Hormone Research

Recent achievements

• Members of this group participated in the commercial development of a new topical growth factor “antisense” gene therapy for the skin disease psoriasis, which is currently in clinical trial
  
  
• Professor George Werther gave an inaugural Trans-Pacific lecture on skin growth factor antisense gene therapy development
  
  
• Group members were awarded “best poster” at two international meetings for work on growth factors antisense therapy and a novel role for the appetite regulating hormone “leptin” in brain cell survival
  
  
• Researchers from this group have established the potential for the manipulation of growth factors in both brain injury and in cancer
  
  
• Group members published the results from a long-term follow-up study in leading international journal the “Lancet” of the potential adverse effects on fertility of treatment of tall girls with oestrogen
  
  
• This group were instrumental in the creation of  Victoria’s first “Healthy Bones” Unit for young people
  
  
• Group members have demonstrated that both rickets and iodine deficiency are re-emerging problems in Victorian children
  
  
• Researchers from this group discovered that osteoporosis (thin bones) in a wide range of disorders in hospitalised young people, related to immobilization, impaired nutrition or adverse effects of medication