Research
For a booklet containing information on all of our research labs within the Department of Biochemistry and Chemistry see below
Department of Biochemistry and Chemistry research centres and labs [PDF 5.2MB]
Abbott - Medicinal chemistry, synthetic organic chemistry
Our group uses synthetic organic chemistry to make novel compounds for treatment and prevention of disease.
Anderson - Plant innate immunity proteins
Our group works on protection of humans and crops from pathogens. We do this by studying natural defences of plants, and the biology of the pathogens themselves.
Barnard - Synthetic organic and inorganic chemistry
Our group specializes in small molecule organic and inorganic synthesis for the generation and characterization of new compounds.
Binger - Immunometabolism and macrophage biology
Our research aims to understand the link between what immune cells ‘eat’ in our tissues and how this is connected to their normal biology and inflammatory diseases such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
Chen - T cell immunology
Our group specialises in CD8+ T cell biology and antigen processing and presentation, particularly in relation to the development of cross-protective immune responses to the influenza virus.
Dutton - Organic, organometallic and theoretical chemistry
Our group examines the fundamental chemistry of a wide variety of systems (literally spanning the periodic table from beryllium to iodine) using both synthetic and computational approaches.
Fairlie - Apoptosis, autophagy, cancer, drug development and peptides
Our group uses a combination of biochemistry, cell biology, structural biology and medicinal chemistry approaches to understand the precise molecular mechanisms that control apoptosis.
Foley - Single domain antibodies in human disease
Our group uses single domain antibodies that have been developed from sharks to identify novel therapeutics against a number of chronic diseases.
Gras – Viral and structural immunology
Our laboratory is focused on understanding how to combat viral infections.
Greening - Molecular proteomics, extracellular vesicles, intercellular signalling
We employ a multi-disciplinary approach to understand molecular function of extracellular vesicles and their re-engineering towards deliverable therapeutics.
Hawkins - Cell death regulation in cancer and viral infection
Our group examines apoptotic regulation in normal cells, cancerous cells and virally-infected cells. We use this knowledge to explore better and safer therapies for cancer and viral diseases.
Heras - Bacterial virulence factors: structure and function
Our group studies the molecular mechanisms underlying Gram-negative bacterial infections to develop antibacterial drugs that are not susceptible to existing resistance mechanisms.
Hill - Neurodegenerative diseases, extracellular vesicles and non-coding RNAs
Our group uses a combination of biochemistry, molecular and cell biology to investigate neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, Prion and Parkinson's diseases.
Hogan - Electrochemistry, photochemistry, chemical sensing and biosensing
Our group conducts a range of both fundamental and applied research to expand the bounds of analytical science.
Hong - Fluorescent probes, cell imaging, protein misfolding and neurodegenerative diseases
Our group develops organic luminescent molecules as probes and imaging tools for understanding fundamental biological processes associated with ageing and disease.
Hoogenraad - Development of therapeutic antibodies against cachexia
Our group specialises in cancer cachexia, a complication of cancer that is responsible for around 25% of cancer deaths.
Hulett - Inflammation and tumour progression
Our group studies the molecular basis of tumour progression and inflammatory disease to develop novel anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory drugs.
Humbert - Cancer biology, cell polarity and tissue architecture
Our group is interested in how cell asymmetry and tissue organisation can regulate cancer initiation, progression and metastasis
Kvansakul - Structural biology of cell death and host-pathogen interactions
Our group examines how viruses hijack cellular defence systems to ensure their own proliferation and survival.
E Lee - Cell death and survival pathways
Our group examines the molecular mechanisms underlying cell fate decisions dictated by the processes of apoptosis and autophagy.
M Lee - Structural biology in gene regulation and DNA damage repair pathway
Our group characterises the macromolecular complexes in the nucleus to understand their roles in gene regulation and the DNA damage repair pathway.
Mathivanan - Exosomes, secretome and systems biology
Our group explores the role of extracellular matrix components (soluble secreted proteins and extracellular vesicles) in cancer and intercellular communication.
Mechler - Bioinspired self-assembling nanostructures
Our group studies the principles of self-assembly in lipid membranes, peptide fibrillogenesis and peptide-membrane interactions.
Murphy - Skeletal muscle biochemistry
Our group studies the various aspects of skeletal muscle biochemistry in health and disease, using exercise and disease models in humans, as well as animal models.
Orian - Neurodegenerative diseases
Our group uses proof-of-concept to identify pathological and molecular mechanisms of disease. We also evaluate candidate MS drugs.
Poon - Apoptotic cell disassembly and clearance
Our group studies the machinery that controls how dying cells can disassemble into smaller pieces, and the importance of cell disassembly in disease settings, to identify new drugs to control this process.
Puthalakath - Regulation of apoptosis by Bcl-2 family proteins
Our group investigates the molecular basis of apoptosis’ regulation during heart failure, sepsis and in chemo resistance.
Reynolds - Self assembled nanomaterials
Our group uses self-assembling biomolecules as building blocks for nanomaterials with a range of biomedical and technological applications.
Richardson - Cell polarity, cell signalling and cancer
Our group uses the vinegar fly, Drosophila, to model cancer with the vision of understanding how regulators of cell shape (polarity) and the cell skeleton (actin cytoskeleton) impact on cell signalling and cancer development.
Robertson - Optical spectroscopy of atmospheric and biological molecules
Our group exploits powerful light sources to study molecules relevant to pharmaceutical, atmospheric and aerosol chemistry, and even the interstellar medium.
Simpson - Cancer secretome, extracellular communication, exosome and extracellular vesicle biology
Our group utilizes an integrated proteomic/genomic strategy to understand the role of the extracellular environment in cancer progression.
Smith - Modelling molecular interactions
Our group uses quantum-mechanical methods to understand enzyme mechanisms, molecular mechanical methods to explore the dynamics of proteins, and a variety of tools to predict how molecules interact.
Soares da Costa - Antibiotic and herbicide discovery
Our group focuses on the development and characterisation of novel classes of antibiotics and herbicides to minimise the emergence of resistance.
Truscott - Mitochondrial protein homeostasis
Our group studies the function of mitochondrial proteins involved in the biogenesis and maintenance of mitochondria at the molecular level.
Warr - Neural signalling
Our group investigate how cells in the nervous system receive and respond to signals from their environment.
Wijeyewickrema - Proteases, inhibitors and receptors: relationship to disease states
Our group researches enzymes, called proteases, which operate at the interface between a host, such as a human being and microbes that cause disease.
Wilson - Computational chemistry and quantum chemistry
Our group carries out research with the use of state-of-the-art computational quantum chemistry methods, using computers to solve chemical and biochemical problems.
Winkler - Probing materials-biology interactions using AI and machine learning
Our group uses computational chemistry, AI, machine learning and evolutionary methods to design new molecules and materials for medical, aerospace, and energy applications.