WEHI (), previously known as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, and as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, is Australia's oldest

medical research Medical research (or biomedical research), also known as experimental medicine, encompasses a wide array of research, extending from "basic research" (also called ''bench science'' or ''bench research''), – involving fundamental scientif ...

institute An institute is an organisational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes can ...

Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet, (3 September 1899 – 31 August 1985), usually known as Macfarlane or Mac Burnet, was an Australian virology, virologist known for his contributions to immunology. He won a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Nob ...

, who won the Nobel Prize in 1960 for his work in immunology, was director from 1944 to 1965. Burnet developed the ideas of clonal selection and acquired immune tolerance. Later, Professor

Donald Metcalf Donald Metcalf AC FRS FAA (26 February 1929 – 15 December 2014) was an Australian medical researcher who spent most of his career at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne. In 1954 he received the Carden ...

discovered and characterised colony-stimulating factors. , the institute hosted more than 750 researchers who work to understand, prevent and treat diseases including

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the c ...

breast The breast is one of two prominences located on the upper ventral region of a primate's torso. Both females and males develop breasts from the same embryological tissues. In females, it serves as the mammary gland, which produces and secret ...

and

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...

s; inflammatory diseases (

autoimmunity In immunology, autoimmunity is the system of immune responses of an organism against its own healthy cells, tissues and other normal body constituents. Any disease resulting from this type of immune response is termed an "autoimmune disease". ...

) such as

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and hands are involv ...

type 1 diabetes Type 1 diabetes (T1D), formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is an autoimmune disease that originates when cells that make insulin (beta cells) are destroyed by the immune system. Insulin is a hormone required for the cells to use blood sugar for ...

and

coeliac disease Coeliac disease (British English) or celiac disease (American English) is a long-term autoimmune disorder, primarily affecting the small intestine, where individuals develop intolerance to gluten, present in foods such as wheat, rye and barle ...

; and infectious diseases such as

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...

and

hepatitis B Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the ''Hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection. Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. Fo ...

and C. Located in Parkville,

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, it is closely associated with

The University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

and The

Royal Melbourne Hospital The Royal Melbourne Hospital (RMH), located in Parkville, Victoria, an inner suburb of Melbourne, is one of Australia's leading public hospitals. It is a major teaching hospital for tertiary health care with a reputation in clinical research. Th ...

. The institute also has a campus at

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora. The university was established in 1964, becoming the third university in the state of Victoria an ...

. The Director of WEHI, since July 2009, is Professor

Doug Hilton Douglas "Doug" James Hilton (born 13 June 1964 in England) is an Australian molecular biologist. He is the Director of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne, Australia and Head of the Department of Medical Biology ...

, a

molecular biologist Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

History

The institute was founded in 1915 using funds from a trust established by

Eliza Hall Eliza Rowdon Hall (26 November 1847 – 14 February 1916) was an Australian philanthropist. Born Eliza Rowdon Kirk, she married the Sydney businessman Walter Russell Hall in Melbourne in April 1874. After Walter's death in 1911, Eliza, who was ...

following the death of her husband

Walter Russell Hall Walter Russell Hall (22 February 1831 – 13 October 1911) was an Australian businessman and philanthropist. Biography Hall was born in Kington, Herefordshire, England, eldest son of Walter Hall, glover (later a miller), and his wife Elizabeth ...

. The institute owes its origin to the inspiration of

Harry Brookes Allen Sir Harry Brookes Allen (13 June 1854 – 28 March 1926) was a noted Australian pathologist. Education Harry Brookes Allen was born at Geelong, Victoria, the son of Thomas Watts Allen. He was educated at Flinders School, Geelong, and in 1869 ...

, who encouraged the use of a small portion of the charitable trust to found a medical research institute. The vision was for an institute that 'will be the birthplace of discoveries rendering signal service to mankind in the prevention and removal of disease and the mitigation of suffering.’ In April 1915 the new Melbourne Hospital agreed to provide a home for the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Research in Pathology and Medicine, as it was then known. A few weeks later, the new institute's director-designate,

Gordon Mathison Gordon Clunes Mackay Mathison FRCP (10 August 188318 May 1915) was a physician, medical researcher, and soldier. Appointed the first director of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne, Australia, he died on 18 May ...

, suffered fatal wounds in the

ANZAC The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) was a First World War army corps of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914, and operated during the Gallipoli campaign. General William Birdwood comma ...

Battle of Gallipoli. The floors set aside for the institute in the grounds of the old Melbourne Hospital were given over to the

Commonwealth Serum Laboratories CSL Limited is an Australian multinational specialty biotechnology company that researches, develops, manufactures, and markets products to treat and prevent serious human medical conditions. CSL's product areas include blood plasma derivative ...

in 1918 until a new director could be secured at the cessation of hostilities. Sydney Patterson was appointed the first director and took up his post in 1919. Patterson resigned and returned to England in 1923. He was followed by

Charles Kellaway Charles Halliley Kellaway, (16 January 1889 – 13 December 1952) was an Australian medical researcher and science administrator. Biography Early years and education Charles Kellaway was born at the parsonage attached to St James's Old Cathe ...

for the critical years 1923-44. Kellaway formalised research streams, supported aspiring local researchers, built up public benefactions and secured the first Commonwealth grants for the institute's researches. He also oversaw the plans and construction of the first separate institute building adjacent to the new

, which opened in 1942. Under Kellaway's directorship, the institute came to achieve international recognition as a centre for excellence in medical research by the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Sir

Frank Macfarlane Burnet Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet, (3 September 1899 – 31 August 1985), usually known as Macfarlane or Mac Burnet, was an Australian virologist known for his contributions to immunology. He won a Nobel Prize in 1960 for predicting acquired immune ...

was the institute director between 1944 and 1965, and he brought the institute to international prominence for virological research, especially

influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptoms ...

, and then for immunology. Such was the nature of Burnet’s achievement that he was awarded the

Nobel Prize for Medicine The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded yearly by the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute for outstanding discoveries in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Prize is not a single prize, but five separate prizes that, according ...

in 1960 with Sir

Peter Medawar Sir Peter Brian Medawar (; 28 February 1915 – 2 October 1987) was a Brazilian-British biologist and writer, whose works on graft rejection and the discovery of acquired immune tolerance have been fundamental to the medical practice of tissue ...

for the discovery of immunological tolerance. Sir

Gustav Nossal Sir Gustav Victor Joseph Nossal (born 4 June 1931) is an Austrian-born Australian research biologist. He is famous for his contributions to the fields of antibody formation and immunological tolerance. Early life and education Nossal's family ...

succeeded Burnet as director in 1965, aged 35. Under his stewardship, the institute grew in size and scope, with its scientists making important discoveries in the control of immune system responses,

cell cycle The cell cycle, or cell-division cycle, is the series of events that take place in a cell that cause it to divide into two daughter cells. These events include the duplication of its DNA (DNA replication) and some of its organelles, and subs ...

regulation and

. During this time, the group led by Professor

discovered and characterised the

colony-stimulating factors Colony-stimulating factors (CSFs) are secreted glycoproteins that bind to receptor proteins on the surfaces of hemopoietic stem cells, thereby activating intracellular signaling pathways that can cause the cells to proliferate and differentiate ...

(CSFs), which have benefited more than 10 million cancer patients worldwide. Between 1996 and 2009, it was led by Professor

Suzanne Cory Suzanne Cory (born 11 March 1942) is an Australian molecular biologist. She has worked on the genetics of the immune system and cancer and has lobbied her country to invest in science. She is married to fellow scientist Jerry Adams, also a WE ...

. Since July 2009, Professor

has been the director of WEHI. In the lead up to its centenary in 2015, the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute underwent significant building redevelopment. A new west wing was built in 2012, nearly doubling the institute's size, funded by the Victorian and Australian Governments and

The Atlantic Philanthropies The Atlantic Philanthropies (AP) was a private foundation created in 1982 by Irish-American businessman Chuck Feeney. The Atlantic Philanthropies focused its giving on health, social, and politically left-leaning public policy causes in Australia, ...

. In 2020, the institute rebranded itself to the simpler name WEHI, and updated its motto to ''Brighter together''.

Research

The institute focuses solely on medical research, centered around: *

Cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

s (such as

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlar ...

multiple myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone pain, an ...

, breast cancer and ovarian cancer) * Inflammatory or

autoimmune diseases An autoimmune disease is a condition arising from an abnormal immune response to a functioning body part. At least 80 types of autoimmune diseases have been identified, with some evidence suggesting that there may be more than 100 types. Nearly a ...

(such as type 1 diabetes, coeliac disease,

multiple sclerosis Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This d ...

and

) *

Infectious diseases An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...

(such as malaria, HIV and hepatitis B and C) The institute is organised into the following 14 divisions (with current Division Heads in parentheses): * ACRF Chemical biology (A/Professor Isabelle Lucet) * ACRF Cancer and stem cells (Professors Geoff Lindeman and

Jane Visvader Jane Visvader is a scientist specialising in breast cancer research who works for the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute in Melbourne, Australia. She is the joint head of the Breast Cancer Laboratory with Geoff Lindeman. Education Visvader hol ...

) * Bioinformatics (Professors Gordon Smyth and Melissa Davis) * Blood Cells and Blood Cancer (Professor

Andreas Strasser Andreas ( el, Ἀνδρέας) is a name usually given to males in Austria, Greece, Cyprus, Denmark, Armenia, Estonia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Finland, Flanders, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Romania, the Netherlands, and Indonesia. The name ...

) * Clinical Translation (Professor Clare Scott and Professor Ian Wicks) * Epigenetics and Development (Professor Marnie Blewitt and Professor Anne Voss) * Immunology (Associate Professor Daniel Gray and Professor Phil Hodgkin) * Infectious Diseases and Immune Defence (A/Professor Wai-Hong Tham and Professor Marc Pellegrini) * Inflammation (Associate Professor James Murphy) * Personalised Oncology (Professor Peter Gibbs and Associate Professor Marie-Liesse Labat) * Population Health and Immunity (Professors Melanie Bahlo and Ivo Mueller) * Structural Biology (Associate Professor Matthew Call and Associate Professor Peter Czabotar) * Ubiquitin Signalling (Professor David Komander) The institute is one of five research centres to establish the ACRF Centre for Therapeutic Target Discovery - an Australian-first collaborative and comprehensive cancer research centre. The new consortium is funded by a $5 million grant awarded in 2006 by the

Australian Cancer Research Foundation The Australian Cancer Research Foundation (ACRF) is an Australian not-for-profit organisation which funds research into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of all types of cancer. It provides multimillion-dollar grants for high-end research equ ...

. The award is in honour of Australian businessman Sir

Peter Abeles Sir Peter Emil Herbert Abeles, AC (25 April 192425 June 1999) was an Australian transportation magnate. A refugee from Hungary, he became a businessman in Australia, and was knighted in 1972. Career Abeles was born in Vienna, in Austria, but ...

Education

The institute forms the department of Medical Biology at the University of Melbourne; graduate students enrolled at the University who undertake research at the institute can obtain a Bachelor of Science (Honours), Bachelor of Biomedicine (Honours) or

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

degree; medical students can also study for Advanced Medical Science. Undergraduate students can also be part of the

Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program An Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program provides funding and/or credit to undergraduate students who volunteer for faculty-mentored research projects pertaining to all academic disciplines. Participating universities Universities involved ...

(UROP). During the 2005–2006 financial year 17 students obtained a PhD at the WEHI, while 17 obtained a Bachelor of Science (Honours). As of June 2006, the Institute hosts 60 PhD students. The institute is also part of the Gene Technology Access Centre led by Chief Executive Officer

Jacinta Duncan Jacinta Duncan is an Australian science educator who grew up on marginal farming land in the Millewa area in the top North West of Victoria. Working alongside her father, Duncan learned animal husbandry, and how to crop wheat and barley while he ...

, located next to the institute building at University High School, which provides education programs in molecular and cell biology for secondary students in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Awards

* In 2019,

David Vaux David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

and

were joint recipients of the

Florey Medal The Florey Medal, also known as the CSL Florey Medal and the Florey Medal for Lifetime Achievement, is an Australian award for biomedical research named in honour of Australian Nobel Laureate Howard Florey. The medal is awarded biennially and the ...

for their work on revealing the links between cell death and cancer. *In 2020, David Vaux won the Bettison & James Award, presented by the

Adelaide Film Festival The Adelaide Film Festival (AFF, formerly ADLFF) is film festival usually held for two weeks in mid-October in cinemas in Adelaide, South Australia. Originally presented biennially in March from 2003, since 2013 AFF has been held in October ...

References

External links

*
Walter and Eliza Hall, Biography
at

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...