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We were privileged to have Professor John Christodoulou as our guest speaker. John took up the inaugural Chair of Genomic Medicine at the Murdoch Childrens' Research Institute (MCRI) and the University of Melbourne in 2016. John has worked in Paediatrics since the 1980s, and has been involved in RETT Syndrome Research for ~25 years. He has published around 50-60 RETT Syndrome-specific papers. He explained that RETT Syndrome is the 2nd most common genetic disorder causing severe intellectual disability in females, and affects 1 in 9000 females in Australia. His previous group in Sydney discovered the 2nd RETT Syndrome gene, opening up a whole new area of research. Rotary supported RETT Research in Sydney. A Rotarian who had a daughter with RETT Syndrome, was a determined fund raiser, and her efforts enabled his research to progress to the stage where he was able to successfully compete for further research funding from within Australia and overseas. John would make an excellent speaker for a future Cluster Event, perhaps to explain the relatively rapid advances taking place in genetics research, and the potential benefits in resolving severe illnesses for many children. Rotarian Leon Mancini, who has championed the Club's efforts, presented a cheque for $1000 to MCRI, to be used to support RETT Syndrome Research.
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