Rate My Professor Peter Dunkley

Emeritus Professor Peter Dunkley holds the position of Emeritus Professor in the Discipline of Medical Biochemistry within the School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy at the University of Newcastle. He earned a Doctor of Philosophy and joined the University's newly established Medical School in 1978. Dunkley served as the Foundation Head of the School of Biomedical Sciences from 1998 to 2002 and as Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research) from 2003 to 2005. His career has been marked by leadership in biomedical research administration and contributions to the development of neuroscience and biochemistry programs at the institution.

Professor Dunkley's research specializes in signal transduction mechanisms in neuronal and endocrine tissues, with a primary emphasis on protein phosphorylation. He has extensively investigated the regulation and phosphorylation of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), the rate-limiting enzyme in catecholamine biosynthesis. His studies have explored TH phosphorylation at sites such as Ser19, Ser31, and Ser40, and their effects on enzyme activity under stress, inflammation, and pathological conditions like Parkinson's disease. Key publications include 'Tyrosine hydroxylase phosphorylation: regulation and consequences' (2004), a comprehensive review of phosphorylation sites and functional outcomes; 'Tyrosine hydroxylase phosphorylation in vivo' (2019), which examines dynamic phosphorylation processes; 'Expression of tyrosine hydroxylase isoforms and phosphorylation at serine 40 in the human nigrostriatal system in Parkinson's disease' (2019); 'Peripheral inflammation induces long-term changes in tyrosine hydroxylase activation in the substantia nigra' (2021); 'Immunity in Parkinson's disease – The role of innate responses' (2025); and 'Immunity in Parkinson's disease - the role of adaptive and auto-immune responses and gut-microbiome axis' (2025). Earlier foundational work includes the development of rapid Percoll gradient methods for synaptosome isolation, published in Brain Research papers in 1988, such as 'A rapid Percoll gradient procedure for isolation of synaptosomes directly from an S-1 fraction - homogeneity and morphology of subcellular fractions'. With 186 publications and over 6,000 citations, his research has significantly impacted understanding of catecholamine regulation, neuroinflammation, and dopaminergic pathways in health and disease. He has delivered plenary lectures, including the Lawrie Austin Plenary Lecture on catecholamine synthesis in response to stress.