News

Keep informed on our latest research news and updates here.

Research Theme Leads

We warmly welcome our five research Theme Leads for 2024/2025:

  • Professor Aniruddha (Ani) Desai – Theme Lead for Digital technology & transformation
  • Professor Richard Gray – Theme Lead for Healthy people, families & communities
  • Professor Nick Bond – Theme Lead for Resilient environments & communities
  • Professor Lawrie Zion – Theme Lead for Social change & equity
  • Associate Professor Erinna Lee – Theme Lead for Understanding & preventing disease
  • Note: From 2024, the La Trobe Institute for Sustainable Agriculture and Food will provide the strategic direction, external engagement and large-scale initiative development for the Sustainable Food and Agriculture theme, negating the need for a Theme Lead role for this theme.

Our Theme Leads' focus will be developing a program of research to address the goals of their theme. The Theme Leads will bring together researchers from across our schools and colleges and campuses to work towards common goals, building relationships with external partners and attracting research funding.

BioNTech to establish mRNA facility at La Trobe

La Trobe University will be home to the manufacturing of new investigational mRNA therapies for serious diseases including cancer, with global biotechnology company BioNTech planning to develop and commission a state-of-the-art mRNA clinical-scale manufacturing facility at the University’s Melbourne campus in Bundoora, in an agreement facilitated by the Victorian Government.

BioNTech is focused on utilising the potential of the immune system by developing investigational immunotherapeutic treatment methods including mRNA-based vaccine candidates, to fight cancer and other diseases.

AlleSense launches to enhance cancer diagnosis

La Trobe University is launching its first major spin-out company with technology that is set to revolutionise medical imaging and potentially save millions of lives.

AlleSense has been created to support the commercialisation of technology invented by La Trobe researchers Professor Brian Abbey and Dr Eugeniu Balaur, from the La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science and the School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematical Sciences.

World-class Digital Innovation Hub launched

La Trobe University welcomed the Hon Gayle Tierney MP, Minister for Skills and TAFE, to open the world-class Digital Innovation Hub.

In partnership with global technology leaders Cisco and Optus, the Digital Innovation Hub is a state-of-the art innovation precinct, which offers unprecedented technological capability for greater collaboration between students, researchers, business and industry.

The Digital Innovation Hub will accelerate research and development across a wide range of critical sectors, including healthcare, education, advanced manufacturing, transportation, smart urban infrastructure and more.

La Trobe awarded $7.35m in NHMRC grants

La Trobe University research teams have been awarded a combined $7.35 million in grants to support groundbreaking health research projects.

Announced by the Minister for Health and Aged Care, Mark Butler MP, the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) grants scheme funds researchers at all career stages in areas of health and medical research, from discovery to implementation.

Of significance is a $2.9 million NHMRC Investigator Grant awarded to the La Trobe researcher who invented a groundbreaking diagnostic tool to help detect early-stage cancer.

Organ and tissue donation

Researchers at La Trobe University met with young people to understand the knowledge gaps they have when it comes to making decisions about organ and tissue donation.

Explore the multiple videos addressing these knowledge gaps.

Opening of OTARC's new Victorian Early Assessment Clinic

We are thrilled to announce the official opening of the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre’s new Victorian Early Assessment Clinic. Situated on La Trobe University’s Bundoora Campus in Melbourne, OTARC’s Victorian Early Assessment Clinic (VEAC) provides families with a comprehensive needs assessment and differential diagnosis for children aged 12 - 36 months old. For more information or to book click here Victorian Early Assessment Clinic, Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre, La Trobe University

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