Associate Professor Nicola J Smith is an expert in molecular pharmacology with a track record in exploring GPCR structure-function relationships in the context of cardiovascular disease and metabolic disorders, and more recently lung cancer. She is the Head of the Department of Pharmacology at UNSW Sydney, Australia, where her team works on a class of G protein-coupled receptors called ‘orphan GPCRs’. Recently, her career focus has been interrogating receptor deorphanisation claims and calling for more stringent standards of evidence. Smith is the current President-elect of the Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists (ASCEPT).

Mariah is a final year PhD candidate at UNSW Sydney, supervised by A/Prof Nicola Smith. Her research focuses on the molecular pharmacology of BB3, an understudied G protein-coupled receptor with untapped therapeutic potential in lung cancer. Since 2023, she has served as Treasurer of the ASCEPT Student Committee, where she has organised career workshops and networking dinners for students at the annual ASCEPT conferences.

Ondřej Slanař, MD, PhD, is the chairman of the Institute of Pharmacology at the First Faculty of Medicine of Charles University and General University Hospital in Prague, Czech Republic. As a leading Czech clinical pharmacologist and professor of pharmacology, he promotes dual academic and clinical expertise in pharmacology and clinical pharmacology. He also has extensive experience in EU regulatory science at the European Medicines Agency. His work covers rational pharmacotherapy, as well as pre-clinical and clinical pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. He has published over 200 research papers in this field (H-index 21).

Tamkeen Urooj Paracha is a PhD candidate in Cardiovascular and Respiratory Sciences at the University of Calgary. Her research focuses on the molecular mechanisms of airway disease and the pharmacological regulation of airway epithelial biology, with particular emphasis on cyclic AMP (cAMP)/protein kinase A (PKA) signaling. Her work investigates the distinct roles of PKA catalytic subunits and their relevance to β₂-adrenoceptor agonist therapies used in asthma and other obstructive lung diseases. She holds a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree from Pakistan and a master’s degree in pharmacology from Naresuan University, Thailand. Her background includes experience in academic teaching, pharmaceutical distribution, and clinical and community healthcare settings. Tamkeen has authored or co-authored nine peer-reviewed publications and has presented her research at international conferences. Her broader interests include translational pharmacology, medication safety, regulatory science, and mentoring early-career researchers, with a long-term goal of strengthening evidence-based healthcare practice.

Varuna Jayasinghe is a PhD candidate at the Department of Physiology & Pharmacology, University of Calgary. Prior to his graduate studies, he received his Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology in Sri Lanka. Currently, he works on elucidating the mechanisms of action of drugs used for the treatment of COPD and other respiratory diseases. His research areas of interest include pharmacology, GPCR signaling and respiratory diseases.

Chloe is a PhD candidate in the Cardiovascular Pharmacology Laboratory at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Chloe's PhD project aims to investigate the role of sex in modulating pro-resolving lipid metabolism in pulmonary arterial hypertension. Further, her project explores the therapeutic potential of targeting G-protein coupled receptors involved in the resolution of inflammation. Chloe holds a Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Sciences Advanced (Honours) from Monash University (2021). Chloe has received a number of awards for her scientific communication including, but not limited to, Faculty 3 Minute Thesis Winner (2024) and Pulmonary Hypertension Society of Australia and New Zealand Oral Presentation Prize Winner (2024). Chloe is supervised by Dr Chengxue Helena Qin and Prof Owen Woodman.