Overview
Background
Professor Kate Schroder heads the Inflammasome Laboratory and is Director of the Centre for Inflammation and Disease Research at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB), University of Queensland, as an NHMRC Leadership Fellow. Kate’s graduate studies defined novel macrophage activation mechanisms and her subsequent postdoctoral research identified surprising inter-species divergence in the inflammatory programs of human versus mouse macrophages. As an NHMRC CJ Martin Fellow in Switzerland, Kate trained with the pioneer of inflammasome biology, Jürg Tschopp. The IMB Inflammasome Laboratory, which Kate heads, investigates the molecular mechanisms governing inflammasome activity and caspase activation, the cellular mediators of inflammasome-dependent inflammation, and mechanisms of inflammasome inhibition by cellular pathways and small molecule inhibitors.
Kate is a co-inventor on patents for small molecule inhibitors of the NLRP3 inflammasome, currently under commercialisation by Inflazome Ltd. Inflazome Ltd was recently acquired by Roche in a landmark deal – one of the largest in Australian and Irish biotech history. The acquisition gives Roche full rights to Inflazome’s portfolio of inflammasome inhibitors. Two of the company’s drug candidates are in clinical trials for the treatment of debilitating conditions such as cardiovascular disease, arthritis and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and motor neuron disease.
Kate has authored more than 140 publications, featuring in journals such as Science, Cell, Nature Genetics, Nature Medicine, Nature Chemical Biology, Journal of Experimental Medicine and PNAS USA, and her work has been cited more than 35,000 times. Kate is an Editorial Board Member for international journals including Science Signaling, Clinical and Translational Immunology and Cell Death Disease. She is the recipient of the 2022 Women in Technology Excellence in Science Award, 2020 Nancy Mills Award for Women in Science, 2019 ANZSCDB Emerging Leader Award, 2019 Merck Research Medal, 2014 Milstein Young Investigator Award, 2013 Tall Poppy Award, 2012 Gordon Ada Career Award, 2010 QLD Premier’s Postdoctoral Award, and the 2008 Society for Leukocyte Biology’s Dolph Adams Award.
INFLAMMASOME LABORATORY RESEARCH
During injury or infection, our body’s immune system protects us by launching inflammation. But uncontrolled inflammation drives diseases such as gout, diabetes, neurodegenerative disease and cancer. The Inflammasome Lab is defining the molecular and cellular processes of inflammation. We seek to unravel the secrets of inflammasomes – protein complexes at the heart of inflammation and disease – to allow for new therapies to fight human diseases.
The Inflammasome Laboratory integrates molecular and cell biology approaches with in vivo studies to gain a holistic understanding of inflammasome function during infection, and inflammasome dysfunction in human inflammatory disease. Current research interests include the molecular mechanisms governing inflammasome activity and caspase activation, the cellular mediators of inflammasome-dependent inflammation, and inflammasome suppression by autophagy and small molecule inhibitors.
Availability
- Professor Kate Schroder is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Bachelor (Honours) of Science (Advanced), The University of Queensland
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
Research impacts
Our research focuses on understanding how immune cells launch healthy inflammation to fight infection and unhealthy inflammation to promote disease. By understanding exactly how the body fights infection, we can help identify new drug targets or vaccines to combat infectious disease, which causes 13 million deaths globally each year. By understanding how unhealthy inflammation is initiated, we may also be able to design new strategies for the treatment of common diseases such as cancer, gout and diabetes.
Works
Search Professor Kate Schroder’s works on UQ eSpace
Featured
2019
Journal Article
Inflammasome signaling and regulation of interleukin-1 family cytokines
Chan, Amy H. and Schroder, Kate (2019). Inflammasome signaling and regulation of interleukin-1 family cytokines. The Journal of Experimental Medicine, 217 (1) ARTN e20190314, jem.20190314. doi: 10.1084/jem.20190314
Featured
2019
Journal Article
Tiered DNA sensors for escalating responses
Emming, Stefan and Schroder, Kate (2019). Tiered DNA sensors for escalating responses. Science, 365 (6460), 1375-1376. doi: 10.1126/science.aay2701
Featured
2019
Journal Article
MCC950 directly targets the NLRP3 ATP-hydrolysis motif for inflammasome inhibition
Coll, Rebecca C., Hill, James R., Day, Christopher J., Zamoshnikova, Alina, Boucher, Dave, Massey, Nicholas L., Chitty, Jessica L., Fraser, James A., Jennings, Michael P., Robertson, Avril A. B. and Schroder, Kate (2019). MCC950 directly targets the NLRP3 ATP-hydrolysis motif for inflammasome inhibition. Nature Chemical Biology, 15 (6), 556-559. doi: 10.1038/s41589-019-0277-7
Featured
2018
Journal Article
Noncanonical inflammasome signaling elicits gasdermin D–dependent neutrophil extracellular traps
Chen, Kaiwen W., Monteleone, Mercedes, Boucher, Dave, Sollberger, Gabriel, Ramnath, Divya, Condon, Nicholas D., von Pein, Jessica B., Broz, Petr, Sweet, Matthew J. and Schroder, Kate (2018). Noncanonical inflammasome signaling elicits gasdermin D–dependent neutrophil extracellular traps. Science Immunology, 3 (26) eaar6676, eaar6676. doi: 10.1126/sciimmunol.aar6676
Featured
2018
Journal Article
Interleukin-1β maturation triggers its relocation to the plasma membrane for gasdermin-D-dependent and -independent secretion
Monteleone, Mercedes, Stanley, Amanda C., Chen, Kaiwen W., Brown, Darren L., Bezbradica, Jelena S., von Pein, Jessica B., Holley, Caroline L., Boucher, Dave, Shakespear, Melanie R., Kapetanovic, Ronan, Rolfes, Verena, Sweet, Matthew J., Stow, Jennifer L. and Schroder, Kate (2018). Interleukin-1β maturation triggers its relocation to the plasma membrane for gasdermin-D-dependent and -independent secretion. Cell Reports, 24 (6), 1425-1433. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2018.07.027
Featured
2018
Journal Article
Caspase-1 self-cleavage is an intrinsic mechanism to terminate inflammasome activity
Boucher, Dave, Monteleone, Mercedes, Coll, Rebecca C., Chen, Kaiwen W., Ross, Connie M., Teo, Jessica L., Gomez, Guillermo A., Holley, Caroline L., Bierschenk, Damien, Stacey, Katryn J., Yap, Alpha S., Bezbradica, Jelena S. and Schroder, Kate (2018). Caspase-1 self-cleavage is an intrinsic mechanism to terminate inflammasome activity. The Journal of Experimental Medicine, 215 (3), 827-840. doi: 10.1084/jem.20172222
Featured
2015
Journal Article
NLRP3 inflammasome activation downstream of cytoplasmic LPS recognition by both caspase-4 and caspase-5
Baker, Paul J., Boucher, Dave, Bierschenk, Damien, Tebartz, Christina, Whitney, Paul G., D'Silva, Damian B, Tanzer, Marco J., Monteleone, Mercedes, Robertson, Avril A.B., Cooper, Matthew A., Alvarez-Diaz, Silvia, Herold, Marco J., Bedoui, Sammy, Schroder, Kate and Masters, Seth L. (2015). NLRP3 inflammasome activation downstream of cytoplasmic LPS recognition by both caspase-4 and caspase-5. European Journal of Immunology, 45 (10), 2918-2926. doi: 10.1002/eji.201545655
Featured
2015
Journal Article
A small-molecule inhibitor of the NLRP3 inflammasome for the treatment of inflammatory diseases
Coll, Rebecca C., Robertson, Avril A. B., Chae, Jae Jin, Higgins, Sarah C., Muñoz-Planillo, Raúl, Inserra, Marco C., Vetter, Irina, Dungan, Lara S., Monks, Brian G., Stütz, Andrea, Croker, Daniel E., Butler, Mark S., Haneklaus, Moritz, Sutton, Caroline E., Núñez, Gabriel, Latz, Eicke, Kästner, Daniel L., Mills, Kingston H. G., Masters, Seth L., Schroder, Kate, Cooper, Matthew A. and O'Neill, Luke A. J. (2015). A small-molecule inhibitor of the NLRP3 inflammasome for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Nature Medicine, 21 (3), 248-257. doi: 10.1038/nm.3806
Featured
2014
Journal Article
The Neutrophil NLRC4 Inflammasome Selectively Promotes IL-1β Maturation without Pyroptosis during Acute Salmonella Challenge
Chen, Kaiwen W., Groß, Christina J., Vasquez Sotomayor, Flor, Stacey, Katryn J., Tschopp, Jurg, Sweet, Matthew J. and Schroder, Kate (2014). The Neutrophil NLRC4 Inflammasome Selectively Promotes IL-1β Maturation without Pyroptosis during Acute Salmonella Challenge. Cell Reports, 8 (2), 570-582. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2014.06.028
Featured
2012
Journal Article
Conservation and divergence in Toll-like receptor 4-regulated gene expression in primary human versus mouse macrophages
Schroder, Kate, Irvine, Katharine M., Taylor, Martin S., Bokil, Nilesh J., Le Cao, Kim-Anh, Masterman, Kelly-Anne, Labzin, Larisa I., Semple, Colin A., Kapetanovic, Ronan, Fairbairn, Lynsey, Akalin, Altuna, Faulkner, Geoffrey J., Baillie, John Kenneth, Gongora, Milena, Daub, Carsten O., Kawaji, Hideya, McLachlan, Geoffrey J., Goldman, Nick, Grimmond, Sean M., Carninci, Piero, Suzuki, Harukazu, Hayashizaki, Yoshihide, Lenhard, Boris, Hume, David A. and Sweet, Matthew J. (2012). Conservation and divergence in Toll-like receptor 4-regulated gene expression in primary human versus mouse macrophages. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 109 (16), E944-E953. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1110156109
Featured
2010
Journal Article
The inflammasomes
Schroder, Kate and Tschopp, Jurg (2010). The inflammasomes. Cell, 140 (6), 821-832. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2010.01.040
Featured
2010
Journal Article
NLRP3 inflammasome activation: The convergence of multiple signalling pathways on ROS production?
Tschopp, Jurg and Schroder, Kate (2010). NLRP3 inflammasome activation: The convergence of multiple signalling pathways on ROS production?. Nature Reviews Immunology, 10 (3), 210-215. doi: 10.1038/nri2725
Featured
2010
Journal Article
The NLRP3 inflammasome: a sensor for metabolic danger?
Schroder, Kate, Zhou, Rongbin and Tschopp, Jurg (2010). The NLRP3 inflammasome: a sensor for metabolic danger?. Science, 327 (5963), 269-300. doi: 10.1126/science.1184003
Featured
2004
Journal Article
Interferon-gamma: an overview of signals, mechanisms and functions
Schroder, Kate, Hertzog, Paul J., Ravasi, Timothy and Hume, David A. (2004). Interferon-gamma: an overview of signals, mechanisms and functions. Journal of Leukocyte Biology, 75 (2), 163-189. doi: 10.1189/jlb.0603252
2024
Journal Article
Ornithine lipid is a partial TLR4 agonist and NLRP3 activator
Pizzuto, Malvina, Hurtado-Navarro, Laura, Molina-Lopez, Cristina, Soubhye, Jalal, Gelbcke, Michel, Rodriguez-Lopez, Silvia, Ruysschaert, Jean-Marie, Schroder, Kate and Pelegrin, Pablo (2024). Ornithine lipid is a partial TLR4 agonist and NLRP3 activator. Cell Reports, 43 (10) 114788, 114788. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114788
2024
Journal Article
Inflammasome components as new therapeutic targets in inflammatory disease
Coll, Rebecca C. and Schroder, Kate (2024). Inflammasome components as new therapeutic targets in inflammatory disease. Nature Reviews Immunology. doi: 10.1038/s41577-024-01075-9
2024
Journal Article
The septin modifier, forchlorfenuron, activates NLRP3 via a potassium-independent mitochondrial axis
Holley, Caroline L., Emming, Stefan, Monteleone, Mercedes M., Mellacheruvu, Manasa, Kenney, Kirsten M., Lawrence, Grace M.E.P., Coombs, Jared R., Burgener, Sabrina S. and Schroder, Kate (2024). The septin modifier, forchlorfenuron, activates NLRP3 via a potassium-independent mitochondrial axis. Cell Chemical Biology, 31 (5), 962-972.e4. doi: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2024.04.012
2024
Journal Article
Mechanistic insights from inflammasome structures
Fu, Jianing, Schroder, Kate and Wu, Hao (2024). Mechanistic insights from inflammasome structures. Nature Reviews Immunology, 24 (7), 1-18. doi: 10.1038/s41577-024-00995-w
2024
Journal Article
Fluorochrome‐labeled inhibitors of caspase‐1 require membrane permeabilization to efficiently access caspase‐1 in macrophages
Thygesen, Sara J, Burgener, Sabrina S, Mudai, Prerna, Monteleone, Mercedes, Boucher, Dave, Sagulenko, Vitaliya, Schroder, Kate and Stacey, Katryn J (2024). Fluorochrome‐labeled inhibitors of caspase‐1 require membrane permeabilization to efficiently access caspase‐1 in macrophages. European Journal of Immunology, 54 (5) 2350515, e2350515. doi: 10.1002/eji.202350515
2024
Journal Article
NLRP12 interacts with NLRP3 to block the activation of the human NLRP3 inflammasome
Coombs, Jared R., Zamoshnikova, Alina, Holley, Caroline L., Maddugoda, Madhavi P., Teo, Daniel Eng Thiam, Chauvin, Camille, Poulin, Lionel F, Vitak, Nazarii, Ross, Connie M., Mellacheruvu, Manasa, Coll, Rebecca C., Heinz, Leonhard X., Burgener, Sabrina S., Emming, Stefan, Chamaillard, Mathias, Boucher, Dave and Schroder, Kate (2024). NLRP12 interacts with NLRP3 to block the activation of the human NLRP3 inflammasome. Science Signaling, 17 (820) abg8145, eabg8145. doi: 10.1126/scisignal.abg8145
Funding
Current funding
Past funding
Supervision
Availability
- Professor Kate Schroder is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Available projects
-
Student projects
Expressions of interest from prospective postgraduate students are welcome at any time. For information on future research higher degree projects, please email K.Schroder@imb.uq.edu.au with the following: (1) CV, including a summary of academic qualifications, work and research experience, and publication list; (2) studies report for undergraduate and honours degree(s); and (3) a letter of motivation outlining your research interests.
Supervision history
Current supervision
-
Doctor Philosophy
Mechanisms of virus-induced NLRP1 Inflammasome Signalling
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Larisa Labzin, Dr Stefan Emming
-
Doctor Philosophy
Mechanisms of Inflammasome Assembly and Signalling
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Stefan Emming
-
Doctor Philosophy
Inflammasome inhibition by molecular and cellular processes in fibrosis (e.g. systemic sclerosis)
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Sabrina Sofia Burgener
-
Doctor Philosophy
Inflammasomes in tissue homeostasis and wound healing
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Sabrina Sofia Burgener
-
Doctor Philosophy
Investigating how antibodies against Influenza A Virus modulate macrophage sensing and signalling pathways and outputs.
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Kirsty Short, Dr Larisa Labzin
-
Doctor Philosophy
Molecular pathways by which human epithelia and macrophages sense and respond to Influenza A virus infection.
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Kirsty Short, Dr Larisa Labzin
-
Doctor Philosophy
Discovery and Pharmacological Evaluation of Novel Analgesics for the Relief of Ross River Virus Induced Chronic Pain
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Andy Kuo, Emeritus Professor Maree Smith, Dr Mohammad Zafar Imam
-
Doctor Philosophy
Inflammasome inhibitors in disease: Is there a therapeutic trade-off of compromised host defence?
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Avril Robertson, Dr Sabrina Sofia Burgener
-
Doctor Philosophy
Studying the synergistic effects of streptococcal SLO and NADase on toxification of the host redox metabolism
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Stephan Brouwer, Professor Mark Walker
Completed supervision
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Mitochondrial Dynamics and the NLRP3 Inflammasome
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Matt Sweet
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Molecular mechanisms of inflammasome-driven Alzheimer's disease
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Jürgen Götz, Dr Sabrina Sofia Burgener
-
-
2020
Doctor Philosophy
Molecular Mechanisms of Non-canonical Inflammasome Activity
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Ian Ross
-
2018
Doctor Philosophy
Human-specific inflammasome signalling pathways in macrophages
Principal Advisor
-
-
2015
Doctor Philosophy
Inflammasome function in neutrophils
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Matt Sweet
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Characterisation of the interaction of M1 Group A Streptococcus with the inflammasome pathway
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Mark Walker
-
2020
Doctor Philosophy
Novel therapeutic targets for the treatment of vincristine induced peripheral neuropathy
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Irina Vetter
-
2018
Doctor Philosophy
Inflammasomes and Autoimmunity
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Kate Stacey
-
2015
Doctor Philosophy
Characterisation of Human Macrophage Functions in Innate Immunity
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Matt Sweet, Professor David Fairlie
Media
Enquiries
Contact Professor Kate Schroder directly for media enquiries about:
- Alzheimer's disease
- arthritis
- cancer
- candida
- caspase
- cell biology
- cytokine
- diabetes
- gout
- hereditary disease
- immune system
- inerluekin
- infection
- infectious disease
- inflammasome
- inflammation
- inflammatory disease
- innate immunity
- macrophage
- myeloid
- neutrophil
- nod-like receptor
- pyroptosis
- salmonella
- toll-like receptor
Need help?
For help with finding experts, story ideas and media enquiries, contact our Media team: