Emeritus Professor Elspeth McLachlan

ELSPETH M. MCLACHLAN

BSc (Hons) 1963; PhD 1973; DSc 1994 (University of Sydney); F.A.A. 1997

Currently

• Honorary Senior Principal Research Scientist Neuroscience Research Australia (formerly Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute), Sydney, Australia (2006- )
• Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales, Sydney (2006- )

Major appointments held previously

2001-04      Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research), University of New South Wales.

1999-2009  Co-Director, Spinal Injuries Research Centre, Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute.

1993-2006  Professor, University of New South Wales

1993-99       NHMRC Senior Principal Research Fellow, Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute

1988-93      Professor and Head, Department of Physiology & Pharmacology, University of Queensland.

1982-88       NHMRC Principal Research Fellow, Baker Medical Research Institute, Melbourne

1974-82      Lecturer/Senior Lecturer, Department of Physiology, Monash University, Melbourne

1970-73      Associate Lecturer/Lecturer, Department of Physiology, University of Sydney.

1964-66      Assistant Keeper, National Reference Library for Science and Invention, British Museum, UK

Long research associations with Physiologisches Institut, Universität Kiel, Germany (W. Jänig, G. Wasner)

                 Kurume University Medical School, Japan (H. Inokuchi)

                 Instituto de Neurociencias, Alicante, Spain  (R. Gallego, C. Belmonte)

Service to Neuroscience includes

IUPS Commission on the Autonomic Nervous System, 1983-93

Australian Neuroscience Society (National Secretary, 1984-90; President, 1996-7)

IBRO Asia-Pacific Regional Committee 1999-2004 (Chair, 1999-2001)

Federation of Asian and Oceanian Neuroscience Societies 1997-8 (President, 1998)

IBRO Brain Campaign - Public Education Committee (Chair 2008-10)

IBRO Congress, Melbourne, International Programming Committee (Chair, 2004-7).

Governor, Florey Institute for Neuroscience and Mental Health, 2012-

Scientific Review Committee, NSW Brain Bank Network, (Chair, 2012-16)

Awards include

Max-Planck-Forschungspreis, Humboldt Foundation (with W. Jänig) 1993

Orbeli Medal, Armenian Academy of Neuroscience, 1995

Fellow, Australian Academy of Science, 1997.

Ramaciotti Medal, 1998.

Centenary Medal, Commonwealth of Australia, 2003

Distinguished Achievement Award, Australian Neuroscience Society, 2006

Honorary Member, Australian Physiological and Pharmacological Society, 2008

Honorary Member, Australian Neuroscience Society, 2009

Distinguished Member, Australian Association of von Humboldt Fellows, 2010

Elspeth McLachlan Plenary Lecture, Australian Neuroscience Society, 2018

EDITORIAL BOARD OF:

Journal of the Autonomic Nervous System/Autonomic Neuroscience (1983-2001).

Neuroscience Letters (Receiving Editor, 1991-9).

Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology (1998-2008)

Clinical Autonomic Research (2001-8)

Experimental Neurology (2009-12)

Selected Publications

McLachlan, EM (1974).  The formation of synapses in mammalian sympathetic ganglia reinnervated with preganglionic or somatic nerves.  J. Physiol. 237, 217-242

McLachlan, EM (1978).  The statistics of transmitter release at chemical synapses. International Review of Physiology 17, 49-117.

McLachlan, EM and Hirst, GDS (1980).  Some properties of preganglionic neurons in the upper thoracic spinal cord of the cat.  J. Neurophysiol. 43, 1251-1265.

Oldfield, BJ and McLachlan, EM (1981).  An analysis of the sympathetic preganglionic neurons projecting from the upper thoracic spinal roots of the cat.  J. comp. Neurol. 196, 329-345.

McLachlan, EM and Jänig, W (1983).  The cell bodies of origin of sympathetic and sensory axons in some skin and muscle nerves of the cat hindlimb.  J. comp. Neurol. 214, 115-130.

Jänig, W and McLachlan, EM (1986).  Identification of distinct topographical distributions of lumbar sympathetic and sensory neurons projecting to end organs with different functions in the cat.  J. comp. Neurol. 246, 104-112.  

Hirst, GDS and McLachlan, EM (1986).  Development of dendritic calcium currents in ganglion cells of the rat lower lumbar sympathetic chain.  J. Physiol. 377, 349-368.

Luff, SE, McLachlan, EM and Hirst, GDS (1987).  An ultrastructural analysis of the sympathetic neuromuscular junctions on arterioles of the submucosa of the guinea pig ileum.  J. Comp. Neurol. 257, 578-594.

Jänig, W and McLachlan, EM (1987).  Organization of lumbar spinal outflow to distal colon and pelvic organs.  Physiol. Rev. 67, 1332-1404.

Sah, P and McLachlan, EM (1991) Calcium-activated K⁺ currents underlying the afterhyperpolarization in guinea pig vagal neurons: a role for calcium activated calcium release.  Neuron 7, 257-264.

Jänig, W and McLachlan, EM (1992)  Characteristics of function-specific pathways in the sympathetic nervous system. Trends in Neurosciences 15, 475-481

McLachlan, EM, Jänig, W, Devor, M and Michaelis, M (1993) Peripheral nerve injury triggers noradrenergic sprouting within dorsal root ganglia. Nature, Lond. 363, 543-546

Zhou, X-F, Rush, RA and McLachlan, EM (1996) Differential expression of the p75 nerve growth factor receptor in glia and neurons of the rat dorsal root ganglia following peripheral nerve transection.  J. Neurosci. 16, 2901-2911.

Villière, V and McLachlan, EM (1996) Electrophysiological properties of neurones in intact rat dorsal root ganglia classified by conduction velocity and action potential duration.  J. Neurophysiol. 76, 1924-1941.

Davies, PJ, Ireland, DR and McLachlan, EM (1996)  Sources of Ca²⁺ for different Ca²⁺-activated K⁺ conductances in neurones of the rat superior cervical ganglion.  J. Physiol. 495, 353-366.

McLachlan, EM, Davies, PJ, Häbler, H-J  and Jamieson, J (1997)  On-going and reflex synaptic events in rat superior cervical ganglion cells. J. Physiol. 501, 165-182.

Ireland, DR, Davies, PJ and McLachlan, EM (1999)   Calcium channel subtypes differ at two types of cholinergic synapse in lumbar sympathetic neurones of guinea-pigs. J. Physiol. 514, 59-69.

Martinez-Pinna, J, McLachlan, EM and Gallego, R (2000)   Distinct mechanisms of activation of Cl^- and K⁺ currents by Ca²⁺ from different sources in mouse sympathetic neurons.  J. Physiol. 527, 249-264. [. 

Hu, P and McLachlan, EM (2002) Macrophage and lymphocyte invasion of dorsal root ganglia after peripheral nerve lesions in the rat.  Neuroscience 112, 23-38

Hu, P and McLachlan, EM (2003)   Selective reactions of cutaneous and muscle afferent neurones to peripheral nerve transection in rats.   J. Neurosci. 23:10559-10567.

Yeoh, M, McLachlan, EM and Brock, JA (2004)   Tail arteries from chronically spinalized rats have potentiated responses to nerve stimulation in vitro.  J. Physiol.  556, 545-555.

Brock, JA, Yeoh, M and McLachlan, EM (2006)   Enhanced neurally evoked responses and inhibition of norepinephrine reuptake in rat mesenteric arteries after spinal transection.  Amer. J. Physiol: Heart Circ. Physiol. 290, H398-405.

Hu, P, Bembrick, AL, Keay, KA and McLachlan, EM. (2007)  Immune cell involvement in dorsal root ganglia and spinal cord after chrinoic constriction or transection of the rat sciatic nerve.  Brain Behav. Immun. 21, 59-616.

Wasner, G., Lee, B., Engel, S. and McLachlan, E.M. (2008) Residual spinothalamic tract pathways predict development of central pain after spinal cord injury. Brain 131, 2387-2400.

Tripovic, D., Pianova, S., McLachlan, E.M. and Brock J.A. (2011) Slow and incomplete sympathetic reinnervation of rat tail artery restores the amplitude of nerve-evoked contractions provided a perivascular plexus is present. American  Journal of Physiology, Heart and Circulatory Physiology 300, H541-554

Schmid, A.B., Coppieters, M., Ruitenberg, M. and McLachlan, E.M. (2013)  Local and remote immune-mediated inflammation after mild peripheral nerve compression in rats.  Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology 72, 662-680