Flinders Awarded MRFF Funds To Help Tackle Long-COVID
While the pandemic may seem a distant memory for some, two Flinders University projects will now look to tackle the ongoing impacts of Long COVID, thanks to over $3 million in recently announced funding from the federal government's Medical Research Future Fund.
Known medically as Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC), the World Health Organization estimates 6% of people who contract the virus will go on to develop Long COVID, with Australia's health and aged care settings still feeling the strain years on.
Led by Professor Kate Laver in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, one project has received $2,106,718.10 to trial a flexible and effective model of care for frail older Australians likely to experience Long COVID.
"Our aged care sector was greatly impacted by COVID-19, and its effects are still being felt to this day," says Professor Laver.
"Studies show that frail older people take longer to recover from COVID-19 than the general population and are at higher risk of developing Long Covid, impacting their independence and reduced quality of life.
"By partnering directly with aged care organisations, our study will assess a scalable PASC model of care by upskilling the workforce alongside evaluating the program's effectiveness, adaptation and sustainability, while ultimately seeking to improve the health outcomes of older Australians."
The second project, led by Matthew Flinders Professor of Systems Immunology David Lynn in the College of Medicine and Public Health, has received $995,343.92 to better understand what causes Long COVID.
"PASC impacts up to 65 million people globally, leading to fatigue, illness, and cognitive impairment, so there is an urgent need to better understand what causes it so we can develop improved treatments," says Professor Lynn, Director of the Computational and Systems Biology Program at SAHMRI and Scientific Director of the SA Genomics Centre.
"While a number of studies have identified a wide range of immunological and neurological changes associated with PASC, we are still no closer to understanding which of those are what's causing Long COVID.
"Recent research involving metformin, a safe and widely administered drug for type 2 diabetes, has shown it can significantly reduce the risk of developing Long COVID. Our project will look to see what changes metformin can induce in Long COVID patients, helping us to further understand its underlying cause."
The projects have been funded under the MRFF's Emerging Priorities and Consumer Driven Research Initiative - 2024 Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 Grant Opportunity.
https://news.flinders.edu.au/blog/2026/02/02/flinders-awarded-mrff-funds-to-help-tackle-long-covid/
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