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Areas
  • Population health and epidemiology
Technologies

About

My team has two major parallel interests: fundamental parasite biology and advanced parasite diagnostics and epidemiology.

On the fundamental side, we use advanced sequencing technologies and bioinformatics to explore the genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics of major human parasites, including soil transmitted helminthes and major diarrhoeal pathogens (Giardia and Cryptosporidium).

We are particularly interested in:

Hosts and parasites interaction at the immunological level
Parasite development in their host
Parasite resistance to common antiparasitic drugs
On the applied side, we develop quantitative real-time PCR assays to test for major parasites and other pathogens/microorganisms of relevance to the local water industry (for example Cryptosporidium and toxigenic cyanobacteria) and/or of relevance to global health (for example human gastrointestinal parasites).

We use these tools to assess transmission risk and to explore parasite epidemiology in developed and resource poor settings.

Publications

Selected publications from A/Prof Aaron Jex

Kapoor S, Hickner PV, Dickey AN, Bailey EM, Baldassio de Paula LC, Belikoff EJ, Davis RJ, Tandonnet S, Canettieri CK, Bertone MA, Szpila K, Hall RS, Young ND, Korhonen PK, Gasser RB, Perry T, Jex AR, Bowles VM, Wiegmann BM, Torres TT, Anstead CA, Scott MJ. Comparative Genomic Analysis of Necrophagous and Parasitic Subspecies of Lucilia cuprina (Diptera: Calliphoridae) Provides Important Insights into their Divergent Biologies. International Journal for Parasitology. 2025;:10.1016/j.ijpara.2025.06.001

Jex A, John N, McCarthy D, Myers S, Begue N, Schang C, Usher SP, Baker L, Kaucner C, Monis P, Hartman LM, Flynn B, Merrett JE, Lister D, Herold M, Kueh A, Cheng NN, Nolan J, Caly L, Druce J, Thorley B, Scales PJ, Schmidt J, Sarkis S, Crosbie ND, Poon R, Nolan M. Multi-tiered strategy for large-scale wastewater detection of SARS-CoV-2 in low-case settings provides confidence for public health actions. Journal of Water and Health. 2025;23(2):10.2166/wh.2025.164

Nelli F, Ge Z, Blackall L, Taheriashtiani N, Henry R, Brumley DR, Grace M, Jex A, Burch M, Lin T-F, Bertelkamp C, Willis A, Gao L, Schmidt J, Crosbie ND, Zamyadi A. Machine learning driven image segmentation and shape clustering of algal microscopic images obtained from various water types. Computational and Structural Biotechnology Reports. 2024;1:10.1016/j.csbr.2024.100014

Baldi A, Braat S, Hasan MI, Bennett C, Barrios M, Jones N, Abdul Azeez I, Wilcox S, Roy PK, Bhuiyan MSA, Ataide R, Clucas D, Larson LM, Hamadani J, Zimmermann M, Bowden R, Jex A, Biggs B-A, Pasricha S-R. Effects of iron supplements and iron-containing micronutrient powders on the gut microbiome in Bangladeshi infants: a randomized controlled trial. Nature Communications. 2024;15(1):10.1038/s41467-024-53013-x

Merrett JE, Nolan M, Hartman L, John N, Flynn B, Baker L, Schang C, McCarthy D, Lister D, Cheng NN, Crosbie N, Poon R, Jex A. Highly sensitive wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 variants by targeted next-generation amplicon sequencing provides early warning of incursion in Victoria, Australia. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 2024;90(8):10.1128/aem.01497-23

Baldi A, Braat S, Imrul Hasan M, Bennett C, Barrios M, Jones N, Moir-Meyer G, Abdul Azeez I, Wilcox S, Saiful Alam Bhuiyan M, Ataide R, Clucas D, Harrison LC, Arifeen SE, Bowden R, Biggs B-A, Jex A, Pasricha S-R. Community use of oral antibiotics transiently reprofiles the intestinal microbiome in young Bangladeshi children. Nature Communications. 2024;15(1):10.1038/s41467-024-51326-5

Woodhouse JN, Burford MA, Neilan BA, Jex A, Tichkule S, Sivonen K, Fewer DP, Grossart H-P, Willis A. Long-term stability of the genome structure of the cyanobacterium, Dolichospermum in a deep German lake. Harmful Algae. 2024;133:10.1016/j.hal.2024.102600

Donner E, Magalhães RJS, Barnes AC, Jex A, Jarocki V, Drigo B, Djordjevic S, Ashbolt NJ. Introducing CRC SAAFE: a new Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) focused on managing AMR in agriculture and the environment. Microbiology Australia. 2024;45(2):10.1071/ma24021

Ferguson AA, Inclan-Rico JM, Lu D, Bobardt SD, Hung L, Gouil Q, Baker L, Ritchie ME, Jex AR, Schwarz EM, Rossi HL, Nair MG, Dillman AR, Herbert DR. Hookworms dynamically respond to loss of Type 2 immune pressure. PLOS Pathogens. 2023;19(12):10.1371/journal.ppat.1011797

Floriano AM, Biffignandi GB, Castelli M, Olivieri E, Clementi E, Comandatore F, Rinaldi L, Opara M, Plantard O, Palomar AM, Noël V, Vijay A, Lo N, Makepeace BL, Duron O, Jex A, Guy L, Sassera D. The evolution of intramitochondriality in Midichloria bacteria. Environmental Microbiology. 2023;25(11):10.1111/1462-2920.16446

Lab research projects

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