Episode: 10
Broadcast: 17th May
Presenter: Christina Morrissy

Western Australians are continually coming up with innovations that change our state for the better. Chrissy looks at an innovation that has the potential to save lives around the globe.

• Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is a genetic disease that occurs in one in over 5,000 boys, the disease causes muscle degeneration and premature death. While both sexes can carry the mutation, females rarely exhibit signs of the disease.
• Two Murdoch University researchers, Professors Steve Wilton and Sue Fletcher, developed a breakthrough therapy for children living with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. They were recipients of the Western Australian Innovator of the Year Awards in 2012 and, in 2013, won one of the nation’s most prestigious awards, the Australian Myseum Eureka Prize.
• The new drug works by ‘skipping over’ the faulty part of the gene message, so that it can produce a functional version of the protein dystrophin.

Department of Commerce:
https://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/industry-and-innovation/wa-innovator-year-0

Eligibility & evaluation:
https://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/industry-and-innovation/eligibility-and-evaluation