Thimo Ruethers

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 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), Adjunct Scientist at The Bioinformatics Institute (BII, A*STAR, Singapore) and Adjunct Senior Lecturer at JCU Australia’s College of Science and Engineering (CSE), 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).

He served as Guest editor for Foods and has been a reviewer for multiple journals including Allergy, Allergology International, Antibodies, Asian Pacific Journal of Allergy and Immunology, Clinical and Experimental Allergy, Food Chemistry, Food Control, Foods, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, Molecular Immunology, and World Allergy Organization Journal.

Media and Stories - online, print, radio and TV

2025

• Hooked on safety: Sustainable foods for those with fish allergies
  
• Gummy shark: A safe sustainable option for allergic kids?
• Feeding seaweed to nurture sustainable future foods: Cell-cultivated meat and seafood
  

2024

• Insect food poses allergy risks: Researchers highlight the need for insect-specific allergen tests
• Insect-based food could trigger allergies
• Bed Bugs & Dust Mites: Are These Tiny Insects Living In Your Bed?

2023

• Canned fish poses potential risks for fish allergy sufferers
• Canned fish can still trigger allergic reactions
• Are allergy skin prick tests unreliable?
• Allergy skin prick tests can give unreliable results
• Allergy tests come up short
• A deeper dive into shellfish allergy diagnosis
• Laboratory trials unveil risk of false results in allergy tests

2022

• Food Innovations and Health Aspects
• Vetting alternative menus for food allergy sufferers
• Crocodile meat can be a dangerous alternative for people allergic to fish

2021

• Tackling Allergies to Fish and other Potential Culprits - 3MT Winner

2020

• Fish allergies and sustainability
• New fish allergy triggers found
• Fish allergy: collagen often overlooked as an important allergen
• Food tests could put Aussie lives at risk

2019

• Unlabelled allergens rife in imported food
• Hooked on Fish Allergies
• The deadly danger of crocs on the plate
• Seafood allergy skin prick tests 'unreliable'
• Fishy diagnostics for food allergy testing
• Ray of hope for fish allergy sufferers