Danielle Skropeta

Position: Senior Lecturer

Room: 18.127

Phone No: +61 2 42 21 4360

E-mail: skropeta@uow.edu.au

Research Interests

Our research is aimed at the discovery and development of new classes of drugs inspired by Nature. Our main research themes are in the following areas:

Isolation / Structural Elucidation

  • Marine natural products
  • Novel anticancer and antiviral agents

Synthesis

  • Isatin-based anticancer agents
  • Bioactive cyclic peptides
  • Biomimetic natural product synthesis

Chemical Ecology

  • Chemical deterrence
  • UV Tolerance in Antarctic moss

Isolation & Structural Elucidation

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Our research aims to harness the pharmaceutical potential of natural products from shallow- and deep-water marine fauna as prospective new anticancer and antiviral agents. Australia’s deep-sea fauna (>100m depth) are unexplored in terms of their natural products chemistry due to the difficulty in accessing samples. Our lab is a member of SERPENT (Scientific & Environmental ROV Partnership using Existing Industrial Technology), an exciting collaboration with the oil and gas industry providing scientists with access to cutting-edge ROV (remotely operated vehicle) technology for deep-sea research. Through a Linkage funded project on drilling effects on deep-sea ecosystems, we have access to a range of deep-sea fauna including sponges, anemones, echinoderms and molluscs. These organisms, along with a variety of shallow-water fauna are currently undergoing assessment for their cytotoxic and antiviral activity. We are also interested in carbohydrate-containing marine natural products and method development for their improved isolation and characterisation.

SERPENT Overview Poster (PDF 174KB)

Synthesis

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We currently have a range of synthetic projects in our lab including the development of novel isatin-based anticancer agents, along with new and improved radiolabeled cyclic RGD peptides as PET tracers for cancer imaging. We are also particularly interested in the biomimetic synthesis of promising compounds emerging from our structural elucidation program.

All of our projects are multidisciplinary in nature and are performed in collaboration with biologists and marine ecologists from within our University, as well as with other research and industry partners both here in Australia and overseas.

Skropeta Research Overview Poster (PDF 1014KB)

Representative Publications

D. Skropeta, and R.W. Rickards, Domino Pericyclic Reactions of Acyclic Conjugated (E,Z,E,E)-Tetraenes, Tetrahedron Letters 2007, 48, 3281-3284.

D. Skropeta, C. Settasatian, C., M.R. McMahon, K.D. Shearston, D. Caiazza, K.C. McGrath, W. Jin, D.J. Rader, P.J. Barter, K.-A. Rye, N-glycosylation regulates endothelial lipase-mediated phospholipid hydrolysis in ApoE- and ApoA-I-containing high density lipoproteins, Journal of Lipid Research 2007, 48, 2047-2057.

D. Skropeta, K.A. Jolliffe, P. Turner, Pseudoprolines as Removable Turn Inducers: Tools for the Cyclization of Small Peptides, J. Org. Chem. 2004, 69, 8804-8809.

D. Skropeta, R. Schwörer, T. Haag, R.R. Schmidt, Asymmetric Synthesis and Affinity of Potent Sialyltransferase Inhibitors Based on Transition-State Analogues, Glycoconjugate J. 2004, 21, 205-19.            

G. Guella, D. Skropeta, I. Mancini, F. Pietra,Calenzanane Sesquiterpenes from the Red Seaweed Laurencia microcladia from the Bay of Calenzana, Elba Island: Acid-Catalyzed, Stereospecific Conversion of Calenzanol into Indene- and Guaiazulene-type Sesquiterpenes, Chem. Eur. J, 2003, 9, 5770-5777.

Searchable Publication List

Current Students

PhD:

Lidia Matesic Isatin-Based Anticancer Agents
(Co-supervisors: Prof. J. Bremner, A/Prof. M. Ranson, Dr J. Locke, Dr K. Vine)

Ana Zivanovic New Anticancer and Antiviral Agents from Marine Sources

Masters:

Meha Tharmeswara Synthesis of Novel RGD Cyclic Peptides
(In collaboration: Dr A. Katsifis, ANSTO & CRC Biomedical Imaging Development)

Suzilawati Bt. Muhd Sarowi Development of New Anticancer Imaging Agents
(In collaboration: Dr A. Katsifis, ANSTO & CRC Biomedical Imaging Development)

Honours:

Natalie Pastro Bioactive Metabolites of Deep-Sea Fauna
(In collaboration: Dr Adele Pile, USyd, and the SERPENT program)

Consulato Cara Biomimetic Synthesis of Natural Products

Melinda Waterman UV Tolerance of Antarctic Moss
(Principal Supervisor: A/Prof. P. Keller, co-Supervisor: A/Prof. Sharon Robinson)

Suggested Topics for Future Students

    • Carbohydrate-containing marine natural products

    • New anticancer and antiviral agents from Australian marine fauna

    • Metabolite profiling of deep-sea marine fauna

Positions Available

There are currently no positions available.

Please go to:

Domestic students: http://www.uow.edu.au/research/rsc/prospective/UOW064399.html

International students: http://www.uow.edu.au/research/rsc/prospective/UOW064400.html

Abbreviated CV

Academic Qualifications

PhD                   Australian National University, Canberra, ACT (2000)
BSc(Hons)         Monash University, Clayton, Vic (1994)

Academic and Research Positions Held

2006-        

Lecturer, University of Wollongong, NSW

2006-

Visiting Fellow, Heart Research Institute, NSW

2004-5

Senior Research Fellow, Heart Research Institute, NSW

2004-5

Lecturer, Australian Catholic University, NSW

2003-4

Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Sydney, NSW

2003

First Year Tutor, University of Sydney, NSW

2001-2

Postdoctoral Fellow, Universität Konstanz, Germany

2000

Postdoctoral Fellow, Universitá di Trento, Italy

Last reviewed: 20 August, 2009