Camilla Donnelly

Dr Camilla Donnelly

Structural Biologist

Gulbali Institute

Biography

I am a researcher in the field of structural biology and biochemistry, with a focus on zoonotic viruses. My current work involves the study of lyssaviruses that cause rabies disease. Specifically, I am investigating how the newly synthesised viral proteins assemble and interact with host cell proteins to evade the innate immune response. My research also involves the development of structure-guided lyssavirus inhibitors. Additionally, I am working on understanding the mechanisms of innate immune evasion of Hendra virus and Nipah virus. I am currently a research fellow at the Gulbali Institute's Training Hub promoting Regional Industry and Innovation in Virology and Epidemiology (THRIIVE).

Research
  • Rabies disease and rabies-causing viruses (lyssaviruses)
  • Henipaviruses
  • Zoonotic viruses
  • Nuclear transport mechanisms in viral immune modulation
  • Viruses affecting Australian wildlife
Publications
Full publications list on CRO

Recent Publications

  • Donnelly, C. M., Stewart, M., Roby, J. A., Sundaramoorthy, V., & Forwood, J. K. (2024). Structural Determination of the Australian Bat Lyssavirus Nucleoprotein and Phosphoprotein Complex. Viruses, 16(1), 33. https://doi.org/10.3390/v16010033
  • Donnelly, C. M., Vogel, O. A., Edwards, M. R., Taylor, P. E., Roby, J. A., Forwood, J. K., & Basler, C. F. (2023). Henipavirus Matrix Protein Employs a Non-Classical Nuclear Localization Signal Binding Mechanism. Viruses, 15(6), 1302. https://doi.org/10.3390/v15061302
  • Cross EM, Akbari N, Ghassabian H, Hoad M, Pavan S, Ariawan D, et al. A functional and structural comparative analysis of large tumor antigens reveals evolution of different importin α-dependent nuclear localization signals. Protein Science. 2024; 33(2):e4876. https://doi.org/10.1002/pro.4876
  • Nematollahzadeh S, Athukorala A, Donnelly CM, Pavan S, Atelie-Djossou V, Di Iorio E, Nath B, Helbig KJ, McSharry BP, Forwood JK, Sarker S, Alvisi G. Mechanistic Insights Into an Ancient Adenovirus Precursor Protein VII Show Multiple Nuclear Import Receptor Pathways. Traffic. 2024 Sep;25(9):e12953. doi: 10.1111/tra.12953. PMID: 39301720.
  • Athukorala, A., Donnelly, C. M., Pavan, S., Nematollahzadeh, S., Djossou, V. A., Nath, B., Helbig, K. J., Di Iorio, E., McSharry, B. P., Alvisi, G., Forwood, J. K., & Sarker, S. (2024). Structural and functional characterization of siadenovirus core protein VII nuclear localization demonstrates the existence of multiple nuclear transport pathways. Journal of General Virology, 105(1). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1099/jgv.0.001928