Professor Robyn O'Hehir

Current Position:
Director, Department of Allergy, Immunology and Respiratory Medicine, Alfred Hospital
Professor of Allergy, Clinical Immunology and Respiratory Medicine, Monash University
Director, Co-operative Research Centre for Asthma and Airways (Monash University node)

Telephone:
+61 3  9076 2251

Facsimile:
+61 3 9207 1692

Email:
robyn.ohehir@med.monash.edu.au
r.ohehir@alfred.org.au

Office:
Department of Allergy, Immunology and Respiratory Medicine
5th Floor, Alfred Hospital
Commercial Road
Melbourne 3004

Laboratory:
Department of Immunology
Level 2, Monash University Building, AMREP
Commercial Road
Melbourne 3004

Biosketch:
Professor Robyn O’Hehir has been a key international figure in allergy and asthma research and clinical care for 20 years.  She is amongst a small group of academic clinician scientists who successfully combine a strong track record in basic research with a clear commitment to clinical medicine, in this way demonstrating the value of translational medical research.  The contribution of Professor O’Hehir to the allergy and respiratory field ranges from basic animal studies on the immunology of allergy and epitope mapping, through translational research on novel immunogens designed to invoke protective immunity, to clinical research on the pathophysiology and management of asthma.  She has published more than 140 papers in national and international peer reviewed journals, with 32 papers cited more than 20 times each.  Professor O’Hehir has won over $18 million in personal competitive grant support since re-establishing her research in Australia in 1997, including continuous funding of $7 million from NHMRC, including a current Program grant.  She is Director of the Monash node of the Cooperative Research Centre for Asthma, a $35 million national initiative, which was refunded for a second seven year term in 2005 as the CRC for Asthma and Airways (a $54 million national research initiative).  Professor O’Hehir has been elected to Editorial Boards of the three top international journals in allergy and clinical immunology and currently serves as an Associate Editor of the International Archives of Allergy and Immunology.  She is regularly invited to give plenary and symposium keynote talks at national and international meetings, with three/four invitations at this level annually, including lectures at the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology and the European Respiratory Society.  She has supervised 30 postgraduate students for PhD and MD degrees, and has served on a number of national committees including NHMRC (Project and Program Grant Panels), Australasian Society for Clinical Immunology and Allergy, Australian Lung Foundation and Asthma Australia.  Professor O’Hehir is Director of the Department of Allergy, Immunology and Respiratory Medicine at The Alfred Hospital with 120 staff, studying and treating the full range of allergic and respiratory conditions.  She is noted for offering the highest quality of leadership to a broadly based Department, with strong areas of basic research, clinical research, public health commitment and specialist clinical practice.  She is actively engaged in national and international clinical trials, to ensure that her combined research and clinical duties focus on translation of research findings into improved Hospital and community clinical practice.

Current Research Focus:
2005-2009: The interface between innate and adaptive immunity in allergy and asthma (NHMRC grant)
2006-2012: Reducing the burden of asthma and airways (CRC for Asthma and Airways grant)
2004-2006: Characterisation of immune responses to Sarcoptes Scabiei cysteine proteases, group 1 allergen homologues, in scabies (NHMRC grant)

Selected Publications:

Glaspole IN, de Leon MP, Rolland JM, O'hehir RE. Anaphylaxis to lemon soap: citrus seed and peanut allergen cross-reactivity. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2007 Mar;98(3):286-9

de Leon MP,  Rolland JM, O'Hehir RE. The peanut allergy epidemic: allergen molecular characterisation and prospects for specific therapy. Expert Rev Mol Med. 2007; 9(1):1-18.

de Leon MP, Drew AC, Glaspole IN, Suphioglu C, O'Hehir RE and Rolland JM. IgE cross-reactivity between the major peanut allergen Ara h 2 and tree nut allergens. Mol Immunol. 2007; 44(4):463-71

Rolland JM, Apostolou E, Deckert K, de Leon MP, Douglass JA, Glaspole IN, Bailey M, Stockley CS and O’Hehir RE.Potential food allergens in wine: Double-blind, placebo-controlled trial and basophil activation analysis. Nutrition. 2006; 22(9):882-8.

Hardy CL, O’Connor AE, Yao J, Sebire K, de Kretser DM, Rolland JM, Anderson GP, Phillips DJ, O’Hehir RE. Follistatin is a candidate endogenous negative regulator of activin A in experimental allergic asthma. Clin Exp Allergy. 2006; 36:941-950.

Kedda M-A, Duffy DL, Bradley B, O’Hehir RE, Thompson PJ. ADAM 33 haplotypes are associated with asthma in a large Australian population. European J Human Genet. 2006 (in press).

de Leon MP, Drew AC, Glaspole IN, Suphioglu C, Rolland JM, O’Hehir RE. Functional analysis of cross-reactive immunoglobulin E antibodies: peanut specific immunoglobulin E sensitizes basophils to tree nut allergens. Clin Exp Allergy. 2005; 35:1056-1064.

Davies JM, Bright M, Rolland JM, O’Hehir RE. Bahia grass pollen specific IgE is common in seasonal rhinitis patients but has limited cross-reactivity with ryegrass.  Allergy. 2005; 60:251-255.

Glaspole IN, de Leon MP, Rolland JM, O’Hehir RE. Characterisation of the T-cell epitopes of a major peanut allergen, Ara h 2. Allergy. 2005; 60:35-40.

Drew AC, Eusebius NP, Kenins L, de Silva HD, Suphioglu C, Rolland JM, O'Hehir RE. Hypoallergenic variants of the major latex allergen Hev b 6.01 retaining human T lymphocyte reactivity. J Immunol. 2004; 173:5872-5879.

Gardner LM, Thien FC, Douglass JA, Rolland JM, O’Hehir RE. Induction of T ‘regulatory’ cells by standardized house dust mite immunotherapy: an increase in CD4CD25 interleukin-10 T cells expressing peripheral tissue trafficking markers.  Clin Exp Allergy. 2004; 34:1209-1219.

De Silva HD, Gardner LM, Drew AC, Beezhold DH, Rolland JM, O’Hehir RE. The hevein domain of the major latex glove allergen Hev b 6 contains dominant T cell reactive sites. Clin Exp Allergy. 2004; 34:611-618.

Hardy CL, Kenins L, Drew A, Rolland JM, O’Hehir RE. Characterisation of a mouse model of allergy to a major occupational latex glove allergen Hev b 5. Am J Resp Crit Care Med. 2003; 167:1393-1399.