The rise of sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) studies has opened new possibilities for studying past environments. This groundbreaking area of genomics uses sediments to identify organisms, even in cases where macroscopic remains no longer exist. Managing this substrate in Indigenous Australian contexts, however, requires special considerations. Sediments and soils are often considered as waste by-products during archaeological and paleontological excavations and are not typically regulated by the same ethics guidelines utilised in mainstream 'western' research paradigms. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• July 2023

Britta Regli-von Ungern-Sternberg BRVUS MD, PhD, DEAA, FANZA Chair of Paediatric anaesthesia, University of Western Australia; Consultant Paediatric Anaesthetist, Perth Children’s Hospital; Team Leader, Perioperative Medicine Team; Program Lead, ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• Jun 2023

The ability to balance conflicting functional demands is critical for ensuring organismal survival. The transcription and repair of the mitochondrial genome requires separate enzymatic activities that can sterically compete, suggesting a life-long trade-off between these two processes. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• July 2023

Maternal mental health problems are common during the perinatal period and have been associated with several negative outcomes in children. However, few studies have examined the associations between maternal mental health problems and offspring outcomes among Indigenous people, and the findings across these studies have been inconsistent. This scoping review examined the birth and childhood (≤12 years) health and development outcomes of the children of Indigenous women with mental health problems. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• August 2023

Cystic fibrosis (CF) airway disease is characterized by chronic inflammation, featuring neutrophil influx to the lumen. Airway macrophages (AMs) can promote both inflammation and resolution, and are thus critical to maintaining and restoring homeostasis. CF AM functions, specifically scavenging activity and resolution of inflammation, have been shown to be impaired, yet underlying processes remain unknown. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• Jun 2023

Coxiella burnetii is a Gram-negative intracellular pathogen that causes the debilitating disease Q fever, which affects both animals and humans. The only available human vaccine, Q-Vax, is effective but has a high risk of severe adverse reactions, limiting its use as a countermeasure to contain outbreaks. Therefore, it is essential to identify new drug targets to treat this infection. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• July 2023

The aim of this research note is to encourage child language researchers and clinicians to give careful consideration to the use of domain-specific tests as a proxy for language; particularly in the context of large-scale studies and for the identification of language disorder in clinical practice. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• February 2023

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a biphasic vaso-proliferative disease that has the potential to cause blindness. In addition to prematurity and hyperoxia, perinatal infection and inflammation have been reported to play a critical role in the pathogenesis of ROP. The aim of this study was to assess the association between placental inflammation and the severity of ROP. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• February 2023

This article continues evaluation of the construct validity of the Australian Early Development Census through comparison with linked data from a sample of 2216 4-5 year old children collected as part of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• March 2023

Addressing the recognized challenges and inequalities in providing high quality healthcare for rare diseases such as children's interstitial lung disease (chILD) requires collaboration across institutional, geographical, discipline, and system boundaries. The Children's Interstitial Lung Disease Respiratory Network of Australia and New Zealand (chILDRANZ) is an example of a clinical network that brings together multidisciplinary health professionals for collaboration, peer learning, and advocacy with the goal of improving the diagnosis and management of this group of rare and ultra-rare conditions. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• March 2023

Children and adolescents living in families affected by mental illness are at elevated risk of developing mental health problems. A range of interventions have been designed to help these young people; however, the effectiveness of these programs is, in some cases, mixed. Our aim was to understand in detail the support needs and experiences of a group of Australian children and adolescents living in families with mental illness. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• February 2023

Maternal mental disorders have been associated with adverse perinatal outcomes such as low birthweight and preterm birth, although these links have been examined rarely among Australian Aboriginal populations. We aimed to evaluate the association between maternal mental disorders and adverse perinatal outcomes among Aboriginal births. ...

• 1. Telethon Kids Institute
• Our research
• Reports and Findings
• 2023
• March 2023