Children's Medical Research Institute
Encyclopedia
The Children's Medical Research Institute (CMRI) is an Australia
n based independent scientific research organisation created in the 1950s by Paediatricians Sir Lorimer Dods
and Dr. John Fulton to "perform scientific research with a commitment to better treat, and where possible, prevent childhood illness and disability so that all concerned have a better quality of life"http://www.cmri.org.au/about.php. The Institute is the organiser of Australia's annual Jeans for Genes
campaign.
The CMRI conducts research into the fundamental causes of diseasehttp://www.cmri.org.au/, current research is focussed on cancer, epilepsy and birth defects.
Recently, the Institute joined with the University of Newcastle to establish a Chemical Proteomics Centre for Kinomics (CFK) - a new discipline not yet available in Australia. This new centre, also a world-first, is supported by a $3.1 million grant awarded in 2009 by the Australian Cancer Research Foundation
.
research by establishing that the enzyme consists of two molecules each of telomerase reverse transcriptase
, telomerase RNA, and dyskerin.
In 1995 CMRI researcher Prof Roger Reddel and team discovered ALT (Alternative lengthening of telomeres), a method by which approximately 15% of human cancer cells achieve ‘immortality’ and keep dividing. This work is being pursued with a focus on understanding ALT and developing potential anti-cancer treatments and diagnostic tools.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n based independent scientific research organisation created in the 1950s by Paediatricians Sir Lorimer Dods
Lorimer Dods
Sir Lorimer Fenton Dods LVO was a pioneer of specialised health care for children who founded, with assistance from Dr John Fulton, the Children's Medical Research Foundation...
and Dr. John Fulton to "perform scientific research with a commitment to better treat, and where possible, prevent childhood illness and disability so that all concerned have a better quality of life"http://www.cmri.org.au/about.php. The Institute is the organiser of Australia's annual Jeans for Genes
Jeans for Genes
Jeans for Genes is a national appeal in the UK and Australia. Although both appeals raise money to help children with genetic disorders they are not the same appeal....
campaign.
The CMRI conducts research into the fundamental causes of diseasehttp://www.cmri.org.au/, current research is focussed on cancer, epilepsy and birth defects.
Recently, the Institute joined with the University of Newcastle to establish a Chemical Proteomics Centre for Kinomics (CFK) - a new discipline not yet available in Australia. This new centre, also a world-first, is supported by a $3.1 million grant awarded in 2009 by the Australian Cancer Research Foundation
Australian Cancer Research Foundation
The Australian Cancer Research Foundation is an Australian not-for-profit organisation which awards grants to cancer research organisations, specifically for high-end equipment purchases and infrastructure development.-History and structure:...
.
Significant discoveries
In March 2007, Dr Scott Cohen and his teamhttp://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/315/5820/1850 made a significant discovery in telomeraseTelomerase
Telomerase is an enzyme that adds DNA sequence repeats to the 3' end of DNA strands in the telomere regions, which are found at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes. This region of repeated nucleotide called telomeres contains non-coding DNA material and prevents constant loss of important DNA from...
research by establishing that the enzyme consists of two molecules each of telomerase reverse transcriptase
Telomerase reverse transcriptase
Telomerase reverse transcriptase is a catalytic subunit of the enzyme telomerase. Its absence is associated with the disorder Cri du chat....
, telomerase RNA, and dyskerin.
In 1995 CMRI researcher Prof Roger Reddel and team discovered ALT (Alternative lengthening of telomeres), a method by which approximately 15% of human cancer cells achieve ‘immortality’ and keep dividing. This work is being pursued with a focus on understanding ALT and developing potential anti-cancer treatments and diagnostic tools.