Beyond time that we started seeing articles like this about the appalling state of Australia’s grant funding system……and peer review is just one problem that needs fixing. Australia’s erosion of peer review | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Another Budget week gone &, overall, I'd say Australian research is worse off than last week. Maybe medical research is a bit better off. CSIRO's on slightly firmer footing ("but we'll sack everyone anyway"). University-based research? "Research translation"? Stuffed. No $. No plan. No research.

Very excited to take on a new role as Co-Director of the Department of Fundamental Oncology at UNIL, w/ my wonderful colleague Tatiana Petrova as Director - looking forward to support ambitious science, strengthen translational collaborations & help train the next generations of cancer researchers!

Using light-activated CRISPR in zebrafish, we triggered synchronized DNA breaks and track the repair process. ⚡🐟⚡ 

 Well ... DNA repair is very different in embryos compared to tissue culture cells. Embryos repair DNA breaks incredibly fast - within minutes! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

Delighted to share the lab's latest led by superstar Janith and funded by @snowmedical.bsky.social. What happens when embryonic factors are reawakened in cancers? We uncovered how DPPA2/4 amplify chromatin states in non-small cell lung cancer 🧬🔬🧪 genesdev.cshlp.org/content/earl... Tutorial 👇 (1/8)

….no surprise at all! www.timeout.com/melbourne/ne...

Congratulations!🙌

Amyloidosis of bridging veins is a pathologic feature of #Alzheimers disease, from @leonsmyth.bsky.social, Rupal Mehta, @jonykipnis.bsky.social et al. rupress.org/jem/article/... 📘 In our #Lymphatics collection: rupress.org/jem/collecti...

All the feels tonight for the Australian biomedical research sector #nhmrc

NHMRC Investigator Grants out today. A devastating day for many. I have already received messages from some of the best researchers I know who have missed out. The senior levels had a cutoff of 5.93 (females), 6.2 (males) - according to my sources. The impact will be wide spread.

Beautiful work Li-Kun!

We are a rich enough country to be funding 37% of all basic research proposals, not just considering "the best" 37% and then maybe only funding 12% in the end.

Australia has incredible talent, but without sustained investment and long‑term certainty, we risk losing both people and progress. Supporting medical research isn’t optional — it’s essential for better health outcomes and future prosperity. www.theaustralian.com.au/health/medic...

This is going to be awesome! Can’t wait.

I’ve officially started my lab at Monash University! 🎉 We’re diving into #cellgrowth and #lysosome biology, through the lens of molecular #structure and mechanism. I’m thrilled to say that PhD student scholarships are available—so please share widely and get in touch if you’re interested. 🤩

Two Peter Mac researchers have secured $3.5M+ in MRFF funding for projects to improve recovery after cancer surgery and to advance personalised care for a rare type of ovarian cancer. Read more: www.petermac.org/about-us/new...

Our preprint on mural cells and the zebrafish blood brain barrier is now revised with new data and analysis www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Right now, the Government is starving medical research of full funding, even as it claims that science and research are national priorities. If our leaders truly value science as much as they say, then they must back their words with action—and fund it properly. Join the campaign!

New research led by Prof @benjhogan.bsky.social has revealed a surprising evolutionary switch in the brain’s immune system - uncovering how specialised immune cells at the borders of the brain evolved, and why they behave so differently in humans. More: www.petermac.org/about-us/new...

We’re delighted to see this out today! Latest work from the lab reveals insights into the evolution of brain immunity and the developmental and evolutionary plasticity of lymphatic endothelial cells. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

The government can’t claim that medical research is a priority while failing to treat it as one. Nine in 10 leading researchers in Australia are missing out on government support for world‑class proposals, leaving exceptional talent uncertain about their future.

Medical research matters! Australian scientists are making potentially lifesaving breakthroughs into the molecular mechanisms of brain tumours - discoveries with potential for commercialisation and global uptake. We should support them better via the MRFF and NHMRC.

Australia’s medical and scientific research sectors save lives and are vital to our economy. The government has to step up and lean in to their potential. It’s small-minded and short-sighted to force them to wither on the vine, when we have money put aside for this purpose in the Future Fund.

“This feels like yet another attack on our research community that is already under siege” Senator @davidpocock.bsky.social has issued a media release about the ARC's proposed restructure and job cuts 👇

An abismal 8% success rate for this year’s #NHMRC #IdeasGrant scheme. Must be an all time low. Congratulations to those successful, you really earned it! Commiserations to the NINETY TWO percent of applicants who didn’t get it… #australianresearch #discoveriesneeddollars 🥼🧪🔬🧫 🇦🇺

When a larval zebrafish twitches its tail, the vascular endothelium lights up with a calcium signal, mediated by Piezo1. We used to think mechanosensing in endothelial cells was about sensing blood flow, but at least in this case it's about sensing body motion.

The Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) funds medical research in Australia. Only half the funds have been released. If you're an Australian and able to vote please use the form below to email your local MP to release the full amount of the MRFF aamri.org.au/mrff/

Australia’s first Centre of Research Excellence in #Lymphoedema and Lymphatic Regeneration has launched, led by Prof @benjhogan.bsky.social and Prof Natasha Harvey, it's been dubbed a global “paradigm shift” and a major step forward. Read more: www.petermac.org/about-us/new...

Hundreds of millions in MRFF funds are sitting idle while labs close and researchers leave. The money is there – release the full MRFF. www.aamri.org.au/mrff #releasethefullmrff

And we’re off! Excited to be in Tokyo for a weekend of vascular biology kicked off by the Presidents of the Japanese, Korean and Australian vascular biology societies….

“It’s time to remove the arbitrary funding cap on MRFF disbursements so it can deliver what is has been designed & legislated to do: support medical research & innovation" - says Academy President Prof. Chennupati Jagadish, AC commenting on a story in Nine Newspapers lnkd.in/geu3QVba

Thanks for sharing our work @bladoux.bsky.social (you just made the lead author @marcoenriquez18.bsky.social very happy 😊)

Australia: SERD panel wants Australia to have narrow, long-term research focus (free to read): www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-aust...

Excellent work by @juliaeckert.bsky.social- now online!

The Institute for Molecular Bioscience is seeking an exceptional academic leader to be the new Director of the Centre for Chemistry and Drug Discovery and lead our centre consisting of 10 group leaders, 40 staff and approximately 50 HDR students. Come and join us in sunny Brisbane!

Reminder Australia’s Global R&D Ranking (Gross R&D expenditure as % of GDP) is 23 at 1.66% (2023). Closest nations are Portugal 1.7%, Estonia 1.78%, Czech 1.96%, Slovenia 2.11%. Leaders=Israel 6.02%, Korea 5.21%. UK 2.9% and US 3.59%. Imagine 3%….. @albomp.bsky.social @jimchalmers.bsky.social

The latest figures show R&D investment isn’t even keeping up with inflation, let alone fuelling productivity.

Every "meet the speaker" event

SAVE THE DATE!! #2026SDB 🧪🧬🔬🧫🎉 (Never been to Vegas 😂 Exciting!!)

Karolinska is looking for 20 (!!) assistant professors and offering 6 year appointments with ~1M USD startup packages. ki.se/en/about-ki/...

Studies of the regenerative powers of worms, zebrafish and lizards suggest ways to improve recovery in people https://go.nature.com/40aM9M8

It was again a great Lymphatic Forum, this time in Chicago. From basic lymphatic endothelial cell biology to clinical trials on lymphatic diseases. Looking forward to the 2027 one.

With nearly all of Harvard Chan School’s direct federal grants terminated, we are relying on philanthropy to power our research and support our educational programs. Every gift, regardless of size, advances our vision of health, dignity, and justice for every human. Support our work: hsph.me/whygive

KJ Muldoon, a 9½-month-old boy with a rare condition, made medical history by receiving the first custom gene-editing treatment. The technique used has the potential to help people with thousands of other uncommon genetic diseases. Read more: nyti.ms/44H77pg

Beautiful work! Congratulations to the team

NIH-funded basic research allowed me to discover two molecules (COX-2 and S1PR1) that became drug targets - COX-2 inhibitors and S1PR modulators - more than 7 million prescriptions for Celebrex taken for pain; >350k people have taken Fingolimod/Ozanimod for MS and IBD/UC-basic research is essential!

Australia completely lacks a dedicated training program for clinician scientists. With the vision and support of VMIAL @petermaccc.bsky.social is extremely proud to announce the first clinician-scientist fellowship. If you meet the eligibility criteria PLEASE APPLY! www.nature.com/naturecareer...

Australia should be doing this now and at a grander scale. Let’s reverse the brain drain and properly support the scientists we have @markbutlermp.bsky.social @edhusicmp.bsky.social

Delighted to share the latest preprint from the lab led by Janith Seneviratne We reveal novel roles for #embryonic regulators DPPA2/4 in facilitating a H2AK119Ub primed #chromatin state when aberrantly up-regulated in non-small cell lung #cancers 🧬🔬 (1/6) www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Two great new #Zebrafish preprints from the #WeinsteinLab using a new transgenic that reports epigenetic silencing and activation! Great to study epigenetic changes in vertebrates, and we even did an ENU screen. Excellent work by @mmarvel.bsky.social et al. 🧪 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...