Australia Day Honours for Professor Kathryn North

Media Release -- 30 January 2012

Children's Medical Research Institute (CMRI) congratulates CMRI Board member Professor Kathryn North MD BSc (Med) FRACP, who was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Australia Day Honours list. The Order of Australia is the preeminent way Australians recognise the achievements and service of their fellow Australians. Professor North received the award “for service to medicine in the field of neuromuscular and neurogenetics research, paediatrics and child health”.

Based at Children's Hospital Westmead, Professor North has a long list of achievements and has shown an enduring dedication to paediatric medicine. She received the Sunderland Award for neurobiological research and was honoured by the Human Genetics Society of Australasia for her achievements in genetic research. She has served on the CMRI board since 2000.

Lorimer Dods Professor and Director of CMRI, Professor Roger Reddel, warmly welcomed the award to Professor North and said, "Professor North's work combines laboratory research into the genes responsible for diseases such as muscular dystrophy, with diagnosis and treatment of patients with these conditions. She is a valued research colleague and Board member, and a very deserving recipient of this honour."

Children’s Medical Research Institute conducts fundamental research to understand the genes involved in human health and development, and the underlying causes of disease. CMRI is at the forefront of international research in the areas of embryonic development and birth defects, cancer, nerve cell signalling, epilepsy, and gene therapy. Find out more at www.cmri.org.au. This not-for-profit institute is funded by competitive grants, a community of supporters and Jeans for Genes Day Friday August 3 – for which you can volunteer. Visit www.jeansforgenes.org.au.
For more information, please contact lcolgin@cmri.org.au or call 02 8865 2924.