Pain Research
The human genome project was a major advance that now allows us molecular access to genetic causes of complex human diseases. The real question now is “what do these genes do, and how do they participate in human disease?” Yet despite massive genome-wide efforts to identify the genetic contribution of various human traits or diseases, to date the identified heritability of even simple traits like height is only ~5% of the known genetic contribution. The focus of our lab is to combine fruit fly, mouse, and human systems to identify the other ~95% of the genetic component for diseases of the nervous and cardiovascular systems. Our long-term goal is to use this information to develop novel therapeutics for these diseases.
For example more then 50% of the population will experience some form of chronic pain within their life, especially patients that suffer from arthritis, cancer, diabetes, migraine, or nerve injuries. Despite the astonishing prevalence, there are few effective therapeutic options for these patients. One of our laboratory’s major goals is to identify and characterize new genes that participate in the severity of chronic pain. We have identified ~600 new pain genes in the fruit fly, with most of these genes having mammalian counterparts. Through our own work and ongoing collaborations with human geneticists, we are currently prioritizing and confirming these genes. For example we have identified a calcium channel subunit (A2D3) as part of the pain relay system in the brain. This work also led to identification of the first ever gene shown to play a role in sensory cross activation or synesthesia.
We also use our approach to identify and characterize novel genes contributing to other major illnesses. For example heart diseases are the most common causes of morbidity and death in humans and more than 50% of the Australian population will suffer from some form of cardiovascular disease. Through our combined fly/mouse/human approach we have identified components of the CCR4/NOT complex as one of 12 major susceptibility loci for sudden cardiac death. We have also identified ~150 human genes that contribute to heart disease in both the fruit fly and in humans, and we are currently investigating these genes in more detail.
Career opportunities
We are always looking for talented, ambitious students and postdocs to join our group. Please contact Greg for further information.
Staff
 Research OfficerDr Qiaoping (Kevin) Wang |
 Research OfficerDr Carla Gentile |
 Research OfficerDr Yong Qi (Willie) Lin |
 Research OfficerDr Raymond Lau |
 Research AssistantAnnora Thoeng |
 Research AssistantGiedre Milinkeviciute |
 Research AssistantSilas Sugiharto |
