Researcher

Dr Megan Denise Lenardon

Keywords

Fields of Research (FoR)

Medical mycology, Mycology, Microbial genetics, Cellular interactions (incl. adhesion, matrix, cell wall)

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Biography

I obtained a BSc (Hons) in Microbiology from UNSW in 2000, before going on to complete a PhD in Molecular Genetics in 2005 under the supervision of Prof. Ian Dawes. I then moved to the world-renowned Aberdeen Fungal Group (AFG) at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland where I worked as a postdoctoral research fellow with Profs. Neil Gow and Al Brown. During my postdoctoral years, my research focussed on fungal call wall structure and...view more

I obtained a BSc (Hons) in Microbiology from UNSW in 2000, before going on to complete a PhD in Molecular Genetics in 2005 under the supervision of Prof. Ian Dawes. I then moved to the world-renowned Aberdeen Fungal Group (AFG) at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland where I worked as a postdoctoral research fellow with Profs. Neil Gow and Al Brown. During my postdoctoral years, my research focussed on fungal call wall structure and biosynthesis, with a particular interest in the regulation of chitin synthesis during the growth of Candida albicans, as well as the immune recognition of fungal cell wall components, and C. albicans stress responses. I set up my own group in the AFG in 2012 upon the receipt of a New Investigator award from the Medical Research Council (UK), and in 2017, returned to UNSW as a Senior Lecturer in the School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences.

My research activities are focussed on translating my love of basic fungal cell biology into innovative solutions to address the urgent clinical need for novel diagnostics and therapeutic strategies to combat invasive fungal infections. I am the convenor of the Eukaryotic Microbes Special Interest Group (SIG) and co-convenor of the Gut Microbes SIG of the Australian Society for Microbiology (ASM), a member of ASM NSW/ACT branch committee, an editorial board member of The Cell Surface and review grants for Australian and UK funding bodies. 


My Research Activities

Opportunistic invasive fungal pathogens cause over two million life-threatening infections per year worldwide, with mortality ranging from 20–95%. The number of deaths per year is greater than those attributed to either malaria, or breast cancer or prostate cancer. Bloodstream infections caused by Candida species (candidaemia) are the most frequent life-threatening invasive fungal infections, with the majority caused by one species, Candida albicans.

C. albicans colonises the gut of most healthy individuals but does not usually cause serious disease because the physical barriers between our gut and the bloodstream, combined with our immune defences and the suppressive powers of the indigenous gut microbiota, prevent these infections. However, this opportunistic pathogen can cause serious, life-threatening disseminated disease when these barriers and defences are compromised (e.g. seriously ill patients in the ICU, during cancer chemotherapy or immunotherapy, organ/stem cell transplantation, or when the gut microbiota is disturbed), which renders us vulnerable to infections from the C. albicans that colonises our gut. Despite the availability of antifungal drugs, over 40% of these systemic infections are fatal in certain patient groups. There is an urgent clinical need for the development of diagnostics and new therapies for invasive candidiasis which research in my group aims to address in innovative ways.

Cell wall structure and biosynthesis. I have been studying the cell and molecular biology of C. albicans for over 18 years and have developed specific expertise in the biosynthesis of the C. albicans cell wall and its structure. My postdoctoral research was focussed on the regulation of the synthesis of chitin, an essential structural polysaccharide found in the cell wall almost all pathogenic fungi, but is not found in humans, and so represents an attractive target for antifungal drugs. Utilising state-of-the-art imaging techniques, I have investigated the precise ultrastructure of the C. albicans cell wall. These methods include high pressure freezing/freeze substitution, transmission electron microscopy and electron tomography. Determining precisely how the cell wall components are arranged, and how their arrangement changes as cells encounter different conditions, has informed the understanding of the innate and adaptive immune responses to fungi.

Gut fungi. Utilising a novel in vitro system which mimics conditions in the human colon, projects in this area are aimed at advancing our understanding of the mechanisms by which C. albicans adapts to and evolves in a key host niche, how this adaptation can be compromised by natural bacterial and fungal components of certain healthy GI microbiotas, and how this can be exploited to prevent C. albicans infections arising from the GI tract. Projects are also aimed at generating a better understanding of composition and functional role of the entire fungal component of the GI microbiota.

Development of antifungal polymers. In collaboration with Prof. Cyrille Boyer in the School of Chemical Sciences and Engineering at UNSW, a library of polymers which resemble antimicrobial peptides with antifungal activity has been synthesised, tested and optimised. With collaborators at the Hans Knoell Institute in Jena, Germany, the mode of action of these new antifungal polyacrylamides is being investigated.


My Research Supervision


Areas of supervision

  • Gut fungi.
  • Fungal cell wall structure and biosynthesis.

Currently supervising

Current Research Students

  • Sebastian Schaefer - PhD candidate (co-supervisor with Prof. Cyrille Boyle, Chemical Engineering)
  • Bianca Briscas - Honours 2021, PhD candidate
  • Hatu Gmedhin - PhD candidate (co-supervisor with Prof. Cyrille Boyer, Chemical Engineering)
  • Porshya Kallapatha - Honours 2024-25

Past Research Students

  • Isaac Lawrence - Honours 2023
  • Harry Tiernan - Honours 2022
  • Dennie Xie - Research Internship 2022, Honours 2022-23
  • Cherie Chen - Honours 2021
  • Leah Robins - Research Internship 2021
  • Logan Ho - Honours 2020-21
  • Richard Liang - Honours 2020-21
  • Reeva Nadkar - Research Internship 2020, Honours 2021
  • Caitlin Bartie - TSP mentee 2020
  • Lisa Yang - Honours 2018
  • Emily Griffiths - Honours 2018
  • Matthew Prokop - Research Internship 2018, Honours 2018, PhD candidate 2020-2022

My Engagement

Professional Engagement

  • Convenor, Eukaryotic Microbes Special Interest Group of the ASM
  • Co-convenor, Gut Microbes Special Interest Group of the ASM
  • Committee Member - ASM NSW/ACT branch
  • Editorial Board Member - The Cell Surface
  • Member Local Organising Committee and Scientific Program Committee - ASM2022 Annual National Meeting
  • Former Academic Editor - PLoS One (2014-2022)

Professional Membership

  • Australian Society for Microbiology
  • Australian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
  • Australasian Yeast Group – Special Interest Group of the ASBMB
  • Australasian Mycological Society
  • Microbiology Society
  • International Society for Human and Animal Mycology
  • British Society for Medical Mycology
  • British Mycological Society

Industry Engagement

  • Collaborative Research - Genetic Signatures Ltd.
  • Past Chair, BABS Enterprise Committee (2018-2022)

Science Outreach Activities

  • UNSW Open Day
  • BABSOC Activity - Candida art
  • National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) - Alumni events

My Teaching

  • MICR2011 Microbiology 1 - course coordinator
  • BABS3021/MICR3261 Microbial Genetics - lecturer
  • BABS1202 Applied Biomolecular Sciences - lecturer
  • MFAC1524 Health Maintenance B - lecturer
  • BABS3061 Medical Biotechnology - past course coordinator
  • BABS2011 Current Trends in Biotechnology - past lecturer
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Location

School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences
Office: Room 4103, Biosciences South Building (E26)

Map reference (Google map)

Contact

(+612) 9385-1780
(+612) 9385-1483