As a Molecular Geneticist and Joint Program Lead in Molecular Neuroscience at the Curtin Medical Research Institute (Curtin MRI), my research focuses on uncovering the molecular mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s disease and exploring the genetics of immune, stress, and adaptive responses across species.

My principal work investigates the structure and function of the Alzheimer’s disease-related gamma-secretase complex using insect cell (baculovirus) and zebrafish expression systems. In collaboration with Professor Ralph Martins (ECU & Macquarie University) and his colleagues, we successfully expressed a functional gamma-secretase complex in insect cells, contributing to a deeper understanding of amyloid-beta production.

A complementary research stream examines how stress and the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis influence Alzheimer’s disease progression. This work highlights genetic variations in HPA-related genes that may accelerate disease development, shedding light on the interaction between stress and neuroinflammation. Beyond neuroscience, my broader research spans population genetics, immunogenetics, and skin biology. Current projects include developing molecular tools for the conservation genetics of endangered species, mapping immune related genes in sheep to understand parasite resistance, and investigating desmosomal proteins involved in skin and wool structure and human skin diseases such as psoriasis.

I also maintain a long-standing interest in the sheep major histocompatibility complex (MHC), where next-generation sequencing has revealed over 4,000 SNPs. These findings enhance our understanding of evolutionary genetics and the molecular basis of host–parasite interactions.