Understanding And Influencing Physical Activity To Improve Population Health
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$4,668,376.00
Summary
Three of Australia's leading researchers on physical activity and population health will use new NHMRC program grant funding to consolidate and extend their already internationally-recognised studies. Doing regular physical activity is very important for maintaining good health. It helps to prevent weight gain, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and breast and colon cancer. Unfortunately, most Australian adults are not active enough for health benefits. Rates of overweight and obesity are increasing ....Three of Australia's leading researchers on physical activity and population health will use new NHMRC program grant funding to consolidate and extend their already internationally-recognised studies. Doing regular physical activity is very important for maintaining good health. It helps to prevent weight gain, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and breast and colon cancer. Unfortunately, most Australian adults are not active enough for health benefits. Rates of overweight and obesity are increasing rapidly; more than 50% of Australian adults are above the healthy weight range. Rates of type 2 diabetes have doubled in the past 20 years. New ideas and practical tools are therefore needed to tackle these serious ‘diseases of inactivity’. To this end, Professors Neville Owen, Adrian Bauman and Wendy Brown will bring together innovative and practically useful scientific approaches drawn from psychology, epidemiology and exercise physiology. The approach is interdisciplinary – it combines theories and methods from their individual disciplines in an innovative manner, within a public health framework. Their research to date has developed better methods for measuring people’s exercise habits and has provided new insights into how personal, social and environmental circumstances can make people less active. They have also shown how to design and deliver wide-reaching programs for different social groups and evaluated their effectiveness. Their new research program will build on and significantly extend these ideas and approaches into new areas.For example, they will develop new measures of incidental physical activity and sedentary behaviour and will develop and test new, complex community interventions.Their new program will involve in-depth study of some of the most challenging researchproblems in an important and under-researched area of public health. They will further combine their disciplines and the skills of their research team in new, creative and practical ways, to answer important research questions about physical activity and population health. These ideas and approaches will be used to identify practical ways to help more people to be more physically active.Read moreRead less
Novel Strategies For Improving Respiratory Support And Outcomes For Very Preterm Babies
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$8,381,820.00
Summary
Very premature birth is the commonest cause of illness and death in newborn babies, making it one of the most serious and costly issues in perinatal medicine. The major problem suffered by very premature babies is lung immaturity and its associated harmful effects on brain development. Most very premature babies require resuscitation followed by ventilatory support,often for several weeks. This is extremely expensive and places an enormous financial burden on health care systems. Furthermore, it ....Very premature birth is the commonest cause of illness and death in newborn babies, making it one of the most serious and costly issues in perinatal medicine. The major problem suffered by very premature babies is lung immaturity and its associated harmful effects on brain development. Most very premature babies require resuscitation followed by ventilatory support,often for several weeks. This is extremely expensive and places an enormous financial burden on health care systems. Furthermore, it increases the risks of respiratory illnesses, including bronchopulmonary dysplasia and chronic lung disease which can impair breathing and increase susceptibility to respiratory disease such as asthma later in life. The overall aim of this program is to improve outcomes for very premature babies, including less lung injury, better respiratory health and shorter stays in hospitals. In order to reduce the health burden caused by very premature birth on the community we need to know more about how it alters the normal development of the lungs in the newborn period and into later life. In particular, we need to understand the cellular and molecular processes involved in lung development so that we can identify gene networks and developmental processes that are disrupted by severe premature birth. Such knowledge is necessary to provide a more rational, scientific basis for managing and treating the alterations in lung structure and function caused by premature birth. We also need to develop better ways of resuscitating and ventilating these infants so that lung injury is minimized.The research team is led by two neonatologists and three biomedical research scientists with a proven record of effective collaboration. This team is internationally unique in that it includes practicing neonatologists, respiratory physiologists and molecular biologists who have collaborated together productively and are regarded as world leaders in their respective fields. New talents have been brought into the team to provide expertise in pulmonary stem cell biology, the design of novel steroid drugs, and clinical follow-up. Together, this team has the potential (a) to greatly enhance the understanding of the impact of very premature birth on the developing lung, (b) to improve resuscitation and ventilation techniques, and (c) to translate the new knowledge into clinical practice to improve the outcome for prematurely born babies. Using well characterized animal models we will determine gene networks involved in fetal lung development and how these are altered by premature birth. The successful transition from fetal to postnatal life is critical for survival at birth but more information is needed. Using newborn lambs and rabbits, we will trial novel strategies for enhancing the transformation of the immaturelung into an effective gas exchange organ at birth. New data on lung aeratioRead moreRead less
Early Developmental Pathways Linking Health, Disability, Education, Welfare And Justice
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,440,204.00
Summary
This research will use information from birth, death and medical records for all births in WA from 1980 linked to records of disability, education, justice and welfare, to map, for the first time in Australia, the pathways to good and poor outcomes over a child’s lifetime. This will bring a new focus on to how early development affects health and participation in society and will identify new ways to improve the lives of all children, regardless of their social circumstances.
Control Of Cell Proliferation And Differentiation In Breast And Prostate Cancer
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$5,043,011.00
Summary
Breast and prostate cancer are the most commonly diagnosed cancers in women and men respectively, together accounting for >25% of all newly diagnosed cancers in Australia and other developed countries. Although significant improvements in the management of these cancers have occurred in the past 20 years further research is needed to better understand the molecular mechanisms of disease development and progression. Such research is critical to the better management and ultimate control of the ....Breast and prostate cancer are the most commonly diagnosed cancers in women and men respectively, together accounting for >25% of all newly diagnosed cancers in Australia and other developed countries. Although significant improvements in the management of these cancers have occurred in the past 20 years further research is needed to better understand the molecular mechanisms of disease development and progression. Such research is critical to the better management and ultimate control of these diseases through better treatments and prevention. A multidisciplinary team of cancer researchers at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, with a 10 year track record of discovery and application of their research into breast and prostate cancer, will employ state-of-the-art research tools to identify new molecules and molecular pathways involved in these diseases. This new information will facilitate the improved management of these cancers through improved assessment of disease progression at the time of diagnosis and the development of new drugs and strategies for treatment and prevention.Read moreRead less
Periconceptual Foundations For A Healthy Start To Life.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$11,022,802.00
Summary
Preconception and early pregnancy is a critical time for a women's health and that of her future child. New research suggests that a woman's genetic potential, her lifestyle and the physical and socioeconomic environment in which she lives, and her biological and social relationship with her male partner, all impact on the long term health of her baby. Abnormal events around the time of conception and in early pregnancy can predispose a newborn to later occurrence, in adult life, of conditions i ....Preconception and early pregnancy is a critical time for a women's health and that of her future child. New research suggests that a woman's genetic potential, her lifestyle and the physical and socioeconomic environment in which she lives, and her biological and social relationship with her male partner, all impact on the long term health of her baby. Abnormal events around the time of conception and in early pregnancy can predispose a newborn to later occurrence, in adult life, of conditions including heart disease, diabetes, obesity and stroke. These adverse events originate in the way that eggs and sperm develop, the uterus is prepared for implantation, the attachment of the early embryo to the lining of the uterus and subsequent growth of the placenta. This Program will study the early life events that promote or limit development of a baby's true potential for successful and healthy life. A better understanding of how lifestyle and environment interact with genes and biology to facilitate optimal growth of the fetus will underpin new preventative measures and therapeutic treatments for infertility, miscarriage and other reproductive disorders. The knowledge gained will inform health policy and clinical practise to improve reproductive health in all Australian women and promote healthy development in all Australian children. The team of researchers is a world-class group of clinicians, scientists and epidemiologists who have made major contributions to our understanding of this area. This team will interface with clinics and hospitals that engage with women prior to and during pregnancy, while having the influence to alter clinical and health practices as well as public health policies. The team will utilize the latest, most technologically advanced laboratory methods and clinical skills, including gene profiling, imaging of early pregnancy, randomised clinical trials and access to the best epidemiological and statistical assessments.Read moreRead less
Posttraumatic Mental Health: Advancing Understanding Of Diagnosis, Treatment And Mechanisms
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$7,590,920.00
Summary
Psychological disorders following exposure to trauma account for a significant proportion of the burden of disease in terms of personal suffering, decreased productivity, occupational dysfunction, and demands on health services. This project will enhance the nation's capacity to reduce psychological problems after trauma. This project will consolidate a critical mass of Australia's leading trauma researchers that will ensure that Australia retains its leading edge in posttraumatic research.
Sexually Transmitted Infections: Causes, Consequences And Interventions
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$9,784,331.00
Summary
Sexually transmitted infections are important causes of serious illness and death in Australia and overseas with high or rising rates of treatable or preventable diseases in a number of populations, Particularly affected in Australia are young people, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, and homosexual men. We will bring together a new team of researchers to discover new information about how to prevent and manage these infections.
Determinants Of Child Health And Development: Populations, Partnerships, Pathways And Prevention
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$8,214,333.00
Summary
There are considerable challenges to the study of complex health and developmental problems in children and young people. Despite increasing prosperity in Australia, many of these problems are not abating and some appear to be increasing. These include low birthweight, behavioural and mental health problems, autism, obesity and, in Indigenous children, infections. This Program proposes investigating these problems with a view to prevention, thus meeting the national research priority of Promotin ....There are considerable challenges to the study of complex health and developmental problems in children and young people. Despite increasing prosperity in Australia, many of these problems are not abating and some appear to be increasing. These include low birthweight, behavioural and mental health problems, autism, obesity and, in Indigenous children, infections. This Program proposes investigating these problems with a view to prevention, thus meeting the national research priority of Promoting and Maintaining Good Health, particularly _a healthy start to life� and _preventive health care�. The Program is unique in that it brings together a multi-disciplinary team of researchers of international repute to investigate these complex issues. The research team comprises epidemiologists, clinicians, developmental psychologists, biostatisticians, sociologists and other social scientists. This team has a proven track record in producing research outcomes that have translated into innovative health policy and practice in areas as diverse as: - the use of folic acid in spina bifida prevention - understanding cerebral palsies - suicide prevention and mental health in children and young people - Aboriginal child health and development - intellectual disabilities including Rett syndrome and autism - in vitro fertilisation and birth defects. The factors influencing how children develop into young adults include genetic inheritance, nutrition and growth, and family, socioeconomic and environmental conditions. This work demands new ways of measuring and analysing these factors in populations of children and their families. Western Australia is one of only three sites in the world to have comprehensive linked health data on the whole of its population of children and their families. This Program comprises five overlapping themes of research planned around these unique population databases. The five themes are: - social, economic and psychological influences on child health and development - many paths to poor health are linked to social disadvantage. Examining these issues may explain why some childhood conditions are worsening or not improving - pathways to wellbeing, resilience and developmental disorders, including intellectual disability, autism, birth defects and cerebral palsy - nutrition and growth, particularly as it relates to low birthweight, childhood obesity and mental health - infectious disease, its causes and its influence on lifelong health problems and disabilities - Aboriginal health _ whilst spanning each of the research themes above, it presents its own unique challenges and requires it�s own unique solutions. This Program will investigate how children develop into young adults and will examine the influence of their families, nutrition and growth and socioeconomic and environmental conditions. It will develop new ways of measuring and analysRead moreRead less
Patient Safety: Enabling And Supporting Change For A Safer And More Effective Health System
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$8,878,409.00
Summary
Internationally, patient safety is a growing concern. Patient harm occurs in 10% of hospital admissions. A million adverse events occur in general practice each year in Australia. Overseas data reports that patients receive recommended care only 50% of the time. We will significantly advance this work by investigating how and why this ccurs, with a focus on the roles of teamwork, safe medication use and the application of information technology to support improved decision-making.