David Bryant

Biography

 2006: PhD, University of Queensland, Australia, Supervisor Jennifer Stow 2002: BSc (Hons) Class I, University of Queensland, Australia

Research Interest

  Extensive molecular characterisation of how cells know to orient their apical surfaces in the correct direction. Importantly, this work uncovers one way by which the extracellular matrix determines whether groups of epithelial cells become invasive or form a lumen (Dev Cell 2014) Molecular characterisation of how cell polarity rearrangements can function as an innate response system of epithelial barriers to a bacterial pathogen challenge (p. aeruginosa) (Cell Host Microbe 2014) First molecular description of the membrane trafficking and polarity rearrangements required to form an apical surface and lumen de novo. Our findings have been recapitulated in many other systems, showing that we uncovered a fundamentally conserved biological process (Nat Cell Biol 2012) Discovery of an unexpected role of the EGF receptor in controlling basolateral to apical transport of vesicles. Key to this work was a novel cascade of kinases leading to the vesicle transport protein Rab11FIP5 (Nat Cell Biol 2012) The elucidation of how multiple trafficking GTPases can function with the same effector (Myosin-5B) to control the function of the apical membrane and lumen (PNAS 2011)