About the MAWA Trust
Developing Alternatives to Animal Research

MAWA's History

The MAWA Trust was established in 2000 by Ms Elizabeth Ahlston and Associate Professor Garry Scroop. It is an Australian organisation and a registered charity which began its operation in Sydney NSW but moved its administrative base to Canberra in 2007 to take advantage of research and funding opportunities.

MAWA CO-FOUNDERS

Ms Elizabeth Ahlston

Associate Professor Garry Scroop

How MAWA Operates

The MAWA Trust has three Trustees: Ms Elizabeth Ahlston; Professor Anne Keogh and The Hon Kevin Rozzoli AM.  The Trust is managed by a board which includes senior scientists in medicine and other members with valuable expertise in a broad range of areas crucial to MAWA's operations.  The Trust has also established a scientific advisory panel which MAWA calls on for advice and review of research projects submitted for MAWA funding.  Membership of MAWA's Advisory Panel has increased significantly over recent years and comprises senior scientists, researchers, academics and medical consultants with expertise across a range of disciplines, many with international profiles who are considered to be leaders in their fields.  A number of experts in law, ethics, philosophy and other relevant disciplines are also represented on, or are available to, the panel.

The Trust is taking a leading role in animal replacement in medical research and is unique in deliberately fostering dialogue with the scientific research community to discover common ground to achieve its goals. 

MAWA's approach is a very positive one.  Rather than focussing on and opposing practices which the Trust does not support, MAWA concentrates on finding and implementing solutions, thus avoiding non-productive conflict with the research community.  MAWA believes that to achieve real progress the Trust must engage with scientists and academics and together work for change.  By maintaining this focus and building bridges with researchers, MAWA has been very successful in promoting its ideals, developing collaborations and partnerships, and identifying funding opportunities.

MAWA board members are aware that an increasing number of medical scientists are attempting to replace animals wherever possible in line with the National Health and Medical Research Council Code of Practice and that new graduates, in particular, are increasingly concerned with the ethical dilemmas they have to face when using living animals in their research projects.

Many of the animal experimental procedures routinely employed in research are no longer appropriate in the modern research environment where a myriad of quantitative non-invasive human research techniques and exciting gene-manipulative technologies are now available.

MAWA operates as an independent medical research and educational trust fund which facilitates the development and utilisation of non-animal based experimental methodologies to replace the use of animals in medical research.  It is expected that by funding non-animal research and training scientists in alternative methodologies the entrenched reliance on the use of animals will be decreased.  MAWA also encourages, through promotion and education, the wider adoption of such techniques.

Examples of Alternative Methodologies Supported By MAWA

MAWA funded researchers use a number of alternative methodologies to replace animal experiments including the use of human cells and tissues, human gene studies, analytical technology, microorganisms, computer models, population research and volunteer studies.

MAWA's Research Portfolio

MAWA's research focus is on basic medical research to improve understanding of human illnesses, their causes, progression, and the underlying features to facilitate prevention, early diagnosis and effective treatment.

The MAWA Trust has supported research into cancer, heart disease, diabetes, vascular disease, chronic pain, osteoporosis, musculoskeletal diseases, hepatitis, prostate disease, obesity, inflammatory diseases, psychiatric illnesses including depression, molecular drug design and computational methods of designing and screening therapeutic agents.

MAWA has also supported the development of a non-animal drug screening methodology, a human model of nerve compression, an animal blood free medium for culture based diagnosis of human diseases, a non-animal method of studying the function of specific genes, and ex vivo human cell culture models to study viral-induced rheumatic disease and musculoskeletal disease.

MAWA's currently funded projects include:  a combined data-mining and molecular biology approach to replace animal models for human disease studies; the development of a new computational tool to design and screen potential therapeutic agents without the use of animal cells, the investigation of zinc transporters in humans rather than the common practice of using animal experiments to study zinc deficiency, the development of an alternative to using animals in researching the role of the immune system in chronic pain; the validation of the use of human-derived cells/tissues to replace current methodologies in breast cancer research that make use of animals; the development of a neonatal model test lung that will replace the use of animals in testing mechanical ventilation apparatus required by premature babies and the development and testing of a control system for heart pumps in vitro so that additional animal trials are not necessary.

Research Streams

MAWA does not limit its support to any particular research stream but encourages applications from a broad range of disciplines within, for example, biological sciences, medical sciences, computer sciences and bioengineering. The Trust has funded projects submitted by researchers in general medicine, medical laboratory science, microbiology, epidemiology, biochemistry, viral immunology, biophysics, public health, histology, predictive medicine, pathology, urology, reproductive medicine, endocrinology, neurophysiology, medical imaging, physiotherapy, health informatics, human kinetics, biomechanics, computer science, engineering, mathematics and statistics. Additionally a number of MAWA funded projects have included transdisciplinary and collaborative approaches.

MAWA Funding

MAWA funding is provided through the award of research grants, development grants, equipment grants, travelling bursaries, doctoral research scholarships, honours research scholarships, bridging scholarships, supplementary research scholarships, travelling scholarships and distinguished scholar tours.  The Trust also provides sponsorship assistance for significant symposiums, seminars and conferences, financial assistance for open access of pertinent scientific journal articles and funding for individuals to attend relevant conferences.

MAWA Fellowship - An Australian First

In partnership with The Australian National University (ANU) a position has been advertised for a Fellow or Associate Professor (Academic Level C/D), who  supports the advancement of alternative methodologies that replace the use of animals in medical research. 

Applications close Thursday 3 June 2010.

The partnership offers support for research which facilitates the development and utilisation of non-animal based experimental methodologies. Research projects could be based in, for example, biological sciences, medical sciences, computer sciences or bio-engineering.  The successful applicant will also take a leading role in the establishment of ‘The Australian Centre for Alternatives to Animal Research' (ACAAR).

The ANU and MAWA is looking for an experienced researcher with knowledge of, and a commitment to, animal replacement in medical research, and the ability to take a leading role in fostering dialogue with medical and scientific research communities concerning alternative methodologies.  A doctoral degree in a discipline relevant to medical research, a track record in obtaining research funding, and high quality research output are all key to this role.