Niwanthi Rajapakse

Dr. Niwanthi Rajapakse serves as Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Sciences in the School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences at the University of Queensland. She earned a Bachelor with Honours and a Doctor of Philosophy from Monash University. Her research specializes in cardiorenal disease, cardiovascular disease, heart failure, kidney disease, kidney failure, and nitric oxide bioavailability. As leader of the Rajapakse Group in cardiorenal research, she examines mechanisms of cardiorenal syndrome pathogenesis, including reduced nitric oxide bioavailability and inflammation contributing to renal disease in heart failure. Her work explores novel therapeutic approaches to restore nitric oxide production, the role of L-arginine transporters, microbiome influences in cardiorenal syndrome, and factors affecting nitric oxide pathways. Rajapakse has contributed to understanding renal oxidative stress, gut microbiota effects on hypertension and heart failure, and impairments in the L-arginine-nitric oxide pathway in hypertension and diabetes.

Rajapakse has produced 49 scholarly works from 2002 to 2024, accessible via UQ eSpace, with prominent publications such as 'High fibre diet and acetate supplementation change the gut microbiota and prevent the development of hypertension and heart failure in hypertensive mice' (Circulation, 2017), 'SARS-CoV-2 drives NLRP3 inflammasome activation in human microglia through spike protein' (Molecular Psychiatry, 2023), 'Chemokine receptor CXCR7 antagonism ameliorates cardiac and renal fibrosis induced by mineralocorticoid excess' (Scientific Reports, 2024), 'Stimulation of angiotensin converting enzyme 2: A novel treatment strategy for diabetic nephropathy' (Frontiers in Physiology, 2022), 'Endothelial-specific overexpression of cationic amino acid transporter-1 prevents loss of kidney function in heart failure' (Clinical Science, 2020), 'Impaired L-arginine-nitric oxide pathway contributes to the pathogenesis of resistant hypertension' (Clinical Science, 2019), and 'N-Acetylcysteine Attenuates the Development of Renal Fibrosis in Transgenic Mice with Dilated Cardiomyopathy' (Scientific Reports, 2017). She has obtained funding including the UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure grant for the Vevo 3100 Imaging System (2019), and project grants from the US Alzheimer’s Association and National Institute of Health as Chief Investigator B (administered via Monash University). In 2024, she principal advised two PhD completions: 'Stimulating the counter-regulatory renin-angiotensin system: a novel approach to prevent Alzheimer’s disease' and 'Novel Treatments for Cardiorenal Disease and Diabetes Mellitus: Role of Cationic Amino Acid Transporter-1 and Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2'. She coordinates courses like BIOM1052 and is a media expert on cardiorenal topics.

Professional Email: n.rajapakse@uq.edu.au