Federal Minister for Health, Greg Hunt has announced funding for two new Research Centres through the MTPConnect Targeted Translation Research Accelerator Scheme and the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF).

The announcement includes a $10 million commitment over four years and more than $20 million in partner contributions for the Australian Stroke and Heart Research Accelerator (ASHRA), led by a collaborative of academic partners including Monash University.

This investment, the biggest in history for cardiovascular disease from the MRFF scheme, is in addition to $17.5 million in Victorian Higher Education State Investment Fund (VHESIF) funding announced in September to launch the Monash University HeartLabs accelerator, enhancing Monash’s growing reputation as a hub for world-leading cardiovascular innovation.

This investment will fund a range of activities in the Monash cardiovascular innovation ecosystem, including two commercial-ready projects at different stages of the innovation pipeline.

Professor Peter Currie and Associate Professor Mikael Martino will receive more than half a million dollars to investigate the potential of novel cellular therapies and tissue engineering to prevent heart damage following ischemic injury, to reduce scarring and prevent the onset of heart failure.

A collaborative project led by Professor Stephen Nicholls, in conjunction with Melbourne-based industry partner ESN Cleer, will run a clinical trial to test an exciting new saliva-based heart failure diagnostic device on patients.