A/Prof Peter White
A/Prof Peter White graduated with a B.Sc
(Hons) in Biotechnology from King’s College London (1992), and completed a PhD
at
In January
2003 Pete joined
UNSW. In that year he established a molecular
microbiology research group and laboratory within the School of Biotechnology
and Biomolecular Sciences. He now leads
a highly successful research team attracting substantial peer-reviewed and
industry funding, as well as postgraduate students. The three main research areas are hepatitis C
virus, viral gastroenteritis and antibiotic resistance.
In addition to leading our research group,
Pete is also the course coordinator and lecturer for the third year
course Viruses and Disease (MICR3061). He is currently
Director Research Student Programs, BABS.
In this capacity he oversees all PhD, M.Sc and
Hons programs within BABS the largest
Dr Rowena Bull (Postdoctoral
Scientist)
Rowena Bull graduated with B.Sc (Hons) in 2003.
Even though the allure of surf, sun and sand was great (Rowena is a two time
national champion surfboat rower!), she decided to further her studies to
complete a PhD. Her current research is about the
molecular biology of RNA viruses. Specific projects
involve developing assays to determine the physiological, biochemical and recombinase properties of the norovirus, hepatitis C and
influenza replication enzyme. She has also completed a number of
molecular epidemiological studies utilising PCR sequence and phylogenetic
analysis to determine circulating Norovirus wildtype
and recombinant strains. Other projects have involved the development of
sensitive detection methods for adenovirus, astrovirus, norovirus, sapovirus
and rotavirus, and producing virus-like proteins in the baculovirus
system. Ro was the recipient of the coveted Adrian Lee Scholarship
in 2006, allowing her to travel to Japan for 3 months.
John-Sebastian Eden (PhD
student)
JS joined the team in 2007 to
undertake his Honours project. This year
after gaining first class Hons and an APA scholarship he will carry on with us
to do a PhD. His research investigates the molecular biology and prevalence of
caliciviruses. This work is divided into two areas. The first area focuses on
the molecular biology of caliciviruses. Through the expression and
development of assays for norovirus polymerase, insight can be gained into
viral replication and potential antiviral agents. This is significant as
norovirus is the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis worldwide. The second
focus of JS’s work is to investigate the prevalence
of caliciviruses in mammals. A variety of different caliciviruses have been
identified in pigs, cows and mice. The aim is to discover whether other mammals
such as sheep and kangaroos are hosts to a unique calicivirus
of their own. This work will help explain the evolution of this family of
viruses and possibly identify their natural reservoir. In order to carry out this work, JS requires
copious amounts of caffeine every morning (around 6AM- the time he usually gets
to the lab).
Sean Pham (PhD student)
Sean graduated with Bachelor of Technology
(first class Honours) from the
Filip Bebek (PhD student)
Having graduated in 2007 with a Bachelor
of Medical Science (first class Honours), Filip decided to take on the
opportunity of conducting his PhD at Johnson and Johnson Research. However,
given the closure of JJR late in 2008, Filip transferred his PhD work over to
Peter’s lab - who was his PhD co-supervisor. Filip’s
research focuses on identifying the genes that are critical in mediating the
antiviral HCV effects of IFNα therapy. By
linking the techniques of suppressive subtractive hybridisation and the RNAi pathway, Filip is undertaking a novel approach that
will ultimately allow the identification of the antiviral genes. Additionally, Filip’s utilisation of both the Replicon and JFH1 HCV
tissue culture systems will permit the investigation of gene activity in well
understood and controlled conditions. When not at the lab, Filip can usually be
found in one of two places - in the garage working on his car, or on the
Nicole Nopper (Research
Assistant)
Nicole graduated with a German Diploma in
Biology at the University of Cologne before she came to Australia in 2007. After working as a Research Assistant for the
past year in the pharmaceutical industry on Hepatitis C drug discovery, she
joined the group in February 2009. She now works on the viral cell culture
system for HCV (JFH-1). This system will be used as a tool in various questions
regarding HCV research. Utilising PCR-sequencing Nicole also contributes to
epidemiological studies on norovirus within Australia and New Zealand, as well
as various clinical trial projects regarding antiviral induced changes in HCV.
In her spare time she works hard on finding the best place for breakfast in and
around Sydney.
Arthur Chee (Honours
Student)
Arthur joined the team in 2009 and is
currently undertaking Honours. His
project involves investigating the mutation rates of Hepatitis C Virus and
other human-pathogenic viruses. This is
a two-tiered project. Firstly, Arthur
will express the polymerase enzyme responsible for the replication of the
HCV. He will then perform radioactive
assays to determine its fidelity and kinetic properties. The results may offer insight into the viral
replication of HCV. Secondly, Arthur will analyse gene sequences of HCV in
patients at different time points to identify evolutionary hot-spots. Arthur who has been recently been introduced
to wine at our recent group lunch, hopes to be a knowledgeable wine connoisseur
by the end of the year.
Han Fui
Lim (Honours Student)
Han finished his degree last year at UNSW.
Now undertaking Honours, his project relates to human enteric viruses. The main
aim of his work is to develop a novel multiplex PCR assay for the simultaneous
detection of norovirus, rotavirus, adenovirus and astrovirus. This system will be used for epidemiological
study of enteric viruses in Australia in 2008 and 2009. He is also working on the evolution of
norovirus by examining full length capsid mutations over the period of
infection of an individual. During lunch
or dinner time, Han is most probably having Malaysian spicy food.