Researcher biography

Evan Bailey is a postdoctoral researcher in the Molecular and Systems Medicine Group at the School of Biomedical Sciences and Queensland Brain Institute. His current work focuses on the interplay between innate immune signaling and cellular metabolism in neurodegenerative diseases utilising his skills and experience in molecular genetics, cellular physiology and computational biology.

Evan started his career as a Research Assistant in the lab of Dr. Natasha Kumar at UNSW, Sydney, studying functional plasticity in chemoreceptive brainstem neurons in response to chronic hypercapnia (elevated CO2) before moving to UQ to pursue a PhD in evolutionary-developmental neuroscience. His PhD work under the supervision of Dr. Laura Fenlon and Dr. Rodrigo Suarez focused on the evolution of cellular mechanisms controlling neuronal differentiation and fate specification in the neocortex of marsupial and placental mammals, resulting in publications in Nature Communications and PNAS. Throughout his research career, Evan has had a keen interest in how cells establish and maintain their functional identity across a wide range of contexts and how homesostatic programs (e.g. energy metabolism) influence cell identity and phenotypic transitions.