Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI)

Questions have been raised about whether additional time on exams actually benefits students diagnosed with ADHD. Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) Dr Nadia Coscini spoke to School News - Australia, indicating that while the measure could alleviate anxiety, extra time may not be helpful for students with ADHD. Dr Coscini explained that other techniques may better address attentional or executive function challenges in an exam setting. Read more 👉 https://lnkd.in/gtCjZmYG #MCRI #MedicalResearch #ADHD #ChildHealth #Education

Most toddler food products sold in Aussie supermarkets do not meet nutrition standards set by the World Health Organization. Now a largest-of-its-kind survey of more than 7,000 parents has exposed just how often these foods being eaten by young Australians. According to the landmark research by Murdoch Children's Research Institute, 8 in 10 (80%) children aged 18 months to 4 years ate packaged toddler foods in the month of the survey. Nearly half (43%) consumed packaged toddler foods on five or more days per week in the last month. This data makes it clearer than ever that regulation around these foods, including how much salt and sugar can go into them, must be prioritised to protect young children's health. Read the media release: https://lnkd.in/gQu2yZyb Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) Victorian Health Promotion Foundation (VicHealth)

We were honoured to have today's Stem Cell Medicine Special Seminar presented by Professor George Q. Daley, MD, PhD, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.     Professor Daley gave a brief history of cell therapies, including the earliest documented blood transfusions and bone marrow transplants and spoke about his own lab's efforts to develop equitable and scalable methods to produce transplantable blood cells to avoid rejection and deal with unpredictable donor supply.   Read more about MCRI research creating blood stem cells that closely resemble those in the human body 👉 https://lnkd.in/gSwE6mJ7   #MCRI #MedicalResearch 

Children are under-represented in clinical trials. Following a global survey, the World Health Organization (WHO) has published a technical report to guide coordinated action and investment in evidence generation for child health. Murdoch Children's Research Institute's (MCRI) Professor Fiona Russell was on the steering committee for this to strengthen trials and include under-represented populations. By focusing on shared priorities and promoting equitable inclusion, the agenda aims to ensure that future research addresses the needs of all children, including those who have historically been left behind. Read more 👉 https://lnkd.in/dkFgTC4P #MCRI #WHO Australian Global Health Alliance

Well-deserved recognition for supporting graduate researchers. Congratulations to Murdoch Children’s Research Institute’s (MCRI) Professor Paul Lockhart and Associate Professor Penelope Bryant – 2025 recipients of the MMS Awards for Outstanding Graduate Research Supervision by Honorary Staff. These awards recognise the valuable role honorary staff play in the supervision and development of graduate research candidates within the Melbourne Medical School. #MCRI #MedicalResearch Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences

This week, GenV leaders and researchers had the privilege of presenting at MCRI’s flagship David Danks Seminar Series - a showcase of science and collaboration across the Institute and the Royal Children’s Hospital. It was an honour to be invited by Professor Kathryn North, Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) Director, to share how GenV - one of the Institute’s most ambitious initiatives - is bringing prevention in action to life. Led by Professor Melissa Wake, Professor Richard Saffery and Professor Raghu Lingam, the session “GenV: Prevention in Action - Real People, Real Solutions, Real Time” explored: ▶ Why Australia needs a living testbed for child and population health ▶ How GenV’s ‘build once, use many times’ platform enables faster, fairer discovery ▶ The never-before-achieved biobank of this size, scale and inclusivity - where the diversity of our cohort means researchers are working with data that’s truly representative of the population it represents, leading to more equitable and relevant results ▶ What’s ahead as GenV grows in data richness, collaborations and impact It was a wonderful opportunity to share with colleagues just how big GenV has become, how unique it is in the research landscape, and how deeply considered and inclusive its approach has been in engaging more than 124,000 Victorian participants. A huge thank you to everyone who joined us in the Ella Latham Theatre - and to the many MCRI researchers whose GenV-connected work was highlighted, reflecting the breadth of discovery already underway and in the pipeline. Tagging just some of those whose research is helping GenV create better health for all: Katie McBain Claudine Kraan Jing Wang Suzanne Mavoa Melvin M. Nick Larkins David Godler Valerie Sung Sam Forster Penelope Bryant Jonathan Mynard Sherly Li Xiaojiao Tang Katherine Lange And of course, no GenV event would be complete without our mascot, GeneVieve, making an appearance. #GenV #GenerationVictoria #PublicHealth #PopulationScience #PreventionInAction #ResearchMatters #ChildHealth #Collaboration #MCRI

While blood pressure technology has improved over time, it continues to rely on a traditional arm cuff. Until now. New technology, tested by Associate Professor Jonathan Mynard and his team at Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI), could enable doctors to offer an alternative, more comfortable option to young patients. Researchers evaluated the strengths of two cuffless blood pressure techniques, comparing pulse arrival velocity, an emerging technology, to the more established pulse arrival time method. Associate Professor Mynard examined which was better at tracking blood pressure changes in children and adolescents during exercise, an area that currently lacks strong data. See which method came out on top 👉 https://lnkd.in/gHKEPRyU #MCRI #MedicalResearch #HeartHealth #BloodPressure Heart Foundation

Peanut allergy has decreased in the US following key recommendations introduced a decade ago. The guideline recommended parents and carers introduce peanut and other potential allergens to babies in their first year of life, rather than avoiding them. Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) Associate Professor Rachel Peters and Associate Professor Jennifer Koplin co-authored a piece in The Conversation Australia + NZ, unpacking the US study and discussing how food allergy research in Australia continues to evolve. Read more 👉 https://direc.to/nBpF #Allergy #AllergyResearch #PeanutAllergy #ChildHealth American Academy of Pediatrics Child Health Research Centre The University of Queensland The University of Queensland Desalegn Markos Shifti National Allergy Centre of Excellence

Cover star of Chiron magazine 📘 Congratulations to Murdoch Children’s Research Institute’s Professor Susan Sawyer AM, featuring on the latest #Chiron cover – the alumni magazine for the Melbourne Medical School – along with an article she wrote on adolescent health. Adolescence has long been seen as a challenging time. New views embrace young people as one of society’s greatest assets and the need to take a systems approach to supporting them. Read the full issue and a special message from MCRI Professor Sarath Ranganathan 👉 https://lnkd.in/g5_vN_VZ #MCRI #AdolescentHealth #MentalHealth Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences

Launched today, the latest Future Healthy Countdown 2030 supplement to the Medical Journal of Australia explores how learning and employment pathways shape children and young people’s health and wellbeing.   It also features the Countdown’s first Progress Report, showing that many children and young people are being left behind. The good news is that policy solutions are within reach – and strongly supported by most Australians.   Join the growing coalition of organisations backing these policy actions for a healthier, fairer future 🤝 https://lnkd.in/gPuEjRUZ   Read the full Supplement here 📖 https://lnkd.in/gZTKSkVB   #MCRI #FutureHealthyCountdown2030 ARACY Victorian Health Promotion Foundation (VicHealth) Centre for Community Child Health