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Evan Bailey is a postdoctoral researcher in the Molecular and Systems Medicine Group at the School of Biomedical Sciences and Queensland Brain Institute. His current work focuses on the interplay between innate immune signaling and cellular metabolism in neurodegenerative diseases utilising his skills and experience in molecular genetics, cellular physiology and computational biology.

Evan started his career as a Research Assistant in the lab of Dr. Natasha Kumar at UNSW, Sydney, studying functional plasticity in chemoreceptive brainstem neurons in response to chronic hypercapnia (elevated CO2) before moving to UQ to pursue a PhD in evolutionary-developmental neuroscience. His PhD work under the supervision of Dr. Laura Fenlon and Dr. Rodrigo Suarez focused on the evolution of cellular mechanisms controlling neuronal differentiation and fate specification in the neocortex of marsupial and placental mamals, resulting in publications in Nature Communications and PNAS. Throughout his research career, Evan has had a keen interest in how cells establish and maintain their functional identity across a wide range of contexts and how homesostatic programs (e.g. energy metabolism) influence cell identity and phenotypic transitions.

I am a Senior Research Fellow, NHMRC Emerging Leader Fellow, and Group Leader at UQ Frazer Institute. I was awarded my PhD in late 2017 by Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University. Under the UQ Health Research Accelerator (HERA) program, I lead a team to investigate T and B cell responses that profoundly regulate vaccine responses, viral clearance, and anti-tumour immunity.

My research program employs combinatorial methodologies of Biochemistry and Immunology to uncover new molecular mechanisms controlling T-cell-mediated immunity:

1. The action of T cells is required in antibody responses for suppressing viral infection or tumour growth and to confer protection upon vaccination. In particular, follicular helper T (Tfh) cells, a specialised subset of CD4+ T cells, essentially instruct the B cells to produce long-lived antibody protection. The knowledge of Tfh cells has fundamentally enabled vaccine development and therapy design for autoimmune diseases.

2. T-cell-derived cytokines play pivotal roles in both humoral and cellular immunity. Particularly, interleukin-21 (IL-21) is essential for supporting germinal centre (GC) reaction, where the B cell memory and long-lived antibody responses are generated. Besides, IL-21 is also the only known cytokine to maintain the functionalities of CD8+ T cells in the context of chronic infections or cancers by preventing a loss-of-function program termed 'exhaustion'.

This research program has generated multiple cutting-edge discoveries in the field, producing publications as 1st or joint 1st authors in top-tier journals including Nature Immunology, Science Immunology, and Nature Communications.

Paul Clarke is Director of the Frazer Institute, a leading translational medical research centre studying cancer, autoimmune diseases, infection and immunity, and the genetic basis of disease. Professor Clarke became Director in 2017 and was previously Associate Dean (Research) in Medicine at the University of Dundee in Scotland, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Manchester in England, and Research Fellow at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg, Germany. Professor Clarke studied Biochemistry at the University of Bristol and undertook research for his PhD at the University of Dundee.

Frazer Institute, formerly UQ Diamantina Institute, is named in honour of its Founding Director, Emeritus Professor Ian Frazer, co-discoverer of the Gardasil HPV cervical cancer vaccine. Frazer Institute is part of The University of Queensland Faculty of Medicine and is a key partner in the Translational Research Institute, a $360 million research facility at the Princess Alexandra Hospital precinct in Woolloongabba. Scientists and clinical researchers at Frazer Institute develop new methods for the prevention, detection and treatment of human diseases.

Professor Simon Cool is Professor of Bioengineering and Director of the UQ Advanced Cell Therapy Manufacturing Initiative in the School of Chemical Engineering at the University of Queensland.

Professor Cool began his scientific career at the University of Queensland more than 20 years ago. He received his BSc (hons) and PhD degrees from the University of Queensland, where he subsequently held a faculty position in the School of Biomedical Sciences. His areas of studies have included age-related changes in the structure of bone and teeth and the extracellular matrix compartment of skeletal tissue that guide stem cell behaviour and wound repair. Professor Cool was invited to join the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), A*STAR, Singapore in 2003 as a Principal Investigator. He then joined A*STAR’s Institute of Medical Biology (IMB) in 2008, shortly after its inception, to further his research in regenerative medicine, serving as Senior Principal Investigator of the Glycotherapeutics Group. In October 2020, Professor Cool re-joined the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) as a Research Director, Glycotherapeutics, where he focused on developing novel glycosaminoglycan biomolecules that enhance wound repair and control adult human mesenchymal stem cell activity.

Professor Cool has 117 patent applications across 26 families with 51 granted in the fields of glycosaminoglycan biochemistry, regenerative medicine and stem cell science. He has more than 150 publications and continues to foster strong strategic collaborations both nationally and internationally with academic and industry groups. He has a strong biomanufacturing and translational focus with experience in taking glycosaminoglycan-based devices through discovery RnD on to pre-clinical and clinical testing. Professor Cool also has an entrepreneurial and licensing background having successfully spun-off some of his technology to a US-based regenerative medicine start-up company, SMC Biotechnology Ltd. Professor Cool holds a Visiting Professor appointment at the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), A*STAR, Singapore and an Adjunct Professor (Research) appointment in the Orthopaedic Department at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Prior to his move back to UQ, he previously held the position of Treasurer, Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society, Asia Pacific Chapter (TERMIS-AP) and Treasurer, Stem Cell Society Singapore (SCSS). He also held senior leadership positions in several Singapore-based R&D programmes, notably as Director, Allogeneic Stem Cell Manufacturing (ASTEM) and Theme Leader in Advanced Manufacturing for Biological Materials (AMBM). Prof Cool currently serves on the Editorial Board of the journals Biomaterials, Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, and is Asia-Pacific Regional Editor for Stem Cells and Development.

Dr. Wenyi Gu’s early education was conducted in China which include his undergraduate and master’s degrees in veterinary medicine. In 1996, he migrated to Australia and pursued his PhD study in biochemistry & molecular biology at the Australian National University (ANU). After a short period of work at John Curtin Medical School ANU as a junior scientist, he moved to Brisbane in 2001 for his post-doc at the University of Queensland and currently a post-doctoral research fellow at AIBN. He held a Peter Doherty Fellowship (2006-2009) and was further supported by NHMRC to spend 7 months at Harvard University as a visiting fellow in 2008. Since his post-doctoral research he has been working in the area of using RNAi to treat viral diseases and cancers. He also has a strong background in immunology and vaccine development.

I lead a research program with extensive expertise in immunology, particularly in natural killer (NK) cells, focused on developing innovative approaches for treating hard-to-cure diseases like metastatic cancers. Our mission is to improve patient outcomes and extend lives. My research group is based at the Translational Research Institute (TRI).

My dedication to my field has been recognized through numerous peer-reviwed grants as sole-CI or CIA/Principal Investigator, including a NHMRC ECF Peter Doherty Fellowship, an NHMRC Project Grant, an US DoD, a MRFF EMCR among others. Since 2009, I've amassed an impressive portfolio of 96 publications in renowned journals like Blood, Cell Death Dis, JEM, PNAS, Nat Comms, and Nat Immunol with an H-index = 40. My body of work and contributions have been acknowledged with awards such as the 2019 Researcher of the Year by CCA, 2020 QLD Young Tall Poppy Science, 2020 UQ Frazer Institute's Rising Star, 2022 Frazer Institute's Mentor of the Year, 2023 Translational Research Institute - Connecting with the Clinic among others. Recognized as an international leader in my field, I've been instrumental in identifying novel regulators of our immune functions, and developing NK cell-based immunotherapies.

At present, I am a Group Leader / Principal Research Fellow & Associate Professor with the University of Queensland's Frazer Institute. Here, I lead a high-performing research team with a keen focus on developing and innovating immunotherapy approaches for a spectrum of diseases.

I graduated with Honours in Medicine from the University of the West Indies, Jamaica, in 1992. In 1997 I relocated to the UK where I specialised in Obstetrics & Gynaecology and was admitted as a Member of the Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists in 1999. In 2012 I gained dual accreditation as a Subspecialist in Reproductive Medicine & Surgery and was admitted to the European Specialist Register. In 2012, I was appointed Senior Lecturer and Consultant in Reproductive Medicine & Surgery at University College London (UCL) and UCL Hospitals where I was the clinical lead for IVF and Recurrent Miscarriage and the scientific lead for Mammalian Oocyte Research within UCL’s Institute for Women’s Health. In January 2014 I relocated to Australia after being recruited to UNSW through the DVCR’s Strategic Priority Funding Scheme. At UNSW I jointly set up and co-directed UNSW’s first oocyte biology research lab. In January 2016, following a competitive global search, I was appointed to the fully endowed Christopher Chen Chair in Reproductive Medicine at UQ where I currently head the Christopher Chen Oocyte Research Laboratory. Since relocating to Australia I have been awarded Fellowship of the Royal Australian NZ College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists.

In parallel with clinical activity, I have developed an internationally leading research program investigating oocyte maturation and oocyte quality. My Ph.D was awarded in 2009 from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne (UK) and received a Dean’s commendation. My thesis investigated the regulation of chromosome segregation in mouse and human oocytes and was funded by a WellBeing of Women Research Training Fellowship. My post-doctoral research was undertaken at UCL funded by a prestigious Wellcome Trust Clinician Scientist Fellowship ($1.2 million). At UCL, I was one of the principal investigators in the cross-faculty Mammalian Oocyte and Embryo Research Laboratory. In my first 2 years in Australia, I have secured NHMRC funding as CIA worth over $1 million.

I have placed leading papers on oocyte regulation in high impact journals such as Science, Developmental Cell, Genes & Development and Nature Cell Biology all of which have been cited by the Faculty of 1000 Experts. I have received numerous prizes and awards including the highly prestigious Medical Research Society Young Investigator Award (first and only award made to the specialty of O&G in the UK) and was the first of the UK Walport Clinical Lecturers in all specialties to attain Clinician Scientist status. I was one of the very few to have delivered the RCOG’s William Blair Bell Memorial Lecture whilst still a clinical trainee.

Dr Dhanisha Jhaveri has a joint appointment at Mater Research and the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) and is a Mater Foundation Senior Research Fellow and a Group Leader. Dhanisha’s research group is investigating the fundamental mechanisms that drive the renewal of neurons in the adult brain, with the goal of harnessing this form of neural plasticity to relieve the emotional and cognitive burdens associated with chronic stress and depression.

Dhanisha received her PhD from the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), India, under the supervision of Professor Veronica Rodrigues, where she unravelled the molecular mechanisms that wire the olfactory axons in the fly (Drosophila) brain. In recognition of her doctoral work she was awarded the Indian National Science Academy medal for Young Scientist of the Year in 2003. Fascinated by the discovery that the production of new neurons continues in the adult brain, she then joined the laboratory of Professor Perry Bartlett at the Queensland Brain Institute as a Human Frontiers Science Program Postdoctoral Fellow. She has made major discoveries that have transformed our understanding of the regulation and roles of neural stem cells in the adult brain. Her work uncovered that a subclass clinical antidepressants directly activates neural stem cells in the hippocampus, a brain region implicated in regulating mood and cognitive functions. She also pioneered the development of a new cell sorting protocol to purify neural stem cells which revealed presence of distinct stem cell populations in this brain region.

Dr Luan is the postdoctoral fellow of Neurodegenerative Pathobiology laboratory in Queensland Brain Institute. Dr Luan's research aims to understand the molecular and cellular mechanism for human neurodegenerative diseases, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD). His research focuses on the cellular stress responses and novel biochemical pathways in the pathogenesis of these diseases. Dr Luan will use biochemical, immunohistochemistry and AAVs techniques in a well-established pre-clinical transgenic mouse model. His goal is to discover new potential therapeutic targets in order to help patients who suffer these diseases.

Dr Dominic Ng graduated with a BSc (Hons) and gained his PhD from the University of Western Australia. His doctoral studies, conducted in the laboratory of Assoc. Prof. Marie Bogoyevitch, were focused on cardiomyocyte signalling mechanisms regulating pathological tissue growth (ie cardiac hypertrophy). He continued his research training in Singapore as a post-doctoral research fellow based at the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, the flagship institute of Singapore’s science agency (A*STAR) located at the world renowned Biopolis research precinct. During this time, his research interests turned to the complex regulation of the cytoskeleton and their functions in development and disease.

He returned to the Australian medical research community on an NHMRC Peter Doherty Fellowship (2006-2010) followed by a Faculty Trust Roper Fellowship (2011-2012). In this time, Dominic established an independent research program focused on complex signalling regulation of microtubule organization. In 2013, Dominic was appointed as a Senior Research Fellow, supported by an ARC Future Fellowship (2013-2016) at the Department of Biochemistry within the Bio21 Institute, University of Melbourne. In 2015, Dominic relocated his research group to the School of Biomedical Science, University of Queensland and is currently appointed as an ARC Future Fellow and Senior Lecturer.

I am an early career neuroscientist investigating the capacity for neural progenitor cell behaviour to shape neural circuit formation, maintenance and function during development and throughout adulthood. More specifically, the role of oligodendrocyte progenitors and myelin in brain circuit formation and maintenance. My research examines the brain under health and pathological conditions by performing manipulations relevant to autism spectrum disorder, multiple sclerosis and schizophrenia. While under the supervision of Prof Helen Cooper at the Queensland Brain Institute – University of Queensland - I studied how the WRC-Cyfip1-FMRP protein network impaired apical radial glial progenitor function and neural migration, leading to cortical malformation and Autism-like traits in mice. During my PhD at University of Tasmania and under the supervision of Prof Kaylene Young, I studied the effect of neuronal activity on cells of the oligodendrocyte lineage. I found that voltage-gated calcium channels are critical for oligodendrocyte progenitor cell survival and characterised the impact of kainite receptor dysfunction on neuropathology and behaviour in mice. Currently under the supervision of Dr Carlie Cullen I am using transgenic mice strategies to determine how aberrant myelination can contribute to onset of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. I am also using mouse models of demyelination to investigate the effect of infectious diseases such as COVID19 and influenza on oligodendrocyte lineage cell function and the impact for myelin repair and multiple sclerosis disease progression. I have a long-standing interest in neuroscience research, that extends from understanding how brain function is regulated during development and in healthy ageing, and the dysregulated signalling pathways that enable neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders.

I am Professor, NHMRC Investigator Fellow (EL2) and group leader (Exosome Biology Laboratory) at UQ Centre for Clinical Research. I am nationally and internationally (>20 invitations to international meetings in the last 5 years) acknowledged key opinion leader on Extracellular Vesicle (rated 3th worldwide (Top 0.015%) and 1st in Australia in expertise for “Extracellular Vesicles and Exosomes” on Expertscape) and biomarker discovery (140 publications, and >8000 citations in the last 7 year). I have made a major conceptual contribution to EV biology with diagnostic and therapeutic implications. In the last 8 years, my primary research and commercialisation activities have focused on the identification and validation of biomarkers, and development of In Vitro Multivariate Index Assays for clinically relevant complications (including ovarian cancers, and obstetrical syndromes) and their translation into clinical applications. In Academia, I have pursued these objectives through the development and leadership of clinical translation research teams and facilities, both in Australia and overseas. For example, I had a leadership role in established the Centre for Clinical Diagnostics (CCD). Within the UQCCR, I established an exosome research team to evaluate the clinical utility of extracellular vesicles as liquid biopsies, IVDs and therapeutics. Much of our effort in this field of endeavour has involved optimising isolation methods for extracellular vesicles and their analytical analysis - including the use of protein solution array (e.g. Luminex), mass spectrometry profiling (using MS/MS SWATH) and more recently miRNA analysis.

Dr Sehgal completed his at the Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh (UK) (2013-2017), where he developed a long-term research passion for investigating gut homeostasis and what happens during dysfunction and disease. In 2018, Dr Sehgal joined the Mater Research Insitute as a Research Officer to research the role of macrophages in growth and development. In October 2022, Dr Sehgal joined Wesley Research Institute as Senior Research Officer within the Coeliac Disease and Immune Health Program where he is leading translatable Coeliac Disease research.

Dr Abbas Shafiee is a tissue engineering & regenerative medicine scientist interested in translational cell-based and tissue engineering strategies to treat human diseases.

Dr Shafiee completed his PhD in Professor Kiarash Khosrotehrani’s laboratory on stem cell biology. His research career during his PhD had key contributions to delineating endothelial niche and vascular stem cells in the human placental tissues, including the seminal discovery of an entirely new stem cell population, coined as ‘Meso-Endothelial Bipotent Progenitor’ and the identification of key driver signatures for endothelial and bipotential progenitor function (Stem Cell Reports 2018; The FASEB Journal 2017; Stem Cells 2016; Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2015).

In 2016, he joined Distinguished Professor Dietmar Hutmacher’s team and conducted multiple projects on cancer and bone tissue engineering. Dr Shafiee has developed innovative tissue engineered models intersecting concepts from stem cell biology, cancer, and tissue engineering to study species-specific cancer bone metastasis at an unprecedented level of detail. The results of his research have been published in: International Journal of Cancer 2018; Cancers 2018; Biomaterials 2018; Bone Research 2019; Biomaterials 2019; Applied Materials Today 2020; Biomaterials 2020; and Advanced Therapeutics 2020. Utilizing the tissue engineering concept, he was able to better understand the mechanisms of human cancer bone metastasis. Additionally, he was successful in obtaining project grants, including a project grants from Cooperative Research Centers (CRC), and developed a biomimetically designed scaffolds and investigated the interactions of multipotent mesenchymal stem/stromal cell and skin progenitors with 3D printed scaffolds. The application of 3D printed constructs in acute wound models decreased wound contracture and led to a significantly improved skin regeneration.

Dr Shafiee joined Metro North Health (MNH, Queensland Health) in 2020 and started a research program to develop, implement, and evaluate the applications of 3D printing, scanning, cell therapies, and biofabrication technologies in skin wound settings, and dermatology research. Using the 3D printing and organoid technologies he could develop new approaches to enhances physiological wound closure with reduced scar tissue formation (Biomaterials 2021, Small 2021, Advanced Healthcare Materials 2021, Advanced Healthcare Materials 2022) and advance the deramtology research (Advanced healthcare materials 2022, and Small 2024). Dr Shafiee is part of a national program, aiming to develop biofabrication technology to treat skin wounds (funded by MRFF, NHMRC). His groundbreaking organoid research resulted in establishing an international Consortium of Organoid Research in Dermatology, leveraging organoid technology to advance the understanding and treatment of genetic skin diseases. Dr Shafiee has supervised over 10 Masters and PhD students. Honours, Masters and PhD projects are available, please feel free to contact him.

Background

Dr Mohammed Shaker is a distinguished neuroscientist specialising in the study of brain and spinal cord development, with a particular focus on neural stem cells and the use of organoid technology. He earned his PhD in 2017 from Korea University, where his research centered on the cellular dynamics involved in brain and spinal cord formation. During this time, he was awarded the prestigious Brain Korea 21 Plus Fellowship, which laid the foundation for his subsequent work at the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) at The University of Queensland (UQ).

At UQ, Dr. Shaker has contributed significantly to the field of human central nervous system (CNS) research, utilising cutting-edge organoid models. His innovative protocols for generating white matter-like tissues and organoids that recapitulate complex CNS features have gained international recognition. Key contributions include:

• Developing a rapid protocol for creating white matter-like tissues in organoids enriched with oligodendrocytes, neurons, and astrocytes, published in Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience (2021) and STAR Protocols (2023).
• Uncovering the role of NELL2 in human oligodendroglial development and its link to white matter diseases, detailed in Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology (2022).
• Establishing organoid models for Down syndrome to investigate forebrain development and neurotropism of SARS-CoV-2, published in Science Advances (2024).

Currently, Dr Shaker leads research projects focused on leukodystrophies and neural tube defects, employing patient-derived iPSCs and organoid technologies to uncover underlying mechanisms and develop therapeutic strategies. His work continues to advance our understanding of CNS diseases and development.

Dr Melanie White heads the Dynamics of Morphogenesis Lab at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB), University of Queensland and is an ARC Future Fellow. She completed a PhD in Neuroscience at University College London followed by postdoctoral research at The University of Edinburgh. During this time Mel engineered viruses to modulate gene expression in the brain to investigate neuronal function and as a therapeutic approach for neurodegenerative disease. Her work was published in Neuron and PNAS, featured in Nature Reviews Neuroscience and received extensive international media coverage (including the BBC and The Guardian).

In 2012 Mel switched fields to apply quantitative imaging in developmental biology. Her work revealed key mechanisms driving the earliest morphogenetic events in mammalian embryogenesis and was published in Cell, Science, Nature Cell Biology, Developmental Cell and Nature Protocols. Her research was featured on the cover of multiple journals including Cell and she was awarded the inaugural American Society for Cell Biology Porter Prize for Research Excellence (2018).

In 2020, Mel joined the IMB where she will combine her passion for neuroscience and developmental biology to investigate the dynamics of neural tube morphogenesis.

Research overview

The brain and the spinal cord control most of the functions of the body and the mind, yet the dynamics of how they first form is poorly understood. Both structures arise from a common precursor, the neural tube, which forms very early in embryonic development. To generate the forces that sculpt and shape the neural tube, changes in cellular architecture must be tightly coordinated in space and time. These morphological rearrangements occur concurrently with biochemical signalling pathways that specify early neural cell fates.

Our research aims to understand how cellular properties and transcriptional regulators interact with mechanical forces in real time to direct vertebrate neural tube formation and neural cell fate specification. We study the dynamics of neural tube formation by applying advanced imaging technologies in transgenic avian models and human stem cell models.