ROLE OF METABOLIC DYSFUNCTION IN ADVANCED PROSTATE CANCER
RESEARCHER PROFILE
Dr Jennifer Gunter (Filmed March 2024)
Senior Research Associate (Cancer Metabolism),
Australia Prostate Cancer Research Centre – Queensland (APCRC-Q) & Group Leader, Cancer Metabolism Group,
Translational Research Institute (TRI),
Queensland, Australia
Dr Jennifer (Jenni) Gunter is a mid-career researcher, with a metabolic research background spanning almost 15 years. She leads a research team examining the metabolic plasticity of cancer cells with the aim of identifying therapeutic targeting strategies that extend patient survival. Jenni completed her PhD in 2005 at the Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism at Oxford University.
She returned to Australia in 2006 with a University of Queensland Postdoctoral Fellowship at the UQ Diamantina Institute to pursue studies into the turnover and metabolism of adipocytes in obesity.
In 2010, Jenni joined the Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, at QUT to research the intersection between chronic metabolic disorders and their emerging relationship to cancer. These studies were focused on the role of insulin and the relationship between the insulin and androgen signalling axes.
Dr Gunter was drawn to the area of prostate cancer research and the intersection between chronic metabolic disorders and their emerging relationship to cancer. Her strengths include expertise in the metabolic syndrome, insulin signalling and metabolism, and she has a demonstrated record of successful and productive research projects in metabolic research where she now applies her efforts to understanding the role of metabolic dysfunction in advanced prostate cancer.
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Environmental exposure to function of lung epithelial stem cell biology
Dr Clare Weeden has recently commenced as a Laboratory Head at WEHI in 2025, supported by the CSL Centenary Fellowship.
Dr Weeden specialises in lung epithelial cell biology in the context of homeostasis, inflammation, and lung cancer, particularly in people who don’t smoke. Her work endeavours to understand how past environmental exposures shape the responses of lung cells and the molecular mechanisms underlying this cellular recall, with the aim to develop novel early detection strategies for lung disease.
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Non-invasive tools for CVD screening and monitoring
Dr Hadi Afsharan is a Research Fellow Cardiovascular Science & Diabetes at the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research; is a translational research and innovation fellow in medical technologies at The University of Western Australia, holding dual titles as Translational Fellow and Innovation Fellow within UWA’s Medical School and the FHRI (Future Health Research and Innovation) program.
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Mechanisms of resistance to menin inhibitor therapy and Acute Myeloid Leukaemia
Dr Rithin Nedumannil (MBBS, MPH, FRACP, FRCPA) is a PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne, undertaking his doctoral studies in collaboration with the Cambridge Stem Cell Institute (Cambridge, UK) and the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre (Melbourne, Australia). He is a clinical haematologist and haematopathologist with current appointments at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, the Royal Melbourne Hospital, Austin Health and Northern Health.
