Dr Dominic De Nardo is a Group Leader in the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Immunity Program within the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute. He currently supervises 2 PhD students and several undergraduate students in his group. His research program aims to deepen our understanding of the fundamental molecular mechanisms controlling innate immune responses, with a focus on the cytosolic DNA sensing pathway, cGAS-STING.

Dr De Nardo received his PhD in 2009 from the University of Melbourne, Australia, where he developed a keen interest in macrophages and the innate immune system while working on mechanisms of Toll-like receptor activation. He then accepted a postdoctoral position with Professor Eicke Latz at the Institute of Innate Immunity in Bonn, Germany. During his postdoc Dominic identified the molecular mechanism underlying the ability of HDL to reduce inflammation published in Nature Immunology. In 2014 he was awarded the Seymour and Vivian Milstein Young Investigator Award for notable contributions to basic research by the International Cytokine and Interferon Society (ICIS). Dr De Nardo returned to Melbourne in late 2014 to continue his research at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, before moving to Monash University in 2019. He has published his research findings on innate immunity in top ranked journals including, Nature Immunology, Cell Reports, Cell, Immunity, Nature Communications and PNAS.

Dr De Nardo's research program focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms controlling activation and regulation of innate immune receptors and signaling pathways, and their roles in inflammation and cellular responses. He has extensive expertise in numerous innate immune pathways including, Toll-like receptors (TLRs), Inflammasomes and cytosolic nucleic acid sensing receptors (cGAS-STING).