A delegation of Postdoctoral Scientists and PhD Students from The Heart Research Institute scooped the best prizes for their research at the Australian Atherosclerosis Society's Annual Scientific Meeting held in Sydney.

The scientists presented their findings in a series of oral and poster presentations with the 1st and 2nd prizes for the best oral presentations being won by PhD Students Michelle Fryirs of the Lipid Research Group and Elaine Wat of the Nutrition and Metabolism Group.

Michelle Fryirs' work entitled Evidence that High-Density Lipoproteins increase the insulin secretory capacity of pancreatic b-cells, investigates the potential benefits of HDL, otherwise known as ‘good cholesterol' for the treatment of type 2-diabetes. 

According to previous studies, type 2 diabetes is linked to loss of pancreatic function and the production of insulin that does not work properly, as well as low levels of HDL and a 2-4 fold increased risk of developing heart disease. Using b-cells from mice, Fryirs was able to test the effect of increased HDL levels on the production and secretion of insulin from pancreatic cells. Fryirs observed that HDL increases in the production of insulin from the cells. Therefore she concludes that strategies that increase HDL may be beneficial in the treatment of type 2-diabetes.

The second prize winner, Elaine Wat, has also made significant discoveries in her recent studies. Elaine has been studying the effects of dietary phospholipids (a type of fat that contains phosphate and fatty acids) upon the health of vital organs such as the heart and liver. Through a series of experiments, Wat discovered that phospholipids from dairy milk, when added to a high-fat diet, reduce cholesterol levels and liver size. This demonstrates that a phospholipid-rich dairy milk extract might be beneficial as a protective nutraceutical.

In addition to the prize winners, other HRI delegates also demonstrated their recent research efforts. Among the other attendees at the conference were other members of the Lipid Research Group including Associate Professor Gilles Lambert, PhD Students Kate Shearston and Kim Tran. Other HRI presenters were Alvin Kamili, a PhD Student from the Nutrition and Metabolism Group, Group Leader Professor Michael Davies of the Free Radical Group with his PhD Student, Fatemeh Moheimani, and a PhD Student from the Gene Regulation Group, Lani Li.

The Annual Scientific Meeting of the AAS gathered many international experts in Sydney's Swiss Hotel at Bondi to exchange ideas that might help lessen or even reverse the devastating effect of heart disease upon the community.