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The Kids Research Institute Australia researchers finalists for 2016 Eureka PrizesThree Perth researchers from The Kids Research Institute Australia have today been named finalists for the 2016 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes.
Research
Clinical, Radiologic, Pathologic, and Molecular Characteristics of Long-Term Survivors of Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine GliomaWe report clinical, radiologic, and molecular factors that correlate with survival in children and young adults with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma
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Maternal consumption of coffee and tea during pregnancy and risk of childhood ALL: a pooled analysis from the childhood Leukemia International ConsortiumOur findings suggest that high coffee intake during pregnancy may increase risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia
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Living on a farm, contact with farm animals and pets, and childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemiaThese findings add additional evidence to the hypothesis that regular contact with animals in early childhood is inversely associated with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia
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Activation of ERBB4 in Glioblastoma Can Contribute to Increased Tumorigenicity and Influence Therapeutic ResponseDespite low ERBB4 mRNA in glioblastoma, the functional effects of increased ERBB4 activation identify ERBB4 as a potential prognostic and therapeutic target
News & Events
New Rheumatic Heart Disease CentreThe Kids Research Institute Australia is proud to announce the launch of a world class Centre of Research Excellence in rheumatic heart disease (RHD).
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MK2 inhibition induces p53-dependent senescence in glioblastoma cellsIn response to DNA damaging chemotherapy, targeting MK2 in p53-mutated cells produces a phenotype that is distinct from the p53-deficient phenotype
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A reference collection of patient-derived cell line and xenograft models of proneural, classical and mesenchymal glioblastomaWe present a curated panel of 12 readily-usable, cell lines representing the spectrum of molecular subtypes of IDH-wildtype glioblastoma
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Genome-wide association meta-analysis of single-nucleotide polymorphisms and symptomatic venous thromboembolism during therapy for ALL and lymphoma in caucasian childrenThe largest GWAS meta-analysis conducted to date associating SNPs to venous thromboembolism in children and adolescents treated on childhood ALL protocols
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Silencing of GATA3 defines a novel stem cell-like subgroup of ETP-ALLGATA3low ETP-ALL is a novel stem cell-like leukemia with implications for the use of myeloid-derived therapies
News & Events
Margie's story: Parent to a child with ARFWhen Liana complained of a sore foot and showed signs of a fever, her mum Margie rushed her to hospital. An X-ray of her foot revealed no obvious injury, so she was sent home and advised to take painkillers.
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Irreversible growth plate fusions in children with medulloblastoma treated with a targeted hedgehog pathway inhibitorWe report on 3 children treated with vismodegib who developed widespread growth plate fusions that persist long after cessation of therapy.
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Research priorities for the secondary prevention and management of acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease: a National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute workshop reportSecondary prevention of acute rheumatic fever (ARF) and rheumatic heart disease (RHD) involves continuous antimicrobial prophylaxis among affected individuals and is recognised as a cornerstone of public health programmes that address these conditions. However, several important scientific issues around the secondary prevention paradigm remain unresolved.
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Maternal consumption of coffee and tea during pregnancy and risk of childhood brain tumors: results from an Australian case-control studyThe aim of this analysis was to investigate whether maternal coffee or tea consumption during pregnancy was associated with the risk of CBT.
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Evaluating the role of asymptomatic throat carriage of Streptococcus pyogenes in impetigo transmission in remote Aboriginal communities in Northern Territory, Australia: a retrospective genomic analysisStreptococcus pyogenes, or group A Streptococcus (GAS), infections contribute to a high burden of disease in Aboriginal Australians, causing skin infections and immune sequelae such as rheumatic heart disease. Controlling skin infections in these populations has proven difficult, with transmission dynamics being poorly understood. We aimed to identify the relative contributions of impetigo and asymptomatic throat carriage to GAS transmission.
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State transitions across the Strep A disease spectrum: scoping review and evidence gapsThe spectrum of diseases caused by Streptococcus pyogenes (Strep A) ranges from superficial to serious life-threatening invasive infections. We conducted a scoping review of published articles between 1980 and 2021 to synthesize evidence of state transitions across the Strep A disease spectrum. We identified 175 articles reporting 262 distinct observations of Strep A disease state transitions.
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Qualitative assessment of healthy volunteer experience receiving subcutaneous infusions of high-dose benzathine penicillin G (SCIP) provides insights into design of late phase clinical studiesSecondary prophylaxis to prevent rheumatic heart disease (RHD) progression, in the form of four-weekly intramuscular benzathine benzylpenicillin G (BPG) injections, has remained unchanged since 1955. Qualitative investigations into patient preference have highlighted the need for long-acting penicillins to be delivered less frequently, ideally with reduced pain.
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Rheumatic heart disease mortality in Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians between 2010 and 2017To generate contemporary age-specific mortality rates for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians aged <65 years who died from rheumatic heart disease between 2013 and 2017, and to ascertain the underlying causes of death of a prevalent RHD cohort aged <65 years who died during the same period.
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Trends in penicillin dispensing during an acute rheumatic fever prevention programmeAcute rheumatic fever (ARF), a serious inflammatory condition, often leads to rheumatic heart disease. Between 2011 and 2016, Aotearoa New Zealand implemented a rheumatic fever prevention programme to reduce high rates of ARF through improved community access to timely diagnosis and early treatment of group A streptococcal pharyngitis, which has been shown to prevent subsequent ARF.
Research
Study protocol for controlled human infection for penicillin G against Streptococcus pyogenes: a double-blinded, placebo-controlled, randomised trial to determine the minimum concentration required to prevent experimental pharyngitis (the CHIPS trial)Regular intramuscular benzathine penicillin G injections have been the cornerstone of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) secondary prophylaxis since the 1950s. As the pharmacological correlate of protection remains unknown, it is difficult to recommend changes to this established regimen. Determining the minimum effective penicillin exposure required to prevent Streptococcus pyogenes infection will accelerate development of new long-acting penicillins for RHD prevention as well as inform opportunities to improve existing regimens. The CHIPS trial will address this knowledge gap by directly testing protection afforded by different steady state plasma concentrations of penicillin in an established model of experimental human S. pyogenes pharyngitis.