NeuRA - Neuroscience Research Australia

04/09/2026

Many congratulations to NeuRA's Dr Aidan Cashin, who has been recognised in this year's Eureka Prize, the country’s most comprehensive national science awards.

Dr Cashin was awarded the Macquarie University Eureka Prize for Outstanding Early Career Researcher at a glittering ceremony at the Australian Museum - though he was unable to attend in person for a very good reason. Dr Cashin is currently presenting the TARGET guidelines at the International Society for Pharmacoepidemiology conference in Milan, Italy, a fitting testament to his dedication to advancing chronic pain research globally.

"Dr Aidan Cashin is changing chronic pain care by determining which treatments help, why they work and how to deliver them widely. His research clarified whether back pain medicines help or harm, developed a non-drug program that improves recovery and is now shaping clinical training, digital care and international trials," said the Eureka Prize citation.

This recognition reflects Dr Cashin's exceptional contribution to NeuRA's Centre for Pain IMPACT and his commitment to translating research into real-world clinical practice.

03/09/2026

This month’s All Staff Meeting was focused on achievements within NeuRA and the introduction of some new faces.

Chief Operating Officer, Andrew Finch, provided an update to staff, including celebrating the Fundraising Team’s success for this year's Giving Day in meeting 100% of our target.

Ahead of Dementia Action Week and World Alzheimer’s Day, Associate Professor Emma Devenney shared an update on her work, including the recently announced Asia-Pacific Centre for Excellence in Alzheimer’s Disease Diagnosis and the DIAN Primary Prevention Trial.

Director of Communications, Tom Smithies, hosted an ‘In Conversation’ with James Rischmueller, a participant in the DIAN Primary Prevention trial. We are greatly appreciative that he so openly shared his story with us, including what NeuRA’s work means to him.

We also got to know a little more about NeuRA’s new Executive Director of Philanthropy and Fundraising, Kerry-Ann Virgo, including her career to date and initial impressions of NeuRA.

01/09/2026

We did it! We are delighted to declare that we've reached 100% of our Giving Day fundraising target.

Thanks to your incredible support, every dollar donated has been matched 4 times over due to the generosity of our matching donors, quadrupling the impact for medical research.

Thank you for believing in this work and helping us advance discoveries that will change lives. Thank you for supporting our research into some of the most pressing concerns that society has today.

And a special thank you to everyone across NeuRA, from researchers to our professional services teams, who so willingly managed the phones all day to take in your amazing donations.

As our chief operating officer, Andrew Finch, notes: "Your generosity helps us to continue life-changing research into neurological conditions like dementia and Parkinson's and a host of other conditions."

01/09/2026

The complex interaction between mental health conditions and dementia is the subject of a new project by NeuRA’s Dr Hannah Timmins, supported by a significant philanthropic grant from the Hillcrest Foundation.

The project, From Mind to Memory: AI-Enhanced Predictive Modelling in Mental Health and Dementia, will deploy artificial intelligence (AI) to explore the relationship between two of Australia's most pressing health challenges, affecting millions of people and families.

Despite growing evidence that mental health and dementia are deeply interconnected, we still do not fully understand how they influence one another.

The three-year project will combine AI with large-scale clinical data to identify the factors that increase dementia risk and predict disease progression. By integrating mental health, lifestyle, medical and brain imaging data, the research aims to support earlier detection, personalised care, and more effective strategies to improve outcomes for people at risk of, or living with, cognitive impairment.

“We already know that depression is one of the 14 potentially modifiable risk factors associated with dementia, but there is still so much we do not understand about the relationship between mental and cognitive health,” said Dr Timmins.

“We need to learn much more about how conditions affecting the mind might influence or exacerbate conditions affecting the brain, and whether there are opportunities to intervene earlier.

“AI gives us the ability to analyse large and complex clinical datasets at a scale that simply isn’t possible using traditional approaches. It can help us identify broader patterns and relationships across mental health, lifestyle, clinical profiles and brain imaging data that might otherwise be difficult to detect.

“By bringing these different sources of information together, From Mind to Memory aims to bridge this knowledge gap, helping us better understand who may be at increased risk of dementia and ultimately develop more targeted strategies for earlier intervention.”

31/08/2026

NeuRA has been awarded $1.9 million from the Medical Research Future Fund's CUREator+ program to develop an AI-powered mobility recovery biomarker tool in partnership with digital health company WeGuide.

Led by Professor Kim Delbaere and Associate Professor Kim van Schooten, the research team will work with 200 people undergoing rehabilitation over 18 months to create a personalised recovery biomarker using wearable technology and patient-reported outcomes.

Currently, clinicians rely on occasional clinic-based assessments to monitor recovery, but this project aims to transform that approach. Professor Delbaere explains: “We want to use real-world movement data from wearable devices to create a personalised recovery biomarker. This could tell us whether someone is progressing well, plateauing or at risk of future mobility problems.”

Associate Professor van Schooten adds: “If we can accurately detect changes in mobility using everyday wearable devices, we can help clinicians adjust rehabilitation earlier and more precisely.

“This builds on our work in digital mobility biomarkers, extending it from risk prediction into recovery and personalised care. Instead of using the same rehabilitation pathway for everyone, we can use objective data to tailor intensity, timing and support based on each person’s recovery trajectory.”

If successful, this mobility recovery indicator could support earlier intervention, more tailored rehabilitation programs and better long-term outcomes for people recovering from injury or stroke, ultimately transforming how recovery is monitored and managed.

Read the full article here: https://communitycarereview.com.au/2026/08/19/neura-weguide-collaborate-on-new-biomarker-tool/

28/08/2026

Making decisions about care and every day life is one of the many challenging practical questions that come with a dementia diagnosis, and the work of NeuRA's Dr Craig Sinclair focuses on what that means in practice.

In the latest episode of Dementia Australia's Hold the Moment podcast, hosts Jim Rogers and Hamish Macdonald speak with Timothy and Ann as well as Dr Sinclair.

Timothy and Ann have had to work our what the right level of dementia support looks like in their life, and this decision can change almost daily as they live their lives.

They discuss how Ann, who was diagnosed with young-onset dementia at 59, and Timothy stay respectful and communicate Ann’s decision-making rights and needs.

Dr Sinclair explains why this approach is increasingly recognised in policy and law, and what this means for people living with dementia and the ones supporting them.

You can listen to the podcast on all podcast apps, and watch it on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiD1W9Rwius

27/08/2026

We’ve just reached 75% of our fundraising goal, and the donations are still coming in - so we're still going!

Thanks to the generosity of our matching donors, your donation is now QUADRUPLING the impact for medical research.

We're so close. Help us cross the finish line and unlock even greater discoveries.

❤️ Donate now and quadruple your impact: https://givingday.neura.edu.au

Donate to NeuRA Giving Day on 26 August 2026 and your gift will be quadrupled. Have 4x the impact and accelerate world-leading brain health research.

26/08/2026

We are halfway to our goal!

Thank you to everyone who has already donated so far, your contribution means more support for researchers doing life-changing work.

Don’t forget to share with the people around you that for today only, every donation to NeuRA’s giving day will be quadrupled!

Meaning every donation makes double the impact.

❤️ Donate now and double your impact: https://givingday.neura.edu.au

26/08/2026

What a start!

We are already 40% of the way to our goal, all thanks to your support!

Every donation you make to NeuRA’s Giving Day is doubled, today only, meaning you’re doubling your support and doubling your impact!

Help NeuRA to continue to make real impact in the lives of people suffering from neurological conditions.

❤️ Donate now and double your impact: https://givingday.neura.edu.au

25/08/2026

🚨 It's here!

NeuRA Giving Day has officially begun.

For 12 hours only, every donation will be matched, helping fund life-changing brain health research.
One day. Double the impact.

❤️ Donate now and double your impact: https://givingday.neura.edu.au