Professor Vaughan Macefield


Biography

Vaughan Macefield is Foundation Chair of Integrative Physiology at the School of Medicine, University of Western Sydney, and a Conjoint Senior Principal Research Fellow at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), formerly Prince of Wales Medical Research Institute. A former NMHRC Senior Research Fellow, he completed his PhD at UNSW in 1986, then undertook advanced training in human neurophysiology in Sweden and the USA. In 1994 he established his own laboratories at NeuRA, prior to joining UWS in 2006.
Vaughan specializes in recording from single nerve fibres via tungsten microelectrodes inserted into the peripheral nerves of awake human subjects, and is known internationally as a world expert in recording the firing properties of human sympathetic neurones in health and disease, and as a leading investigator in human sensorimotor control. He has active collaborations with many groups in Australia, Sweden and the USA, and has attracted postdoctoral scientists from Sweden, Denmark, Canada and Australia.
For the last seven years Vaughan has been examining the changes in control of the autonomic nervous system following human spinal cord injury, extending his research into the study of pain and its effects on the autonomic and somatic nervous systems, using brain imaging techniques (fMRI) to study the processing of pain.

^ Back to top

Areas of Research / Teaching Expertise

  • Integrative physiology
  • Neuroscience
  • Microneurography
  • fMRI (brain imaging)

^ Back to top

Grants / Current Projects


2012 - 2014
The encoding of friction by tactile mechanoreceptors - the key to fingertip force control during dexterous object manipulation by humans
Funding: Funding: Australian Research Council Discovery Project, $290,000 over 3 years.
Research Team: Birznieks I, Redmond SJ, Macefield VG.

2012 - 2014
Information encoding by temporal structure of afferent spike trains evoked by complex vibrotactile stimuli
Funding: National Health and Medical Research Council, Project Grant, $231,175 over 3 years.
Research Team: Birznieks I, Vickery R, Krishnan A, Macefield VG.

2012 - 2014
The effects of tonic muscle pain on the sympathetic and somatic motor systrems in human subjects
Funding: National Health and Medical Research Council, Project Grant, $447,350 over 3 years.
Research Team: Macefield VG, Birznieks I.

2011 - 2013
Functional imaging of the brainstem and cortical sites of blood pressure control in human subjects in health and disease
Funding: National Health and Medical Research Council, Project Grant, $382,524 over 3 years.
Research Team: Macefield VG, Henderson LA.

2010 - 2013
Occupant comfort, cognitive performance and task performance in wind-excited tall buildings
Funding: Australian Research Council Discovery Project, $605,621 over 3 years.
Research Team: Kwok K, Macefield VG, Hitchcock P, Walton D.

2007 - 2009
An fMRI analysis of the functional organisation within the brain of experimental superficial and deep orofacial pain
Funding: National Health and Medical Research Council, Project Grant, $311,250 over 3 years.
Research Team: Murray GM, Henderson LA, Macefield VG.

2006 - 2010
Optimising autonomous control with brain-like hierarchical systems
Funding: National Health & Medical Research Council/Australian Research Council, Thinking Systems, $3,299,500 over 5 years.
Research Team: Breakspear M, Morley J, Sammut C, Lovell N, Mahli G, Lagopoulos J, Harris J, Goodhill G, Paxinos G, Macefield VG.

2006 - 2008
Sympathetic control of cutaneous blood flow and blood pressure in human spinal cord injury
Funding: National Health & Medical Research Council, $344,250 over 3 years
Research Team: Macefield VG.

2005 - 2008
Altered nerve and muscle excitability below a spinal cord injury - challenges for functional recovery
Funding: NSW Ministry of Science and Medical Research, $1,500,000 over 4 years
Research Team: McLachlan E, Brock J, Kiernan M, Macefield VG.

2006 -2007
Role of nitric oxide in blood pressure control
Funding: National Heart Foundation, $120,000 over 2 years.
Research Team: Macefield VG, Sander M, Celermajer D.

2005 - 2007
The autonomic, somatic and central neural responses to deep and superficial pain in human subjects
Funding: National Health & Medical Research Council $369,750 over 3 years
Research Team: Macefield VG, Henderson LA

^ Back to top

Awards and Recognition

  • NHMRC Senior Research Fellow, 2001-2006
  • NHMRC Research Fellow 1999-2000
  • NHMRC R D Wright Fellow, Senior Research Scientist 1995-1998
  • Sunderland Award, Ian Potter Foundation 1996
  • NHMRC CJ Martin Fellow 1994
  • John B Pierce Visiting Assistant Fellow, Yale University, USA 1992
  • NHMRC CJ Martin Travelling Fellowship, 1990-1992
  • NHMRC Research Officer 1986-1990
  • Commonwealth Postgraduate Research Award 1983
  • Asthma Foundation of New South Wales 1982

^ Back to top

Selected Publications

View a complete list of Prof Macefield's publications here [PDF, 57.75 KB]

Book Chapters

Macefield VG, Henderson LA, Imaging of brainstem sites involved in cardiovascular  control
In: Robertson D, Biaggioni I, Burnstock G, Low PA, Paton JFR (Editors)d: Primer on the Autonomic Nervous System, 3rd Edition, Academic Press, Elsevier, pp 13-16, 2012

Macefield VG. Long loop reflexes
Macefield VG. Tactile C fibres
Macefield VG, Birznieks I. Cutaneous mechanoreceptors, functional behaviour
Macefield VG. Proprioception, role of joint receptors
In: Windhorst U, Binder M, Hirokawa N (Eds): Encyclopedia of Neuroscience. Springer, Heidelberg, Germany 2008

Burke D, Gandevia SC & Macefield VG,Microneurography and motor disorders
In: Hallett M, (Volume Editor), Daube JR, Mauguière F (Series Editors): Handbook of Clinical Neurophysiology, Volume 1 Movement Disorders, Elsevier Health Sciences, Amsterdam, pp153-162, 2003

Refereed Journal Articles

Brown R, Duma S, Piguet O, Broe GA & Macefield VG, Cardiovascular variability in Parkinson's disease and extrapyramidal motor slowing, Clinical Autonomic Research 2012; accepted for publication 30/3/12

Hammam E, Dawood T & Macefield VG, Low-frequency glavanic vestibular stimulation evokes two peaks of modulation in skin sympathetic nerve activity, Experimental Brain Research 2012; accepted for publication 28/3/12

Birznieks I, Boonstra TW & Macefield VG, Modulation of human muscle spindle discharge by arterial pulsations - functional effects and consequences, Public Library of Science ONE 2012; accepted for publication 14/3/12

Chan GSH, Fazalbhoy A, Birznieks I, Macefield VG, Middleton PM & Lovell NH, Spontaneous fluctuations in peripheral photoplethysmographic waveform: roles of arterial pressure and muscle sympathetic nerve activity. American Journal of Physiology 2011; 302: H826-836

Macefield VG, On the number of preganglionic neurones driving human postganglionic sympathetic neurones: a comparison of modelling and empirical data, Frontiers in Autonomic Neuroscience 2011; 5: 132

Macefield VG, Norcliffe-Kaufmann L, Gutierrez J, Axelrod F & Kaufmann H, Can loss of muscle spindle afferents explain the ataxic gait in Riley-Day syndrome?, Brain 2011; 134: 3198-3208

Fatouleh R & Macefield VG, Respiratory modulation of muscle sympathetic nerve activity is not increased in essential hypertension or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Journal of Physiology 2011; 589: 4997-5006

Hammam E, James C, Dawood T & Macefield VG, Low frequency sinusoidal galvanic stimulation of the left and right vestibular nerves reveals two peaks of modulation in muscle sympathetic nerve activity, Experimental Brain Research 2011; 213: 507-514

Nagi SS, Rubin TK, Chelvanayagam DK, Macefield VG & Mahns DA, Allodynia mediated by C-tactile afferents in human hairy skin, Journal of Physiology 2011; 589: 4065-4075

Henderson LA, Rubin TK & Macefield VG, Within-limb somatotopic representation of acute muscle pain in the human contralateral dorsal posterior insula, Human Brain Mapping 2011; 32 1592-1601

Nash P, Macefield VG, Klineberg I, Gustin S, Murray GM & Henderson LA, Changes in human primary motor cortex activity during acute cutaneous and muscle orofacial pain, Journal of Orofacial Pain 2010; 24: 379-390

Nash P, Macefield VG, Klineberg I, Gustin S, Murray GM & Henderson LA, Bilateral activation of the trigeminothalamic tract by acute orofacial cutaneous and muscle pain in humans, Pain 2010; 151: 384-393

James C & Macefield VG, Competitive interactions between vestibular and cardiac rhythms in the modulation of muscle sympathetic nerve activity, Autonomic Neuroscience: Basic & Clinical 2010; 158: 127-131

James C, Stathis A & Macefield VG, Vestibular and pulse-related modulation of skin sympathetic nerve activity during sinusoidal galvanic vestibular stimulation in human subjects, Experimental Brain Research 2010; 202: 291-298

Rubin TK, Henderson LA & Macefield VG, Changes in the spatiotemporal expression of local and referred pain following repeated intramuscular injections of hypertonic saline: a longtitudinal study, Journal of Pain 2010; 11: 737-745

Sander M, Henderson LA & Macefield VG, Cortical and brain stem changes in neural activity during static handgrip and post-exercise ischemia in humans, The Journal of Applied Physiology 2010; 108: 1691-1700

Ashley C, Burton D, Sverrisdottir YB, Sander M, McKenzie DK & Macefield VG, Firing probability and mean firing rates of human muscle vasoconstrictor neurones are elevated during chronic asphyxia, The Journal of Physiology 2010; 588: 701-711

Macefield VG & Henderson LA, Real-time imaging of the medullary circuitry involved in the generation of spontaneous muscle sympathetic nerve activity in awake human subjects, Human Brain Mapping 2010; 31: 539-549

Grewal T, James C & Macefield VG, Frequency-dependent modulation of muscle sympathetic nerve activity by sinusoidal galvanic vestibular stimulation in human subjects, Experimental Brain Research 2009; 197: 379-386

Rubin TK, Gandevia SC, Henderson LA & Macefield VG, Effects of intramuscular anesthesia on the expression of primary and referred pain induced by intramuscular injection of hypertonic saline, Journal of Pain 2009; 10: 829-835

Birznieks I, Macefield VG, Westling G & Johansson RS, Slowly adapting mechanoreceptors in the borders of the human fingernail encode fingertip forces, Journal of Neuroscience 2009; 29: 9370-9379

Brown R, Burton AR & Macefield VG, Input-output relationships of a somatosympathetic reflex in human spinal cord injury, Clinical Autonomic Research 2009; 30: 213-220

Nash P, Macefield VG, Murray GM, Klineberg I & Henderson LA, Differential activation of the human trigeminal nuclear complex by noxious and non-noxious orofacial stimulation, Human Brain Mapping 2009; 11: 3772-3782

Wrigley PJ, Press SR, Gustin SM, Macefield VG, Gandevia SC, Cousins MJ, Middleton JW, Henderson LA, Siddall PJ. Neuropathic pain and primary somatosensory cortex reorganization following spinal cord injury. Pain. 2009; 141: 52-59

Wrigley PJ, Gustin SM, Macey PM, Nash PG, Gandevia SC, Macefield VG, Siddall PJ & Henderson LA, Anatomical changes in human motor cortex and motor pathways following complete thoracic spinal cord injury. Cerebral Cortex 2009; 19: 224-232

Burton AR, Birznieks I, Bolton PS, Henderson LA & Macefield VG, The effects of deep and superficial experimentally-induced acute pain on muscle sympathetic nerve activity in human subjects. Journal of Physiology 2009; 587: 183-193

Brown R, Stolzenhein G, Engel S & Macefield VG, Cutaneous vasoconstriction as a measure of incipient autonomic dysreflexia during penile vibratory stimulation in spinal cord injury, Spinal Cord 2008; Dec 16. [Epub ahead of print]

Birznieks I, Burton AR & Macefield VG, Does muscle pain increase muscle stiffness? Physiology News 2008; 73: 21-22

Macefield VG, Sverrisdottir YB, Elam E, Harris J. Firing properties of sudomotor neurones in hyperhidrosis and thermal sweating. Clinical Autonomic Research. 2008; 18: 325-330

Burton A, Brown R, Macefield VG. Selective activation of muscle and skin nociceptors does not trigger exaggerated sympathetic responses in spinal injured subjects, Spinal Cord. 2008; 46: 660-665

Brown R, Macefield VG. Assessing the capacity of the sympathetic nervous system to respond to a cardiovascular challenge in human spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord. 2008; 46: 666-672

Birznieks I, Burton AR, Macefield VG. The effects of experimental muscle and skin pain on the static stretch sensitivity of human muscle spindles in relaxed leg muscles. Journal of Physiology. 2008; 586:2713-2723.

McNulty PA, Galea V, Fallon JB, Bent LR, Macefield V. Low-threshold afferent signalling of viscous loads during voluntary movements of the human digits. Neuroreport. 2008; 19:1049-1054.

Henderson LA, Gandevia SC, Macefield VG. Gender differences in brain activity evoked by muscle and cutaneous pain: a retrospective study of single-trial fMRI data, NeuroImage. 2008; 39:1867-1876.

Fallon JB, Macefield VG. Vibration sensitivity of human muscle spindles and Golgi tendon organs. Muscle & Nerve. 2007; 36:21-29.

Brown R, Engel S, Wallin BG, Elam M, Macefield VG. Assessing the integrity of sympathetic pathways in spinal cord injury, Autonomic Neuroscience: Basic and Clinical. 2007; 134:61-68.

Bent LR, Bolton PS, Macefield VG. Vestibular inputs do not influence the fusimotor system in relaxed muscles of the human leg. Experimental Brain Research. 2007; 180:97-100.

Lin SY, Macefield VG, Elam M, Wallin BG, Engel S, Kiernan MC. Axonal changes in spinal cord injured patients distal to the site of injury. Brain. 2007; 130:985-994.

Clarke CE, McNulty PA, Macefield VG, Bilston LE. Mechanically evoked sensory and motor responses to dynamic compression of the ulnar nerve. Muscle & Nerve. 2007; 35:303-311.

Macefield VG, Gandevia SC, Henderson LA. Discrete changes in cortical activation during experimentally induced referred muscle pain: a single-trial fMRI study, Cerebral Cortex. 2007; 17:2050-2059.

Henderson LA, Gandevia SC, Macefield VG. Somatotopic organization of the processing of muscle and cutaneous pain in the left and right insula cortex: a single-trial fMRI study. Pain. 2007;128:20-30.

Macefield VG, Gandevia SC, Henderson LA. Neural sites involved in the sustained increase in muscle sympathetic nerve activity induced by inspiratory-capacity apnea - a fMRI study. Journal of Applied Physiology. 2006; 100:266-273.

Bent LR, Bolton PS, Macefield VG. Modulation of muscle sympathetic bursts by sinusoidal galvanic vestibular stimulation in human subjects, Experimental Brain Research. 2006; 174:701-711.

Henderson LA, Bandler R, Gandevia SC, Macefield VG. Distinct forebrain activity patterns during deep versus superficial pain. Pain. 2006; 120:286-296.

Fallon JB, Bent LR, McNulty PA, Macefield VG. Evidence for strong synaptic coupling between single tactile afferents from the sole of the foot and motoneurones supplying leg muscles. Journal of Neurophysiology. 2005; 94:3795-3804.

Bolton PS, Wardman DL, Macefield VG. Absence of short-term vestibular modulation of muscle sympathetic outflow, assessed by brief galvanic vestibular stimulation in human subjects. Experimental Brain Research. 2004; 154:39-43.

Macefield VG, Elam M. Comparison of the firing patterns of human postganglionic sympathetic neurones and spinal alpha motoneurones during brief bursts. Experimental Physiology. 2004; 89:82-88.

Macefield VG, Elam M. Does sympathetic nerve discharge affect the firing of myelinated cutaneous afferents in humans? Autonomic Neuroscience. 2004; 111;116 

Editorials

Macefield VG, Selective autonomic failure: Ross syndrome, Clinical Neurophysiology, 2012; Epub ahead of print

Macefield VG, A role for the sympathetic nervous system in sympathetically-maintained pain? Clinical Neurophysiology, 2010; 121: 996-997 

Macefield VG, Single-minded about heart failure, Journal of Physiology,  2009; 587: 2421

^ Back to top

Professional Activities

Member, Society for Neuroscience (USA)
Member, International Society for Autonomic Neuroscience
Member, American Autonomic Society
Chair, Organising Committee, Sensory Neuroscience Symposium, UWS
Chair, Organising Committee for the 2009 meeting of the International Society for Autonomic Neuroscience and a member of the International Programming Committee for this meeting.
Chair, UWS School of Medicine Admissions Committee
Coordinator, Embedded Honours Program, School of Medicine, UWS
Coordinator, UWS School of Medicine Research Colloquia
Member, UWS School of Medicine Indigenous Committee


Community Engagement

NSW State Coordinator, Australian Brain Bee Challenge
Public and school lectures on careers in medical research
Corporate lectures on the brain (eg IBM, ATO)
Hosting high-school work experience students in research laboratory


^ Back to top