News

Inside one in ten women an invasive disease is ravaging reproductive and surrounding organs. It causes serious pain and in some cases, infertility. It’s called endometriosis and we know very little about it.

Researchers from The University of Queensland’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) have developed a faster and more accurate method for assembling genomes that could help clinicians rapidly identify antibiotic-resistant infections.

Australian researchers are a step closer to understanding immune sensitivities to well-known, and commonly prescribed, medications. Many drugs are successfully used to treat diseases, but can also have harmful side effects. While it has been known that some drugs can unpredictably impact on the functioning of the immune system, our understanding of this process has been unclear.

IMB researchers have found a promising small molecule treatment that blocked cancer spread and improved survival rates in mice in a pre-clinical study of breast cancer.

IMB agricultural sciences PhD student Samantha Nixon (King Group) has been named as one of 22 exceptional young Australians to receive a Westpac Future Leaders Scholarship. Samantha is is researching the concept of spider venoms as next generation treatments to combat drug resistance in parasites in Australian livestock.

Dr Joseph Powell and his team are investigating how differences in your DNA sequence impact on how disease starts and develops in the body. This NHMRC-funded research is important because it could lead to new approaches to prevent or to treat disease. (via NHMRC website)

No summer barbecue would be complete without the great Aussie salute. It's a tradition that has been linked to one specific fly: the Australian bush fly. IMB researcher Dr Maggie Hardy explains why this little Australian has got a bad rap. (via ABC Science)

Chances are, you’re going to marry someone a lot like you. Similar intelligence, similar height, similar body weight. A new study of tens of thousands of married couples suggests that this isn’t an accident. We don’t marry educated people because we happen to hang around with educated people, for example—we actively seek them out. And these preferences are shaping our genomes. Story via Science Magazine (external link).

IMB researchers have discovered a molecular trigger for inflammation that could lead to new treatments for rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and neurodegenerative diseases. Professor Jennifer Stow said targeting this trigger - a protein called SCIMP, could reduce or ‘switch off’ inflammation.

Researchers from The University of Queensland will investigate ways to halt or even reverse Parkinson’s disease thanks to a A$1.2 million grant from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research and its major Australian funding partner, Shake It Up Australia Foundation.

Register now for SDRI 2017, a multi-disciplinary scientific conference for the Asia Pacific region focused on Solutions for Drug-Resistant Infections.

Researchers from The University of Queensland’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience and Queensland Brain Institute have revealed new insights into how genetic and environmental factors control gene expression in humans.

Four IMB researchers have been recognised as some of the world’s most influential scientific minds, as measured by the Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Researchers list.

University of Queensland health and medical research projects aimed at improving the nation’s healthcare will benefit from more than $42 million in funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council for 2017.

IMB Industry Fellow Dr Christina Schroeder will tomorrow set sail for the inaugural Homeward Bound program, which is the largest-ever female expedition to Antarctica. The program aims to help women in science to develop their skills in leadership and strategy and raise awareness of the important contributions made by women in STEMM fields.

The young inventor behind a UQ discovery that could benefit patients living with inflammatory diseases has been awarded the 2016 Research Australia Discovery Award.

A $2.3M grant from Australian Cancer Research Foundation (ACRF) is being awarded to UQ IMB today to establish the new ACRF Cancer Ultrastructure and Function Facility (CUFF). The nation-leading facility will provide cutting-edge imaging capabilities for tracking and visualising cancer.

Join us for Superbugs at the Olympics, a free community event hosted by the IMB Centre for Superbug Solutions during Antibiotic Awareness Week.

Researchers from IMB have won first and third prize at Brisbane’s 2016 HealthHack, held 14-16 October at River City Labs. The winning team, Superfriends Against Superbugs, developed an app to track and map the presence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and rapidly alert clinicians, so they can limit the spread of bacteria and fight an outbreak in real-time.

In a world-first, IMB's Professor Rob Capon and his team are working with industry and the community to implement a discovery that turns cane toads’ own toxin against them, with real potential to eradicate this long-term pest.