Te Huinga Hinengaro

Mahuru 2025 | Kawerongo 5 |  Sept 2025 | Issue 5

Bringing great minds together - the latest in brain health, research and community outreach from the CBR.

He kōrero whakapuaki

Director's address
 

At a time when research funding in Aotearoa New Zealand, and around the world, is shrinking, our researchers have secured more than $11 million in new funding to advance neuroscience and change lives.

A highlight of our success is a landmark $4 million government investment in AI-driven dementia risk prediction. This is a testament to the remarkable work of our Dementia Prevention Research Clinics, which you can read more about below.

The DPRC’s deep engagement across Aotearoa’s diverse communities ensures its research reflects, and benefits, our unique population, and that’s critical.

Dementia is a disease that affects around 83,000 people across Aotearoa New Zealand, and is expected to rise to over 170,000 by 2050. Research into earlier detection and intervention is urgently needed, and we lead the way.

In a tough funding environment, the CBR is vibrant, growing and tackling some of the hardest problems in neuroscience. This is what going out on a high truly means.

As I prepare to step-aside as CBR Director in December this year, I’m immensely proud of the people who will carry the CBR forward. We are ready for our next exciting chapter.

Tēnā tātou katoa, 

Richard
Director, Centre for Brain Research
Te Huinga Hinengaro
The University of Auckland

CBR Researchers Secure Over $11 Million

CBR researchers have won a phenomenal $11 million in combined grants in just two months.

The funded projects span traumatic brain injury, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease, multiple sclerosis and dementia.

The largest award is a $4m grant from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to support a project led by Dr Catherine Morgan and Professor Lynette Tippett (pictured) to use AI to better predict dementia risk.

This exciting project builds on the research platform built by the CBR’s Dementia Prevention Research Clinics (DPRC). The DPRC has established one of Aotearoa’s richest longitudinal data sets with people experiencing early memory loss.

Working directly with around 400 research volunteers, the DPRC has collected extensive data alongside building a supportive community for people with dementia.

That commitment has created a rich resource now enabling the team to address urgent questions about dementia and, in the case of the MBIE grant, develop new tools that will make a tangible difference to people’s lives.

This funding is also distinctive because it comes from the Government’s Catalyst: Strategic New Zealand–Singapore Research Programme.

The tool will be co-developed with leading researchers in Singapore, strengthening its quality and offering benefits for both countries.

Read more about this Catalyst international collaboration.

An overview of recent grants awarded to CBR researchers:

• AI-driven dementia risk prediction – A landmark $4m New Zealand grant (plus SGD $1.33m in Singapore) to create an explainable AI tool predicting dementia risk and integrating real-world data.
  
  Health Research Council awards
   
• Drug discovery for traumatic brain injury – Dr Justin Rustenhoven awarded $1.2m by the Health Research Council to find medicines to reduce the impact of head injuries.
   
• Rare neurological disease genetics – Dr Emma Scotter granted $1.199m to investigate genotypes, phenotypes and treatments for NOTCH2NLC-related disease in Aotearoa.
   
• Parkinson’s diagnosis from tears – Dr Victor Dieriks secured $1.199m to develop a tear-based diagnostic for Pacific PINK1 and idiopathic Parkinson’s disease.
   
• Huntington’s cell therapy – Professor Bronwen Connor received $1.2m for a 3D cell replacement therapy to treat Huntington’s disease.
   
• Multiple sclerosis repair – Dr Amy McCaughey-Chapman received a HRC Emerging Researcher Grant worth $400k to develop a human oligodendrocyte platform for testing MS therapies.
   

Neurological Foundation awards

Two for Taylor!

• Immune pathways at the brain’s borders in Parkinson’s disease - Dr Taylor Stevenson secured two major grants from the Neurological Foundation - a $277,184 Project Grant and a coveted $235,694 Philip Wrightson Fellowship.
  
  The project grant supports Taylor, with collaborator Dr Justin Rustenhoven, to investigate how the brain clears waste - and how this process goes wrong in Parkinson’s disease.

• Stroke cooling in transit – Professor Alan Barber collaborating on a $299k study testing brain cooling during emergency transport to reduce long-term disability.

Ngā kōrero whakahira

Introducing our new Director:
Professor Hanneke Hulst

We’re pleased to announce that Professor Hanneke Hulst will become the next CBR Director from 1 December 2025.

Hanneke joins us from Leiden University in the Netherlands. She is recognised for her work on the mechanisms of cognitive decline in neurological conditions, and specialises in using advanced neuroimaging (fMRI and diffusion-weighted imaging) alongside biological and behavioural markers such as fatigue, sleep and stress. In New Zealand she will also hold joint appointments in the Department of Psychological Medicine, the School of Psychology, and the CBR, reflecting her interdisciplinary expertise.

We’ll share more about this exciting appointment, and about Distinguished Professor Sir Richard Faull’s continuing involvement with the CBR, in our next newsletter. 

A pōwhiri will be held in December welcoming Hanneke to the CBR - more details to come.

Highlights from Aotearoa’s
National Neuroscience Conference

Pictured directly above: the next generation of top neuroscientists: CBR early-career researchers shared their work at seminars; flash talks and poster presentations.

The Australasian Winter Conference on Brain Research (AWCBR), held this year in Ōtautahi Christchurch, is Aotearoa’s largest annual neuroscience meeting, and a chance to share ideas and showcase new advances in brain research with New Zealand’s uniquely close-knit community of neurological researchers.

CBR researchers delivered presentations across the full conference programme, highlighting new discoveries from fundamental neuroscience through to clinical applications. A huge thank you to Dr Simon O’Carroll, who co-chaired the conference alongside several CBR colleagues on the organising committee, stepping up to chair sessions and helping make the event such a success.

Dr Simon O'Carroll (far right) with the AWCBR prize winners

The international plenary speaker is always a highlight, and this year was no exception. Professor Tak W. Mak, a China-born Canadian scientist, discovered the human T-cell receptor - work that laid the foundation for CAR-T immunotherapies, which are transforming cancer treatment.

His keynote followed a panel on the future of Aotearoa New Zealand’s research, science and innovation sector featuring Sir Peter Gluckman, who warned about our underinvestment in science compared with other OECD countries. The University Advisory Group report chaired by Sir Peter calls for a national strategy to better align university research with New Zealand’s long-term science and innovation priorities.

Our early-career and postdoctoral researchers also made the most of the opportunity to present on a national stage. Congratulations to Dr Taylor Stevenson, recognised for his poster on brain waste clearance in Parkinson’s disease, and to Luca Vinnell, commended for his oral presentation on T-cell accumulation and neuronal dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease.
 

Ā tātou tāngata

Our people
 

Back-to-back wins for CBR staff at Indian community awards

Baljit was a beloved member of the Indian community and a selfless advocate for migrant and ethnic communities in New Zealand.

Since the award was introduced last year, it has gone to two of Malvindar’s colleagues — including her own PhD student.

In 2024, Khushi Sehajpal received the award for her academic work, completing her Master’s with first-class honours investigating the role of the substantia nigra in X-Linked Dystonia Parkinsonism. Alongside her research, Khushi promotes Indian culture through dance.

Jane received the award in recognition of the compassion and professionalism she brings to her role as the Clinic Manager at the Dementia Prevention Research Clinics, helping participants and their families navigate the research process.

Janes received the honour at the 11th annual Indian Newslink Sports, Community and Culture Awards.

Badhai ho, Jane aur Khushi! We’re proud to see our colleagues representing the CBR with such excellence and connection within the Indian community.

Sir Richard named Mātai patron

CBR Director Distinguished Professor Sir Richard Faull has been honoured as the inaugural Patron of the Mātai Medical Research Institute in Gisborne. Mātai and the CBR share a strong partnership, collaborating on research projects that often draw on Mātai’s world-class imaging expertise.

To mark the appointment, the Mātai Arataki room (‘arataki’ meaning ‘to lead or guide’) will be named in his honour, with a commemorative plaque inscribed with one of his guiding principles: “What’s the right thing to do?”

Parkinson’s Clinical and Research Day

Speakers showcased promising studies taking place into brain waste-clearance pathways, drug development, biomarkers, genetics and exercise, alongside powerful patient perspectives. 

Dr Barry Snow, Dr Viswas Dayal and Andrew Bell opened the day by setting the scene on the clinical and research needs in Parkinson’s disease. Andrew is the Chief Executive of Parkinson’s NZ and was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2019 at age 55.

He spoke about the everyday uncertainty and social challenges of the disease, urging researchers to find practical ways to support people with Parkinson's in their daily lives.

"I don't know when my off periods are going to hit, and that makes you feel insecure. I can be having a good day and next thing you know, I'll be lying down by the door, fast asleep, snoring, and I'll have no control over that," he said, adding: "How do we navigate what has suddenly become a world full of variation and unpredictability, day in and day out? Because it is with us 24/7."

HealtheX 2025: Celebrating student success

HealtheX is one of the most exciting opportunities on the University of Auckland calendar for summer students or PhD candidates to showcase research.

The Centre for Brain Research was once again proud to be an official sponsor of HealtheX 2025 - helping to keep this event free and support the next generation of brain researchers.

Pacific Parkinson’s Awareness Day
aims to break down stigma

The first Pacific Parkinson’s Awareness Day, held earlier this year in Māngere, brought together whānau, researchers, clinicians, and carers to acknowledge the challenges faced by Pacific families living with Parkinson’s, and to reduce stigma around the condition.

The event was hosted by Parkinson’s NZ, the Pacific Parkinson’s Support Group, and Research Fellow Dr Christina Buchanan, who studies the PINK1 gene in early onset Parkinson's disease in Pacific populations. 

Neurologist and honorary senior lecturer Dr Joseph Donnelly shared insights into the higher genetic risk faced by Pacific communities and the importance of early diagnosis; and film director Toa Fraser acknowledged the challenges faced by Pacific families living with Parkinson’s.

Toa was diagnosed with Young Onset Parkinson's Disease a decade ago, and said: “Parkinson’s is often seen as an old Palagi disease, which inhibits us from pursuing treatment. Silence can become our enemy.”

Ngā kawepūrongo

In the news

World first gene therapy trial for muscular dystrophy

The trial is testing EPI-321, a CRISPR-based epigenetic therapy designed to switch off the faulty DUX4 gene, with nine patients in New Zealand, America and Australia receiving the one-time injection.

Roxburgh says participants are “pioneers” helping to chart unknown territory, as they will be closely monitored over five years for both safety and signs of improvement.

Read more

On our dementia mate wareware outeach:

Te Ao News: Growing need for support for Māori whanau suffering from dementia

Waatea News: More must be done when it comes to dementia and whānau

Stuff.co.nz: Marae visits highlight urgent need dementia support in remote Māori communities

Radio NZ Nine to Noon: Whānau caring for loved ones with dementia

Other news

Research collaborations awarded more than $7m from Catalyst programme

TVNZ Breakfast 1:27m in: Can AI predict who will get dementia? TVNZ interview, 1:27m in
 

Ngā kaupapa

Upcoming events

Professor Klaus Lehnert Inaugural Lecture:
From Mutation to Mechanism

Tuesday 30 September | 5:30pm | 303-G20 PLT1, Building 303 (refreshments from 5pm)
From Mutation to Mechanism through Technology-Enabled Functional Biology — inaugural lecture by Dr Klaus Lehnert.
Register here

Advancing Neurosurgery through Cutting-Edge Neuroscience:
A Showcase of Innovation

Thursday 2 October | 1:00–2:30pm | CBR Seminar Room (501–505)
Showcase of AI-driven neurosurgery and neuroscience projects from the Freemasons Neurosurgery Research Unit – NeuroTech Lab.
RSVP here

Professor Donna Rose Addis:
The Ageing Brain: Memory and Imagination

Professor Donna Rose Addis is a much-loved founding member of the Centre for Brain Research and one of New Zealand’s most distinguished neuroscientists, the world’s first female Samoan neuroscientist, and a renowned expert on memory and aging. She has been based in Canada for the past seven years.

Professor Addis is being hosted in New Zealand by the Auckland Medical Research Foundation, as part of celebrations marking its 70th anniversary, and a milestone of over $100 million in funding awarded to medical research since its founding in 1955.

Professor Addis will be joined by Professor Robert Gourdie, a New Zealand–educated cardiovascular scientist who has worked in the United States since the late 1980s.

They will present three evenings of talks - two for researchers and clinicians and one for the general public.

General public event:

Monday 13 October 6–8:30pm | AZ100, AUT North Campus, Northcote

The Aging Brain: Memory and Imagination & How Milk Helps Treat Heart Disease and Cancer

Places are limited. RSVP here.
 

Researchers and medical professionals only (these presentations will be research-focused with scientific content):

Tuesday 14 October 6–8:30pm | AMRF Auditorium

Memory of Myself: The Self in Dementia and Amnesia & New Insights on Heart Bioelectricity and Arrhythmia

Wednesday 15 October 6–8:30pm | AMRF Auditorium

The Prospective Brain in Depression & Milk Nanovesicles in the Treatment of Heart Disease and Radiation Injury.

Register your interest here.

Whakapā mai

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