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Understanding Norovirus replication
Understanding Norovirus replication by investigating functional roles for the individual viral proteins and their impact on host responses, primarily metabolism and innate immunity. The Mackenzie Group aims to determine the intricate virus-host interactions that facilitate efficient virus replication identifying the contributions made by the virus and the host.
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Development of therapeutic approaches to prevent and treat norovirus disease
The Mackenzie Group aims to develop vaccine approaches that can be used as a preventative to prevent transmission and infection within the human population but also agents that can be utilised as a prophylactic in outbreak scenarios.
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Impact of flavivirus infection on host lipid biosynthesis pathways
Determine the impact of flavivirus infection (West Nile, Zika and Dengue virus) on host lipid biosynthesis pathways and how these alterations in the lipid landscape affect host metabolism, innate immunity and virus replication. The Mackenzie Group aims to understand how the viruses utilise lipid to house essential components for effective virus replication and identify critical host components and pathways that can be targeted for antiviral drug development.
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Establishment of a vaccine platform to produce virus-like particles (VLPs)
Establishment of a vaccine platform to produce virus-like particles (VLPs) of many virus families that can be used for preventative therapies, diagnostic markers and screening tools and resources to identify infections in humans. These reagents can be used effectively to identify key immune cell populations and derive molecules that are critical to host response and recovery from infection.
Professor Jason Mackenzie
+61403111698 | jason.mackenzie@unimelb.edu.au
- Position:
- Laboratory Head
- Theme(s):
- Enteric infections, Immunology, Viral Infectious Diseases, Bacterial and Parasitic Infections, Dengue
- Discipline(s):
- Discovery Research, Global Health
- Unit(s):
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology (DMI)
- Lab Group(s):
- Mackenzie Group
Professor Jason Mackenzie is a basic research scientist and an international expert on flavivirus and norovirus replication and pathogenesis. He obtained his undergraduate degree at the University of Otago, New Zealand and his PhD at the University of Queensland. In 2002, he received a Fellowship to study at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany and in 2007 he accepted an academic position within the Department of Microbiology at La Trobe University. He currently holds a teaching and research position within the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Melbourne. Jason plays an active role within the national virology community, is an Executive Committee member of the Australasian Virology Society and has been a member of the local organising committee of numerous national virology meetings. In addition, he is an Editorial board member of notable journals Journal of Virology, Virology, Molecular Microbiology and is Section Editor for (+)RNA viruses for the Virology Journal. He is an alumni member of EMBL and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
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Key Achievements
Publications
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Professor Mackenzie has established a niche position by incorporating multi-faceted approaches that investigate molecular, biochemical, ultrastructural, biological and immunological aspects to virus replication in cells. In particular my expertise in electron-microscopy has been recognised nationally and internationally where he has collaborated with many groups to perform and interpret electron microscopy. He has been instrumental in the elucidation of the flavivirus and norovirus replication complex in terms of viral proteins and utilization of cellular membranes. He has proposed roles for both cellular organelles and the cytoskeleton during these processes. He was one of the few groups internationally to reveal the flavivirus replication complex in 3D utilizing state-of the art electron tomography. He was involved in the identification of the first ever tissue system to investigate norovirus replication.
ProjectsLoading ORCID data…Research Groups-
Mackenzie Group
The Mackenzie lab utilises multidisciplinary approaches to decipher how viruses establish their replicative niche in cells enabling them to construct research programs centred on intracellular virus replication.
Lab Team
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Laboratory Head
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Thomas BurtonResearch Officer
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Research Officer
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Caolingzhi TangPhD Candidate
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Thalia FrotaPhD Candidate
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Eleanor MeadMasters Student
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Florian Gohr (University of Bonn)PhD Candidate
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Dorothee Lapp (University of Bonn)PhD Candidate
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