2024

AT THE

LIGGINS INSTITUTE

HIGHLIGHTS

REDUCING early childhood obesity

New finding: The right nutrients for mums before and during pregnancy helps babies to maintain a healthy weight in their early years.

HEARING loss research

Dr Haruna Suzuki-Kerr was interviewed by RNZ about her work with sheep at the Liggins-hosted Ngapouri Research Farm to develop a device to deliver medication deep into the ear to help prevent deafness.

NEW molecule shows promise

A molecule created at the University of Auckland is one step closer to becoming a treatment for the severely debilitating neurological disorder Phelan-McDermid syndrome.

HIGHLIGHTS

CANCER research

Dr Yue Wang and Associate Professor Jo Perry won a research grant from Cancer Research Trust NZ for their project "Development of a novel growth hormone receptor antagonist and its application in hepatocellular carcinoma."

VC and Public Health awards

Liggins Institute Māori Research Advisory Group won a Vice-Chancellor's Award for Values and Te Ao Māori Principles and the Tu Rangatira Mo Te Ora Award from the Public Health Association of New Zealand.

ROYAL Society Fellowship

Professor Frank Bloomfield was announced as a Ngā Ahurei a Te Apārangi Fellow of Te Apārangi Royal Society of New Zealand.

MOTHER'S
milk

A Liggins-led study into feeding moderately premature babies finds giving them costly intravenous proteins and extra milk doesn’t get them out of hospital sooner than simply waiting until a mother’s milk has come in.

HIGHLIGHTS

NZ preterm birth rate rising

Professor Katie Groom was interviewed on RNZ's Nine to Noon about her work alongside the Carosika Collaborative to improve the standard of preterm birth care across all of Aotearoa. She also published an opinion piece in Newsroom.

AUCKLAND Steroid Study

Read our Special Feature - A landmark study dramatically improved the survival rate of very preterm babies. Half a century on, the Auckland Steroid Study continues to deliver good news. Also read our Special feature on Mont Liggins' legacy.

DEAN'S list
award

Robyn May's PhD thesis was placed on the Dean’s List in recognition of excellence achieved with her PhD thesis: "Understanding Cardiovascular Remodelling Related to Preterm Birth: A Clinical and Computational Modelling Study".

HIGHLIGHTS

INFANT formula

Opinion piece for the Conversation by Senior Lecturer Gergely Toldi and Research Fellow Mariana Muelbert: NZ has opted out of an infant formula standard – the evidence says that’s a backward step.

3 Minute Thesis

Four Liggins doctoral students competed in the University of Auckland Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Open Heat: Briar Hunter, Meiliana Meiliana, Cristal Salatas, and Ayamita Paul. Briar Hunter went on to compete in the finals.

MILK banks needed

Opinion piece for Newsroom: Dr Mariana Muelbert explains why New Zealand urgently needs to invest in lactation support and milk banks

HIGHLIGHTS

GESTATIONAL diabetes

Opinion piece for Newsroom by PhD student Dr Phyllis Ohene-Agyei: How gestational diabetes can affect mental health.

MAPPING preterm birth

PhD student Cristal Salatas came first runner-up in the HealtheX 2024 3-Minute Elevator Pitch Competition for her talk “Investigating and mapping the factors associated with preterm birth in New Zealand: cross-sectional geospatial study".

DEAN's list awards

PhD students Rachel Jaros and Esther Calje were both placed on the Dean’s List in recognition of excellence achieved with their PhD theses. Rachel's thesis was titled "Multiomic Insights into SARS-CoV-2 Outcomes and Cardiovascular Associations" and Esther's thesis was titled “Addressing the evidence gaps to optimise care for women with more severe postpartum anaemia in Aotearoa, New Zealand".

VELOCITY Challenge

Liggins Institute researcher Liz Cunningham and her teammates Dr Mark Oliver and others won first place and $25,000 in the Velocity $100k Challenge. Their agritech start-up QuickMas will show whether a cow has mastitis, help identify the pathogen causing it and determine whether the cow has responded to antibiotics. Liz and Mark are based at the Liggins-hosted Ngapouri Research Farm.

HIGHLIGHTS

TAONGA Tuku Iho

At the Liggins Institute, we proudly host the Carosika Collaborative, a national transdisciplinary stakeholder-initiated and -led group dedicated to reducing preterm birth in Aotearoa NZ and achieving equity. Their national best practice guide, Taonga Tuku Iho, was launched in November.

AMRF awards

Liggins Institute Deputy Director Professor Mark Vickers received an award from the Auckland Medical Research Foundation to fund a project titled "Next-generation weight loss drugs and maternal and offspring health". His co-investigator is Liggins Professor Paul Hofman.

HRC awards

Liggins researchers received three Health Research Council (HRC) awards In December: Caitlin Woods, Dr Qiliang Liu, and Jennifer Rogers.

LONG Covid

Liggins Senior Research Fellow Dr Anna Brooks was interviewed by RNZ about her research to help understand, diagnose, treat post-acute infection syndromes such as Long Covid.