Penny Jeffery

Dr Jeffery is a mid-career medical researcher with a focus on the action and regulation of metabolic hormones in the context of endocrine disorders and cancer. Dr Jeffery has extensive experience with animal models of metabolic dysfunction and cancer and collaborates with researchers and clinicians in the UK, Europe and the USA. Dr Jeffery has published in high impact journals including Nature Genetics, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism and Gastroenterology and has received funding from national and international funding agencies. She has a strong commitment to education and training and has supervised many successful higher degree students and currently teaches medical and biomedical science students at all levels.

1. Seim I, Jeffery PL, Thomas PB, Nelson CC, Chopin LC (2017) Whole-Genome Sequence of the Metastatic PC3 and LNCaP Human Prostate Cancer Cell Lines. G3 7:1731-1741.
2. Seim I, Crisp GJ, Shah ET, Jeffery PL, Chopin LK (2017) Abundant ghrelin gene expression by monocytes: Putative implications for fat accumulation and obesity. Obesity Medicine 5:1-3.
3. Maugham ML, Thomas PB, Crisp GJ, Philp LK, Shah ET, Herington AC, Chen C, Gregory LS, Nelson CC, Seim I, Jeffery PL*, Chopin LK* (2017) Insights from engraftable immunodeficient mouse models of hyperinsulinaemia. Sci Rep 7:491. *Co-corresponding author
4. Sheng Y, Ng CP, Lourie R, Shah ET, He Y, Wong KY, Seim I, Oancea I, Morais C, Jeffery PL, Hooper J, Gobe GC, McGuckin MA (2017) MUC13 overexpression in renal cell carcinoma plays a central role in tumor progression and drug resistance. Int J Cancer 140:2351-2363.
5. Seim, Jeffery, Herington and Chopin (2014) Turtle ghrelin. Nature Genetics 46:525
6. Fung, Jeffery, Lee, Seim, Roche, Obermair, Chopin, Chen (2013) Silencing of Ghrelin Receptor Expression Inhibits Endometrial Cancer Cell Growth in vitro and in vivo Am. J. Physiol. Endocrinol. Metab. 305(2):E305-13.
7. Yeh AH*, Jeffery PL*, Duncan RP, Herington AC, Chopin LK (2005) Ghrelin and a novel preproghrelin isoform are highly expressed in prostate cancer compared to normal prostate tissue and ghrelin-mediated prostate cancer cell line proliferation involves the MAPK pathway. Clin Cancer Res 11:8295-8303.  *equal first authorship
8. Jeffery PL, Murray RE, Yeh AH, McNamara JF, Duncan RP, Francis G, Herington AC, Chopin LK (2005) Expression and function of the ghrelin axis, including a novel preproghrelin isoform, in human breast cancer tissues and cell lines. Endocr Relat Cancer 12:839-850.
9. Jeffery PL, Herington AC, Chopin LK (2003) The potential autocrine/paracrine roles of ghrelin and its receptor in hormone-dependent cancer.  Cytokine Growth Factor Rev 14: 113-122.
10. Jeffery PL, Herington AC, Chopin LK (2002) Expression and action of the growth hormone releasing peptide ghrelin and its receptor in prostate cancer cells lines.  J Endocrinol 172: 7-11.

Higher degree student supervision:  Primary: Gabrielle Crisp; Associate: Patrick Thomas, Michelle Maugham, Esha Shah, Hongzhuo Li (UQ)

Dr Mark Harris, Dr Yassmin Musthaffa, Dr Emily Papadimos (Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital); Professor Chen Chen, Dr Rebecca Pelekanos (UQ), Claudio Pietra (Helsinn Pharmaceuticals)