Australian Institute of Tropical Health & Medicine

Brian Cooke

Brian Cooke

Amanda Murphy

Amanda Murphy

Tessa Knox

Tessa Knox

Justin Sexton

Justin Sexton

Adeshina Adekunle

Adeshina Adekunle

Brogan Amos

Brogan Amos

Rachael Ryan

Rachael Ryan

Emma McBryde

Emma McBryde

Juergen Reichardt

Juergen Reichardt

Tanya Russell

Tanya Russell

Collaboration on TB vaccines with RMIT
Andreas Kupz
30 Sep 2025 - 30 Mar 2026
This project is a collaboration with Dr. Sampa Sarkar, a Research Fellow at RMIT University. She has developed a lipid-based delivery system that enhances the stability and targeted pulmonary delivery of subunit vaccine candidates. These lipid particles demonstrate excellent aerosol stability and have shown encouraging results in preclinical studies of tuberculosis. Access to TB animal models remains a significant limitation in progressing this research within Australia. This collaboration will test their vaccine candidate in our established in vivo TB model at JCU.
Decoding immune heterogeneity in Tuberculosis: Insights from a unique pediatric cohort from Northern Queensland
Harindra Sathkumara Mudiyanselage
31 Dec 2025 - 31 Dec 2026
The ARC is seeking to award research grants of approximately $20,000 per grant in 2025/2026. Grants will be awarded for researchers and scholars undertaking research activities in basic science, clinical and public health research relating to the following themes: (i) infectious lung diseases due to M. tuberculosis or other respiratory pathogens, or (ii) chronic respiratory diseases related to environmental factors such as tobacco or bushfire smoke exposure. We are applying for this opportunity to obtain $20k in extra funds to perform additional proteomic and metabolomic analyses on samples collected from our human BCG vaccination cohort.
Curing arthritis using novel compounds from jellyfish venom (Old ID 27568)
Jamie Seymour
01 Mar 2022 - 31 Mar 2024
This research aims to determine if a specific fraction of the venom from the box jellyfish Chironex fleckeri, relieves the symptoms in induced rheumatoid arthritic mice by either i) decreasing the severity of the damage in joints of mice, i.e. curing the disease or ii) decreases the pain associated with the disease but does not decrease the underlying disease.
Tuberculosis modelling in the Asia-Pacific region (Old ID 22325)
Emma McBryde
15 Sep 2015 - 14 Sep 2017
This project aims to model disease transmission dynamics by quantifying key epidemiological drivers of TB transmission in the Asia Pacific region. It will take into account geospatial characteristics of the region and population vulnerabilities to tuberculosis. These include factors that lead to reactivation of TB: smoking, diabetes, HIV, malnutrition and factors that lead to transmission; household crowding, population density and late presentation to health services. This project has potential sites of data in the region including through work with JCU researchers in collaboration with PNG IMR in sites across Papua New Guinea and in other Pacific Nations.
Building Capacity for Evidence Based Sustainable Vector Surveillance and Control in the Pacific. (Old ID 26524)
Tom Burkot
27 Mar 2020 - 30 Jun 2024
This proposal will build the capacity of country-led programs for Aedes and anopheline borne disease control across Pacific Island countries to implement sustainable best practice surveillance and response plans based on a foundation of improved capacity and community engagement.
Autumn Technical Support to Enhance Allocative Efficiency of Country Tuberculosis Program (Old ID 22410)
Emma McBryde
01 May 2015 - 31 Dec 2016
Over late 2015 and all of 2016, develop transmission dynamic models of Tuberculosis and explore cost and impact of different program strategies. Apply to 3 Countries.
Development of a T cell malaria vaccine (Old ID 28983)
Denise Doolan
01 Feb 2023 - 31 Dec 2026
This application seeks to enhance the preclinical package to translate novel Plasmodium falciparum T cell reactive antigens discovered from rational genome-based screening towards clinical testing, to deliver a multi-antigen T-cell based vaccine for malaria ready for clinical trials.
Discovery of novel biomarkers for Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) infection related cancers - HL and NK/T lymphomas (Old ID 26515)
Denise Doolan
09 Apr 2019 - 19 Mar 2021
There is a large body of evidence indicating that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) actively contributes to the pathogenesis of multiple tumours. We hypothesize that the antibody response to EBV is altered in infection-related cancers. We are comprehensively assessing the antibody response to EBV in individuals with and without cancer (cases and controls) using our proprietary EBV proteome array, to identify an antibody signature which predicts cancer risk. The ultimate goal is an immunodiagnostic test to identify individuals in the general population who are at high risk of developing infection-related cancers. Extending previous studies, we will probe defined samples from Hodgkin Lymphoma and NK/T cell study provided by colleageus at NIH/NCI to define IgA and IgG antibody repertoires.
Helminth secretomes: from vaccines to novel anti-inflammatory biologics (Old ID 22726)
Alex Loukas
01 Jan 2017 - 31 Dec 2021
Over the next 5 years I will use innovative approaches to develop a pipeline of helminth vaccine antigens and immunoregulatory biologics while progressing the current lead candidates through clinical development and testing.
Discovery of novel biomarkers for Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) infection related cancers – PTLD and cross-pathogen (Old ID 26525)
Denise Doolan
08 Apr 2019 - 31 Mar 2020
There is a large body of evidence indicating that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) actively contributes to the pathogenesis of multiple tumours. We hypothesize that the antibody response to EBV is altered in infection-related cancers. We are comprehensively assessing the antibody response to EBV in individuals with and without cancer (cases and controls) using our proprietary EBV proteome array, to identify an antibody signature which predicts cancer risk. The ultimate goal is an immunodiagnostic test to identify individuals in the general population who are at high risk of developing infection-related cancers. Extending previous studies, we will probe defined samples from PTLD and other EBV-infection related cancer studies provided by colleagues at Moffitt Cancer Center and Baylor College of Medicine to define IgA and IgG antibody repertoires

Development of novel frog-skin peptide scaffolds with selectivity towards melanocortin receptor subtypes

The effect of sound lure frequency and habitat type on male Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) capture rates with the male Aedes sound trap

Capacity of National Malaria Control Programmes to implement vector surveillance: a global analysis

Averting danger under the bridge: video confirms that adult small-toothed morays tolerate salinity before and during tidal influx

Linking administrative data sets of inpatient infectious diseases diagnoses in far North Queensland: a cohort profile

Mathematical analysis of a two-strain disease model with amplification

Dengue serotypes circulating in Aedes aegypti and humans in a poor or peripheral neighborhood at Reynosa, Mexico

A review: Aedes-borne arboviral infections, controls and Wolbachia-based strategies

  • 2021
  • MDPI
  • Researchers:Michael MeehanAdeshina AdekunleEmma McBryde

Nextgen vector surveillance tools: sensitive, specific, cost-effective and epidemiologically relevant

Disparate effects of metformin on Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in diabetic and nondiabetic mice

Title: Research Grant for Medical Research in Primary, Immunodeficiencies
Reseracher: Harindra Sathkumara Mudiyanselage (Postdoctoral Research Fellow)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2014
Title: AITHM PhD Scholarship
Reseracher: Harindra Sathkumara Mudiyanselage (Postdoctoral Research Fellow)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2016
Title: JCU Higher Degree by Research Enhancement Scheme (HDRES)
Reseracher: Harindra Sathkumara Mudiyanselage (Postdoctoral Research Fellow)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2018
Title: Research Assistant, University Hospital Charite
Reseracher: Andreas Kupz (Professorial Research Fellow)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2006
End Date: 01 Jan 2007
Title: University of Adelaide’s ‘Industry Engaged PhD’ Scholarship
Reseracher: Farouq Sharifpour (Adjunct Research Fellow)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2021
Title: Endeavour Postgraduate Scholarship
Reseracher: Suchandan Sikder (Postdoctoral Research Fellow)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2014
Title: Adjunct position: Department of Environmental Studies; Emory University, Atlanta GA
Reseracher: Tom Burkot (Adjunct Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2009
End Date: 01 Jan 2011
Title: Anton Breinl Centre, James Cook University, Australia
Reseracher: Tom Burkot (Adjunct Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2003
End Date: 01 Jan 2008
Title: Adelaide Scholarship International, for studying PhD at the University of Adelaide
Reseracher: Farouq Sharifpour (Adjunct Research Fellow)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2016
Title: Adjunct position: Department of Microbiology, Colorado State University; Fort Collins, Colorado (1994-2005)
Reseracher: Tom Burkot (Adjunct Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 1994
End Date: 01 Jan 2005