About
I lead the Metabolic Disorders and Cancer Research Centre and also head the Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) group at the University of Derby. I have a particular interest in developing physiologically relevant in vitro BBB models, and studying the damage to the BBB during neurological and cardiovascular diseases. I received my PhD from King's College London under the mentorship of Prof Joan Abbott. During my PhD, I developed a porcine BBB model that mimics the in vivo BBB closely. This is one of the most robust and reproducible primary BBB models currently available.
My postdoctoral research at the University of Liverpool (PI Prof Tom Solomon) was focused on developing a human BBB model to study viral encephalitis. Here I used containment level 3 flaviviruses to investigate the mechanisms of neuroinvasion across the human BBB and the pro-inflammatory cytokine response on the brain endothelium. In 2012, I was awarded one of the inaugural David Sainsbury Fellowships from the NC3Rs. In 2016, I was recruited to the University of Newcastle, Australia recognising my expertise in BBB and cerebrovascular biology. Here I worked on an Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funded project on intracranial pressure elevation and hypothermia treatment for stroke, where I developed an interest in cerebrospinal fluid dynamics in stroke. I was awarded an Early-Mid Career Fellowship from the NSW Ministry of Health in 2018 to investigate the mechanisms that contribute to early neurological deterioration in ischaemic stroke. Following my relocation to the UK, I established the BBB group, funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences and have focussed on understanding how abnormal cerebral blood flow due to cardiac arrhythmia can lead to BBB dysfunction, and the associated risks of developing stroke and dementia.
Research interests
My main goal is to improve the fundamental knowledge in the mechanisms of disrupted brain barriers and fluids in neurological diseases. To achieve this we continues to develop new human-relevant models that (1) can reliably get us closer to investigating human pathophysiology and (2) screen potential therapeutic drugs.
Normal functioning of brain barriers and fluids is vital for protection of the brain and maintaining homeostasis of the neuronal microenvironment. Often these defences are disrupted during neurological diseases such as stroke, dementia, brain tumours and brain infections. Furthermore, emerging evidence also point to barrier disruption during peripheral diseases such as atrial fibrillation.
I expect the research conducted under my leadership will help future diagnosis and treatment of diseases that impact the brain and reduce the reliance of the use of animals in research.
Podcast hosted by Carla Owens, CEO Animal Free Research UK and and Dr Gemma Davies, Science Policy Advisor
Carla Owens and Dr Gemma Davies speak with Dr Adjanie Patabendige from the University of Derby, who is pioneering animal-free research into how irregular heartbeat (atrial fibrillation) may increase the risk of dementia. Using human cells and lab-grown models of the blood-brain barrier, her work replaces animal-derived materials with human equivalents, offering more relevant results and greater compassion.
Animal Free Labcast - EP43 - Heart Health and Dementia: The Hidden Link - Dr Adjanie Patabendige
Recent publications
Boardman SA, Rosano JM, Hetherington CD, Dunai C, Bateman-Price TD, Held M, Waring T, Marcello M, Egbe FN, Ellul MA, Ray STJ, D'Elia RV, Patabendige A, García-Tuñón E, Fewell G, Michael BD. Establishing a microfluidic co-culture blood-brain barrier model using human brain endothelial cells and astrocytes. J Vis Exp. 2026 Sep 11;(235). doi: 10.3791/71652.
Boardman SA, Hetherington C, Hughes T, Cook C, Galea I, Hilton O, Solomon T, Luster AD, Allan S, Kurt-Jones E, Forth J, Patabendige A, Egbe FN, Dunai C, Michael BD. Viral infection and the blood-brain barrier: molecular research insights and therapies. J Infect Dis. 2025 Dec 20;232(6):1273-1282. doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiaf455.
Cooper CG, Kafetzis KN, Patabendige A, Tagalakis AD. Blood-brain barrier disruption in dementia: Nano-solutions as new treatment options. Eur J Neurosci. 2024 Mar;59(6):1359-1385. doi: 10.1111/ejn.16229.
Jackson ER, Duchatel RJ, Staudt DE, Persson ML, Mannan A, Yadavilli S, Parackal S, Game S, Chong WC, Jayasekara WSN, Grand ML, Kearney PS, Douglas AM, Findlay IJ, Germon ZP, McEwen HP, Beitaki TS, Patabendige A, Skerrett-Byrne DA, Nixon B, Smith ND, Day B, Manoharan N, Nagabushan S, Hansford JR, Govender D, McCowage GB, Firestein R, Howlett M, Endersby R, Gottardo NG, Alvaro F, Waszak SM, Larsen MR, Colino-Sanguino Y, Valdes-Mora F, Rakotomalala A, Meignan S, Pasquier E, André N, Hulleman E, Eisenstat DD, Vitanza NA, Nazarian J, Koschmann C, Mueller S, Cain JE, Dun MD. ONC201 in combination with paxalisib for the treatment of H3K27-altered diffuse midline glioma. Cancer Res. 2023 May 17;83(14):OF1-OF17. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-23-0186.
Patabendige A, Janigro D. The role of the blood-brain barrier during neurological disease and infection. Biochem Soc Trans. 2023 Apr 26;51(2):613-626. doi: 10.1042/BST20220830.
Patabendige A, Vinje V, Stoodley M. Editorial: Cerebrospinal fluid dynamics and intracranial pressure elevation-Novel insights on molecular and physiological mechanisms, and implications for neurological disease. Front Mol Neurosci. 2022 Dec 28;15:1119980. doi: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.1119980.
Patabendige A. An improved in vitro porcine blood-brain barrier model for permeability screening and functional studies. Methods Mol Biol. 2022;2492:131-142. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2289-6_7.
Patabendige A, Chen R. Astrocytic aquaporin 4 subcellular translocation as a therapeutic target for cytotoxic edema in ischemic stroke. Neural Regen Res. 2022 Dec;17(12):2666-2668. doi: 10.4103/1673-5374.339481.
Aryal R, Patabendige A. Blood-brain barrier disruption in atrial fibrillation: a potential contributor to the increased risk of dementia and worsening of stroke outcomes? Open Biol. 2021 Apr;11(4):200396. doi: 10.1098/rsob.200396.
Omileke D, Bothwell SW, Pepperall D, Beard DJ, Coupland K, Patabendige A, Spratt NJ. Decreased intracranial pressure elevation and cerebrospinal fluid outflow resistance: a potential mechanism of hypothermia cerebroprotection following experimental stroke. Brain Sci. 2021 Nov 30;11(12):1589. doi: 10.3390/brainsci11121589.
