Two Australian Synchrotron users are among the 12 winners of the prestigious Victoria Fellowships for 2012.
Dr William Gee, a synthetic chemist from Monash University, received a Victoria Fellowship for his work towards the development of cheaper and greener plastic products. William’s research focuses on the creation of new catalysts that will enable new products to be made from relatively simple materials, or convert toxic waste into less-hazardous materials. The photo at right shows William on the MX beamline at the Australian Synchrotron.
Mr David Ascher, a structural biologist at St Vincent’s Institute of Medical Research, received a Victoria Fellowship for his investigations of the potential for developing drugs that bind to non-functional parts of proteins. This work is at the forefront of anticancer drug design. David is a PhD student at The University of Melbourne and a member of the AS user advisory committee, an independent group that provides advice to AS management on issues that affect synchrotron users. The photo at left shows David at work in the laboratory.
Both William and David use synchrotron x-ray crystallography, a technique now regarded as essential in many areas of biomedical and industrial research, including the development of new pharmaceuticals and advanced materials.
Australian Synchrotron Head of Science Professor Andrew Peele congratulated David and William on their awards.
“David Ascher and William Gee are young researchers with bright futures. We’re proud to be able to offer them and their counterparts across Victoria and Australasia the opportunity to use the state-of-the-art techniques available at the Australian Synchrotron.”
On 29 and 30 November, many scientists like William and David will attend the annual AS user meeting in Melbourne to learn about the latest synchrotron techniques from national and international experts and swap ideas with other researchers.
Another synchrotron user, Dr Matthew Hill, won a Victoria Fellowship in 2010 for his work on metal–organic frameworks with big potential applications that include storing hydrogen and methane to power vehicles and capturing carbon dioxide from coal-fired power stations.
Dr Fleur Tynan, who won a Victoria Fellowship in 2006, went on to win the Australian Synchrotron Thesis Medal in 2008 for research into aspects of how our immune defences recognise and respond to a ubiquitous virus called Epstein-Barr virus. This virus causes glandular fever and is associated with some forms of cancer.
Contact: Andrew Peele, Australian Synchrotron
Phone: 03 8540 4283
Mobile: 0408 388 467
Email: andrew.peele@synchrotron.org.au