Future Fellows funded for health and global security research

More than $100 million was awarded to 100 new projects through the scheme, with the University of Adelaide researchers focusing on research that will improve health and global security.

“It is fantastic to have the Australian Research Council recognise these outstanding research leaders doing impactful and excellent research at the University of Adelaide,” says Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Anton Middelberg.

“This funding allows the University to further support top researchers wanting to help find a solution to some of the world’s most challenging problems.”

Associate Professor Timothy Legrand was awarded $1,130,337 to research the extent of malicious blacklisting used by authoritarian states and their alliances to justify persecution of dissenters/minorities.

Malicious political blacklisting is recognised as a growing problem, as full democracies become less prevalent and as global non-government organisations are increasingly targeted.

Associate Professor Legrand’s research will use innovative machine learning tools to decipher hidden blacklisting regimes. The project will deliver the first comprehensive, publicly available and searchable dataset of global blacklists; strong political analysis of norms for current blacklisting modalities; and, critically, policies to challenge or avoid malicious blacklisting.

Dr Kylie Dunning was awarded $1,061,521 for research into improving fertility through an innovative method of growing ovarian follicles in the laboratory – suspension using sound.

The project will generate new knowledge on how to provide optimal conditions for follicle culture using newly developed acoustic technology, with the expected outcomes being the development of new platforms to monitor and optimise growth of the developing follicle, which will ultimately increase how many viable eggs can be grown from stored ovarian tissue.

Potential applications of this research are broad – from its application to threatened species protection, to the economic benefit through development of novel, next-generation reproductive biotechnologies.

Dr Danny Wilson was awarded $1,061,015 to look into Apicomplexan parasites of humans and livestock – including malaria – which survive by infecting and reproducing in host-cells.

Apicomplexan parasites have evolved sets of unique and shared proteins whose functions remain unknown, but which enable host-cell entry. Using a multi-disciplinary approach, Dr Wilson’s project will define cross-species protein function of malaria proteins required for early and late stages of host-cell entry.

The research project will leverage a substantial international network of research partners, outcomes of benefit to Australia include establishing a lead role in understanding the protein network driving different stages of malaria host-cell entry, characterisation of potential therapeutic targets and advancing imaging techniques applicable to other cellular systems.

For the full results of the Future Fellowships funding scheme, see the ARC website.