Threat of Antibiotic Resistance Worse for Māori, Says Researcher
A University of Otago PhD student is doing his bit to curb antibiotic resistance and subsequently reduce the threat of
infectious disease among Māori communities.
Howard Maxwell has just been awarded a Māori Health Research PhD Scholarship as part of the Health Research Council’s
2018 career development awards.
His research is centred around microbiology and his passion lies in limiting and reducing the spread of antibiotic
resistance – one of the fastest growing health crises in the world.
“Resistance mechanisms have been observed for nearly every antibiotic in our arsenal,” says Maxwell, who adds “we are
rapidly approaching a post-antibiotic era where no treatment will exist against seemingly insignificant infections”.
Māori, he says, will be particularly vulnerable if this happens, due to both increased susceptibility to infectious
organisms and reliance on antibiotics.
The Ministry of Health has acknowledged that Māori are disproportionately burdened by infectious diseases and that
antibiotics are dispensed to a higher proportion ofMāori than non-Māori, says Maxwell.
“Preventing the spread of antibiotic resistance will reduce the threat of infectious disease in Māori and result in
better health outcomes,” he says.
Maxwell plans to examine the communication processes within bacteria that control the spread of antibiotic resistance
genes. He’s particularly interested in quorum sensing (a mechanism by which bacteria communicate) and its relationship
to CRISPR-Cas systems (a way in which bacteria arm themselves against invading genetic material).
Before anyone can begin to manipulate these systems, he says, it’s important to understand how their components
coordinate and communicate with one another.
It’s a task that’s keeping researchers around the globe busy, and Maxwell is thrilled to be joining their ranks.
“CRISPR-Cas is a rapidly developing field and various international groups and companies are already researching its
potential for curing genetic disorders,” he says.
Maxwell was first introduced into the research environment last summer, where he conducted a short research project
within the Fineran Laboratory at the University of Otago. The $129,900 grant from the HRC will help him build on that
work and build his research expertise.
He says his motivation comes partly from being born and raised in the small town of Opotiki in the eastern Bay of
Plenty, where his predominantly Māori community is over-represented in poverty and poor health.
He also feels that addressing health issues for Māori requires a diverse approach that not only incorporates public
health initiatives, but is partnered by the investigation of fundamental biology.
“I’m both curious and excited in the way that organisms function and interact with each other, people and the
environment. This grant is giving me the opportunity to pursue that passion.
“It’s also a good thing for my community – I don’t think many people from Opotiki get this sort of opportunity – I’d
like to be one of many to pursue postgraduate education and academia as a way to benefit our community,” he says.
The HRC’s senior manager of Māori Health Research Investment, Stacey Pene, says it’s encouraging to see young
researchers driven by the need to benefit their communities and all New Zealanders, especially in areas of rising
urgency such as antibiotic resistance.
Howard Maxwell’s grant is one of 17 Māori career development awards announced in the HRC’s latest funding round. See
below for the full list of recipients – lay summaries will be available on the HRC website on Tuesday 31st October:
Visit www.hrc.govt.nz/funding-opportunities/recipients and filter for ‘Maori Health Research’ and ‘2018’.
2018 HRC Maori health research career development awards
Māori Health Research Postdoctoral Fellowship
Dr Belinda Borell, Massey University (Hohua Tutengaehe fellowship)
Privilege and health inequity: the role for Mātauranga Māori
36 months, $354,204
Māori Health Research PhD Scholarship
Ms Hannah Burgess, University of Auckland
Whānau consent: an expression of indigenous rights
Pania Bridge-Comer, University of Auckland
Effects of artificial sweetener in the maternal diet on offspring fertility
36 months, $122,000
Miss Blaise Forrester-Gauntlett, University of Waikato
Using pluripotent stem cells to determine the cellular basis of hearing loss
21 months, $79,303
Dr Wiremu MacFater, University of Auckland
Perioperative local anaesthetic
24 months, $85,830
Mr Howard Maxwell, University of Otago, Dunedin
Does inhibition of quorum sensing increase antibiotic resistance spread?
36 months, $129,900
Māori Health Research Masters Scholarship
Mrs Nari Hann, Massey University
The foster caregiving relationship with newborns who have feeding difficulties
12 months, $25,053
Rangahau Hauora Training Grant
Ms Denise Riini, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology
Improving Papakainga: Linking health, homes, and toiora
6 months, $11,700
Māori Health Research Development Grant
Dr Mera Penehira, University of Auckland
Hinemoana: Our ocean narratives
6 months, $10,000
Dr Armon James Tamatea, University of Waikato
Māori mental health in New Zealand prisons
6 months, $10,000
Māori Health Research Knowledge Translation Grant
Associate Professor Jonathan Koea, Waitemata District Health Board
Developing a collaboration between rongoā Māori and western medicine
6 months, $5,000
Māori Health Research Summer Studentship
Shania Dudson-Cooney, Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi
Māori mental health
10 weeks, $5,000
Mrs Emma Espiner, Hāpai Te Hauora
FASD and the media: an analysis of health promotion messages
10 weeks, $5,000
Mr Tobias Hoeta, University of Otago, Dunedin
Evidence for pain assessment tools sensitive for Māori – a systematic review
10 weeks, $5,000
Ms Tiana Mihaere, University of Otago, Dunedin
Ethnic discrimination prevalence and health associations in NZ youth
Miss Frances Toohey, University of Auckland
Literature review for Pae Herenga study
10 weeks, $5,000
Mr Jordan Tewhaiti-Smith, University of Otago, Wellington
Maximising Māori participation for measuring unmet need in secondary healthcare
10 weeks, $5,000
ENDS