2013 AMREP Postgraduate Symposium winners

L-R: Prof Jenny Wilkinson-Berka, Jie-Yu Chung, Jodie Abramovitch, Marina Iacovou, Kieran Cashin, Louise Rowntree, Katharina Bohm

There were 13 oral presenters and 14 poster presenters from across the AMREP precinct at the 20 November postgraduate symposium hosted by CCS, providing stiff competition for prizes. Winners were:
Oral presentations
1st - Kieran Cashin (Burnet); Runner-up - Louise Rowntree (Immunology); Audience vote - Marina Iacovou (Gastroenterology)
Poster presentations
1st - Jie-Yu Chung (Immunology); Runner-up - Jodie Abramovitch (Immunology); Audience vote - Katharina Borm (Burnet)
Question prize - Melanie Voevodin
"No-Bell prize" - Dr Charbel Darido
See program detail and more at 2013 HDR symposium.

Gene therapy research into prevention of MS myelin damage

PhD student Jie-yu Chung, Department of Immunology, is researching the use of gene therapy to stop MS myelin damage. Jie-Yu won a Multiple Sclerosis Research Australia (MRSA) scholarship a year ago. Working with A/Prof Frank Alderuccio, Jie-yu has successfully introduced genes into immune system B and T stem cells to ensure that they recognised myelin as 'self', and therefore not attack it. The next stage is to identify the particular subset of cells which attack myelin.