Biomedical Science Research Group

Medical Physiology: Understanding Health and Disease Across Scales

Our staff within the discipline of Biomedical Science investigate Medical Physiology and its applications to critical global health challenges. Medical Physiology is fundamentally the study of how the human body functions - enabling us to understand the physiological mechanisms that maintain health and the pathophysiological processes that underlie disease states.

Research Scope and Key Areas

Our research programme encompasses interconnected domains including nutrition, gut health, food security, antibiotic resistance, reproductive health, neurobehavioural changes in chronic disease, autoimmune diseases, cancer medicine, pharmacology, and vaccine design and development. These research areas are strategically integrated, recognising that they are fundamentally linked through shared physiological mechanisms and their collective impact on population-level health outcomes.

Multi-Level Investigation: From Molecules to Populations

Medical Physiology operates across multiple biological scales. Our researchers investigate physiological processes at the molecular and cellular level, examining protein function and cellular effects. Others focus on tissue and organ-level physiology, investigating how cells interact to form functional systems within the body. Complementing this, some studies extend to the population level, examining community health dynamics, disease epidemiology, and the broader determinants of health. Throughout these investigations, we examine the effects of physical, chemical, nutritional, pharmacological, microbial, and environmental factors on living systems.

Collaborative Research Framework

Recognising the complexity of contemporary health challenges, several of our projects are conducted through multidisciplinary, cross-faculty, and multi-centre institutional collaborations. This collaborative approach enables us to integrate diverse expertise and coordinate research efforts across both Australian and international institutions, ensuring that our work addresses complex health problems with the rigour and breadth they demand.