Prof Andreas L. Lopata leads the Molecular Allergy Research Laboratory in the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, and is Theme Leader of the 'Molecular Immunology Program' in the Centre for Molecular Therapeutics and the 'Seafood and Human Health' program within the Centre for Sustainable Tropical Fisheries and Aquaculture. He was previous co-director of the Centre for Molecular Therapeutics (CMT) and Associate Dean of Research for the College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences.

Prof Lopata is globally known for his work in food allergies, with the primary focus on applying molecular immunology and biotechnology to improve allergic reactions to seafood and monitor allergenic protein exposure. His research areas are very multidisciplinary ranging from the generation of recombinant allergens for improved diagnosis to the development of immunotherapy for sensitised consumer and vaccines to improve animal health in aquaculture systems. He is a strong supporter of the development of alternative food proteins to feed our fast-growing world population. He recently build a team to develop robust food safety assessment protocols for alternative food products derived from insects or cell based meat, in collaboration with the food industry.

Prof Lopata has been continuously funded by the National Medical Research Council and the Australian Research Council, often linked to industry co-funded projects and published 200+ scientific articles in the area of food safety and seafood. He is Chief Investigator within the Centre for Food Allergy Research-NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence and the ARC Research Hub for Supercharging Tropical Aquaculture.

He consults to various organisations including the National Measurement Institute and the International Union of Immunological Societies sub-committee on allergen nomenclature. Prof Lopata sits on the Editorial Board of the World Allergy Organisation Journal, Clinical and Experimental Allergy, Foods and Proteome.

Current/recent research project funded by Industry/ NHMRC/ ARC:

• Immunomodulatory vaccines in the treatment of peanut allergy; NHMRC Ideas Grant.
• Centre of Research Excellence in Eradicating Food Allergy: Prevention, Cure and Reducing Adverse Events; National Health & Medical Research Council - Centres of Research Excellence
• Probiotic Egg Allergen Immunotherapy for Treatment of Egg Allergy; National Health & Medical Research Council - Project Grant
• Centre of Research Excellence in Food Allergy: Towards eradicating food allergy: from population to precision prevention, early intervention, and management; National Health & Medical Research Council - Centres of Research Excellence
• Bio-molecular studies for improved diagnosis and management of Australian children with fish allergy; National Health & Medical Research Council - Project Grant
• Supercharging tropical aquaculture through genetic solutions; ARC Industrial Transformation Research Program (partners Cygnet Bay Pearls, Mainstream Aquaculture Group, Seafarms Group, The Company One, Seaforest, Australian Genome Research Facility, University of Queensland)
• A Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Facility for Modern Molecular Analysis; ARC Linkage Infrastructure grant
• Molecular and immunological approaches to managing Australia's seafood allergy epidemic; ARC Future Fellowship

Latest Book: Food Allergy - Molecular and Clinical Practice; CRC Press

Areas of interest for prospective graduate students

• Development of improved diagnostic tests for food allergy
• Detection and quantification of food allergens
• Biomarker and vaccine candidates for improved fish health
• Food safety aspects of alternative and novel food products 

Teaching

• BC2024: Principles of Molecular Cell Biology (Level 2; TSV)
• BC3102: Molecular Basis of Disease (Level 3; TSV)
• BC3202: Special Topics in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (Level 3; TSV)
• BC5102: Advanced Molecular Basis of Disease (Level 5; TSV)

Interests

Professional

• Molecular Medicine; Occupational Medicine; Allergology; Food Safety

Research

• Molecular Allergology; Occupational Allergy; Diagnostics; Tropical Health; Immunotherapeutics; Vaccine

Teaching

• Molecular Immunology; Biochemistry; Professional Doctorate; Food Science

Experience

• 2021 to present - Professor, Tropical Futures Institute (Singapore)
• 2016 to present - Professor, James Cook University (Townsville)
• 2007 to present - Ajunct Member, Infectious Diseases and Development of Molecular Medicine (South Africa)
• 2020 to 2022 - Appointed Member-JCU Research Committee, James Cook University (Townsville)
• 2014 to 2016 - Associate Dean of Research, James Cook University (Townsville)
• 2013 to 2015 - Honours program coordinator, James Cook University (Townsville)
• 2011 to 2015 - Associate Professor, James Cook University (Townsville)
• 2011 to 2012 - Academic Advisor-Molecular Sciences, James Cook University (Townsville)
• 2010 to 2011 - Senior Lecturer, James Cook University (Townsville)
• 2009 to 2010 - Associate Professor, RMIT University (Melbourne)
• 2007 to 2008 - Senior Lecturer, RMIT University (Melbourne)
• 2004 to 2006 - Head of Department of Immunology, University of Cape Town (South Africa)
• 2002 to 2006 - Senior Lecturer, Department of Immunology; University of Cape Town (South Africa)
• 1992 to 2002 - Natural Medical Scientist, National Health Laboratory Services (South Africa)
• 1991 to 1992 - Research Fellow, University of Cape Town (South Africa)

Research Disciplines

• Immunology (3204)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Clinical health (2001)

Awards

• 2022 - Winner 3MT - Academic Research Staff Award (JCU-Singapore)
• 2020 - JCU Primary Advisor of the Year
• 2020 - JCU - Award for Research Excellence
• 2012 - Winner of UniQuest Trailblazer-James Cook University
• 2011 - Winner of UniQuest Trailblazer-James Cook University

Fellowships

• 2012 to 2016 - ARC Future Fellow

Memberships

• 2022 - British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology
• 2014 - Collegium Internationale Allergologicum (CIA)
• 2014 - Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Allergologie und Klinische Immunologie (DGAKI)
• 2012 - Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia
• 2009 - Australasian Society for Immunology
• 2008 - Australasian Society for Parasitology (ASP)
• 2008 - Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA)
• 2007 - European Associaton of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (EAACI)
• 2021 to 2024 - World Allergy Organisation- Committee on Allergy Diagnosis and PAMD@

Other

• 2022 - Scientific Advisor - Sementis BioTechnology
• 2021 - Associate Editor - Frontier Allergy_Environmental and Occupational Determinants
• 2021 - Editorial Board---Proteomes (MDPI)
• 2021 - Adjunct Scientist - Bioinformatics Institute A*STAR
• 2017 - Review Editor - Frontier Immunology_Vaccines and Molecular Therapeutics
• 2016 - Regional Associate Editor -Asia Pacific--World Allergy Organisation Journal (Elsevier)
• 2016 - Review Editor---Frontier Microbial Immunology
• 2016 - Editorial Board---Archives of Industrial Hygiene and Toxicology (Croatia)
• 2016 - Associate Editor---Allergo Journal International (Springer)
• 2016 - Reperio Innovation Competition-AITHM People’s Choice Award
• 2015 - Associate Editor---Clinical & Experimental Allergy (Wiley)
• 2014 - NATA assessor for laboratories in Australia quantifying allergens
• 2011 - Adjunct Associate Professor of the School of Applied Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne
• 2010 - Appointed External academic reprentative for the Major Course Review Panel of the Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences, Deakin University
• 2010 - Adjunct Professor of the School of Publica Health, University of Cape Town, South Africa
• 2007 - Adjunct - Institute of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Medicine; University of Cape Town; South Africa
• 2007 - Adjunct of the 'Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine', University of Cape Town, South Africa
• 2006 - Appointed External Advisor to the National Institute of Occupational Health, Johannesburg, South Africa
• 2021 to 2024 - Editorial Board -- Proteomes (MDPI)
• 2014 to 2020 - Associate Editor---Molecular Immunology (Elsevier)
• 2015 to 2019 - Review Editor---Molecular Immunology (Elsevier)
• 2009 to 2018 - Honorary Research Associate-Centre for Environmental and Occupational Health Research (CEOHR) and Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, University of Cape Town
• 2016 - Reperio Innovation Competition- AITHM People’s Choice Award
• 2015 - Member of the 'National Allergy Strategy'-an initiative of the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy and Anaphylaxis and Allergy Australia
• 2014 to 2015 - Elected member on the draft proposal on the 'National Allergy Strategy' for Australia
• 2004 to 2005 - Scientific Evaluator for the European Framework Program FP6 and FP7 "Food Quality and Safety" and "Health", European Union

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Bose U, Broadbent J, Juhász A, Karnaneedi S, Johnston E, Stockwell S, Byrne K, Limviphuvadh V, Maurer-Stroh S, Lopata A and Colgrave M (2022) Comparison of protein extraction protocols and allergen mapping from black soldier fly Hermetia illucens. Journal of Proteomics, 269.
• Candebat C, Stephens F, Booth M, Fernando F, Lopata A and Pirozzi I (2022) Adequate levels of dietary sulphur amino acids impart improved liver and gut health in juvenile yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi). British Journal of Nutrition, 129. pp. 1289-1312
• Kabasser S, Pratap K, Kamath S, Taki A, Dang T, Koplin J, Perrett K, Hummel K, Radauer C, Breiteneder H, Lopata A and Bublin M (2022) Identification of vicilin, legumin and antimicrobial peptide 2a as macadamia nut allergens. Food Chemistry, 370.
• Nguyen M, Krutz N, Limviphuvadh V, Lopata A, Gerberick G and Maurer-Stroh S (2022) AllerCatPro 2.0: a web server for predicting protein allergenicity potential. Nucleic Acids Research, 50 (W1). pp. W36-W43
• Nugraha R, Ruethers T, Taki A, Johnston E, Karnaneedi S, Kamath S and Lopata A (2022) Recombinant Tropomyosin from the Pacific Oyster (Crassostrea gigas) for Better Diagnosis. Foods, 11 (3).
• Pratap K, Majzoub M, Taki A, Miranda Hernandez S, Magnusson M, Glasson C, de Nys R, Thomas T, Lopata A and Kamath S (2022) The Algal Polysaccharide Ulvan and Carotenoid Astaxanthin Both Positively Modulate Gut Microbiota in Mice. Foods, 11 (4).
• Ruethers T, Nugraha R, Taki A, O'Malley A, Karnaneedi S, Zhang S, Kapingidza A, Mehr S, Kamath S, Chruszcz M, Mackay G, Campbell D and Lopata A (2022) The first reptilian allergen and major allergen for fish-allergic patients: Crocodile ?-parvalbumin. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, 33 (5).
• Bose U, Broadbent J, Juhász A, Karnaneedi S, Johnston E, Stockwell S, Byrne K, Limviphuvadh V, Maurer-Stroh S, Lopata A and Colgrave M (2021) Protein extraction protocols for optimal proteome measurement and arginine kinase quantitation from cricket Acheta domesticus for foodsafety assessment. Food Chemistry, 348.
• Buyuktiryaki B, Masini M, Mori F, Barni S, Liccioli G, Sarti L, Lordi L, Giovannini M, Toit G, Lopata A and Marques-Mejias M (2021) IgE-mediated fish allergy in children. Medicina, 57 (1).
• Heidelberg C, Bang B, Thomassen M, Kamath S, Ruethers T, Lopata A, Madsen A, Sandsund M and Aasmoe L (2021) Exposure to Bioaerosols during Fish Processing on Board Norwegian Fishing Trawlers. Annals of Work Exposures and Health, 65 (6). pp. 694-702
• Karnaneedi S, Huerlimann R, Johnston E, Nugraha R, Ruethers T, Taki A, Kamath S, Wade N, Jerry D and Lopata A (2021) Novel allergen discovery through comprehensive de novo transcriptomic analyses of five shrimp species. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22 (1).
• Liang J, Taylor S, Baumert J, Lopata A and Lee N (2021) Effects of thermal treatment on the immunoreactivity and quantification of parvalbumin from Southern hemisphere fish species with two anti-parvalbumin antibodies. Food Control, 121.

More

ResearchOnline@JCU stores 167+ research outputs authored by Prof Andreas Lopata from 1992 onwards.

Current and recent Research Funding to JCU is shown by funding source and project.

Advisory Accreditation: I can be on your Advisory Panel as a Primary or Secondary Advisor.

These Higher Degree Research projects are either current or by students who have completed their studies within the past 5 years at JCU. Linked titles show theses available within ResearchOnline@JCU.

Current

• Utilising Bioinformatics Tools to Improve the Diagnosis of Crustacean and Fish Allergy (PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• C. Fleckeri Mode of Action Investigation (PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Early pathogen detection using advanced?omics approaches to understand Cryptocaryon irritans outbreaks in barramundi aquaculture (PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Understanding Protein differences to make Healthier and Safer Seafood (Masters , Primary Advisor)

Completed

• Tackling fish allergy: bio-molecular studies on allergenic proteins causing fish allergy in Australian children for improved diagnosis (2020, PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Biomarker discovery and food allergy profiling distinguishes DOCK8 deficiency from atopic dermatitis (2019, PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Epidemiology and clinical presentations of seafood allergy in the Asia Pacific (2019, PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Current approaches in managing food allergy in Australian settings (2021, Masters , Primary Advisor)
• The structure and bioactivity of ulvan, a sulfated polysaccharide from Ulva (chlorophyta) (2021, PhD , Secondary Advisor)
• Characterisation of oyster allergens for improved diagnosis of mollusc allergy (2019, PhD , Primary Advisor/AM/Adv)
• Marine algal compounds as novel therapeutics for food allergy (2022, PhD , Secondary Advisor/AM)
• Optimizing dietary specifications for yellowtail kingfish, Seriola lalandi: requirements and interactions of sulfur amino acids and taurine (2021, PhD , Secondary Advisor)

These are the most recent metadata records associated with this researcher. To see a detailed description of all dataset records, visit Research Data Australia.

• Lopata, A. (2017) cDNA sequences of major allergenic proteins in Australian seafood species. James Cook University
• Lopata, A. (2017) In solution digestion and mass spectrometry identification of major proteins in various crustacean species. James Cook University
• Lopata, A. (2017) In solution digestion and mass spectrometry identification of major proteins in various mollusc species. James Cook University
• Lopata, A. (2017) Proteome data of the raw and the heated Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas). James Cook University
• Kamath, S. (2017) Proteomic analysis of allergenic proteins in King crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) and Edible crab (Cancer pagurus). James Cook University
• Lopata, A. (2017) Potential allergens of the Pacific Oyster (Crassostrea gigas). James Cook University
• Lopata, A. (2017) Identified proteins in the IgE-reactive spots. James Cook University

The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.