Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

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Discover how we're translating breakthroughs in the lab into clinical applications that transform lives.

About us

The premier Australian Department in its discipline, our research and teaching aims to understand and communicate biological processes and how these are altered in disease.

Studying with us

Ignite your curiosity with our comprehensive range of undergraduate units, or advance your ideas through postgraduate studies.

Department research

Our research teams investigate biochemical processes and molecular structures across normal physiology and major human diseases and pathological processes, including infection, inflammation, diabetes and obesity, developmental and degenerative disorders, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.

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Biochemistry and Molecular Biology news

Caught in the act: macrophages (red), the immune system's first responders, engulf invading Candida yeast cells (blue). This microscopic battle is at the heart of research into new ways to fight fungal disease. Image captured by Françios Olivier

Fungal infections explode immune cells and shape-shift to defeat immunity

Scientists from Monash University have discovered how the world’s deadliest fungi explode immune cells and shape-shift to defeat the immune system, providing new avenues for treatments and drug discovery.

New discovery could help scientists fight deadly fungal infections

Researchers from Monash University in collaboration with the University of Warwick have discovered how the bacterial antibiotic ‘gladiolin’ can disarm Candida albicans, one of the leading causes of life-threatening fungal infections,

A/Prof Rhys Grinter and Dr Ashleigh Kropp, authors on the study

Bacteria build microscopic ‘power cables’ to boost energy production, study finds

Scientists have uncovered a previously unknown way that bacteria overcome one of life’s fundamental engineering challenges: how to generate more energy without redesigning the cell itself.

Monash BDI researchers secure more than $18M in NHMRC Investigator Grants

Nine researchers from the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) have secured more than $18 million in funding through the National Health and Medical Research Council's (NHMRC) 2026 Investigator Grant scheme.

A/Prof Anne Fletcher and Prof Mariapia Degli-Esposti AM, New Co-Heads of Monash BDI’s Immunity Program

Monash BDI appoints new Co-Heads of the Immunity Program

The Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Mariapia Degli-Esposti AM and Associate Professor Anne Fletcher as Co-Heads of its Immunity Program.

Monash BDI’s Dr Nicole Mifsud

Monash researcher awarded inaugural grant to advance lung transplant rejection monitoring

Dr Nicole Mifsud from Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) has been awarded the inaugural Lungitude Foundation Allen Pratt Lung Transplant Research Grant to develop a novel blood test aimed at detecting lung transplant rejection

From left: Dr Bradley Spicer, PhD candidate Raymond Wirawan and Associate Professor Michelle Dunstone from Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute.

Scientists uncover how soil bacterium protein kills crop-damaging beetles

Researchers from Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) and Cardiff University have uncovered the mechanism by which a naturally occurring soil bacterium kills beetles, a breakthrough that could help pave the way for new and more

New 3D model reveals hidden driver of lung scarring, paving path to new treatments

Researchers have uncovered a previously unknown mechanism that may contribute to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a progressive and often fatal lung disease with limited treatment options.

Monash AI-driven biomedical model could make advanced disease research faster, cheaper and more accessible

Researchers at Monash University’s Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model that could dramatically expand access to advanced spatial multi-omics research, enabling scientists to generate rich