The University of Sydney / Westmead Institute for Medical Research

Professor Philip O'Connell is the Executive Director of the Westmead Institute for Medical Research and a Conjoint Professor in Medicine at the University of Sydney. He also serves as Director of Transplantation at Westmead Hospital and is a Senior Practitioner Fellow of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). As the founding Director of the Centre for Transplant and Renal Research, his work focuses on genomics in renal allograft dysfunction and advancing islet transplantation for Type 1 diabetes.

Westmead Institute for Medical Research

Dr. Xin Maggie Wang, Director of Scientific Operations at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research (WIMR), oversees nine scientific platforms, including cytometry, genomics, and bioinformatics. With over 17 years of experience managing critical research infrastructure and advancing scientific pipelines for precision medicine, she has been instrumental in flow cytometry training, facility design, and technology upgrades. Dr. Wang serves as a Councilor for the International Society for the Advancement of Cytometry (2024–28) and was President of the Australasian Cytometry Society (2023–24).

Institute for Clinical Pathology and Medical Research (ICPMR), NSW Health Pathology, WIMR

Professor David Brown is the Local Pathology Director for Western Sydney and Director of Immunopathology at NSW Health Pathology-ICPMR, Westmead. He also serves as Co-Director of the Centre for Immunology & Allergy Research at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research. His clinical and research interests focus on inflammation, particularly its effects on the central nervous system, vasculitides, and autoimmune diseases. Professor Brown is dedicated to translating research assays into routine immunopathology diagnostics, enhancing patient access to specialized immunological tests.

CSIRO

Dr Denis Bauer is a government research scientist, adjunct professor at Sydney and Macquarie University, and an AWS Hero. She focuses on scalable and cloud-based bioinformatics, supporting population precision medicine and personalised treatment applications. Being a graduate from the Australian Institute of Company Directors and University of New South Wales Business School, she also contributes to strategic roadmaps for genomics adoption. 

The University of Sydney, WIMR

Professor Anthony (Tony) Cunningham, AO, FAHMS, MD, FRACP, FRCPA is a viral immunologist, infectious diseases physician and vaccinologist, well known internationally for his research on the immunology of HIV and herpesviruses and of vaccines, including COVID vaccine research. He is Director, Centre for Virus Research at WIMR, Professor and vaccine theme leader, Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute at USYD, Director of the Australian Centre for HIV and Hepatitis Virology Research (ACH4), a Commonwealth-funded institute, and an NHMRC Senior Leadership Fellow.

The University of Sydney, WIMR

Jacob George is the Robert W. Storr Professor of Hepatic Medicine at the Storr Liver Centre, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, University of Sydney and Head of the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Westmead Hospital. He undertakes basic and clinical research on MAFLD, hepatitis C, liver cancer and hepatic fibrosis. He has published extensively, with an h index of 121. 

The University of Sydney / WIMR

Dr. Kirstie Bertram is a researcher at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research, specializing in mucosal immunology, virology, and auto-inflammatory diseases. Her work focuses on understanding immune responses at mucosal surfaces and their implications for viral infections and inflammatory conditions. Dr. Bertram collaborates closely with Professor Andrew Harman, contributing to studies on sexual transmission of HIV and mucosal immunology.

The University of Sydney, WIMR

A/Prof Ellis Patrick’s research interests lie at the interface of statistics and biomedical data science where he specialises in developing bioinformatics tools to enhance our understanding and treatment of human diseases. He is an Associate Professor in the School of Mathematics and Statistics, a Faculty member at The Westmead Institute for Medical Research and the Cluster Lead of Bioinformatics in the Sydney Precision Data Science Centre.

The University of Sydney

Fabienne is currently Principal Research Fellow at the University of Sydney, and her research focuses on immune-mediated brain disorders such demyelinating disorders, such as Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein Antibody-associated Disease (MOGAD) and autoimmune neurological diseases. Her group aims to discover biomarkers and explores the autoimmune response in patients to improve their diagnosis and treatment.

The University of Sydney, WIMR

Joanne Reed is Director of the Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research at the Westmead Institute and Adjunct Associate Professor at University of Sydney. She leads the Autoimmunity and Amyloidosis Lab, which is focused on the use of omics technologies to improve prediction and treatment of autoimmune and amyloid diseases.

The University of Sydney / WSLHD

Professor Paul Harnett is the Network Director of Cancer Services at Western Sydney Local Health District and a specialist in Oncology and Medical Oncology at Westmead Private Hospital. He has a particular interest in breast and gynecological cancers. Professor Harnett has also contributed to research on the integration of information and communication technologies in multidisciplinary cancer care teams, aiming to enhance clinical decision-making and patient outcomes.

Western Sydney Local Health District, WIMR

Professor Natasha Rogers is Head of Transplantation at Westmead Hospital and a Professor of Nephrology and Transplantation at the University of Sydney. She is Co-Director of the Centre for Transplant and Renal Research at WIMR and leads the Kidney Injury Research Group. Her research focuses on kidney injury, chronic disease, and improving transplant outcomes. Since establishing her WIMR lab in 2016, she has secured over $15 million in competitive funding.

The University of Sydney, WIMR

Associate Professor Emily Blyth is a clinical and laboratory haematologist at Westmead Hospital and a Research Lead at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research. She specialises in blood transplantation and cell therapies, focusing on developing novel cellular treatments for blood cancers. As Clinical Lead for the Immune Effector Cell Service, she has pioneered therapeutic products tested in successful human trials. In 2021, she was honored as the NSW Premier’s Outstanding Cancer Research Early Career Fellow.

Children’s Medical Research Institute

Professor Hilda Pickett is Head of the Telomere Length Regulation Unit at Children’s Medical Institute (CMRI), Professor in the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney, and Co-Founder of Tessellate Bio. Her research interests include DNA damage and repair pathways, the molecular mechanisms that underlie telomere length control, and how telomere length dynamics impact genome stability and cellular immortality. She has over twenty years’ experience in telomere research, and has made important contributions to our understanding of the Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres pathway.

The University of Sydney

Professor Simon Ringer is the University’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Infrastructure), leading institutional strategy and operations around physical and digital research infrastructure. He is a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering in the School of Aerospace, Mechanical & Mechatronic Engineering, and a member of the Australian Centre for Microscopy & Microanalysis.