The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), Australia’s leading funding body for health and medical research, held its Excellence Awards in Canberra on Thursday evening.

The awards recognise the highest ranked recipients of grants and fellowships in 2010 as well as two special categories for outstanding contribution and ethics.

NHMRC Chief Executive Officer Professor Warwick Anderson AM, said this is only the third time these awards have been presented, but they have already become highly regarded among the research community.

“The NHMRC established these excellence awards because, regardless of the field people work in, it’s important to recognise and reward achievement, and all of these award winners are outstanding researchers and are truly visionary,” Professor Anderson said.

“It is important that these efforts are recognised both within and outside the research community. That is why the NHMRC continues to support and recognise the best and brightest researchers who are prepared to tackle the tough health issues facing Australia.”

The NHMRC Outstanding Contribution Award recognises outstanding long-term contribution and individual commitment and support to NHMRC, and health and medical research.

This year’s recipient is Professor David Weisbrot, AM who is Professor of Law and Governance at Macquarie University. He was formerly President of the Australian Law Reform Commission, chairing inquiries into the Protection of Human Genetic Information, Gene Patenting and Human Health, and Privacy. David is a member of the NHMRC’s Human Genetics Advisory Committee and the Working Group on Research Integrity.

The NHMRC Ethics Award recognises outstanding contribution to the achievement of high ethical standards in health and medical research.

This year’s recipient is Professor Donald Chalmers, who is Distinguished Professor, University of Tasmania and a Foundation Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law. He was Chair of the Australian Health Ethics Committee from 1994 to 2000 and Australian Red Cross Ethics Committee from 2000 until 2010.

Currently Don is Chair of the Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee, Deputy Chair of the Embryo Research Licensing Committee and member of the HUGO Ethics Committee, the International Cancer Genome Consortium, and International Scientific Review Panels of Genome Canada since 2004.

The NHMRC Achievement Awards recognise outstanding achievements in health and medical research. These are awarded to the highest scoring applicants in the 2010 peer review of research support and fellowships schemes.

Details of award recipients follow.

NHMRC media contact:
Simon Tidy 02 6217 9190/ 0422 008 512

2010 NHMRC Excellence Awards

NHMRC Award for Outstanding Contribution

Professor David Weisbrot, Macquarie University, New South Wales David Weisbrot, AM is Professor of Law and Governance at Macquarie University. He was formerly President of the Australian Law Reform Commission, chairing inquiries into the Protection of Human Genetic Information, Gene Patenting and Human Health, and Privacy. David is a member of the NHMRC’s Human Genetics Advisory Committee and the Working Group on Research Integrity.

NHMRC Ethics Award

Professor Don Chalmers, University of Tasmania, Tasmania Donald Chalmers is Distinguished Professor, University of Tasmania and a Foundation Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law. He was Chair of the Australian Health Ethics Committee from 1994 to 2000 and Australian Red Cross Ethics Committee from 2000
until 2010.

Currently Don is Chair of the Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee, Deputy Chair of the Embryo Research Licensing Committee and member of the HUGO Ethics Committee, the International Cancer Genome Consortium, and International Scientific Review Panels of Genome Canada since 2004.

Achievement Award for Highest Ranked Program Grant Professor Sam Berkovic, University of Melbourne, Victoria Sam Berkovic is in the Department of Medicine, University of Melbourne, Austin Health. He is a clinical neurologist and clinical researcher closely linked to basic scientists. His group, together with molecular genetic collaborators in Adelaide and Germany, discovered the first gene for epilepsy and subsequently have been involved the discovery of many of the known epilepsy genes.

Achievement Award for Highest Ranked Project Grant Professor Rob Parton, University of Queensland, Queensland Rob Parton studied biochemistry in the UK before moving to the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg, Germany. In 1996, he joined the University of Queensland where he is currently an NHMRC Australia Fellow in the Institute for Molecular Bioscience and Deputy Director of the Centre for
Microscopy and Microanalysis.

Achievement Award for Top Ranked NHMRC Research Fellow Professor Jonathan Sprent, Garvan Medical Research Institute, New South Wales Professor Sprent works on T cell immunobiology with emphasis on T
cell formation, lifespan, activation, and the formation of memory cells. He is also interested in immunoregulation and the role of cytokines in controlling T cell homeostasis and survival.

Achievement Award for Top Ranked NHMRC Practitioner Fellow Professor David Paterson, University of Queensland, Queensland Professor David L. Paterson is an Infectious Diseases Physician and Clinical Microbiologist. He is Deputy Director (Clinical) of the University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research located at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. His areas of research include antibiotic resistance in Gram negative bacilli and infections in immunocompromised patients.

2010 NHMRC ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Dr Angela T Morgan, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Victoria

Dr Morgan returned to Australia in 2006, after trans-disciplinary post-doctoral training in cognitive neuroscience, genetic linkage, and magnetic resonance imaging techniques at University College London. In the past four years she has developed a research program that aims to gain new insights into ‘genes,
brain and behaviour’ in childhood speech and swallowing disorders.

Dr Marc Pellegrini, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Victoria

Marc Pellegrini is a scientist and Infectious Disease Physician. His work at WEHI uncovered the role of apoptosis in immune responses and postdoctoral studies in Canada at the Ontario Cancer Institute identified factors impairing immunity. Having
returned to WEHI he studies host dynamics preventing immune clearance of chronic infections.

A/Prof Karen L Jones, Uni of Adelaide, South Australia Associate

Professor Karen Jones has had substantial involvement in clinical research for over18 years. Her current research focuses on the role of the gut in postprandial hypotension. She is currently a Chief Investigator on four NHMRC project grants and has published 89 peer-reviewed papers, 19 reviews/editorials and four book chapters.

Dr Terry Haines, Monash University, Victoria

Associate Professor Haines is the Director of the Allied Health Clinical Research Unit at Southern Health, and Director of Research for the Southern Physiotherapy Clinical-School, Monash University. He has background training as a physiotherapist and health economist, and his primary research interest is in the prevention of falls and injuries amongst older adults.

A/Prof Penelope E Schofield, University of Melbourne, Victoria

Associate Professor Penelope Schofield is a behavioural scientist and NHMRC Research Fellow. Her current research focus is quality of life and supportive care research in cancer. Most of her work employs randomised controlled trials to test psycho-educational interventions which are designed to be clinically feasible, sustainable and effective in improving outcomes for people affected by cancer.

Dr Aaron Jex, University of Melbourne, Victoria

Dr Aaron Jex is currently conducting postdoctoral research at the University of Melbourne under the supervision of Professor Robin Gasser. His major research focus is on the use of advanced molecular technologies for the detection and characterization of important food and water-borne infectious diseases in humans, livestock and companion animals.

Dr Yong LI, University of New South Wales, New South Wales

Dr Yong Li obtained a Ph.D. degree in Faculty of Medicine in 2000 from the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney, Australia. Currently, he is a Senior Cancer Institute NSW Research Fellow and the Head of Cancer Research Program, St George Hospital and Conjoint Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Medicine at UNSW.

Dr Mark Shackleton, University of Melbourne, Victoria

Mark Shackleton is a Medical Oncologist and Group Leader of the Melanoma Research Laboratory at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia. He studies the mechanisms through which melanomas develop and progress in order to identify better methods of preventing and treating this disease in patients.

Assoc Professor Josephine M Forbes, Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute, Victoria

Associate Professor Josephine Forbes is the Group Leader of the Glycation and Diabetes Laboratory at the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute. Her primary research focuses on the biochemical process of advanced glycation, which is essentially biological “caramelisation” and its contribution to diabetes and its vascular complications, in particular kidney disease.

Dr Pellegrini is a laboratory head in the institute’s Infection and Immunity division and an infectious disease clinician at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. His research focuses on HIV and tuberculosis, and how the human immune system responds to these infections.

At last night’s awards ceremony the NHMRC’s chief executive officer, Professor Warwick Anderson, announced Dr Pellegrini as the joint winner in the clinical development category. The award was given to Dr
Pellegrini as the top researcher who received an NHMRC career development award for 2010.

Dr Pellegrini hopes that by studying how the human immune system responds to persistent infections, particularly how cell signaling pathways regulate immunity, he will be able to eradicate chronic infections.

“Chronic viruses such as HIV, Hepatitis C and B and bacteria such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis (the cause of tuberculosis) represent an enormous global health threat,” Dr Pellegrini said. “Our immune system, which is successful in eliminating a huge array of pathogens, fails to eradicate these persistent organisms.

“Quite often we try to eradicate these infections by targeting the virus or bacterium that causes them,” Dr Pellegrini said. “I want to investigate wiping out these infections by developing therapies that target the host immune system, rather than the pathogen, possibly by making the human immune system more able to clear these infections.”

Dr Pellegrini is initially focusing his attention on the genes involved in the immune response to HIV and tuberculosis.

About Marc Pellegrini

Dr Pellegrini has degrees in medicine and science from the University of Melbourne. After completing his medical qualifications, Dr Pellegrini trained in infectious diseases and internal medicine and was awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians. His PhD research at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute uncovered the role of apoptosis in immune responses. Further postdoctoral study in Canada at the Ontario Cancer Institute identified factors impairing immunity. He returned to the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute in 2009.

Ms Penny Fannin BSc(Hons), MPRIA, Strategic Communications Manager, P: +61 3 9345 2345; E: fannin@wehi.edu.au

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