The Human Nutrition Research Group addresses global health challenges by exploring how diet and lifestyle interventions influence physiological mechanisms to improve health and reduce chronic disease, whilst promoting an environmentally sustainable food system. Our expertise includes designing and testing nutrition interventions, investigating biological determinants of individual responsiveness to diet, promoting healthy and sustainable dietary patterns, and translating findings into evidence-based practices.
Contact
For enquiries, please email A/Prof Jessica Biesiekierski jessica.biesiekierski@unimelb.edu.au
Academics and Researchers in The Human Nutrition Group.
Academic Staff
A/Prof Jessica Biesiekierski
Associate Professor Jessica Biesiekierski is Head of the Human Nutrition Group at The University of Melbourne and a current Australian National Health & Medical Research Council Emerging Leadership Fellow. Jessica's research spans the broad field of human health, focusing on how diet impacts gut health to improve overall wellbeing. With a particular expertise in gastrointestinal function, food sensitivities, and gut-brain interaction disorders, Jessica leads dietary trials within the Human Nutrition Clinical Lab, collaborating with global, multidisciplinary teams including industry and clinical partners to advance treatments for conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia. Jessica’s work, aligned with the Human Nutrition Research Group’s mission, ranges from investigating nutrient-specific effects to designing whole-diet interventions. Her team develops sustainable, evidence-based nutrition interventions tailored to local contexts, and aim to
jessica.biesiekierski@unimelb.edu.au +61390356070Dr Chiara Murgia
Dr Chiara Murgia is a Senior Lecturer in Human Nutrition in the Faculty of Science of the University of Melbourne and a molecular nutritionist. Chiara 's research interest spans from personalised and precision nutrition that incorporates genetics and phenotypic elements as modifiers of nutritional requirements to the mechanistic investigation of macronutrients’ biochemistry in health and disease, with a special interest in the role of zinc and riboflavin in the integrity of epithelial cells and the onset of chronic disease. Chiara is also involved in the development of cell phone based technology to improve dietary assessment methods.
chiara.murgia@unimelb.edu.au +61383443055Dr Anita Lawrence
Dr Lawrence is a Senior Lecturer in Human Nutrition in the School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences within the Faculty of Science. She completed a MMed Sci and a PhD in Human Nutrition in the UK at the University of Sheffield and a Graduate Certificate in University Teaching at the University of Melbourne. Anita is a Registered Nutritionist and has worked as a nutrition scientist in a variety of senior roles in the UK and Australia for more than two decades. Anita’s research interests focus on nutrition science, dietary advice and guidelines, dietary patterns, sustainable healthy diets, nutrition research methods and the impact of dairy food intake on health.
anita.lawrence@unimelb.edu.au +61383443106Dr Robyn Larsen
Dr Larsen (PhD, 2008; RMIT University) is a nutritional biochemist currently employed as a lecturer in Human Nutrition within the School of Agriculture and Food. She is a registered nutritionist and has >12 years’ experience working across a broad range of nutrition-related health research. This includes the manipulation of dietary glycaemic index/load, macronutrient composition, energy intake and energy balance, weight management, antioxidant supplementation and sugar sweetened beverage consumption. She has worked primarily on investigator-initiated studies covering a diverse range of trial designs (short-term controlled feeding trials, meal studies, double-blind nutritional supplementation trials, and short- and long-term dietary intervention trials). Her work has focused on a broad range of health outcomes (weight loss, glycaemic control, blood pressure, endothelial function, insulin resistance and acne) in various populations (individuals with or at-risk of type 2 diabetes,
robyn.larsen@unimelb.edu.au +61383440140
Ms Julia Steenkamp
Julia Steenkamp is a dietitian and lecturer in Human Nutrition, teaching across a range of nutrition subjects. Her key research interest is how microbes in food and food systems impact pesticide residues and health.
julia.steenkamp@unimelb.edu.au
Ms Shirley Poon
Shirley Poon is an Associate Lecturer in the School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences within the Faculty of Science. She is an Accredited Practising Dietitian and brings extensive experience from hospital, community, and research settings, where she has worked as a clinical dietitian. Her expertise includes clinical nutrition and dietary assessments, coordinating clinical trials, and managing research datasets of various trial designs, including cluster-randomised controlled trials. Her current research focuses on developing ‘real’ food alternatives to ultra-processed, dietary weight loss therapies such as very-low-energy diets, with the goal of improving long-term health outcomes through sustainable and evidence-based nutrition interventions.
shirley.poon@unimelb.edu.au +61383440519Researchers
Dr Kate Phuong-Nguyen Nguyen
Dr Kate Phuong-Nguyen's research focuses on understanding the complex relationships between nutrition, gut health, and metabolic diseases. Her expertise spans investigating gut-metabolic interactions through both basic science and clinical laboratory approaches. Currently, she leads laboratory operations and research projects for the Human Nutrition Group, and contributes to teaching Human Nutrition subjects at the University of Melbourne. Dr Phuong-Nguyen collaborates with multidisciplinary experts across institutions to advance nutritional science and develop evidence-based dietary interventions for improved gastrointestinal and metabolic health.
katephuongnguyen.nguyen@unimelb.edu.auDr Madeline West
Dr Madeline West is passionate about the interplay between nutrition, gut disorders, and eating disorders. Her PhD research focused on the dietetic management of people with eating disorders and gut disorders. Currently, Madeline is Trial Coordinator for the Exclude vs Expose RCT. This study investigates dietary and cognitive behavioural therapy approaches to treating irritable bowel syndrome.
madeline.west.1@unimelb.edu.au +61390356076
Adriana Mannino
Adriana Mannino is a Registered Nutritionist, Certified Project Manager, and Clinical Service Planner within the Department of Health, with over a decade of experience in public health, hospital, and community health services. Her research has explored the intersection of nutrition and health outcomes. She has previously investigated the impact of ultra-processed foods on dietary inflammation in multiple sclerosis, the relationship between maternal weight status and childhood obesity, and the role of enteral nutrition in patients with advanced upper GI cancers. Adriana’s PhD project focuses on exploring the barriers and success factors of integrated care in the treatment of disorders of the gut-brain interaction (DGBI) using a realist methodology.
adriana.mannino@student.unimelb.edu.auAnam Afzal
Naufal Nurdin
Naufal Muharam Nurdin is a medical doctor and a Graduate Researcher in the Human Nutrition Group at the University of Melbourne. He is passionate about tackling obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes mellitus through functional foods, devices, and apps. His previous work includes studies on glycaemic index, clinical trials of functional foods for obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes, as well as developing screening tools for nutrition-related conditions. His research interest is to explore the impact of Indonesian fermented soybean (tempeh) on glycaemic regulation and the gut microbiome.
naufal.nurdin@student.unimelb.edu.auThe Human Nutrition Research Group addresses global health challenges by exploring how diet and lifestyle interventions influence physiological mechanisms to improve health and reduce chronic disease, whilst promoting an environmentally sustainable food system. Our expertise includes designing and testing nutrition interventions, investigating biological determinants of individual responsiveness to diet, promoting healthy and sustainable dietary patterns, and translating findings into evidence-based practices.
Changing the Way We Use Diet in Gut Disorders: Generating Mechanistic Knowledge and Clinical Evidence to Inform Integrated Management
Grant number: 2025943 | Funding period: 2024 - 2028
This research project performs novel mechanistic studies and international dietary trials, to inform therapy and improve treatment outcomes for patients with gut disorders.
If you are interested in this project, please contact A/Prof Jessica Biesiekierski jessica.biesiekierski@unimelb.edu.au
Our research projects
Find a Supervisor
The following staff are available to supervise honours, masters, and PhD research in the Human Nutrition Research Group.
A/Prof Jessica Biesiekierski
Jessica's research investigates how diet impacts gastrointestinal function in disorders of gut-brain interactions, particularly irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia. She examines the processes underlying gastrointestinal symptoms and nutrient-specific effects on gut-brain signalling, aiming to improve nutritional interventions and optimise treatment outcomes for gut disorders.
Project topics:
- Dietary triggers and dietary management strategies of gastrointestinal symptoms.
- Mechanisms underlying gastrointestinal signals and digestive physiology.
- Disorders of gut-brain interaction including irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia.
Dr Chiara Murgia
Chiara is a molecular nutritionist interested in investigating how what we eat affects our physiology in health and disease. She is interested in personalised nutrition and its applications.
Project topics:
- Assessing the bioavailability and antiinflammatory potential of bioactive food components with in vitro cell culture experimental models.
- Evaluating the potential of a smartphone application in dietary assessment: evaluating the use of image recognition for food identification and portion size estimation.
Dr Anita Lawrence
Anita researches the transition to diets that are both healthy and environmentally sustainable. She focuses on the impact of recommendations on nutritional adequacy for populations, specifically considering different sub-groups. A range of techniques are used including dietary modelling.
Project topics:
- Assessing the impact of various dietary scenarios on the usual intake of nutrients that certain sub-groups tend to have an inadequate intake of.
- Analysing dietary guidelines from around the world in relation to advice about plant-based milks, which food group they are placed in and potential nutritional implications.
Dr Robyn Larsen
Robyn’s research interests are in the field of personalised nutrition. Her research examines how relationships between diet and overall health vary with changes in sleep, physical activity and circadian rhythms.
Project topics:
- Evaluating the potential of a smartphone application in dietary assessment: using image recognition for food identification, classification and portion size estimation.
- Assessing the effects of movement behaviours on postprandial glycaemia in individuals with metabolic conditions (ie T2D, T1D, PCOS).
- Examining the association of objectively measured sleep quality and glycaemic risk during pregnancy.
- Use of wearables and sensor technologies to measure physiological parameters (ie. glucose) in real-time.
Selected publications
Full publications list
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