Prof Gary Housley, PhD, holds the Chair of Physiology and is director of the Translational Neuroscience Facility, School of Medical Sciences, UNSW Australia. His research program is broadly within molecular, cellular and systems physiology in the nervous system, particularly around neuroprotection in the CNS and auditory system. Prof Housley has contributed prominently to understanding how hearing adapts to noise and ageing. Study of neural development and synaptic plasticity in the auditory system informs on gene-targets for neural repair. This research has an applied arm with respect to bionics such as the cochlear implant which has led to development of an innovative gene therapy platform for auditory nerve regeneration.
Prof David Eisner (B.A. Cambridge, Natural Sciences, 1976; D.Phil Oxford, Physiology, 1979) moved to Manchester as Professor of Cardiac Physiology in October 1999 and he is currently President of The Physiological Society. Prof Eisners early research focused on the regulation of intracellular sodium in cardiac muscle and the effects on contraction. He then investigated the control of intracellular calcium concentration and its role in the production of arrhythmias. His most recent work focuses on factors that regulate the calcium content of the sarcoplasmic reticulum and how this is altered in disease.
Dr Kathy Tangalakis, BSc (Hons), PhD (UniMelb), is a Senior Lecturer at Victoria University. Her focus has been on enhancing the student learning experience for diverse commencing student cohorts undertaking physiology as a core subject in their course. Kathy's contribution was recognised in 2016 with an Australian Award for University Teaching: Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning; and the Michael Roberts Medal for Excellence in Physiology Education from the Australian Physiological Society. Kathy has held a number of leadership roles including Head of Discipline (Medical Physiology), Academic Coordinator (T&L), First Year Student Experience Champion and Course Leader (Bachelor of Biomedicine).