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Medical research, no matter how promising it is, can go nowhere without sufficient funds.
As the agency responsible for government funding of research, the Australian Research Council( ARC) states that research“ contributes to the development of new technologies, products and ideas, the creation of jobs, economic growth and an enhanced quality of life in Australia”.
However, the ARC’ s screening process can be challenging.“ Funding is awarded on a basis of a competitive process and rigorous peer review assessment to support the highest-quality researchers and research projects,” said one spokeswoman.
In terms of science and medical research, the ARC provides funding schemes to environmentally sustainable projects and studies that promote and maintain good health.
They also fund technologies that can transform Australian industries, and safeguard the nation.
The ARC offers its support via the National Competitive Grants Program, which funds research in universities across all disciplines, except dentistry and clinical medicine that involves human testing.
“ In 2012-13, total funding of $ 879.1 million will be administered through the NCGP,” said the spokeswoman.
Asked how much the ARC will allot to medical research in the coming years, she said:“ The ARC does not have a specific amount of funding it allocates to medical research.
“ All applications, across all disciplines, are assessed under a peer review process for all Discovery and Linkage schemes,” she said.
“ The total funding awarded to medical research under the NCGP in future years will depend on the excellence of the applications received compared to the excellence of applications in other discipline area.”
Case study: Funding for Parkinson’ s disease research One recent ARC-funded study is looking at potential treatment for Parkinson’ s disease.
Deakin University biomedical scientist Dr Richard Williams has been looking into the degenerative brain disease, together with Dr David Nisbet from the Australian National University and Dr Clare Parish at the Florey Neuroscience Institute.
Williams says that significant funding is needed for the treatment research to be successful.
The researchers are developing a way to repair parts of the brain that cause
In order to get these treatments to people, it requires a significant investment to make sure they are safe and( they) work” – Dr Richard Williams
Parkinson’ s disease by using peptides to help build“ a new brain”.
The treatment seeks to help the brain revive dead or damaged dopamineproducing cells. Dopamine is the chemical lubricant that helps the brain control muscles and movement throughout the body.
When the supply of dopamine is halted, Parkinson’ s disease develops. Shaking and muscle stiffness are common symptoms of the disease.
Williams and his team are studying bioactive peptides, the building blocks and messengers of the body, to mimic the normal brain environment and provide the chemical signals needed to help the brain function.
The researchers’ goal is to grow these structured cells in the laboratory under highly defined conditions, and then transplant adult neurons directly within the midbrain. They hope that this would reconstruct the brain and restore its function.
“ The problem with a disease such as Parkinson’ s is( the) extremely limited regenerative capacity of the adult central nervous system; and as a result, treatments for the disease currently rely on the administration of drugs or rehabilitative measures,” Dr Williams said.
Such treatment may be successful at some degree, he said but“[ it ] does not result in a long-term modification of the disease.”
“ To date, cell transplantation for the treatment of Parkinson’ s Disease has looked the most optimistic. This is because the disease is a result of the death of midbrain dopaminergic neurons which leads to a decrease of the critical neurotransmitter dopamine; not having a sufficient supply results in the motor symptoms we are familiar with,” he said.
Trials have shown that the transplantation of new neurons into the brain can have some re-introduce dopamine, which improves sensory, motor and cognitive function.
Major limitations of the study include the lack of suitable cells for transplantation.
In addition, once transplanted, the cells’ survival is typically less than 10 per cent and these cells are unable to integrate.
Williams admitted that the goal is very complex and an effective treatment is 10 to 15 years away.
However, while the research is not yet complete, Williams is excited by the possibilities this work offers to the treatment of degenerative conditions.
He says that while laboratory studies are relatively affordable, it still requires major investment to make sure the treatments are safe and work properly.
Without support or funding The greatest challenge in treating Parkinson’ s disease, said Parkinson’ s Australia CEO Daryl Smeaton, is lack in research funding.
Smeaton said there should be“ an increase in funding for supporting people with Parkinson’ s in their life’ s journey”.
According to Smeaton, there is currently very little funding available from the government that would enable the 80,000 or more Parkinson’ s sufferers, their carers and families to at least be comfortable as the disease progresses.
“ Research costs a lot of money, and the amount of money provided by the federal government in terms of looking at Parkinson’ s is very, very small.”
He said research funding for Parkinson’ s is only about $ 18m, a small amount compared to over a hundred million dollars that the federal government provide to other medical research.
“ In the 200 years that Parkinson’ s has been known, we haven’ t been able to know the cause or cure,” he said.
According to Parkinson’ s Australia, a conservative estimate of over 64,000 Australians were living with Parkinson’ s disease in 2011, or approximately one in every 350 people in Australia are living with this disease, making it the second most common neurological condition in Australia.
The disease remains one of the least understood in terms of causality, researchers say.
About two years ago, an estimated 10,500 new cases of Parkinson’ s were diagnosed, or nearly 30 new diagnoses every day, with over 2000 people in their 30s and 40s living with it.
Smeaton said a significant number of medications have been developed to improve the quality of lives of people with Parkinson’ s for the last 60-70 years, but these only ameliorate the symptoms and not stop the condition.
Research into new treatment for medical conditions such as Parkinson’ s can only take off with enough fuel from government funding. n
www. campusreview. com. au April 2013 | 31