Mercia Barnes Trust research grants
Important update
The Mercia Barnes Trust (MBT) is joining the RANZCOG Women’s Health Foundation and will become the Mercia Barnes Research Grant.
We’re currently working on formally transitioning Mercia Barnes Research Grants into the Foundation frameworks; however, this process takes time to set-up properly.
2024 application round deferred
As a result, we’ve made the difficult decision to defer the application round for the year.
Rest assured that in late 2024 – early 2025, applications will open for Mercia Barnes Research Grants to continue to provide support and funding to Aotearoa-based researchers in the field of O&G.
What’s changing?
From a practical perspective, very little will change. The application process will still be coordinated by the RANZCOG Aotearoa Office, and applications assessed by Aotearoa-based Fellows with research experience. Funding, eligibility criteria, and the aim and purposes of the grant will all remain largely the same.
Key changes
A more streamlined application process through the RANZCOG website
Branding and language changes to align to the RANZCOG Women’s Health Foundation
A RANZCOG Aotearoa New Zealand Grants Committee will be established to assess applications and report to the Women’s Health Foundation
Thank you!
A big thanks to our MBT Trustees (both current and past) and regular donors for their long-standing support and commitment to O&G research in Aotearoa.
About the grants
The Mercia Barnes Research Grant is named in memory of Dr Mercia Barnes, and aims to assist and promote research in the area of women’s and reproductive health.
The Mercia Barnes Research Grant specifically supports Aotearoa New Zealand research with a focus on supporting emerging and early career researchers.
Eligibility
Aotearoa New Zealand based researchers in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology and reproductive health can apply for this grant. You must have support of a host research institution.
Preference is given to young and/or early career researchers or studies that actively support the development of junior researchers.
Number of grants
The number of Mercia Barnes Research Grants available each year will vary dependent on the amount of available funding. Only one grant will be issued per applicant and/or research project.
Objectives and outcomes
The Trust encourages the study and advancement of the science and practice of obstetrics and gynaecology, and the study and teaching of the scientific aspects of human reproduction. Grants are intended to “promote knowledge in obstetrics and gynaecology, and further public education and promote the health and welfare of women and children.”
As well as tabling a report at each AGM of the Trust, recipients are encouraged to publish as well as share research findings with colleagues in one of the following ways:
Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) presentation
Presentations to other appropriate forums
Provide a summary in the College’s publications / member newsletters
Apply
The 2024 funding round has been deferred while processes are being updated. We aim to open applications for 2025 by December 2024.
When the 2025 application round opens, the application form link will be made available on this page.
For any queries, please email ranzcog@ranzcog.org.nz.
Funded research
Mercia Barnes Research Grants have contributed to a wide range of research projects across Aotearoa New Zealand. Areas of research undertaken include preterm delivery, hysterectomy, vulval cancer, premature ovarian failure, polycystic ovarian syndrome, endometriosis, dysmenorrhoea, small for gestational age babies, HPV testing, IVF and breastfeeding, maternal sleep practices and risk of late stillbirth, perinatal mortality, obstetrics — intrapartum care, cervical dysplasia, and biomedical science.
Grant recipients in 2023
| Recipient | Details | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Jordon Wimsett | The BEAD Feasibility Study: Baby Head Elevation device at full dilatation caesarean section | $35,000 |
| Dr Juliet Whittaker | Quality indicators for colposcopy services | $10,112 |
| Ms Hadassah Patchigalla | Understanding the Role of Extracellular Vesicles in Endometriosis | $10,000 |
| Dr Keryn Harlow | The change in anti-Müllerian hormone (ovarian reserve) associated with surgical excision vs conservative management of endometrioma: A longitudinal cohort study | $30,000 |
Completed research
Please click the links below to explore research that has been completed with funding support from the Mercia Barnes Trust.
Risk factors for stillbirth
RANZCOG trainee Dr Raille Thompson was awarded a Mercia Barnes Trust grant in 2017 for her research with Dr Ngaire Anderson of the University of Auckland on: Risk Factors for Late Preterm and Term Stillbirth: A Secondary Analysis of an Individual Participant Data Meta-analysis.
Research summary
Stillbirth is a devastating complication of pregnancy for all involved. Our research investigated novel risk factors for stillbirth within an Individual Participant Data (IPD) meta-analysis of five international case-control studies of stillbirth. This analysis is the first to describe the similarities of risk factors for both late preterm (> 28 weeks’ gestation) and term (≥ 37 weeks’ gestation) stillbirth. We have shown that a single risk-prediction model for all late stillbirths is feasible. The single multivariable model confirmed established demographic risk factors, but additionally showed that fetal movement changes were independent predictors for both increased (decreased frequency) and reduced (hiccups, increasing strength, frequency or vigorous fetal movements) chance of stillbirth. Poor antenatal care utilisation increased risk while more-than-adequate care was protective. While our model has an area-under-the-curve of 0.84, further analysis is required prior to incorporation into a formal risk-prediction model for stillbirth.
Clinical practice guidelines for preterm birth
RANZCOG trainee Dr Briar Hunter was awarded a Mercia Barnes Trust grant in 2021 to undertake a Masters project through The Liggins Institute at the University of Auckland. The project was: A review of clinical practice guidelines relating to preterm birth currently in use in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Research summary
I have undertaken this Masters project within a wider research team and supported by a large multidisciplinary stakeholder group. We have systematically identified and assessed clinical practice guidelines relevant to preterm birth in Aotearoa and now have a full understanding of the quality and scope of guidelines currently in use and available for use.
Some key findings were that only 67 of 235 guidelines met criteria to be scored as high-quality. Guidelines that are available but not currently in use by District Health Boards (DHBs) had higher median scores in every quality domain than guidelines currently in use by DHBs. Guidelines in use by DHBs with secondary maternity and neonatal services had lower median scores than guidelines in use by DHBs with tertiary maternity and neonatal services.
Identified high-quality guidelines will inform the Taonga Tuku Iho National Best Practice Guide for Preterm Birth Care, which is being developed by the members of the Carosika Collaborative. This Guide will focus on equity, aiming to achieve the same system privileges for all.
The experience of working and being supported by an established research team has been rewarding and highly educational. I have enjoyed the experience so much I have decided to transition to a three-year PhD qualification. I have recently been successful in gaining a Health Research Council Clinical Research Training Fellowship to continue research in this area.
Support from the Mercia Barnes Trust has enabled me to experience immersion into research, forming a foundation for my planned career as a clinical academic in obstetrics and gynaecology.
Harnessing the potential of unique placental genes
Dr Chiemi Lynch-Sutherland was awarded a grant in 2022 for research on: Insights into invasion: harnessing the potential of unique placental genes.
Research summary
Pre-eclampsia (PE) is a dangerous pregnancy condition that remains hard to diagnose and treat. Currently, we lack an understanding of the molecular mechanisms that underlie this common placental pathology. Transposable elements (TE) are repetitive DNA sequences that are known to play an important role in placental development; however, few studies have explored whether TE dysregulation may contribute to placental pathologies such as PE.
Our research funded by the Mercia Barnes Trust has identified TE-derived genes and regulatory elements that are dysregulated in five PE RNA-Seq datasets. We validated expression of these TE-derived genes using two targeted gene expression assays (NanoString and RT-qPCR). Validation was poor between the RNA-Seq datasets and our cohort of PE and healthy control placental samples. We also analysed DNA methylation of these TE-derived genes in PE and control term placenta. Methylation changes were not consistently reflective of the expression changes observed. This seems to be a consistent issue when validating potential biomarkers for PE, highlighting the complexity of this disease. Our work did identify a number of intergenic TEs that were dysregulated in PE, which we expect may be regulatory elements. We plan to validate these experimentally to assess their potential role in PE. We ultimately seek to harness the untapped potential of TEs as important regulators of placental function and dysfunction.
I would like to thank the Mercia Barnes Trust for funding this work. It has been extremely beneficial for my career development and I have learnt a lot throughout the course of this project.
Diagnostic potential of extracellular vesicles from cervical mucus for endometriosis
Dr Claire Henry was awarded a $35,000 grant in 2022 for her research on “Diagnostic potential of extracellular vesicles from cervical mucus for endometriosis”.
Research summary
Globally, but even more so in Aotearoa, endometriosis is underfunded and under researched. Demand for specialist services is above current capacity to see patients, and government investment into endometriosis has been ‘suboptimal’ (Newshub 2020). It is estimated that one in ten women suffer from endometriosis; however, there is a complete lack of epidemiological data on prevalence and outcomes in Aotearoa. A recent large longitudinal Australian study estimated 11.4% of women may have endometriosis, with 6% having surgically proven disease. Endometriosis requires invasive surgery for diagnosis and treatment, the benefits of which are debated. Therefore, it is essential that novel non-invasive diagnostic tools are identified.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are circulating lipid bound packages containing proteins and RNA species secreted by cells that reflect the tissue of origin. EVs hold potential to be used as biomarkers for endometriosis, for diagnostic or prognostic value in addition to providing new information about the pathology of the condition.
Cervical mucus sampled from a smear is a novel diagnostic tool which has yet to be considered in the context of any benign gynaecological conditions. Therefore, we are the first to investigate the use of EVs from cervical mucus as a way to diagnose, characterise and monitor gynaecological conditions, starting with endometriosis.
We have developed and optimised technical methodology for the isolation of EVs from cervical and vaginal mucus. We have used these methods to investigate the content of EVs, looking at micro RNA and protein molecules. We have conducted in depth proteomic analysis of cervical and vaginal mucus, identifying candidate markers for validation. This project is exciting and novel; we have the opportunity to build upon the self test HPV swab programme, improving equity in healthcare access. Our data may also help us to better understand the molecular mechanisms of endometriosis pathology. We plan to continue this work through to an analytical validation step, then a large scale clinical validation across multiple nationwide patient cohorts.
Really appreciate the support from MBT and RANZCOG – super excited by the progress we’ve made and building our work into a clinical trial! And it’s opened up a whole lot of doors in terms of research projects, national and international collaborations.
About Dr Mercia Barnes and the Trust
The Mercia Barnes Research Grant is named in memory of Dr Mercia Barnes.
Mercia was born in Raetihi. An Otago graduate, she worked in a number of New Zealand hospitals before beginning her O&G training at St Helen’s in Christchurch. She was one of the first New Zealand women to train in obstetrics and gynaecology. She worked as a specialist at Waikato Hospital and was secretary of the NZ Council of RCOG, then the first secretary of the local college when it was formed in 1982. In 1990 she was elected President of the RNZCOG, a position she held until 1994.
Sadly, she died suddenly a few weeks after completing her term of office. The Mercia Barnes Trust was formed in 1994 to recognise her contribution to the specialty and to promote research in women’s health.
In 2024 the Trust transitioned into the RANZCOG Women’s Health Foundation and was rebranded the Mercia Barnes Research Grant.
Contact
For more information, please contact the Aotearoa New Zealand office:
Email: ranzcog@ranzcog.org.nz
Phone: +64 4 472 4608