Discovery Circle funding to accelerate dementia research
23 Oct 2025
The 2025 Discovery Circle Award winner Dr Julian Carosi will use the $100,000 funding to create advanced cell models as he targets harmful protein accumulations in the brain that contribute to dementia.
"I’m investigating how to supercharge our brain’s own ‘waste disposal system’ – called autophagy – to clear toxic protein clumps that damage brain cells in dementia,” he said.
“Currently, there are no truly effective interventions to meaningfully prevent or even slow this progression. Without breakthroughs, the number of Australians living with dementia will double within 30 years.
“By creating advanced cell models that rapidly reproduce the toxic protein build-up that we see in dementia, we can fast-track investigations into therapy options that could boost the autophagic system’s ability to reduce or destroy Tau."
Dr Carosi was one of three Discovery Circle finalists who pitched their research project ideas to the collective giving initiative’s members at a gala event at SAHMRI.
“It was a privilege to share my research vision with the donors, connect with them, and discuss their thoughtful questions about dementia,” Dr Carosi said.
“I’m deeply honoured and grateful to the donors and thrilled about the new knowledge this Discovery Circle Award will help unlock.”
The other finalists were Dr Georgina Irish, whose project is titled “Matching matters: Increasing donor utilisation and improving allocation for Kidney Transplant Recipients”; and Dr Naranie Shanmuganathan, whose project is called “Unravelling the mechanisms involved in blast phase chronic myeloid leukaemia”.
Each of the Discovery Circle runners-up receives $5000 to progress their projects.
SAHMRI’s Discovery Circle brings together a group of committed donors who share a passion for life-changing research. The cumulative impact of their giving directly supports the next generation of research leaders, inspiring innovation and driving discovery.
Each year, Discovery Circle members are invited to the exclusive award event where three early and mid-career researchers present their proposed project for funding. Together, members decide which initiative to support and thereafter take an active interest in the progress of that research.
Prior to the Discovery Circle Award event, SAHMRI held its annual Research Showcase, highlighting the diversity of our translational research and latest developments on our path to impact.
Thank you and congratulations go to all our Research Showcase presenters, in particular our prize winners:
- PhD Presentation – Tharindie Silva (Precision Cancer Medicine)
- ECR Presentation – Georgina Hughes (ROSA / UniSA)
- MCR Presentation – Jacqueline Noll (Precision Cancer Medicine)
- Poster – Emeshe Robson (Lifelong Health)
- Poster – Luke Quinlan (Precision Cancer Medicine)
The Research Showcase prizes were generously sponsored by Rowe Scientific & Phillips Ormonde Fitzpatrick.
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SAHMRI is located on Kaurna Country. We pay respects to the Kaurna people of the Adelaide Plains and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. We are committed to embracing knowledge and culture as we continue our working journey to incorporate Aboriginal health research across all of our themes and further reconciliation.
Read more"Tirki nguta tappa tangka marninithi"
(Learning and knowledge are the pathway to alter the mind)
- Uncle Lewis Yerloburka O’Brien, Kaurna Elder
