DR JOSHUA BURNS

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2009 Fulbright Postdoctoral Scholarship

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“Most sufferers of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease are afflicted by lifelong disability, many are unable to work, and require high levels of family, societal and medical care. Currently in Australia, there is not enough work being done in the area to ensure translation of innovative basic research into improved patient outcomes.”

Dr Joshua Burns, an NHMRC Australian Clinical Research Fellow at the Institute for Neuromuscular Research at The Children's Hospital at Westmead, will spend three months at Wayne State University School of Medicine thanks to a 2009 Fulbright Postdoctoral Scholarship.

Joshua will work with the Neurology/Molecular Medicine and Genetics Department at the university to undertake research on Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT). CMT is the most common genetic nerve disease and it causes progressive muscle weakness, painful foot deformities and walking difficulty. He will use his Fulbright Postdoctoral Scholarship to initiate long-term collaboration between a unique group of experts who are world leaders in many aspects of clinical and laboratory CMT research.

“Between the Institute for Neuromuscular Research and the Neurology/Molecular Medicine and Genetics Department at Wayne State University, we care for thousands of children and adults with CMT. We are dedicated to improving diagnosis, evaluating state-of-the-art therapies and establishing an internationally recognised research program to achieve coordinated excellence of care throughout Australia and the US,” Joshua said.

“The Fulbright Scholarship will facilitate my dedication to a career in clinical research focussing on alleviating the burden of CMT, both on the patient and society.”

Joshua has a Bachelor of Applied Science (Podiatry) with First Class Honours from the University of Western Sydney and a PhD in Physiotherapy from The University of Sydney. He has won several awards including the University Medal for the highest Honours research result, the Young Tall Poppy Science Award for outstanding achievement in Podiatry and Paediatric Neurology, an NHMRC Australian Clinical Research Postdoctoral Fellowship and the Novel award for excellence in biomechanical foot pressure research.