Monash Neuroscience and Mental Health Network Newsletter
Welcome to Newsletter #3 from the Monash Neuroscience and Mental Health
Network. If you have any additions for the newsletter please ensure they are emailed
to kylie.thoroughgood@med.monash.edu.au by 5pm each Friday.
Monash Seminars and Events
Monash Neuroscience and Mental Health Network Lecture
Professor Charles Watson will be presenting
Tuesday 27th November 3pm – 4pm
“Using gene targeting methods to understand brain development”
Lecture Theatre S2, Building 25
Monash Clayton Campus
Refreshments and finger food will be served following the lecture
Charles Watson is a professorial research fellow at Curtin University and the Prince
of Wales Medical Research Institute. He has published over 60 journal articles and
has co-authored 8 books on brain mapping with George Paxinos. One of these
books, a rat brain atlas, is ranked by Thomson Scientific in the fifty most cited
publications of all time – the only Australian publication to make the list. He has
recently completed a book on the control of communicable disease in Australia and a
spinal cord text and atlas. In 2004 he was made a member of the Order of Australia
for his contribution to brain research and public health.
Developmental Psychiatry and Psychology Seminar
A/Prof Alasdair Vance, Associate Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Royal
Children’s Hospital, will be presenting
Monday 3rd December 12.30pm – 1.30pm (lunch will be provided at 12noon)
“Putting the brain back into child psychiatry: Recent insights”
Lecture Theatre 3
Monash Medical Centre, Clayton
Other Seminars and Events
Howard Florey Institute Lecture
Assistant Professor Elizabeth Thomas – Department of Molecular Biology, Scripps
Institute La Jolla, USA will be presenting
Wednesday 28th November 5pm – 6.30pm
“Transcriptional dysregulation in Huntington’s Disease”
Howard Florey Institute Lecture Theatre
Ground Floor, University of Melbourne
Royal Parade, Parkville (Gate 11)
College of Clinical Neuropsychologists, Victorian Section Education Seminar
Dr Shantha Rajaratnam (SPPPM, Monash University) will be presenting
Tuesday 4th December at 6.30pm – 8pm
“Sleep loss and sleep disruption: Impact on Neurobehavioural performance”
Michael Chamberlain Lecture Theatre
St Vincents Hospital
Cocktails at 6pm and following seminar
RSVP 30/11/2007 to Dana.Wong@opworth.org.au (Ph: 0419 195 399)
Australian Association for Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy (AACBT)
Workshop
“Understanding & Treating Social Phobia”
Presented by Professor Ron Rapee
Friday 7th December
The Albert Hall, Launceston, Tasmania
8.45am – 5pm
For more information please email workshops@aacbtvic.org.au or visit the website:
http://www.aacbtvic.org.au
Conferences
AWARES Autism 2007 Conference
The AWARES on-line international autism conference, Autism 2007, is being held
from the 26th – 30th November.
The online conference is hosted by Autism Cymru, Wales’ National Charity for
Autism, and features a long list of international “speakers”, including staff from
Monash University’s School of Psychology, Psychiatry and Psychological Medicine.
Conference papers are available online, with online discussion with the “speakers”.
See the webpage for more information:
www.awares.org/conferences/
World Psychiatry Association Congress 2007
The World Psychiatry Association International Congress will be held Wednesday
28th November – Sunday 2nd December at the Melbourne Exhibition and Convention
centre, Melbourne.
For more information visit the website: http://www.wpa2007.melbourne.com/
Victorian Offenders Treatment Association 2007 Conference
The VOTA 4th National conference is taking place from Wednesday 28th November –
Friday 30th November at The Sebel Albert Park, Melbourne. For more information
visit the website: http://www.vota.org.au/conference/conference.html
Australian Neuroscience Society
The Australian Neuroscience Society’s 28th Annual Meeting will be held Sunday 27th
– Wednesday 30th January 2008 at the Hotel Grand Chancellor, Hobart, Tasmania.
Plenary speakers are Carla Shatz, Phil Robinson, Mac Christie and Gary Egan.
Deadline for abstracts and early registration is 13th November 2007.
For more information, including a copy of the conference brochure go to:
http://www.sallyjayconferences.com.au/ans2008
Other Events and Areas of Interest
Australian Course in Advanced Neuroscience
The Australian Course in Advanced Neuroscience (ACAN) is Australia’s answer to
the legendary neuroscience training programs held in Woods Hole and Cold Springs
Harbor in the United States. Leading Australian and overseas scientists work with
small groups of young neuroscientists to provide rigorous training in the theory and
practice of cellular neuroscience.
ACAN 2008 will be held from Sunday 20th April – Saturday 10th May at North
Stradbroke Island in Queensland.
Applications close Monday 10th December.
To apply, you must:
- be a PhD student in your second year or above by April 2008, or
- be a Postdoctoral Fellow, preferably no more than 5 years after completing
your PhD
- preferably be a full time resident of Australia or New Zealand, but a small
number of applicants from other countries may be accepted.
For more information, including the course program and application requirements,
please go to: http://acan.jcs.anu.edu.au/
Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Mapping Project
The Monash Neuroscience and Mental Health Network is undertaking a project to
identify what research is being undertaken across Monash University in the areas of
Neuroscience and Mental Health. The aim is to collate this information and make it
accessible to all personnel throughout the University by way of a website. Information
is sought from all personnel working in these fields, and this can be done by
completing the attached form and sending it back to Kylie Thoroughgood by
Wednesday 12th December. Email to kylie.thoroughgood@med.monash.edu.au. Fax
to 9594 5662 or Mail to Monash Neuroscience and Mental Health Network, Block E
Level 5, Monash Medical Centre, 246 Clayton Road, Clayton 3168.
Australian Brain Bank Network (formerly the National Neural Tissue Resource
Centre)
The Australian Brain bank Network (ABBN) represents a national platform which
encompasses brain collections in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia,
Victoria and Western Australia. Through this collaboration, the ABBN continues to
provide Australian and international researchers with clinically and
neuropathologically well-characterised human brain tissue on which they can conduct
research.
The ABBN has over 1,500 cases available for research, with 219 new brain and/or
brain and spinal cord donations in the last twelve months. The donations include
such disorders as Alzheimer’s disease, Depression, Frontotemporal dementia,
Huntington’s disease, Motor neuron disease, Multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease,
schizophrenia, alcohol related disorders, control ‘normal’ cases and other
neurological and psychiatric disorders.
An online national database provides Australian and international researchers with
clear and detailed information about the number and diagnostic categories of tissues
available in Australia. Go to www.nnf.com.au/nntrc.
Funding Opportunities
Monash Neuroscience and Mental Health Network Scholarships to attend
Australian Course in Advanced Neuroscience
The Monash Neuroscience and Mental Health Network is offering two scholarships to
the value of $2000 each to Monash PhD students or Postdoctoral Fellows who are
accepted to attend the 2008 ACAN course. The total cost of the 3 week course is
$3000 (which includes accommodation, meals, tuition and laboratory work).
Application details can be found at this site: http://acan.jcs.anu.edu.au/reg.html.
Only 12 positions are available! Successful applicants should contact Kylie
Thoroughgood from The Network as soon as they are notified of their acceptance by
ACAN.
Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre PhD scholarship
The Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre (APRC) is offering 2008 PhD scholarship and
support in the exciting and innovative area of brain stimulation, imaging and mood
disorders. For more information please contact Kate Hoy on 9076 5030 /
k.hoy@alfred.org.au.
Alzheimers Australia Research Postgraduate Scholarships
The Sylvia and Charles Viertel Postgraduate Research Scholarships in Dementia.
AAR is offering the Sylvia and Charles Viertel Postgraduate Research Scholarship in
Dementia. Two scholarships will be awarded in 2007 for research commencing in
2008, one in biological/non-clinical and one in clinical/psychosocial research in
dementia. The scholarships will be $30,000 per annum (tax-free) each and are
awarded for three years. Applications will close on 30 November 2007, for funding
commencing in 2008. Further information can be found at:
http://www.alzheimers.org.au/content.cfm?infopageid=3741#viertel
Alzheimers Association – Everyday Technologies for Alzheimer Care (ETAC)
Research Grants
The Everyday Technologies for Alzheimer Care (ETAC) consortium is a jointly
planned program of research support sponsored by the Alzheimer’s Association and
Intel Corporation.
ETAC is seeking proposals on personalized diagnostics, preventive tools and
interventions for adults coping with the spectrum of cognitive aging and
neurodegenerative disease, particularly Alzheimer’s disease.
The Association funds 4 awards under this program with each award limited to
$200,000. Letters of intent must be submitted by 1st December 2007 with full
applications due by the 4th January 2008.
For more information:
http://www.alz.org/professionals_and_researchers_everyday_technologies_for_alzhe
imer_care.asp
Alzheimers Association – Investigator Initiated Research Grants
The Investigator-Initiated Research Grant (IIRG) forms the backbone of the
Alzheimer’s Association grant program. To be considered responsive, the research
grant application must address a question or questions relevant to the 2008 areas of
focus or a compelling issue in Alzheimer research pertinent to the applicant’s special
interest or expertise.
The Association anticipates funding 55 awards under the IIRG program. Each total
award is limited to $240,000 (direct and indirect costs) for up to three years. Letters
of intent must be submitted by 1st December 2007 with full applications due by the
4th January 2008.
For more information:
http://www.alz.org/professionals_and_researchers_investigatorinitiated.asp
Alzheimers Association – New Investigator Research Grants
The program is designed to fund investigators who are no more than 10 years past
their doctoral degree. The purpose of this program is to provide new investigators
with funding that will allow them to develop preliminary or pilot data, to test
procedures and to develop hypotheses. All applications submitted to the New
Investigator Research Grant program must target defined areas of focus for fiscal
year 2008 in order to be considered responsive to the program announcement.
The Association anticipates funding 25 awards under this program. Each total award
is limited to $100,000 (direct and indirect) for up to two years. Letters of intent must
be submitted by 1st December 2007 with full applications due by the 4th January
2008.
For more information:
http://www.alz.org/professionals_and_researchers_new_investigator_research_grant
s.asp
Joining The Network Mailing List
Do you know someone who would benefit from being on the Monash Neuroscience
and Mental Health Network mailing list? Contact Kylie Thoroughgood on 9594 5625
or email kylie.thoroughgood@med.monash.edu.au.