A test for COVID-19 risk, infectivity and immunity

The Immunology/Allergy research team. L-R: Mrs Simone Reinwald, Ms Gemma Hartley, Dr Craig McKenzie, Professor Robyn O'Hehir AO, Associate Professor Menno van Zelm, Ms Pei Mun Aui, Dr Emily Edwards, Mrs Neeru Varese

by Tania Ewing

Monash scientists are repurposing technology they developed recently to make a rapid test to determine who:

• has immunity to coronavirus
• remains infectious
• is at risk of developing a severe form of the disease.

Congratulations to Shane Nanayakkara on Mollie Holman medal win!

Dr Shane Nanayakkara

Congratulations to Dr Shane Nanayakkara on his win of a Mollie Holman Medal for an outstanding PhD thesis!

These medals are among the highest academic honours that Monash University bestows, and mark the recipients as researchers of the higher order.

Mental Health & COVID-19 survey: you are invited to take part

Monash Alfred Psychiatry research centre (MAPrc) has launched a community survey of mental health impacts from COVID-19 and you are invited to take part.

The aim is to examine resilience factors that promote good mental health and risk factors that contribute to poorer mental health.

Participating in this study will involve completing an online questionnaire (press 'Submit' at the bottom of the information section to begin the survey) which should take 30-40 minutes. These questions will include demographic information, questionnaires about your current mood, your physical health, your coping styles as well as questions about resilience.

Shining a light on rapid diagnosis of COVID-19 infection: the LAMP test

Professor Patrick Kwan leads a Monash team

using LAMP technology for rapid genetic

testing of COVID-19 virus infections

by Tania Ewing

Despite reports of a new finger-prick blood test being available soon – which tests whether a person has been infected with COVID-19 and therefore may have immunity – the currently available test for the virus, while the patient has active infection with or without symptoms, is expensive and takes up to five days to return a result.

There is an urgent global need for a cheap, fast and accurate diagnostic test that can tell doctors, and the patient, whether they currently have the virus and need to isolate. Such a test, if available, could be used for people returning from overseas, off cruise ships, etc – immediately informing authorities of those who run the risk of taking the infection into the community.

Scientists at Monash University are currently working on adapting a technology developed two decades ago to create an assay that has the potential to produce a result in less than an hour. The test will therefore be able to provide real-time information about the number of active cases to inform important public health decisions.

Photo of the week: Nesbitt group - Haematology Micro-platforms

2020 Nesbitt group. L-R: Ms Nurul (Aisha) Abidin Zainal, Dr Warwick Nesbitt, Dr Crispin Szydzik

The Haematology Micro-Platforms group in the Australian Centre for Blood Diseases is a multidisciplinary group focused on the development of novel lab-on-a-chip, microfluidic, and sensor systems in conjunction with basic research focussed microfluidic platforms.

Key research areas are clinical haematology diagnostics, automated microfluidic drug screening systems, and fundamental research into blood platelet mechanotransduction.

Due to the multidisciplinary nature of the research, they collaborate with a number of groups across clinical, biomedical, industrial and engineering disciplines.

Concussion in Australian collision sports 'under-researched'

Ms Georgia Fuller Symons, first author

on the paper, demonstrating the frame

for ocular motor function tests, one of 

the indicators of brain trauma

by Anne Crawford

Concussion sustained during collision sports including AFL and rugby, and its effects on players, is a growing issue in Australia but research into the subject is limited and lacks consensus, a paper by Monash University Department of Neuroscience researchers has found.

First author PhD student Georgia Symons said the review, which appeared recently in the Journal of Neurotrauma, found that most literature on the topic predominantly looked at North American contact sports such as ice hockey and NFL, and also European sport.

17-23 March 2020 Central Clinical School recent publications

Recent publications as notified during the week 17-23 March by PubMed from Central Clinical School affiliated researchers in the following departments. This is not a comprehensive list:

• Australian Centre for Blood Diseases
• Diabetes
• Immunology and Pathology
• Infectious Diseases
• Melbourne Sexual Health Centre
• Neuroscience
• Respiratory Medicine
• Surgery