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Professor Jason Acworth is a Paediatric Emergency Physician at the Queensland Children’s Hospital, is the Medical Lead for the hospital’s Rapid Response System and is Director of the STORK Statewide Simulation Service. Jason has a long-held passion for paediatric resuscitation and simulation education and research. His current research work is focussing on paediatric rapid response systems in Australia and New Zealand and components of high quality paediatric CPR. He is the current President of Advanced Paediatric Life Support Australia, is the paediatric representative on the Australian Resuscitation Council and is a member of the ILCOR Paediatric Life Support Task Force. ILCOR is the international peak body in resuscitation and sets the international standards for Resuscitation Councils around the world. Jason was a part of the group that established the PREDICT (Paediatric Research in Emergency Departments International Collaborative) paediatric emergency research network, serving as its inaugural Vice Chair (2004-2008) and later as Chair (2008-2009). He was also Chair of the international Paediatric Emergency Research Network (PERN) in 2010. Jason has co-authored over 60 publications in peer reviewed journals and in the last 10 years and has shared in research funding support of over $5 million.

As a teaching-focused academic, Louise Ainscough is passionate about education research, and how it can be applied to encourage the development of her students as learners, citizens and healthcare professionals. She teaches physiology and histology to a range of healthcare professional students, including occupational therapy, pharmacy, dentistry, physiotherapy, speech pathology, health science and medicine. Louise draws on her expertise in the scholarship of teaching and learning to develop curricula and assessment that is both evidence-based and rigorously evaluated. She has received funding through both UQ New Staff and Early Career research grants for projects in self-regulated learning and the related field of self-efficacy. She is also actively involved in supervising undergraduate research and Honours students, including mentoring these students in educational research methodologies and academic writing. Louise takes immense pleasure in guiding students in their development as learners, both on an individual basis and in large undergraduate classes. Louise is renowned for making learning fun. She takes the fear out of learning science, and encourages students to find their own voice as learners and future healthcare professionals.

Lisa Akison is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Biomedical Sciences (SBMS) at the University of Queensland. She has conducted research using rodent models for over 30 years and has been a reproductive biologist since 2005. She completed her PhD (2013) and early Post-doctoral training at the Robinson Institute, University of Adelaide, where she examined the molecular regulation of ovulation and oviductal function. Following her move to UQ in 2015, her research focussed on the developmental origins of health and disease, where she examined developmental programming of various organs and physiological processes. In particular, she has examined the impact of prenatal alcohol exposure, examining impacts on the embryo, fetus and adult offspring. She is also interested in the role that the placenta plays in mediating these effects.

Lisa received training in systematic review and meta-analysis methodology in 2016 and has since published systematic reviews on diverse topics in child and infant health. She now teaches critical appraisal of clinical studies and systematic review methodology to 3rd year biomedical science students, as well as endocrinology, physiology and histology. She has research interests in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, and is a current member of the Biomedical Education Research Group at SBMS.

Dr. Albornoz is an early career researcher who has training in neuroscience, immunology, and pharmacology. Prior to migrating to Australia, he completed a bachelor's in Biochemistry followed by a master’s degree in Chile, he then gained experience working in Chile as a research assistant in the Millennium Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, focusing on neurodegeneration and the immune response in the context of Multiple Sclerosis. Later, he was awarded a UQ international scholarship to undertake a Ph.D. at the Institute for Molecular Biosciences (IMB), under the supervision of Prof Matt Cooper, his Ph.D. project has assisted in the development of next-generation NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitors, and to validate NLRP3 as a druggable therapeutic target for Parkinson’s disease. He completed his Ph.D. in 2019 and continued his post-doctoral research studies under the supervision of Prof Trent Woodruff. A key focus of his current work is testing novel drugs in preclinical models and understanding the role of the peripheral innate immune response in neurodegenerative diseases including motor neuron disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), Huntington's disease, and Parkinson's disease.

Dr. Yibeltal Assefa Alemu is an Associate Professor of Global Health Systems at the School of Public Health, University of Queensland. His research program focuses on Global Health, Health Systems, and Primary Health Care, with a particular emphasis on advancing Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and Global Health Security (GHS). He coordinates and teaches two flagship courses: Health Systems (postgraduate) and Global Health & Infectious Diseases (undergraduate).

Before joining the University of Queensland in 2016, Dr. Alemu built an extensive career in health policy, program implementation, and disease control at both national and global levels. Since 2007, he has contributed to the design of implementation and treatment guidelines, as well as monitoring and evaluation frameworks for disease control programs (DCPs). He has led national surveys, surveillance initiatives, and program evaluations in Ethiopia and across sub-Saharan Africa, with a particular focus on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and health systems strengthening.

Leadership and Professional Experience

• Deputy Director General, Ethiopian Public Health Institute (2013–2016): Coordinated national surveys, surveillance, and evaluations on health systems, nutrition, and disease control programs; supervised doctoral and master’s students from Ethiopia and Europe; and examined graduate theses.
• Executive Director, International Institute for Primary Health Care (2015–2016): Founded the institute in collaboration with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, developed its organizational structure, and recruited its inaugural staff.
• Director of Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluation, Federal HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office, Ethiopia (2010–2013): Designed and implemented monitoring and evaluation systems for Ethiopia’s multisectoral HIV/AIDS response, and coordinated national strategic and operational plans.
• Director of Medical Services, Federal Ministry of Health, Ethiopia (2008–2010): Led health system reforms, including hospital and primary care restructuring and the establishment of a national emergency medical services program.
• Head of Health Programs Department, Federal HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office (2006–2008): Directed the health sector response to HIV/AIDS and other STIs, developing national guidelines, training manuals, and mentorship programs.
• Medical Director, Humera District Hospital, Ethiopia (2002–2005): Oversaw hospital operations, service delivery, and health outcomes.
• General Medical Practitioner, Humera District Hospital, Ethiopia (2001–2005): Delivered clinical services across outpatient and inpatient departments.

Research, Publications, and Global Engagement

Dr. Alemu has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications and played a leading role in the development of 10 national guidelines and training manuals on HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. He has also contributed to more than five WHO global guidelines, including the WHO consolidated antiretroviral therapy (ART) guidelines. His work has significantly shaped Ethiopia’s and other resource-limited settings’ responses to HIV/AIDS and is frequently cited in WHO global policy documents.

He has held influential positions on international expert panels, including:

• WHO Consolidated Guidelines for ARV Use (2015)
• Technical Evaluation Reference Group, Global Fund (2012–2015)
• Core Group for WHO Patient Monitoring System for ARV Use (2013–2014)
• WHO Advisory Group on Task Shifting for HIV Treatment (2007)

Through his leadership, teaching, and research, Dr. Alemu continues to shape policy and practice in global health systems, disease control, and primary health care, advancing the global agenda for equitable and sustainable health.

Professor Rachel Allavena is a specialist veterinary pathologist, multidisciplinary researcher and Deputy Head of School, at the School of Veterinary Science, Gatton. She develops cancer treatments called immunotherapies which wake up the immune system so it fights the cancer. Her unique approach uses pet dogs with natural cancer to conduct the research. This helps the dog and it's family, as well as progressing the development of veterinary treatments and simultaneously advancing human medicine. As Deputy Head of School she aims to support staff and students to make UQ one of the top school's in Australasia, supporting both pets and people. Rachel is a multi-award winning teacher, lecturinging in veterinary pathology, toxicology, animal welfare and laboratory animal science. Her specialist expertise is nationally and internationally recognised in forensics, animal cruelty and toxicology where she acts as an expert witness in criminal and civil legal cases. She is a strong advocate for racing animal welfare, investigating racing animal injury and deaths and conducting research on how to improve animal welfare in sport, society and research. Prof Allavena has an active media profile and has been featured in national and international media including The Conversation, ABC national and regional radio and TV news, commercial and community TV and radio. In 2022-2023 she is a 'Flying Scientist' for Queensland's Office of the Chief Scientist. Rachel really enjoys doing presentations to school students and teachers as well as public outreach events to promote science to the general public. She has presented a TEDx talk on how dogs can help us cure cancer.

Prof Allavena has a PhD in Comparative Medicine from Cornell Univesity in New York, and undertook her pathology specialistation at Ontario Veterinary College. She has worked in drug safety research and development in the pharmaceutical industry in preclinical safety testing and discovery research in the United Kingdom. Her research interests are strongly focused on comparative and translational medicine and animal model validation and development in rodents, dogs and other laboratory animal species. Her major research projects include developing novel cancer immunotherapics and diagnostics for pet dogs naturally suffering from cancer both as a veterinary therapy and comparative model for human cancer. Further, she has extensive research in drivers of koala population decline in SEQLD. She has wide ranging research collaborations specialising in the pathological assessment and study design for animal models in a variety of areas including novel therapeutics, drug safety, toxicology and natural envenomations, biometallic implants, and animal welfare in laboratory animals and domestic species. She is a board certified veterinary anatomic pathologist with the American College of Veterinary Pathologists (ACVP) and a registered specialist veterinary anatomic pathologist with the Veterinary Surgeon's Board of Queensland through the Australian Veterinary Boards Council. She is the lead diagnostic anatomic pathologist in the UQ School of Veterinary Science Veterinary Laboratory Service, and in her professional capacity she oversees cases for Racing Queensland, Queensland Police and RSPCA Queensland, with a special interest in animal welfare and forensic pathology and is a Founding Fellow in Veterinary Forensics with the ACVP. She serves as an expert witness for civil and criminal cases with veterinary relevance. She has an extensive successful track record of training anatomic pathologists for American College of Veterinary Pathology board certification. She was awarded a Faculty of Science Teaching Excellence Award in 2015 and a UQ Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning in 2021. She has served as an office holder in the Pathobiology chapter of the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists and the Australian Society of Veterinary Pathologists.

Stephen is a physiologist with expertise in endocrinology. His research focuses on the regulation of metabolism, growth, appetite, and reproduction - exploring how hormones regulate many physiological processes. He collaborates with animal nutritionists and veterinary clinicians to address significant issues in animal health and production. His current research investigates phosphorus deficiency in Australian cattle.

Complementing his scientific work, Stephen is an educational leader with a strong record in teaching strategy, curriculum renewal, and student success. As Director of Teaching and Learning in the School of Biomedical Sciences (2019–2024), he led the School’s teaching response to the COVID-19 pandemic, earning a UQ Service Excellence commendation and being named Faculty of Medicine Academic Leader of the Year. He provides strategic direction in the renewal of the UQ Bachelor of Biomedical Science, guiding the development of a future-focused program that enhances students’ sense of belonging, engagement, and graduate capabilities. Stephen has also advanced biomedical science education locally, nationally, and internationally. From fostering pathways for local high school students into university, undertaking curriculum reviews for Australian universities, consulting on Nat Geo science documentaries, and developing physiology MOOCs, Stephen has contributed across sectors to shape education, inspire future scientists, and bring physiology to global audiences.

Stephen’s educational leadership is grounded in extensive teaching experience. At UQ, he has taught physiology to more than 40,000 students across biomedical science, animal and veterinary sciences, allied health, nursing, midwifery, pharmacy, dentistry, and medicine. He has received multiple university awards for teaching excellence and innovation, including a national ALTC Citation. He holds a Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy, recognising his leadership and impact in higher education. His current scholarly work investigates how students engage with complexity and uncertainty in developing an advanced understanding of physiology. In April 2025, Stephen was reappointed for another term as Director of Teaching and Learning in Biomedical Sciences.

Dr Will Anderson is a Research Fellow at The University of Queensland, specialising in molecular diagnostics, nanoparticle characterisation, and translational device development. His current work focuses on developing diagnostics for single molecule quantitation and low-cost, accessible technologies for nucleic acid analysis.

Dr Anderson has over 15 years of R&D experience spanning academia and industry, with expertise in:

• Nanopore sensing and nanoparticle analysis

• Nucleic acid extraction and quantification

• Diagnostic device prototyping and point-of-care platforms with a focus on fluorescence-based detection

• Research translation, IP strategy, and regulatory frameworks

Dr Anderson’s work bridges fundamental research and real-world application, with a strong focus on enabling diagnostic innovation through mechatronics, assay development, and collaborative industry engagement.

Associate Professor Anthony Angwin is a speech pathologist conducting research on word learning and neurogenic communication disorders. In particular, his research interests are focussed upon the use of psycholinguistic and neuroimaging methodologies to investigate language processing and word learning in both healthy adults as well as people with Parkinson's disease, stroke and dementia.

Dr Lauren Aoude is a research leader at the University of Queensland (UQ) Frazer Institute. Her research program explores barriers to precision oncology, and establishes more accurate prognostics to enhance therapeutic options for oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC) and melanoma patients. Her research integrates genomic sequencing data with clinical, pathological and imaging information. Recent work includes the establishment of patient-derived organoid models to enable a personalised medicine approach.

During her PhD (completed Nov 2014, QIMR Berghofer) she was a key member of international collaborations that significantly enhanced the understanding of melanoma susceptibility in at-risk families. Dr Aoude joined UQ as an NHMRC Early Career Fellow (2016-2021), where she led projects exploring precision medicine for metastatic melanoma and oesophageal cancer. In 2021, she was awarded a UQ Amplify fellowship to pursue research while expanding teaching and mentoring opportunities, including an on-going course co-ordinator role in the Master of Medicine Skin Cancer Program.

In 2025, she was awarded an NHMRC (EL2) Emerging Leader Fellowship. Her program vision is to better inform treatment decisions and improve health outcomes for patients through the integration of genomics into the clinic.

Dr Ariotti is a Senior Research Fellow and Group Leader at the University of Queensland, Australia. Nick's Lab is focused on using cell biology, structural biology, and biochemistry to understand the molecular mechanisms of endocytosis including the organization of cargo for the transport and packaging of proteins into cells and, specialises in how defects in protein trafficking, and plasma membrane organisation can result in human diseases. He completed his PhD in 2013 at the University of Queensland. He then spent 4 years postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Molecular Biosciences in Rob Parton’s laboratory where he focused on developing and applying correlative light and electron microscopy approaches to better understand endocytosis. In 2017, Dr Ariotti moved to the Electron Microscope Unit at UNSW to serve as the Associate Director of Biological EM. He spent 5 years at the Electron Microscope Unit establishing Cryo-EM and cryogenic-Correlative Light and Electron Microscopy. In 2022, Dr Ariotti returned to the IMB at UQ as an independent research group leader with a focus on developing and applying novel cryogenic correlative approaches to uncover protein structures in situ.

Prof. Derek Arnold

Prof. Arnold studied at Macquarie University before taking up research positions at the University of Sydney and University College London. He took up a continuing position at the University of Queensland in April, 2006.

Prof David Ascher is currently an NHMRC Investigator, immediate past Director of the Biotechnology Program, and Deputy Associate Dean (Research Partnerships) in the Faculty of Science at the University of Queensland. He is also Head of Computational Biology and Clinical Informatics at the Baker Institute.

David’s research focus is in modelling biological data to gain insight into fundamental biological processes. One of his primary research interests has been developing tools to unravel the link between genotype and phenotype, using computational and experimental approaches to understand the effects of mutations on protein structure and function. His group has developed a platform of over 40 widely used programs for assessing the molecular consequences of coding variants (>7 million hits/year).

Working with clinical collaborators in Australia, Brazil and UK, these methods have been translated into the clinic to guide the diagnosis, management and treatment of a number of hereditary diseases, rare cancers and drug resistant infections.

David has a B.Biotech from the University of Adelaide, majoring in Biochemistry, Biotechnology and Pharmacology and Toxicology; and a B.Sci(Hon) from the University of Queensland, majoring in Biochemistry, where he worked with Luke Guddat and Ron Duggleby on the structural and functional characterization of enzymes in the branched-chain amino acid biosynthetic pathway. David then went to St Vincent’s Institute of Medical Research to undertake a PhD at the University of Melbourne in Biochemistry. There he worked under the supervision of Michael Parker using computational, biochemical and structural tools to develop small molecules drugs to improve memory.

In 2013 David went to the University of Cambridge to work with Sir Tom Blundell on using fragment based drug development techniques to target protein-protein interactions; and subsequently on the structural characterisation of proteins involved in non-homologous DNA repair. He returned to Cambridge in 2014 to establish a research platform to characterise the molecular effects of mutations on protein structure and function- using this information to gain insight into the link between genetic changes and phenotypes. He was subsequently recruited as a lab head in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Melbourne in 2016, before joining the Baker Institute in 2019 and the University of Queensland in 2021.

He is an Associate Editor of PBMB and Fronteirs in Bioinformatics, and holds honorary positions at Bio21 Institute, Cambridge University, FIOCRUZ, and the Tuscany University Network.

Dr Melinda Ashcroft is a Research Fellow on Infectious Disease Epidemiology (Climate Change) in the Faculty of Medicine at The University of Queensland (UQ). Her current research focus is on Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) and how NTM infections are associated with climate change and major weather events. Previously Melinda has worked at Monash University as a Research Fellow on the Sero-epidemiology of Klebsiella spp., at the University of Melbourne as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow on the Genomic Epidemiology of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and as a Research Associate at UQ on the genomics and epigenomics of extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli. Melinda was awarded a Bachelor of Applied Science (Biotechnology/Biochemistry) in 2004 from Queensland University of Technology and a Master of Biotechnology in 2013 from UQ. She then switched fields to Microbial Genomics and was awarded a PhD from UQ in 2019 for her thesis: Evolution and function of mobile genetic elements and DNA methyltransferases in extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli.

Dr. Awais Saleem Babri is a dedicated educator and researcher in biomedical sciences, specializing in innovative anatomy education, curriculum development, and technology-enhanced learning. With over two decades of experience at The University of Queensland, his work focuses on integrating virtual reality (VR), digital repositories, and evidence-based pedagogies to transform medical and health professions education.

Key Contributions:

• Teaching Excellence: Led curriculum reviews and course coordination for programs in medicine, nursing, and paramedicine, enhancing clinical integration and student engagement. Recognized with multiple awards, including the UQ Citation for Excellence in Teaching (2009) and nominations for national teaching honors.

• Research Leadership: Secured over $105K in grants to pioneer VR classrooms and image repositories, improving accessibility and outcomes in anatomy education. Presented at 15+ international conferences, including IFAA and ANZAHPE, with pending publications on VR and ward-round pedagogy.

• Supervision & Mentorship: Guided honours and summer research students, with projects on surgical simulation and ward-round pedagogy earning scholarships and conference presentations (e.g., ANZACA 2024, ANZAHPE 2025).

• Leadership & Service: Founded the Gross Anatomy Evaluations Network (GAEN), uniting 28 universities to standardize assessments. Served as ANZACA Vice President (2025–present) and contributed to committees (UQ HREC, ANZAHPE DEI).

Dr. Babri’s work bridges cutting-edge technology and pedagogical innovation, making him a sought-after collaborator in health professions education. For details on projects or partnerships, contact a.babri@uq.edu.au.

Dr Bademosi received his BSc(Hons) in Medical Physiology from the University of Lagos (Nigeria) in 2010, and his MSc and PhD in Neuroscience from the Queensland Brain Institute at the University of Queensland in 2014 and 2018 respectively. He pioneered super-resolution single-molecule microscopy in vivo during his PhD, where he examined nanoscale changes in synaptic proteins during neurotransmission and under general anaesthesia. In 2018, obtained the highly competitive European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO) postdoctoral fellowship.to carry out his postdoctoral training in the lab of Professor Patrik Verstreken who is the current Director of of the Centre for Brain and Disease Research, Flemish Institute of Biotechnology, KU Leuven, Belgium. Here, he characterised how disease coding variants in risk genes for Parkinson's Disease elicit onset of neuronal degeneration (published in Neuron). Dr Bademosi was awarded the inaugural Race Against Dementia - Dementia Australia Research Foundation postdoctoral fellowship in 2020, to carry examine advanced nanoscale investigation into changes in the organisation and dynamics of the Motor Neuron Disease and Frontotemporal Dementia linked protein TDP-43. His research has been supported by grants from the Brain Foundation Australia, Dementia Australia Research Foundation, Motor Neuron Disease Research Institute of Australia, and the Australian Research Council.

Dr Peter Baker is an Honorary Associate Professor at the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation

From 2021-2023, Peter was an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the School of Public Health, University of Queensland. For twelve years until the end of 2020, he was a Senior Lecturer in Biostatistics at the School of Public Health and a senior statistical collaborator, advisor and consultant to several research projects in the Faculty of Medicine, School of Public Health.

With fourty years experience as a statistical consultant and researcher, Peter has a passion for biometrics in agricultural research and biostatistics applied to public health and medical research. He also champions reproducible research and reporting and to this end has developed R and Make software to aid the workflow of data analysts in any field. As a statistical consultant and collaborator, he has contributed to many agricultural, genetic, public health and medical research projects. His contribution has ranged from advice on standard statistical approaches to the application of novel methods to improve statistical analysis or the development of new statistical methodology to fill a gap in the knowledge.

Peter's current research interests:

• efficient statistical computing using R, Make, Git and related software for the workflow of data analysis,
• reproducible research and reporting using R, Markdown, Quarto and Sweave,
• tailoring R functions and developing bespoke packages for specific statistical analyses, and
• applied statistlcal research in novel methods for epidemiological and medial research, including
  • graphical models for multivariate data in epidemiology,
  • statistical methods for modelling trajectories of alcohol consumption in youths,
  • propensity score analysis to adjust for selection bias in observational studies, and
  • Bayesian methods for epidemiological and medical MCMC studies.

Dr Baker is an Accredited Statistician (ASTAT) with the Statistical Society of Australia (see SSAI_Accreditation)