Westmead Millennium Institute (WMI) capped an extremely busy 2007 once again ranked among Australia’s top research organisations. The calibre of its research work was confirmed by the number of peer reviewed grants and awards received by its scientists.

The outstanding work of the Westmead Millennium Institute (WMI) researchers was again recognised by the Federal government's key funding body, the National Health and Medical Research Council(NHMRC). The NHMRC awarded the Institute 14 grants covering a diverse range of research projects.

These highly competitive and prestigious grants will help fund research conducted throughout 2007 including the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of serious viral infection, liver disease, paediatric eye disorders, renal disease and kidney failure, respiratory disorders, translational oncology and neurological disorders.

The Brain Dynamics Centre (BDC), under the leadership of Associate Professor Lea Williams, officially joined WMI bringing with it a wealth of research expertise. This expertise was recognised in November 2006 when BDC received a Clinical Centre of Research Excellence award to establish a Centre for Anxiety and Neuroscience and an Australian Research Council grant to conduct further research into the risk markers for depression.

In December 2006, the Centre's newly furbished facilities where opened by International mind expert, Baroness Susan Greenfield CBE. The Centre is involved in numerous mental health research programs focusing on the development of better diagnostic techniques, treatments and healthcare strategies.

Applauding the achievements of the Centre, Baroness Susan Greenfield, Professor of Pharmacology, Oxford University, said she was delighted to be officially opening the new facilities:

"Since it was established, the Brain Dynamic Centre has been a leader in its field of research. Its strategy of blending psychiatry with a biological understanding of the brain provided a model for other research organisations worldwide, who now look for new treatments and therapies, by combining clinical information with measurements of the brain, behaviour and genetics."

In early 2007, the Institute installed its much sort after Ilumina Micro-array Bead station. The purchase of this essential research tool was sponsored by the Cancer Institute, Sir Ian Potter Foundation, and the Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem Knights Hospitaller. The $650,000 piece of equipment rapidly identifies healthy and abnormal genes and is being utilised by researchers across the Westmead Campus.