Drug discovery

Establishing Queensland as a hub for drug repurposing research, while at the same time rapidly advancing cost-effective treatments, is a key endeavour of our researchers in this area.

Medicinal intervention is a constantly evolving sphere and there is ongoing work concerning treatments for motor neuron disease (MND), multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson’s Disease, epilepsy, sleep disorders, aging, mental health and hormone release.

Fast-tracking new treatments for neurodegenerative conditions ties into the prioritisation of possible drug solutions which have already shown robust evidence of potential to be effective, following the recommendations of an international expert panel.

Elsewhere within this research topic, others are continuing investigations into the role antibodies play when directed towards different parts of the brain.

Queensland Drug Repurposing Initiative

Aims to fast-track new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease.

Neuroinflammation

The Woodruff Group conducts research into innate immune system in the brain, in both health and disease, spanning embryonic neurodevelopment to adult neurodegeneration.

Neuroimmunology

The McCombe Group is focused on how the immune system causes disease of the nervous system and how the immune system might contribute to recovery from damage.

Program in complex trait genomics

PCTG is structured into five research themes: statistical genomics, systems genomics, psychiatric genomics, MND genomics and genomics of cognitive ageing.

Central nervous system injury and inflammation

The Ruitenberg Group works at the interface between the nervous and immune system, investigating the role of inflammation in complex neurological conditions such as spinal cord injury.

Neuroimmunology

The main focus of Dr Greer’s lab is diseases affecting the nervous system, particularly those in which the immune system plays (or may play) a role.

Neurological disorders and metabolism

The Borges Group investigates the specific biochemical impairments in energy metabolism in epilepsy and ALS with the goal to develop scientifically validated new treatment approaches that target these specific impairments.

Epilepsy research - Precision-based management

The Vadlamudi Group's research is focused on better answering the two most common questions patients ask their neurologist in the Epilepsy Clinic: “What is the cause of my epilepsy?” and “How can my epilepsy be treated?”

Neurogenic regulation of cognition

The Bartlett Group is focused on understanding the mechanisms that regulate the production and function of new neurons, generated from the resident population of stem/precursor cells in a region of the adult brain known as the hippocampus.

Neuromotor control

The Noakes Group is investigating the cell and molecular mechanisms that underlie the development and breakdown of the neuro-motor system.

Heterogeneity in neurodegenerative disease

The Steyn Group aims to improve our understanding of factors that contribute to variability in neurodegeneration, with the aim of using this knowledge to improve quality of life and survival for all people that receive a diagnosis of a neurodegenerative disease.

Cognitive and clinical neuropsychology

The Robinson Group is focused on both theoretical questions about brain-behaviour relationships like the crucial mechanisms for the executive control of language, and clinical questions regarding cognitive assessment and management of various pathologies.

Molecular mechanisms for wiring the brain

The overall goal of the Millard lab is to understand how specificity is generated in the brain. This problem is best exemplified by considering that 100 trillion synapses are generated and maintained in the human brain using a toolkit of only 20,000 genes.

Associate Professor Robert Henderson

Associate Professor Henderson is a staff neurologist at Royal Brisbane & Women’s Hospital where he has been working as a stroke neurologist in a busy Stroke Unit for 13 years, alongside a specific research interest in Motor Neurone Disease.

Explore our groups

Researcher spotlight