Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Associate Professor Curtis is Head of the Division of Blood Cancer Research of the Austraiian Centre for Blood Diseases and member of the Clinical Haematology Service. His research program uses mouse models to dissect the genetic and epigenetic regulation of normal and leukemic stem cells. He is currently an NHMRC Senior Research Fellow B. He has published over 60 papers including articles in Science, Cell Stem Cell, PNAS and Blood.
The research program of A/Prof Curtis aims to identify improved therapies for acute leukemia and related blood cancers through the use of mouse models to dissect the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms that control the fate of normal and malignant hematopoietic stem cells. In addition, A/Prof Curtis uses ENU-mutagenesis for discovery of genes that regulate hematopoiesis. Specific areas of focus include the bHLH transcription factor complex that drives T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the mechanisms of oncogene-induced apoptosis in myelodysplasia, the role of epigenetic changes in acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplasia and the therapeutic potential of small molecule inhibitors of the protein arginine methyltransferase, PRMT5.
A/Professor Curtis has 60 peer reviewed papers including first or senior author publications in Science (2010), Cell Stem Cell (2009), Nature Structural and Molecular Biology (2009) and Blood (2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015). In 2011, A/Professor Curtis was awarded a Charles and Sylvia Viertel Senior Research Fellowship and honorary NHMRC Practitioner and Victorian Cancer Agency Fellowships. A/Prof Curtis has been on the editorial board for the journal Stem Cells since 2007. A/Prof Curtis has been an invited speaker to conferences including the International Society of Experimental Hematology, New Directions in Leukemia Research and Lorne Cancer Conference. A/Prof Curtis has been an external reviewer for numerous NHMRC project grants since 2005 as well as on the scientific advisory panel for review of Leukemia Foundation and the NSW Cancer Council Program grants. In addition to his research program, he is an active clinical haematologist and bone marrow transplant physician at Alfred Health.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research area keywords
- Blood Diseases
- Epigenetics
- Leukemia
- Stem Cell Biology
- Transplantation biology
Network
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A novel single treatment for two serious complications of allogeneic stem cell transplantation: acute graft-versus-host disease and sinusoidal obstruction syndrome.
Nandurkar, H., Robson, S., Curtis, D., Peter, K., Sashindranath, M., Hill, G. R., Dwyer, K. M., Sluyter, R. & Watson, D.
1/01/22 → 31/12/26
Project: Research
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INTERCEPT (Investigating Novel Therapy to target Early Relapse and Clonal Evolution as Pre-emptive Therapy in AML): a multi-arm, precision-based, recursive, platform trial
Wei, A., DiNardo, C., Roberts, A. W., Daver, N., Reynolds, J., Blombery, P. A., Marlton, P. & Curtis, D.
1/07/21 → 30/06/25
Project: Research
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A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Study to Evaluate the Clinical Outcomes, Antiviral Activity, Safety, Tolerability, Pharmacokinetics, and Pharmacokinetics/Pharmacodynamics of JNJ-53718678 in Adult and Adolescent Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients with Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection of the Upper Respiratory Tract (FREESIA)
Curtis, D., Kliman, D., Kennedy, N. & Thompson, K.
15/01/20 → 31/12/25
Project: Research
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Improving survival in myelofibrosis
Perkins, A., Ross, D. M., Lane, S., Forsyth, C. J., Wei, A., Curtis, D., Shortt, J., Erber, W. N. & Stevenson, W. S.
Department of Health and Aged Care (Australia)
3/01/19 → 31/12/23
Project: Research
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Author Correction: Small molecule inhibition of Dynamin-dependent endocytosis targets multiple niche signals and impairs leukemia stem cells (Nature Communications, (2020), 11, 1, (6211), 10.1038/s41467-020-20091-6)
Tremblay, C. S., Chiu, S. K., Saw, J., McCalmont, H., Litalien, V., Boyle, J., Sonderegger, S. E., Chau, N., Evans, K., Cerruti, L., Salmon, J. M., McCluskey, A., Lock, R. B., Robinson, P. J., Jane, S. M. & Curtis, D. J., Dec 2021, In: Nature Communications. 12, 1, 1288.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment / Debate › Other › peer-review
Open Access -
Good Engraftment but Quality and Donor Concerns for Cryopreserved Hemopoietic Progenitor Cell Products Collected During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Purtill, D., Hutchins, C., Kennedy, G., McClean, A., Fraser, C., Shaw, P. J., Chiappini, P., Tao, H., Ma, D. DF., Kabani, K., Bai, L., Greenwood, M., Bajel, A., O'Flaherty, E., Curtis, D. J., Purins, L., Perera, T., Tan, S., Butler, A., Micklethwaite, K. & 3 others, , Dec 2021, In: Transplantation and Cellular Therapy. 27, 12, p. 1022.e1-1022.e6 6 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access1 Citation (Scopus) -
Important factors in implementation of lineage-specific chimerism analysis for routine use
Das, T. P., Kipp, D. A., Kliman, D. S., Patil, S. S., Curtis, D. J., O’Brien, M. E., Swain, M. I., Widjaja, J. M. L., Cooke, J. L., Ziino, M. N. & Spencer, A., Apr 2021, In: Bone Marrow Transplantation. 56, 4, p. 946-948 3 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
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Induction of muscle-regenerative multipotent stem cells from human adipocytes by PDGF-AB and 5-azacytidine
Yeola, A., Subramanian, S., Oliver, R. A., Lucas, C. A., Thoms, J. A. I., Yan, F., Olivier, J., Chacon, D., Tursky, M. L., Srivastava, P., Potas, J. R., Hung, T., Power, C., Hardy, P., Ma, D. D., Kilian, K. A., McCarroll, J., Kavallaris, M., Hesson, L. B., Beck, D. & 7 others, , 13 Jan 2021, In: Science Advances. 7, 3, 12 p., eabd1929.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access1 Citation (Scopus) -
Outcomes of non-myeloablative allogeneic stem cell transplant in older patients with acute myeloid leukaemia in first remission
Nguyen, P. C., Manos, K., Fong, C. Y., Schwarer, A. P., Tiong, I. S., Wei, A. H., Kliman, D. & Curtis, D. J., Nov 2021, In: Internal Medicine Journal. 51, 11, p. 1954-1958 5 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review