David Torpy is an endocrinologist at the Royal Adelaide Hospital.  After completing his clinical training, he completed a PhD in Queensland and a postdoc at the NIH, Bethesda, MD USA.  His research interests are in the HPA axis, stress and adrenal disease.  He has continued his academic work in this field and has over 200 publications.  In the early 2000's he described a novel mutation of the corticosteroid binding globulin (CBG) gene and its accompanying phenotype confirmed in a population study in Italy reminiscent of a hypocortisolaemic phenotype.  The findings led to questions regarding the role of CBG in cortisol action and eventually to a study of CBG and its role in sepsis and septic shock.  CBG can be regarded as a gatekeeper in tissue cortisol access, cooperating with cortisol 's role in immunomodulation and survival.   A large observational study in septic shock has revealed that CBG deficiency has a major independent role in mortality in septic shock and further studies examining these findings are in progress, using, in part protein/glycomic analyses.