Dr Audra Shadforth
Administrative Division,
Campus Services,
Security & Emergency Management
Biography
I am a biomedical scientist focussed on understanding the development of age-related eye diseases to design new therapy options for patients. I am currently a postdoctoral research fellow with a joint position in the Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI) at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and the Ocular Cell Therapies Research Program at the Queensland Eye Institute (QEI). Being able to alleviate suffering and restore hope is at the forefront of my research goals. My current research project is focussed on characterising important mechanisms of wound healing in the choroidal vasculature; this work builds on my previous research on the outer retina and the continual refinement of three-dimensional culture techniques to study these mechanisms in vitro.Over the last 10 years I have taught undergraduate students in the areas of human anatomy and physiology, histological research techniques, and bioscience more generally at QUT. I am a passionate educator and I relish every opportunity to inspire the next generation of STEM consumers to be critical thinkers. I earned my PhD in the School of Biomedical Sciences at QUT, and I have a Bachelor of Science (Biomedical Science) from the University of Queensland.
In addition to my research areas, I am an avid science communicator and a feminist who is happy to speak to issues related to women and STEM. I grew up on the Gold Coast and feel at home in an ocean breeze, however, you are more likely to find me with some floral fabric behind a sewing machine. At any given moment it is also likely my wallet has more foreign currency stashed in it than Aussie dollars, and my library card is my favourite piece of plastic.
I tweet as @DrAShadforth and you can reach me at audra.shadforth@qut.edu.au
Personal details
Positions
- Visitor's position
Administrative Division,
Campus Services,
Security & Emergency Management
Keywords
biomaterials, retina, cell biology, stem cells, cell therapy, tissue engineering
Research field
Biomedical Engineering, Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Ophthalmology and Optometry
Field of Research code, Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC), 2008
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy (Queensland University of Technology)
- Bachelor of Science (University of Queensland)
Teaching
Histological Research Techniques (LQB671)
Foundations of Anatomy and Histology (LSB255)
Human Anatomy and Physiology (LSB142)
Bioscience 1 (LSB182)
Foundations of Anatomy and Histology (LSB255)
Human Anatomy and Physiology (LSB142)
Bioscience 1 (LSB182)
Publications
- Galloway, C., Dalvi, S., Shadforth, A., Suzuki, S., Wilson, M., Kuai, D., Hashim, A., MacDonald, L., Gamm, D., Harkin, D. & Singh, R. (2018). Characterization of human iPSC-RPE on a prosthetic Bruch's membrane manufactured from silk fibroin. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science, 59(7), 2792–2800. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/120056
- Bobba, S., Di Girolamo, N., Munsie, M., Chen, F., Pebay, A., Harkin, D., Hewitt, A., O'Connor, M., McLenachan, S., Shadforth, A. & Watson, S. (2018). The current state of stem cell therapy for ocular disease. Experimental Eye Research, 177, 65–75. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/120218
- Shadforth, A., Suzuki, S., Theodoropoulos, C., Richardson, N., Chirila, T. & Harkin, D. (2017). A Bruch's membrane substitute fabricated from silk fibroin supports the function of retinal pigment epithelial cells in vitro. Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, 11(6), 1915–1924. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/87441
- Santander-Borrego, M., Taran, E., Shadforth, A., Chirila, T., Whittaker, A. & Blakey, I. (2017). Hydrogels with lotus leaf topography: Investigating surface properties and cell adhesion. Langmuir, 33(2), 485–493. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/112239
- Harkin, D., Dunphy, S., Shadforth, A., Dawson, R., Walshe, J. & Zakaria, N. (2017). Mounting of biomaterials for use in ophthalmic cell therapies. Cell Transplantation, 26(11), 1717–1732. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/109289
- Shadforth, A., Chirila, T., Harkin, D., Kwan, A. & Chen, F. (2016). Biomaterial templates for the culture and transplantation of retinal pigment epithelial cells: A critical review. In D. Harkin & TV. Chirila (Eds.), Biomaterials and regenerative medicine in ophthalmology (2nd Edition) [Woodhead Publishing Series in Biomaterials] (pp. 263–289). Woodhead Publishing. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/94552
- Shadforth, A., Suzuki, S., Alzonne, R., Edwards, G., Richardson, N., Chirila, T. & Harkin, D. (2015). Incorporation of human recombinant tropoelastin into silk fibroin membranes with the view to repairing Bruch's membrane. Journal of Functional Biomaterials, 6(3), 946–962. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/87540
- Suzuki, S., Dawson, R., Chirila, T., Shadforth, A., Hogerheyde, T., Edwards, G. & Harkin, D. (2015). Treatment of silk fibroin with poly(ethylene glycol) for the enhancement of corneal epithelial cell growth. Journal of Functional Biomaterials, 6(2), 345–366. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/84584
- George, K., Shadforth, A., Chirila, T., Laurent, M., Stephenson, S., Edwards, G., Madden, P., Hutmacher, D. & Harkin, D. (2013). Effect of the sterilization method on the properties of Bombyx mori silk fibroin films. Materials Science and Engineering C: Materials for Biological Applications, 33(2), 668–674. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/58509
- Shadforth, A., George, K., Kwan, A., Chirila, T. & Harkin, D. (2012). The cultivation of human retinal pigment epithelial cells on Bombyx mori silk fibroin. Biomaterials, 33(16), 4110–4117. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/58570
QUT ePrints
For more publications by Audra, explore their research in QUT ePrints (our digital repository).
Awards
- Type
- Academic Honours, Prestigious Awards or Prizes
- Reference year
- 2014
- Details
- Dora Lush Biomedical Research Postgraduate Scholarship
- Type
- Academic Honours, Prestigious Awards or Prizes
- Reference year
- 2012
- Details
- Madeline Lenz Eye Research Fellowship