Professor MacDonald James Christie

Professor
Pharmacology, School of Medical Sciences
Brain & Mind Research Institute

M02 - Mallet Street Campus
The University of Sydney
NSW 2006 Australia

T:	+61 2 9351 0899
F:	+61 2 9114 4015
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W:	Related website

Biographical details

Professor Christie completed a PhD at The University of Sydney in 1983. He was an Australian Postdoctoral Fellow in 1985 (NH&MRC), a Fogarty International Fellow at Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1985-1987 and then Senior Research Associate at the Vollum Institute in Oregon, USA from 1987-1990. He was appointed as a tenured academic in the Department of Pharmacology, The University of Sydney in June 1990, where he was Head of Department from 1998-2000, full professor (personal chair) from 1999 and Medical Foundation Senior Principal Research Fellow from 1998-2002. He has been a NHMRC Senior Principal Research Fellow since 2003. He was Director of Basic Research at the Pain Management Research Institute, University of Sydney from 2003-2008 and was appointed to his current position at the Brain & Mind Research Institute in 2008. [More...]

Research interests

Molecular, cellular, synaptic and behavioural mechanisms of opioid addiction and persistent pain states

Current national competitive grants*

2010

Venom peptide modulators of pain pathways
Lewis R, Alewood P, Adams D, Christie M
NHMRC Program Grant/Shared Research Support ($1,510,500 over 5 years)

2008

Anandamide activated chloride channels in sensory neurons
Connor M, Christie M
ARC Discovery Projects ($255,000 over 3 years)

Career Awards: Research Fellowship
Christie M
NHMRC Research Fellowships ($736,250 over 5 years)

Role of GAT-1 transporter channels in opioid dependence
Christie M, Chieng B, Bagley E
NHMRC Project Grant ($503,250 over 3 years)

* Grants administered through the University of Sydney

Keywords

Pain; Neurophysiology; Substance abuse and addiction; Cells and cell physiology; Neuropharmacology

Publications

2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003

2009

Chieng, B., Christie, M. Chronic morphine treatment induces functional delta-opioid receptors in amygdala neurons that project to periaqueductal grey. Neuropharmacology. 2009; 57:430-7. [Abstract]
Dang, V., Napier, I., Christie, M. Two distinct mechanisms mediate acute mu-opioid receptor desensitization in native neurons. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. 2009; 29:3322-3327. [Abstract]
Christie, M., Mallet, C. Endocannabinoids can open the pain gate. Science Signaling. 2009; 2:pe57. [Abstract]

2008

Chieng, B., Lee, D., Du, Y., Osborne, P., Christie, M., Massotte, D. Functional coupling of mu-receptor-Galphai-tethered proteins in AtT20 cells. Neuroreport. 2008; 19:1793-6. [Abstract]
Christie, M. Cellular neuroadaptations to chronic opioids: tolerance, withdrawal and addiction. British Journal of pharmacology. 2008; 154:384-396. [Abstract]
Vikman, K., Rycroft, B., Christie, M. Switch to Ca2+ permeable AMPA and reduced NR2B NMDA receptor mediated neurotransmission at dorsal horn nociceptive synapses during inflammatory pain in the rat. The Journal of physiology. 2008; 586:515-27. [Abstract]

2007

Rycroft, B., Vikman, K., Christie, M. Inflammation reduces the contribution of N-type calcium channels to primary afferent synaptic transmission onto NK1 receptor-positive lamina I neurons in the rat dorsal horn. The Journal of physiology. 2007; 580:883-94. [Abstract]
Liu, X., Banister, S., Christie, M., Banati, R., Meikle, S., Coster, M., Kassiou, M. Trishomocubanes: Novel sigma ligands modulate cocaine-induced behavioural effects. European journal of pharmacology. 2007; 555:37-42. [Abstract]
Christie, M., Craik, D., Adams, D., Klimis, H., Nevin, S., Clark, R. Are alpha 9 alpha 10 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors a pain target for alpha-conotoxins?. MOLECULAR PHARMACOLOGY. 2007; 72:1406-1410. [Abstract]

2006

Ekberg, J., Jayamanne, A., Vaughan, C., Aslan, S., Thomas, L., Mould, J., Drinkwater, R., Baker, M., Abrahamsen, B., Wood, J., Adams, D., Christie, M., Lewis, R. {micro}O-conotoxin MrVIB selectively blocks Nav1.8 sensory neuron specific sodium channels and chronic pain behavior without motor deficits. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2006; 103:17030-5. [Abstract]
Jennings, E., Christie, M., Sessle, B. ATP potentiates neurotransmission in the rat trigeminal subnucleus caudalis. Neuroreport. 2006; 17:1507-1510. [Abstract]
Christie, M., Bagley, E., Hacker, J., Chieng, B. GABA transporters in drug dependence: Neuronal or glial. Alcoholism-Clinical and Experimental Research. 2006; 30:96A-96A. [Abstract]
Chieng, B., Christie, M., Osborne, P. Characterization of neurons in the rat central nucleus of the amygdala: Cellular physiology, morphology, and opioid sensitivity. The Journal of comparative neurology. 2006; 497:910-27. [Abstract]
Christie, M. Opioid and cannabinoid receptors: friends with benefits or just close friends?. British journal of pharmacology. 2006; 148:385-6. [Abstract]
Hacker, J., Pedersen, N., Chieng, B., Keay, K., Christie, M. Enhanced Fos expression in glutamic acid decarboxylase immunoreactive neurons of the mouse periaqueductal grey during opioid withdrawal. Neuroscience. 2006; 137:1389-96. [Abstract]

2005

Bagley, E., Chieng, B., Christie, M., Connor, M. Opioid tolerance in periaqueductal gray neurons isolated from mice chronically treated with morphine. British journal of pharmacology. 2005; 146:68-76. [Abstract]
Chieng, B., Hallberg, C., Nyberg, F., Christie, M. Enhanced c-Fos in periaqueductal grey GABAergic neurons during opioid withdrawal. Neuroreport. 2005; 16:1279-83. [Abstract]
Hack, S., Bagley, E., Chieng, B., Christie, M. Induction of delta-opioid receptor function in the midbrain after chronic morphine treatment. The Journal of neuroscience: the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. 2005; 25:3192-8. [Abstract]
Bagley, E., Gerke, M., Vaughan, C., Hack, S., Christie, M. GABA transporter currents activated by protein kinase A excite midbrain neurons during opioid withdrawal. Neuron. 2005; 45:433-45. [Abstract]
Hall, W., Christie, M., Currow, D. Cannabinoids and cancer: causation, remediation, and palliation. The lancet oncology. 2005; 6:35-42. [Abstract]
Hauser, K., Aldrich, J., Anderson, K., Bakalkin, G., Christie, M., Hall, E., Knapp, P., Scheff, S., Singh, I., Vissel, B., Woods, A., Yakovleva, T., Shippenberg, T. Pathobiology of dynorphins in trauma and disease. Frontiers in Bioscience. 2005; 10:216-235. [Abstract]
Marinelli, S., Connor, M., Schnell, S., Christie, M., Wessendorf, M., Vaughan, C. delta-opioid receptor-mediated actions on rostral ventromedial medulla neurons. Neuroscience. 2005; 132:239-44. [Abstract]
Vaughan, C., Christie, M. Retrograde signalling by endocannabinoids. In: Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology. Heidelberg: Springer 2005. p. 367-384.
Johnson, E., Christie, M., Connor, M. The role of opioid receptor phosphorylation and trafficking in adaptations to persistent opioid treatment. Neuro-Signals. 2005; 14:290-302. [Abstract]

2004

Marinelli, S., Schnell, S., Hack, S., Christie, M., Wessendorf, M., Vaughan, C. Serotonergic and nonserotonergic dorsal raphe neurons are pharmacologically and electrophysiologically heterogeneous. Journal of neurophysiology. 2004; 92:3532-7. [Abstract]
Dean, A., Bell, J., Christie, M., Mattick, R. Depressive symptoms during buprenorphine vs. methadone maintenance: findings from a randomised, controlled trial in opioid dependence. European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists. 2004; 19:510-3. [Abstract]
Connor, M., Osborne, P., Christie, M. Mu-opioid receptor desensitization: is morphine different?. British journal of pharmacology. 2004; 143:685-96. [Abstract]
Jennings, E., Ryan, R., Christie, M. Effects of sumatriptan on rat medullary dorsal horn neurons. Pain. 2004; 111:30-7. [Abstract]
Connor, M., Bagley, E., Mitchell, V., Ingram, S., Christie, M., Humphrey, P., Vaughan, C. Cellular actions of somatostatin on rat periaqueductal grey neurons in vitro. British journal of pharmacology. 2004; 142:1273-80. [Abstract]
Christie, M., Vaughan, C. Mechanismen der Cannabinoidanalgesie. In: Cannabis und Cannabinoide. Bern: Verla Hans Huber 2004. p. 115-125.

2003

Lonergan, T., Goodchild, A., Christie, M., Pilowsky, P. Mu opioid receptors in rat ventral medulla: effects of endomorphin-1 on phrenic nerve activity. Respiratory physiology & neurobiology. 2003; 138:165-78. [Abstract]
Hack, S., Vaughan, C., Christie, M. Modulation of GABA release during morphine withdrawal in midbrain neurons in vitro. Neuropharmacology. 2003; 45:575-84. [Abstract]
Mitchell, V., Christie, M., Vaughan, C. Developmental changes in the alpha-adrenergic responses of rat periaqueductal grey neurons. Neuroreport. 2003; 14:1637-9. [Abstract]
Borgland, S., Connor, M., Osborne, P., Furness, J., Christie, M. Opioid agonists have different efficacy profiles for G protein activation, rapid desensitization, and endocytosis of mu-opioid receptors. The Journal of biological chemistry. 2003; 278:18776-84. [Abstract]
Vaughan, C., Bagley, E., Drew, G., Schuller, A., Pintar, J., Hack, S., Christie, M. Cellular actions of opioids on periaqueductal grey neurons from C57B16/J mice and mutant mice lacking MOR-1. British journal of pharmacology. 2003; 139:362-7. [Abstract]
Jennings, E., Vaughan, C., Roberts, L., Christie, M. The actions of anandamide on rat superficial medullary dorsal horn neurons in vitro. The Journal of physiology. 2003; 548:121-9. [Abstract]
King, W., Borland, R., Christie, M. Way-out developments at BATCO. Tobacco control. 2003. p. 107-8. [Abstract]
Hack, S., Christie, M. Adaptations in adenosine signaling in drug dependence: therapeutic implications. Critical reviews in neurobiology. 2003; 15:235-74. [Abstract]
Lonergan, T., Goodchild, A., Christie, M., Pilowsky, P. Presynaptic delta opioid receptors differentially modulate rhythm and pattern generation in the ventral respiratory group of the rat. Neuroscience. 2003; 121:959-973. [Abstract]

The University of Sydney - Brain and Mind Research Institute