Winter Bulletin 2014

BULLETIN 79 WINTER 2014

A win for Menzies and for stem cell science We are very proud to be celebrating with Dr Kaylene Young, a Menzies neuroscientist who is one of two Australians to be awarded the inaugural Metcalf Prize.

Dr Young and Dr Jose Polo, who is from the Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute at Monash University, will each receive $50,000 to further their research. The prize honours the pioneering stem cell work by Professor Donald Metcalf, who is still working in the field and who will mentor the two winners over the next year.

Dr Young and her colleagues at Menzies have found that neural stem and related progenitor cells reside within the outer region of the brain called the cortex, which is a brain region prone to damage. By understanding the behaviour and function of these cells, they one day hope to use them to treat nervous and brain disorders or damage.

Dr Young’s expertise is in the potential for stem cells in the brain to repair brain injuries and even treat diseases such as multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s.

Dr Graeme Blackman, OAM, the Chairman of the National Stem Cell Foundation said “We were stunned by the quality of the applications. Our inaugural winners, Kaylene Young and Jose Polo, stood out from a remarkable field of young research leaders. We can expect great things from Australian stem cell research in the next few years.”

‘Bad’ fats culprit in MS progression Menzies’ researchers have found adverse levels of ‘bad’ fats in the blood are closely linked to the level of disability in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and the rate of disability progression.

Award-winning neuroscientist Kaylene Young in her lab at Menzies.

Photo Luke Bowden/ The Mercury

Fats are an essential component of the brain and contribute to its repair and maintenance. This particular study examined the fat profiles from blood samples of 141 people with relapsing remitting MS. The samples were collected at six monthly intervals over two and a half years as part of the NHMRC-funded Tasmanian MS Longitudinal Study.

The significant findings were published in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal and suggest dietary and lifestyle modifications that improve fat profiles in the blood may also slow the rate of disability progression in MS.

The results showed the amounts of a number of different fats in the blood, including total cholesterol, were closely associated with disability level, and the association remained strong even when other potentially confounding factors such as smoking, exercise, age and sex were taken into account. Fat levels did not have any influence on the risk of experiencing a relapse for the people in the study and body mass index was also not related to relapses.

The lead researcher on the study, Dr Ingrid van der Mei, said the finding was very significant for the 23,000 Australians living with MS.

This research was funded by MS Research Australia (via a project grant in 2012).

Director’s message

Welcome to the Winter 2014 edition of the Bulletin.

One of many highlights of the past few months was the awarding of a national prize for stem cell research to Dr Kaylene Young. Dr Young grew up in Tasmania but stretched her wings to Melbourne and London before returning to take up a position at Menzies in 2011. We are fortunate to have her working here within our neuroscience research theme, where she leads a team studying neural stem cells and oligodendrocyte progenitor cells in the cortex, the outer part of the brain most prone to damage. In June, Dr Young was awarded one of two inaugural Metcalf Awards for Stem Cell Research. The award is named after the renowned stem cell scientist Professor Donald Metcalf AC, who will mentor the two winners in the year ahead. This, along with news of national recognition for PhD student Rachel Climie, is further evidence of the calibre of young researchers at Menzies.

Of course our record of achievement can only happen in partnership with the community that so generously supports us philanthropically. We see this in the many donations from individuals, as well as from groups such as Parkinson’s Tasmania. We have also recently seen the successful completion of the fundraising campaign, run in concert with the University of Tasmania, that was dedicated to building the state-of-the-art Medical Science Precinct.

Professor Tom Marwick, Director

Finally I would like to say how saddened we were by the death on 7 July of His Excellency, The Honourable Peter Underwood AC, Governor of Tasmania. We were privileged to have had His Excellency as a friend to the institute and as a champion of our research. He will be deeply missed.

King regards,

Professor Tom Marwick Director

Perth hopes to come clean on wood smoke A new research project that aims to find out whether widespread use of a small firebox device will reduce winter air pollution is now under way in Perth (Tasmania).

Menzies’ researchers have asked all residents of Perth with a wood heater to place a free canister, the equivalent of catalytic converters used in car engines, in their heater this winter to reduce pollution.

Menzies’ Environmental Health Researcher Dr Fay Johnston said the catalytic devices had been tested in individual fireboxes, burning under optimal conditions.

“Using them in a whole community like this is something completely new. We really don’t know what sort of impact to expect.

“What we do know is that if Perth residents successfully improve their outdoor air, respiratory complaints, hospital admissions and longer term risks of heart disease will all be reduced in the town.”

It is a good location for the FireBox Project because the EPA Tasmania already monitors air quality in the town and in two adjacent towns, Longford and Hadspen, with similar winter air quality issues.

The FireBox Project is funded by a grant to Menzies from the Centre for Air Quality Research and Evaluation (CAR). CAR is a Centre for Research Excellence funded by the NHMRC.

In memory of Jean Keil The staff of Menzies would like to highlight the invaluable contributions of one of our longest serving volunteers, who passed away in June 2014.

Jean Keil began volunteering with the Menzies Centre for Population Health Research in February 2000 and joined Annette Banks and her team of volunteers working in Jean Keil, who performed genealogy in 2002. With a dedicated painstaking and highly valuable work as a volunteer at Menzies. team of volunteers she performed painstaking and highly valuable work that contributed to the development of Menzies’ genealogical records. This work is invaluable because this resource is used in the discovery of genes contributing to familial diseases in Tasmania, in particular cancer.

In addition, Jean helped with individual studies conducted by the Cancer Genetics team and others, including mail-outs for various Menzies projects. Jean could be relied upon to volunteer to help out wherever needed and brought a cheerful smile and invaluable life experience to Menzies. Jean had a deep sense of community and hosted several volunteer Christmas functions at her home. Menzies, and in particular the Cancer Genetics team and her fellow volunteers, would like to pass on our condolences to Jean Keil’s family.

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New scanner working for RHH patients and medical research A new $1.9 million MRI scanning machine is now in use at the Royal Hobart Hospital thanks to a co-operative effort from the University of Tasmania, Menzies and the State Government.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Tasmania, Professor Peter Rathjen, said the placement of the new GE 1.5 Tesla Optima MR450w MRI in the Royal Hobart Hospital was a shining example of what could be achieved with the university and the State Government working together, and the benefits for the community when these forces combined.

The purchase of the machine was included in fundraising for the development of the second stage of the University of Tasmania’s Medical Science Precinct, which was completed in 2013. The location of the precinct means that world class research and teaching in medical science takes place virtually next door to the Royal Hobart Hospital.

The Menzies Director, Professor Tom Marwick, said clinical researchers as well as hospital clinicians were using the new

The Director of the Menzies Research Institute Tasmania, Professor Tom Marwick, with the Director of Medical Imaging at the RHH, Dr Michael Carr, and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Tasmania, Professor Peter Rathjen, in front of the new MRI scanner in its purpose-built room.

facility, which provides facilities previously unavailable for studying cardiac and metabolic disease. “The Tasmanian community has among the highest rates of cardiovascular disease in Australia,” Professor Marwick said. “The work we can now do for patients within the RHH is a great example of how our research at Menzies is directly applicable to the illnesses that are prevalent in the Tasmanian community, such as cardiovascular disease.”

The Royal Hobart Hospital Department of Medical Imaging funded the building works to accommodate the machine and is funding staffing and on-going equipment maintenance. As well as the purchase of the new scanner, the funding has allowed the upgrading of the second scanner in the MRI suite.

Congratulations to our Ten of the Best winners Ten Menzies researchers have been recognised by the institute with a “Ten of the Best” Award. These awards are judged by the Menzies senior researchers. Nine of them recognise excellence in a journal article published in 2013, and the tenth goes to the author of the journal article with the most citations in 2013.

We were fortunate this year to be able to coordinate the presentation of the awards with a visit to the institute by the University of Tasmania Vice-Chancellor, Professor Peter Rathjen.

And the winners are . . .

Clinical category: Dr Ashutosh Hardikar (Cardiovascular Imaging Group) for research published in JACC Cardiovascular Imaging Dr Martin Schultz (Blood Pressure Research Group) for research published in Hypertension Benny Eathakkattu Antony (Musculoskeletal Research Group) for research published in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases

The University of Tasmania Vice-Chancellor, Professor Peter Rathjen, with Dr Jac Charlesworth, who won a Ten of the Best Award in the Laboratory category.

Dr Kristen Hynes (Venn Research Group) for research published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism Dr Fay Johnston (Environmental Epidemiology Research Group) for research published in the British Medical Journal Laboratory category: Dr Kaylene Young (Young Lab – Glial Research Team) for research published in Neuron Dr Dino Premilovac (Diabetes and Metabolism Group) for research published in Cardiovascular Research Dr Jac Charlesworth (Genetics Research Group) for research published in Neuroimage

Population health category:

Most Influential Paper (recognising the most cited publication during 2013).

Dr Costan Magnussen (Venn Research Group) for research published in Circulation

Professor Graeme Jones for research published in 2010 in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases

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Thank you to our valued supporters Thank you to all of our donors for your ongoing financial support and commitment to Menzies.

Listed below are new individual and community supporters of Menzies for 2014.

Mr Richard Annis Ms Salina Auton Avalon Retreats Mrs Lois R Baily Mrs Catherine Barta Mrs Janice Beltz Berry & District Garden Club Inc. BIOTA Biology Mr Martin & Mrs Jenny Bleasdale Dr Natalie R Brown Mr Paul & Mrs Jennifer Brown Mr Kevin Burgess Ms Ronna Butler Miss Fiona Clark Mrs Penelope Clark Mrs Valerie Clark Mr Anthony Clennett Mrs Helen Coles Mrs Suzanne Cox Mrs Ann Cripps

Ms Laurene Crisp Mr David Critchlow Lorna Crole Mr John Crossin Ms Valerie Cummings Mrs Mary Curtis Ms Virginia A Davies Mr Peter Day Mr Peter & Mrs Gina De Bomford Mr Wayne Dean Ms Janne Dolbey Mr Terry Driscoll Dr Lachlan Fieldhouse Mrs Dilys E Fyle Miss Catherine Jean Halley Garvie Mrs Sue Gillon Ms Linda Giumelli Miss Anita J Gordon Ms Jennifer Graney Mrs L Gregg Ms Therese M Haley

Mrs Gwendoline Hall Ms Michaela Halton Mr Brian Hanmore Ms Penelope Harvey Dr Rognvald Heddle Mrs Elizabeth Hickman Mr and Mrs J Hinwood Hobart Pathology Mr Neil Hore Mrs Christine Johnson Mr William Johnson Mr E. Alan Jones Dr Clifford Kelland Mr Derek Klerck Mr Mike Lans Ms Helen Leach Ms Janice Ledalcki Mrs Marie Levaque Mr Michael Lovett Mrs Cathryn R McCormack Ms Kate McQuaid Mr Graham Meikle

Mrs Anne Michell Mrs S Morrisby Ms Josephine Morse Ms S Mulcahy Mrs Karon Munnings My Cause Donations Mr M Nicholson Ms Gillian Parker Parkinson’s Tasmania Inc. Mr Anthony & Mrs Susan Peacock Penguin Indoor Bowls Club Mr Victor Perry Mr J A Piscioneri D Porter Mrs Pauline Power Mr G Purves Mr & Mrs RW & GM Radford Mr Martin Randle Miss Joanne E Rapley

Mrs Shirley Redmond Mr Jonathan Ricks P Rimon Ms Lisa L Risby Mrs Sheila Roberts Mr Geoffrey J Rowlands Dr Rodney Seppelt Mr Paul Shelley SLIMS Program - UTAS Mr B Smith Mr Stanley & Mrs Bonnie Tilley Mr Tony van de Vusse Mr John & Mrs Carmel Venettacci Vintage Water Babies Ms Pamela Virgona Mr Paul Wigger Mrs Sylvia Wilson Woodbridge and Channel District Probus Club

The Menzies Research Institute Tasmania is deeply indebted to all our generous supporters and donors. A full list of all our supporters for 2014 is available on our website under www.menzies.utas.edu.au/about us/supporters. Thank you.

Listed below are our Everyday Angels – our supporters who make regular gifts to Menzies.

Mr Tim Albion Mrs Teisha Archer Mr Bill Avery Ms Jennifer Banks Mrs Jan Barren Mrs Larissa Bartlett Mrs Kathleen Bevis Mrs Pamela Blunt Ms Kathleen Brient Dr Catherine Bulman Ms June Butler Dr Susan R Cherry Mr Tim & Mrs Emma Claridge Mrs Anita Clarkson Mr Peter Cochrane Mrs Noela Copeman Mr A M Cornish AO Mr Robert D Cotgrove

Mr Brendon Davidson Ms Moya T Deigan Mrs Patricia Di Benedetto Miss June Doering Ms Kathryn Dudley Mrs Patricia Edwards Mr Josh & Mrs Felicity Ey Dr Derek Findlay Mr Peter & Mrs Molly Fountain Mrs Beverley Geard DW & MP Goff Mr G & Mrs J Goss Mrs Judy Grant Ms Brenda Haas Mr Garth J Haas Mrs Susan Haigh

Mr Michael J Haney Ms Kathryn Hill Mrs Susan L Hinds Mr John Hudson Ms Carol Hurst Hypertronics Tasmania Mrs Doreen Ireland Mrs Vanda R Jackson Mr Gary & Mrs Susan Jacobson Mrs Wendy Jefferies Mrs Dianne Jones Mr Raymond Jones Mrs Margaret Keogh Mrs Margaret Knight Mrs Terry & Mr Ian Law Mrs Jane Lovibond Mr David Macleod Mrs Marie Magill

Mrs Lib & Mr Russell McCashney Mr Ian McConnelly Mr Marcus McEwan Mrs Helen McKibben Mrs Philippa Micklem Mr Sam Mollard Mr Peter Morgan Ms Tess Mount-Harvey Ms Wendy Noye Ms Felicity Oakford Miss Alison Parsons Mrs Jennifer Parsons Mr A & Mrs T Paterson Kim Paterson Mrs Glenda Paton Ms Alison Poortenaar Mrs Cleone Probert Mrs Pamela Rabbidge

Mrs June Scott Mrs Susan Sluce Mrs Gwynneth & Mr Richard Sperring Mr Alex Stanelos Ms Carmel Taylor Mrs Cynthia Tennant Mrs Rosemary Van den Berk Mr Walter & Mrs Robin Verth Mrs Anne Warren Mr Peter Weldon Mr John & Mrs Kathlyn Wheatley Ms Barbara White Ms Janice Wilson

The Honourable Peter Underwood AC, Governor of Tasmania The Menzies Board, staff and students have been saddened by the passing of His Excellency The Honourable Peter Underwood AC, Governor of Tasmania.

other parts of the Tasmanian community, His Excellency showed a particular interest in the development of young Tasmanian medical researchers.

His Excellency was a strong advocate and great friend of Menzies.

On his last visit, in 2013, he commented on how much he enjoyed the passion and enthusiasm of our research teams, and was proud of our success. In keeping with his interest in education in many

His Excellency was a remarkable Tasmanian, and his good humour and devotion to the community was an example to all. We are poorer for the passing of this remarkable Tasmanian.

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Pilot project on Parkinson’s Disease Menzies will begin a new research project aimed at increasing understanding of the mechanisms underlying Parkinson’s Disease, thanks to the fundraising efforts of Parkinson’s Tasmania.

A $25,000 donation to Menzies from Parkinson’s Tasmania will allow a pilot study into treatment of the toxic accumulation of a particular protein that is present in high levels in people with Parkinson’s Disease.

Associate Professor Tracey Dickson will lead the project.

“Before we can understand what causes Parkinson’s Disease we need a better understanding of what takes place at both the protein and cellular level in the brain,” she said.

“It is our hope that through our investigations we will not only begin to understand the mechanism that underlies this devastating disorder, but more importantly to identify a compound that may be useful for future treatment development.

Post-doctoral research fellow Dr Edgar Dawkins, Honours student Anna Talbot, Associate Professor Tracey Dickson and Parkinson’s Tasmania President Helen Connor-Kendray at an afternoon tea held to thank Parkinson’s Tasmania for its donation.

“Funding for pilot studies is so important. It allow us to get new work started. Then, depending on the results they deliver, we may be able to apply for funding to extend the research.”

Honours student Anna Talbot and post-doctoral research fellow Dr Edgar Dawkins will work with Associate Professor Dickson on the project.

New breast cancer project In early June Menzies ran a fundraising dinner in partnership with Hobart Cancerians (ACRF) and with the support of BreastScreen Tasmania, the Cancer Council Tasmania and the Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation.

We are most grateful to our sponsors for the evening, particularly the Audi Centre Hobart and The Henry Jones Art Hotel,

for their support. Combined with the generosity of more than 30 individual participants, this event raised sufficient funds for us to kick-start an important translational breast cancer research project. An information session to inform supporters of the results of this study will be held in the second half of 2015.

Outstanding contribution Menzies has introduced an Outstanding Contribution Award to acknowledge non-academic staff who go above and beyond what is expected in their role.

The Menzies Director, Professor Tom Marwick, has announced that Roxanne Maher, a research nurse at Menzies, has received this award for her contribution to the establishment of the Menzies Clinical Research Facility.

Roxanne took on the role of coordinating the clinic in addition to her fulltime research appointment, ensuring a smooth transition to the new facility by developing standard operating protocols, supporting all clinic users and providing guidance in all aspects of the running of the clinic – all with alacrity, good humour and a high degree of organisational skill.

Congratulations Roxanne!

Save the date...

Sunday 31 August, 2014 University of Tasmania Open Day. Come along and find out more about what we do at Menzies and how our research relates to the health and wellbeing of the Tasmanian community. Come and talk to us. Medical Science Precinct, 17 Liverpool St, Hobart, 10am-3pm.

Thursday evening, 25 September, 2014 – the Menzies Debate Two opposing teams of health experts from within and outside Menzies will debate the prevention and cure approaches to managing obesity.

This free event will be an intellectually rigorous discussion about one of the major health concerns of the moment.

Further details closer to the event on menzies.utas.edu.au.

Thursday evening, 4 December, 2014 – Art of Christmas Once again we celebrate the festive season with a public event that will engage and inspire. But this year it’s Art of Christmas with a difference.

We’ll circulate further details in our Spring Bulletin and on menzies.utas.edu.au.

Menzies Research Institute Tasmania An Institute of the University of Tasmania 17 Liverpool Street, Hobart, Tasmania 7000 Phone: 03 6226 7700 www.menzies.utas.edu.au 6

Researcher profile: Dr Amanda Neil, Health Economist You have recently arrived at Menzies ...

Where have you come from?

through long-term multi-disciplinary research.

For several years I lived in Brisbane working as a health economics consultant to industry and academia although my primary responsibility was caring for my daughter.

My work with academia was focussed on the seriously mentally ill, including leading the economic analysis of the Second National Survey of Psychosis. Prior to Brisbane I had 11 years in Newcastle, where I gained my PhD. I also worked in the Commonwealth Department of Human Services and Health in Canberra, where I participated in internationally ground-breaking work in economic evaluation in health care decisionmaking, work that continues to this day in the listing of drugs on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

What are some of the recent findings from your work?

What is the current focus of your research?

What is the biggest challenge in your area of research?

Establishing a research program to examine and address the efficient and equitable provision of resources and service delivery in chronic illness and disorders.

Mental illness and the Tasmanian health system are special interests that converge in the Conception to Community (C2C) Study. C2C crosses women’s and children’s sectors aimed at improving mental health

Health economics addresses questions of how resources are allocated throughout the health sector; who is allocating those resources, and on what basis; and whether we could improve resource allocation.

Arguably the biggest challenge is determining which of the many worthwhile projects to commit yourself to, and getting up to speed with knowledge if the work is in

C2C is new. The core collaboration between clinicians Dr Fiona Wagg and Professor Fiona Judd and my Menzies colleague Associate Professor Kristy Sanderson and myself was established in October last year. We have had some initial funding success, with “Making it Count: Establishment of the Conception to Community Public Services Database” awarded a 2014 Royal Hobart Hospital Research Foundation Grant. The database is intended as the cornerstone from which we will establish baseline levels of service utilisation and outcomes for Tasmanian mothers and children.

Dr Amanda Neil

a new area. But that makes it really interesting too.

What is the most interesting aspect of your work?

Its applied nature, and in turn its usefulness to decision-making and/or policy development. For example, recent work for Tasmania Medicare Local has led to the development of a new after-hours incentive funding model for general practice in Tasmania. As no existing remoteness classification was found to adequately characterise Tasmanian localities, a new location classification was developed for Tasmanian general practice to ensure a fair distribution of funds.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

Doing a little yoga while the sun comes up over the River Derwent. Watching the wildlife around our home and the changing moods, colours and traffic on the river.

Getting lost in a good book and spending time with my husband and daughter.

Reward for young researcher Menzies’ PhD candidate Rachel Climie was chosen from 200 researchers from across Australia to showcase her work at the European Congress of Sports Science in Amsterdam in July. The travel award was given by Exercise and Sports Science Australia and the European Congress of Sports Science.

Rachel, an exercise physiologist, is part of the Menzies’ Blood Pressure Group and studies the association of central blood pressure with organ damage linked to Type 2 Diabetes. In addition to the travel award to the European Congress of Sports Science, Rachel was also awarded the Exercise and Sports Science Australia 2014 Aspire Academy Young Investigator Award for Exercise Science & Health (out of 80 submitted abstracts).

“The congress was fantastic! I received a lot of positive feedback and interest in my work. I was also fortunate enough to make

Rachel Climie receives her award from the President Elect of the European Congress of Sports Science Executive Board, Professor Tim Cable.

connections with some European labs for potential collaboration down the track. When I wasn’t attending the congress, I spent some time site seeing. Amsterdam is a beautiful city, especially in summer,” she said.

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More than Flowers In Memoriam February 2014-July 2014 We gratefully acknowledge gifts made in honour of: Anonymous (41)

Margie Vincent

Benjamin T Parker

Maxwell Box

Bevis G Yaxley

Nancy Ruby Kregor

Brenda Burgess

Peter Dunford

Christine Woodward

Ron Chaplin

Christopher Roberts

Stanley Payne

Douglas Beltz

Stella Norma Powell

Eric John Stopp

Stephen Walker

Ignacy Krakowski

Una Dick

James R U McShane

Vanessa Brown

John Sluce

Victor D Tarr

Joseph Barta

Vittoria Di Bari

Keith Alexander

Vivienne Kelland

Margaret Sweeney

One sentence in your Will can fund life-saving medical research.

Remember Menzies Research Institute Tasmania in your Will.

If you would like more information please contact Teisha Archer on 03 6226 4236 or email Teisha.Archer@utas.edu.au Bequests save lives by funding research.

THANKYOU