Big grants for big projects

This year's National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) grants have been announced, totaling $124 million.

Four major program grants will receive $48 million, including $19.6 million to Professor Tony Burgess at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in Melbourne, who will lead studies of new ways to detect colorectal cancer.

A further $17.7 million has been allocated to Professor David Cooper of the University of NSW for a translational research project to better understand immunity against HIV and hepatitis C.

$6.5 million goes to Professor Patrick Sexton of Monash University to study drug targets and $4.5 million for Professor Thomas Marwick of the University of Queensland to research potential screening programs for people at risk of cardiovascular diseases.

The large grant to the Ludwig Institute will involve 18 key investigators from five Melbourne institutions - the Ludwig, WEHI, Peter Mac, Monash University and the University of Melbourne.

Burgess said the group will tackle five key projects relating to the discovery and analysis of the genetic causes of colon cancer, the development of biomarkers for the early detection of colon cancer and the continuing development of therapies targeted specifically to colon cancer cells, including antibody- and nanoparticle-mediated delivery of therapeutics.

A UNSW spokesperson said its NHMRC grant was the largest in its history and will be used to examine novel immune-based therapeutic approaches to treating HIV/AIDS.

A further $75 million has been allocated to 379 researchers in the health and medical fields. The majority of funds went to basic science and clinical medicine and science, with 27.9 per cent of applicants successful.

Full details of the projects are available from the NHMRC.