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The latest funding round of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) was announced today by federal Health Minister Greg Hunt, with $38.5m awarded to University of Sydney researchers for 25 projects.

The funding includes the first grants delivered through the highly competitive Investigator Grant Scheme, part of NHMRC鈥檚 new grant program, which provides five-year funding certainty for researchers and support for their research groups. Another first is the grant for the University of Sydney鈥檚 Indigenous-led Centre of Research Excellence, embedding rural health research in local communities.

Recipients of the NHMRC grants announced today include Professor , of and in the , who was successful under the five-year Investigator Grant Scheme, attracting a total of $2.7m for his project.

Professor Fontana, who came to Sydney from Washington University, St Louis after doing the foundational research for the 5:2 diet, will analyse new models based on accumulating data from the 鈥渂iology of ageing鈥� field for 鈥淔ood and exercise as medicine: a new medical approach for the prevention of age-related diseases鈥�.

Project work will include developing predictive models using systems biology and machine learning computational biology to understand and manage the relationship between energy intake, macronutrients, micronutrients, physiological responses, health and diseases.

For Centres of Research Excellence (CRE), Dr Veronica Matthews of the University of Sydney School of Medicine and collaborative聽聽program has been awarded $2.5m for 鈥淪TRengthening systems for InDigenous healthcare Equity鈥濃�� (STRIDE).

Dr Matthews聽is one of five聽Indigenous Chief Investigators leading the Centre of Research Excellence,聽鈥媋iming to strengthen quality of care delivery systems to improve Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and wellbeing鈥�. The CRE is an Indigenous-led network of more than 360 people including community members, practitioners, researchers and policymakers.

Director of the University Centre for Rural Health, Professor聽, said the Lismore-based CRE is pioneering rural and Indigenous health approaches. 鈥淭he Indigenous leadership is a first for Sydney鈥檚 CREs鈥� based in a country town, this is also a great boost for rural health research generally as we live and work with rural communities.鈥�

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Duncan Ivison said: 鈥淭he quality and variety of projects awarded is testament to the leadership of our experts in medicine and related fields 鈥� congratulations everyone who received a grant in this round.

鈥淚 know our researchers are deeply committed to doing exceptional science and research that helps improve the lives of Australians and people around the world.鈥�

A full list of grant recipients is available at on聽

Photo taken from the University of Sydney鈥檚 Broken Hill clinical school