Identification of the genes involved in human memory is just one of the Griffith research studies to receive funding as part of this year’s ARC (Australian Research Council) Discovery funding.
Research leader Professor Lyn Griffiths from the Griffith Health Institute said it had “made her day” to receive a total of $570,000 for the study, the largest amount of all of the 24 grants awarded to the University.
The study The genetic basis of human memory will aim to identify genes that play a significant role in human memory in order to investigate the premise that memory is a complex trait with a strong genetic component.
“Outcomes from the study will provide findings that will increase our understanding of the genetic basis of human memory withimplicationsfor future therapies for memory problems and enhancing memory performance,” said Professor Griffiths.
In total, Griffith was awarded a total of $7,681,493 ARC funding, an increase on last year’s award funding of$2,641,522.
In comparison to the six other Innovative Research Universities, Griffith had the highest number of successful proposals, the second highest success rate and the highest amount of awarded funding.
Professor Jiri Neuzil and Dr Lanfeng Dong, also from the Griffith Health Institute, said they was delighted to receive a $330,000 grant for their research Targeting mitochondria with mitocans to treat cancer: Mechanistic aspects. “This is great news for us as we have very high hopes for the eventual development of an anti-cancer drug based on this work, which will be used in the fight against breast cancer,” said Professor Neuzil.
Dr Jennifer Whitty from the Griffith Health Institute and Professor Wendy Chaboyer from the Centre of Research Excellence in Nursing were awarded $278,000 for their study Patients’ Preference for Participation in Patient Safety Activities.
Professor Melanie J Zimmer-Gembeck, Associate Professor Allison Waters, Professor Andrew Nesdale and Dr Lara Farrell were awarded $175,853 for their work titled Appearance-based rejection sensitivity from childhood to adolescence: Victimisation, mental health consequences, and rejection resilience.