Dr Nickolas Lavidis

Nickolas Lavidis

Position

Senior Lecturer

Qualifications and Awards

BSc (honours) graduation in 1978 (The University of Sydney),
PhD graduation in 1984 (The University of Sydney).
Biomedical Fellowship (National Health and Medical Research Council).
R.D. Wright Fellow (NHMRC)

Affiliations

Oxford University, Dr Cunnane and The University of Sydney, A/Prof. Einstein.

Associations

Contact Details

Location Room 112, Sir William MacGregor Building (64), St Lucia Campus
Mail School of Biomedical Sciences,
The University of Queensland,
BNE, QUEENSLAND 4072
Telephone +61 3365 3373
Facsimile +61 3365 1766
Email lavidis@uq.edu.au

Biography

Dr Lavidis has made the following seminal scientific discoveries: i) He pioneered the studies (on amphibian neuromuscular junctions, mammalian sympathetic neuromuscular junctions and mammalian ganglia synapses) that demonstrated that transmitter release from individual release sites within a terminal is highly non-uniform in terms of intermittence. This hypothesis is now accepted for all synapses (central and peripheral). ii) He was also original in demonstrating the fine topographical projection of motor neurones to the muscles and the establishment of such fine maps during development. iii) He has also made original and significant contributions in understanding how synapses adapt to environmental factors, drugs and stress.
 
He has published 56 original papers and has presented 137 articles at national and international conferences.His work has most recently led to the filing of a number of Patents. Most significant is a US and Australian patent on methods of attenuating the physiological response to chronic stress in animals and humans (CPT: 2005904605). Recently Dr Lavidis has brought together electrical engineers, computer programmers, neuroscientists and neurologists in a major project aimed at developing a microchip composed of field effect transistors able to record synaptic currents over large areas with good temporal and spatial resolution. Dr Lavidis’ research career is characterized by success in solving difficult and highly demanding problems using innovative methods. His work has been the subject of reviews on the mechanism of neurotransmitter release, and is regarded as a world expert on neurotransmission at neuromuscular synapses. His work has been cited approximately 850 times. He has also received enormous publicity in news reports around the world for his work on stress and plant derived odours.

Research Interests

The nervous system is highly adaptive to environmental influences. This is because the nervous system has enormous reserves that it can draw upon when stimulated appropriately. Sometimes such up regulation is advantages but many times these changes are detrimental. Dr Lavidis has for 26 years examined these changes and endeavoured to understand the mechanisms responsible for such up regulation.
Dr Lavidis is currently examining the effect of stress on the nervous and immune system. He and his team of 9 PhD students in association with a number of academics within the School of Biomedical Sciences at The University of Queensland and the Department of Pharmacology at The University of Sydney are examining the effects of plant derived odours in ameliorating the effects of chronic stress.  In collaboration with A/Prof. Noakes, we are examining the importance of adhesion molecules in synaptic formation. In collaboration with A/Prof. Meunier we are examining the mechanisms of synaptic vesicle recycling. In collaboration with Prof. Franklin, he is examining the neuro-protective mechanisms that allow an animal to hibernate or aestivate for years without adverse effects. In collaboration with Dr Moritz and Dr Burne, we are examining the effects of low chronic doses of alcohol on the hippocampus and behaviour. In collaboration with A/Prof. Sernia, we are examining the effect of stress on reactive oxygen species production and how plant derived odours may reduce such oxidative stress. In collaboration with Dr Borges we are examining the link between epilepsy and stress.

Selected Publications

Knight, D., Mann, D.J., Jackson, V.M., Trout, S.J., Cunnane, T.C. and Lavidis, N.A. Correlation of non-uniform protein expression with variation in transmitter release probability. Synapse. 2005. 55:110-21.
 
Husdon, N.J. Lavidis, N.A. Choy, P.T. and Franklin, C.E. Effect of prolonged inactivity on skeletal motor nerve terminals during aestivation in the burrowing frog, Cyclorana alboguttata. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol. 2005. 191:373-37.
 
Schenning, M., Proctor, D.T., Ragnarsson, L., Barbier J., Lavidis N.A., Molgo, J.J., Zamponi, G.W., Schiavo, G., and Meunier, F.A. Glycerotoxin stimulates neurotransmitter release from N-type Ca2+ channel expressing neurons.
J Neurochem. 2006. 98(3):894-904.
 
O’Leary, D.A., Noakes, P.G., Lavidis, N.A., Kola, I., Hertzog, P.J., and Ristevski, S. (2006)
Targeting of the ETS factor Gapbdisrupts neuromuscular junction synaptic function. 
Mol. Cell Biol. 27:3470-80.
 
St Pierre L, Fischer H, Adams DJ, Schenning M, Lavidis N, de Jersey J, Masci PP, Lavin MF. (2007) Distinct activities of novel neurotoxins from Australian venomous snakes for nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Cell Mol Life Sci. 64:2829-40.
 
Lavidis NA, Hudson NJ, Choy PT, Lehnert SA, Franklin CE. (2008) Role of calcium and vesicle docking proteins in remobilising dormant neuromuscular junctions in desert frogs. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol.194:27-37
 
 
Meunier FA, Nguyen TH, Colasante C, Luo F, Sullivan RK, Lavidis NA, Molgó J, Meriney SD, Schiavo G. (2010) Sustained synaptic-vesicle recycling by bulk endocytosis contributes to the maintenance of high-rate neurotransmitter release stimulated by glycerotoxin. J Cell Sci. 123(Pt 7):1131-40

Grants

NHMRC with Peter Noakes
ARC with Fred Meunier 

Students

PhD students
Giti Misagh, Elizabeth Butt, Curtis Poyton, Peter Carlyle, Jereme Spires, Jessica Soden, Carlie Cullen, Erica Mu, Kirad Chand.
MSc student:
Neville Hartley
Honours students:
Hsiao-Jou Chen, Julien Legrand, Lachlan Loose, Jane Haskings.

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