Associate Professor Eleanor Drummond
Bluesand Senior Research Fellow, Brain and Mind Centre
Eleanor Drummond is a neuroscientist who is passionate about understanding the cause of neurodegenerative disease. She received her PhD from the University of Western Australia in 2012. She then worked as postdoctoral fellow at Murdoch University (Australia) and New York University School of Medicine (USA), where she was appointed an Assistant Professor of Neurology in 2014. She returned back to Australia in 2018 to become a group leader at the Brain & Mind Centre at the University of Sydney after receiving the Bluesand Research Fellowship in Alzheimer’s disease. Her team uses proteomics, neuropathology and cell culture approaches to identify the protein drivers of multiple neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, Frontotemporal Dementia, Epilepsy and Down syndrome. Her long-term goal is to determine the disease mechanisms that underlie these diseases and to use this information to identify new drug targets and biomarkers.
Dr Drummond’s research focuses on understanding the cause of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s disease and primary tauopathies such as Progressive Supranuclear Palsy.
She has developed new proteomics techniques that allows the localised analysis of proteins present in specific populations of cells or neuropathological lesions present in disease (e.g. amyloid plaques or neurofibrillary tangles) and that identify the protein interactors of key disease mediators such as tau and beta amyloid. She has generated the most comprehensive atlas available of all protein changes that occur throughout the progression of Alzheimer’s in human brain tissue (NeuroPro: https://neuropro.biomedical.hosting/) and has developed new cell culture approaches to determine the mechanistic role in disease for these new proteins identified in her proteomics studies. She is currently exploring the therapeutic potential of targeting these newly identified brain protein changes to treat Alzheimer’s disease and is examining whether these protein changes are new potential blood biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease.
Student Opportunities:PhD, Masters, and Honours and Dalyell projects are all currently available – please email if interested.
Project 1: Identifying Protein Drivers of Early Alzheimer’s disease
Aim: To identify the initiating protein changes that occur in human Alzheimer’s disease brain tissue.
Knowledge Gap: The earliest protein changes in Alzheimer’s disease are still unknown. This is a significant knowledge gap as these protein changes are likely initiators of disease and excellent drug targets. Through our recent proteomics studies, we have identified multiple protein changes that we hypothesize to be some of the first protein changes that occur in Alzheimer’s disease. However, we don’t yet know what these early protein changes do in the brain, whether they are cell type specific, or whether they colocalize with pathology. This project will use a combination of proteomics, multiplexed immunohistochemistry and mechanistic cell culture/in vitro studies to determine the role of these early protein changes in Alzheimer’s disease. This study will also provide key new information about whether these protein changes have potential as new therapeutic targets for Alzheimer’s disease.
Specific Research Objectives:
1. Determine how these early protein changes in Alzheimer’s disease are mislocalized in human brain tissue
2. Determine if these early protein changes promote the development of neuropathology in Alzheimer’s disease
3. Determine if these early protein changes are mechanistically involved in the development of Alzheimer’s disease
Project 2: Identifying the Molecular Drivers of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy
Aim: To identify protein changes in human brain tissue that drive Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) and to use this new knowledge to uncover new drug targets and biomarkers.
Knowledge Gap: The cause of PSP is unknown and there are no disease modifying drugs available. While PSP is defined by aggregation of the protein tau in the brain, the underlying disease mechanisms that drive tau aggregation in PSP are unknown. This significant knowledge gap has severely hindered drug development and biomarker-based diagnosis of PSP in the clinic. Our study has excellent potential to (1) identify new drug targets (2) identify new PSP biomarkers that can be used for diagnosis and as predictive biomarkers in clinical trials (3) identify new disease drivers that will propel PSP research in novel directions.
Specific Research Objectives
1. Identify proteins enriched in the insoluble proteome in PSP human brain tissue
2. Identify proteins that interact with tau in PSP human brain tissue
3. Determine how new potential drug targets mechanistically drive PSP
Project 3: Identifying new mechanistic blood biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease
Aim: To develop a new panel of brain-derived blood biomarkers that provide a mechanistic readout of pathological changes in Alzheimer’s disease.
Knowledge Gap: Blood based biomarkers have excellent potential to provide new insight into brain changes that occur throughout the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. To date, blood biomarker studies have focused on diagnostic biomarkers, predominantly Ab and pTau. Proteomic studies have suggested that there may be many other blood biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease, each reflecting different aspects of pathology, but information about which of these directly come from the brain and what pathological protein changes they reflect is still lacking. This information is critical as these brain-derived blood biomarkers could be used to provide a non-invasive window into specific aspects of Alzheimer’s disease pathology (e.g. plaques, tangles, inflammation, metabolic changes, synaptic changes, neurodegenerative changes, blood brain barrier breakdown, cerebral amyloid angiopathy etc). Therefore, the aim of this study is to identify a new panel of biomarkers that directly reflect brain changes in Alzheimer’s disease. Mechanistic studies will be done to determine the mechanistic role of these protein changes in the brain in Alzheimer’s disease.
Specific Research Objectives:
1. To identify brain-derived blood biomarkers in Alzheimer’s disease by correlating brain and blood proteomic datasets
2. To identify a panel of potential mechanistic blood biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease that reflect a diverse range of Alzheimer’s disease associated pathology (e.g. plaques, tangles, inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, synaptic loss, neurodegeneration etc) and develop high-throughput targeted assays targeting these biomarkers.
3. Identify the mechanistic involvement of these blood biomarkers in Alzheimer’s disease pathology.
- Australasian Neuroscience Society
- ISTAART (Alzheimer's Association)
- Davos Alzheimer's Collaborative - Champions Cabinet
- Blas Frangione Early Career Achievement Award, Alzheimer's Association (2021)
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Makers and Shapers Award for Research Excellence (2021)
- Brain & Mind Centre Impact and Excellence Award (2020)
- NSW Health Excellence in Medical Research Award, Australian Society for Medical Research (2019)
- Bluesand Senior Research Fellowship (2018-2025)
- Valedictorian, University of Western Australia (2012)
(New York University School of Medicine) Professor Thomas Wisniewski and A/Prof Beatrix Ueberheide; localised proteomics of amyloid plaques in Alzheimer disease and Down Syndrome |
| Project title | Research student |
|---|---|
| Investigating the Molecular Drivers of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy | Laura NEMENTZIK |
Publications
Book Chapters
- Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2019). Future horizons in Alzheimer's disease research. In David B. Teplow (Eds.), Progress in Molecular Biology and Translational Science Volume 168, (pp. 223-241). Cambridge: Academic Press. [More Information]
Journals
- Leitner, D., Pires, G., Kavanagh, T., Kanshin, E., Askenazi, M., Ueberheide, B., Devinsky, O., Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2024). Similar brain proteomic signatures in Alzheimer’s disease and epilepsy. Acta Neuropathologica, 147(1), 27. [More Information]
- Thierry, M., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T., Ponce, J., Marta-Ariza, M., Askenazi, M., Faustin, A., Leitner, D., Pires, G., Kanshin, E., Drummond, E. (2024). The influence of APOEε4 on the pTau interactome in sporadic Alzheimer’s disease. Acta Neuropathologica, 147(1), 91. [More Information]
- Askenazi, M., Kavanagh, T., Pires, G., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2023). Compilation of reported protein changes in the brain in Alzheimer’s disease. Nature Communications, 14(1). [More Information]
2024
- Leitner, D., Pires, G., Kavanagh, T., Kanshin, E., Askenazi, M., Ueberheide, B., Devinsky, O., Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2024). Similar brain proteomic signatures in Alzheimer’s disease and epilepsy. Acta Neuropathologica, 147(1), 27. [More Information]
- Thierry, M., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T., Ponce, J., Marta-Ariza, M., Askenazi, M., Faustin, A., Leitner, D., Pires, G., Kanshin, E., Drummond, E. (2024). The influence of APOEε4 on the pTau interactome in sporadic Alzheimer’s disease. Acta Neuropathologica, 147(1), 91. [More Information]
2023
- Askenazi, M., Kavanagh, T., Pires, G., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2023). Compilation of reported protein changes in the brain in Alzheimer’s disease. Nature Communications, 14(1). [More Information]
- Walker, J., McKenzie, A., Kauffman, J., Selmanovic, E., Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E., White, C., Crary, J., Farrell, K., Kautz, T., et al (2023). Spatial proteomics of hippocampal subfield-specific pathology in Alzheimer's disease and primary age-related tauopathy. Alzheimer's and Dementia. [More Information]
2022
- Kavanagh, T., Halder, A., Drummond, E. (2022). Tau interactome and RNA binding proteins in neurodegenerative diseases. Molecular Neurodegeneration, 17(1). [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Kavanagh, T., Pires, G., Marta-Ariza, M., Kanshin, E., Nayak, S., Faustin, A., Berdah, V., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T. (2022). The amyloid plaque proteome in early onset Alzheimer's disease and Down syndrome. Acta Neuropathologica Communications, 10(1), 53. [More Information]
2021
- Pires, G., Drummond, E. (2021). It takes more than tau to tangle: Using proteomics to determine how phosphorylated tau mediates toxicity in neurodegenerative diseases. Neural Regeneration Research, 16(11), 2211-2212. [More Information]
- Pires, G., Leitner, D., Drummond, E., Kanshin, E., Nayak, S., Askenazi, M., Faustin, A., Friedman, D., Debure, L., Ueberheide, B., et al (2021). Proteomic differences in the hippocampus and cortex of epilepsy brain tissue. Brain Communications, 3(2), 1-22. [More Information]
- Leitner, D., Mills, J., Pires, G., Faustin, A., Drummond, E., Kanshin, E., Nayak, S., Askenazi, M., Verducci, C., Chen, B., et al (2021). Proteomics and Transcriptomics of the Hippocampus and Cortex in SUDEP and High-Risk SUDEP Patients. Neurology, 96(21), e2639-e2652. [More Information]
2020
- Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2020). APOE-amyloid interaction: Therapeutic targets. Neurobiology of Disease, 138, 1-8. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Pires, G., MacMurray, C., Askenazi, M., Nayak, S., Bourdon, M., Safar, J., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T. (2020). Phosphorylated tau interactome in the human Alzheimer's disease brain. Brain, 143(9), 2803-2817. [More Information]
2019
- Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2019). Future horizons in Alzheimer's disease research. In David B. Teplow (Eds.), Progress in Molecular Biology and Translational Science Volume 168, (pp. 223-241). Cambridge: Academic Press. [More Information]
- Pires, G., McElligott, S., Drusinsky, S., Halliday, G., Potier, M., Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2019). Secernin-1 is a novel phosphorylated tau binding protein that accumulates in Alzheimer's disease and not in other tauopathies. Acta Neuropathologica Communications, 7(1), 1-17. [More Information]
2018
- Goni, F., Marta-Ariza, M., Herline, K., Peyser, D., Boutajangout, A., Mehta, P., Drummond, E., Prelli, F., Wisniewski, T. (2018). Anti-(beta)-sheet conformation monoclonal antibody reduces tau and A(beta) oligomer pathology in an Alzheimer's disease model. Alzheimer's Research and Therapy, 10(1), 10. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Nayak, S., Pires, G., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T. (2018). Isolation of Amyloid Plaques and Neurofibrillary Tangles from Archived Alzheimer's Disease Tissue Using Laser-Capture Microdissection for Downstream Proteomics. Methods in Molecular Biology, 1723, 319-334. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Goni, F., Liu, S., Prelli, F., Scholtzova, H., Wisniewski, T. (2018). Potential Novel Approaches to Understand the Pathogenesis and Treat Alzheimer's Disease. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, 64(s1), S299-S312. [More Information]
2017
- Drummond, E., Wisniewski, T. (2017). Alzheimer's disease: experimental models and reality. Acta Neuropathologica, 133(2), 155-175. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Nayak, S., Faustin, A., Pires, G., Hickman, R., Askenazi, M., Cohen, M., Haldiman, T., Kim, C., Han, X., et al (2017). Proteomic differences in amyloid plaques in rapidly progressive and sporadic Alzheimer's disease. Acta Neuropathologica, 133(6), 933-954. [More Information]
- Rubenstein, R., Chang, B., Grin’kina, N., Drummond, E., Davies, P., Ruditzky, M., Sharma, D., Wang, K., Wisniewski, T. (2017). Tau phosphorylation induced by severe closed head traumatic brain injury is linked to the cellular prion protein. Acta Neuropathologica Communications, 5(1), 1-17. [More Information]
2016
- Wisniewski, T., Drummond, E. (2016). Developing therapeutic vaccines against Alzheimer's disease. Expert Review of Vaccines, 15(3), 401-415. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Maker, G., Birklein, F., Finch, P., Drummond, P. (2016). Topical prazosin attenuates sensitivity to tactile stimuli in patients with complex regional pain syndrome. European Journal of Pain, 20(6), 926-935. [More Information]
- Bates, K., Drummond, E., Cozens, G., Harvey, A. (2016). Vascular insufficiency, not inflammation, contributes to chronic gliosis in a rat CNS transplantation model. Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, 34(2), 313-323. [More Information]
2015
- Teoh, C., Su, D., Sahu, S., Yun, S., Drummond, E., Prelli, F., Lim, S., Cho, S., Ham, S., et al (2015). Chemical Fluorescent Probe for Detection of Aβ Oligomers. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 137(42), 13503-13509. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Nayak, S., Ueberheide, B., Wisniewski, T. (2015). Proteomic analysis of neurons microdissected from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded Alzheimer's disease brain tissue. Scientific Reports, 5, 1-8. [More Information]
- Drummond, P., Dawson, L., Finch, P., Drummond, E., Wood, F., Fear, M. (2015). Up-regulation of cutaneous (alpha)1-adrenoceptors after a burn. Burns, 41(6), 1227-1234. [More Information]
2014
- Drummond, E., Rodger, J., Penrose, M., Robertson, D., Hu, Y., Harvey, A. (2014). Effects of intravitreal injection of a Rho-GTPase inhibitor (BA-210), or CNTF combined with an analogue of cAMP, on the dendritic morphology of regenerating retinal ganglion cells. Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, 32(3), 391-402. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Dawson, L., Finch, P., LI, W., GUO, T., KINGERY, W., DRUMMOND, P. (2014). Increased bilateral expression of (alpha)1-adrenoceptors on peripheral nerves, blood vessels and keratinocytes does not account for pain or neuroinflammatory changes after distal tibia fracture in rats. Neuroscience, 281, 99-109. [More Information]
- Drummond, E., Dawson, L., Finch, P., Bennett, G., Drummond, P. (2014). Increased expression of cutaneous α1-adrenoceptors after chronic constriction injury in rats. The Journal of Pain, 15(2), 188-196. [More Information]
2013
- Drummond, E., Muhling, J., Martins, R., Wijaya, L., Ehlert, E., Harvey, A. (2013). Pathology associated with AAV mediated expression of beta amyloid or C100 in adult mouse hippocampus and cerebellum. PloS One, 8(3), 1-15. [More Information]
2012
- Drummond, E., Martins, R., Handelsman, D., Harvey, A. (2012). Altered Expression of Alzheimer's Disease-Related Proteins in Male Hypogonadal Mice. Endocrinology, 153(6), 2789-2799. [More Information]
- Rodger, J., Drummond, E., Hellstrom, M., Robertson, D., Harvey, A. (2012). Long-term gene therapy causes transgene-specific changes in the morphology of regenerating retinal ganglion cells. PloS One, 7(2), e31061. [More Information]
Selected Grants
2025
- Exploring how Tau Interactions Promote Co-Pathology in Primary Tauopathies, Drummond E, Rainwater Charitable Foundation/Research Support
2024
- DDI Alzheimer's Disease Program Funding 2024, Drummond E, Centre for Drug Discovery Innovation/DDI Alzheimers Disease Priority Driven Program Funding