2023 Victorian Medical Research Acceleration Fund success

Two exciting Hudson Institute research projects have received a valuable boost from the 2023 Victorian Medical Research Acceleration Fund.

The State Government funded grants aim to support scientists in the early stages of health and medical research to translate their work into health and economic outcomes.

Associate Professor Michelle Tate received a Tier 2 grant worth $470,000 and Dr Shayanti Mukherjee received a Tier 1 grant worth $93,500 to fast-track translation of their research into clinical or health practice.

Influenza drug target | Medical Research Acceleration Fund

A/Prof Tate’s work titled “Fast-tracking the clinical development of novel host-derived compounds for severe lung infections” aims to develop the first effective treatment for severe influenza.

Based on previous work in collaboration with Lateral Pharma, which identified a series of novel compounds that protect against severe flu by acting directly on the cells in the lung, rather than the virus itself, she is now continuing the industry partnership to fast-track the development of this treatment.

“This grant will leverage an existing and highly successful partnership between Hudson Institute and Lateral Pharma. These studies are critical as they will significantly enhance the likelihood of success of a future clinical trial.”

POP treatment | Medical Research Acceleration Fund

The judges also recognised Dr Shayanti Mukherjee’s work on developing new treatment approached for pelvic organ prolapse, (POP), a debilitating urogenital disorder affecting one in four women.

Her project in partnership with the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF),  Australian Birth Trauma Association and Monash University aims to advance female pelvic reconstructive surgery outcomes using nanotechnology.

“This project will develop new bioengineered degradable products for pelvic reconstructive surgery using our unique preclinical models of vaginal repair.” Dr Mukherjee said.

“We will pave the way for future clinical trials to radically transform maternal health outcomes, reduce healthcare costs and improve women’s quality of life.”