Dr David J. Adams, University of Sydney, is a geneticist whose mission is to develop and study animal models of human disease. During his PhD research David realised the limitations of studies performed on human subjects and decided to commence post-doctoral studies at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Cambridge, where he employed embryonic stem cell technology to modify the genome of the mouse. These mice, known as ‘knockout mice', can be engineered to develop diseases such as cancer and heart disease, and are like ‘mini-humans'. 

Dr Tracy Bryan, Children's Medical Research Institute, is a molecular and cellular biologist whose research focuses on the role of the ends of chromosomes, or telomeres, in the growth of cancer cells. During her PhD studies at the Children's Medical Research Institute she discovered a new mechanism for maintenance of telomeres in human tumours, a discovery which could impact on the development of anti-cancer therapeutics. During her postdoctoral years at the University of Colorado, Tracy continued to contribute some major discoveries to the field, carrying out biochemical studies on the enzyme telomerase, which adds DNA to telomeres. 

Dr Justin Gooding, University of New South Wales, whose main research interest is the development of portable sensing devices for biomedical and environmental monitoring. A common theme in his research is the integration of biological molecules with surfaces of nanoscale architecture to produce highly sensitive and selective sensors. After working for two years at ICI Australia on explosives research, he left Australia to read for a DPhil in Physical Chemistry at Oxford University, followed by three years at the Institute of Biotechnology at Cambridge University where he started research into biosensors.

Dr Jennifer Hudson, Macquarie University, focuses her research on anxiety disorders in children and adolescents, specifically the role of parents in the aetiology of anxiety disorders in youth, and the treatment of internalising disorders using cognitive behavioural and cognitive behavioural family therapies. Jennifer is the leader of an international special interest group for Child and Adolescent Anxiety Disorders as part of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy in the United States.

Dr Maria Kavallaris, Children's Cancer Institute Australia for Medical Research/University of New South Wales, is a cancer researcher with a national and international reputation in the field of drug resistance in cancer. Maria has established a highly successful research team focused on identifying the mechanisms of action and resistance to anticancer drugs. Her extensive research contributions include the identification of novel mechanisms of resistance to anticancer agents that target key proteins involved in cell division. A major aim of her research is to dissect key pathways involved in cancer therapeutic drug response, so that effective cancer treatments can be developed. 

Maria has continued her research at CCIA and has been promoted to Associate Professor.

Dr Suresh Mahalingam, University of Wollongong, is an academic viral immunologist with research interests directed towards the virus-host relationship and the factors which influence the outcome of a viral infection. Suresh has made several seminal contributions to the understanding of how viruses interact with the infected host to promote disease. He has helped solve the mystery of how some viruses have their growth markedly enhanced after infection in combination with antibody. He was also one of the first to demonstrate an important role of chemotactic proteins (chemokines) in antiviral defence. He has also investigated the mechanisms of how mosquito borne viruses such as Ross River virus can trigger arthritis. Suresh is also actively researching the role of a newly identified respiratory virus, human metapneumovirus, in the development and exacerbation of asthma. 

In 2005 he was promoted to Associate Professor at the University of Canberra.

Professor Thomas Maschmeyer, University of Sydney, is a scientist whose mission it is to tackle some of the major global technological problems such as waste generation/pollution, the green-house effect and depletion of fossil-based energy sources by generating and using new fundamental insights at the molecular level. Thomas' principal achievements to date lie in advancing and integrating the fundamental understanding of the design and engineering of catalytically active sites, new materials and new reactor concepts from an experimental as well as theoretical point of view and developing, in parallel, new high-throughput technologies to perform aspects of this work. 

Associate Professor Brett A Neilan, University of New South Wales, established his research group at the University of New South Wales in 1997 after postdoctoral studies at Stanford and Humboldt (Berlin) Universities. The main topic of their work is the genetics of toxic cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) and their research has led to the discovery of three of the four biochemical pathways that are responsible for the production of toxins in our water supplies. In addition, Brett's biodiversity studies investigate the origins and evolution of life on Earth and are the basis for the discovery and characterisation of the biosynthesis of pharmaceutically active compound, such as antibiotics and immunosuppressants.

Professor Claude Roux, University of Technology, is the founding Director of the UTS Centre for Forensic Science. His research activities cover a broad spectrum of disciplines which are aimed at understanding and solving analytical and interpretative problems encountered in forensic science. These include trace evidence (fibres, paint, glass etc), document examination (inks, toners), fingerprints and other forms of physical evidence. He is involved in a number of European, American and Australian scientific working groups.

Dr Amanda Sainsbury-Salis, Garvan Institute of Medical Research/University of New South Wales, undertook PhD studies at the University of Geneva, with funding from the prestigious Swiss Government Scholarship. Amanda's PhD was instrumental in elucidating the physiological reasons for the "dieter's plateau": the phenomenon of a slowing or cessation of weight loss during a slimming regime, despite continued adherence to a reduced calorie diet. Amanda and her team at the Garvan Institute investigate which neurotransmitters and receptors within the brain are involved in mediating the dieter's plateau, and how these molecules affect reproductive function and bone physiology. The ultimate aim is to block the molecules that hinder weight loss, either by pharmaceutical or nutritional interventions, without deleterious effects on the reproductive system or bone health. 

Associate Professor Christopher Semsarian, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, is a molecular cardiologist with a strong research interest in genetic heart disorders, with a particular focus on sudden cardiac death in the young. After completing his medical and cardiology training at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney, he undertook a highly successful PhD at the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute. Christopher continued his research in the Department of Genetics at Harvard Medical School, Boston. The ultimate goal of Christopher's research is to understand how abnormalities in our genetic make-up lead to heart diseases, and by doing so, to be able to develop novel therapeutic strategies to both prevent and cure these heart disorders and their complications such as sudden death.

Dr Merridee Wouters, Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute/University of New South Wales. Computers are becoming increasingly important in medical research. Data gained from patients and laboratories around the world, which are traditionally shared through scientific literature, are now additionally pooled into huge databases such as the Human Genome Database. The new field of bioinformatics involves interrogation of these databases to enable general rules to be deduced. Merridee Wouters pursues both basic and applied work in bioinformatics and tries to maintain synergy between the two aspects of her work.