Griffith University

MBBS, PhD

Senior Lecturer

Research Scientist, Heart Foundation Research Centre

Research Scientist, Molecular Basis of Disease Research Program

Contact details for Dr  S. Niru Nirthanan

Biography

I graduated MBBS with a Gold Medal in Medicine in 1994 from the North Colombo Medical College, Sri Lanka. My PhD at the National University of Singapore, which detailed the structure and pharmacology of a novel family of snake toxins that are uniquely reversible in their action at nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, was awarded the Gold Medal for the Most Outstanding Doctoral Research in 2002. I received the Joseph Brooks Fellowship in Neurobiology from the Harvard Medical School, Boston, to conduct postdoctoral research from 2002 to 2005, where I identified and characterized the binding pocket of positive allosteric effectors in the nicotinic receptor, a discovery with significant potential for development of novel drugs for Alzheimer’s disease. I joined the National Neuroscience Institute of Singapore as Principal Investigator in 2006 and established a Neuropharmacology Drug Discovery Laboratory from inception, before relocating to Griffith University as faculty in 2008. My research, underpinned by strong international collaborations, focuses on the role of nicotinic receptors in health and disease and discovery of therapeutic leads from animal venoms.

Qualifications

• Postdoctoral Fellowship (Neurobiology) - Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA (2002 – 2005)
• Doctor of Philosophy (Pharmacology; Neurobiology)- National University of Singapore (2002)
• Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery - North Colombo Medical College, Sri Lanka (1994)

Research expertise

• Therapeutic lead discovery from animal venoms and other natural compounds
• Pharmacology of ion channel neurotoxins
• Neurobiology of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors
• Mapping drug binding sites within the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor
• Role of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in Alzheimer’s disease

Teaching areas

• Pathophysiology
• Pharmacology
• Neurobiology
  

Other professional appointments

• Assistant Professor (Adjunct), Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, National University of Singapore.
• Visiting Scientist, Cohen Neurobiology Laboratory, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
  

Professional memberships

• British Pharmacological Society (member since 2001).
• American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (member since 2000).
• International Society of Toxinology (member since 2001).
  

Publications

• A Roy, X Zhou, MZ Chong, D Dhoedt, CS Foo, N Rajagopalan, S Nirthanan, D Bertrand, J Sivaraman, RM Kini. Structural and functional characterization of a novel homodimeric three-finger neurotoxin from the venom of Ophiophagus Hannah (King Cobra). Journal of Biological Chemistry 285, 8302–15 (2010) [Impact factor: 5.5]   Featured as cover illustration. JBC Paper of the Week (12.03.2010)
• J Pawlak, SP Mackessy, NR Sixberry, MH Le Du, EA Stura, R Ménez, CS Foo, A Ménez, S Nirthanan, RM Kini. Irditoxin, a novel covalently-linked heterodimeric three-finger toxin with high taxon-specific neurotoxicity. FASEB Journal 23, 534-45 (2009) [Impact factor: 7.1]
• S Nirthanan, G Garcia III, DC Chiara, SS Husain, JB Cohen. Identification of binding sites in the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor for TDBzl-etomidate, a photoreactive positive allosteric effector. Journal of Biological Chemistry 283, 22051-62 (2008) [Impact factor: 5.5] Featured as cover illustration; Cited in the Faculty of 1000 in Medicine (USA)
• S Nirthanan. Judicious use of PowerPoint animations in teaching pharmacology. pA2 British Pharmacological Society Vol 6, Issue 1, 21-22 (2008).
• G Garcia III, DC Chiara, S Nirthanan, AK Hamouda, DA Stewart, JB Cohen. [3H]Benzophenone photolabeling identifies state-dependent changes in nicotinic acetylcholine receptor structure. Biochemistry 46, 10296-307 (2007) [Impact factor: 3.4]
• IE  Andreeva, S Nirthanan, JB Cohen, SE Pedersen. Site-specificity of agonist-induced opening and desensitization of the Torpedo californica nicotinic acetylcholine receptor. Biochemistry 45, 195-204 (2006) [Impact factor: 3.4]
• SS Husain, S Nirthanan, D Ruesch, E Arevalo, JA Kosterlitz, GD Li, RW Olsen, SA Forman, JB Cohen, KW Miller. Two new derivatives of the general anesthetic etomidate for photolabeling ligand–gated ion channels. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 49, 4818-25 (2006) [Impact factor: 4.9]
• S Nirthanan, J Pil, Y Abdel-Mottaleb, Y Sugihara, JS Joseph, K Sato, P Gopalakrishnakone, J Tytgat. Assignment of potassium channel blocking activity to -KTx1.3, a non-toxic homologue of -hefutoxin 1, from Heterometrus spinifer venom. Biochemical Pharmacology 69, 669-78 (2005) [Impact factor: 4.8]
• S Nirthanan, MR Ziebell, DC Chiara, FH Hong, JB Cohen. Photolabeling the Torpedo nicotinic acetylcholine receptor with 4-Azido-2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-benzoylcholine, a partial agonist. Biochemistry 44, 13447-56 (2005) [Impact factor: 3.4]
• MR Ziebell, S Nirthanan, SS Hussain, K Miller, JB Cohen.  Identification of binding sites in the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor of [3H] azietomidate, a photoactivable general anesthetic. Journal of Biological Chemistry 279, 17640-9 (2004) [Impact factor: 5.5]
• S Nirthanan, MCE Gwee. Three-finger neurotoxins and the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, forty years on. Journal of Pharmacological Sciences 94, 1-17 (2004) [Impact factor: 2.6]
• S Nirthanan, P Gopalakrishnakone, MCE Gwee, HE Khoo, E Charpantier, RM Kini, D Bertrand. Neuromuscular effects of candoxin, a novel toxin from the venom of the Malayan krait Bungarus candidus. British Journal of Pharmacology 139, 832-44 (2003) [Impact factor: 4.9]
• S Nirthanan, P Gopalakrishnakone, MCE Gwee, HE Khoo, RM Kini. Non-conventional toxins from Elapid venoms. Toxicon 41, 397-407 (2003) [Impact factor: 2.5]
• P Paaventhan, JS Joseph, S Nirthanan, G Rajaseger, P Gopalakrishnakone, RM Kini, PR Kolatkar. Crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of candoxin, a novel reversible neurotoxin from the Malayan krait Bungarus candidus. Acta Crystallographica D 59, 584-6 (2003) [Impact factor: 2.9]
• S Nirthanan, E Charpantier, P Gopalakrishnakone, MCE Gwee, HE Khoo, LS Cheah, D Bertrand, RM Kini. Candoxin, a novel toxin from the venom of the Malayan krait (Bungarus candidus) is a reversible antagonist of muscle and a poorly reversible antagonist of neuronal a7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Journal of Biological Chemistry 277, 17811-20 (2002) [Impact factor: 5.5]
• MCE Gwee, S Nirthanan, HE Khoo, P Gopalakrishnakone, RM Kini, LS Cheah. Autonomic effects of some scorpion venoms and toxins (Review). Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology 29, 795-801 (2002) [Impact factor: 2.2]
• S Nirthanan, R Gao, P Gopalakrishnakone, MCE Gwee, HE Khoo, LS Cheah, RM Kini. Pharmacological characterization of mikatoxin, an -neurotoxin isolated from a snake (Micropechis ikaheka) venom. Toxicon 40, 863-71 (2002) [Impact factor: 2.5]
• L Watanabe, S Nirthanan, G Ragaseger, I Polikarpov, RM Kini, RK Arini. Crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of bucain, a novel toxin from the Malayan krait Bungarus candidus. Acta Crystallographica D 58, 1879-81 (2002) [Impact factor: 2.9]
• LS Cheah, MCE Gwee, S Nirthanan. Characterization of the rat retractor penis muscle as a model for the study of nitrergic transmission. Journal of Pharmacological and Toxicological Methods 47, 79-85 (2002) [Impact factor: 0.7]
• S Nirthanan, JS Joseph, P Gopalakrishnakone, HE Khoo, LS Cheah, MCE Gwee. Biochemical and pharmacological characterization of the venom of the black scorpion (Heterometrus spinifer). Biochemical Pharmacology 63, 49-55 (2002) [Impact factor: 4.8] Featured in New Scientist 171 (v 2304), p18 (2002).
• AM Torres, RM Kini, S Nirthanan, PW Kuchel. NMR structure of bucandin, a neurotoxin from the venom of the Malayan krait. Biochemical Journal 360, 539–48 (2001) [Impact factor: 4.4]
  KN Srinivasan, S Nirthanan, T Sasaki, K Sato, B Cheng, MCE Gwee, RM Kini, P Gopalakrishnakone. Functional site of bukatoxin, a K-type sodium channel neurotoxin from the Chinese scorpion (Buthus Martensi Karsch) venom: probable role of the 52 PDKVP 56 loop. FEBS Letters 494, 145-9 (2001). [Impact factor: 3.3]