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As the planet heats up, dangerous mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue are spreading to more countries than ever before. This is especially problematic in small island nations with even smaller health budgets. Our researchers are developing software that helps predict future outbreaks.

Traumatic brain injuries can happen to anyone, anytime. People sustain head injuries from assaults, while playing sports, in car accidents, or on the battlefield. So far, there is no known cure, and severe brain injuries can lead to chronic injury and death. The Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine’s (AITHM) Professor Geoffrey Dobson and his team are working on a novel treatment that could speed up the healing process and prevent potential long-term consequences of a brain injury.

Bats are home to a suite of parasites — one being the blood-sucking bat fly. Our researchers are studying the unique relationship between bat flies, their hosts and the viruses they both carry to uncover how it might influence disease transmission.

Australians consume an average of 14 teaspoons of sugar daily. For diabetics, excess sugar can cause foot ulcers, amputations, and higher mortality. For her PhD, AITHM’s Dr Chanika Alahakoon worked with patients at TUH to prevent future readmissions for diabetic foot ulcers.

Around 100,000 people in Australia suffer from Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis; both conditions are more commonly known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Our researchers are examining how gut immunity fails as people grow older, which is a first step to better treatments.

For years, Distinguished Professor Alex Loukas from the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) has been hunting for a vaccine against hookworms, a parasitic infection that affects more than 740 million people worldwide. However, more recently, his research has found that these parasites might actually offer a benefit: certain proteins found in hookworm saliva could be used to treat inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and other autoimmune diseases.

In collaboration with Traditional Owners from North Queensland, researchers from the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) have identified native plant compounds that could soon alleviate the symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

The BCG vaccine (Bacillus Calmette-Guerin) has been the only available tuberculosis vaccine for more than a hundred years. AITHM’s Dr Guangzu Zhao and Associate Professor Andreas Kupz are now working on a new type of vaccine that aims to boost the power of BCG.

In cooperation with the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine’s (AITHM) Associate Professor Stephan Karl, PhD candidate Michelle Katusele is working to make life outside the mosquito net safer for people living in Papua New Guinea — using spatial emanators.

Malaria is a life-threatening disease that is spread to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes. In 2022, it affected more than 249 million people around the globe — including Australia’s closest neighbour, Papua New Guinea (PNG). New research from the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) indicates that people could be better protected from mosquito bites by using a method that dates back to World War II, but with a 21st century twist.

From agriculture and healthcare to business and education, artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the future across almost every industry. But how might it be harnessed to shape scientific discovery? A new study from the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) explores AI’s ability to predict the structure of peptides — a breakthrough that could accelerate the development of life-saving drugs.

In the fight against mosquito-borne diseases, countries in the Pacific Island region face unique challenges. For this reason, the Pacific Mosquito Surveillance Strengthening for Impact (PacMOSSI) program was launched to support Pacific Island countries as they work to combat these devastating diseases.

Throughout history, we've seen a consistent pattern of infectious diseases emerge and re-emerge. This underscores the importance of ensuring our health systems are well-prepared and equipped with effective disease surveillance. New research from the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) seeks to determine how well disease control is being governed in Australia.

In 2022, mainland Australia experienced its first outbreak of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). As a result, 45 people were infected and six lost their lives. Researchers at the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) have identified areas at risk of future outbreaks to inform public health planning.

Australia has one of the highest rates of food allergies in the world, with more than 1.5 people living with a food allergy — and they’re on the rise. There has been a 51 per cent increase in anaphylaxis presentations to emergency departments over the past 5 years, growing to more than 11,500 per year.

The Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) researchers are exploring a new theory on how the chemistry of the brain causes people to form political opinions.

Australians are developing inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) at an increasing rate. These IBD sufferers have a higher chance of later developing bowel cancer. The AITHM Senior Research Fellow Dr Roland Ruscher is charting the lifespan of a gut immune cell linked to the onset of bowel cancer and IBD.

Restrictions on public access to information about health service delivery, combined with reliance on health data sources that are not fit for purpose, are hindering the provision of adequate health care to Northern Queensland rural and remote communities.  

Annually, around 400 million people worldwide contract dengue and some 40,000 lives are lost to the disease. A viral infection, dengue is spread by Aedes mosquitoes. Seasonal outbreaks of dengue were common in the North Queensland city of Townsville — prior to the strategic release of mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia, a naturally occurring bacteria which disarms their ability to transmit dengue to humans.

James Cook University (JCU) is spearheading a project which aims to revolutionise the delivery of digital health care to rural and remote communities in Northern Australia, through technical expansion and innovation, upskilling healthcare providers, and patient education.

Public health officials from 12 Pacific Island countries are visiting the James Cook University (JCU) Cairns campus this week for training that will help protect their communities from mosquito-borne diseases.

A JCU-led project has created a unique, interactive health map of North Queensland. The open-access resource provides a clearer picture of unmet community health needs, which have been exacerbated by crucial gaps in information sharing between multiple health systems in the region.

Shellfish are the number one food-related trigger of fatal allergic reactions in Australia. New research led by Dr Thimo Ruethers shows that one of the most common methods for diagnosing shellfish allergies can yield unreliable results.

In a world first, a JCU PhD researcher, backed by a crack interdisciplinary research team, has identified protein families with significant anti-inflammatory benefits – in hookworm saliva. The discovery paves the way for developing conventional treatment delivery, such as capsules or injections, to supersede infecting patients with live worms to achieve similar results.

A JCU PhD researcher who took to the sea to pursue a world-first study into the environmental triggers that guide the elusive Irukandji jellyfish has dispelled one theory – that wind patterns nudge them closer to beaches – and generated other new data which could aid future strategies to help keep swimmers safe.

JCU has secured Townsville a place in a national stroke rehabilitation trial – the first of its kind in the world. The North Queensland city is the only regional centre in Australia participating in the study.

AITHM researchers have compiled a landmark guide to mosquitoes in the Pacific to help nations in the region, including Australia, stay one step ahead of disease-carrying species that are on the move and triggering unprecedented outbreaks.