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Tuesday 23 February 2016

Melbourne to host World Congress of Nephrology 2019

Professor Peter Kerr
Melbourne has won the bid to host the International Society of Nephrology’s biennial World Congress of Nephrology (WCN), the premiere event in nephrology education and research.

Led by Professor Peter Kerr, Monash University and recently appointed Head of Rural Health at Monash University Professor Robyn Langham, a group of Melbourne nephrologists bid for the 2019 congress.

“In the same way as cities bid to host the Olympics or World Cup, Melbourne competed against other Australian and international cities to host this high profile event,” said Professor Kerr, who is also Director of Nephrology at Monash Health and Editor in Chief of Nephrology.

Last held in Australia (in Sydney) in 1998, recent congresses have been in Cape Town, Hong Kong and Vancouver with up to 6000 conference participants.

“In choosing Melbourne, the International Society ofNephrology (ISN) cited the city’s excellent facilities, well located hotels and public transport, along with the high profile of Australian nephrology clinical practice, education and research.”

“Australian nephrology has always held a prominent position internationally and this congress will further cement our place,” added Professor Kerr.

“Over the next 3 years we intend to put together a strong program, not only showcasing nephrology but also Melbourne.”

While a forum to advance physician education and support the development of clinical research into kidney disease, the WCN is also an ideal opportunity to increase public awareness of kidney health.


CID Weekly Seminar TODAY 12pm

12:00 - 1:00pm, Seminar Room 1, Level 2, TRF Building

Role of CD53 in leukocyte trafficking
presented by Ms Louisa Yeung, Postgraduate Student, CID
Under an inflammatory setting, immune cells require the ability to migrate from the blood to sites of infection in order to mount an immune response. Aberrant leukocyte migration is a major contributor to the development of inflammatory and autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis. Here, cellular infiltrates, result in a microenvironment rich in inflammatory cytokines.  Leukocyte recruitment requires the actions of adhesion molecules and their associated ligands. Tetraspanins are a superfamily of transmembrane proteins that promote the formation of association networks known as tetraspanin-enriched microdomains (TEMs), in which molecules such as leukocyte integrins form associations with a range of other proteins.  The leukocyte-expressed tetraspanin CD53 has recently been identified as a potential regulator of leukocyte recruitment. Though the mechanism by which CD53 accomplishes this remains unknown, unpublished data suggest that it may occur through the regulation of L-selectin expression. In the scope of inflammation and disease, L-selectin contributes to leukocyte tethering and rolling during the initial steps of recruitment, and is a fundamental molecule involved during lymphocyte homing. Thus, failure of adhesion molecule function and/or associated downstream signalling at this phase in the recruitment cascade may restrict the leukocyte recruitment response.
and
Regulatory T cell interactions with the vascular endothelium
presented by Prof Michael Hickey, NHMRC Senior Research Fellow, CID
Michael Hickey is an NHMRC Senior Research Fellow, and head of the leukocyte trafficking group in the CID.  Regulatory T cell (Treg) trafficking to inflamed sites in the periphery is a critical element in the capacity of regulatory T cells to control inflammation. For Tregs to enter sites of inflammation from the circulation, they must undergo a sequence of interactions in the microvasculature of the target tissue. This presentation will describe research performed over the last few years using Treg reporter mice and intravital microscopy, examining the interactions between Tregs and the inflamed microvascular endothelium in the skin, in a model of T cell-dependent skin inflammation.

A light lunch is served prior to the seminar at 11:45am in the seminar room foyer, level 2, TRF Building.


Further information available from CID Weekly Seminar Series website [http://www.med.monash.edu.au/scs/medicine/cid/seminar-series.html]

Bioethics theory and practice seminar this week- All are welcome!

All are welcome to attend the Bioethics Theory and Practice Seminars at no cost. Details:
  • Dates : 22-26 Feb
  • Time : 9am-3pm
  • Venue: Level 2, Seminar Room (2 or 3), TRF Building, MonashHealth Translational Precinct
  • Enquiries: Dr Peter Douglas, Email peter.douglas@monash.edu
Link: www.med.monash.edu.au/cecs/education/translational/timetable-apr6001.html



Date & Time
Venue
Topic
Mon 22 Feb
9-3PM
Level 2 Seminar Room 3,
MHTP TRF Building
09:00-09:30 Introduction to bioethics theory & practice- Peter Douglas
09:30-10:50 Utilitarianism - Ryan Tonkens
10:50-11:20 BREAK
11:20-12:40 Virtue ethics - Justin Oakley
12:40-13:40 LUNCH
13:40-15:00 Kantian ethics - Catherine Mills
Tue 23 Feb
9-3PM
Level 2 Seminar Room 2,
MHTP TRF Building
09:00-10:30 Four-principle approach to biomedical ethics - Peter Douglas
10:30-11:00 BREAK
11:00-12:30 Doctor-patient relationships - Justin Oakley
12:30-13:30 LUNCH
13:30-15:00 Clinical ethics - Clare Delany
Wed 24 Feb
9-3PM
Level 2 Seminar Room 3,
MHTP TRF Building
09:00-10:30 Ethical issues at the beginning of life - Catherine Mills
10:30-11:00 BREAK
11:00-12:30 Reproductive Ethics - Ryan Tonkens
12:30-13:30 LUNCH
13:30-15:00 Ethical, legal & social implications of genetics - Ryan Tonkens
Thu 25 Feb
9-3PM
Level 2 Seminar Room 3,
MHTP TRF Building
09:00-10:30 Political philosophy & public health ethics - Michael Selgelid
10:30-11:00 BREAK
11:00-1230 Justice & healthcare resource allocation - Rob Sparrow
12:30-13:30 LUNCH
13:30-15:00 Ethical issues at the end of life - Peter Douglas
Fri 26 Feb
9-3PM
Level 2 Seminar Room 3,
MHTP TRF Building
09:00-10:30 Research ethics - Peter Douglas
10:30-11:00 BREAK
11:00-12:30 Dual-Use Research- Michael Selgelid
12:30-13:30 LUNCH
13:30-15:00 Neuro-ethics - Adrian Carter

Rheumatology Grand Rounds: ‘If the CAPS fit’ - a clinical case discussion, 24 Feb

Unit: Rheumatology                      
Presenter: Prof Eric Morand, Dr Melissa Northcott & Dr Ai Li Yeo
Topic: ‘If the CAPS fit’ - a clinical case discussion.
         
Date: WEDNESDAY 24 February 2016
Time: 12.30pm to 1.30pm
Venue: Main Lecture Theatre, Monash Medical Centre, Clayton



Entrepreneurship and Commercialisation Lecture Series (March to May 2016)

Monash University is hosting a professional development course titled "To boldly grow...Entrepreneurship and Commercialisation Series".  

Further information, including registration links, is available in the attached program for Semester 1, 2016.

Dates: Friday 4 March – Friday 20 May (every two weeks)
Time: 1pm – 3pm
Venue: Clayton Campus, Building 46, Exhibition Walk (Rotunda Building), Lecture Theatre R4

Lecturers: Dr Buzz Palmer, Dr Laura Faulconer & Dr Geoff Rogers



6th Australasian Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics Development Meeting, 20-22 April 2016 in Brisbane

VIIN Website Events Calendar contains details of this and other events of interest to the infection and immunity research community: http://viin.org.au/events-calendar/


Flyer with details here

Monday 22 February 2016

International Women's Day luncheon to celebrate women in health, 8 March

Professor Christina Mitchell, Academic Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences is hosting an International Women's Day luncheon to celebrate women in health. 

Women in medicine and science are invited to join and MC Sally Cockburn in celebrating females in the sector whilst enjoying a delicious lunch and hearing from other women working in the field. This is a wonderful opportunity to network with your colleagues and share your experiences and knowledge of the sector. 

Invited speakers include; 
Professor Susan Davis, Professor of Women's Health and NHMRC Principal Research fellow, and
Professor Jayashari Kulkarni, Director, Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre. 

Date: Tuesday 8th March
Time: 12.30 pm Drinks Reception followed by 1.00 pm Lunch
Venue: Level 7, 271 Collins Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000

To learn more about how other women are celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women around the world visit; http://www.internationalwomensday.com/

We hope you can join us in commemorating International Women's Day 2016. 
Places are limited.  Please RSVP directly to Meghan Griffin  by Friday 26th February and also advise any dietary requirements. 

MHP-MHTP Histology node update and Introductory seminar 29 February

We are delighted to announce that the newly established node of Monash Histology Platform (MHP-MHTP Histology node) will commence operations on Tuesday the 1st of March.

We hope to provide significant advancements in Histological services offered, together with access to new equipment, training and on-site professional staff. Ergonomic benches, new microtomes and a Vibratome are just some of the items being introduced.

Centrally positioned space for the MHP-MHTP Histology node (adjacent to existing technology Platforms) has been temporarily allocated to Level 3 of the MHRP building.

As there will be updates in how the MHP-MHTP Histology node is accessed (including booking equipment and requesting Professional Services), we would like to invite you to attend an Introductory seminar and morning tea hosted by the MHP-MHTP Histology node.

Please join us on Monday the 29th of February at 10:30am in Seminar Room 1 of the TRF building H02 for this Introductory seminar. This will be followed by morning tea and an opportunity to meet with Histology staff.

An additional update seminar will also be presented at the end of March to accommodate those that may be unable to attend due to the busy grant writing period.

We look forward to meeting many of you at the morning tea, and further discussing your individual requirements.


MHP-MHTP Histology relocation and closure updates

Please note that Histology Facilities (Level 5 B Block & PHI Level 4 E Block) and DIY access will be closed on Friday 26th February to Monday 29th February (inclusive), for relocation to MHRP Level 3.
All DIY equipment will be unavailable for use from Friday 26th to Monday 29th February.
Samples may still be dropped off at current locations (Hudson Stores & Level 5 Block B) and staff will collect for processing on the above dates. Please log your job on Formsite as per standard procedure (fs8.formsite.com/mimr-phi/histo_job/index).
The MHP-MHTP Histology node will be operational at MHRP L3 from Tuesday 1st March.
Please contact Angela Vais (Angela.Vais@monash.edu) or Camilla Cohen (Camilla.cohen@monash.edu 0407-810274) for further details.

 Thank you for your understanding during this period and we look forward to working with you and providing your research and Histology requirements.

MRO UPDATE: ARC Future Fellowships (FT16) Eligibility Exemptions & FAQ updates

1. Eligibility Exemption Requests open in RMS

We wish to advise that Eligibility Exemption Requests for Future Fellowships 2016 are now open in RMS and close 5pm, 4th March 2016.

Future Fellowship Candidates must submit an Eligibility Exemption Request to determine their eligibility if they do not meet the eligibility requirements outlined in Part B6.3.2 of the Funding Rules for schemes under the Discovery Programme—Future Fellowships. The Eligibility Exemption Instructions to Applicants and FAQs provide details of the types of requests that will be considered for Future Fellowship Eligibility Exemptions.

The Key dates for Eligibility Exemption Requests are:

MRO close for review:  9am, 2nd March 2016
ARC close date:    4th March 2016
2. Updated FAQs

Please note: the Future Fellowships Frequently Asked Questions document and the Cross-scheme Eligibility Frequently Asked Questions document have recently been updated.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation - Grand Challenges Grant Opportunities


The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and its funding partners in the Grand Challenges family of grant programs are inviting innovators to apply for three grant opportunities:
1) Our Grand Challenges Explorations  fosters early-stage discovery research to expand the pipeline of ideas for solving our greatest global health and development challenges. Launched in 2008 with an initial $100 million commitment from the foundation, Grand Challenges Explorations grants have already been awarded to more than 1100 researchers from more than 60 countries.

We are accepting applications on the following six topics until May 11, 2016:



2) Grand Challenges China: New Interventions for Global Health.  This challenge focuses on calls for innovative concepts for safe, effective, affordable and widely utilized interventions, such as vaccines and therapeutics, with the potential to protect against the acquisition, progression or transmission of infectious diseases that disproportionately affect the world’s poorest.  This call is in partnership with the National Natural Science Foundation of China.
Application deadline is March 15, 2016, 8:00 am Beijing time (March 14, 2016, 5pm Seattle time). For a detailed description of this challenge, please visit the Grand Challenges site.

3) Grand Challenges for Development: Saving Lives at Birth.  USAID, the Government of Norway, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Grand Challenges Canada, the U.K.'s Department for International Development (DFID), and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) have joined together to launch Saving Lives at Birth.  The goal of this program is to find the tools and approaches to help mothers and newborns during their most vulnerable hours.

Application deadline is February 29, 2016.

Further information is available at http://www.gatesfoundation.org and at the blog on the first generation of Grand Challenges grants.

MRO UPDATE: ARC LIEF 2017 - NOW OPEN IN RMS

Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) Proposals for funding commencing in 2017 are now open in RMS.
The ARC closing date for submission of Proposals is 5.00pm, Wednesday, 6 April 2016.
Documentation relating to the LIEF scheme, including Frequently Asked Questions and Instructions to Applicants is available on the ARC website.
 
Key Dates:

LE17
MRO close date
ARC close date
Funding Rules available 10 Sept 2015
Open in RMS  Feb 17 2016
Proposal closing date
23 March 2016
5pm 6 April 2016
Request Not to Assess
16 March 2016
5pm 23 March 2016
Rejoinder Process
June 2016
mid-June 2016


myResearch Showcase - 2 March 9:30-10:30am - Invitation

The Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences would like to invite you to the next myResearch showcase on 2 March 2016.

This showcase is open to researchers, academic managers (e.g. Associate Deans, Heads of School/ Department) and professional staff. It provides you with the opportunity to see work in progress and to provide feedback.

There will be a demonstration of the new system Pure, showing the following features:
  • Approval/ rejection of a grant or contract proposal by an approver (e.g. Head of School, Associate Dean Research)
  • Sharing a draft application for peer review
The myResearch Project Team will also share the feedback received from the group of researchers, academic managers and professional staff who have taken part in a guided exploration of these activities in Pure.

The 'proposal' is essentially a replacement of the current MRO cover sheet. 

Date: Wednesday 2 March 2016
Time: 9:30-10:30am
Venue:  Clayton campus
(for specific venue details please register)

Please register

To attend this Showcase, please register here. Once registered, the event will be entered into your Google calendar.


Can't attend in person?

The presentation slides and a recording of the presentations and demo will be made available via the myResearch google site following the event.

If you have any questions about the details in this email, please don't hesitate to ask.


We look forward to seeing you soon.

Lyall Watts Mesothelioma Research Grant - CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

Cancer Council Victoria is calling for applications for the Lyall Watts Mesothelioma Research Grant.

Applications are invited for this special category research grant commencing in July 2016, to support research in Victoria, at both laboratory and clinical levels, into the pathogenesis, prevention, diagnosis or treatment of mesothelioma. Pure epidemiology studies are not eligible for this grant.

Applications are now open and close at 2pm on Thursday 31 March 2016.

The amount of funding on offer is $400,000, which can be expended over 1, 2 or 3 years.

Information about this funding opportunity is available at

Right Ventricular Function in Infants with Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia: Association with Respiratory Sequelae

Arvind Sehgal et al. published in Neonatology.

Read article here.

Pain and its clinical associations in individuals with cystic fibrosis A systematic review

David Armstrong et al. published in Chronic Respiratory Disease.

Read article here.

A Common Variant in the Adaptor Mal Regulates Interferon Gamma Signaling

Jim Harris et al. published in Immunity.

Read article here.

1-Year Outcomes With the Fully Repositionable and Retrievable Lotus Transcatheter Aortic Replacement Valve in 120 High-Risk Surgical Patients With Severe Aortic Stenosis - Results of the REPRISE II Study

Ian Meredith et al. published in JACC Cardiovascular Interventions.

Read article here.

A Polylactide Bioresorbable Scaffold Eluting Everolimus for Treatment of Coronary Stenosis

Ian Meredith et al. published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Read article here.

Assessment, treatment, and prognostic implications of CAD in patients undergoing TAVI

Ian Meredith et al. published in Nature Reviews Cardiology.

Read article here.

0484: The LEADERS FREE Trial: a double blind randomized comparison of a BMS and a polymer-free Drug Coated Stent (DCS) in 2,466 patients at high bleeding risk and treated with one month DAPT only

Ian Meredith et al. published in Archives of Cardiovascular Diseases Supplements

Read article here.

Targeting plasma cells: are we any closer to a panacea for diseases of antibody-secreting cells?

George Grigoriadis et al. published in Immunological Reviews.

Read article here.

Autoantibodies directed to centromere protein F in a patient with BRCA1 gene mutation

Ban-Hock Toh et al. published in BMC research notes.

Read article here.

Clinical outcomes in a high nursing ratio ward setting for children with obstructive sleep apnea at high risk after adenotonsillectomy.

Gillian Nixon et al. published in the International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology.

Read article here.

Autism Spectrum Disorder in the DSM-5: Diagnostic Sensitivity and Specificity in Early Childhood

Bruce Tonge et al published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Read article here.

Cryptococcemia in primary HIV infection.

Tony Korman et al. published in the International Journal of STD & AIDS.

Read article here.

Sleep/ Wake Patterns and Parental Perceptions of Sleep in Children Born Preterm

Sarah Biggs et al. published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

Read article here.

Intrauterine growth restriction: impact on cardiovascular development and function throughout infancy.

Flora Wong et al. published in Pediatric Research.

Read article here.