Innovative collaborations between Mater Researchers and Mater Health and Metro South Health clinicians have received seed funding through the 2024 round of the Translational Research Institute’s (TRI) Leading Innovations through New Collaborations (LINC) research grant program.
Funded by TRI, Metro South Health, Mater Research and Children’s Health Queensland, the LINC scheme offers successful applicants $50,000 over two years to foster new, translational research collaborations between early-mid career academic researchers and clinician researchers that develop novel, collaborative research projects focused on meeting a clinical need, as well as obtaining preliminary proof-of-concept data.
In the 2024 round, three Mater Research teams received LINC grants:
- Dr William McGahan and Dr Michaela Kindlova for their joint Metro South Health/ Mater Research project entitled “Decoding the role of Fibroblast Activation Protein in the Milieu of Pancreatic Cancer: Genomic Insights for Early Detection with FAPI-PET/CT”.
Treatment for pancreatic cancer currently relies on early detection and surgery, with no drug therapies reliably treating the disease. The research team has discovered a promising step towards earlier detection, and they aim to uncover new genetic markers that could become future targets for diagnosis or treatment.
Dr Emi Khoo and Dr Rabina Giri for their joint Mater Health and Mater Research project entitled “Investigating JAK-STAT biomarkers as predictors of treatment response in chronic pouchitis”
More than 75,000 Australians are affected by ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory condition that is difficult to treat. Their study aims to investigate the effect of a new treatment called tofacitinib, with the goal of creating a targeted personalised approach to treating patients.
Associate Professor Lucy Burr and Dr Minh Dao Ngo for their joint Mater Health and Mater Research project entitled “Oxysterols and Oxysterol-sensing receptor as novel therapeutic targets for alleviating inflammation in bronchiectasis”
Bronchiectasis is a chronic lung disease that causes the airways in the lungs to widen and become damaged, resulting in excessive sputum production, recurrent infections and eventually respiratory failure. There are currently no therapies specifically designed for bronchiectasis, and management primarily relies on airway clearance techniques and antibiotics to treat infections. The research team will target inflammatory pathways to identify new treatable targets to develop novel therapies.
Mater Research Executive Director Professor Allison Pettit congratulated the three research teams on their successful seed funding.
“Clinical research collaborations are an incredibly important aspect of research, paving the way for better treatments for patients,” Prof Pettit said.
“I look forward to seeing the outcomes of these projects.”
