Rate My Professor Erwin Lamping

Dr Erwin Lamping is a Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Oral Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, at the University of Otago, affiliated with the Sir John Walsh Research Institute. Possessing a PhD, he specializes in membrane protein biology and has deep expertise in molecular biology, biochemistry, and yeast genetics. His research investigates the structure and function of eukaryotic integral membrane proteins, with a particular emphasis on those associated with multidrug resistance in fungal pathogens such as Candida albicans, C. glabrata, C. krusei, Cryptococcus neoformans, and Aspergillus fumigatus, as well as in human cancer cells. Targeted proteins include the azole drug target ERG11, an essential enzyme in ergosterol biosynthesis, and multidrug efflux pumps of the pleiotropic drug resistance (PDR) and multidrug resistance (MDR) families.

Dr Lamping has advanced the field through the creation and optimization of a patented yeast membrane protein expression system adopted by over 50 global research teams. This platform facilitated the development of yeast strains overexpressing ERG11 and various efflux transporters from human and fungal pathogens, aiding diverse research projects funded by New Zealand's Marsden Fund, Health Research Council, and Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, as well as international funders including the US National Institutes of Health, Japan Health Sciences Foundation, and Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. These efforts contributed to solving the first crystal structure of the full-length cytochrome P450 enzyme S. cerevisiae Erg11p. Additionally, he supervises undergraduate and postgraduate students, teaches molecular biology techniques, and maintains memberships in the American Society for Microbiology, New Zealand Microbiological Society, New Zealand Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Oral Microbiology and Dental Health Research Theme, and Webster Centre for Infectious Diseases at the University of Otago. Key recent publications include “G521 is the gatekeeper and a key transmembrane domain contact residue of Candida albicans Cdr1” (mBio, 2026), “Magnesium and copper co-substituted bovine bone-derived hydroxyapatite: A sustainable and functional coating for CFR-PEEK implants” (Colloids & Surfaces A, 2026), “Use of gain-of-function suppressor screening to elucidate Candida albicans Cdr1 efflux mechanism, inhibition, and drug resistance” (Frontiers in Microbiology, 2025), “Molecular mechanism of action of HOCl from neutral-pH electrolysed oxidising water against Candida albicans” (Journal of Fungi, 2025), and “Multidrug efflux pumps and innate azole resistance of Mucor lusitanicus” (Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, 2025).