Mission 02 Who we are, What we do 03 Reports Chairman's Report 04 Executive Director's Report 06 Garvan Research Foundation Chairman's Report 08 Professor John Mattick 10 Garvan at a Glance Organisation Chart 13 Patent Portfolio by Category 14 Scientific Publications 14 Philanthropic Support 14 Staff Profile 15 Operating Income 15 Peer Reviewed Grant Income 15 Research Collaborations 17 Research Highlights 19 Research Programs & Initiatives Cancer Program 20 The Kinghorn Cancer Centre 28 Diabetes & Obesity Program 30 Diabetes Vaccine Development Centre 36 Immunology Program 38 Neuroscience Program 44 Professor Peter Croucher 50 Osteoporosis & Bone Biology 52 Core Research Facilities 57 Management Highlights 58 Business Development 59 Garvan Community Life Governors 61 Partners for the Future 61 Volunteers 62 Garvan Supporters 62 Garvan Gala Supporters 65 Bequests 65 Governance Garvan Institute 67 Garvan Research Foundation 70 Publications 73 Financial Highlights Income Statement 85 Balance Sheet 86 Garvan Research Foundation Statement of Funds 87 Garvan's mission is to make significant contributions to medical research that will change the directions of science and medicine and have major impacts on human health. Garvan strives to enhance and develop research programs that combine fundamental science with strong clinical interactions. The Garvan Institute of Medical Research Significant breakthroughs have been is a world leader in its field, pioneering achieved by Garvan scientists in the study into some of the most widespread understanding and treatment of diseases diseases affecting our community today. such as: Research at Garvan is focused upon understanding the role of genes in health _ Cancer and disease as the basis for developing _ Diabetes and obesity future cures. _ Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease _ Osteoporosis _ Arthritis and asthma _ Pituitary disorders Garvan's ultimate goal is prevention and cure of these major diseases. 2011 2011 was a milestone year for Garvan, with the retirement of Professor John Shine after 21 years as Executive Director and announcement of his successor, internationally acclaimed molecular geneticist, Professor John Mattick. I am also very pleased to report that Garvan continued its excellent record of research success in 2011, as measured by grants, publication impacts, national and international awards, and for that we are justly proud of our faculty and staff. Construction of The Kinghorn Cancer Centre, our exciting joint venture with St Vincent's Hospital, is on track for formal completion mid 2012. It promises to make a major contribution to Garvan's vision of translational research and delivery of personalised health care based on detailed knowledge of individual patient genetic makeup. Financial Performance Garvan's operating income grew to approximately $51m in 2011 from $41m the previous year. Philanthropic support through the Garvan Research Foundation, essential for providing critical equipment and facilitating new initiatives, continued to be strong, with over $6.1m in general and specific grants contributed to research programs and almost $3.6m into the long term endowment fund of the Institute. Our People Garvan has been very well served for many years by the commitment and counsel of an outstanding board of directors. During 2011, our long serving Treasurer, Martin Hoffman, retired from the Board, as did Nicholas Curtis AM, past Chairman of St Vincent's Hospital. I would like to record the Board's appreciation for the outstanding contributions made by Martin and Nick. Warren Scott was appointed as the incoming Treasurer and Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee. We welcomed two new Board members — Daniel Petre AO and Annette Pantle, both of whom will bring important new skills and experience to our endeavours. Many Garvan researchers were distinguished with prizes and awards during 2011, which are listed under each research program. Among these, the Cancer Institute NSW presented the 2011 Premier's Fellow of the Year Award to Dr Alex Swarbrick and the 2011 Premier's Scholar of the Year Award to Dr David Chang. Of special note was the award to Professor John Shine of the inaugural Peter Wills Medal, created by Research Australia “to recognise an outstanding contribution to building Australia's national and international reputation in the realm of health and medical research”. Given Peter Wills' contributions to Australian medical research, including his role as Garvan Chairman, it was particularly satisfying that Professor Shine was selected as the inaugural recipient. Medical Research Reviews Recognising the importance of health and medical research to a cost effective and world leading health care system, during 2011 both Federal and NSW State governments initiated reviews to examine the structure and funding of medical research. These reviews (on both of which Garvan is represented) provide an important opportunity to address the ever-increasing equipment, resourcing and infrastructure costs that come with the exciting rate of change and amazing possibilities presented by today's medical research. 04 CHAIRMAN’S REPORT Garvan, along with the rest of the medical research sector has been invited to make submissions to these important reviews. Garvan has and will continue to make a strong case for the expansion of the National Health and Medical Research Council funding program and for improvement in State Government support for research. Looking Ahead There will be many challenges and exciting opportunities in the year ahead as Garvan continues to grow and as our commitment to translate our research discoveries into meaningful improvements in health care is significantly enhanced with completion of The Kinghorn Cancer Centre. Our ability to integrate teaching, research and clinical translation on our expanding Darlinghurst campus has never been stronger, and the links with and support from our key stakeholders, St Vincents and Mater Health and University of NSW, will be increasingly important to our ambitions. With additional government support, as well as community engagement, the Board is confident that Garvan will continue to have a major impact on human health, particularly as we focus on integration with health care delivery. At last year's AGM I spoke of the extraordinary contribution made by Professor Shine to medical research worldwide. On behalf of our faculty and staff, our stakeholders and supporters, I thanked John for his outstanding leadership of the Garvan over the last 21 years. I wish to repeat my appreciation and thanks to John for agreeing to stay at the helm right through 2011 as we completed our worldwide search for his successor. And this year I enthusiastically welcome Professor John Mattick to his first AGM as Director of the Garvan. Professor Mattick takes over the reins at a most exciting time for the organisation, as well as for medical research. I know that his exceptional research record and interests, combined with his experience and passion, will accelerate Garvan's delivery of mission… to significantly improve the health care and quality of life for all. Bill Ferris AC Chairman Garvan Institute of Medical Research CHAIRMAN’S REPORT 05 An exciting new chapter begins for Garvan with the appointment of the next Director, Professor John Mattick, following an extensive international search. John has pioneered the area of gene structure and regulation, being among the first to demonstrate that the so called “junk” regions of our DNA in fact encode important small RNA genes critical for the ordered regulation of gene expression. This has critical importance for a wide range of life processes — from balanced brain function to orderly development from a fertilised egg to a complex adult. Professor Mattick's appointment will also strengthen the Institute's commitment to translational research initiatives. John's leadership in this area will ensure that the latest breakthroughs in gene analyses are rapidly applied to development of new specific individualised treatments. 2011 was also another very productive year for Garvan in terms of significant research findings, success in obtaining competitive grants and growth in the number of papers accepted for publication in prestigious international journals. We published over 200 peer reviewed research papers, the top 80% in journals with an average impact factor >8. This remains above internationally accepted benchmark levels and is testament to the excellence and commitment of our researchers. I encourage everyone interested in Garvan's research and related activities to view the excellent news summaries which are regularly updated on our website www.garvan.org.au. Research publication productivity was matched by success in applications for competitive grants. Overall peer reviewed grant funding was approximately $29.5m, including $18.5m from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). Our Cancer, Immunology and Diabetes and Obesity Programs all have successful NHMRC program grants, which provide the capacity for longer term strategic planning of our research effort. Of particular note this year was the announcement that Dr Greg Neely's project grant application ranked amongst the top in the country and received the 2011 NHMRC Marshall and Warren Award for most potentially transformative research. This outcome is a strong endorsement of our commitment to support young faculty members, often working on very ambitious and novel projects. Osteoporosis and Bone Research The Osteoporosis