Our Medical Committee

Professor Larry Chamley is Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, at the University of Auckland where he heads a research group studying the biology and immunology of reproduction. He is also the Director of the Hub for Extracellular Vesicles (HEVI) at The University of Auckland and is a member of the Council of the International Society for Immunology of Reproduction. He is the Editor of Trophoblast Research, an Associate Editor of Reproduction and Chair of the Publications Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Immunology. Larry has been Co-Deputy Chair of our Medical Committee since 2021 and was appointed to our Board in December 2022.

Associate Professor Vanessa Selak is a Public Health Physician and Head of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Auckland. Vanessa has 20 years’ experience working in hospital-based clinical, funding, planning and quality roles. She leads a postgraduate programme in Digital Health and provides postgraduate training in health data analytics and quality improvement. Her research uses routinely collected electronic data to support clinical service improvement, primarily within the field of cardiology. Vanessa was appointed as Co-Deputy Chair of our Medical Committee in December 2022 and we were delighted to have Vanessa join our Board at the same time.

A/Prof Julie Lim is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Physiology, The University of Auckland. She received her undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications from the School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland with her PhD research supported by an AMRF Doctoral Scholarship. She then undertook post-doctoral training in the Department of Physiology, University of Auckland, under the mentorship of Professor Paul Donaldson, where she worked on identifying membrane transporters involved in the uptake of antioxidants in the lens. She was then awarded a Foundation for Research and Science Technology post-doctoral fellowship in 2007, a Sir Charles Hercus Health Research postdoctoral fellowship in 2010 and received the 2010 Zonta Women in Science Award. Julie’s current work focuses on understanding the development of age related eye diseases with a particular focus on the lens and lens cataract. Current projects involve investigating the interplay between reactive oxygen species and antioxidants to determine whether endogenous antioxidant defence systems in the lens can be harnessed to elevate antioxidant levels in the lens and delay cataract formation and AMRF funded work investigating inter-tissue cross talk between the lens and other tissues of the eye to maintain ocular health. Julie was appointed to the AMRF Board in September 2024.

Dr Tim Angeli-Gordon is a Rutherford Discovery Fellow and Senior Research Fellow with the Gastrointestinal (GI) Research Group at the Auckland Bioengineering Institute (ABI). He received his PhD in Bioengineering from the University of Auckland in 2014, prior to which he completed BSE and MSE degrees in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Michigan. Tim’s current research focuses on in vivo measurement and monitoring of GI electrophysiology, where he has a specific interest in developing new diagnostic devices and interventional therapeutics for functional gastrointestinal disorders. He particularly enjoys working on translational projects that span the interfaces of engineering, physiology, and clinical medicine. He has also previously worked in the fields of drug delivery and bioartificial organ research and development. Tim is an Associate Investigator with the MedTech national Centre of Research Excellence (CoRE), as well as an Affiliated Researcher with the Riddet Institute CoRE. He is also a founding member of the medical technology spin-out company FlexiMap Ltd.

Dr Alana Cavadino is a Biostatistician and Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Auckland. Alana’s expertise is in statistical analysis for health research, having worked as a Statistician across a diverse range of research projects in the past 12 years. She received her PhD in Medical Statistics at Queen Mary University of London in 2018, prior to which she completed a BSc in Mathematics at the University of Manchester, an MSc in Medical Statistics at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and worked as a Research Assistant Statistician in genetic epidemiology at the University College London (UK).

Upon moving to New Zealand in 2018, Alana joined the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences Biostatistics Consulting Group at the University of Auckland, for which she is now team lead. The team provide biostatistical advice and consultation to researchers across the faculty, working and collaborating on a variety of epidemiological, clinical, and general medical studies. Alana supervises postgraduate research students and is course director for a postgraduate paper “Statistics in Health Science”, teaching students important introductory statistics and practical data analysis skills. She is an associate editor for the International Journal of Epidemiology.

Dr Doug Campbell is a specialist anaesthetist with a subspecialty interest in neuroscience and a neuroanaesthesia. He graduated from University of Southampton in United Kingdom in 1990 and emigrated permanently to New Zealand in 1998. He is director of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine Research at Auckland City Hospital, a member of the Executive of the Australia and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists Clinical Trial Network, and is currently Senior Clinical Research Fellow for the Neurological Foundation of New Zealand. His research interests include depth of anaesthesia and clinical outcomes (mortality, delirium and cognitive outcomes), surgical epidemiology including risk prediction (NZRISK) and is Principal Investigator of MASTERSTROKE, a RCT looking at induced hypertension and stroke outcomes. He is involved with numerous collaborative trials, but particularly with ANZCA, and the University Departments of Physiology and Neurology.

Dr Amy Chan is Associate Professor and Respiratory lead of the Medicines Intelligence group at the School of Pharmacy, University of Auckland. She is a clinical pharmacist by training with over 15 years’ experience working in hospital, where she led one of the clinical pharmacy teams. Amy holds an honorary post with University College London, UK, where she completed her postdoctoral fellowship training. She now leads a research group that explores the intersection between digital technology, big data and respiratory health, with a focus on asthma care and outcomes. She is currently leading the implementation working group for the European Respiratory Society Clinical Research Collaboration CONNECT which focuses on digital respiratory healthcare, and the global lead for workforce transformation with the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP). Amy is also a Minister-appointed councillor for the Pharmacy Council New Zealand, and member of the Respiratory Effectiveness Group, Open Digital Health, PSA Respiratory Taskforce and board of Asthma NZ. She also leads the Academic Careers Advancement Programme which aims to foster PhD students across the University to be the next generation of scientists and academics.

Professor Nuala Helsby is a professor in the department of Molecular Medicine and Pathology at the University of Auckland, where Nuala teaches in numerous courses to both basic scientists and students in clinical programs. Following a number of years as a postdoctoral fellow in the UK at the University of Liverpool and the University of Birmingham, Nuala moved to NZ where she initially worked in the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre.

Nuala has an ongoing research interest in pharmacogenomics and drug disposition with a particular focus on anticancer drugs and medications for autoimmune diseases. She has served as an executive editor of the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. She also has an active role in the Australian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and the International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (IUPHAR). With over 30 years of experience in this field Nuala was recently awarded fellowship of the British Pharmacology Society (BPS).

Dr Raewyn Poulsen is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Auckland. Following completion of a PhD in Biochemistry at Massey University, she spent 5 years as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford, UK investigating the cellular signaling events involved in musculoskeletal degeneration. After returning to New Zealand, she was awarded a Sir Charles Hercus Health Research Fellowship to continue her work on identifying the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in chronic musculoskeletal conditions such as osteoarthritis. She serves on the editorial board for “Rheumatology” and is a Review Editor for “Frontiers in Pharmacology: Translational Pharmacology”.

Dr Hilary Sheppard is a Senior Lecturer in Stem Cell and Developmental Biology in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Auckland. She obtained a BSc (Hons) from the University of Bath, UK and a PhD in Molecular Biology at the John Innes Institute, UK. Following post-doctoral studies at the University of California, Riverside, USA and University of Leicester, UK, she moved to NZ to work in industry with Genesis R and D prior to her current academic role.

With a background in gene expression and cellular differentiation her current research focus is on using targeted genome engineering technologies (such as CRISPR/Cas9) to enhance cells for use in the clinic by altering the expression of key molecules. This includes immune cells for improved cancer-targeting immunotherapies and, in an AMRF funded project, skin cells to create gene-edited patient-specific skin sheets for people with extreme fragile skin conditions.

Dr Moana Tercel is a Senior Research Fellow and Associate Director for Research at the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre in the School of Medical Sciences at the University of Auckland. She received her BSc and MSc degrees from the University of Auckland and her PhD in synthetic organic chemistry from the University of Cambridge. This was followed by postdoctoral studies at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg, Germany. Moana has over thirty years’ experience in medicinal chemistry and in drug design and discovery. She has a strong interest in DNA alkylating agents and in methods to endow these with tumour-selective properties, such as the formation of hypoxia-activated prodrugs or antibody-drug conjugates.

Professor Ashvin Thambyah joined the University of Auckland as a lecturer in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering in 2007 and is currently Professor and Head of Department. Before joining the University, he spent 10 years as a research engineer at the National University of Singapore. There he worked closely with orthopaedic surgeons on various aspects of musculoskeletal research and contributed to many clinical projects involving bone and joint disease and pathology. Most of Ashvin’s current research is in the musculoskeletal and biomechanics areas, and to the AMRF committee he hopes to provide expertise on the bioengineering aspects where required.

Gergely Toldi is a senior lecturer in neonatology at the Liggins Institute, University of Auckland. He trained in paediatrics and neonatal medicine in Hungary and the UK. His research primarily focuses on early life development of the immune response and understanding the immunological background of complications affecting preterm and term neonates as well as pregnant women. He contributed to developing novel flow cytometry based diagnostic and experimental methods. He currently receives funding from an AMRF Project Grant investigating the role of short chain fatty acids in neonatal immune health and development. In his clinical role, he works as a consultant neonatologist at Starship Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Dr Srdjan Vlajkovic is an Associate Professor in Physiology at The University of Auckland. He is a Principal Investigator with the Brain Research New Zealand and Eisdell Moore Centre for hearing and balance. His main research interest is in the field of auditory neuroscience. He studies the cellular and molecular basis of inner ear homeostasis in conditions of stress and injury. His recent research focus is on the inner ear therapeutics and methods of drug delivery to the inner ear. He is leading internationally the field of adenosine signalling in the cochlea, and the translational research in this area.