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Dr Gordon’s research is focused on the formation and maintenance of the blood and lymphatic vascular systems. Vessels form complex branched networks that supply oxygen and nutrients to all body tissues. The signals controlling blood vessel expansion, identity and migration are all downstream of a single, common complex at the cell surface, yet exactly how this diverse range of functions is differentially regulated, depending on the physiological need, remains unknown.

The specific focus of Dr Gordon’s research is to determine the precise molecular signals that control cell adhesion within the vessel wall the surrounding environment. If the signals controlling cell adhesion become deregulated, normal vessel growth and function is lost. This contributes to the progression of a wide range of human diseases, including cancer growth and metastasis, diabetic eye disease and stroke. Dr Gordon aims to use novel biological models, biochemical assays and imaging techniques to better understand vessel biology, which will enable improved treatment of disease and aid in the development of vascularised, bioengineered organs.

Dr Gordon received her Bachelor of Science (2005) and PhD (2011) from The University of Adelaide, after which she undertook six years of postdoctoral studies at Yale University in the USA and Uppsala University in Sweden. With the support of an ARC DECRA Fellowship, Dr Gordon relocated to IMB in 2017 to establish her independent research career as an IMB Fellow. In 2019, she was appointed as Group Leader of the Vessel Dynamics Laboratory.

Dr. Wenyi Gu’s early education was conducted in China which include his undergraduate and master’s degrees in veterinary medicine. In 1996, he migrated to Australia and pursued his PhD study in biochemistry & molecular biology at the Australian National University (ANU). After a short period of work at John Curtin Medical School ANU as a junior scientist, he moved to Brisbane in 2001 for his post-doc at the University of Queensland and currently a post-doctoral research fellow at AIBN. He held a Peter Doherty Fellowship (2006-2009) and was further supported by NHMRC to spend 7 months at Harvard University as a visiting fellow in 2008. Since his post-doctoral research he has been working in the area of using RNAi to treat viral diseases and cancers. He also has a strong background in immunology and vaccine development.

I lead a research program with extensive expertise in immunology, particularly in natural killer (NK) cells, focused on developing innovative approaches for treating hard-to-cure diseases like metastatic cancers. Our mission is to improve patient outcomes and extend lives. My research group is based at the Translational Research Institute (TRI).

My dedication to my field has been recognized through numerous peer-reviwed grants as sole-CI or CIA/Principal Investigator, including a NHMRC ECF Peter Doherty Fellowship, an NHMRC Project Grant, an US DoD, a MRFF EMCR among others. Since 2009, I've amassed an impressive portfolio of 96 publications in renowned journals like Blood, Cell Death Dis, JEM, PNAS, Nat Comms, and Nat Immunol with an H-index = 40. My body of work and contributions have been acknowledged with awards such as the 2019 Researcher of the Year by CCA, 2020 QLD Young Tall Poppy Science, 2020 UQ Frazer Institute's Rising Star, 2022 Frazer Institute's Mentor of the Year, 2023 Translational Research Institute - Connecting with the Clinic among others. Recognized as an international leader in my field, I've been instrumental in identifying novel regulators of our immune functions, and developing NK cell-based immunotherapies.

At present, I am a Group Leader / Principal Research Fellow & Associate Professor with the University of Queensland's Frazer Institute. Here, I lead a high-performing research team with a keen focus on developing and innovating immunotherapy approaches for a spectrum of diseases.

I am an academic and consultant working in global health with a focus on health technology assessment (HTA), health systems and services research, and the use of medicines in populations. I have a particular interest in the use of data and research for evidence-informed decision making and implementation science in the context of low and middle income countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. I have worked on international health projects in Indonesia and am currently working on several projects in HTA and medicines use in Ghana and sub-Saharan Africa. I work with an extensive network of clinicians and health professionals to investigate the use of medicines and adverse effects in general practice, cancer, psychiatry, neurology, and internal medicine. I have honorary or visiting appointments at the University of Queensland (UQ, Brisbane, Australia), Imperial College London (UK, International Decision Support Initiative) and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana). I have a BSc(Hons) and MPH from UQ and a PhD from Monash University. I have lived or worked in Australia (Brisbane, Melbourne), Canada (Toronto), Indonesia (Yogyakarta), UK (London), and Ghana (Accra, Kumasi). I worked as a consultant in HTA in Australia for many years evaluating submissions to subsidise medicines on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). I am an experienced teacher having coordinated courses, lectured, and tutored in undergraduate and postgraduate programs. I was a Foundation Coordinator in the UQ Master of Pharmaceutical Industry Practice (from 2019). I am an advisor on diverse PhD and student research projects.

Professor Janda is a NHMRC Leadership Fellow (2025-29), and serves UQ as the Director, Centre for Health Services Research, and Professor in Behavioural Science at the Faculty of Faculty of Health, Medicine & Behavioural Sciences.Professor Janda leads the NHMRC Centre for Reserch Excellence in Skin Imaging and Precision Diagnosis (2021-2025) and the NHMRC funded Synergy Roadmap Towards Melanoma Screening (2022-2026). She trained as a health psychologist and is a behavioural scientist with a research background in cancer prevention and quality of life research. Prof Janda has strong clinical collaborations, and a passion for consumer-centered digital interventions that make self-management of health-related issues easier for people. Her work focuses on applied health and clinical research problems, making a difference to cancer prevention, early detection and treatment outcomes.

Previousely, until 2017, she led the Health Determinants and Health Systems Theme at The Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI), Queensland University of Technology (QUT). Before her NHMRC Leadership Fellowship, research was funded through an NHMRC Translating Research into Precatice Fewllowhip (2018-2020), NHMRC Career Development Fellowship Level II (2013-2017), NHMRC Career development fellowship I (2009-12) and NHMRC early career fellowship (2004-8). She was a research fellow for the Melanoma Screening trial with the Cancer Council Queensland before joining QUT in 2006.

Clara Jiang is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience, the University of Queensland. Clara’s research focuses on using genomic and transcriptomic analysis to investigate the genetic basis of cardiovascular and psychiatric disorders, with a particular focus on female health, as well as using statistical genomic approaches to explore possible opportunities for drug repurposing. Clara graduated from the University of Queensland with Bachelor of Advanced Science (First Class Honours) in 2017, and was awarded the University Medal. Clara was awarded her PhD at the University of Queensland in 2021, where she utilised bioinformatic approaches and molecular experiments to decipher the genetic aetiology of breast cancer, specifically the regulatory role of transposons or ‘jumping genes’ in modulating the transcriptional landscape in the cancer state. Clara is also a UQ Wellness ambassador and an advocate for promoting equity, diversity and inclusion in academia.

Dr Jordan is a medically trained cancer epidemiologist who is currently Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the School of Public Health. Before starting her PhD, she worked in rural and urban general practice for over 10 years and brings that clinical experience to her research. She currently leads projects on ovarian and thyroid cancers, examining aetiology, patterns of care and survival. Her research employs a broad range of methods including individual patient and clinician surveys, molecular epidemiology and pooling of consortia data, but she has particular expertise in large-scale data linkage.

Dr. Vaibhavi Joshi is a postdoctoral research fellow at The University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research. She is part of the Molecular Breast Pathology Lab alongside Prof. Sunil Lakhani, A/Prof Amy McCart Reed, and A/Prof Peter Simpson. Currently, she is working with with A/Prof Peter Simpson to investigate the molecular basis of breast cancer in young women, focusing on identifying novel biomarkers and potential targets to improve outcomes for this high-risk group.

Her research explores the hallmarks of metastasis, including tumor invasion,colonisation, and the tumor microenvironment. Dr. Joshi employs advanced molecular biology techniques to study cancer progression and uncover clinically relevant targets.

Dr. Joshi welcomes students and collaborators interested in cancer biology, metastasis, and innovative therapeutic strategies to join her in exploring cutting-edge projects.

Professor Bradley Kendall is a clinical academic Gastroenterologist and Cancer Epidemiologist. He is currently a Senior Staff Gastroenterologist (Eminent) at the Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane with over 30 years of experience in clinical practice. His clinical training included Fellowships in the United States at the University of Virginia and the University of California – Los Angeles. Mid clinical career he commenced higher degree studies and in 2014 was awarded a PhD in Cancer Epidemiology from The University of Queensland for his work on Barrett’s oesophagus and obesity. He is actively involved in ongoing research into the epidemiology of pre-malignant and malignant gastrointestinal diseases via his clinical appointment and appointment as a Professor in the School of Medicine at The University of Queensland.

Professor Kendall is involved with national and international collaborations, including projects with the US National Cancer Institute supported International Barrett’s and Esophageal Adenocarcinoma Consortium and the NHMRC supported multicentre Australian Progression of Barrett’s Esophagus to Cancer Network. Currently, he is a Chief investigator in a Cancer Australia funded multicentre Australian collaborative study of the impact of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program on colorectal cancer outcomes for people with severe mental illness.

Professor Khosrotehrani is a clinical scientist, dermatologist, interested in skin biology, regenerative medicine and skin cancer. He leads the Experimental Dermatology Group at the University of Queensland Diamantina Institute within the Translational Research Institute in Brisbane, Australia. He is also the deputy director of the Australian Skin and Skin Cancer Research Centre in Brisbane. Dr Khosrotehrani obtained his MD from the Cochin-Port Royal School of Medicine at René Descartes University, Paris, France, where he specialized in Dermatology. He is a former graduate of the Ecole Normale Supérieure and the Institut Pasteur of Paris (Université Paris VI, Pierre et Marie Curie) where he obtained a PhD in Physiology and Physiopathology. He is a fellow of the Australian College of Dermatologists and a practising dermatologist at the Princess Alexandra Hospital, Prince Charles Hospital and the Skin and Cancer Foundation’s Queensland Institute of Dermatology.

During his post-doctoral training at Tufts-New England Medical Center, Boston, USA, Dr. Khosrotehrani helped establish the contribution of fetal stem cells to tissue repair by demonstrating their multipotent capacity with a specific potency towards the endothelial lineage. The originality of this work was acknowledged by the NHMRC through an achievement award (2011) and an NHMRC excellence award (2016). He is currently a fellow of the NHMRC of Australia. The main focus of his laboratory is on regenerative medicine and stem cell biology in particular in injury response in skin wounds and skin cancer and how these responses contribute to cancer initiation and progression. Translating his laboratory findings, Dr Khosrotehrani is leading innovative clinical trials in wound healing, keratinocyte cancers and melanoma.

Associate Professor Srinivas Kondalsamy Chennakesavan is the Head of Research at the University of Queensland’s Rural Clinical School. He also shares an honorary appointment at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. With a background in medicine and public health, his research expertise is in the areas of public health, translational research, rural health and medical epidemiology. He has received competitive grants, $8.1m+ including six major grants from the NHMRC/MRFF and other agencies and actively contributes to NHMRC/MRFF and other international peer review panels for major funding schemes. His expertise in the areas of community-based screening and surveillance programs for chronic diseases in rural and remote Indigenous communities is well known. On invitation, those models of screening and management have been replicated in South Africa and some parts of India (resource-poor and challenging environments). He has unique skills in utilising information technology, clinical medicine and statistics to improve clinical outcomes.

Dr Kevin M. Koo is currently a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator Fellow and Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) Future Leader Fellow at The University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR). Dr Koo was awarded his PhD (Dean’s Award for Outstanding Thesis) from the Australian Institute for Bioengineering & Nanotechnology (AIBN), UQ in 2018. His PhD research was on the molecular analysis of nucleic acid biomarkers in prostate cancer liquid biopsies (with a particular interest in fusion genes), and the development of associated nanotechnology-based biosensors to facilitate precision cancer treatment.

Post-PhD, he begun a productive postdoctoral career with dual industry/academia appointments: as the Head of Assay Development/Lab Director in XING Technologies Pty Ltd (a Brisbane-based biotech start-up) to undertake product development projects for commercialization of disease in vitro diagnostics, and as an Honorary Fellow/Principal Research Scientist at UQCCR to continue his academic research in precision cancer nanodiagnostics. His research skills and experiences are honed through dedicated career time spent in both academic research and regulated industry environments.

Dr Koo's research encompasses multi-disciplinary fields of molecular biomarker and nanobiosensor development, translation, and commercialization for precision disease management applications. Presently, he is working on the design and development of integrated multi-bioanalyte sensing technologies to resolve the various challenges around holistic disease pathway understanding and clinical biomarker profiling.

Dr Koo's research endeavours have been recognized by a Metrohm Australia-New Zealand Young Chemist Award (2018), Springer Thesis Award (2019) and Queensland Young Tall Poppy Science Award (2023).

Associate Professor Arutha Kulasinghe leads the Clinical-oMx Lab at the Frazer Institute, University of Queensland and is the Founding Scientific Director of the Queensland Spatial Biology Centre (QSBC). A/Prof Kulasinghe has pioneered spatial transcriptomics, proteomics and interactomics in the Asia-Pacific region, contributing to world-first studies for lung cancer, head and neck cancer, and organ atlas studies in COVID-19. His research aims to understand the underlying pathobiology by using an integrative multi-omics approach. A/Prof Kulasinghe is supported by the MRFF, NHMRC, US DoD, Cancer Australia, Cure Cancer and numerous hospital and philanthropic organisations.

Researcher Biography

Dr Snehlata Kumari is the head of skin inflammation and immunity laboratory at the Frazer Institute, the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. She is a board member of the Australasian Society for Dermatology Research (ASDR).

After PhD and post-doctoral training in Germany, she is heading her research group with a focus on elucidating molecular mechanisms and underlying signalling pathways regulating inflammation. She has discovered novel mechanisms by which NF-kappaB, TNF, necroptotic and apoptotic signalling pathways control skin homeostasis and inflammation and published in top-tier journals such as Nature and Immunity.

Her scientific contributions received recognition from the global immunology and dermatology scientific communities including the German National Academy of Sciences, German Research Foundation (SFB), European Society for Dermatological Research, and the 2021 Christina Fleishmann Award for the Young Women Investigator from the International Cytokine and Interferon Society, USA

Overall aims and research focus

- Understanding molecular mechanisms of epithelial and immune cell communication in skin homeostasis and immunity.

- Elucidating signalling pathways and cytokines/chemokine interactions to develop novel drug targets and strategies to treat skin diseases such as Psoriasis, Hidradenitis Suppurative, Atopic Dermatitis.

Sunil Lakhani is Executive Director Research and Senior Staff Specialist, Pathology Queensland, and Head of the Molecular Breast Group at the University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR) at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.

Prior to his move to Australia in 2004, he was Professor of Breast Pathology at The Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden Hospital, London, UK

His current research interests include lobular carcinoma and its variants, normal and stem cells, tumours with a basal phenotype, familial breast cancer and biology and therapeutic development for brain and distant metastases.

He was series editor for the 4th Edition WHO Tumour Classification Books and volume editor for the 4th Ed WHO Classification of Tumours of the Breast (2012). He is currently Standing member of the Board for the 5th Ed WHO Tumour Classification Books. He is also on the editorial board of a number of pathology and experimental research journals.

Dr Malcolm Lim is an experienced Cancer Biologist and His research interest spans cancer biology, biomarker discovery and theranostic nanomedicine.

He received his PhD from the University of Queensland (UQ) in 2022. His research, conducted in the labs of Professors Sunil Lakhani and Kristofer Thurecht, involved evaluating the efficacy of using nanomedicine for precision delivery of chemo- or radiotherapeutics against biomarkers in brain metastases. For this work, he developed a clinically-relevant brain metastasis mouse model. His research was recognised with the UQ Dean’s Award for Outstanding Thesis 2022. (DOIs: 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.3c00558, 10.3791/64216)

Currently, Malcolm serves as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the ARC Research Hub for Advanced Manufacture of Targeted Radiopharmaceuticals (AMTAR) and the Thurecht’s Lab at UQ-Centre for Advanced Imaging (CAI) in Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), where he will apply his multidisciplinary expertise to explore radiobiology and radiation-induced biological responses and to advance targeted pharmaceuticals for challenging cancers.

Prior to joining AMTAR, Malcolm served as a Postdoctoral Researcher where he investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying Early Breast Cancers at the Molecular Breast Pathology Lab, UQ-Centre for Clinical Research, under the mentorship of Professors Sunil Lakhani and Peter Simpson. Before his academic career, Malcolm had five years of experience as a histologist, which provided him with a broad skillset in the field.

Dr Malcolm’s research is well-documented in numerous publications in biomedical research journals despite his career stage, reflecting his passion to advancing cancer research.

Over 5 years of experience in translational biomedical research, specialising in monoclonal antibody-based therapies, immuno-oncology, target discovery and theranostics in cancer. My main research focus is on targeted cancer therapies, understanding how target receptor endocytosis affects antibody drug conjugate (ADC) and radioligand therapy delivery, immune-mediated ADCC, and how combination therapies with immune checkpoint inhibitors can potentially improve therapeutic outcomes for patients.