Mark Cooper (Monash University), CIB Ms Kim Morey (SAHMRI), CIC Prof Paul Zimmet (MU), CID Mr Ricky Mentha (Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute), CIE Prof Karin Jandeleit-Dahm (MU), CIF Prof Assam El-Osta (MU), CIG Prof Stephen McDonald (SAHMRI)

Congratulations to Professor Mark Cooper, Department of Diabetes, on the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) funding award in the area of Indigenous Health research. The Monash University Diabetes researchers are collaborating with researchers at the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) in South Australia on a project entitled "Reducing the burden of chronic kidney disease in the Indigenous population - the PROPHECY CKD study" (APP1200005) which has been awarded $1,995,895 across five years.

Molecular block of the SARS-CoV-2 virus being explored

Tight binding of α-ketoamide molecules (red), in the active
 site (gold) of the SARS-CoV-2 main protease.

Dr Tom Karagiannis and colleagues are examining the binding of small molecules to a particular protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, to block its action.

Dr Karagiannis said, "The main protease is a non-structural protein that the SARS-CoV-2 virus needs to replicate.  Once inside the host cell, the virus makes proteins so it can produce more copies of itself. These proteins need to be processed and proteases such as the main protease are responsible for cleaving the proteins at specific sites.

"By blocking the main protease you could stop the virus from replicating, which is what we're testing with a designer molecule called α-ketoamide." 

Department of Diabetes researchers Paul Zimmet and Mark Cooper star in Google rankings

Central Clinical School has world-leading researchers and we're not just saying that. CCS Department of Diabetes researchers Professors Paul Zimmet AO and Mark Cooper AO (Head, Department of Diabetes) do well in Google Scholar rankings, Prof Zimmet ranking 4th in the world for diabetes citations, and Prof Cooper 28th. Prof Zimmet says that's because he's had a head start!
scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=search_authors&hl=en&mauthors=label:diabetes

Numbercrunching to find a stable target for inhibiting the SARS-CoV-2 virus

The heart-shaped SARS-CoV-2 main protease
 consists of two protomers (blue and grey),
and is involved in processing viral polyproteins
A prototypical small molecule inhibitor (yellow)
is docked to the active site of the protease.

In the absence of a vaccine or an approved effective therapy against COVD-19, there is an interest in repositioning existing drugs or developing new inhibitors against viral targets.

A collaborative project between Monash and RMIT Universities is aimed at identifying and validating small molecules that can interact with or inhibit the active site of the SARS-CoV-2 main protease.

Dr Runa Lindblom, LEGO Master!

Dr Runa Lindblom (left) with a team mate, working on the LEGO

challenge. Image: Channel 9

Dr Runa Lindblom, a recent PhD graduate from the Department of Diabetes, has a no-longer-hidden talent, which is building LEGO models. She had developed a brain tumour which had to be operated on, and in the process of recovery turned to LEGO. The turn was for the better, as she won a competition, then was recruited for Channel 9's LEGO Masters challenge.

See the Channel 9 story: 9now.nine.com.au/lego-masters/lego-masters-2020-runa-brain-tumour/0c306475-3a64-4513-b83f-51e6f9c13b18

Congrats to Runa Lindblom and Sin Ki Ng on their PhDs!

L-R: Runa Lindblom and Sin Ki Ng

Congratulations to Ms Runa Lindblom and Ms Sin Ki Ng on the award of their PhDs!

Runa's thesis is "Mitochondrial function in Diabetic Kidney Disease: Insights from targeting mitochondrial pore-forming cell death proteins". Runa was supervised by Associate Professor Melinda Coughlan and Professor Mark Cooper in CCS's Department of Diabetes, and Dr Gavin Higgins at the Cancer Council Victoria.

Figuring out why diabetes affects the kidneys

L-R: Professors Karin Jandeleit-Dahm,
Mark Cooper and Dr Jakob Oestergaard

Dr Jakob Oestergaard is a Danish physician, who is currently visiting Central Clinical School's Department of Diabetes for one year from Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark to pursue his interest in diabetes research and clinical treatment.

In particular, he’s interested in the mechanisms which lead to diabetic nephropathy and other complications from diabetes. This represents a major health issue, as type 2 diabetes is on the increase, now affecting almost 10% of the world’s population. Up to 40% of these patients will develop diabetic kidney disease.

Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm acknowledged by Leibniz Institute

Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm with her
Leibniz award

Professor Karin Jandeleit-Dahm was awarded the Leibniz chair at the German Diabetes Centre, University of Dusseldorf in December last year, in recognition of her contribution to the Leibniz Centre at the German Diabetes Institute (DDZ), Dusseldorf). See more about Karin's research here.

A delegation from the Leibniz Institutes is visiting Australia, and will be visiting Monash University next week. They will also visit Central Clinical School's Department of Diabetes.

Congratulations to 2019 ARC Discovery project CCS recipients Merlin Thomas and Kelly Wyres!

Dr Kelly Wyres

Professor Merlin Thomas

Congratulations to Central Clinical School's Professor Merlin Thomas and Dr Kelly Wyres on their Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery grant awards! Read more about their grants below.

• Professor Merlin Thomas, Department of Diabetes group.
  Augmenting the activity of glyoxalase-1 to increase dicarbonyl clearance, $605,000 (2020-2022). ARC ID DP200101965
• Dr Kelly Wyres, Department of Infectious Diseases group.
  Unlocking the secrets of metabolic variation in a highly diverse bacterium. $515,322 (2020-2022) ARC ID DP200103364