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Tuesday 12 July 2016

BMedSc(Hons) Information Night at MMC, TONIGHT

Tuesday 12 July, 5.30-7.30pm
Seminar Room 1, TRF at Monash Medical Centre

Enhance your MBBS experience, help people, get into research, make discoveries, and give yourself career options with Honours in the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health (SCS) and Hudson Institute of Medical Research. We have a wealth of research expertise and dedicated researchers with strong clinical connections who are experienced mentors for students.



Women researchers continue career progression thanks to Faculty grant

Dr Michelle Blumfield
Congratulations Dr Michelle Blumfield and Dr Rachel Hill, researchers in the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health (SCS) who have each received the Faculty’s Advancing Women in Research Award.

With a long-standing commitment to gender equity and diversity and to increasing the representation of women in senior academic roles, the Advancing Women's Research Success Grant supports the career progression of early to mid-career high potential female academic staff.

Dr Rachel Hill
By providing funding at a critical time in the careers of high potential female academic staff, this initiative aims to reduce the impact of career breaks and/or intense caring responsibilities on research productivity.

A lecturer in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Dr Michelle Blumfield’s research focuses on the primary prevention of adiposity related non-communicable diseases.

“I study the role of maternal diet during pregnancy and its relationship with offspring phenotype and health outcomes, including body composition, blood pressure, cognition and sleeping behaviour,” said Dr Blumfield.

“This grant provides me with the funds to employ a research assistant, who will assist me to collect data for my study examining the effect of a circadian informed sleep intervention on glucose tolerance, weight gain and body composition parameters in pregnancy.”

Dr Blumfield said that without these funds, she would not have the opportunity to collect data in 2016 due to her current limited working capacity—she is the primary carer of two small children and has other commitments as a lecturer.

These funds have the capacity to make a significant difference to my success with national funding bodies in the future,” said Dr Blumfield.

Also juggling career and family responsibilities, NHMRC Career Development Fellow Dr Rachel Hill studies animal models to better understand the pathophysiology that underlies mental illness.

“We use a range of models to determine how genes and our environment (including infection and stress) alter brain development and behaviour,” said Dr Hill, who is currently on maternity leave with a 4 month old and a 4 year old.

Until recently Head of Psychoneuroendocrinology laboratory at the Florey Institute, Dr Hill will join SCS in August as Head of the new Behavioural Neuroscience lab, Molecular Psychiatry division.

 “I will work closely with Professor Suresh Sundram to investigate common dysfunctional pathways in human patients and mouse models that can be targeted for novel therapeutic development.”

Professor Sundram has assessed expression levels of over 90 genes in patients with schizophrenia.

“This grant will enable us to assess the same genes in one of our mouse models—the maternal immune activation model—allowing us to determine any common links between prenatal exposure to infection and schizophrenia in the human population,” said Dr Hill.

Dr Hill said this is the first step to finding the common pathway of dysfunction in schizophrenia.

“It is great to work for an employer that supports women to excel in a highly competitive research environment and recognizes that in order to do so there is sometimes a need for extra resources during time of career disruption (i.e. during child-rearing years) to keep ahead of the game,” said Dr Blumfield.


Dr Blumfield thanks and acknowledges Head, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics Professor Helen Truby for providing a flexible working environment for women and always supporting their career development.

“Genes to big data and consequences for translation in eye disease”, 14 July

This week's Hudson seminar will be held 14 July, 12-1pm, Lecture Theatre 1, Monash Medical Centre.


The speaker will be  A/Prof Pall N Baird, Research Leader, Education Head, Ocular Genetics Unit, Centre for Eye Research Australia
Professorial Fellow, Ophthalmology, Department of Surgery, University of Melbourne


Light refreshments to follow presentation outside the Lecture Theatre

Paul Baird obtained his PhD from the University of London in microbial molecular genetics, followed by postdoctoral fellowships in paediatric cancer genetics and haematology before moving into the genetics of eye disease. He is currently head of the Ocular Genetics Unit at the Centre for Eye Research (CERA) and Professorial Fellow in Ophthalmology, Department of Surgery at the University of Melbourne. His research interests include investigating genetic causes of common eye diseases and shared disease mechanisms with a goal of translating these into clinical practice. He has a particular interest in identifying novel gene pathways involved in response to drug treatment, identifying novel genetic associations with disease, exploring the role of copy number and epigenetics in disease, development of algorithms using machine learning to identify individuals likely to progress and develop disease, as well as personalising treatment options for patients. He is a current recipient of an NHMRC Senior Research Fellowship. He has published over 150 journal articles in top ranked journals including Nature Genetics, Nature Communications and Lancet and has established an expansive network of both national and international collaborations. In particular he is actively involved in international consortia for age related macular degeneration and myopia and co-chairs working groups in both of these consortia and is Vice President of the Asian Eye Genetics Consortium.

Hudson Translation Workshop, 21 July


Research Week - Grant Writing Workshop for ECRs, 15 and 19 August

As part of Research Week 2016, the Faculty Research Office will be running two workshops for Early Career Researchers facilitated by the GrantEd Group.

Note: This opportunity is only open to current Monash staff members.  Adjunct staff and PhD students are ineligible.

The GrantEd Group has worked with a number of different faculties across Monash University and have assisted researcher to write winning grant applications for NHMRC Career Development Fellowships, Project Grants and ARC Discovery and Linkage Schemes.

Through their previous experience the GrantEd Group find on occasion that researchers:
· neglect to consider the audience they are writing for
· write from a narrow focus
· struggle to adequately address specific sections of grants applications.
The workshop will bring together two key elements of successful grant writing; planning research for impact and telling the story of track record.

The Faculty will be running two sessions of this workshop in Research Week;
· Monday 15th August from 8:45am - 1:00pm
· Friday 19th August from 8:45am - 1:00pm
Staff who are planning to write a grant as CIA or a Fellowship application in 2017 should request to attend.

The workshop will be limited to a maximum of 25 participants per session.  Monash staff who are Early Career Researchers will be allocated places on a first come, first served basis.  



Please contact Tania Wilmann at the Faculty Research Office (medicine.research@monash.edu) should you have any questions.

ECR industry engagement luncheon, 17 August

You are invited to attend a luncheon to hear Denise Goldsworthy's views on the nexus between industrial and research sectors.

This luncheon is targeted primarily at late-stage early career researchers in the STEM disciplines seeking to learn more about opportunities in other sectors. 

Denise is the principal of Alternate Futures, a firm which works at the confluence of research organisations, tech start-ups and industry. Professor Ian Smith will lead a discussion after lunch with guests. Guests will also have opportunities to network with like-minded colleagues from cognate faculties.

Luncheon registration page and further details:

for further info contact Sam Kovacevic.

Disestablishment of Research Information Services (RIS)

Implementation of myResearch and the establishment of the Research Outputs Collection Service (ROCS) present significant opportunities for Monash to drive business improvement and enable better support for Monash researchers.

The University has endorsed a change to the organisational structure, roles and responsibilities of those currently performing research data collection, information management and research reporting at the University.

The myResearch Support service will provide support for all business and technical queries for myResearch users from 12 July. The service will resolve queries or will refer them to the relevant teams or faculty. This team will be led by Dr Fiona Neilson in the Office of the Provost and Senior Vice-President.

Data governance in myResearch systems is being managed by the Research Services Transformation team, led by Dr Fiona Neilson. This team is also responsible for managing Research Professional.

The Research Reporting Team and the Research Outputs Collection Service now report to Professor Kim Langfield-Smith, the Vice-Provost (Academic Performance).

As a result, the Research Information Services (RIS) team in the Monash Research Office (MRO) has ceased its operation, effective 30 June 2016. 

Transition arrangements

The RIS email account (risservice@monash.edu) and the RIS general phone number (59240) will remain active until 8 July 2016. After this date, specific business queries should be directed to the relevant MRO team.

Please submit any queries or service requests to myresearch@monash.edu as of now.

From 8 July 2016, Remedy (RIS ‘Log a Job’ Form via Service Desk Online) should no longer be used to submit jobs to RIS.  Any jobs/tasks sitting in the queue will be addressed and appropriately routed to the relevant team for resolution.

When myResearch goes live on 12 July 2016, details of the new Support service will be circulated.

HCF Research Foundation EOI Open: Applications due 29 July 2016

The HCF Research Foundation is seeking Expressions of Interest (EOI) from research teams interested in funding for health services research beginning in 2016 that will drive improvements in the quality, safety, appropriateness and cost effectiveness of health care in Australia. 

Preference will be given to EOI’s that address the following topics:

ARC Linkage Projects Continuous Round 2016 (1 July - 22 Dec, 2016) - Now Open in RMS

The ARC has opened their Continuous Linkage Projects 2016 scheme for submissions in RMS​.​ 

Please find links to the relevant ARC web pages below:

Key Dates
  • Release of Funding Rules: 10 September 2015
  • Proposals Open: 1 July 2016
  • Request Not to Assess Close: Two weeks before proposal submission date
  • Proposals Close: 22 December 2016
  • Rejoinders: Approximately eight weeks from the proposal submission date
  • Announcement: Approximately six months from the proposal submission date
The MRO Linkage Projects website will be updated soon with templates and the certification form to assist you with your application.


Please email all enquiries to mro-arc@monash.edu

Edward Mallinckrodt, Jr. Foundation Grants for Life Sciences Research

There is a posting on Trialect  soliciting applications for Edward Mallinckrodt, Jr. Foundation Grants for Life Sciences Research. The mission of the Foundation is to support early stage investigators engaged in basic biomedical research that has the potential to significantly advance the understanding, diagnosis or treatment of disease. Investigators from the US are eligible to apply.  The details are available at:  The Edward Mallinckrodt, Jr. Foundation Grants
The closing date for applications is 1 August 2016.

Please direct queries to the MRO Medical & Health Sciences Team (mhs@monash.edu).


Fulbright Specialist Grants for Australian Universities - Applications Open

The Australian-American Fulbright Commission is calling for applications to the Fulbright Specialist Program.

At least 6 grants are on offer, to bring U.S. Specialists for up to 6 weeks, to share expertise at Australian universities, and to build collaborative linkages with U.S. faculty and professionals on curriculum and faculty development, institutional planning and other activities.
  • The grants cover an economy class return international air travel to Australia for the U.S. Specialist
  • Additionally, the grants provide Specialists with an honorarium of US$200 for each day they stayed in Australia
  • Australian host institutions must cost-share by covering accommodation, meals and in-country or intra-region travel
  • Joint proposals by several Australian institutions, or an Australian and a partner university in the East Asia Pacific region are encouraged
Please see web link to learn more about, or apply for a Fulbright Specialist Program Grant.

Applications close 30 September 2016.

Grant Opportunities Reminder - Grand Challenges and Gates Foundation Fellow Program

This is a reminder that application deadlines are approaching for several Grand Challenges and related grant opportunities and the Gates Foundation Fellow program. Please see below for details.

1) The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation aims to develop two new forms of dietary assessment technologies, based on image capture and, possibly, image recognition. The application deadline is 
July 22, 2016. Please click here for details.

2) Grand Challenges Canada’s Saving Brains initiative seeks to fund bold ideas for products, services and implementation models that protect and nurture early brain development in a sustainable manner. Through this Request For Proposals, Saving Brains will support applications for seed funding to develop and validate these bold ideas. The application deadline is 
July 29, 2016. Please click here for details.

3) Grand Challenges Canada seeks bold ideas with big impact from the best and brightest talent, both in low- and middle-income countries and in Canada, to use scientific/technical, social and business innovation to address reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health, to save and improve lives in low- and middle-income countries. The application deadline is July 19, 2016. Please click here for details.

4)100&Change is a MacArthur Foundation competition for a $100 million grant to fund a single proposal that will make measurable progress toward solving a significant problem. Proposals focused on any critical issue are welcome. The deadline to register the applicant organization is 
September 2, 2016. Please click here for details.

Further details are available at http://gcgh.grandchallenges.org.


Yulgilbar Post-Doctoral Researcher Excellence Awards 2016-17 - CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

The Yulgilbar Alzheimer’s Research Program was established under the umbrella of The Yulgilbar Foundation in 2014, and supports new, exciting research initiatives that define causes and cures for Alzheimer disease.

The Foundation will award five grants of $30,000 each in 2016-2017 to post-doctoral researchers who are working on Alzheimer’s disease.

The Foundation wishes to support new approaches to delaying the onset of the disease, or developing new approaches to therapy.

The grants will be awarded to young investigators:

· who are between two and six years post-doctoral
· who are Australian citizens
· the key criteria for award will be the combination of originality and feasibility of the proposal, its relevance to Alzheimer’s disease, and
· the proven excellence of the candidate.


The purpose of the one-off award of $30,000 is to enable the researcher to improve his or her ability to carry out exciting research: it could be to initiate an ambitious research project by facilitating collaboration, to present data at national and international meetings, to purchase reagents, time on expensive equipment, or to purchase a researcher (such as a UROP student).  The awardees will be expected to attend a meeting where they present the results from their award.

Applications should be sent electronically to Helen  Morris, Secretary YARP by 1 August 2016, and should include a full CV of the applicant, a description of the research project and its relevance to Alzheimer’s disease (one page), and a case for the use of the funding (one page).  Both basic scientists and clinical scientists are invited to apply, from any university, institute or hospital in Australia.

The applications will be assessed by the research advisory panel of the Yulgilbar Foundation, and applicants will be told the outcomes by 1 October 2016, when the awards will be announced.

Applications should be sent electronically by 1 August 2016. For grant guidelines and further information, please email Helen Morris (helen@helenmorris.net).

2016 Children's Cancer Foundation Clinical Research Fellowship - Applications Now Open

The Victorian Cancer Agency, in partnership with the Children's Cancer Foundation, is launching the Children's Cancer Foundation Clinical Research Fellowship. 

This Fellowship aims to strengthen and support children's clinical cancer research and will be awarded through the 2016 Victorian Cancer Agency Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme. All applications focusing on children’s cancer submitted through the 2016 Victorian Cancer Agency Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme will be considered for the Children's Cancer Foundation Clinical Research Fellowship.

Applications for the 2016 Victorian Cancer Agency Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme close at 2pm on 2 August 2016.

More information on the Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme can be found at: http://victoriancanceragency.org.au/index.php/current-funding-schemes/clinical-research-fellowships 

2016 Children's Cancer Foundation Clinical Research Fellowship - Now Open

The Victorian Cancer Agency, in partnership with the Children's Cancer Foundation, is launching the Children's Cancer Foundation Clinical Research Fellowship.

This Fellowship aims to strengthen and support children's clinical cancer research and will be awarded through the 2016 Victorian Cancer Agency Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme. All applications focusing on children’s cancer submitted through the 2016 Victorian Cancer Agency Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme will be considered for the Children's Cancer Foundation Clinical Research Fellowship.

Applications for the 2016 Victorian Cancer Agency Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme close at 2pm on 2 August 2016.

More information on the Clinical Research Fellowship Scheme can be found on our website at:
http://victoriancanceragency.org.au/index.php/current-funding-schemes/clinical-research-fellowships

2017 Australia-Harvard Fellowship Awards Program - CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

Australia-Harvard Fellowship is an initiative of the Harvard Club of Australia Foundation, a long-standing nationwide philanthropic organisation based in Sydney. It promotes learned exchange between Harvard University and Australia, and reinforces existing academic networks at mid-career and senior levels.

Begun in 2004, the A-HF program has already granted some 60 Fellowships derived from the Foundation’s contribution of more than a million dollars.  The Fellowships are recognised as prestigious awards with substantial impacts on scientific discovery and career advancement.

The Australia-Harvard Fellowships are aimed at innovators who are normally based at Harvard and have a persuasive plan to collaborate with Australia’s best bioscience researchers and educators. The award also supports Australian researchers who wish later to follow up such joint initiatives at Harvard.

A Fellowship takes the form of a donation to a qualified Australian institution. It covers the cost of travel and subsistence, allowing an Australian researcher to bring a Harvard counterpart to this country for lengthy scientific collaboration. Fellowships are awarded annually and applications open in April of the preceding year and close in September. 

The closing date for 2017 Australia-Harvard Fellowships is 12 September 2016, and successful applicants will be advised before the end of December 2016.

For further information, please refer to the attached flyer here or visit http://www.harvardclub.org.au/australia-harvard-fellowships/

Type 1 Diabetes Clinical Research Network's Innovation Award

JDRF is pleased to announce that the Australian Type 1 Diabetes Clinical Research Network’s Innovation Award is open for applications.

Innovation Award
This Request for Applications (RFA) for the Innovation Award is open to the best and brightest researchers with innovative ideas that have the potential to improve the lives of people with type 1 diabetes, regardless of whether you are currently in the field of type 1 diabetes research or completely external to it. We are seeking innovative proposals describing cutting-edge innovation falling outside current type 1 diabetes research paradigms supported by collaborative teams.

This award provides project funding of up to $1.5M for a period of two to three years.

Apply
This first round of application is open to Letters of Intent (LOI) and will be reviewed by an independent panel of experts. Only shortlisted applicants will be invited to apply for full submission.

Please reference the RFA for more information.

Applications must be submitted via RMS360, our online grants management system. For information on how to register on RMS360and complete the online application, please refer to our User Guide. Please do not use Internet Explorer – only use Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox when accessing RMS360.

Important dates and deadlines

LOI application opens
LOI application deadline
Invitation to full submission
Full submission deadline**
Interviews
Notification to applicants
15 April 2016
22 July 2016 - 17:00 AEST
31 August 2016
26 October 2016 - 17:00 AEDT
6-7 December 2016
January 2017

**Applicants must note that the Research Office of each Administering Organisation is required to certify to JDRF all “full submission” applications in RMS360 and may have an internal closing time which precedes this deadline.

We strongly encourage all researchers who are considering submitting an LOI to contact us prior to application.

Help and support
For any further information, please contact Julia Warning via email or phone +61 2 9020 6105.
For RMS360 assistance, please contact Amy Brown via email or phone +61 2 9020 6139.

JDRF and the T1DCRN
JDRF is the leading global organisation funding research into autoimmune type 1 diabetes. The T1DCRN is an innovative clinical research program led by JDRF Australia, which brings together researchers, patients, industry and international networks to share a strong focus on patient benefit. The T1DCRN is supported by the Australian Government through the Special Research Initiative for Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes, a $35 million grant funded by the Australian Research Council. The T1DCRN is dedicated to positively impacting the life of people with type 1 diabetes through accelerating clinical research for the cure, treatment and prevention of type 1 diabetes.

2016 Research Australia Health & Medical Research Awards - CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

Research Australia is calling for your nominations for the 2016 Research Australia Awards, to celebrate and recognise the achievements of you, your colleagues, your collaborators – anyone who has made a difference in Australia’s health and medical research sector.

These Awards are an opportunity to shine a light on those who are working hard within our sector, who are making incredible discoveries and advancements, and who have tirelessly advocated and supported health and medical research.

Research Australia Award recipients can be individuals, teams or organisations that have dedicated themselves to improving outcomes for all Australians, be it through their own research, or through their support of research.

There are seven Research Australia Awards to be presented this year, including a new award in Data Innovation. 

The categories for the 2016 Research Australia Awards are:

Monash Animal Research Ethics Update – June 2016

Read latest newsletter here.

Contents:
1.    Animal Ethics Information Sessions
2.    On-Line Animal Ethics Applications – Ethical Research Management,
Infonetica
3.    2015 Annual Reporting Overview
4.    Who can submit an Animal Ethics Application?
5.    Notification of Fieldwork
6.    Monitoring Sheets & Incident Reports
7.    Reminders for applications, amendments & scavenging
8.    ANZCCART Conference
9.    Animal Ethics Regulations, Guidelines, Codes, Training & Information

Previous Animal Research Ethics Updates:

Mindfulness update

Latest updates from Southern Synergy, Mindfulness program. Read newsletter here.

Lifetime direct costs of stroke for indigenous patients adjusted for comorbidities

Dominique Cadilhac et al. published in Neurology.

Read article here.

The immunological landscape in necrotising enterocolitis

Claudia Nold et al. published in Expert reviews in molecular medicine.

Read article here.

Treatment of Osteoporosis in Australian Residential Aged Care Facilities: Update on Consensus Recommendations for Fracture Prevention.

Peter Ebeling et al. published in the Journal of the American Medical Directors Association.

Read article here.

A cross-syndrome evaluation of a new attention rating scale: The Scale of Attention in Intellectual Disability

Kylie Gray et al. published in Research in Developmental Disabilities.

Read article here.

Motoric Cognitive Risk Syndrome and Falls Risk: A Multi-Center Study

Velandai Srikanth et al. published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

Read article here.

Feasibility Of Exercise Stress Echocardiography For Cardiac Risk Assessment In Chronic Kidney Disease Patients Prior To Renal Transplantation.

Ian Meredith et al. published in Clinical Transplantation.

Read article here.

Uterine fibroids


Beverley Vollenhoven et al. published in Nature Reviews. Disease Primers.

Read article here.

Treatment of Osteoporosis in Australian Residential Aged Care Facilities: Update on Consensus Recommendations for Fracture Prevention

Peter Ebeling et al. published in the Journal of Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine.

Read article here.

Community integration questionnaire: Outcomes of people with traumatic brain injury and high support needs compared with multiple matched controls

Joanne Enticott et al. published in Brain Injury.

Read article here.