Research projects

Showing all 215 projects

• Stroke
  The Australian Stroke Clinical Registry (AuSCR)

  The Australian Stroke Clinical Registry (AuSCR) is a collaborative national effort to monitor, promote and improve the quality of acute stroke care.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Dominique Cadilhac
• Accepting students
  Developing an antisense therapy approach for Kennedy’s disease

  
  Supervisor: Dr Fazel Shabanpoor
• Accepting students
  Development of BBB-permeable ASO for selective knockdown of ataxin-2 to abrogate TDP-43 proteinopathies as a broad therapeutic strategy for ALS

  
  Supervisor: Dr Fazel Shabanpoor
• Accepting students
  Development of peptide-oligonucleotide conjugates to knockdown poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase as a novel RNA-based therapy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

  
  Supervisor: Dr Fazel Shabanpoor
• Accepting students
  Making neuromuscular junctions in vitro using patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells

  
  Supervisor: Dr Samantha Barton
• Accepting students
  Using patient induced pluripotent stem cells to determine the role of astrocytes in disease

  
  Supervisor: Dr Samantha Barton
• Accepting students
  Using patient induced pluripotent stem cells to determine the role of oligodendrocytes in disease

  
  Supervisor: Dr Samantha Barton
• Accepting students
  Making brain organoids from patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells

  
  Supervisor: Dr Samantha Barton
• Using novel mouse models to determine the role of oligodendrocytes in disease

  
  Supervisor: Dr Samantha Barton
• Accepting students
  Using DREADDs to deconstruct motor neuron disease

  
  Supervisor: Dr Mouna Haidar
• Accepting students
  Investigating autophagy inducers as a therapeutic strategy for motor neuron disease

  
  Supervisor: Dr Nirma Perera
• Accepting students
  Investigating the autophagy pathway in a novel C9ORF72 mouse model of motor neuron disease

  
  Supervisor: Dr Nirma Perera
• Accepting students
  Using gene expression profiling to understand selective cell vulnerability in MND

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Bradley Turner
• Accepting students
  Defining unique molecular markers of upper motor neurons in MND

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Bradley Turner
• Bowel dysfunction in Multiple Sclerosis

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ruslan Pustovit
• Accepting students
  Novel heteromeric receptors in gut control:  ghrelin receptors and dopamine receptors working together

  
  Supervisor: Professor John Furness
• Accepting students
  Accelerating disease in patient iPS cells using the living brain model of MND & PD.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Christopher Bye
• Motor Neurone Disease, STEM
  Accepting students
  Mapping the origin and onset of MND - Transcriptomic profiling of motor neuron populations in MND.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Bradley Turner
• Stroke, STEM
  Accepting students
  AVERT DOSE | Determining the most effective mobility training program early after stroke

  The main aim of the AVERT DOSE trial is to identify the best early mobility training program for people with ischaemic stroke (i.e. caused by a blood clot in the brain) of mild and moderate severity.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke, STEM
  To what extent does the physical environment impact on affective, cognitive, and physical responses of people with brain injury?

  A road-map for design of a hospital environment that can shape brain recovery

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  A framework for optimising the design of rehabilitation facilities: Reframing stroke rehabilitation spaces as learning spaces

  The aim of this study is to describe what should be prioritised in the design of inpatient stroke rehabilitation facilities so that the design of these facilities can be optimised for patients’ learning.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  A descriptive survey of adult inpatient physical rehabilitation facility buildings in Victoria, Australia

  The design of hospital buildings can impact clinical efficiency, outcomes, and well-being.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke, STEM
  Accepting students
  The ENVIRONS (ENVironments for Inpatient RehabilitatiON of Stroke patients) study

  A mixed methods multiple-case study to understand how the built environment of inpatient stroke rehabilitation facilities may best promote efficiency, effectiveness, emotional well-being, and safety

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Cardiovascular disease, Stroke, STEM
  AVERT | Factors related to time to recovery of independent walking

  We aim to investigate the relationship between pre-stroke factors and factors collected within 24 hours of stroke and number of days to walking 50 metres unassisted using data from A Very Early Rehabilitation Trial (AVERT)

  
  Supervisor: Dr Kate Hayward
• Cardiovascular disease, Stroke
  Pre-Hospital Real-time cOMmunication using Pulsara Technology (PROMPT) Project

  The Pre-hospital Real-time Communication using Pulsara Technology (PROMPT) project examines how using the PulsaraTM STOP stroke/STEMI smartphone application (Pulsara) smartphone app can assist in delivering timely care to patients experiencing acute cardio

  
  Supervisor: Professor Christopher Bladin
• Epilepsy, STEM, Genetics
  Accepting students
  Functional characterization of epilepsy-causing mutations

  The aim of this project is to examine the biophysical properties of ion channel variants detected in patients with epilepsy using non-neuronal cell models.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Snezana Maljevic
• Epilepsy, STEM, Genetics
  Accepting students
  Multiphoton imaging of patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cell-derived brainoids

  This project combines stem cell biology with novel imaging techniques to aid the understanding of genetic epilepsy mechanisms.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Snezana Maljevic
• Parkinson’s, STEM
  Accepting students
  Multiple System Atrophy: a rare Parkinsonsim

  This project aims to better understand the biology of MSA

  
  Supervisor: Professor David Finkelstein
• Anxiety, Behaviour, Bipolar disorder, Depression, Mental Health, STEM
  Accepting students
  CaMKK2 control of neuronal function and complex behaviour in health and disease

  This multidisciplinary project will identify the key role of the enzyme, CaMKK2, in the regulation of mouse brain function and behaviour, and provide novel insights into the cause and treatment of clinical psychiatric disorders.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Gundlach
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia
  Accepting students
  Defining the effects of the sleep-wake cycle on astrocyte phenotypes

  Evaluating astrocyte phenotypes in mice during different vigilance states dominated by either wake, NREM or REM sleep

  
  Supervisor: Dr Laura Jacobson
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia
  Accepting students
  Manipulating circadian rhythm to modulate tau pathology

  This project aims to define the effects of changing light/dark cycles on the development of tau pathology in tau transgenic mice.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Laura Jacobson
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia
  Accepting students
  Defining the effects of stress versus hyperarousal on tauopathy in Alzheimer’s disease

  This project will assess the effects of chronic mild stress versus chronic sleep disruption on pathology in tau transgenic mice.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Laura Jacobson
• Cardiovascular disease, Stroke
  Accepting students
  Modelling transient ischemic attack

  This projects aims to develop a behavioural testing paradigm for cognitive and motor assessment after minor stroke in rat

  
  Supervisor: Dr Charlotte Ermine
• Cancer, STEM, Pain
  Extracellular vesicles in glioblastoma tissue

  An individual who is diagnosed with aggressive brain cancer has a less than 3% chance of survival in the ~12-15 months following diagnosis. Despite decades of research, the cause of aggressive brain cancer is unknown and despite repeated efforts there is n

  
  Supervisor: Dr Laura Vella
• Stroke, STEM, Genetics
  Accepting students
  Common and rare variants underlying vascular remodelling of brain arteries in young patients with TIA and stroke

  We are investigating the genetics of stroke

  
  Supervisor: Professor Vincent Thijs
• Stroke, STEM
  Accepting students
  Modulators of Stroke Recovery

  
  Supervisor: Professor Vincent Thijs
• Stroke, STEM
  Diabetes and impaired glycemic control as risk factors for stroke outcome - mendelian randomization

  Diabetes and impaired glycemic control are risk factors for stroke. It is unclear whether diabetes and impaired glycemic control lead to worse functional outcome after stroke. 

  
  Supervisor: Professor Vincent Thijs
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Anxiety, Behaviour, Dementia, Depression, Mental Health, STEM, Pain
  Accepting students
  Neuromodulatory control of complex behaviour and memory by relaxin-3/RXFP3 networks

  A major research interest of our laboratory is elucidating the role of neuropeptide signalling in the control of complex modalities such as arousal, stress, mood, and sensory integration, and the associated cognitive processes, under both normal and neurop

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Gundlach
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  Prediction of post-stroke falls and fractures to improve outcomes for stroke survivors: what can we learn from AVERT data?

  In this study you will examine data from the large multi-centre international AVERT trial to guide stroke rehabilitation clinical guidelines

  
  Supervisor: Dr Karen Borschmann
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  Right dose, right person, right time: Advancing stroke rehabilitation paradigms

  Our goal is to find breakthrough treatments that achieve a meaningful shift in the upper limb recovery profile post-stroke.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Kate Hayward
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  New Optimised Virtual Environment Living Lab: Using virtual reality and design science to redesign stroke rehabilitation environments

  This project aims to develop a model for the redesign and testing of hospital based rehabilitation, integrating new knowledge about brain plasticity and neuroscience with cutting edge architectural solutions to create the ‘ideal’ rehabilitation se

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke, STEM
  Accepting students
  The brain benefits of exercise training after stroke

  The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of exercise on the brain's capacity for motor learning.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Anxiety, Behaviour, Dementia, Depression, Mental Health, STEM
  Accepting students
  Rare cortical projection-neurons: function in arousal, sleep and neuropathology

  This project seeks to identify the role of the relaxin peptide signalling system in brain function, physiology, and behaviour in mice, and to provide insights into potentially novel treatments for multiple neurological disorders.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Gundlach
• Anxiety, Behaviour, Depression, Epigenetics, Mental Health, STEM
  Accepting students
  How do paternal experiences impact offspring behaviour, physiology and reproductive fitness?

  This project has a broad scope to address multiple aspects of transgenerational research and offers students the opportunity to learn a range of research techniques.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Terence Pang
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia
  Accepting students
  Swallowing disorders in dementia

  The enormous efforts devoted towards finding the cause and cure for dementia have so far failed, with clinical trials being unsuccessful in improving or reducing the progressive worsening of cognitive impairment.

  
  Supervisor:
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia, Huntington’s disease, Motor Neurone Disease, Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Characterising brainstem neurons undergoing tauopathy

  Mutations in the tau gene lead to the accumulation of hyperphosphorylated tau as neurofibrillary tangles, which are pathological hallmarks of neurodegenerative diseases

  
  Supervisor:
• Dementia, Motor Neurone Disease, Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Movement disturbances in frontotemporal dementia

  This project examines the onset and progression of movement disorders using a mouse model of frontotemporal dementia bearing the Tau-P301L mutation.

  
  Supervisor:
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  Central cardiovascular control: what are the cardiovascular actions of of stromal cell-derived factor 1 (SDF-1) in the area postrema?

  Elucidating the role of SDF-1 in the area postrema in modulating cardiovascular function

  
  Supervisor: Dr Song Yao
• Motor Neurone Disease
  Accepting students
  Development of Stem Cell based therapies for Motor Neurone Disease

  Developing a stem cell based treatment for motor neurone disease patients

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Lachlan Thompson
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  Rebuilding the brain after stroke

  Developing a stem cell based treatment for stroke patients

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Lachlan Thompson
• Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Parkinson’s disease in a dish

  Developing a stem cell model of Parkinson's disease for testing new therapies

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Lachlan Thompson
• Cardiovascular disease, Gut biology and disease
  Accepting students
  High fat diets, gut health and diabetes

  Recent human dietary changes have included large increases in the proportions of fats in the diet. These diets are a threat to gut and liver health and for the development of diabetes.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Rachel McQuade
• Gut biology and disease
  Accepting students
  Neuro-immune interactions: nerve pathways controlling inflammation in the intestine

  It is well known that enteric nerves respond to inflammation causing changes in the function of the gut, but recently it has become clear that nerves also act back on the immune cells in the gut to control inflammation.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Martin Stebbing
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  Pacemaker channels and brain excitability

  The brain is an intricate electrical machine that needs to be nimble enough to adapt quickly to information but can’t be too unstable for risk of having seizures.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Chris Reid
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  Trying to stop Sudden Unexpected Death in EPilepsy (SUDEP)

  Many patients with epilepsy die unexpectedly-often in their sleep. What is causing SUDEP remains a mystery and to date there are no treatments available.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Chris Reid
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  Finding a cure for a devastating form of epilepsy

  Epileptic encephalopathy is a severe disease that is characterised by intractable seizures and neurodevelopmental delays.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Chris Reid
• Huntington’s disease
  Accepting students
  Modulating metals homeostasis to treat neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders

  Similar to other neurodenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, iron levels seem to be increased in Huntington’s disease (HD).

  
  Supervisor: Dr Thibault Renoir
• Anxiety, Behaviour, Depression, Epigenetics
  Accepting students
  Do the beneficial effects of exercise involve miRNA-mediated regulation of gene expression?

  Emerging evidence suggests that microRNAs (miRNAs) contribute to the pathogenesis of stress-related disorders, including depression and anxiety.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Thibault Renoir
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  Modulating innate immune cells as a potential therapy for Multiple Sclerosis

  There is an emerging consensus that the progression of disability in MS correlates with the accumulation of axonal degeneration, which in turn is influenced by the extent of demyelination and the loss of oligodendrocytes.

  
  Supervisor: Ms Michele Binder
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  Multiple Sclerosis Susceptibility Genes and the Immune System

  Many of the genes that affect whether an individual is at higher risk of developing Multiple Sclerosis have been identified, but their effect on the potentially altered development and function of the immune system in MS is unknown.

  
  Supervisor: Ms Michele Binder
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  The TAM family and Multiple Sclerosis

  We have identified an important set of three receptors (the TAM family) expressed on both immune cells and oligodendrocytes in the brain which influence the severity of demyelinating disease.

  
  Supervisor: Ms Michele Binder
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  Next generation sequencing in multiple sclerosis

  Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common neurodegenerative disease in young adults, affecting over 20,000 people in Australia.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Justin Rubio
• STEM
  Novel MRI methods to study dynamic brain connectivity

  MRI provides a powerful means to study structural and functional brain connectivity non-invasively.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Fernando Calamante
• Imaging
  Mapping cerebral haematocrit using MRI

  The percentage blood volume occupied by red blood cells is known as haematocrit. While it is straightforward to measure haematocrit in large arteries, it is very challenging to do it in the tissue (cerebral haematocrit).

  
  Supervisor: Professor Fernando Calamante
• Imaging
  MRI brain parcellation based on data-driven methods

  One of the Lab’s research interest is the use of brain connectivity information (and, in particular, in combining structural and functional connectivity information) to perform data-driven parcellation of the brain (i.e. sub-division of the brain structure

  
  Supervisor: Professor Fernando Calamante
• Imaging
  Mapping myeloarchitecture using diffusion MRI

  The spatial organization of myelinated fibres in the cortex makes it possible to parcellate areas based on their myeloarchitecture, due to differences in the properties of the fibre layers and radial fibres.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Fernando Calamante
• Imaging
  Super-resolution MRI methods for the Human Brain Connectome

  Our group has shown that the technique of diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) can be used to obtain an estimate of the macroscopic white matter fibre orientations at each location in the brain, which in turn can be used with a fibre-tracking algorit

  
  Supervisor: Professor Fernando Calamante
• Imaging
  Perfusion MRI: novel methods to image cerebral blood flow and brain function

  Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) provides a powerful non-invasive tool to measure the rate of blood delivery to brain tissue (also known as cerebral perfusion).

  
  Supervisor: Professor Fernando Calamante
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  Cognition And Neocortical Volume After Stroke (CANVAS)

  For more information on this study, please visit the CANVAS page in our Clinical Cognitive Neuroscience Lab

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  Post-Stroke Longitudinal Imaging & Behavioural Change in Rodent Models

  Dementia and cognitive impairment are becoming increasingly recognised as major complications occurring in patients post-stroke and are associated with higher rates of mortality, institutionalisation and greater healthcare costs.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Dementia, Diabetes
  Accepting students
  Diabetes and Dementia (D2)

  Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and dementia are two of the most common and most disabling conditions worldwide, responsible for an enormous and growing burden of disease.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Stroke
  Post Ischaemic Stroke Cardiovascular Exercise Study (PISCES)

  Ischemic stroke (i.e., the temporary reduction in blood flow to a part of the brain leading to brain injury) and dementia (i.e., the progressive reduction in thinking skills, behaviour, mood, and the ability to live independently, due to brain volume loss)

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Motor Neurone Disease
  Bereavement and Grief in Neurodegenerative Disease (BAGINS)

  The aim of this study is to look at the experience of grief and loss in AD, bvFTD and MND, to see if there are differences between different diagnoses, and to use that information to develop resources and an intervention to address grief.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Motor Neurone Disease
  Motor Speech Disorders in Degenerative Brain Disease

  Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is the second most common form of younger onset dementia after Alzheimer’s disease. There are three different forms of FTD, the most common being the behavioural variant (bvFTD), which affects behaviour and social cognition.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Dementia
  Evaluating Imaging Methods in Dementia (TIMID)

  Trials of Imaging Modalities In Dementia (TIMID) study is an exploratory, pilot study investigating the best imaging modality for the diagnosis of dementia due to Alzheimer’s Dementia (AD) in an Australian sample - that is, the imaging modality with the g

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  Is stroke neurodegenerative? A longitudinal study of changes in brain volume and cognition after stroke (CANVAS: Cognition And Neocortical Volume After Stroke)

  Stroke and dementia are responsible for an enormous and growing burden of disease.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Dementia
  Network disruptions following brain infarction: cognition, behaviour and regional brain volume change

  One in 3 Australians will develop dementia after retirement. Thirty percent of the cost of dementia care is driven by the management of the behavioural and psychiatric symptoms of dementia, an estimated $USD200 billion globally.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Amy Brodtmann
• Stroke
  Accepting students
  The impact of motivation on stroke rehabilitation

  It remains a puzzle why some stroke survivors show great benefits from rehabilitation while others do not.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  The effect of blue light on post-stroke fatigue

  Debilitating fatigue is a problem that is experienced by more than 50% of stroke survivors. We still understand very little about why fatigue occurs, and lack interventions that can reduce post-stroke fatigue.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Improving recovery early after stroke: Can we make the hospital environment more stimulating?

  Many stroke survivors report being inactive, isolated and bored during their hospital stay.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Increasing physical activity in stroke rehabilitation units – towards an effective solution

  For decades, studies conducted worldwide have found that patient activity levels in stroke rehabilitation units are extremely low, with almost all activity occurring in physiotherapy sessions.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Stratifying stroke patients in rehabilitation and recovery trials

  Key questions in stroke rehabilitation research are who responds to rehabilitation interventions, who doesn’t and why?

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Improving outcome assessment in stroke rehabilitation trials

  Stroke rehabilitation is a multi-faceted process that typically involves a team approach. Post stroke interventions may address a range of impairments, functional deficits and challenges of participation.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Predicting the recovery of walking after stroke

  Who will recover the ability to walk after stroke is poorly understood, but is an important question for stroke survivors and clinicians.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke, STEM
  Virtual Reality Cognitive Assessment in Aphasia

  For both clinicians and researchers, it is important to assess cognitive function after stroke. Yet stroke-related impairments, such as aphasia, often prevent completion of standard pencil-and-paper cognitive assessment tasks.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Fatigue After Stroke Trial (FAST): A randomised controlled study

  Fatigue is experienced by more than 50% of stroke survivors, and leads to reduced independence and quality of life.

  
  Supervisor:
• Stroke
  Examining Exercise Preferences after Stroke

  Many stroke survivors are physically inactive, and this contributes not only to decline in cardiorespiratory fitness, muscle strength and functional independence but also increases the risk of recurrent stroke.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Optimising stroke rehabilitation: Do short exercise sessions improve motor learning after stroke?

  We are only just beginning to understand how rehabilitation after stroke may be optimised, and the need for better therapies is urgent. Promising new evidence suggests that exercise may help to ‘prime’ the brain for learning.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Tina Kaffenberger
• Imaging, Stroke
  Prediction of Long-Term Outcome after Stroke Using Clinically Available Acute Brain Imaging

  Predicting stroke outcome early in the course of disease is of major interest to guide therapies and remove the burden of uncertainty.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Tina Kaffenberger
• Stroke
  Characterising Arm Recovery in People with Severe Stroke (CARPSS)

  The prevalence and severity of stroke related upper limb disability is increasing and the prospect of optimal recovery is poor.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Stroke
  Cerebral Haemodynamics and Orthostatic Response to Upright Posture in Acute Ischaemic Stroke (CHORUS)

  Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability and mortality in Australia. The majority of strokes are ischaemic in nature and occur when a blood vessel to the brain is occluded, usually by a clot.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• STEM
  Accepting students
  Drug discovery targeting α1-adrenoceptors (α1-ARs)

  α1A- and α1B-adrenoceptors (α1A-AR and α1B-AR) are critical receptors that modulate the nervous system in response to binding adrenaline and noradrenaline, and are currently targeted by hypertension drugs.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Daniel Scott
• Mental Health, Schizophrenia, STEM
  Accepting students
  Designing allosteric modulators of the neurotensin receptor 1 (NTS1) as potential drugs for schizophrenia

  Neurotensin (NT) is a 13-residue peptide expressed in the central nervous (CNS) gastro-intestinal and cardiovascular systems.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Daniel Scott
• STEM
  Accepting students
  Enabling technologies for structure based drug design at G protein coupled receptors

  G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are a large family of proteins (>800 gene members) located on the surface of all cells in the body, particularly in the brain.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Daniel Scott
• Mental Health, STEM
  Accepting students
  Studies on G protein-coupled receptors; structure, function and drug development

  The largest single class of drug targets is the G Protein-Coupled Receptor (GPCR) family, which were targets for 13 of the top 50 prescription drugs sold in the U.S.A. in 2010 (26%).

  
  Supervisor: Professor Ross Bathgate
• Diabetes, STEM
  Accepting students
  Novel insulin mimetics for managing diabetes

  INSL3 is highly expressed in the Leydig cells of the testis and has a critical role in testis descent.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Akhter Hossain
• Gut biology and disease, STEM
  Accepting students
  Novel insulin-like peptide 5 mimetics for controlling colon motility

  Constipation is a serious problem that accounts for ~8 million annual physician visits (USA) and is associated with significant morbidity and reduced quality of life.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Akhter Hossain
• Addiction
  Accepting students
  Novel relaxin-3 mimetics for controlling feeding and motivated behaviour

  Eating disorders and addictions, in particular obesity and excessive food consumption, are a major health concern in Australia and worldwide; and there is an urgent need to better and fully define the neurochemicals and neural circuits controlling motivate

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Akhter Hossain
• STEM
  Accepting students
  Novel single-chain peptide mimetics, B7-33, for the treatment of fibrosis

  Fibrosis and related disorders are among the leading causes of death worldwide highlighting the need for more direct and improved anti-fibrotic strategies.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Akhter Hossain
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  Developing small peptidomimetics to target RXFP1 for the treatment of acute heart failure

  Florey patented H2 relaxin was recently granted a “breakthrough therapy” designation by the FDA for the treatment of acute heart failure.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Akhter Hossain
• STEM
  Accepting students
  Developing novel chemical methods to produce insulin mimetics

  Central to the successful clinical use of new and improved insulin analogues is the availability of efficient methods to prepare them in high overall yield and purity.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Akhter Hossain
• Mental Health, STEM
  Accepting students
  Developing peptidomimetics of insulin-like peptide 5, a novel orexigenic gut hormone, to target its GPCR, RXFP4

  Obesity has been termed a “worldwide epidemic” by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Conversely, anorexia and cachexia are significant health problems that cause high mortality.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Akhter Hossain
• Autism
  Accepting students
  Understanding autism

  Our group aims to understand the molecular cause of autism and to discover therapeutic interventions.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Wah Chin Boon
• Behaviour, Mental Health, STEM
  Accepting students
  Presynaptic dysfunction in neurodevelopmental disorders

  Neurodevelopmental disorders are a devastating group of conditions characterised by developmental impairments, which usually manifest in infants and children.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Sarah Gordon
• Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Presynaptic dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease

  Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder, affecting 7 million people worldwide.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Sarah Gordon
• Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Overcoming the sprouting limit of axons in the brain - using biomaterials for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease

  Current pharmacological or surgical therapies for Parkinson’s disease (PD) offer only symptomatic relief.

  
  Supervisor: Professor David Finkelstein
• Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Does early life exposure to iron represent a risk for Parkinson’s disease?

  Brain iron increases with age; a phenomenon that is further accelerated in Parkinson’s disease.

  
  Supervisor: Professor David Finkelstein
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  Uncovering the role of exosome derived lipids in Alzheimer’s disease

  Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive dementia affecting more than 40 million people worldwide.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Laura Vella
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  Discovering how toxic proteins traffic from cell to cell in Alzheimer’s disease

  Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive and unremitting neurodegenerative disorder characterized by impairments in cognition and memory.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Laura Vella
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  Are exosomes driving Alzheimer’s disease pathogenesis?

  Neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and prion disease have distinct clinical manifestations and molecular pathology; however they share common features such as aggregation of disease specific proteins.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Laura Vella
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  The role of tau protein in olfactory processes

  The structural protein tau is implicated in a number of debilitating neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease (PD).

  
  Supervisor: Professor Kevin Barnham
• Depression, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  The role of peroxinitrite in depression

  Nitric oxide (NO) is a gaseous messenger molecule involved in the regulation of signalling of a number of neurotransmitter systems, including serotonin and dopamine, which are systems underlying the neurochemical basis of mood and emotion.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Kevin Barnham
• Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  The influence of alpha-synuclein on olfaction

  Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Kevin Barnham
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Effect of tau phosphorylation on exosome release in cell culture systems

  The structural protein tau is implicated in a number of debilitating neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Kevin Barnham
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  Effect of Abeta on excitotoxic signalling pathways

  The NMDA receptor (NMDAR) is a ligand-gated ion channel essential for normal synaptic function and is vital in learning and memory processes. However, when overstimulated, NMDARs are also responsible for a cascade of toxic events, termed “excitotoxicity”,

  
  Supervisor: Professor Kevin Barnham
• Alzheimer’s Disease, STEM
  Accepting students
  Bioanalytical tools to investigate the role of metalloproteins in Alzheimer’s disease and Motor Neuron Disease.

  Trace elements are an essential requirement for life. Transition elements, including copper (Cu), iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn), are used to catalyse a wonderful array of reactions throughout all kingdoms of nature.

  
  Supervisor:
• Alzheimer’s Disease, STEM
  Accepting students
  What causes a neuron to die? Investigating the essential role of selenium nutrition in neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s

  Selenium is an essential trace element required for normal development. Curiously, out of the entire human genome of ~22,000 genes we only have 25 genes that encode for selenium containing proteins.

  
  Supervisor:
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  Understanding the natural biology of Aß peptides in human brain.

  Alzheimer’s disease involves a significant loss of neurons and a resulting loss in cognitive ability. The defining pathological characteristic of the disease is the formation of plaques of aggregate protein in the cortex of the brain.

  
  Supervisor:
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Biomarker discovery for Neurodegenerative disease

  Alzheimer’s disease is a debilitating slow neurodegenerative disease that is the leading cause of dementia. This disease is characterized by a slow decline in cognitive function, with the greatest risk factor for the disease being age.

  
  Supervisor:
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s
  Accepting students
  Biological inorganic chemistry of copper in the early ubiquitination pathways

  The ubiquitination pathway is an essential post-translational modification (poly-ubiquitination) process for subsequent degradation of proteins by the proteasome.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Zhiguang Xiao
• Alzheimer’s Disease, STEM
  Accepting students
  Molecular mechanism of copper transporting ATPases

  Copper ATPases are key members of P1B-type ATPases that pump heavy metal ions (Cu, Ag, Zn, Cd, Co, Pb) across cell membranes with energy derived from ATP hydrolysis. Copper ATPases pump Cu ions specifically and play vital roles in supplying essential coppe

  
  Supervisor: Dr Zhiguang Xiao
• Motor Neurone Disease
  Generating novel mouse models of Kennedy’s disease

  Spinal bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA), more commonly known as Kennedy's disease (KD), is a X-linked neurodegenerative disorder affecting 1:50,000 males.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Bradley Turner
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Brain injury, STEM
  Accepting students
  Understanding the role of metals in normal and pathological ageing

  One of the broad projects within the lab involves understanding how a dyshomeostasis in metal ions (particularly zinc) may precipitate and potentiate neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Frontotemporal dementia, as well as other condi

  
  Supervisor: Professor Paul Adlard
• Behaviour, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Drug Impacts on Behaviour and Epigenetics

  This project will explore the role of drug actions may play to augment behaviours within and transcending generations.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Graeme Jackson
• STEM
  Accepting students
  Developing better Bionics for Brain stimulation and recording

  This project explores how best to interface neural prosthetic devices into the brain for the treatment of many neurological disorders and sensory related dysfunction.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Antonio Paolini
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  Novel antiepileptic drug targets based on HCN channel antagonists

  About 30% of epilepsy patients are not controlled on currently available antiepileptic drugs. Our laboratory has discovered a novel anti-epileptic drug target.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Chris Reid
• Epilepsy
  Zinc and seizures

  Zn2+ is an essential element having a multitude of biological functions throughout the body. Our research has demonstrated that low brain Zn2+ can increase seizure susceptibility (Hildebrand et al 2015 Sci Rep).

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Chris Reid
• STEM
  Accepting students
  The modulation of sensory perception by the prefrontal cortex

  The brain has many areas specialised for specific functions, which must communicate with one another to generate an internal representation of our surrounding environment.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Lucy Palmer
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  Optogenetic modulation of the area tempestas – an epilepsy hot spot

  Several lines of study have recently converged to reveal a new target for controlling epileptic seizures.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Kay Richards
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  MRI tractography in mouse models of genetic epilepsy: Creation of prognostic and diagnostic structural biomarkers

  Our earlier classical histological analyses have shown that neuronal numbers and positioning are both altered in genetic forms of epilepsy prior to the appearance of overt seizures suggesting that structural changes precede epilepsy.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Kay Richards
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  In vivo electrophysiological analysis in mouse models of genetic epilepsy

  In this project the candidate will use multi-site in vivo unit recording in mouse models of genetic epilepsy to investigate network function and dysfunction in freely moving mice.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Steven Petrou
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  High density multi-electrode array recording of in vitro networks in epilepsy

  In this project the candidate will use high density extracellular multielectrode array recordings to investigate large scale network function.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Steven Petrou
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  High content automated analysis of ion channels in epilepsy

  Discovery of gene mutations in neurological disorders such as epilepsy is outstripping the ability to functionally validate them.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Steven Petrou
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  Projects in network analysis of genetic epilepsy

  Epilepsy impacts around 3% of the population and in many cases has clear genetic underpinnings

  
  Supervisor: Professor Steven Petrou
• Epilepsy, STEM
  Accepting students
  Multi-site patch clamp recording of cortical micro networks

  In this project the candidate will be trained in the use of an emerging method in brain slice electrophysiology that allows for the simultaneous intracellular recording of 4 connected neurons.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Steven Petrou
• Epilepsy
  Accepting students
  Neuroanatomical determinants of susceptibility in a model of genetic epilepsy

  Epilepsy affects ~1-2% of the population, making it the most common neurological disorder. 50% of all epilepsies are genetic generalized epilepsies (GGE), and currently more than 100.000 Australians live with this disease.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Steven Petrou
• Depression, Epilepsy, Imaging, Schizophrenia, STEM
  Accepting students
  “CLARITY” based glass brain imaging in health and disease

  Recent improvements in the histochemical method of optically clearing whole tissues and the joint development of special optics that can image deep into them have created unprecedented views into the wiring of networks.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Steven Petrou
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  The Role of Innate Phagocytosis in the Pathogenesis and Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease (for PhD only)

  Emerging genetic evidence suggests that impaired removal of aggregated or fibrillar Aβ-peptides due to defects in innate phagocytosis is a major contributor to the risk of sporadic Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  Do circulating microvesicles from patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) disrupt the blood-brain barrier (BBB)? (For Honors and MBiomedSc)

  Breakdown of the blood brain barrier (BBB) precedes clinical symptoms of new lesions of MS and it is possible that high numbers of microvesicles in multiple sclerosis (MS) plasma are related to episodes of disruption of the BBB.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• STEM
  Accepting students
  Identification of serum glycoproteins altering innate immunity

  Innate immunity is the first line defense of host against invading pathogens. Phagocytosis of non-opsonized particles (bacteria or viruses not coated by immunoglobulin, complement, etc) is an important part of innate immunity.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Cancer, Mental Health, Multiple sclerosis, STEM
  Accepting students
  How does the brain remove the excess number of neurons during development and aging

  Many more neurons are produced during development than are present in the adult brain.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Cancer
  Accepting students
  Identify the transcriptional regulatory factors of the P2X7 receptor

  P2X7 is an ATP-gated purinergic receptor and plays a broad role in infection, inflammation, autoimmunity, neurodegeneration and oncogenesis.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Cancer
  Accepting students
  Investigation of P2X7 mediated phagocytosis - potential therapeutic target for cancer treatment

  The P2X7 receptor was originally recognized as an ion channel for influx of Ca2+, Mg2+ and efflux of K+.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Multiple sclerosis, STEM
  The role of P2X7 in a mouse model of oligodendrocyte apoptosis

  Oligodendrocytes support the function of nerve cells by producing a fatty substance called myelin that insulates the axons of nerve cells, much like plastic insulation around an electricity cable.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Brain injury
  Accepting students
  The nature of the P2X4 receptor

  The P2X4 receptor is a two trans-membrane ion channel activated by ATP. It is highly expressed on monocytic lineage cells (monocytes, macrophages and microglia) and certain neuronal cells and has been shown to play an important role in neuropathic pain.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  Search the P2X7 related biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease

  Alzheimer’s disease is an age-related dementia with major impact in people aged 60 or over.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ben Gu
• Epilepsy, Imaging
  Clinical Translation

  We are investigating changes in the brain associated with different epilepsy phenotypes using various neuroimaging techniques.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Graeme Jackson
• Epilepsy, Imaging, STEM
  Functional Connectivity in the Brain

  We are investigating changes in functional connectivity of the brain associated with epilepsy.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Graeme Jackson
• Autism, Behaviour, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Investigating social communication in the Neuroligin 3 mouse model of Autism

  Autism is a complex spectrum of disorders characterized by core behavioural deficits in social interaction, communication, and behavioural flexibility.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Emma Burrows
• Anxiety, Behaviour, Bipolar disorder, Depression, Mental Health, Schizophrenia
  Accepting students
  Understanding the role of synaptic genes in cognition and disease

  Sensory information from the environment is ultimately processed at the level of synapses, the connection between neurons that form the most fundamental information-processing units in the nervous system.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Jess Nithianantharajah
• Gut biology and disease
  Accepting students
  Nutrition: The control of gut hormone release by nutrients

  Gut hormones are essential links in the control of obesity and provide novel opportunities for therapeutic intervention.

  
  Supervisor: Professor John Furness
• Gut biology and disease, STEM
  Accepting students
  Gut Health: an intersection of food, environment, animal production and global health

  Gut health can be defined as a condition in which mucosal function is normal and assimilation of nutrients is not compromised. 

  
  Supervisor: Professor John Furness
• Gut biology and disease, Parkinson’s, STEM
  Accepting students
  The gastrointestinal complications of Parkinson’s Disease

  Parkinson’s Disease causes losses in neural control in the digestive system as well as in the central nervous system. Loss of neural control of digestive function commonly occurs before central change is detected.

  
  Supervisor: Professor John Furness
• Gut biology and disease
  Accepting students
  Novel drugs and receptors for targeting neural control of digestive function

  We have made a number of discoveries of new compounds that can modify digestine function, and are conducting animal proof of principal experiments that we hope will lead to clinical trials.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Ruslan Pustovit
• Epilepsy, STEM
  Accepting students
  Next generation vagal nerve stimulation

  Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) is a treatment option for uncontrolled epilepsy (‘refractory epilepsies’) in adults and increasingly children.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Stuart McDougall
• STEM
  Accepting students
  Utilising insect peptide hormones in the mammalian nervous system

  Dissecting neural circuits and assigning function to them is a top priority within neuroscience. Help validate this newest of technologies and demonstrate its power in vitro and in vivo.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Stuart McDougall
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  Viscerosensory pathways in the brain

  This project seeks to define how viscerosensory neural pathways are organised within the brain.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Stuart McDougall
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  Synaptic gating of viscerosensory signals

  We aim to discover the neural pathways that modulate the reflexes that allow optimum organ performance in different circumstances.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Stuart McDougall
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  Inhibitory mechanisms within the nucleus of the solitary tract

  This project aims to determine the synaptic mechanisms underlying reflex strength and flexibility.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Stuart McDougall
• Cardiovascular disease, Diabetes
  Neuroinflammatory mechanisms involved in hypertension and diabetes

  This project will investigate the acute and chronic effects of NF-κB and its activator IkB kinase (IKKβ) in the area postrema. This area is essential for control of the sympathetic system, blood pressure, and blood glucose.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Song Yao
• Cardiovascular disease
  Unravelling the neural circuits that drive increases in sympathetic nerve activity in heart failure

  This project will investigate which cardiovascular brain centres are activated in the short and long term after myocardial infarction.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Song Yao
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  Central cardiovascular control: uncovering the role of inflammatory cytokines in the area postrema

  This project will investigate the effects of different cytokines such as CX3CL1 (fractalkine) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) within the area postrema.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Song Yao
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  Reinnervating the kidneys

  Destroying the nerves supplying the kidneys (renal denervation) using radiofrequency power transfer catheters is being trialled as a novel treatment in patients with drug-resistant hypertension, chronic kidney disease and heart failure.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Lindsea Booth
• Cardiovascular disease
  Unravelling the role of chemokines in central control of the cardiovascular system

  The brain controls the cardiovascular system via a complex network spanning a number of specialised brain structures. We are particularly interested in an area known as the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus or PVN.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Song Yao
• Cardiovascular disease
  Accepting students
  A novel therapy to maintain blood pressure and kidney function in septic shock

  Recently, our laboratory has made several important discoveries in a clinically relevant ovine model of septic shock that we believe will improve management of patients with septic shock.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Yugeesh Lankadeva
• Gut biology and disease
  Accepting students
  Modulation of intestinal inflammation through nerve stimulation

  Neuromodulation (also known as electroceuticals) is a rapidly expanding field. In this project, we are testing how this therapy can be applied to inflammatory bowel disease.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Martin Stebbing
• Gut biology and disease
  Accepting students
  The taxonomy of enteroendocrine cells and their innervation

  The hormone secreting cells of the gastrointestinal tract are essential for normal gut health and are targets for therapy.

  
  Supervisor: Professor John Furness
• Motor Neurone Disease
  Developing SMN gene therapy for SMA and MND

  This project involves testing a novel non-viral SMN gene therapy for SMA using "immunogene" technology.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Bradley Turner
• Motor Neurone Disease
  Targeting exosome-mediated propagation of protein misfolding in MND

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Bradley Turner
• Motor Neurone Disease
  Stimulating autophagy to improve intracellular proteostasis in MND

  This project will investigate the therapeutic effects and action of stimulating autophagy in genetic cell culture and mouse models of MND

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Bradley Turner
• Parkinson’s, STEM
  Accepting students
  Support Cells and Dopaminergic Neurons

  Understanding how the interactions between iron, glia and dopamine change through lifespan will provide new avenues for interventions to prevent cell death in Parkinson’s disease.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Gawain McColl
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s, STEM
  Iron and Biological Ageing

  Metal ions are essential for life with approximately half of all proteins using a metal ion co-factor. However, excess metal ions can be highly toxic. Organs such as the brain accumulates iron through life, which may contribute to disease risk.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Gawain McColl
• Alzheimer’s Disease
  Accepting students
  New animal models of Alzheimer’s disease

  Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common age-related dementia, with the number of affected individuals expected to exceed 100 million worldwide by 2050.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Gawain McColl
• Accepting students
  Rapid animal models of Parkinson’s disease

  While mammalian-based Parkinson’s disease research is clearly a necessary step, sole reliance on mammalian models limits the rate at which new therapeutics can be identified.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Gawain McColl
• Accepting students
  Bioengineered scaffolds for brain repair

  We are developing and testing various nanofibrous scaffolds and hydrogels to provide structural support for stem cells and differentiating neurons in the injured brain.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Clare Parish
• Accepting students
  Generating neuronal subpopulations from pluripotent stem cell sources and their application in disease modelling and brain repair

  The Parish laboratory has a keen interest in the use of pluripotent stem cells for brain repair.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Clare Parish
• Accepting students
  Cell therapy for brain repair focussing on Parkinson’s disease

  Proof of principle for cell replacement therapy in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease was first demonstrated in the clinic using human fetal tissue in the 1980’s.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Clare Parish
• Accepting students
  Developmental specification of midbrain dopamine neurons and their connectivity

  Dopamine neurons, residing within the ventral midbrain (VM), are essential for the control of voluntary movement, emotion and cognitive function, and are affected in a number of neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia and addictio

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Clare Parish
• Epigenetics, Huntington’s disease
  Accepting students
  Therapeutic approaches to dementia and depression in Huntington’s disease

  Huntington’s disease (HD) is an inherited single-gene abnormality that causes neurons in the brain to become dysfunctional and eventually die.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Thibault Renoir
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Anxiety, Behaviour, Depression, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Gene-environment interactions in the regulation of cellular plasticity, cognitive function and behaviour

  The hippocampus is a dynamic brain structure believed to be critical to cognitive functions including memory consolidation and emotion regulation.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Thibault Renoir
• Stroke
  AuSCR Core Research project

  This project investigates the frequency of hospital based healthcare contacts and utilisation in the first year following acute stroke and factors associated with increased hospital utilisation.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Dominique Cadilhac
• Addiction, Alzheimer’s Disease, Anxiety, Autism, Behaviour, Bipolar disorder, Brain injury, Cancer, Cardiovascular disease, Dementia, Depression, Epigenetics, Epilepsy, Huntington’s disease, Imaging, Mental Health, Multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, Schizophrenia, Stroke, STEM
  Accepting students
  Targeting peptide G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) for novel drug development

  Modern GPCR drug development is encumbered by a lack of information about the molecular structure underlying GPCR function and the reliance on cell-based assays that are prone to false positives in drug screening.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Ross Bathgate
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Cardiovascular disease, Epilepsy, STEM
  Accepting students
  Structure-based drug design targeting G-protein-coupled receptors

  To achieve GPCR selectivity we need new ways to identify and design more selective GPCR targeting drugs.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Ross Bathgate
• Addiction, Anxiety, Behaviour, Mental Health, STEM
  Accepting students
  Drug discovery: investigation of signalling by GPCRS using novel cellular biosensors

  GPCRs are the targets for ~30% of all currently used therapeutic drugs. It is critical to understand how these receptors are activated, how they alter cellular function, how such responses are switched off, and how other cellular components can modulate th

  
  Supervisor: Dr Martina Kocan
• Addiction, Anxiety, Depression, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Viral-mediated modulation of neuropeptide GPCR function in brain

  Mental illness is a large and increasing health and economic burden worldwide and more research is urgently required to identify new and innovative therapies.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Ross Bathgate
• Cardiovascular disease, Stroke
  The Victorian Stroke Telemedicine Program

  The Victorian Stroke Telemedicine initiative is a ground breaking program of work that has the potential to transform the way clinicians collaborate to deliver the best care possible to stroke patients irrespective of their

  
  Supervisor: Professor Christopher Bladin
• Anxiety
  Regulation and inhibition of fear memory across development

  This project focuses on the regulation of emotional memory across development, from early childhood to adolescence.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Jee Hyun Kim
• Alzheimer’s Disease, Dementia
  Accepting students
  Memory, cognitive flexibility, and ageing

  People born between 1946 and 1964 (‘‘baby boomers’’) are entering retirement in large numbers. This has major implications both for the individuals and for society.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Jee Hyun Kim
• Anxiety, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Adolescent vulnerability to anxiety: a dopamine story

  Anxiety disorders are a major worldwide public health concern, with ~1 in 4 Australians suffering from a clinically diagnosed anxiety disorder at least once in their lifetime.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Jee Hyun Kim
• Anxiety, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Early life stress and regulation of inhibition and forgetting

  Early life experiences play a pivotal role in shaping personality and psychosocial functioning into adulthood.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Jee Hyun Kim
• Addiction, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Adolescent vulnerability to addiction - gene & behaviour in rodents and humans

  Adolescence represents a unique period of vulnerability to developing drug addiction, with adolescent drug users displaying resistance to treatment and increased liability to relapse.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor Jee Hyun Kim
• Autism, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Utilising Touchscreen technology for preclinical modeling of attention in autism spectrum disorder

  Autism is a complex spectrum of disorders characterized by core behavioural deficits in social interaction, communication, and behavioural flexibility.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Emma Burrows
• Anxiety, Autism, Epigenetics, Mental Health
  Accepting students
  Investigating the inherited paternal influence on offspring cognition and behaviour

  As diploid animals, each individual human being is a genetic combination of their parents. Emerging evidence now indicates that the environment that our parents were exposed to can also influence us.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Terence Pang
• Epigenetics, Mental Health, Schizophrenia
  Accepting students
  Experience-dependent plasticity modulating cognitive deficits in schizophrenia

  Most major brain disorders, including schizophrenia, are a product of complex interactions between genes and environmental factors.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Anthony Hannan
• Epigenetics, Huntington’s disease
  Accepting students
  Gene-environment interactions modulating dementia and depression in a tandem repeat disorder

  Huntington’s disease (HD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder with no known cure. HD is caused by a tandem repeat (CAG) expansion encoding an extended polyglutamine tract in the huntingtin protein. The disease is characterised by progressive psychiatric

  
  Supervisor: Professor Anthony Hannan
• AVERT | International stroke rehabilitation database available for research projects

  
  Supervisor: Professor Julie Bernhardt
• Epilepsy, Imaging
  T2 relaxometry

  T2 relaxometry is a quantitative MR imaging modality that provides an estimate of the T2 relaxation constant of the imaged tissue.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy
  Simultaneous EEG-fMRI

  We have developed improved methods for acquiring and analysing simultaneously acquired EEG and fMRI and we continue our efforts in this field, particularly targeting the investigation of epilepsy.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy
  Quantitative voxel-based analysis of qualitative images

  Abnormalities in the brain can manifest on MRI as changes in shape (morphometry) or changes in the nature of the tissue (signal intensity). Quantitative assessment across the whole brain is possible. 

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy
  Morphometry

  Altered size and shape of brain structures can be observed in association with disease. These abnormalities can be detected using various structural MRI methods including voxel based morphometry and cortical thickness analysis of T1-weighted MRI scans.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy
  Laterality of brain function

  Lateralisation of language function in the brain is often an important question in neurosurgical planning.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy
  Functional MRI Processing Pipelines

  There are many processing and analysis steps undertaken on functional MRI (fMRI) images after they are acquired by the MRI scanner.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy
  Functional connectivity and the human brain functional connectome

  Understanding how the brain works requires knowledge of how brain regions communicate with each other to form large-scale functional networks.

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy
  Artefact reduction in functional MRI

  Functional MRI (fMRI) is subject to a number of noise sources such as brain pulsation and subject motion that can substantially impact the quality of results. 

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Epilepsy, Imaging, STEM
  Accepting students
  Functional neuroimaging analysis to identify brain abnormality in epilepsy

  Combined functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electro-encephalography (EEG) approaches can be used to define the brain networks in patients with epilepsy. 

  
  Supervisor: Associate Professor David Abbott
• Schizophrenia
  Accepting students
  Estrogen and the CNS: Implications for schizophrenia

  A role for sex hormones in the development of schizophrenia has been hypothesized to explain the observed sex difference in the age-of-onset and symptom severity, with women presenting less severe symptoms on average 3 years later than in men.

  
  Supervisor: Dr Andrea Gogos
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  Mertk and the regulation of neural precursor cells

  The recent discovery that stem cells in the brain not only contribute to myelin repair, but also make myelin of normal thickness, offer the potential to enhance the brain's normal repair process.

  
  Supervisor: Ms Michele Binder
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  Microglia in myelination

  This project will identify how microglia interact with myelin to fine-tune structure.

  
  Supervisor: Ms Michele Binder
• Multiple sclerosis
  Accepting students
  Tyro3 in myelination and remyelination

  In multiple sclerosis (MS) the protective sheath around nerves, known as myelin, is damaged and lost. This loss disrupts electrical impulses and exposes nerves to immune attack, leading to their death.

  
  Supervisor: Ms Michele Binder
• Addiction
  Accepting students
  Characterising the neuronal circuitry that underlies salt appetite

  While we need to consume salt, too much can be harmful and is in fact directly linked to ~5% of deaths annually in Australia. We have identified a system in the brain that regulates salt intake.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Lawrence
• Addiction
  Accepting students
  Alcohol and striatal adaptation

  Alcohol drinking and cigarette smoking are amongst the leading worldwide causes of preventable death and disease. Moreover, alcohol and tobacco are commonly co-abused and animal studies have implicated potential overlapping mechanisms of action in the brai

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Lawrence
• Addiction
  Accepting students
  Investigating Alcohol-Related Dementia

  Alcohol-related dementia (ARD) is one of the leading causes of secondary (preventable) dementia, and younger onset dementia (onset of symptoms prior to 65 years) in Australia.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Lawrence
• Addiction
  Context-induced relapse after voluntary abstinence

  Substance abuse is a major health care problem. Accordingly, there is a real need to increase our fundamental understanding of the processes behind addiction, so that more targeted therapeutic strategies can follow.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Lawrence
• Addiction
  Accepting students
  Diet-induced obesity: is it an addiction?

  Can eating junk food compulsively be called an addiction? What brain changes occur when we consume too much fat and sugar?  

  
  Supervisor: Dr Robyn Brown
• Addiction
  Accepting students
  Peptides and stress-induced relapse

  How do neuropeptides regulate the brain's reward circuitry, especially in times of acute stress.

  
  Supervisor: Professor Andrew Lawrence