Two Monash researchers have been awarded prestigious Australia Fellowships from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and will receive $4 million each over a five-year period.

The NHMRC named Professor Shaun Jackson from the Australian Centre for Blood Diseases and Professor Charles Mackay from the School of Biomedical Sciences, both in the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences as recipients of the fellowships.

The announcement was made by Parliamentary Secretary for Health, Mark Butler at the University's Clayton campus today. Australia Fellowships recognise outstanding health and medical researchers and aim to attract and retain them to undertake research projects that will be of significant benefit to Australians.

Professor Edwina Cornish, Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) was delighted that Professor Jackson and Professor Mackay had accomplished such a notable achievement.

"Professor Jackson and Professor Mackay were two of nine researchers to receive this influential fellowship," Professor Cornish said. "Both will join the esteemed company of Professor Nadia Rosenthal from the Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute as our second and third Australia Fellows."

Professor Jackson will use his fellowship to identify an entirely new approach to the treatment of heart attacks and stroke. He will do this by developing innovative blood clotting therapies that prevent the disease-causing effects of disturbed blood flow. As part of his project he will collaborate with other world-class researchers both in Australia and overseas.

Professor Mackay will utilise his fellowship to gain new knowledge on immune responses by exploring radical new ideas on inflammation and the role of diet and gastro-intestinal microflora. His work will also involve the development of new treatments for diseases such as asthma, autoimmune diseases and cancer by integrating new and powerful technologies and approaches of bio-therapeutics.

"On behalf of Monash University, I congratulate Professor Jackson and Professor Mackay and their research teams. An Australia Fellowship is one of the highest accolades a researcher can achieve within Australia," Professor Cornish said. "I also extend my thanks to the NHMRC for their continued support of research excellence at Monash."

The latest round of National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Development Grants were also announced today.

Monash recipients include Associate Professor Sharon Ricardo whose research to develop novel methods for promoting organ development and growth in premature babies will receive 383,000 over 3 years. Dr Leslie Yeo has been awarded $464,000 over 2 years for further research into the Respire™ system -- a portable pulmonary delivery platform for the treatment of chronic respiratory diseases, and Australia Fellowship recipient Professor Charles Mackay who will receive $394,000 over 3 years for the development of a treatment for fibrosis.

（www.eduwo.com, Anna）