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Professor Terry Spithill
BSc (Hons 1)(Monash), PhD (Monash)
Position Strategic Research Professor
Parasitology
School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences
Location Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga
Phone 02 6933 2439
Fax 02 6933 4348
EMAIL
tspithill@csu.edu.au
Career Brief
After completing a BSc (Hons) and PhD (Biochemistry) at Monash University, Professor Spithill undertook postdoctoral studies at Mahidol University (Thailand), Colorado State University and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Professor Spithill has held positions as a Research Scientist at Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Melbourne, was Head of Department at Victorian Institute of Animal Science and then Associate Professor in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Monash University before joining McGill University (Canada) in 2001 as Director of the Institute of Parasitology. During that time he held a Canada Research Chair in Immunoparasitology (2002- 2007).
Professor Spithill has a strong record of research into the molecular biology and protein biochemistry of both human and veterinary parasites: his recent research has focused on the parasites Fasciola (liver fluke) and Plasmodium (malaria). He was appointed Strategic Research Professor in the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at Charles Sturt University (CSU) i n 2007, where he will continue his work studying host-parasite interactions and developing vaccines or drugs for control of parasite infections.
Research and Teaching
Research
- Biomarkers for mastitis in milk (CSU)
- Biomarkers for strongyle infections in horses (RIRDC)
- Applications pending to ARC
Teaching
- Professor Spithill is actively involved in graduate training in molecular parasitology. He is currently supervising a postdoctoral fellow (Dr Janelle Wright) and PhD student (Ms Marie-Claire Rioux) and is seeking students to join his research team.
- Defining surface exposed proteins on Fasciola (Dr Wright)
- Parasite proteomics (Ms Rioux)
- Biomarkers for Fasciola infections in ruminants (Ms Rioux)
Professional Links
- Adjunct Professor, McGill University and Monash University.
- Editorial Advisor, PLoS Journal of Neglected Tropical Diseases
- Member of Editorial Board, Parasite Immunology
- Chair, Program Organising Committee, International Congress for Parasitology, 2010
- Member, Australian Society for Parasitology
- Member, American Society for Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
- Member, American Society for Microbiology
Interests
- host immune responses to parasites
- parasite immune evasion mechanisms
- parasite proteomics
- vaccine and drug discovery
Selected Publications
McGonigle L, Mousley A, Marks NJ, Brennan GP, Dalton JP, Spithill TW and Maule AG (2008) The silencing of cysteine proteases in Fasciola hepatica newly excysted juveniles using RNA interference. International Journal for Parasitology 3 , 149-155.
Purcell LA, Yanow SK, Lee M, Spithill TW and Rodriguez A (2008) Chemical attenuation of Plasmodium berghei sporozoites induces sterile immunity in mice. Infection and Immunity 76, 1193-9.
Rioux MC, Carmona C, Acosta D, Ward B, Ndao M and Spithill TW (2008) Discovery and validation of serum biomarkers over the first twelve weeks of Fasciola hepatica infection in sheep. (invited paper International Journal for Parasitology 38 ,123-36.
Yanow SK, Purcell LA, Pradel G, Sato A, Rodriguez A, Lee M, Spithill TW (2008) Potent antimalarial and transmission-blocking activities of a novel DNA binding agent. Journal of infectious diseases 197 , 527-534.
Piedrafita DM, Estuningsih E, Pleasance J, Prowse RK, Raadsma HW, Meeusen ENT and Spithill, TW (2007) Peritoneal lavage cells of Indonesian thin tail sheep mediate antibody-dependent superoxide radical cytotoxicity in vitro against newly excysted juvenile Fasciola gigantica but not juvenile Fasciola hepatica. Infection and Immunity 75 , 1954-1963.