Position
Honorary Associate

Qualifications
MSc (NUI) PhD (Lond)

Dr Margaret Bermingham retired from her Senior Lecturer position, but has maintained a presence in an honorary capacity, and continues to supervise her postgraduate research students.

Dr Bermingham's  broad research area is cholesterol lipoprotein biochemistry and biochemical epidemiology.  More specifically, she carries out studies on modifiable disease risk factors in different populations, including specific ethnic groups (for example, Vietnamese, Indian and Korean), adolescents, and the elderly. This work seeks to identify at-risk groups in the community, and prevent large-scale progression into high risk categories.  The risk factors investigated include metabolic (blood cholesterol, insulin levels), anthropometric (body mass, body fat distribution), and those pertaining to body composition.  She is also involved in the study of biochemical complications of obesity, and hormone responses to resistance training.

One of Dr Bermingham's current research projects involves a cohort of newly-arrived immigrants.  They will be followed up after spending five years in Australia to  investigate the effect of Australian living on biochemical and other risk factors for disease.  Her other projects include studies of: cardiac risk in Indian immigrants; lipoprotein subclasses in prepubertal children and their parents; lipid and hormone responses to resistance training in adolescent boys; postprandial lipid responses to resistance training.

Dr Bermingham is the leader of the Metabolic Biochemistry Faculty Research Group.  The aim of the group is to foster a more rapid development of research through student  supervision, training of junior staff, and an improvement of research productivity of all  members.  Dr Bermingham is also a regular reviewer of the International Journal of Obesity, the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition and the Australian Journal of Public Health.

Titles of some of her recent publications are available.

For more information: