A possible cure for dementia and saving the Great Barrier Reef from invasive crown-of-thorns starfish are now within reach as UQ launches an historic $500 million philanthropic campaign.

Launched at the weekend, UQ’s Not If, When – the Campaign to Create Change aims to change lives within our community and around the world by encouraging support for research, disadvantaged students and teaching leadership.

UQ researcher and cervical cancer vaccine co-inventor Professor Ian Frazer said the launch came at a time when UQ researchers were close to solving some of society’s most pressing issues.

Professor Frazer is leading the campaign with his wife, UQ alumnus Caroline Frazer.

“I have seen first-hand how powerful giving can be, through the generosity of donors who greatly helped my research at UQ,” he said.

“The Not If, When campaign will connect our donors with causes they are passionate about and help us to create change together,” Professor Frazer said.

More than 200 million doses of Professor Frazer’s cervical cancer vaccine have been distributed across 130 countries, saving countless lives and millions of dollars in health costs.

Last week the federal government announced that an improved version of the vaccine would be provided free to young Australians next year, giving even higher levels of protection.

“Not If, When is the first comprehensive philanthropic campaign launched by a Queensland university,” Professor Frazer said.

“Donations, no matter how large or small, can accelerate important research with local and global impact.

“They can also provide life-changing opportunities for deserving students who would otherwise struggle to achieve their educational dreams.

“UQ has the research excellence, resources and people to help achieve the outcomes our donors are hoping for.”

UQ Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Peter Høj said the campaign was a significant step towards matching the philanthropic cultures of other leading economies.

“Philanthropy allows individuals, families and organisations who share our vision for a better world to partner with UQ people, secure in the knowledge that their funds will go to the cause of their choice.

Donors, including UQ alumni and members of the broader community, can make a genuine difference by helping solve local, national and global problems,” Professor Høj said.

The campaign target is to raise $500 million by the end of 2020. More than half has already been raised since its internal launch in 2013.

The campaign is not raising money to fund operational and business-as-usual matters.

Professor Høj said donor contributions would deliver benefits for generations to come.

“Individuals, families and communities are benefitting from the Poche Centre for Indigenous Health and one of Australia’s first telerehabilitation clinics for speech pathology.

“Both these initiatives have been funded by the extraordinary support of philanthropists who are driven to make the world a better place.

“Among many other things, donors enable scholarships and mentoring through the Young Achievers Program which has provided a pathway to higher education for hundreds of students who might not otherwise have been able to attend university,” he said.

“Now, more than ever, our future will be shaped by donors and their vision for a better world.”

Media: Advancement Marketing and Communications Manager Mark Schroder, m.schroder@uq.edu.au, 0403 481 758.

Efforts to rid the world of polio have taken another significant step, thanks to research led by University of Queensland bioscience experts and funding from the World Health Organisation (WHO).

A fresh study of the Nanopatch – a microscopic vaccine delivery platform first developed by UQ researchers – has shown the device more effectively combats poliovirus than needles and syringes.

Head of UQ’s School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences Professor Paul Young said the breakthrough provided the next step in consigning polio to history.

“Polio was one of the most dreaded childhood diseases of the 20th century, resulting in limb disfigurement and irreversible paralysis in tens of millions of cases,” Professor Young said.

“This most recent study showed the Nanopatch enhanced responses to all three types of inactivated poliovirus vaccines (IPV) – a necessary advancement from using the current live oral vaccine.

“We are extremely grateful to the WHO for providing funding to Vaxxas Pty Ltd, the biotechnology company commercialising the Nanopatch.

“The support specifically assists pre-clinical studies and good manufacturing practices.”

Patch inventor Professor Mark Kendall said the study exhibited a key advantage of the Nanopatch.

“It targets the abundant immune cell populations in the skin’s outer layers, rather than muscle, resulting in a more efficient vaccine delivery system,” Professor Kendall said.

“The ease of administration, coupled with dose reduction observed in this study suggests that the Nanopatch could facilitate inexpensive vaccination of inactivated poliovirus vaccines.”

UQ Australian Institute for Biotechnology and Nanotechnology researcher Dr David Muller said effectively translating the dose could dramatically reduce the cost.

“A simple, easy-to-administer polio Nanopatch vaccine could increase the availability of the IPV vaccine and facilitate its administration in door-to-door and mass vaccination campaigns,” said Dr Muller.

“As recently as 1988, more than 350,000 cases occurred every year in more than 125 endemic countries.

“Concerted efforts to eradicate the disease have reduced incidence by more than 99 per cent.”

“Efforts are being intensified to eradicate the remaining strains of transmission once and for all.”

Data from the study encourages efforts by Vaxxas – established by UQ’s commercialisation company UniQuest – to bring the technology to use for human vaccinations.

“The research we are undertaking in conjunction with UQ and WHO can improve the reach of life-saving vaccines to children everywhere,” Vaxxas chief executive officer David Hoey said.

Findings of recent research have been published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Media: Dr David Muller, d.muller4@uq.edu.au, +61 7 3365 4881, Professor Mark Kendall, m.kendall@uq.edu.au,; UQ Communications – Jan King, j.king@uq.edu.au, +61 (7) 3365 4043 or +61 427 559 427.

The Faculty of Business, Economics and Law in partnership with The University of Queensland in America, Inc. (TUQIA) proudly present the fourth annual UQ Rugby Benefit Dinner in support of the UQ rugby scholar athlete and UQ Rugby Club.

Join your fellow UQ alumni, friends and business colleagues for another fantastic evening of rugby festivities in central New York City as one of the University’s most prestigious sports medals, the Mark Loane Medal, is presented to one of America’s most outstanding high school rugby players.

This year’s panel of rugby legends includes Nick Farr-Jones, Tim Horan AM, Mark McBain, Dr Brendan Nasser, Joe Roff, Brooke Saunders and Nick Stiles.

Find out more here.

The University of Queensland has maintained a position within the top echelons of research institutions in the world, according to the latest Times Higher Education University Ranking.

Despite a slight dip, UQ was ranked 65 of 1102 institutions assessed globally, and remains the fourth-ranked university in Australia.

UQ Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Peter Høj said UQ had consistently been inside the top 70 in the Times Higher Education Rankings in recent years, but there was cause to warn against complacency.

“We’re delighted to again be recognised at the global forefront of providing quality research, education and industry collaboration,” Professor Høj said.

“From last year we have ranked five places lower, and I note a similar trend for several other leading Australian research universities.

“This is a timely reminder that ill-conceived cuts to higher education and the possibility of growing complacent and negligent towards scientific research will have very real effects.

“Higher education is vital to a progressive Australian society and economy and, to maintain our standing, it takes focus and funding from a federal perspective.”

UQ ranked 60^th worldwide the past two years in the Times Higher Education University Ranking, having ranked 65^th in 2014-15, 63^rd in 2013-14 and 65^th in 2012-13.

Research institutions were measured on five ‘pillars’ – teaching, research, citations, industry income and international outlook.

UQ’s best-performing pillar was international outlook, adjudged on percentage of international staff, international co-authorship and percentage of international students.

Last week UQ was ranked first in Australia by the Nature Index for life sciences, and 78^th overall in the world.

The tables are based on data from 1 January 2016 to 31 December 2016.

Media: UQ Communications, communications@uq.edu.au, + 61 7 3365 3439.

After major gains over the past three years, The University of Queensland has held its position in the prestigious Academic Ranking of World Universities announced recently, ranking 55th globally and second in Australia.

Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Peter Høj said that, in a world with more than 10,000 universities, this achievement in the most recognised international ranking of universities reflected UQ’s outstanding research excellence.

“It’s a powerful testament to the very high quality of our people,” he said.

“There’s no doubt that the entire nation benefits from having highly ranked, innovative, research-intensive universities such as UQ.

“The quality of our research serves as a beacon for global innovators, researchers, philanthropists and partners looking to collaborate with the best minds to generate new knowledge and products that enhance lives in Australia and abroad.

“The benefits of our rankings and research-intensive environment enhance the learning experience of our students who will become the leaders of the future, creating positive change in our society.

“The ARWU rankings, which feature six Australian universities in the top 100, are a timely reminder of why the nation must keep its universities strong and not jeopardise the competitive advantage that benefits all Australians.”

The ARWU results build on the back of UQ’s strong performances in other international ranking in 2017.

UQ placed 47^th globally in the influential QS World University Rankings announced in June, putting it well inside the top one per cent of the world’s universities.

This was followed closely by the release of the ARWU subject rankings, with UQ named in the world’s top ten universities for six subjects (with 18 subjects in the top 50 and 36 in the top 100) and best in Australia in another six.

The ARWU rankings have been published by The Center for World-Class Universities at Shanghai Jiao Tong University annually since 2003 when UQ was well outside the top 100.

Professor Høj said UQ’s research culture benefited undergraduate and higher degree students, and the ARWU results reinforced the outstanding global credentials of UQ graduates.

“A research-inspired culture nurtures and fosters the pursuit of new knowledge and ideas, setting the scene for members of the UQ family to create positive change throughout the world.

“We are looking to partner with many more enterprises, such as has happened with Boeing, to augment the flow and application of our knowledge into the global sphere.”

Further information and full rankings are available at the ShanghaiRanking website.