Biography

Andrew Harman is the applied medical sciences (AMED) honours coordinator at Westmead.

After completing his PhD at the University of Cambridge in 2002, Andrew has been working at The Westmead Institute for Medical Research (WIMR) where he leads two research groups in the Centre for Virus Research and Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research. He has extensive collaborations with surgeons at the Westmead Health Precinct who provides him with access to a large range of human tissues with which he conducts all his research. Andrew is a mucosal immunologist and investigates sexual transmission of HIV and inflamatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn's Disease.

Keywords

Sexual transmission of HIV, Inflamatory Bowel Disease, Crohn's Disease, Mucosal Immunology, Mononuclear Phagocytes

Themes

Infection and Immunological Conditions

Research Focus

Andrew's primary interest is in mucosal immunology and investigating the dynamics of sexual transmission of HIV. He has developed extensive collaborations with a range of sexual health specialists, as well as plastic, colorectal, gynaecological and urological surgeons.Therefore he has access to all the human tissues that sexually transmitted pathogens encounter during sexual intercourse (labia, vagina, cervix, foreskin, glans penis, penile urethra, anus and rectum). Regular access to these tissues gives his group a translational cutting edge as they are the only research groups worldwide that has access to such a comprehensive range of anogenital tissues. Andrew's group also has access to human intestinal tissue and they also investigate the mucosal immunology associated with Autoinflammatory Diseases such as Crohn's disease and Ulcerative Colitis.

Other Affiliations

Faculty of Medicine and Health > FMH Medical Research Institutes > Westmead Institute for Medical Research

Associations

The Westmead Institute for Medical Research

The Marie Bashir Institute

Charles Perkins Centre - Westmead

Australian Centre for HIV and Hepatitis Medicine (ACH2)

Australian Society for HIV Medicine (ASHM)

Australasian Virology Society (AVS)

Australaisian Society for Immunology (ASI)

Society for Mucosal Imunology

Awards and Recognition

  • 2011 – Science Prize for Research Excellence, Westmead Millennium Institute
  • 2010 – Best Oral Presentation, Westmead Hospital Symposium 
  • 2009 – Science Prize for Research Excellence, Westmead Millennium Institute
  • 2007 – Science Prize for Research Excellence, Westmead Millennium Institute

 

Education

  •  BSc (1st Class with hons), University College London, UK
  •  PhD, Pathology, University of Cambridge, UK