Congratulations to all recently promoted researchers of School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health!
Congratulations to all School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health staff who were successful in the recent Monash University academic promotions round!
Level E: to Professor
Professor Maxine Bonham, Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food, is a registered nutritionist and has >20 years postdoctoral experience in nutrition science research. Her research is based at the Be Active Sleep eat (BASE) Facility at Notting Hill where Maxine has established a research agenda in nutrition and circadian biology initiating a structured research program examining the adverse health effects associated with sleep debt, poor dietary habits and misalignment of circadian rhythms in shift workers. She has been successfully in gaining grant income to support her work by the National Heart Foundation and more recently was awarded $1.43 million by the NHMRC to investigate novel weight loss strategies in nigh shift workers. Maxine’s expertise is in the successful development and oversight of nutrition intervention program that favourably impact metabolic health. Research Expertise: nutrition interventions, meal timing, assessment and analysis of dietary intake. Find out more about Maxine Bonham.
Level D: to Associate Professor
Associate Professor Jun Yang, Department of Medicine, is a Research Scientist within the Cardiovascular Endocrinology Group at Hudson Institute, a Consultant Endocrinologist at Monash Health and a Senior Postdoctoral Fellow in the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash University. Since graduating with a MBBS (Hons, rank number 1) from Monash University, she has been actively involved in basic and clinical research as well as clinical practice. She undertook PhD studies with Dr Morag Young, Dr Colin Clyne and Professor Peter Fuller at Prince Henry’s Institute of Medical Research, now Hudson Institute, from 2008-2013. Her PhD thesis, entitled ‘Mineralocorticoid receptors (MR): mechanisms of ligand- and tissue-specific activation’, identified and characterised novel coregulators of the MR using a novel phage display technique in addition to cell culture work and gene expression assays. This work identified four novel coregulators that interacted with the MR in a context-specific manner, and was published in the journal, Molecular Endocrinology. Find out more about Jun Yang.
Level C: to Senior Research Fellow
Senior Research Fellow Rui Wang, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, is a reproductive epidemiologist and NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Monash University. He was trained as an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist before relocating to Australia in 2015, when he shifted his career into clinical epidemiology. Rui’s research aims to improve reproductive health by providing the best available evidence on diagnosis, prognosis and treatments on conditions relevant to reproductive health. His main clinical interests are infertility, polycystic ovary syndrome, fallopian tube disorders, assisted reproduction, early pregnancy complications and preterm birth. His methods interest randomised controlled trials, and evidence syntheses, especially network meta-analysis and individual participant data meta-analysis. Find out more about Rui Wang.
Senior Research Fellow Poh Yi Gan, Department of Medicine, is an NHMRC Research Fellow and Head of the Translational Kidney Therapies Group at the Centre for Inflammatory Diseases at Monash University. She completed her PhD in 2014 at Monash University under the supervision of Prof Stephen Holdsworth to study the role of CD4+ T cell subsets in autoimmune kidney disease. Dr Gan is funded by NHMRC, Department of Health Medical Research Future Fund, Heart Foundation and School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health. Dr Gan’s research program focuses on discovering injurious cellular effector mediators that can be specifically targeted using biologicals and developing novel therapeutics capable of inducing antigen specific tolerance in autoimmune kidney disease. Find out more about Poh Yi Gan.
Level B: to Lecturer/Research Fellow
Lecturer Filippe Oliveira, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, convenes a Biomedical Science and Science undergraduate unit (BME3082 - Fetal and Neonatal Development, ~120 students) which is consistently ranked 'Outstanding' and in the top 9% of units at Monash University. He also coordinates and teaches in postgraduate units in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Another important part of his role is to coordinate a suite of accredited professional development courses for healthcare providers and engage with medical industry partners and professional associations to promote health education and clinical skills. In 2022, Filippe was awarded a 'Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Teaching and Learning' by the School of Clinical Science at Monash University. Find out more about Filippe Oliveira.
Lecturer Christie Bennett, Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food, is an Accredited Practising Dietitian and Credentialed Eating Disorder Clinician. Her PhD research looked at the associations between sleep during pregnancy, dietary intake and obstetric outcomes (gestational diabetes mellitus, pre-term labour, infant birth weight etc). Since completing her PhD her research interests have diversified. She was successful in obtaining a NHMRC CRE Seed grant to investigate the role of sleep in people with PCOS. Then, linking her teaching and research interests Christie has been investigating the role nutrition and dietetics pedagogy have on disordered eating in students. She hopes to continue to research educational interventions to improve inclusivity in dietetics and dietetic interventions. Find out more about Christie Bennett.
Lecturer Elizabeth Barber, Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food, is a Registered Nutritionist and a full time lecturer, appointed to teach subjects associated with food science, human nutrition and biochemistry at the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics & Food, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University. Dr Barber obtained her PhD from Monash University and postdoctoral training from Deakin University. She explores the mechanisms by which functional foods improve metabolic dysfunction and inflammation using advanced molecular nutrition and food science research. Her expertise lies in cell culture, analytical chemistry, molecular and serological assays, clinical study and food and recipe modifications. Find out more about Elizabeth Barber.
Research Fellow Kim O'Sullivan, Department of Medicine, is a group head for the Translational Kidney Therapies Group within the Centre for Inflammatory Diseases (CID) based at the Monash Health Translational Precinct. Kim completed her undergraduate studies and Master’s Degree in Anatomy and Structural Biology at the University of Otago, New Zealand. In 2002 Kim joined the Autoimmune Kidney Disease and Vasculitis Research Group and completed a staff PhD in Immunology under the supervision of Prof. Stephen Holdsworth and Prof. Richard Kitching-world leaders in the study of glomerulonephritis and immune mediated kidney diseases. Since completion of a PhD Kim has obtained competitive funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC Ideas Grant as CIA) and Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF, as a CI). Dr O’Sullivan has an international and national reputation in ANCA vasculitis studies evidenced by multiple invitations to speak internationally and nationally at conferences. Kim's main research area is investigating the pro-inflammatory role of Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs) in MPO-ANCA vasculitis with a particular focus on looking for potential therapeutics which will prevent NET formation and ameliorate disease-without compromising host defence. Find out more about Kim O'Sullivan.