Research Areas
Student projects (PhD, Masters, undergraduate) are available in each of these research areas. Please get in touch if you are interested.
Nanoparticle-Cell Interactions
Nanoparticles have the potential to enhance medicine through the targeted delivery of therapeutics. The complex biological, chemical, and physical interactions during the delivery process are not yet fully understood. We use mathematical models to help elucidate the impact of these interactions, so that bespoke nanoparticles can be developed to achieve a specific function.
Collective Cell Behaviour
The understanding of how complex collective behaviour arises from individual cell interactions is fundamental to biology, from tumour growth to embryonic development. We develop mathematical models and parameter estimation techniques to gain insight into the biological mechanisms, at the individual cell level, that drive collective cell behaviour.
Animal Migration and Navigation
Long-range migration is a spectacular phenomenon that is exhibited throughout the animal kingdom. Migration relies on the interpretation of navigation cues such as celestial information, the Earth’s magnetic field, and chemical signals. We employ mathematical models to understand how animals detect cues and how collective navigation can improve migration.
Nanoparticle-Cell Interactions
Nanoparticles have the potential to enhance medicine through the targeted delivery of therapeutics. The complex biological, chemical, and physical interactions during the delivery process are not yet fully understood. We use mathematical models to help elucidate the impact of these interactions, so that bespoke nanoparticles can be developed to achieve a specific function.
Select previous projects:
How do nanoparticle size distributions affect drug delivery?
What biological mechanisms cause heterogeneous nanoparticle uptake?
How can we obtain reliable quantitative estimates of nanoparticle-cell interactions?
What insights have mathematical models provided regarding nanoparticle-cell interactions?
Collective Cell Behaviour
The understanding of how complex collective behaviour arises from individual cell interactions is fundamental to biology, from tumour growth to embryonic development. We develop mathematical models and parameter estimation techniques to gain insight into the biological mechanisms, at the individual cell level, that drive collective cell behaviour.
Select previous projects:
Animal Migration and Navigation
Long-range migration is a spectacular phenomenon that is exhibited throughout the animal kingdom. Migration relies on the interpretation of navigation cues such as celestial information, the Earth’s magnetic field, and chemical signals. We employ mathematical models to understand how animals detect cues and how collective navigation can improve migration.
Select previous projects:
For further information, watch the below video where I present my research on the impact of anthropogenic noise pollution on whale migration, as part of the 2021 Science Festival at The University of Melbourne.