Neurodegeneration is the process by which a part, or parts, of the brain die as a result of trauma, such as a brain injury, or as a result of a disease process.
Common brain diseases in which neurodegeneration occurs include Alzheimer's disease, and other forms of dementia, which affect memory and the ability to think, and Parkinson's disease and related disorders in which the ability to move is affected. Alzheimer's disease and other dementia disorders currently affect 220,000 people in Australia, while a further 60,000 Australians suffer from Parkinson's disease. Neurodegenerative diseases cannot be cured or prevented and our ability to treat these conditions is limited. These disorders impose a severe burden on the quality of life for persons suffering these disorders, as well as their families. The financial costs of these disorders to affected families and the Australian health system is also significant. Research into neurodegenerative diseases at the Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute is identifying the causes of these disorders and is working towards developing better diagnostic methods and improved treatments for patients. The ultimate goal of our research is to contribute to the worldwide effect to prevent these disorders.
The Institute is dedicated to fundamental and clinical neuroscience research. Our outstanding medical research initiatives are founded on excellence in research leadership and will accelerate discovery and redefine neuroscience to reduce the global burden of disease. The overall theme is research at the interface between basic and clinical studies. Research programs are in neurological sciences and diseases, an area of strength in Australian medical research. The Institute has an established record of research leadership in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and other dementias, stroke, spinal cord and nerve injury, child injury in car accidents, pain mechanisms, vestibular function and falls, especially in the elderly, neural regulation of autonomic function and breathing and macular degeneration and blindness.
The Institute continues to develop new research programs using molecular, cellular and genetic approaches to our existing research strengths in neurological disease, especially in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. We have also undertaken a strategic expansion into research on the major psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression.
Double Group The research carried out within my group focuses on the mechanisms that result in the selective death of the pigmented neurons in Parkinson's disease, a common neurodegenerative disorder. |
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Garner Group The Garner Group occupies three laboratories at POWMRI that are well equipped for cell and molecular biology, analytical biochemistry, advanced microscopy and animal studies. |
Halliday Group Age-related neurodegenerative disorders are relentless progressive diseases, producing relatively rapid dependencies for care, and are therefore responsible for considerable health-related expenditure |
Hodges Group Our clinical research group is dedicated to the study of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and related disorders, notably motor neurone disease (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis). |
Kiernan Group The research group was established in 2001, with research labs based at POWMRI, linked to the Prince of Wales Clinical School UNSW and the Institute of Neurological Sciences, Prince of Wales Hospital. |
Kwok Group Our genes play an important role in whether we develop neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. |
Piguet Group Individuals over the age of 65 years represent the fastest growing segment of the general population. This rise is accompanied by an increase in dementia cases. |
