Dr Oliver Looker

After obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in 2013, Oliver completed an honours project under Professor Leann Tilley and Dr Matthew Dixon at The University of Melbourne, studying cellular remodelling in red blood cells infected by sexual stage Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites.

In 2015 he continued to work under Professor Tilley and Dr Dixon, completing his PhD investigating the assembly of the Plasmodium falciparum virulence complex. Specifically, this work focused on the arrival and arrangement of parasite-derived proteins at the red blood cell membrane, as well as host cell remodelling events that facilitate parasite virulence. This work was achieved with a focus on the use of single-molecule light microscopy.

Following his PhD studies, Oliver moved to Sydney to work under Dr Renee Whan at The University of New South Wales Biomedical Imaging Facility. In this position he specialised in super-resolution imaging and establishing automated imaging systems. In addition to this he gained technical expertise across a wide range of light microscopes.

Oliver is currently working in the Malaria Virulence and Drug Discovery group under Dr Paul Gilson and Professor Brendan Crabb. He is investigating the effectiveness and mechanism of action of anti-malarial drugs, with a particular interest in the inhibition of protein export pathways.

• 2015: PhD in parasitology (Plasmodium falciparum), Bio21 Institute, University of Melbourne, Australia
• 2014: BSc (Honours), Bio21 Institute, University of Melbourne, Australia
• 2013: BSc, University of Melbourne, Australia