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  • Stow Group

      Group Leader

    Professor Jennifer Stow

    Professorial Research Fellow
    NHMRC Leadership Fellow
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 
    Researcher biography: 

    Professor Jennifer Stow is a molecular cell biologist, an NHMRC Leadership Fellow and head of the Protein Trafficking and Inflammation research laboratory in The University of Queensland's Institute of Molecular Bioscience (IMB). Her previous leadership appointments include as Division Head and Deputy Director (Research) at IMB (12 years) and she currently serves on national and international advisory boards, editorial boards and steering committees, and as an elected Associate Member of the European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO).

    Jenny Stow received her undergraduate and PhD qualifications at Melbourne's Monash University before undertaking postdoctoral training in the Department of Cell Biology at Yale University School of Medicine, USA. With training as a microscopist in kidney research, she gained further experience at Yale as a postdoc in the lab of eminent cell biologist and microscopist, Dr Marilyn Farquhar, where protein trafficking was both a theme and a passion. Jenny then took up her first faculty appointment as an Assistant Professor in the Renal Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School in Boston USA, where her research uncovered new roles for a class of enzymes, GTPases, in regulating trafficking within cells. At MGH her research also formed part of a highly successful NIH Renal Cell Biology Program. In late 1994, Jenny moved her research lab back to Australia, to The University of Queensland, in late 1994 as a Wellcome Trust International Medical Research Fellow. As part of IMB since, the Stow lab has continued a focus on protein trafficking, including pioneering live-cell imaging, to spearhead their work on trafficking in inflammation, cancer and chronic disease. Major discoveries include identifying new proteins and pathways for recycling adhesion proteins in epithelial cells, inflammatory cytokine secretion in macrophages and immune signalling through Toll-like receptors in inflammation and infection. Small GTPases of the Rab family, signalling adaptors and kinases feature among the molecules studied in the Stow lab for their functional roles and their potential as drug targets in inflammation and cancer. A keen focus is to understand the role of the fluid uptake pathway, macropinocytosis, in controlling inflammation, cancer and mucosal absorption.

    Professor Stow has been awarded multiple career fellowships including from American Heart Association, Wellcome Trust and NHMRC. She has published >200 papers, cited over 15,500 times and she is the recipient of awards and honours, most recently including the 2019 President's Medal from the Australia and New Zealand Society for Cell and Developmental Biology. She is also academic head of IMB Microscopy, a world-class fluorescence microscopy and image analysis facility. Her research is funded by a variety of agencies and industry partnerships, in addition to NHMRC and ARC, including through the ARC Centre of Excellence in Quantum Biotechnology, QUBIC. The Stow lab work with national and international collaborators and welcome students and postdoctoral trainees to participate in their research. We value having a diverse, inclusive and supportive culture for research and celebrate the many diverse and wonderful successes of Stow lab alumni.

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    Highlights

    Professor Jennifer Stow is a molecular cell biologist. She has had a lifelong fascination with cells, the ‘ultimate factories’, and how they work.  After being awarded a PhD from Monash University, and training at Yale University School of Medicine, her first faculty appointment was at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School. 

    Professor Stow is renowned for her research on protein trafficking which has revealed how proteins critical for inflammation and cancer are moved around inside cells or transported out of cells. The cell signalling pathways that regulate these processes are also investigated in her search for ways to combat disease. Advanced imaging of molecules in living cells provides Professor Stow’s group with a remarkable window into the sub cellular universe and a way to observe cell behaviour.  

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      Researchers

    Mr Darren Brown

    Senior Research Assistant
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    0
    Supervisor: 

    Mrs Tatiana Khromykh

    NHMRC Research Assistant
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    0
    Supervisor: 

    Dr Xichun Li

    Postdoctoral Research Fellow
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 

      Students

    Dr Liping Liu

    Postdoctoral Research Fellow
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 

    Mr Hongyu Shen

    Global Challenges Scholar
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    0
    Supervisor: 

    Miss Sylvia Tan

    PhD student
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 

    Miss Vrushali Maste

    PhD student
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 

    Miss Wanyi Wang

    Researcher profile is public: 
    0
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  • Our program is designed to create a cohort of outstanding researchers who use multidisciplinary approaches to discover the cellular basis of chronic diseases, enabling us to develop future disease therapies.
  • Postdoctoral Research Fellow
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
  • Senior Research Assistant
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
  • Muttenthaler Group

    Group Leader

    Associate Professor Markus Muttenthaler

    ARC Future Fellow & Group Leader
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 
    Researcher biography: 

    Associate Professor Muttenthaler is a medicinal chemist working at the interface of chemistry and biology with a strong passion for translational research. His research focuses on bioactive peptides and exploring Nature's biodiversity to develop advanced molecular tools, diagnostics, and therapeutics. His background in drug discovery and development, as well as his interdisciplinary training in the fields of chemistry, molecular biology and pharmacology, assist him in characterising these often highly potent and selective compounds to study their interactions with human physiology for medical innovations in pain, cancer, gut disorders and neurological diseases.

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    Highlights

    Markus Muttenthaler received his BSc in technical chemistry (2001) and his MSc in organic chemistry and technology (2004) from the Vienna University of Technology. In 2005 he obtained a PhD scholarship to join Paul Alewood’s laboratory at The University of Queensland. He then received training in peptide chemistry and was involved in the discovery, design and development of therapeutics based on bioactive venom peptides. He earned the best PhD thesis award from the Royal Australian Chemical Institute, and the Dean’s award for outstanding higher degree thesis.

    As a postdoc, Dr Muttenthaler continued to expand his chemical skills repertoire and developed an interest in oxytocin and vasopressin research. Two Marie Curie Fellowships enabled him to join the Dawson lab at the Scripps Research Institute in California, distinguished for the invention of native chemical ligation, a technique that revolutionised chemical synthesis of proteins, and the Albericio lab at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine Barcelona, renowned for its innovative advancements in combinatorial and peptide chemistry.

    In 2015, he was recruited back to IMB as an ARC DECRA fellow to establish his neuropeptide research program. His recent achievements earned him the IMB Industry Fellow Award as well as the prestigious Miklos Bodanszky Award for peptide-based drug research.

    Research overview

    Dr Muttenthaler’s interdisciplinary background has proven highly valuable to research efforts to understand fundamental human physiology and pathology. His current focus is on developing molecular probes, diagnostics and therapeutics to help in the treatment of disorders such as neuropathic pain, cancer, autism, gastrointestinal disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.

    “Most of our leads come from nature,” said Dr Muttenthaler. “Venoms form a rich source of bioactive compounds, as they comprise highly complex cocktails of potent peptides that can paralyse prey or defend against predators. The similarities of prey/predator receptors to human receptors make these venom peptides excellent leads for the development of neurological tools and therapeutics.”

    A recent addition to his research program is the discovery of novel gastrointestinal wound healing modulators.

    “Humans continuously produce specific peptides that have a critical role in protecting and restoring our gut epithelium – the single layer of cells that protects us from pathogens.”

    Dr Muttenthaler said that when the production of these gut peptides is not working properly, we become more susceptible to pathogens. This can lead to gastrointestinal inflammation that further resolves into chronic disorders such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (around 15 per cent of the population are affected by these disorders).

    “For someone suffering from gastrointestinal disorders, or who is undergoing chemotherapy that is harsh on the gut, the idea would be to supply an agent to protect or even restore that important epithelial layer.

    “We’re interested in not just treating the symptoms, but the underlying root of the problem,” he said.

    Research projects

    Peptides are key mediators in many biological functions and understanding of their interaction with target proteins is fundamental to unravel the underlying mechanism of diseases. Over the years, an increasing number of bioactive peptides from animals, plants, and bacteria have been characterised, with the overwhelming realisation that these molecules often show better therapeutic performance than their human counterparts, particularly in terms of in vivo stability.

    Our main research efforts situated in the field of Neuropeptide Research focus on the exploration and translation of these vast and untapped natural libraries towards the development of useful research tools and therapeutics. Solid-phase peptide synthesis, the main tool to access these compounds, is a powerful technology for the assembly and chemical modification of these highly chiral and structurally complex peptides.

    Venoms to Drugs

    Typical 3D NMR structures of disulfide-rich venom peptides

    Venoms comprise a highly complex cocktail of bioactive peptides evolved to paralyze prey and defend against predators. Homology of prey/predator receptors to human receptors render these venom peptides also active on human receptors and they have become a rich source for neurological tools and therapeutics. Our group is involved in the discovery, synthesis and structure-activity relationship studies of these venom peptides with the goal to develop novel probes for neuroscientists as well as therapeutic drug leads.

    Oxytocin and Vasopressin Research

    The oxytocin and vasopressin signalling system regulates many fundamental physiological processes such as reproduction, water balance, cardiovascular responses and complex social behaviour. It is also a high-profile target for autism, schizophrenia, stress, depression, anxiety, cancer and pain. Our group is particularly interested in creating a complete molecular toolbox to study this signalling system as well as in discovering novel therapeutic leads for autism, pain, gastrointestinal disorders and breast cancer.

    Neuropeptides and long-term Memory Formation

    Memory is probably the single most important brain process that defines our personality and gives us the sense of individuality. Emotional events often cause the generation of strong memories that exist for many years, yet the underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood. Neuropeptides are key players in regulating emotions and have been associated with long-term memory formation. Our group is involved in the development of advanced molecular probes to understand how neuropeptides can influence long-term memory formation.

    Gastrointestinal Disorders

    The gastrointestinal epithelium is a major physical barrier that protects us from diverse, and potentially immunogenic or toxic content. A damaged epithelium results in increased permeability to such content, thus leading to inflammation, uncontrolled immune response, and diseases, such as irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel disease that affect 10-15% of the population. Our group is involved in the identification and validation of novel drug targets and therapeutic strategies that can protect or repair this important barrier in order to prevent or treat such disorders.

    Engagement and impact

    Dr Muttenthaler is internationally recognised for his expertise in venom peptide drug discovery, neuropeptide research and his pioneering methods in peptide chemistry. His work focuses on developing tools that facilitate basic fundamental research as well as drug discovery. He recently received the prestigious Miklós Bodanszky Award for his outstanding contributions for peptide-based drug research.

    Peptides are key mediators in many biological functions and understanding of their interaction with target proteins is fundamental to unravel the underlying mechanism of diseases. Over the years, an increasing number of bioactive peptides from animals, plants, and bacteria have been characterised, with the overwhelming realisation that these molecules often show better therapeutic performance than their human counterparts, particularly in terms of in vivo stability.

    Our main research efforts situated in this field of Chemical Biology focus on the exploration and translation of these vast and untapped natural libraries towards the development of useful research tools and therapeutics. Solid-phase peptide synthesis, the main tool to access these compounds, is a powerful technology for the assembly and chemical modification of these highly chiral and structurally complex peptides. This complexity is also responsible for their remarkable selectivity and potency as well as for their low side effect profile observed in the clinic.

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    Researchers

    Dr Gene Hopping

    Senior Research Fellow
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 

    Dr Harrison Madge

    Postdoctoral Research Fellow
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    1
    Supervisor: 
    Researcher biography: 

    Harrison is a medicinal chemist with a research focus on bioactive peptides as therapeutics and molecular tools. He completed his Honours and PhD at UQ in the School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences where he developed synthetic peptide-based vaccine candidates against a range of targets including Group A Streptococcus and small molecule substances of abuse in the laboratory of Professor Istvan Toth. He is now a postdoctoral research fellow in the Muttenthaler group at IMB where he is involved in several programs of peptide-based drug discovery and pharmacological probe development.

    Dr Nayara Braga Emidio

    Adjunct Fellow
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    0
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    Students

    Mr Michael Michael

    Global Challenges Scholar
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
    Researcher profile is public: 
    0
    Supervisor: 
  • PhD student
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience
  • Research Assistant
    Institute for Molecular Bioscience

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