Adapt or collapse – can we meet the moment of environmental peril
Do humans really have what it takes to change our lives – our world – to arrest climate collapse?
It might be the defining question we face as a society, and the panellists from this WOMADelaide Festival discussion are throwing everything they've got at this intractable issue, drawing on knowledge from the oldest continuing culture in the world and the fields of architecture, urban planning and of course, community organising to avoid collapse.
This episode was recorded live at the annual 2025 WOMADelaide festival, produced and presented as part of their Planet Talks program, held on the traditional lands of the Kuarna people.
Speakers
Bhiamie Williamson
Leader of the National Indigenous Disaster Resilience research program and a senior lecturer at Monash University
Elizabeth Mossop
Dean of the UTS School of Design, Architecture and Building
Emma Bacon
Founder and Executive Director of Sweltering Cities
Julia Lester
Former ABC journalist and broadcaster (host)
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ABC News
31 minutes ago
- ABC News
Brain Rot: Is internet addiction real?
Plenty of people will say they are addicted to the internet. But how well-recognised, scientifically, is an addiction ... to your screen? In episode four of Brain Rot, we dig into how behavioural addictions work. And we hear from self-described internet addicts about the treatment programs helping them manage their relationship with technology. Brain Rot is a new five part series from the ABC's Science Friction about how tech is changing our brains, hosted by Ange Lavoipierre. Guests: Jillian and Kate Internet and Technology Addiction Anonymous members Hilarie Cash Psychologist and Co-Founder, reSTART Anna Lembke Professor of Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine Anastasia Hronis Clinical Psychologist; Author, The Dopamine Brain Dar Meshi Associate Professor, Michigan State University Credits: Presenter: Ange Lavoipierre Presenter: Ange Lavoipierre Producer: Fiona Pepper Producer: Fiona Pepper Senior Producer: James Bullen Senior Producer: James Bullen Sound Engineer: Tim Symonds This story was made on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar peoples. More Information: Changes and correlates of screen time in adults and children during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta analysis. Internet-addicted South Korean children sent to digital detox boot camp.
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Dengue surges as climate change bites but one Aussie drug trial has slapped symptoms
Dengue cases explode as climate change and urban sprawl fuel surge World scrambles as virus spreads with no easy fix Island Pharma's dengue drug cuts symptoms in Phase 2 trial There's a buzz in the air. You might not notice it at first, but it's becoming harder to ignore. It belongs to mosquitoes, and they're not just a nuisance anymore. They're carrying a virus that's spreading fast, breaking out of the tropics and catching the world off guard. Dengue fever, once considered a regional menace, has gone global. In 2023, the world recorded over 6 million cases. In 2024, they have exploded to as high as 2.8 million cases a month. So what's going on? According to Professor Zulkifli Ismail, Chairman of the Asia Dengue Voice and Action Group (ADVA), a perfect storm is brewing. 'There are a number of things that are thought to drive this increase. The most popular of which is climate change and global warming that favours the mosquito breeding habits,' he told Stockhead. Rapid urbanisation and more new construction sites also create new water collections for Aedes eggs. In addition, inadequate vector control causes an increase in the Aedes mosquito, the Professor added. 'An example is fogging that's meant to kill adult mosquitoes, but inevitably also kills frogs that feed on the mosquitoes and larvae.' People's habits also play a role. When we don't take care of the environment or delay seeing a doctor when symptoms start, it gives the virus more chances to spread. 'It's thought that almost 70% of dengue cases are asymptomatic, meaning that these are potential mosquito-bite victims that can help to transmit the virus.' Connection between climate change and dengue Dengue travels through two species of mosquitoes: Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, who act like little flying syringes. These insects are cold-blooded, which means their biology speeds up with heat. Climate change is therefore making conditions more ideal for them. Warmer temperatures are helping them breed faster, live longer, and spread into regions that were once too cold for outbreaks to take hold. A recent study spanning 21 countries found that climate change alone is responsible for about 20% of dengue's rise from 1995 to 2014. And that's in regions where dengue was already endemic, like Brazil, Indonesia and India. The outlook is worse for parts of the world that are just now entering mosquito-friendly territory. 'There are certain 'hot spot' areas and these are related to the density of the Aedes aegypti and, to an extent, the Aedes albopictus mosquitoes that can transfer the virus from one person to another,' said Professor Ismail. And then there's the world's urban sprawl where rubbish builds up. That, plus global travel, is a recipe for outbreaks. Not just 'breakbone fever' Dengue earned the nickname 'breakbone fever' because of the intense muscle and joint pain it can cause, which makes you feel like your bones are cracking. In severe cases, dengue can lead to internal bleeding, low platelet counts, and even organ failure. It can also affect the nervous system, causing conditions like encephalitis or Guillain-Barré syndrome. There are four types of the virus, so getting dengue once doesn't mean you're safe. Repeat infections can be worse. And there's still no widely available treatment. Supportive care and fluids are the standard. Vaccines exist, but they're complex and not easy to access. Professor Ismail's group, ADVA, helps countries improve their local responses by sharing expertise and encouraging more coordinated action. Some countries, like Indonesia and Malaysia, have tried using Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes to reduce the spread of dengue. The results have been good, but the method is expensive and not easy to roll out everywhere. Hope from Australia's Island Pharma? With the virus on the march and few medical options on the table, an Aussie biotech called Island Pharmaceuticals (ASX:ILA) is starting to draw attention. Its lead candidate, ISLA-101, is a repurposed antiviral. It was originally developed for other uses, including cancer, but is now being trialled as a potential treatment and preventative for dengue fever. The drug works by stopping a key viral protein from entering the nucleus of human cells. That step is essential for the virus to replicate. If the protein can't get in, the virus can't multiply. It's a clean, targeted mechanism, and so far, it's showing signs of promise. Island recently completed its Phase 2a/b PROTECT trial in the US, using a dengue human infection model. This model is as close as possible to a real-world scenario, but within a controlled environment. Healthy volunteers were given either ISLA-101 or a placebo, then deliberately exposed to a weakened strain of dengue virus. This strain, provided by the US Army, causes mild to moderate symptoms and allows researchers to study viraemia and drug response safely. More on Island's trials The trial was split into two parts. In the preventative arm (Phase 2a), participants received ISLA-101 three days before virus exposure. The results were encouraging. Those given the drug had a clear drop in viral load and reported fewer symptoms than those on placebo. On average, the placebo group reported around 63% of all possible dengue symptoms, while those given ISLA-101 reported about 33%. This suggests the drug may help prevent or reduce the severity of infection when taken early. In the treatment arm (Phase 2b), participants were exposed to dengue first, then given ISLA-101 seven days later. There were signs the drug still had an effect on viral replication, but because some participants were already showing symptoms at the time of dosing, changes in clinical outcomes were less consistent and are still under analysis. Importantly, the trial met its key objectives. It confirmed safety, reached the target drug concentration in blood, and showed early signs of antiviral activity. The results were strong enough to warrant deeper clinical investigation. The world is watching, and waiting ... Professor Stephen Thomas, who helped oversee the trial, said the dengue problem is worsening, and the number of candidate countermeasures in clinical testing does not align with the global scope of the problem. 'For this reason, we are very excited Island's candidate compound demonstrated evidence of antiviral activity against a rigorous dengue human infection model. These results set the stage for continued clinical development.' The study also involved a strong group of collaborators, including Island, Upstate Medical University, the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, and the US Army's Medical Research Program. With these Phase 2a/b results now in hand, Island is reviewing the data with its scientific and clinical advisors to plan the next stage. This could include a larger study and more detailed analysis of both prevention and treatment use cases. If ISLA-101 continues to show clinical benefit, it may become eligible for a Priority Review Voucher from the FDA. These vouchers allow faster approval for future drugs or can be sold to other companies, often for over US$110 million. "If antiviral can convincingly reduce the viraemia and also mitigate severe dengue, it will be one of the tools in our armamentarium to treat dengue cases," said Professor Ismail. It's still early, but in a world with millions of dengue infections each year and no widely available treatment, Island's progress is worth paying close attention to. At Stockhead we tell it like it is. While Island Pharmaceuticals is a Stockhead advertiser, it did not sponsor this article.
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Biocurious: CSL's R&D chief says drug development is like falling in love
CSL's hereditary angioedema prophylactic Andembry is one of only a handful of FDA-approved, Australian-developed drugs Andembry reflects CSL's R&D approach of sticking with 'adjacent' competencies CSL spends around $2.3 billion a year on R&D, but it's still outgunned by rivals and needs to play smart CSL (ASX:CSL) global head of research and development Bill Mezzanotte likens drug development to falling in love. 'If you don't put your whole heart into it, it won't work,' the Pennsylvania-based Mezzanotte told Stockhead. 'But when you do, you are at risk of having your heart broken and that sometimes happens.' The blood plasma giant certainly has had its share of heartbreak along the way, including a failed heart attack mega trial. But as a 'hopeless romantic', Mezzanotte remains confident about the life-saving potential of the company's circa US$1.5 billion ($2.3 billion) a year R&D program. Justifying this optimism, CSL last week won US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) assent for Andembry (garadacimab), a new treatment for the severe swelling condition hereditary angioedema (HAE). In commercial terms, it's the most significant win in years for the $116 billion market cap behemoth. Rare local drug success for rare disease Developed over close to two decades, Andembry is one of only a handful of Australian-developed drugs to be approved by the FDA. It's also the first non-plasma derived monoclonal antibody to be discovered and developed entirely by CSL. Monoclonal antibodies are lab-engineered proteins that bind to a specific target such as a cancer cell or a virus. Because they're not produced from painstakingly collected blood, these remedies have much more attractive margins. Fittingly, CSL's new facility at Broadmeadows in northern Melbourne will make Andembry. Regulators in Europe, the UK, Japan, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and locally already had approved Andembry. But to re-phrase Paul Keating, if you are not approved in the US – the world's biggest reimbursed drug market – you are only camping out. Same but very different Andembry is intended as a powerful prophylactic for HAE, which affects about one in every 50,000 people. The disease can cause fatal swelling throat swelling. Andembry stemmed from an antibody 'library' of potential targets which CSL in licensed from the Nasdaq-listed Dyax Corp (later acquired by Shire Pharmaceuticals). CSL discovered garadacimab on the 'bookshelves', along with some other molecules. From that base, CSL did all the research and clinical development, including a 64-patient global trial dubbed Vanguard. 'We took the lead very early,' Mezzanotte says. 'We bought it all the way from research to product development.' CSL's HAE armamentum consists of the injected Haegarda and the infused Berinert (for use during attacks). Haegarda requires twice-weekly injections, while Andembry is administered monthly via a 'patient friendly' auto injector. Mezzanotte says Andembry is 'completely different' to Haegarda. Haegarda is a plasma-derived version of the C1 esterase inhibitor, which HAE patients lack. With a more 'upstream' action, Andembry targets an associate pathway called factor XIIa. 'Both are effective but effective in different ways,' Mezzanotte says, adding that Andembry is 'darned effective' with low side effects. The Vanguard trial showed Andembry reduced the median number of HAE attacks by more than 99% compared to placebo. Blockbuster potential But won't Andembry simply cannibalise Haegarda (and Berinert) revenue? Haegarda chalked up US$491 million of sales in the 2023-24 year, with Berinert contributing US$242 million. Mezzanotte says patients may prefer C1 inhibitors 'because they may do a little more than necessary'. Haegarda works well for pregnant women and it possibly is better for more severe attacks. 'Scientifically they live well together,' he says. But management hopes Andembry will steal plenty of share from Takeda's Takhzyro, the market-leading HAE drug turning over US$3 billion but also requiring twice-weekly injections. Bell Potter analyst Thomas Wakim dubs Andembry 'CSL's most commercially attractive near-term new product.' His peer at Wilsons, Dr Shane Storey estimates Andembry will achieve peak annual sales of US$600 million within five years. In the pipeline Andembry exemplifies CSL's R&D approach of not straying too far from what it's good at, whilst not being afraid to disrupt its own products. 'I'm a big believer in adjacency – utilising our plasma platform – or sticking to an area we know like HAE and disrupting ourselves,' Mezzanotte says. 'When we get too far away from our base of operations it gets a little tricky for us.' CSL's annual R&D manifesto outlines a dense agenda of advanced and nascent programs across its Behring (core plasma and specialty) and Seqirus (flu vaccine) arms. An adjuvanted trivalent cell-based flu vaccine – which includes three flu strains to be more effective – is the most advanced. The program is in phase III and may not need more data to win approval. CSL is also trialling CSL300 (clazakizumab) for patients on dialysis for end-stage kidney disease (to reduce inflammation and heart attacks). CSL inlicensed clazakizumab from another company that had tried the drug for kidney transplants without success. Vifor? I'll tell you Investors periodically have criticised CSL for its $18 billion, seemingly left-field acquisition of the Swiss kidney health and iron deficiency group, Vifor. One of CSL's stated reasons for the purchase was to expand its R&D pipeline. 'Vifor gave us an insight into kidney disease, which allowed us to use a drug we had ,' Mezzanotte says. 'It helps us to be efficient with a great chance of success.' CSL's global head of research and development Bill Mezzanotte. Pic: supplied Checking out of Heartbreak Hotel In February last year CSL experienced heartbreak – literally and figuratively – with the failure of its drug program, CSL-112, to prevent secondary heart attacks via cholesterol-reducing mechanisms. The company's 18,000 patient phase III trial failed the primary endpoint. The therapy showed the desired activity, but just not enough. Mezzanotte says the candidate had passed futility analysis, which – as the name suggests – appraises whether continuing a program makes sense. Mezzanotte says CSL took the conscious risk of eschewing a smaller intermediary trial. 'It was a particularly tough choice, a smaller trial would only have led to the bigger trial,' he says. 'We decided the most cost efficient was to go straight to the big trial but it was a risky approach and we failed.' He says the lesson of such setbacks is to 'fail well'. CSL-112 has gone back to the labs for researchers to have another look-see – but it won't be subject to another big-ticket trial. AI speeds up the 'unsexy' drudge work Mezzanotte says while AI is still immature, it could expedite early-stage drug discovery by enabling programs to skip early-stage animal modelling and to go directly to human studies. 'In theory it should improve speed and the probability of success, but we are in the infancy of using that,' he says. 'Automation has improved our productivity, but I'm hoping AI can bridge the gap with all the big laboratory work we can't afford to do. 'We haven't seen the tangible benefit yet, but we see the promise of it.' He says while AI advocates focus on the 'sexy' research side, the technology is helpful for prosaic tasks such as preparing regulatory and safety reports. 'We create a lot of documents in R&D,' Mezzanotte says. 'We used to send it by trailer, now we email it.' Getting bang for 2.3 billion bucks CSL targets an R&D spend of 10-11% revenue, equating to the $2.3 billion at present. While this sounds capacious, rivals are spending up to US$5 billion annually. Given that, the company needs to glean maximum efficiencies from its global complement of 2000 R&D staff, about one-third of which are in Australia. 'We pick and choose carefully,' Mezzanotte says. 'We can't build huge research palaces and we try keep lean and use partners whenever we can to extend our reach.' Having held senior roles at Boehringer Ingelheim and Astrazeneca, Mezzanotte says commerciality should not be a 'four letter word' in R&D. 'We look for areas of unmet need and rational targets to work on,' he says. 'There is plenty of commercial input early on, but the first few years of Andembry all about the science.' Mezzanotte says through 'great successes and some disappointments', investors have long supported CSL's R&D endeavours. 'I hope shows them the power of R&D and what we can do at CSL.'
