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Platypus sex; drugs from shellfish toxins; the secret of ageing; cancer cells cheat death4 March 2008Four leading Australian and NZ scientists are in Paris from 5 March for the 10th anniversary of the L’ORÉAL/ UNESCO For Women In Science program.They’re all available to discuss the latest developments in their research:Expatriate Australian scientist Elizabeth Blackburn will receive one of five L’ORÉAL-UNESCO 2008 For Women in Science Awards. Blackburn, who is based at the University of California, San Francisco, is the 2008 Laureate for North America, and receives the award and a $US100,000 cheque “for the discovery of the nature and maintenance of chromosome ends and their roles in cancer and ageing.” Joining her at the ceremony in Paris will be past Asia-Pacific Laureates Suzanne Cory, Jenny Graves and Margaret Brimble, marking the 10th year of the For Women in Science program. To interview them contact Megan Ryan in Paris on +61 400 641 737. Australia-born Blackburn discovered telomerase — an enzyme that repairs the ends of our chromosomes (telomeres). Breakdown of this repair mechanism may contribute to ageing. So, telomerase may have a role in the treatment of age-related and neurodegenerative disease. Blackburn is also investigating the role of telomerase in cancer cells. Most cancer cells have high levels of telomerase so her work has opened up a new area of inquiry into potential cancer therapies that would block production of the telomerase enzyme and thus, hinder the cancer cells' ability to replicate. Blackburn is 2008 Laureate for North America. Suzanne Cory has been involved in a twenty year study of how our bodies control cell death, how cancer cells avoid death, and the implications for cancer drugs. She is director of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for Medical Research (WEHI) in Melbourne. Her lab is teasing out the tightly choreographed interactions between three closely related families of proteins: proteins that prevent, cause and trigger cell death. By understanding exactly how cancer cells evade the normal process of slow death, Cory hopes to open the way to a new generation of cancer drugs. Last week she announced collaboration between WEHI and the pharmaceutical giant, Abbott Laboratories. Cory was 2001 Laureate for Asia/Pacific. Wallaby and platypus reveal what it is to be human Jenny Graves leapt to international attention when her work on kangaroo genes revealed that the human Y chromosome is likely to disappear. The publication of the platypus genome last year brought more surprises – its sex chromosomes are bird-like. This means our sex chromosomes are a lot younger, and our Y chromosome is disappearing even faster than we thought. And the wallaby genome – to be published later this year will help scientists understand how very small wallaby joeys (the equivalent of a 40 day human embryo) can survive. Her particular interest lies in understanding the genes and chromosomes involved in sex determination. By comparing the sex determination systems between different branches of the evolutionary tree, such as platypus, kangaroo and human, Graves is getting a better understanding of how sex evolved and what controls whether an embryo will develop into a male or a female. Graves was 2006 L’ORÉAL Laureate for Asia/Pacific. Deadly shellfish toxins as molecules to treat neurodegenerative diseasesMargaret Brimble finds and recreates rare bioactive molecules derived from nature that could act as antimicrobial, anticancer or antiviral drugs. It can take years to identify the complex set of steps, often 20 or more of them, required to synthesize these naturally occurring compounds in the laboratory. Among the most interesting molecules Brimble has worked on are the toxins associated with ‘red tide’ algal blooms in coastal waters. Eaten via contaminated shellfish, these toxins can cause extreme cardiovascular and neurotoxic effects. Some of these toxins are being exploited as the basis of new drugs that may one day be used to treat a variety of conditions including pain, epilepsy, stroke and cancer. Margaret also makes natural compounds produced by a micro-organism that blocks the telomerase enzyme that Elizabeth Blackburn discovered. These compounds are potential new anticancer agents. Brimble was 2007 Laureate for Asia/Pacific. Ten years of L’ORÉAL- UNESCO For Women in Science Awards Launched in 1998, the L’ORÉAL- UNESCO For Women in Science Award was the first international award recognising the contributions made by women to science. Since then, 52 women have been named Laureates, each receiving US$100,000. A further 120 women in the early stages of their careers have been provided with fellowships to pursue their research abroad through the UNESCO-L’ORÉAL International Fellowships, worth up to US$40,000 over two years. And 340 National Fellowships have been awarded in 35 countries to women doing research in their own countries. The 2008 Awards will be presented at a ceremony on March 6th, 2008 at UNESCO headquarters in Paris by Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, and Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones, Chairman of L’ORÉAL. Also in Paris will be two recipients of 2008 L’ORÉAL-UNESCO International Fellowships, who will be using their fellowship to support postdoctoral work at Australian universities. · Maria João Rego Rodrigues, from Mozambique, will use her fellowship to complete postdoctoral studies on the impact of diseases on coral communities of the Western Indian Ocean at James Cook University. · Made Tri Ari Penia Kresnowati, from Indonesia, will design a model prototype bioreactor to grow and multiply stem cells for the production of different types of blood cells for use in transfusion at Monash University in collaboration with researchers at the Australian Stem Cell Centre. L'Oréal Australia FellowshipsMeanwhile, back in Australia, L'Oréal is planning its second year of Australian Fellowships. In 2007 L'Oréal Australia presented four $20,000 scholarships to early career Australian women scientists. Applications for the 2008 Fellowships will open in May. For further information: · In Australia: Niall Byrne, +61 (3) 9398 1416, +61 (417) 131 977, niall@scienceinpublic.com.au. · In Paris: Megan Ryan, +61 (400) 641 737, mryan@au.loreal.com
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