Jude Weidenhofer

Lecturer

biography

I completed my PhD investigating the molecular and cellular role of the amygdala in the aetiology of schizophrenia in 2006 at the University of Newcastle. Following a post-doctoral position at the Children\'s Oncology Unit at the Children\'s Hospital at Westmead investigating the role of TPD52 in breast development and breast cancer I returned to the University of Newcastle in 2008. Whilst this position was as a teaching focused academic, I initiated my own research direction under the supervision of Prof. Leonie Ashman which resulted in successful funding from the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia. Since 2011 I have lead my own research group investigating the regulation of the expression of tetraspanin proteins in breast and prostate cancers as well as the role of CD151 in glomerular disease.

 

Area of Interest

My current research focus is on understanding the role of three tetraspanin proteins, CD151, CD9 and CD82 in breast and prostate cancers. These proteins show de-regulated expression in these cancers which is consistent with their proposed roles as tumour and metastasis enhancers (CD151) or suppressors (CD9 & CD82). Our aim is to identify the molecular mechanisms underlying their altered expression in cancer with a current focus on the role of miRNA and the ubiquitin system. We hope that by improving our understanding of how the expression of these proteins is controlled we can gain valuable insight into how they can be used as both prognostic indicators as well as novel therapeutic targets, particularly for metastatic disease. In addition we are investigating the role that CD151 plays in the development and maintenance of the glomerular filtration barrier in the kidney. In particular we aim to identify biomarkers of glomerular disease through analysing mice in which CD151 expression has been lost and identifying the mechanisms involved in the development of and susceptibility to disease.


top publication

1. Weidenhofer J, Byrne JA, \'Isolation of nucleic acids from hard tissues\', Handbook of Nucleic Acid Purification, CRC PressI Llc, United States 427-448 (2009)
2. Mate K, Riveros C, Weidenhofer J, Goldie B, Scott J, Moscato P, et al., \'Strategies for Enhancing Communication between Students, Academics and Researchers participating in Large-Scale Undergraduate Research Projects\', International Journal of Innovation in Science and Mathematics Education, 22 14-29 (2014) [C1]
3. Vuong QV, Sadeqzadeh E, Hirun S, Goldsmith CD, Zammitt N, Bowyer MB, et al., \'Phenolic Compounds, Antioxidant and Anti-Cancer Properties of the Australian Maroon Bush Scaevola spinescens (Goodeniaceae)\', Journal of Bioanalysis & Biomedicine, S12 (2014) [C1] DOI: 10.4172/1948-593X.S12-002
4. Roselli S, Kahl RGS, Copeland BT, Naylor MJ, Weidenhofer J, Muller WJ, Ashman LK, \'Deletion of Cd151 reduces mammary tumorigenesis in the MMTV/PyMT mouse model\', BMC Cancer, 14 (2014) [C1] DOI: 10.1186/1471-2407-14-509