91Ö±²¥

Host: Leonidas Karagounis

Professor of Research Translation and Enterprise, MMIHR, 91Ö±²¥

Professor Leonidas Karagounis is a leading researcher in human nutrition science and metabolism at ACU’s Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research, where he leads research translation and enterprise as part of the executive team. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Biochemistry and a PhD in Molecular Nutrition and Physiology from the University of Nottingham Medical School (UK). His career spans academia and global industry, including postdoctoral research in China and senior roles at Nestlé Research and Nestlé Health Science in Switzerland.

With more than 20 years of experience, Professor Karagounis specialises in the impact of nutrition and lifestyle on muscle metabolism, ageing, physical activity and metabolic disease. He has a strong record of peer-reviewed publications, has led landmark trials in dietary protein intake and nutraceuticals across age groups, and holds several patents. His work has been translated into the development and commercial launch of scientifically validated nutritional products targeting childhood growth, healthy ageing and metabolic health. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of Bern, a member of the Mediterranean Lifestyle Medicine Institute in Greece, and serves on multiple scientific advisory boards. He is on the Executive Board of Siftlink, an AI-driven health science startup in Switzerland.

Panel expert: Professor John Hawley

Director, Centre for Human Metabolism and Performance, MMIHR, 91Ö±²¥

Professor John Hawley is Institute Director of the Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research and Director of the Centre for Human Performance and Metabolism at ACU in Melbourne. His research focuses on the interaction between exercise training and diet in shaping human health outcomes, with a strong emphasis on lifestyle interventions to combat obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and cancer. His laboratory has been at the forefront of uncovering the molecular mechanisms of exercise training, particularly how contraction-induced adaptations in skeletal muscle influence whole-body health.

Internationally recognised, Professor Hawley has published more than 300 articles in leading journals including Cell, Science and Cell Metabolism. He is a member of nine national and international societies, serves on several editorial boards, and is an active reviewer for major journals and national funding agencies. He maintains ongoing collaborations with major institutions including the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School and the Karolinska Institute. He has supervised 23 PhD students to completion, with many trainees progressing to successful independent research careers, and is frequently invited to present at major national and international conferences.

Panel expert: Dr Magdalena Simonis AM, MBBS FRACGP DRANZCOG MHHS

Honorary Clinical Associate Professor, Department of General Practice, University of Melbourne

Associate Professor Magdalena Simonis is a general practitioner, honorary researcher and educator at the Department of General Practice, University of Melbourne. She is widely recognised for her contributions to primary care, women’s health, medical education and health system improvement. She serves on the BreastScreen Australia Clinical Advisory Group, the National Endometriosis Action Plan Expert Advisory Group and the Victorian Multicultural Health Advisory Committee, and she is Clinical Director of the Victorian Mobile Women’s Health Service program and member of the Australian Digital Health Agency Clinical Advisory Group. Associate Professor Simonis is an independent board director of the Melbourne Teaching Health Clinics (MTHC) and the Melbourne Academic Centre for Health (MACH). She is also co-chair of the Primary Care Council University of Melbourne and enjoys countering misinformation as a health columnist for The Australian and in weekly podcasts for SBS.

Panel expert: Marno C Ryan, MBBS (Hons) MD FRACP

Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Melbourne, and Gastroenterologist and Hepatologist, St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne

Associate Professor Marno Ryan trained in gastroenterology at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne. She completed a Doctorate of Medicine investigating fatty liver disease at the University of Melbourne, before undertaking three years of postgraduate research at Stanford University focused on adiposity, insulin sensitivity, diet and hepatic lipid metabolism.

She is now based in the Gastroenterology Unit at St Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne, where she is the clinical lead of both the hepatocellular carcinoma service and the Weight Management Clinic. Her research interests include the effects of diet/lifestyle and novel agents on insulin sensitivity, and the treatment of metabolic dysfunction associated fatty liver disease (MASLD).