Liz Johnstone is a Lecturer in the UWA School of Biomedical Sciences, and is also the Molecular Endocrinology Lead in the Molecular Endocrinology and Pharmacology Lab at the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research. Liz is currently a Board Director of the Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists (ASCEPT), an Early Career Committee Member of the International Union of Pharmacology and a Council Member of the Endocrine Society of Australia (ESA). Liz has recently been awarded the British Pharmacological Society/ASCEPT Outstanding Young Investigator Prize (2024), the Bellberry New Investigators Award (2024) and the ESA Early Career Contribution to Endocrinology Award (2025).

I'm a final-year PhD student at UNSW's Single Molecule Science initiative, where we harness advanced microscopes and imaging techniques to investigate complex biological systems. I completed a Bachelor of Advanced Science in 2022, majoring in pharmacology and physiology. In 2023, I began my PhD in the Cytoskeleton and Motors Lab, led by Dr Vaishnavi Ananthanarayanan. My research centres on the molecular pharmacology of G protein-coupled receptors, with a particular interest in their endocytic regulation. I'm currently working to uncover how psychedelic drugs interact with serotonin receptors at the cellular level, aiming to understand the molecular basis of their antidepressant effects. I hope this research will contribute to future drug discovery and the development of next-generation therapeutics. And of course, I am deeply fond of fluorescence microscopy—playing with multi-coloured lasers is never tiring.

A/Prof Veldhuis is an ARC Future Fellow and Group Leader in the Drug Discovery Biology Theme and Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences. During his first postdoctoral appointment at Pharmacology University of Melbourne, he developed a longstanding interest in TRP channels and GPCRs that contribute neuroinflammation. Studying how protein localisation of peptide receptors and TRP channels can influence spatiotemporal signalling has been a central goal of this program and led to industry partnerships to develop drug delivery technologies that spatially confine drug action for chronic pain targets. His current research utilises genetic cell signalling tools, nanotechnology, high-resolution microscopy and multiomics-based approaches to reveal how neuro-immune networks influence inflammation, chronic pain and wound healing.

Dr. Elif Guzel is a research assistant at Istanbul Medipol University School of Medicine, Department of Medical Pharmacology, Istanbul, Türkiye. She received her bachelor’s degree from the School of Pharmacy at Altınbaş University in 2019. Then, she began her master’s studies at the University of East London, School of Health, Sport and Bioscience in London, UK, and graduated in 2021. In the same year, she began her doctoral studies in medical pharmacology and graduated in 2025. Her primary field of interest is neuropharmacology, with a particular focus on Parkinson’s disease, circadian rhythm, and TRP channels. She is still conducting scientific research projects supported by higher education institutions, on Parkinson’s disease, circadian rhythm, and TRP channels. She also teaches pharmacology and clinical pharmacology lectures at the Istanbul Medipol University, School of Medicine and School of Dentistry.

Dr. Zhe Zhao is based at Peking University Third Hospital, having earned his Ph.D. from Peking Union Medical College (Tsinghua University School of Medicine). Her research focuses on the clinical translational mechanisms of gut microbiota in neurodegenerative diseases. Recognized as a rising scientific talent, he was selected for the 2025 "High-Level Innovation Talent" Young Talent Development Program. Dr. Zhao serves as the Principal Investigator for multiple prestigious grants, notably the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) Youth Fund. She has authored 13 first-author SCI papers in top-tier journals, including iMeta, Acta Pharm Sin B, and Microbiome, with a cumulative impact factor exceeding 100. Notably, his publications include a Web of Science Highly Cited Paper. Furthermore, she actively contributes to the scientific community as a youth editorial board member for several journals, including iMeta, and has delivered presentations at prominent international conferences such as ACCP and the FIP World Congress.

Fan Yang, female, Research Professor. Current positions: Office Director of the Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Biomedical Engineering - State Key Laboratory Cultivation Base, Deputy Director of the International Science and Technology Cooperation Base for Major Cardiovascular Diseases in Cold Regions (Ministry of Science and Technology), Deputy Director of the Chronic Disease Institute of China-Russia Medical Research Center. Professor Yang dedicated to research on pathogenesis and drug therapy of bone metabolic diseases. She had been selected for the 5th Youth Talent Support Project of China Association for Science and Technology, currently presiding over 10+ research projects including NSFC General and Youth Programs, Heilongjiang Outstanding Youth Fund, Heilongjiang Postdoctoral Special Funding, et al. She had published over 30 SCI papers. Awarded including: 2023 Heilongjiang Science and Technology Award (First Prize), 2018 Heilongjiang Science and Technology Award (Second Prize). Holds 4 authorized patents.