June Wanda Halliday, AM (née von Alpen, 1930 – 21 March 2021) was an Australian biochemist and researcher of

liver disease Liver disease, or hepatic disease, is any of many diseases of the liver. If long-lasting it is termed chronic liver disease. Although the diseases differ in detail, liver diseases often have features in common. Liver diseases File:Ground gla ...

and iron metabolism. She was a pioneer in the use of serum ferritin and liver iron concentration as diagnostic aids for studying

haemochromatosis Iron overload is the abnormal and increased accumulation of total iron in the body, leading to organ damage. The primary mechanism of organ damage is oxidative stress, as elevated intracellular iron levels increase free radical formation via the ...

Early life

June Wanda von Alpen was born in 1930 in

Brisbane, Queensland Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

. She attended

Somerville House Somerville House is an independent, boarding and day school for girls, located in South Brisbane, an inner-city suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Established in 1899 as the Brisbane High School for Girls, the School was eventually name ...

girls' school from 1937 to 1946 and was School Captain. She studied her BSc at the

University of Queensland The University of Queensland is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone ...

from 1947, graduating with Honours in 1949. One of her early mentors was Ian Mackerras, the first director of the

Queensland Institute of Medical Research The QIMR Berghofer, formerly the Queensland Institute of Medical Research, is an Australian medical research institute and statutory authority located at the Herston Health Precinct in Brisbane, Queensland. The institute was established in 194 ...

. She undertook vacation research work with fellow student Marion Gillies, under the oversight of Dr MacKerras’ wife, parasitologist and researcher Dr Josephine MacKerras. She married microbiologist William Halliday in August 1952. She won a

Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

grant to study overseas and from 1952 to 1955 undertook research toward a PhD at the University of Wisconsin. Her thesis was on biochemistry and bacteriology. Her husband also undertook his doctorate while in the U.S. Upon graduation, she took up a position with the

Middlesex Hospital Middlesex Hospital was a teaching hospital located in the Fitzrovia area of London, England. First opened as the Middlesex Infirmary in 1745 on Windmill Street, it was moved in 1757 to Mortimer Street where it remained until it was finally clos ...

London as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Courtnauld Institute of Biochemistry.

Career

Halliday returned to Australia in 1956 and lectured in biochemistry with the Department of Pathology of the

, researching lead poisoning and haematological problems. University policy at the time would not permit her to work full-time after the birth of her first child. The university relaxed that position in time, and she returned to part-time lecturing and research. In 1967 she moved to the Department of Medicine as an

NHMRC The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) is the main statutory authority of the Australian Government responsible for medical research. It was the eighth largest research funding body in the world in 2016, and NHMRC-funded res ...

Senior Research Officer and remained with this department until 1990. She became Professor and Head of the Liver Unit of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research in 1990. Halliday retired in 1996.

Later life

Halliday was honoured with an

Order of Australia Medal The Order of Australia is an Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of then ...

(A.M.) for services to medical research in 1990. A Festschrift celebrating her career with the Queensland Institute of Medical Research was prepared in 1996. Halliday was Secretary/Treasurer of the International Association for the Study of the Liver and President of the Gastroenterological Society of Queensland.

Personal life and death

In 1952, she married fellow student William J. Halliday of Melbourne. They had three children. June Halliday died on 21 March 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halliday, June 1930 births 2021 deaths Australian biochemists Australian women chemists Academic staff of the University of Queensland University of Queensland alumni People educated at Somerville House Scientists from Brisbane