Thimo Ruethers

Thimo is an early career researcher and science communicator with high expertise in medical sciences, protein-chemistry and clinical research, biochemical, immunological and analytical laboratory techniques, and thorough experience in leading interdisciplinary and international projects. He holds a PhD (cum laude) in Medical and Molecular Sciences from JCU (primary supervision by Prof. Andreas L. Lopata), and both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Biochemistry from Heinrich Heine University of Düsseldorf (HHU, Germany) with specialised research training in Europe and the Asia-Pacific. His highest research expertise is in exploring food proteins and their role in allergic diseases. He is globally known for his work on fish allergy. In his pioneering PhD thesis and associated publications, he tackled this highly complex food allergy from the molecular to the global level. He has evaluated the allergenicity (ability to trigger an allergic reaction) of more than 100 fish species and other related vertebrates, unravelling the multifaceted causes of fish allergies and identifying better ways to diagnose and manage this potentially deadly immune disease, which afflicts millions globally.

His primary research activities focus on molecular interactions between food and humans with an emphasis on the immune system. Aiming for translational collaborative research excellence, he is always interested in hearing from students keen on HDR projects, academics, companies and other stakeholders. Overall and foremost, Thimo seeks to help overcome challenges in securing humanity's (alternative) food protein needs under careful consideration of food safety, allergic diseases and planetary health.

Thimo is a Research Fellow at the Tropical Futures Institute (TFI, JCU, Singapore) and The Bioinformatics Institute (BII, A*STAR, Singapore). He is Adjunct to JCU’s College of Public Health, Medical & Veterinary Sciences (CPHMVS), Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM), Centre for Molecular Therapeutics (CMT), Centre for Tropical Bioinformatics and Molecular Biology (CTBMB), and Centre for Sustainable Tropical Fisheries and Aquaculture (CSTFA). He is also a member of the Singapore Society for Mass Spectrometry (SMSS), Australia’s National Allergy Centre of Excellence Food Stream Advisory Group (NACE, only overseas member); Centre for Food Allergy Research (CFAR, first international scholar), a Centre of Research Excellence by the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC);the World Allergy Organization (WAO), Asia Pacific Association of Allergy, Asthma and Clinical Immunology (APAAACI), Asia Pacific Association of Pediatric Allergy, Respirology and Immunology (APAPARI), European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), Australian and New Zealand Society for Immunology (ASI), Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia (A&AA), and inVIVO Planetary Health Network (inVIVO).

Media and Stories - print, online, radio and TV

• Oct 2023: Canned fish poses potential risks for fish allergy sufferers
• Sep 2023: Are allergy skin prick tests unreliable?
• Sep 2023: Allergy skin prick tests can give unreliable results
• Sep 2023: A deeper dive into shellfish allergy diagnosis
• Aug 2023: Laboratory trials unveil risk of false results in allergy tests
• May 2023: Vetting alternative menus for food allergy sufferers
• May 2023: Crocodile meat can be a dangerous alternative for people allergic to fish
• Oct 2022: Food Innovations and Health Aspects
• Sep 2021: Tackling Allergies to Fish and other Potential Culprits
• Oct 2020: Fish allergies and sustainability
• Sep 2020: New fish allergy triggers found
• Aug 2020: Fish allergy: collagen often overlooked as an important allergen
• May 2020: Food tests could put Aussie lives at risk
• Dec 2019: Unlabelled allergens rife in imported food
• Sep 2019: Hooked on Fish Allergies
• May 2019: The deadly danger of crocs on the plate
• Apr 2019: Seafood allergy skin prick tests 'unreliable'
• Apr 2019: Fishy diagnostics for food allergy testing
• Jan 2019: Ray of hope for fish allergy sufferers