Postgraduate Studies Projects

Lab Head:  Paul Gregorevic
Email:   paul.gregorevic@bakeridi.edu.au
Phone:  8532 1224Phone:  8532 1224

Skeletal muscle accounts for almost half a person’s body mass, yet we easily take for granted its role in our health and lifestyle. The reality is that physical frailty caused by a loss of strength is the primary cause of death among a significant proportion of the elderly population, and patients with a host of medical conditions.  Moreover, even a moderate decline in muscle strength caused by advancing age, bed rest or inactive livestyle can dramatically increase the incidence and severity of many serious medical conditions. 

In our lab, the goal is to understand the cellular mechanisms that regulate muscle growth and wasting, so that we can develop new methods of preventing or treating the symptoms of muscle-related diseases.  Also, our work has implications for  improving the health of that other important muscle – the heart! 

The research places a particular emphasis on employing recombinant viral vectors designed and manufactured “in-house” as a means to selectively alter gene expression in mouse models, and analyses using a host of established and cutting-edge techniques spanning the disciplines of biological/biomedical science.  This approach allows us to interrogate the cellular mechanisms controlling muscle adaptation in vivo with previously unattained precision.

Prominent themes within the lab include:

• Programs of protein signalling associated with muscle growth/wasting
• Changes in gene expression implicated in muscle adaptation
• Causes of pathology in models of neuromuscular disease, aging-, and cancer-related wasting
• Development of novel genetic and non-genetic therapies to prevent or reverse the loss of muscle function in disease.

Our major goal is to improve human health through what we learn. By embracing novel technologies in our research, and collaborating with leading laboratories world-wide, we always strive to be at the leading edge of this field and in the development of new therapeutic approaches.  This  recent addition to the BakerIDI research family is rapidly growing and looking to accelerate its research program.