Dr Adriana Knezic completed her PhD in the Department of Pharmacology at Monash University in 2023, where she investigated the pathophysiology and therapeutic targeting of stroke in several preclinical models. She is now a Postdoc in the Department under the mentorship of A/Prof. Brad Broughton. Her current research focuses on developing novel therapeutics for stroke, including various stem cell-based approaches, using compounds to target the organ-protective effects of alternative arms of the renin-angiotensin system (such as the AT2R) and Relaxin Family Peptide Receptors, as well as hydrogel-based delivery systems for the brain. Beyond her research, she chairs the ECR Career Development Subcommittee of the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, serves on the Hypertension Australia ECR committee and is the secretary of the ASCEPT Cardiovascular SIG.

Dr Michael De Silva completed his PhD in 2011 in the Department of Pharmacology at Monash University. In 2012, he was awarded an NHMRC CJ Martin Early Career Fellowship to conduct postdoctoral research at the University of Iowa (USA). There he gained expertise in the study of the cerebral microcirculation. In 2015, he returned to Australia and joined the Vascular Biology and Immunopharmacology Group (VBIG) headed by Professor’s Chris Sobey and Grant Drummond. In 2019, he took up a teaching a research position at La Trobe University. Michael has published a number of papers in prestigious journals including Hypertension, Stroke and The British Journal of Pharmacology. He has also received recognition for his work including awards from the American Heart Association, American Physiological Society and the Australian Foundation for High Blood Pressure Research. His current research interests include examining the effect of cardiovascular diseases (such as stroke and hypertension) on the regulation of cerebral microvascular function and cognitive function. The ultimate goal of Michael's research is to develop new therapies for cardiovascular diseases, stroke and dementia.

Born on March 18, 1958, in Campinas, Brazil, he graduated in Medicine in 1981 from the Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo (USP), where he began his scientific career in the Department of Pharmacology under Prof. Sérgio Henrique Ferreira. Later earned a degree in Pharmacy from the University of Naples Federico II (2010). He conducted research in London at the Prostaglandin Research Department of Wellcome Research Laboratories (1982–1986) under Dr. Salvador Moncada and obtained his PhD from the Royal College of Surgeons, University of London (1986). Also completed postdoctoral training at the William Harvey Research Institute under Nobel Laureate Sir John Vane. Returning to Brazil in 1989, he became Professor at Unicamp and later Full Professor at USP and Unicamp. He founded the Cartesius Analytical Unit, a national leader in bioequivalence studies. He is a member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Pharmacy.

Professor Ivan Sammut is Professor and Head of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology and Co-Deputy Dean of the School of Pharmacy at the University of Otago. He holds a BSc(Hons) and PhD and leads research on pharmacological targets in cardiovascular and renal disease. His research interests include cardiomyopathies, ischaemic heart disease, heart failure, ischaemic neurodegeneration, mitochondrial dysfunction, and heme oxygenase. Professor Sammut’s main areas of research focus on cardiac and renal failure following myocardial infarction, apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction consequent to ischaemia-reperfusion injury, protection of myocardial function and mitochondrial energetics, mitochondrial pathophysiology in neurodegeneration and stroke injury, neuroprotective effects of pharmacological agents following hypoxia-ischaemia-induced brain damage, cardiovascular effects of hypoxia-ischaemia, and vascular pathophysiology.

Benjamin Quick is a PhD candidate in the School of Biomedical Science at the University of Queensland, working under the supervision of Dr Melissa Reichelt and Professor Wally Thomas. His research focuses on understanding the role of ErbB/neuregulin-1 signalling in cardiac physiology and heart failure pathogenesis, with an interest in how viral vector–based gene modulation may be applied in preclinical models. Benjamin employs a range of experimental approaches, including Langendorff isolated heart perfusion, pressure–volume analysis, echocardiography, and biochemical techniques, to investigate cardiac structure and function across physiological and pathological contexts. He is particularly interested in integrating molecular and functional data to better understand mechanisms of cardiac adaptation and dysfunction.

Rianna Tadd-Lennox is a PhD student in the Department of Pharmacology, Monash University. She is passionate about neuropharmacology and cardiovascular research, and her work aims to reduce the devastating neurological deficits that follow ischemic stroke. Her research utilizes the photothrombotic model of stroke to assess the impacts of targeting insulin-regulated aminopeptidase (IRAP) as a novel ischemic stroke therapeutic. Ultimately, her work aims to bridge the gap between preclinical discoveries and clinical treatments to improve outcomes for stroke patients.