Professor Gerald Muench

• Biography
• Areas of Research / Teaching Expertise
• Grants / Current Projects
• Awards and Recognition
• Selected Publications
• Optional
• Contact Details

Biography

Gerald Muench started work at the University of Würzburg, Germany in 1995 and was then appointed Lecturer in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in 1999. In 2000, he joined the Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research at the University of Leipzig. He left in 2004 to take up a position as Senior Lecturer at James Cook University in Townsville.

In May 2008 Gerald was appointed as Associate Professor of Pharmacology in the School of Medicine at the University of Western Sydney, and he was promoted to Professor with effect from 1 January 2012.

His major project focus is on Alzheimer's disease with a special emphasis on carbonyl stress in age-related and neurodegenerative processes, and also looking at brain inflammation as a major progression factor in Alzheimer's disease, now widely accepted.

He is also looking to discover and identify novel anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective compounds from marine macroorganisms and tropical rainforest plants, a project started through James Cook University's "Enhancing life in the tropics".

Gerald has served on the editorial boards of six international scientific journals and has been a consultant with Aventis, Roche Diagnostics, Merz, ASTA Medica/Degussa and Blackmores.

His teaching philosophy is to show students how much fun the learning experience can be and define precisely what they need to know and understand when the standards are high.

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Areas of Research / Teaching Expertise

• Biochemistry
• Molecular Biology
• Molecular Genetics
• Cell Biology
• Biotechnology
• Pharmacology
  

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A/Prof Gerald Muench with Senator Kim Carr, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research on his visit to UWS in March 2009.

Grants / Current Projects

UWS Research Grant Scheme 2010
The neurosupportive role of astroglia - a novel drug target in Alzheimer's disease
A$20,000

UWS Research Grant Scheme 2011 (CIA: Nickolaus Sucher)
Molecular characterization of the anti-inflammatory activity of Andrographis paniculata
A$25,000

RIF (as part of CompleMed) 2011
Small animal cognitive testing unit for evaluation of complementary and alternative medicines
A$28,730

CHS UWS RIF 2011
Small animal cognitive and sensory motor testing unit
A$97,456

NHMRC - Project Grant 2008 - 2012 (CIA: V Srikanth, Monash University)
A population-based cohort study of brain ageing - rates of brain structural change, functional effects, and mechanisms
A$1,220,000

NHMRC - Project Grant 2009 - 2011 (CIA:  J Forbes, Baker IDI)
Diabetic kidney damage by free oxygen radicals
A$220,000

NHMRC - Project Grant 2010 - 2014 (CIA:  V Srikanth, Monash University)
Type II diabetes mellitus and cognitive decline - a longitudinal effect of effects and mechanisms
A$1,255,875

NHMRC - Project Grant 2011 - 2013 (CIA:  P Norman, UWA)
Screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms: long-term outcomes and role of circulating markers of glycation
A$134,000

Alzheimer's Australia 2011 (CIA:  M Steele, PhD Student)
Glutathione delivery of astrocytes to neurons as a target for therapeutic intervention in Alzheimer's disease
A$20,000

Ecobiotics Ltd, Yungaburra, QLD 2012 - 2016
Prevention of inflammation and neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease in vitro and in vivo models by Ecobiotics' plant extracts
A$529,000

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Awards and Recognition

Rene Schubert Prize of the "German Society for Aging Research" (Dt. Gesellschaft für Alternsforschung), 2003

Best Biomedical Project in the Business Plan Competition of the Bavarian State Government & McKinsey for Northern Bavaria, 1999

Senior Scientist Visiting Fellowship (Australian Academy of Science / DFG), Host: Prof. Robin Holliday, Division of Biomolecular Engineering, CSIRO; North Ryde, NSW, 1998

Prize for Brain Research in Gerontology, Universität Witten-Herdecke, Germany, 1997

University Prize of the "Jubilumsstiftung der Universität", University of Würzburg, Germany, 1996

Stifterverband der dt. Wissenschaft (German Association of Private Foundations) Research Associate Fellowship, 1995

DFG (German Research Council) Postdoctoral Fellowship (Garvan Institute, Sydney: Host: Professor J. Shine), 1993

University prize for the best PhD thesis of the faculty, 1991

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Selected Publications

1. Münch G, Westcott B, Menini T, Gugliucci A (2011) Advanced glycation endproducts and their pathogenic roles in neurological disorders.  Amino Acids 2010 Oct 14 [Epub ahead od print}

2. Zhang L, Ravipati AS, Koyyalamudi SR, Jeong SC, Reddy N, Smith PT, Bartlett J, Shanmugam K, Münch G, Wu MJ (2011) Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Activities of selected medicinal plants containing phenolic and flavonoid compounds.  J Agric Food Chem 59:12361-7

3. Sauer T, Raithel M, Kressel J, Muscat S, Münch G, Pischetsrieder M (2011) Nuclear translocation of NF-^_KB in intact human gut tissue upon stimulation with coffee and roasting products. Food Funct 2:529-40

4. Rahmadi A, Steiner N, Münch G, (2011) Advanced glycation endproducts as gerontotoxins and biomarkers for carbonyl-based degenerative processes in Alzheimer's disease. Clin Chem Lab Med 49:385-91

5. Krautwald K, Leech D, Horne S, Steele ML, Forbes J, Rahmadi A, Griffith R, Münch G (2011) The advanced glycation end product lowering agent ALT-711 is a low affinity inhibitor of thiamine diphosphokinase. Rejuvenation Res 14:383-91

6. Srikanth V, Maczurek A, Phan T, Steele M, Westcott B, Juskiw D,  Münch G (2010) Advanced glycation endproducts and their receptor RAGE in Alzheimer's disease. Neurobiol Aging 32:763-77

7. Chandler, D, Woldu A, Rahmadi A, Kirubakaran S, Steiner N, Wright E, Benavente-Garcia O, Schulz O, Julián Castillo J, Münch G (2010) Efects of plant-derived polyphenols on TNF-α and nitric oxide production induced by advanced glycation endproducts. Mol Nutr Food Res 54 Suppl 2 (Special Issue on Flavonoids): S 141-50

8. Stuchbury G, Münch G (2010) Optimizing the generation of stable neuronal cell lines via pre-transfection restriction enzyme digestion of plasmid DNA. Cytotechnology 62:189-94

9. Krautwald M, Münch G (2010) Advanced glycation end products as biomarkers and gerontotoxins - a basis to explore methylglyoxal-lowering agents for Alzheimer's disease. Exp Gerontol 45:744-51

10. Fuller S, Steele M, Münch G (2010) Activated astroglia during chronic inflammation in Alzheimer's disease - do they neglect their neurosupportive roles? Mutat Res 690:40-9

11. Hansen E, Krautwald M, Maczurek AE, Stuchbury G, Fromm P, Steele M, Schulz O, Garcia OB, Castillo J, Körner H, Münch G (2010) A versatile high throughput screening system for the simulatenous identification of anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective compounds. J Alzheimers Dis 19:451-64

12. Muscat S, Pischetsrieder M, Maczurek AE, Rothemund S, Münch G (2009) Cytotoxicity of Maillard reaction products determined with a peptide spot library. Mol Nutr Food Res 53:1019-29

13. Krautwald M, Maxwell P, Stuchbury G, Holtum J, Burnell J, Münch G (2009) The thiamine analogue and advanced glycation endproducts crosslink breaker ALT-711 does not interfere with transketolase activity. Open Longevity Sci 3:11-15

14. Hegele J, Münch G, Pischetsrieder M (2009) Identification of hydrogen peroxide as a major cytotoxic component in Maillard reaction mixtures and coffee. Mol Nutr Food Res 53:760-9

15. Fuller S, Steele M, Münch G (2009) Activated astrocytes - a therapeutic target in Alzheimer's disease? Expert Rev Neurotherapeutics 9:1585-94

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Optional

Member of Editorial Board for the Journal of Neural Transmission

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