ZFIN Lab: Laird Lab

ZFIN ID: ZDB-LAB-180305-3

Laird Lab

PI/Director:	Laird, Angela
Contact Person:	Laird, Angela
Email:	angela.laird@mq.edu.au
URL:	http://www.mq.edu.au/about/about-the-university/faculties-and-departments/faculty-of-medicine-and-health-sciences/staff-profiles/angela-laird
Address:	Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences Level 1, 75 Talavera Road Macquarie University, NSW 2109
Country:	Australia
Phone:	+61 2 9850 2730
Fax:
Line Designation:	mq

GENOMIC FEATURES ORIGINATING FROM THIS LAB

Show all 5 genomic features

STATEMENT OF RESEARCH INTERESTS

The Laird Team studies the pathogenesis of movement disorders with a particular focus on identifying and testing potential disease treatments. Her group has been successful at producing and characterising the world’s first zebrafish model of spinocerebellar ataxia type-3 (also known as Machado Joseph Disease, MJD). They are currently testing the effect of various drugs on zebrafish models of spinocerebellar ataxia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease or motor neuron disease) with the aim of identifying a treatment for the disease.

LAB MEMBERS

Don, Emily Post-Doc	Luu, Luan Post-Doc	Watchon, Maxinne Graduate Student
Chow, Sharon Research Staff	Winnick, Claire Research Staff	Yuan, Kristy Research Staff

ZEBRAFISH PUBLICATIONS OF LAB MEMBERS

Watchon, M., Robinson, K.J., Luu, L., An, Y., Yuan, K.C., Plenderleith, S.K., Cheng, F., Don, E.K., Nicholson, G.A., Lee, A., Laird, A.S. (2024) Treatment with sodium butyrate induces autophagy resulting in therapeutic benefits for spinocerebellar ataxia type 3. FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. 38:e23429e23429

Watchon, M., Luu, L., Plenderleith, S.K., Yuan, K.C., Laird, A.S. (2023) Autophagy Function and Benefits of Autophagy Induction in Models of Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 3. Cells. 12(6):

Pereira Sena, P., Weber, J.J., Watchon, M., Robinson, K.J., Wassouf, Z., Hauser, S., Helm, J., Abeditashi, M., Schmidt, J., Hübener-Schmid, J., Schöls, L., Laird, A.S., Riess, O., Schmidt, T. (2021) Pathophysiological interplay between O-GlcNAc transferase and the Machado-Joseph disease protein ataxin-3. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 118(47):

Robinson, K.J., Yuan, K., Plenderleith, S.K., Watchon, M., Laird, A.S. (2021) A Novel Calpain Inhibitor Compound Has Protective Effects on a Zebrafish Model of Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 3. Cells. 10(10)

Robinson, K.J., Tym, M.C., Hogan, A., Watchon, M., Yuan, K.C., Plenderleith, S.K., Don, E.K., Laird, A.S. (2021) Flow cytometry allows rapid detection of protein aggregates in cellular and zebrafish models of spinocerebellar ataxia 3. Disease models & mechanisms. 14(10):

Vandestadt, C., Vanwalleghem, G.C., Khabooshan, M.A., Douek, A.M., Castillo, H.A., Li, M., Schulze, K., Don, E., Stamatis, S.A., Ratnadiwakara, M., Änkö, M.L., Scott, E.K., Kaslin, J. (2021) RNA-induced inflammation and migration of precursor neurons initiates neuronal circuit regeneration in zebrafish. Developmental Cell. 56:2364-2380.e8

Watchon, M., Luu, L., Robinson, K.J., Yuan, K.C., De Luca, A., Suddull, H.J., Tym, M.C., Guillemin, G.J., Cole, N.J., Nicholson, G.A., Chung, R.S., Lee, A., Laird, A.S. (2021) Sodium valproate increases activity of the sirtuin pathway resulting in beneficial effects for spinocerebellar ataxia-3 in vivo. Molecular brain. 14:128

Cheng, F., De Luca, A., Hogan, A.L., Rayner, S.L., Davidson, J.M., Watchon, M., Stevens, C.H., Muñoz, S.S., Ooi, L., Yerbury, J.J., Don, E.K., Fifita, J.A., Villalva, M.D., Suddull, H., Chapman, T.R., Hedl, T.J., Walker, A.K., Yang, S., Morsch, M., Shi, B., Blair, I.P., Laird, A.S., Chung, R.S., Lee, A. (2021) Unbiased Label-Free Quantitative Proteomics of Cells Expressing Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Mutations in CCNF Reveals Activation of the Apoptosis Pathway: A Workflow to Screen Pathogenic Gene Mutations. Frontiers in molecular neuroscience. 14:627740

Don, E.K., Maschirow, A., Radford, R.A.W., Scherer, N.M., Vidal-Itriago, A., Hogan, A., Maurel, C., Formella, I., Stoddart, J.J., Hall, T.E., Lee, A., Shi, B., Cole, N.J., Laird, A.S., Badrock, A.P., Chung, R.S., Morsch, M. (2021) In vivo Validation of Bimolecular Fluorescence Complementation (BiFC) to Investigate Aggregate Formation in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Molecular neurobiology. 58(5):2061-2074

Cholan, P.M., Han, A., Woodie, B.R., Watchon, M., Kurz, A.R., Laird, A.S., Britton, W.J., Ye, L., Holmes, Z.C., McCann, J.R., David, L.A., Rawls, J.F., Oehlers, S.H. (2020) Conserved anti-inflammatory effects and sensing of butyrate in zebrafish. Gut microbes. 12:1-11

Parakh, S., Shadfar, S., Perri, E.R., Ragagnin, A.M.G., Piattoni, C.V., Fogolín, M.B., Yuan, K.C., Shahheydari, H., Don, E.K., Thomas, C.J., Hong, Y., Comini, M.A., Laird, A.S., Spencer, D.M., Atkin, J.D. (2020) The Redox Activity of Protein Disulfide Isomerase Inhibits ALS Phenotypes in Cellular and Zebrafish Models. iScience. 23:101097

Aksoy, Y.A., Nguyen, D.T., Chow, S., Chung, R.S., Guillemin, G.J., Cole, N.J., Hesselson, D. (2019) Chemical reprogramming enhances homology-directed genome editing in zebrafish embryos. Communications biology. 2:198

Pavez, M., Thompson, A.C., Arnott, H.J., Mitchell, C.B., D'Atri, I., Don, E.K., Chilton, J.K., Scott, E.K., Lin, J.Y., Young, K.M., Gasperini, R.J., Foa, L. (2019) STIM1 is required for remodelling of the endoplasmic reticulum and microtubule cytoskeleton in steering growth cones. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. 39(26):5095-5114

Kumar, S.S., Tandberg, J.I., Penesyan, A., Elbourne, L.D.H., Suarez-Bosche, N., Don, E., Skadberg, E., Fenaroli, F., Cole, N., Winther-Larsen, H.C., Paulsen, I.T. (2018) Dual Transcriptomics of Host-Pathogen Interaction of Cystic Fibrosis Isolate Pseudomonas aeruginosa PASS1 With Zebrafish. Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology. 8:406

Hogan, A.L., Don, E.K., Rayner, S.L., Lee, A., Laird, A.S., Watchon, M., Winnick, C., Tarr, I.S., Morsch, M., Fifita, J.A., Gwee, S.S.L., Formella, I., Hortle, E., Yuan, K.C., Molloy, M.P., Williams, K.L., Nicholson, G.A., Chung, R.S., Blair, I.P., Cole, N.J. (2018) Expression of ALS/FTD-linked mutant CCNF in zebrafish leads to increased cell death in the spinal cord and an aberrant motor phenotype. Human molecular genetics. 28(4):698

Robinson, K.J., Yuan, K.C., Don, E.K., Hogan, A.L., Winnick, C.G., Tym, M.C., Lucas, C.W., Shahheydari, H., Watchon, M., Blair, I.P., Atkin, J.D., Nicholson, G.A., Cole, N.J., Laird, A.S. (2018) Motor Neuron Abnormalities Correlate with Impaired Movement in Zebrafish that Express Mutant Superoxide Dismutase 1. Zebrafish. 16(1):8-14

Acosta, J.R., Watchon, M., Yuan, K.C., Fifita, J., Svahn, A.J., Don, E.K., Blair, I.P., Nicholson, G.A., Cole, N.J., Goldsbury, C., Laird, A.S. (2018) Neuronal cell culture from transgenic zebrafish models of neurodegenerative disease. Biology Open. 7(10):

Formella, I., Svahn, A.J., Radford, R.A.W., Don, E.K., Cole, N.J., Hogan, A., Lee, A., Chung, R.S., Morsch, M. (2018) Real-time visualization of oxidative stress-mediated neurodegeneration of individual spinal motor neurons in vivo. Redox Biology. 19:226-234

Svahn, A.J., Don, E.K., Badrock, A.P., Cole, N.J., Graeber, M.B., Yerbury, J.J., Chung, R., Morsch, M. (2018) Nucleo-cytoplasmic transport of TDP-43 studied in real time: impaired microglia function leads to axonal spreading of TDP-43 in degenerating motor neurons. Acta Neuropathologica. 136(3):445-459

Gwee, S.S.L., Radford, R.A.W., Chow, S., Syal, M.D., Morsch, M., Formella, I., Lee, A., Don, E.K., Badrock, A.P., Cole, N.J., West, A.K., Cheung, S.N.S., Chung, R.S. (2018) Aurora kinase B regulates axonal outgrowth and regeneration in the spinal motor neurons of developing zebrafish. Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS. 75(23):4269-4285

Lee, A., Rayner, S.L., Gwee, S.S.L., De Luca, A., Shahheydari, H., Sundaramoorthy, V., Ragagnin, A., Morsch, M., Radford, R., Galper, J., Freckleton, S., Shi, B., Walker, A.K., Don, E.K., Cole, N.J., Yang, S., Williams, K.L., Yerbury, J.J., Blair, I.P., Atkin, J.D., Molloy, M.P., Chung, R.S. (2017) Pathogenic mutation in the ALS/FTD gene, CCNF, causes elevated Lys48-linked ubiquitylation and defective autophagy.. Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS. 75(2):335-354

Watchon, M., Yuan, K.C., Mackovski, N., Svahn, A.J., Cole, N.J., Goldsbury, C., Rinkwitz, S., Becker, T.S., Nicholson, G.A., Laird, A.S. (2017) Calpain inhibition is protective in Machado-Joseph disease zebrafish due to induction of autophagy. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. 37(32):7782-7794

Hogan, A.L., Don, E.K., Rayner, S.L., Lee, A., Laird, A.S., Watchon, M., Winnick, C., Tarr, I.S., Morsch, M., Fifita, J.A., Gwee, S., Formella, I., Hortle, E., Yuan, K., Molloy, M.P., Williams, K.L., Nicholson, G.A., Chung, R.S., Blair, I.P., Cole, N.J. (2017) Expression of ALS/FTD-linked mutant CCNF in zebrafish leads to increased cell death in the spinal cord and an aberrant motor phenotype. Human molecular genetics. 26(14):2616-2626

Morsch, M., Radford, R.A., Don, E.K., Lee, A., Hortle, E., Cole, N.J., Chung, R.S. (2017) Triggering Cell Stress and Death Using Conventional UV Laser Confocal Microscopy. Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE. (120)

Don, E.K., Formella, I., Badrock, A.P., Hall, T.E., Morsch, M., Hortle, E., Hogan, A., Chow, S., Gwee, S.S., Stoddart, J.J., Nicholson, G., Chung, R., Cole, N.J. (2017) A Tol2 Gateway-Compatible Toolbox for the Study of the Nervous System and Neurodegenerative Disease. Zebrafish. 14(1):69-72

Laird, A.S., Mackovski, N., Rinkwitz, S., Becker, T.S., Giacomotto, J. (2016) Tissue-specific models of spinal muscular atrophy confirm a critical role of SMN in motor neurons from embryonic to adult stages. Human molecular genetics. 25(9):1728-38

Don, E.K., de Jong-Curtain, T.A., Doggett, K., Hall, T.E., Heng, B., Badrock, A.P., Winnick, C., Nicholson, G.A., Guillemin, G.J., Currie, P.D., Hesselson, D., Heath, J.K., Cole, N.J. (2016) Genetic basis of hindlimb loss in a naturally occurring vertebrate model. Biology Open. 5(3):359-66

Morsch, M., Radford, R., Lee, A., Don, E.K., Badrock, A.P., Hall, T.E., Cole, N.J., Chung, R. (2015) In vivo characterization of microglial engulfment of dying neurons in the zebrafish spinal cord. Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience. 9:321

Acosta, J.R., Goldsbury, C., Winnick, C., Badrock, A.P., Fraser, S.T., Laird, A.S., Hall, T.E., Don, E.K., Fifita, J.A., Blair, I.P., Nicholson, G.A., Cole, N.J. (2014) Mutant Human FUS Is Ubiquitously Mislocalized and Generates Persistent Stress Granules in Primary Cultured Transgenic Zebrafish Cells. PLoS One. 9(6):e90572

Veilleux, H.D., Van Herwerden, L., Cole, N.J., Don, E.K., De Santis, C., Dixson, D.L., Wenger, A.S., and Munday, P.L. (2013) Otx2 expression and implications for olfactory imprinting in the anemonefish, Amphiprion percula. Biology Open. 2(9):907-915

Don, E.K., Currie, P.D., Cole, N.J. (2013) The evolutionary history of the development of the pelvic fin/hindlimb. Journal of anatomy. 222:114-133

Cole, N.J., Hall, T.E., Don, E.K., Berger, S., Boisvert, C.A., Neyt, C., Ericsson, R., Joss, J., Gurevich, D.B., and Currie, P.D. (2011) Development and evolution of the muscles of the pelvic fin. PLoS Biology. 9(10):e1001168

Don, E.K., Hall, T.E., Currie, P.D., and Cole, N.J. (2011) Morphology of pelvic fin loss in a zebrafish strain (Danio rerio). Journal of morphology. 272(5):583-589