The nominees for the 2018 NSW Australian of the Year Awards have been announced, with several scientists and inventors reaching the finals of both the Australian and Young Australian of the Year categories. [ + ]

Australian biochemist and molecular biologist Professor John Shine AC has been elected president of the Australian Academy of Science. [ + ]

Scientists have reconstructed a fully functional epidermis, covering approximately 80% of the total body surface area, for a seven-year-old patient with a genetic skin disease called Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa (JEB). [ + ]

The mechanism of how cells work is key to understanding how tumours metastasize as well as tissue regeneration and other bodily functions. [ + ]

The ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centre in Biopharmaceutical Innovation has been officially opened at The University of Queensland, 16 months after it was initially announced. [ + ]

MTPConnect and the Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to jointly boost the Australian medtech industry. [ + ]

A group of international researchers has developed a web tool, RefEx, that can easily search gene expression data available in public databases. [ + ]

ANU has announced the winner of its inaugural Grand Challenge Scheme — a $50 million initiative to provide funding for transformative research with the potential to radically change our understanding of, and responses to, the world's most intractable problems. [ + ]

The number of Australian girls taking part in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects has been declining at an alarming rate, causing Australia to fall behind compared with other developed countries. [ + ]

UNSW scientists have developed a way to control the shape of polymer molecules so they self-assemble into non-spherical nanoparticles. Their work is expected to improve the delivery of toxic drugs to tumours. [ + ]

A discovery by Montreal Clinical Research Institute (IRCM) sheds light on how bones affect appetite and metabolism. [ + ]

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) are a target of around 40% drugs. A major mapping of these drugs by researchers has found that their pharmacological mechanisms are becoming more complex. [ + ]

MTPConnect has opened expressions of interest for the Australian Government's $5 million BioMedTech Horizons program. [ + ]

Have you ever wondered why experiments in lab mice, such as vaccine studies, turn out very differently in humans or other animals? According to US researchers, the problem lies with the test subjects' gut bacteria. [ + ]

The winners of the 2017 L'Oréal for Women in Science Fellowships have been announced, with five lucky early-career female scientists receiving $25,000 to support them in their specialist area of research for one year. [ + ]