Total funding $121.1 million
The successful grants detailed below are just a sample of the grants awarded to Victorian researchers in the latest round of National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funding schemes.
Dr Karin Leder: Health risks from drinking untreated water
Total amount awarded - $925,563
The continued drought is placing increasing pressure on our water usage and the need to better utilise our most precious resource.
Dr Karin Leder from Monash University will investigate better use of water resources. The first project will assess if drinking untreated rainwater causes a health risk. Over a twelve month period they will assess the health of 300 families with half drinking treated rainwater and half drinking untreated rainwater. By comparing the health of the two groups the researchers will be able to determine the health risk of drinking untreated rainwater and will provide information regarding safe uses of this alternative drinking water source.
The second project will assess the safety of using recycled water in domestic laundries and recreational parks. The results from these projects may lead to a significant reduction in water usage across Australia .
A/Professor Paul Dietze: Alcohol consumption and social problems
Amount awarded - $436,250
While much is known about the impact of drinking on individual health, there has been insufficient research of the social impact, particularly on families and relationships.
Associate Professor Paul Dietze from the Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre will lead a team of researchers in establishing the Australian arm of an international study to better understand the patterns between alcohol consumption and problems in social relations.
Dr Amanda Fosang: Collagen and arthritis
Total amount awarded - $1,144,950
Dr Amanda Fosang from the University of Melbourne has been awarded a prestigious NHMRC Research Fellowship. Dr Fosang studies factors that result in destruction of joint cartilage in arthritis.
She has also been awarded an NHMRC Project Grant to investigate the role of a reduction in collagen and another structural molecule known as aggrecan in the progression of arthritis. Together collagen and aggrecan allow cartilage to bear weight and resist compression.