Is the cure hiding in the computer?

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Dr William Ritchie

Dr William Ritchie, Research Fellow and Group Head of Bioinformatics

Tonight Dr William Ritchie will tell some of Centenary’s biggest supporters about how fast computing is transforming research at the Institute.

He’s speaking at our 2012 Foundation dinner to a who’s who of Sydney’s business community.

He’ll tell them how a new generation of medical researchers: mathematicians, physicists and engineers are invading research laboratories. They’re hunting through the gigabytes of information produced in the lab and finding patterns: gene sequences connected with certain cancers for example; or DNA sequences that don’t seem to be doing anything. They’re even running virtual experiments – doing in seconds what would take months of laboratory work.

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One large steppe for liver research

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Hard Yak

Hard Yak. From left: Rupert Robey, Centenary's Wil d'Avigdor, Ben Bradshaw and Dimitry Peisakhov

Imagine yourself driving along the Pamir Highway in Tajikistan 4000 m above sea level, or stranded in the Mongolian desert. I certainly can’t, but that’s the point! It’s all part of the Mongol Rally, in which I and three mates are taking part. And besides having a mind-blowingly extreme travel experience, we’ll be raising money for liver research at the Centenary Institute.

G’day, my name is William d’Avigdor and I’m a PhD student supervised by Nicholas Shackel in the Liver Injury and Cancer Laboratory headed by Geoff McCaughan. I study the genetics of the Hepatitis C Virus in humans.  I am also a member of a four-man Australian team, Hard Yak, along with Ben Bradshaw, Dimitry Peisakhov and Rupert Robey, which is set to drive 15,000 km for charity  from London to Mongolia in the 2012 Mongol Rally.

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Centenary Australia and Vietnam fight TB together

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Centenary Scientist Dr Greg Fox in Vietnam

Centenary Scientist Dr Greg Fox in Vietnam

This week, Centenary is helping Vietnamese medical researchers to plan their next move against tuberculosis, a disease that once was Australia’s top killer and still kills 54,000 people each year in Vietnam.

Vietnam’s National Tuberculosis Program deputy head Nguyen Viet Nhung and his delegation are inspecting Centenary Institute’s new PC3 lab, meeting Australian colleagues who also work on TB visiting our research partners at the Woolcock Institute, and sharing research progress and strengthening ties.

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Setting new standards in treating hep C

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Professor Geoff McCaughan, head of Centenary’s liver program is setting world standards for treating hep C

Professor Geoff McCaughan, head of Centenary’s liver program is setting world standards for treating hep C

The Centenary Institute has a strong interest in making sure the products of research are used in medical treatment as quickly and safely as possible. And our interest doesn’t stop at the doors of the RPA.

For the past five years, the head of the Institute’s liver unit Professor Geoff McCaughan has led an international working party of experts convened by the Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL) to revise the guidelines for the study, prevention, diagnosis, management and treatment of hepatitis C in keeping with the most recent research. The latest version of their work has just been published in the journal Hepatology International, and reflects the significant international standing of the Institute’s liver group.

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Genetic testing for heritable heart disease cost effective

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Dr Jodie Ingles

Dr Jodie Ingles

Genetic testing for the most common genetic heart disorder, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, can save money as well as lives, according to a study from the Centenary Institute just published in the British journal Heart.

The research was based on data from the National Genetic Heart Disease Registry. Lead author was National Registry Coordinator, Dr Jodie Ingles and senior author, the Registry Advisory Chair, Professor Chris Semsarian.

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Spotlight on a Scientist: Part 3 of LB’s why I run series

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Dr Jeff Holst

Dr Jeff Holst, Head of Origins of Cancer group at the Centenary Institute and YCF member

LB asked me the question – “So, why are you running?” At first, I thought the answer was quite simple, I’m running to raise money for my own research team who are studying melanoma, breast and prostate cancer.

That’s the easy answer, but in reality there is a fundamental principle that drives me to be involved in fundraising – specifically that medical research is underfunded, and we should be doing all we can to support it, as it in turn supports and extends our lives.

This year is a bit of a shift for me, as over the past 5 years I’ve been involved in Movember. This stemmed from my research interests in prostate cancer, which have been funded by the money raised through Movember and distributed by the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia. But this year, I decided rather than do nothing for a month (ie – not shaving) I would step it up and train to run the City2Surf.

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New hepatitis cure a sign of things to come

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Professor Geoff McCaughan, Head of the Liver Immunobiology Group

Professor Geoff McCaughan, Head of the Liver Immunobiology Group

Geoff McCaughan, head of the Centenary Institute’s liver immunobiology program, has publicly welcomed the approval by the Therapeutic Goods Administration of two new drugs to treat hepatitis C. Quoted in the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), Geoff said the new drugs, boceprevir and telaprevir—which belong to a new class of medicines known as direct-acting anti-virals—are harbingers of “a whole swag of new drugs which are in the pipeline”.

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Running is not riding

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LB on her usual mode of transport, Stormy.

LB on her usual mode of transport, Stormy.

As the majority of my workout involves sitting atop a 13 year old grey thoroughbred asking him for a soft, calm and collected walk, trot and canter, this whole running thing is new to me. So the first week or real training in Centennial Park has kicked my butt a bit.

That’s not to say that riding doesn’t take a lot of energy or muscle – you try keeping a 600 kilo animal under control and doing what you want with just your arms and calves! But it’s definitely a different set of muscles, and at the end of the day I’d like a bigger reward than a carrot and a pat on the nose.

My own personal goals for this run aside, this brings me back to the promise I made to tell the stories that matter the most in fundraising, or in achieving any target. These are stories that come from the runners/fundraisers themselves – the stories of why they joined the team, why they believe in medical research to save lives, and what motivates them in their efforts.

So with that promise in mind, I shine the spotlight on Run4Research team member Anna Lawrence. Here’s what Anna had to say about why she’s running this year.

Why I Run: Anna Lawrence Chair of the YCF

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Anna Lawrence

Anna Lawrence, Chair of the Young Centenary Foundation

Last year I ran the City2Surf for the first time. Well… I ran/walked it.

I was determined to run the entire way and started a training regime but after a back injury and general laziness my training kind of…fell to the wayside.

On the day of the City2Surf I decided just to see what I could do and not beat myself up if I didn’t run the entire way – I actually did an alright job and walked only up that infamous heartbreak hill and, you know, when I just really needed a break.

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