Assoc. Prof. Nicola Starkey

LIC   Associate Professor Starkey was instrumental in a world-first, large-scale statistical study, which discovered that the incidence of traumatic brain injury in the Waikato (especially mild injury) was higher than expected. It also highlighted the large proportion of children affected – concerning as it is generally accepted that a brain injury during childhood (including concussion)…

Dr. Aydin Berenjian

University of Waikato   Vitamin K2 (also known as MK-7) can substantially improve bone and cardiovascular health but is extremely expensive to produce. Dr Berenjian sought to resolve the problem by simplifying the methods used to ferment, extract and purify MK-7. His patented biochemical reactor design merges several operations into one efficient and environmentally friendly…

Dr. Ryan Paul

Waikato DHB   The primary aim of Dr. Paul’s research was to determine the mechanisms responsible for why the majority of mammalian species, including humans, display sexually dimorphic growth with males having a larger body size and greater skeletal muscle mass than that of females. Characterising the mechanisms of normal growth has identified targets for…

Dr. Chunhuan Lao

Waikato Clinical Campus, The University of Auckland    Dr. Lao researches Economic evaluation of prostate cancer screening and concludes screening of asymptomatic men for prostate cancer is widely practiced in NZ. She identified that better targeting and screening would be more cost-effective. Dr. Chunhuan Lao, Waikato Clinical Campus, The University of Auckland Back to Scientists…

Dr. Logan Voss

Waikato DHB   One of Dr. Voss’ goals in his research is to understand how general anaesthetics affect the brain to cause unconsciousness. The aim is to improve intra-operative anaesthesia monitoring and reduce the occurrence of anaesthetic awareness. Dr. Logan Voss, Waikato DHB Back to Scientists Hamilton City Council Medical Science Award One of Dr.…

Dr. Jiafa Luo

AgResearch    Nitrous oxide, N2O or commonly known as laughing gas, is produced when excrement from animals is broken down by bacteria in the soil. Once the nitrous oxide is lost to the atmosphere, very little of it is able to be recovered by bacteria and returned to the soil. It is a greenhouse gas…

LIC Genomics/ Biology Team

LIC Genomics/ Biology Team   Heifers from LIC sire, Matrix, had inherited a genetic mutation and passed it on to his daughters. DNA sequence analysis quickly pin-pointed a genetic defect in a key structural part of prolactin, a hormone produced in the pituitary gland and known to be vital for regulating milk production and coat…

Dr. Michael Walmsley

CodeAvengers & University of Waikato   Michael Walmsley Jr. started creating the CodeAvengers.com learning platform in November 2011, launching April 2012, while doing his Ph.D. on the related topic of Computer-Assisted Foreign Language Learning at University of Waikato Computer Science department. Learning from his Ph.D. research about student engagement, language learning pedagogy, user interactivity and…