University of Melbourne researchers funded by MS Australia

Three University of Melbourne researchers have been awarded funding by MS Australia to prevent disability and stop disease progression in people living with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Dr Sifat Sharmin, a statistician and research fellow in the Clinical Outcomes Research Unit, was awarded a Postdoctoral Fellowship for her project Preventing disability in children with multiple sclerosis.

Dr Sharmin and her team from the Neuroimmunology Centre at the Royal Melbourne Hospital will simulate the natural course of disability, using comprehensive data from three registries to support decision making about the best treatment strategy for children with MS.

“Our work will generate the evidence we need to identify the most effective therapy, at an early stage, for children at the highest risk of experiencing worsening disability,” Dr Sharmin said.

Associate Professor Justin Rubio, from the Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental Health, has been funded for his project 'Using human genomics to identify drug targets for progressive MS.'

"This project seeks to identify the genes that cause MS to progress, and whether this information can be used to slow damage that occurs in the brain of people living with the disease," explained Associate Professor Rubio.

"Once identified, these genes could pave the way for novel drug discovery programs,” he said.

Dr Jessica Fletcher, Menzies Institute for Medical Research at University of Tasmania and, honorary researcher in the Department of Anatomy and Physiology at the University of Melbourne, has received funding for her project 'How can we stop MS progression?'

MS Australia is Australia’s national multiple sclerosis not-for-profit organisation which empowers researchers to identify new ways to treat, prevent and cure MS, while advocating for sustained policy change and the interests of those living with MS in Australia.