World-leading research

In the right environment, the simplest ideas can grow to have great impact on the way we live.

Monash has long been an incubator for groundbreaking research. Things that we take for granted now, such as seat belts in cars and IVF treatment, would not exist without the initial work of Monash researchers.

Today, our scientists continue to lead and collaborate with teams around the world, across all levels of industry and government.

IVF

World's first IVF pregnancy

In-vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a common method for the treatment of infertility, bringing hope to thousands of men, women and families.

Monash Institute of Reproduction and Development (MIRD) researchers Professors Alan Trounson and Carl Wood achieved the world's first IVF pregnancy in 1973.

Five years later, based on their work, the world's first IVF baby was born in the UK in July 1978.

The Trounson and Wood team went on to achieve Australia's first (and the world's fourth) successful IVF birth in 1980. In fact, 12 out of the first 15 IVF babies are Monash babies.

Their research continues to make an impact in reproductive science as the treatment becomes more accessible worldwide.

More information

Seatbelt legislation

Keeping a belt on road deaths

In 1964, work by Monash researchers led to the world's first laws requiring that seatbelts be installed in all new cars. This started in Victoria and South Australia and soon spread overseas.

Although seatbelts were available, not everyone used them. Seatbelt use in cars became compulsory, again first in Victoria, in 1970. By 1974, the state had a 40 per cent decrease in road deaths and injuries. During this time, many other countries adopted similar legislation.

Today, seatbelts are a standard part of all cars and other motor vehicles worldwide, for drivers as well as passengers. Their use is recognised as a key contributing factor in decreased road fatalities.

More information

Flu treatment

Watch our flu treatment video on YouTube

In 1986, a team from Monash University's Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (formally Victorian College of Pharmacy) designed and synthesised anti-flu drug, Relenza.

Relenza first became available in Australia in 1999 and is now used globally. Influenza can result in fatal complications and affects up to 500 million people each year.

More information

Malaria treatment

Malaria is a tropical disease caused by a mosquito-borne parasite. Each year, the disease kills up to three million people and more than 500 million people suffer its debilitating effects. It is a critical problem in Africa, Asia and South America.

As malaria becomes more resistant to existing treatment, Monash researchers play important roles, driving research to find more sophisticated drugs and treatments.

In 2004, a Monash team developed a single, oral-dose cure for malaria, effective in laboratory conditions. Current treatments require expensive three-day courses of drugs. Today, the new drug is in the second phase of clinical trials on humans and promises to be cheaper, easy to manufacture and quick to administer.

In 2009, a team of 15 Monash-based scientists, led by James Whisstock, worked out how to deactivate the digestive enzyme in our bodies used by the malarial parasite to sustain itself. This discovery is also being used to develop drugs to treat malaria.

More information

Breakthrough cancer research

In 2010, a team lead by Monash researchers Dr Clare Fedele and Professor Christina Mitchell discovered a potential new treatment for breast cancer.

Over four years, their research team analysed more than 400 human breast cancer tissue samples. They found that more aggressive breast tumours were less likely to be accompanied by the presence of a certain protein, known as INPP4B.

They created an antibody to INPP4B, which easily detects the protein in biopsies. This gives a way to identify and chase the pathway of this protein, adding to existing tools for monitoring the growth of tumours.

Dr Fedele said to achieve such a research breakthrough within the confines of her PhD was a wonderful start to her research career. "So many people have contributed to the research; it's never just one person. But in the end it's about achieving outcomes which are relevant at a community level and that's been a really positive result for us." Dr Fedele said.

More information

Stem cell research

Our researchers made their first big stem cell discovery in 2000. A team led by Professors Alan Trounson and Martin Pera were the first in the world to demonstrate that nerve stem cells could be derived from human embryonic stem cells in the laboratory.

They later showed that outside of the laboratory, human embryonic stem cells could develop into nerve cells, raising the revolutionary prospect of treating a range of diseases from Parkinson's through to Alzheimer's and diabetes.

In 2009, a team under Professors Andrew Elefanty and Ed Stanley modified human embryonic stem cells to glow red when they became red blood cells. This now helps scientists to track the change as the cells make the transition.

Most recently, Associate Professor Sharon Ricardo and her group of researchers were able to reprogram human kidney cells and turn them back to an embryonic stem cell state. This discovery could help address the ethical issues surrounding current practices for harvesting embryonic stem cells for research.

More information