RESEARCHER PROFILE
Professor Sant-Rayn Pasricha (Filmed April 2024)
Study lead and Acting WEHI Deputy Director
WEHI (Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research)
Clinical Haematologist Royal Melbourne Hospital & Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre
Professor Sant-Rayn Pasricha is the Acting Deputy Director at the Walter Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne, Australia. He is also a clinical haematologist at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. From a young age, Prof Pasricha dreamed of becoming a doctor and found joy in learning about the human body and how to care for patients. After completing medical school, he developed a passion for working in low and middle-income countries, which led him to spend time working in East Timor, India, and Central Australia with First Nations communities.
Prof Pasricha went on to specialise in haematology, which covers a wide range of fields, including cancer biology, immunology, transplant, nutrition, pathology, and red cell blood transfusion. He completed his haematology training and earned a PhD in global health, which allowed him to explore his interests in public health, global health, and haematology. Prof Pasricha focused his research on the significant and common issue of anaemia, particularly in low-income countries. He conducted field studies in the villages of Karnataka, India, and spent five years working in the lab at the University of Oxford to understand iron biology.
Currently, Pasricha runs his own lab at WEHI, where he serves as a lab and division head, conducting anaemia research. His lab covers a range of basic science research areas, including exploratory biology on how red blood cells are made, iron biology, and the role of inflammation in anaemia. Additionally, his lab conducts global trials in Africa and South Asia to prevent and treat anaemia and nutritional disorders in children and pregnant women.
Prof Pasricha’s lab completed a large analysis on haemoglobin thresholds to define anaemia, which informed the new World Health Organization guidelines on anaemia. The lab also conducts large randomised controlled field studies on ways to treat anaemia in pregnancy and young babies in Malawi and Bangladesh.
Prof Pasricha is passionate about improving the health of people in low-income countries and finding innovative solutions to improve the health of mothers and children in particular. He focuses on anaemia, nutrition, and exposure to infectious diseases. Prof Pasricha is also deeply curious about how the body works and how different systems interact with each other and the outside environment.
As a clinician scientist, Pasricha finds his job both busy and fulfilling. He enjoys taking care of patients, keeping up with breakthroughs in medicine, and running a research program. Prof Pasricha spends a substantial amount of time thinking about his work and planning the next experiment or study. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with his three children and being involved in the community.
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Nutraceutical and pharmacological intervention in neurological disorders
Dr Virginie Lam is a neuroscientist and cerebrovascular biologist with over 15 years of research experience, including more than seven years post-PhD. She co-leads the Neurovascular and Metabolic Diseases Laboratory at the Curtin Medical Research Institute and holds an affiliate appointment at the Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science. Her research focuses on the interface between neurovascular health, cognitive function, and therapeutic translation in neurodegenerative disorders.
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Paediatric haemorrhage and airway procedures
Dr Shane George is a paediatric critical care physician working in paediatric emergency medicine and paediatric intensive care at Gold Coast University Hospital. He is the clinical lead for children’s critical care research for Gold Coast Health, and is a Senior Lecturer at The University of Queensland and Griffith University.
Associate Professor George is also an active clinician researcher on topics that span both emergency medicine and PICU practice including safety in emergency intubation, sepsis, haemostatic resuscitation in children and respiratory support therapies.
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World-first clinical trial improves patient outcomes for kidney transplants (2023)
A world-first clinical trial conducted at the Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH) and at hospitals across Australia and New Zealand has identified the best fluid treatment to reduce the risk of patients requiring dialysis after a kidney transplant.
Around one in three people who receive a kidney transplant suffer delayed graft function, which means the transplant doesn’t work immediately and they require dialysis.
The lead-author of the study, was Royal Adelaide Hospital Nephrologist and University of Adelaide researcher, Dr Michael Collins.
