Macquarie University’s world class researchers have been awarded several grants from Australian and international Trusts and Foundation in 2023 to support innovative, and unique research projects from across the University.
Minderoo Foundation (Australia)
$1,000,000 over 3.5 years
‘‘Control of cane toads by generic manipulation"‘
Led by Professor Rick Shine, School of Natural Sciences, Dr Maciej Maselko and Dr Anthony Waddle, Applied Biosciences.
Toad tadpole eating eggs. Photo by Michael Crossland.
Through this project, the researchers will develop an exciting new approach to controlling cane toads. The new method will exploit the emerging power of genetic techniques to knock out genes necessary for toad tadpoles to transform into land-living toads, thereby interrupting the toad’s life cycle.
Ian Potter Foundation (Australia)
$600,000 over 5 years
‘‘Little Ears – Aboriginal Programs for Hearing and EAR screening programs (LEAP – HEAR)’
Led by Professor Catherine McMahon, Department of Linguistics
Middle ear disease (otitis media, OM) is highly prevalent among Aboriginal children, with the incidence being three times of that among non-Indigenous children. OM occurs earlier and lasts longer in Aboriginal than in non-Indigenous children, disrupting critical periods of literacy and language development. This project aims to address key gaps in the service system for Aboriginal children in NSW experiencing OM and hearing loss. The research team will work in partnership with the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services and key hearing service providers to build and evaluate their capacity to deliver culturally safe ear and hearing screening programs for Aboriginal children, and to co-design an effective, scalable model for national roll-out.
WIRES (Australia)
$199,321 over 2 years
‘Bacterial pathogens and antibiotic resistance in juvenile Grey Headed Flying Foxes: Implications for flying fox health and in-care management’.
Led by Professor Michelle Power, School of Natural Sciences
Grey headed flying foxes (GHFF) are facing increasing threats including, heat-stress, bushfires and food shortages, resulting in thousands of GHFF pups entering care. GHFF carry numerous bacterial species that can cause disease in flying foxes. Many of these pathogenic bacteria are also resistant to commonly prescribed antibiotics. Concerningly, these bacteria are often present at very high levels in GHFF pups. Increasing environmental threats combined with high levels of bacterial pathogens and antibiotic resistance, poses a significant threat to the successful treatment and rehabilitation of GHFF pups in-care. This project will identify bacterial disease and transmission risks, and contribute to improved management practices and optimal outcomes for GHFF pups in-care.
Lipedema Foundation (US)
$180,000 over 1 year
‘Utilizing indocyanine green lymphography (ICG) and bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) to understand lipedema diagnosis in comparison to lymphedema and obesity’
Led by Associate Professor Louise Koelmeyer
Lipedema is a health condition usually in the lower body and almost exclusively experienced by women. Due to a current lack in diagnostic clarity, it is often misdiagnosed as lymphedema or obesity. The ALERT (Australian Lymphoedema Education, Research and Treatment) Program at Macquarie University has designed a new method of diagnosis using imagery and non-invasive analysis techniques. Through the development phase of this technique, the ALERT multidisciplinary clinics have collected clinical data that will now be analysed enabling them to translate the results into recommendations for broad clinical practice. With thanks to the support from the Lipedema Foundation, we will be one step closer to establishing an accessible and accurate diagnostic test for lipedema, leading to better health care and outcomes for millions of women around the world.
Macquarie University NSW 2109