Experts have received a massive $39 million in collaborative research grants from the Federal Government’s National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).

Melbourne University says the local biomedical community will have its reach expanded to a global scale with the opportunities afforded by the latest NHMRC grants.

Patients suffering from cancer, neurological conditions and infectious diseases will benefit from the new round of research.

The funding round includes support for development grants to foster commercialisation, postgraduate research scholarships for early career researchers, and program grants for the next five years.

Some of Australia’s leading authorities have received some significant sums.

Laureate Professor Sam Berkovic AC has been awarded $16.1 million to further his groundbreaking research in epilepsy, which is recognised globally.

Professor Berkovic is the Director of the Epilepsy Research Centre at Austin Health and discovered the first known epilepsy gene. He leads a team of researchers from the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health and The University of Adelaide.

Professor Alan Cowman has been awarded $11 million to lead a collaborative team from The University of Melbourne and The Walter and Eliza Institute of Medical Research, to better understand malaria in the human host.

Professor David Bowtell has been awarded $7 million to lead a team from The University of Melbourne, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and Prince of Wales Hospital to improve outcomes for women with epithelial ovarian cancer and to influence the care of ovarian cancer patients worldwide

Associate Professor Mathias Ernst has been awarded $5.2 million to lead the collaboration of researchers from The University of Melbourne and The Walter and Eliza Institute of Medical Research in developmental therapeutics for the treatment of gastrointestinal cancers of researchers from the collaborate with research.