CRC Member: Professor Jenny Couper

Head of the CRC and leader of the Childhood Diabetes Stream in the Children's Research Centre, Professor Jennifer Couper is McGregor Reid Professor of Paediatrics, head of the Discipline of Paediatrics and deputy head of the School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Heath (Faculty of Health Sciences), University of Adelaide.  Professor Cooper is the head of the Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes (Women and Childrens Hospital, CYWHS), Adelaide, which cares for over 2000 children and adolescents with diabetes and other endocrine disorders.  She is the principal investigator of the South Australian arm of Trial net Consortium, intranasal insulin trial II and Adolescent Diabetes Intervention trial (AdDIT). 

Professor Cooper trained in paediatric endocrinology in Melbourne, the United Kingdom and Canada.  She has served on the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (JDRFI) professional panel, the Australian Diabetes Society Council, the National Diabetes Federal Government Strategy Group, SAC Endocrinology of Royal College of Physicians, Australasian Paediatric Endocrine Group Council, Working Party for NHMRC Guidelines for the Management of Childhood Diabetes and as a contributor to the International Society of Paediatric and Adolescent Diabetes Management Guidelines. Professor Couper has published 70 peer-reviewed articles, including Diabetes Care (Impact Factor 7.8), Diabetes (IF 8.9) Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (IF 6.0) Pediatrics (IF 4.3) Journal of Pediatrics (IF 3.8), Lancet (IF 21.0) and Journal of Clinical Investigation (IF 15.0 ). For a full list, search under 'Couper J' on MedLine; recent representative publications are provided below.

• Couper JJ , Beresford S, Hirte C, Baghurst P, Pollard A, Tait, B Harrison L and Colman P. Weight gain in early life predicts risk of islet autoimmunity in children with a first degree relative with type 1 diabetes. Diabetes Care 2009 32(1): 94-9
• Pena A, Wiltshire E, Gent R, Hirte C, Piotto L and Couper JJ. Adiponectin relates to smooth muscle function and folate in obese non diabetic children. International Journal of Pediatric Obesity 2009 (in press)
• McKenzie K, Wiltshire E, Gent R, Hirte C, Piotto L, Couper JJ. High sensitivity-CRP is associated with weight, BMI and female sex but not with endothelial function in children with type I diabetes. Pediatric Diabetes 2009 10(1): 44-51
• Couper JJ and Pena A (editorial). Folate, homocysteine and candidate genes for vascular disease in children with type 1 diabetes. Pediatric Diabetes (2008) 9: 345-7
• Couper JJ and Donaghue K. ISPAD Clinical Practice Consensus Guidelines 2006-7. Phases of diabetes. Pediatric Diabetes (2007) 8(1): 44
• Pena A, Wiltshire E, Gent R, Hirte C, Piotto L and Couper JJ. Folate does not improve vascular function in obese children. Diabetes Care 2007 30(8):2122-7
• Pena A, Wiltshire E, MacKenzie K, Gent R, Hirte C, Piotto L and Couper JJ. Vascular endothelial and smooth muscle function relates to body mass index and glucose in obese and non-obese children. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 2006;91:4467-71
• McKenzie K, Wiltshire E, Gent R, Hirte C, Piotto L and Couper JJ. Folate and vitamin B12 rapidly normalise endothelial function in children with type 1 diabetes. Pediatrics 2006;118(1):242-53