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WA Government launches ‘game-changing’ nasal influenza vaccine program for kidsWestern Australian kids will have access to a needle-free nasal flu vaccine for the first time in 2026 as part of a new initiative to boost vaccination rates against the life-threatening virus.
News & Events
Whooping Cough Day marks 10 years of vaccine advocacy efforts for Catherine Hughes AMWhooping Cough Day in 2025 has a special significance to Catherine Hughes AM and her family - it marks a decade of dedication to vaccine advocacy after the loss of their four-week-old baby son Riley in 2015.
PICOBOO (The Platform Trial In COVID-19 Priming and BOOsting) Study and NOVAVAX COVID-19/Influenza Combined Vaccine Study
Research
Optimising a 6-plex tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis fluorescent bead-based immunoassaySmall volume assays are required for large-scale research studies and in particular paediatric trials, where multiple measures are required from a single sample. Fluorescent bead-based technology (Bioplex/Luminex) allows high through-put and simultaneous quantification of multiple analytes in a single test. This technology uses sets of microspheres, each with a unique spectral address that can be coated with a different antigen of interest.
Research
Immunogenicity and Safety of a 2 + 1 DTPa Priming Schedule in Australian Infants and the Impact of Maternally Derived Antibodies on Pertussis Antibody Responses up to 4 Years of AgeWe assessed the impact of maternally derived pertussis antibodies on infant responses to a 2 + 1 vaccine schedule (6 weeks, 12 weeks, and 12 months). Infants with baseline antibodies showed lower IgG responses following the primary vaccination series, but this did not impair booster responses at 4 years of age.
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Six-minute Strep A tests dramatically cut wait time in remote settingsChildren at risk of potentially life-threatening Strep A infections no longer have to wait five days for timely treatment, thanks to a The Kids Research Institute Australia study conducted in the remote Kimberley region of Western Australia.
Find out more about the scholarship opportunities at the Wesfarmers Centre, including Training Scholarships and Higher Degree by Research Scholarships.
News & Events
$3.4 million funding boost supercharges fight against RSVNational research led by the Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases, based at The Kids Research Institute Australia, has secured more than $3.4 million to assess the epidemiology of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) throughout the country and optimise Australia’s immunisation strategy.
News & Events
Spectacular sunset launch for the Missing Piece Story BooksWesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases researchers Dr Janessa Pickering and Dr August Mikucki travelled to Broome last week for the official launch of the long-awaited Missing Piece story books.
Research
From speculative to real: Community attitudes towards government COVID-19 vaccine mandates in Western Australia from May 2021 to April 2022Many governments employed mandates for COVID-19 vaccines, imposing consequences upon unvaccinated people. Attitudes towards these policies have generally been positive, but little is known about how discourses around them changed as the characteristics of the disease and the vaccinations evolved.