Our Previous award winners

ATA Scientific would like to thank all those that participated in our April 2024 Encouragement Award promotion.

Our Award questions have received hundreds of fantastic original responses, some academic, some humorous and many highly inventive. Exactly what you would expect from young enquiring scientific minds.

These days it is tempting to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an easy way to respond to our Award questions. The spirit of science is based on honesty and inventiveness. We want you to respond in this spirit. Using an artificial prepackaged response is no substitute for your own imaginative thoughts. However, if AI is used in any way, then as a budding scientist you know that you should provide clear attribution.

Our latest competition asked the question:

Have you used AI in your work, research, or thesis? If so, has this resulted in any significant innovations or discoveries? If you are at the stage of considering using AI what risks or benefits do you expect for your work or research? Is there a danger that inaccurate, fake or unedited data could be gradually embedded undetected into a wide range of publications?

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 3 WINNERS!

Three entries were selected to receive our award– first prize at $1500 and 2 runners up at $750 each.

Congratulations to Dr Nashwa Masnoon, Postdoctoral Research Pharmacist in the Laboratory of Ageing and Pharmacology, Kolling Institute, University of Sydney and Northern Sydney Local Health District.The Laboratory of Ageing and Pharmacology led by Professor Sarah Hilmer undertakes research in the laboratory and clinical settings to optimise medication use in older adults. Nashwa is a part of the clinical research team. Her research looks at ways to reduce medication-related harm in older adults, including use of digital clinical decision support tools to aid medication review.

Nashwa’s career goal is to combine her experiences in research, teaching and clinical practice to lead the field of geriatric pharmacology and ultimately, ensure appropriate medication use in older adults.

“The conference will be a fantastic opportunity for me to network and collaborate with experts in the field and I am very thankful to the ATA Scientific Team for the award”.

The award will allow Nashwa to present her research to national and international academics, researchers and clinicians at the joint conference by the Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists, the Asia Pacific Federation of Pharmacologists and the Australasian Pharmaceutical Science Association in Melbourne (1-4 December 2024).

Congratulations to Dr Yoshika Janapala, a postdoctoral researcher at John Curtin School of Medical Research, Division of Genome Science and Cancer, Australian National University, working as part of team led by Professor Thomas Preiss.

As a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the John Curtin School of Medical Research (JCSMR) at the Australian National University, Yoshika focuses on unravelling the complex mechanisms of eukaryotic mRNA translation, particularly the regulatory role of the mRNA 5’UTR. Utilising the advanced Translation Complex Profile Sequencing (TCP-seq) technique, her research aims to illuminate ribosomal dynamics on mRNA, enhancing our understanding of translation processes in disease contexts and treatment responses. Currently, she is part of the Shine Dalgarno Centre of RNA Innovation, where she works to advance RNA therapeutics through methodological innovations.

Passionate about translating scientific insights into practical medical solutions, I am keen to collaborate with fellow professionals in academia and industry partners to advance mRNA technology and innovate healthcare solutions.

The award funds will be allocated towards attending two significant conferences. The primary portion will support participation in the 29th Annual RNA Meeting organised by the RNA Society, to be held in May 2024 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Additionally, a part of the award will be used to attend the Australasian RNA Biology and Biotechnology Association (A-RNA) conference in October 2024, which will take place in Melbourne.

These conferences are crucial for my professional development and will greatly enhance my current research by exposing me to the latest advancements and networking opportunities in the field of RNA biology, said Yoshika.

Congratulations to Anastasiya Potapenko, PhD student at Macquarie University, Motor Neuron Disease Research Centre, supervised by A/Prof Angela Laird and Dr Jennilee Davidson.

Her project is focused on a rare and incurable neurodegenerative disease known as Machado-Joseph disease or MJD. Anastasiya’s research aims to understand the function of the ataxin-3 protein (which causes MJD when mutated) as a deubiquitinating enzyme, and whether we can target this to help treat MJD and other neurodegenerative diseases.

While I am at the beginning of my PhD, in the future I would like to continue unravelling the causes of neurodegenerative diseases such as MJD as a postdoctoral researcher, with the hope that they will one day be treatable. 

I would like to greatly thank ATA Scientific for supporting this award, which will support me attending and presenting at Biomolecular Horizons 2024 in Melbourne.

We would like to thank all those that participated. The next Encouragement Award will be posted on our website soon.

For more information or to stay informed of other upcoming promotions please ‘Like us” on Facebook or contact us.

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Our ‘SPIN TO WIN” Young Scientist competition returned this year at the 49th Lorne Conference on Protein Structure and Function, held at Lorne Mantra Hotel, 4-7 February 2024.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

Creating oodles of excitement and anticipation, our spinning wheel competition featured the popular $2000 Young Scientist Award – First prize $1200 and runner-up $800. Two winners were announced following the final round on Tuesday evening – No bones about it – our helper Prof Barry Slim was ecstatic!!!

 

Congratulations to Solace Roche (UQ), winner of the $1200 ‘Spin to Win’ Prize! and Jessica Buchanan (USyd) – winner of the $800 runner-up prize!

Solace Roche is a PhD student at The University of Queensland, School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, working under the supervision of Associate Professor Michael Landsberg.

Solace and his research team are investigating mechanisms of cellular toxicity and cell recognition associated with the ABC family of pore-forming toxins. Most ABC toxins studied to date appear to be insecticidal toxins, although genes predicted to encode for homologous assemblies have also been found in human pathogens. The group hopes to gain a more complete understanding of how ABC toxins function, which in turn will help elucidate how they cause disease in invertebrate (and potentially also vertebrate) hosts, and how they might be re-engineered for therapeutic or biotechnological purposes.

The award will be used to attend the Biomolecular Horizons meeting (22-26 September 2024) in Melbourne to share his research and facilitate new collaborations with national and international research groups.

 

 

Jessica Buchanan is a PhD student at the School of Medical Sciences, University of Sydney working under the supervision of Prof Margaret Sunde.

Jessica’s research group studies natural functional amyloids, a rapidly expanding class of fibrillar protein structures, where novel and advantageous biological function is generated by the assembly of the amyloid. The group is interested in the structure and formation of multiple amyloid proteins and complexes including the fungal hydrophobins as well as those associated with the programmed cell death pathway necroptosis. Amyloids are usually associated with disease and loss of function including Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. By studying natural amyloids in nearly all life forms the group wishes to inform the development of therapies for amyloid-associated diseases and guide the design of innovative biomaterials.

Congratulations to our winners!

For more information regarding our award or to enter the next competition, contact us or visit our webpage at https://www.atascientific.com.au/awards-events-training/current-award/

ATA Scientific continues to motivate scientists during Lorne Proteins 2024.

ATA Scientific has established a high reputation for supporting and promoting scientific research within Australia and New Zealand.

Our Encouragement Awards are competitions intended to promote the interests of young scientists early in their science career. The Awards provide an opportunity for young scientists to win financial assistance to further their education, including attending scientific conferences and meetings. The Awards were established 11 years ago and since then over 100 winners and runners-up have received financial assistance. We are enthusiastic about our awards program as we can see the practical contribution it is making.

The SPIN to WIN award is part of the ATA Scientific Encouragement award program that is promoted annually to assist scientists that attend the Annual Lorne Proteins structure and function conference.  The intent is to provide financial support to enable further collaborations with peers at scientific meetings and to launch scientific careers. The $2000 award is usually a single prize awarded at the conference at the end of the SPIN to WIN competition.

At this year’s Lorne event we asked our audience whether they preferred to have a single $2000 prize or instead split this up into two separate awards – $1200 first prize and $800 second prize. By splitting the award it would allow 2 students to win enabling more than one student to benefit from the prize money. We decided to test this hypothesis and the results and smiles on everyone’s faces were spectacular. If you missed out this year, be sure to check us out next year or enter our Encouragement award competition online!

For more information regarding our award or to enter the next competition, contact us or visit our webpage at https://www.atascientific.com.au/awards-events-training/current-award/

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ATA Scientific would like to thank all those who participated in our Oct 2023 Encouragement Award promotion.

It is becoming increasingly clear that Artificial Intelligence (AI) can provide enormous benefits but equally pose huge dangers. Robotics and AI have a lot in common as they both were initially intended to assist humans. The Three Laws of Robotics written by Isaac Asimov in 1942 are iconic in the science fiction world and have become a symbol within the AI and robotics community of how difficult it is to properly design a system that is foolproof.

Our latest competition asked the question:

In Asimov’s three laws, imagine substituting the term “robot” with the term “AI”. Do you think this would make a good set of principles for the further development of AI? If not, can you propose other laws or principles that would ensure the development of AI will be a benefit not a disaster for humanity?

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 3 WINNERS!

Three entries were selected to receive our award– first prize at $1500 and 2 runners-up at $750 each.

Congratulations to Tony Xu, PhD student working with the Anne Bruestle Lab at The John Curtin School of Medical Research Division at the Australian National University. His project is looking to utilise artificial intelligence (AI) on flow cytometry to help detect and monitor diseases in their pre-symptomatic or latent stages, particularly that of Multiple Sclerosis.

After his PhD, he will continue his medical studies at the UWA, and as noted by Tony, “with the aim of finishing before his hair starts greying!” The prize will enable Tony to attend two conferences and purchase some computational components allowing for him to train his AIs with greater ease. In his spare time, Tony enjoys beekeeping, volunteer firefighting (awesome photo Tony!) and playing hockey.

Tony plans to spend his award on a combination of conferences, attending Progress in MS research conference (29 Nov-1 Dec 2023) and Supercomputing Asia (19-22 February 2024).

Congratulations to Michael O’Dea, a PhD student at the School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, University of New South Wales, supervised by Dr Kate Quinlan.

Michael’s lab (Crossley/Quinlan at UNSW) studies the developmental regulation of haemoglobin switching. At six months of age the human body switches from gamma to beta-globin, and reversing this switch is key to therapies for sickle cell anaemia, the most common monogenic disorder in the world. Michael’s project uses base editors (more precise version of CRISPR) to study the role that nucleosome positioning plays in this regulation. 

“While I’m still relatively early in my PhD, long-term I’d like to use my background in genetics and AI to push the frontiers of precision medicine and gain a better understanding of genetic disorders such as Sickle Cell Anaemia and Parkinson’s disease “ said Michael.

“I’m very thankful to ATA Scientific for supporting this award since chances to communicate your research are so valuable for young scientists. I enjoyed the style of prompt – it was a lot of fun to brainstorm and write about a benevolent AI future – and would strongly encourage other students to apply for future awards.”

The award money will go towards attending and presenting at BioHorizons 2024 in Melbourne (22-26 September 2024).

Congratulations to Shivam Vora, PhD student at Mater Research Institute, University of Queensland under the supervision of Professor Brian Gabrielli.

Shivam Vora is a PhD student in the Smiling for Smiddy Cancer Cell Cycle Group at Mater Research. Shivam completed his Master’s in Biotechnology and graduated with a Dean’s Commendation for Academic Excellence.  His work focuses on polyploidy induced by the inhibition of Aurora Kinase B and the genetic background that determines the outcomes of this inhibition. Shivam hopes to pursue post-doctoral positions in the field of cancer biology with a focus on small molecule inhibitors.

Shrivam plans to spend this award on travel to the Lorne Cancer Conference in February 2024 where he will present an update of his research.

We would like to thank all those that participated. The next Encouragement Award will be posted on our website soon.

For more information or to stay informed of other upcoming promotions please ‘Like us” on Facebook or contact us.

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ATA Scientific would like to thank all those that participated in our June 2023 Encouragement Award promotion.

Space exploration and our understanding of the universe is rapidly advancing. This includes looking for places where life forms as we know it could exist. If there is a highly advanced society out there our exploration probes could alert them to our existence. They could have very advanced technology, but would they share our concepts of democracy, freedom and justice?

Our latest competition asked the question:  Should we broadcast ourselves through the universe with the objective of making contact with other life forms? What advantages or dangers do you foresee with this potential contact?

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 3 WINNERS!

Three entries were selected to receive our award– first prize at $1500 and 2 runners-up at $750 each.

Congratulations to Yu Chinn Joshua Chey, PhD student at the Genome Editing Laboratory, School of Biomedicine, University of Adelaide, working under the supervision of Prof. Paul Thomas.

Joshua’s PhD project revolves around the application of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) research. He utilises CRISPR to generate improved humanised mouse models that more accurately simulate DMD genetics, as well as to develop safe, efficient and patient-applicable gene correction strategies for the long-term treatment of this debilitating disease. The goal of these CRISPR therapy strategies is to permanently rectify mutations in the DMD gene, restore the expression of full-length dystrophin protein and ultimately help delay further progression of this disease.

“I had a great time writing the essay and am very thrilled to have been selected for the award.

I am passionate about the exploring the intricate biology and etiology of presently incurable diseases, and intend to pursue a career in academia upon completing my PhD. I aspire to make meaningful contributions to the field of biomedical research and pave the way for the development of effective treatment and cures,” said Joshua.

The award will go towards supporting Joshua’s travel to attend and present at XXIIIrd International Congress of Genetics, which will take place in Melbourne, Australia, 16-21 July this year.

Congratulations to Reem Almasri, a PhD student at the Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, University of New South Wales, where she is supervised by Prof. Nigel Lovell, Prof. Laura Poole-Warren, and Dr. Amr Al Abed.

“Thank you so much for the wonderful news about the Young Scientist Encouragement Award! I am thrilled to have been selected as a runner-up and am grateful for your company’s dedication to supporting young researchers”, said Reem.

Her research group is pioneering a novel method of sensing biopotentials from biological tissues using liquid-crystal transducers. By utilising optical technology, these devices passively convert the electrical signals produced by tissues – such as the brain and heart – into quantifiable optical signals. Their experimental studies involve understanding the electro-optical properties of these sensors to design high-resolution multi-channel arrays and improve signal quality to achieve recordings that are on par with electrical systems.

Upon completion of her PhD, Reem aims to continue her research in the field of neural engineering. The award money will be used to support her participation in the 45th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC 2023) in Sydney, 24-27 July 2023.

Congratulations to Nuwangi Cooray, PhD student at Institute for Superconducting & Electronic Materials, University of Wollongong under the supervision of Prof. Konstantin Konstantinov.

Nuwangi’s research group primarily focuses on nanocomposites for health applications. Her project aims to develop biocompatible UV filters with suppressed photocatalytic activity by surface modifications through synthesising quantum dots encrusted nanocomposites via cost effective facile synthesis techniques. During her master’s research at University of Wollongong, Nuwangi developed a novel UVI based methodology to evaluate sunscreens. Her goal is to apply the synthesised transparent nano UV filters in new generation of sunscreens suitable for use in any part of the world by evaluating them against UVI based methodology under extreme UV conditions in Australia.

The award will be spent at the 9th International Conference on Nanomaterials, Nanodevices, Fabrication and Characterization (ICNNFC 2024), that will be held on April 1, 2024, in London, United Kingdom. This will provide Nuwangi with the opportunity to present the latest findings of her research, connect with the experts and have discussions to further expand her knowledge.

“After completion of my PhD, I plan to join the industry where I can utilise my experience and knowledge to develop commercial sunscreens that can help prevention of skin cancer due to excessive UV exposure. I take this opportunity to thank ATA Scientific for the award and it certainly makes a positive change in my research experience”, said Nuwangi.

We would like to thank all those that participated. The next Encouragement Award will be posted on our website soon.

For more information or to stay informed of other upcoming promotions please ‘Like us” on Facebook or contact us.

Contact us

Our popular ‘SPIN TO WIN” Young Scientist competition made a comeback this year at the 48th Lorne Conference on Protein Structure and Function, Lorne Mantra Hotel, 5-8 February 2023. Focused on Protein research, the meeting connected world-leading scientists, students and industry participants and facilitated discussions of new and exciting advances. Our international guest speaker Dr Valerie Collins, delivered her recent work featuring a high-precision secondary structure characterisation tool developed by RedShiftBio: Characterising Amyloid-Forming IgG Light and Variable Chains Using Microfluidic Modulation Spectroscopy.

With every turn of the wheel, the exhibition hall exploded with laughter and cheers as participants progressed through to the final round. An Apollo stress toy, timers, pens, wireless chargers were great prizes, but the most appealing prize on the board was our $1200 Young Scientist Award. The crowd’s energy was intense as finally our two winners were announced! WATCH THE VIDEO HERE

Congratulations to Bethany Anderson – winner of the $1200 ‘Spin to Win’ Prize! and Anup Prasad – winner of the $600 runner-up prize!

Bethany Anderson completed her PhD in 2022 and is now a research fellow at The University of Melbourne in the Department of Biochemistry and Pharmacology in the lab of Dr Laura Edgington-Mitchell.

Bethany’s project is investigating the role of the cysteine protease legumain in promoting oral cancer growth. Currently, it is not possible to predict which cancers will metastasise and all patients must undergo long and invasive surgeries to prevent the spread of the tumour. Further studies are required to improve patient outcomes and better understand the mechanisms behind oral cancer growth and metastasis.  Bethany wishes to continue working in academia in the future and aims to make an impact in improving patient outcomes and care.

The award will be used to attend the 12th General Meeting of the International Proteolysis Society in Singapore in 2023. This will be a great opportunity for Bethany to present her work, network with other scientists from around the world and learn from the leaders in the field.

I’m stoked that I’ll now be able to attend this conference that I had been eyeing off!

Anup Prasad is a PhD student at the School of Chemistry, Monash University working under the supervision of Prof. Lisa Martin.

Anup’s research group studies the aggregation of amyloid-forming antimicrobial peptides and their mutants. Both computational and experimental techniques are used to investigate the structural changes, peptide-lipid interaction and their impact on aggregation. A variety of experimental conditions are studied including solvent containing lipid vesicles and different co-solvents. The peptide-lipid interaction and aggregation studies are important for the development of drug delivery and therapeutic agents against amyloidosis.

After completing his PhD, Anup plans pursue research in the field of protein biochemistry or protein engineering. The award money will be used to attend the next Peptide Chemistry and Protein Engineering conference (ICPCPE 2023), in Sydney.

I am thankful to ATA Scientific for this award and it really does matter for my research.

Congratulations to our winners!

The SPIN to WIN award is part of the ATA Scientific Encouragement award program that started in 2011. The intent is to provide scientists access to financial assistance to enable them to collaborate with peers at scientific meetings and to launch their careers within their field of study. The awards are run at least four times a year which has so far awarded over 90 winners from multiple Universities and research organisations around Australia and New Zealand. We plan to continue posting these awards into the future and encourage all students to enter.

For more information regarding our award or to enter the next competition, contact us or visit our webpage at https://www.atascientific.com.au/awards-events-training/current-award/

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ATA Scientific would like to thank all those that participated in our September 2022 Encouragement Award promotion.

Recent world events like the COVID-19 pandemic, war in Ukraine and demand for green energy have shown us that the most powerful innovation can be found when we see a different future and leverage science to create it. A once-in-a-decade report from CSIRO identifies seven global megatrends and predict their likely impact on Australia.

Our latest competition asked the question: Which of the 7 CSIRO topics do you think will have the greatest impact on Australia’s future? What do you understand these topics mean in terms of the effect they may have on your daily life?

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 3 WINNERS!

Three entries were selected to receive our award– first prize at $1500 and 2 runners up at $600 each.

Congratulations to Sue Chin Nang, Postdoctoral Researcher at the Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, working under the supervision of Prof. Jian Li.

Sue’s research focuses on using an innovative approach to combat the current global threat of antimicrobial resistance (also known as the “silent pandemic”), by using bacteriophages (phages) – viruses that specifically target bacteria. While it has been over a century since phages were discovered, little is known about them. In recent years, phage therapy is starting to gain the credibility needed as antibiotics are becoming less effective in treating bacterial infections; however, the knowledge that we have on phages is not keeping pace with the exponential increase in the urgency for phage therapy. By shining light onto the undiscovered niches for utilising phages as anti-infectives, Sue hopes to maximise the therapeutic potential of phage therapy.

This award will be used for Sue to attend the 33rd European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) that will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark in April 2023, where international experts in the field of infection are gathered.

Congratulations to Ruchira Ghosh, PhD candidate at the University of New South Wales, School of Chemical Engineering (Food and Health Cluster), working under the supervision of Associate Professor Jayashree Arcot.

Ruchira’s research examines how Protein, Vitamin B12, and iron networks in foods affect the bioavailability of Vitamin B12 and iron. Her focus is on the use of NMR to define Vitamin-Protein interaction followed by 2D CacO-2 cell model and 3D organoid models to understand micronutrient bioavailability. With this research, Ruchira is seeking find the best plant-based protein for fortification to improve a vegan diet. To date, she has understood, optimised, and employed NMR, 2D, and 3D cell models to understand the interaction and bioavailability. Ruchira plans to use this award to attend the NSA conference in 2022, where she will have an opportunity to listen and network with the experts in the field of Food and Nutritional Science.

“After completing my Ph.D. in Food Science and Nutrition at the University of New South Wales, I am planning to pursue a career either in academia or in industry working in the field of food and nutritional science. I am passionate about science communication and its application in our daily lives, and I hope to utilise my profession to strengthen the bond between research and the community.”

Congratulations to Charu Deepika, PhD student working on algal biotechnology under the supervision of Prof. Ben Hankamer at Institute of Molecular Biosciences (IMB), The University of Queensland (UQ).

Charu’s PhD research is primarily in bioprocess engineering, biochemistry and microbiology. Charu focuses on the development of high-throughput screening systems for optimisation a range of chemical and physical induction parameters for pigment production in microalgae and cyanobacteria. To date, Charu has developed a novel rapid and gentle cyanobacterial filament isolation technique and employed the isolated strains to develop a cost-effective in situ spectrophotometric pigment screening methodology.

The award will be spent at the International Conference on Bioprocess Development for Biofuels and Bioproducts, to be held on May 13-14, 2023 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. This will provide her the opportunity to present, listen and discuss with expert’s and researchers in the field who could direct her towards openings for translating the methods she has been developing through her PhD to the industries.

After completing her PhD at The University of Queensland, Charu plans to pursue a career in either industry or academia focussed on microalgae biotechnology with continued passion towards natural bioproducts in circular bioeconomy and science communication contributing to the larger community.

We would like to thank all those that participated. The next Encouragement Award will be posted on our website soon.

For more information or to stay informed of other upcoming promotions please ‘Like us” on Facebook or contact us.

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