Associate ProfessorSharon La Fontaine

As an Associate Professor of Biomedical Science and Career Education, my lab-based research has focused on the role of metals in health and disease; while my teaching and higher education research focus on career education and work-integrated learning (WIL), to equip science students with the lifelong capabilities, confidence and agency to effectively manage their employability and career development in a rapidly evolving workforce.

Throughout my career, I have been committed to mentoring students at all levels (secondary, undergraduate and postgraduate), supporting their development as professionals and guiding them toward successful careers. I have significant leadership and teaching experience in curriculum and assessment design in Work Integrated Learning (WIL) and career education; and my contributions have been recognised with several internal awards for teaching excellence and enhancing STEM student employability (School, Faculty and Vice Chancellor's Awards), and a 2025 Australian Award for University Teaching (AAUT): Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning.

Following a PhD in Microbiology at Monash University, I joined The Murdoch Institute (now the Murdoch Children's Research Institute) where I studied the molecular basis of mammalian copper metabolism. I contributed to fundamental advances into the molecular basis of copper homeostasis, illuminating the complexities of the biochemistry and cell biology of the copper-transporting P-type ATPases and how defects in these proteins lead to the devastating effects seen in the genetically inherited copper deficiency and toxicity disorders, Menkes and Wilson diseases, respectively. During 12 months in the Laboratory of Prof Sabeeha Merchant at UCLA, USA (1999-2000), I studied copper and iron metabolism in the model photosynthetic organism, the unicellular green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. I returned to Deakin University with a prestigious NHMRC R.D. Wright Fellowship and established a research program elucidating copper protein networks for a holistic understanding of the proteins and pathways that contribute to cellular copper handling. My contributions, reflected by sustained scholarly impact (H-index 32, Scopus/Google Scholar) and a 2016 Bethlehem Griffiths Research Foundation Award for outstanding contribution to medical research, have informed ongoing research into the role of copper in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and motor neuron diseases.

I have supervised Honours, Masters and PhD students, and as a Graduate Research Coordinator for the School of Life and Environmental Sciences, I have helped shape the academic and professional development of hundreds of postgraduate students while supporting excellence in supervision.