Shanley Longfield

This research focuses on understanding how changes in a brain protein called tau contribute to frontotemporal dementia, a condition that affects memory, behaviour, and thinking. Tau plays an important role in keeping brain cells healthy by helping organise small structures called synaptic vesicles, which are essential for sending messages between brain cells. In frontotemporal dementia, a specific change (mutation) in tau disrupts this process, leading to problems with how brain cells communicate. 

Using advanced tools to study live brain cells, this project will investigate how this mutation affects tau’s behaviour and how it impacts brain function. The goal is to uncover what goes wrong in frontotemporal dementia at a molecular level and explore potential ways to protect brain cells from damage, offering hope for better treatments in the future.

Dr Shanley Longfield is a post-doctoral researcher working within the Single Molecule Neuroscience Laboratory at the Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland.