START is a collaborative trans-Tasman research study conducted by The Kids Research Institute Australia, Menzies School of Health Research, the University of Auckland, the University of Otago, Edith Cowan University and the University of Western Australia.
Chief Investigators:
Prof Jonathan Carapetis AM (Paediatric consultant) is Executive Director, Director of the END RHD Centre for Research Excellence and co-head of the Strep A Translation team at The Kids Research Institute Australia in Perth, Western Australia; and Co-Director of REACH. Prof Carapetis is the co-lead Principal Investigator of the START study.
Prof Anna Ralph (Specialist in Infectious Diseases and General Medicine) is a Senior Principal Research Fellow with the Global and Tropical Health Division and Deputy Director of Research at Menzies School of Health Research in Darwin, Northern Territory. Prof Ralph is the co-lead Principal Investigator of the START study and clinical lead at the Darwin site.
A/Prof Nikki Moreland (Infection and Immunity) from the University of Auckland in New Zealand is the co-lead of the START study in Auckland. A/Prof Moreland and her team profiles autoantibody repertoires in the blood of participants using high content protein arrays and multiplex bead array technology.
Dr Rachel Webb (Paediatric Infectious Diseases Physician) is a Senior Lecturer in Paediatrics at the University of Auckland with clinical appointments at Starship and Middlemore hospitals in Auckland, New Zealand. Dr Webb is clinical lead of the START study at the Auckland sites.
A/Prof Glenn Pearson is a member of the Executive Team, the Director of First Nations Strategy and Leadership, and co-head of the Strep A Translation team at The Kids Research Institute Australia. A/Prof Pearson is Chair of the START study’s Aboriginal Governance Committee, which provides expert advice and guidance on conducting research involving Indigenous Australian communities.
Dr Anthony Bosco is Associate Professor of Immunobiology at the University of Arizona, and headed Systems Immunology at The Kids Research Institute Australia until 2021. Dr Bosco oversees the profiling of transcriptomics and inflammatory pathways. Dr Bosco oversees the integrated data analysis for the START study.
Prof Pat Holt (Mucosal Immunologist) is an Emeritus Honorary Researcher at The Kids Research Institute Australia in Perth, Western Australia. Prof Holt oversees the integrated data analysis for the START study.
Prof David Broadhurst is Professor of Metabolomic Epidemiology & Biosystems Data Science at Edith Cowan University and an Honorary Fellow of the Metabolomics Society. Prof Broadhurst oversees the integrated data analysis for the START study.
Mark Mayo is the Deputy Director of First Nations Leadership and Senior Researcher at Menzies School of Health Research in Darwin, Northern Territory. Mr Mayo supervises laboratory activities and oversees the Indigenous Capacity Building traineeship program for the START study at the Darwin site.
Collaborators:
- Dr Timothy Barnett (The Kids Research Institute Australia)
- A/Prof Timo Lassmann (The Kids Research Institute Australia)
- A/Prof David Martino (The Kids Research Institute Australia)