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Principal Investigator

Dave Grattan 186x228Professor Dave Grattan

Professor Dave Grattan's biography
Email dave.grattan@otago.ac.nz
Tel +64 3 479 7442
Fax +64 3 479 7254
Department of Anatomy website

Research interests

My group within the Centre for Neuroendocrinology is interested in the neuroendocrine functions of the hormone prolactin, and in particular, the role of prolactin in the neuroendocrine and neurobiological adaptations of the maternal brain.

Specific interests include the control of appetite and body weight during pregnancy and obesity, plasticity in oxytocin neurons during late pregnancy and lactation, and role of prolactin in changes in mood and behaviour in the post-partum period.

Clinical conditions

  • Hyperprolactinaemia
  • Infertility
  • Post-partum anxiety
  • Post-partum depression

List of publications for Dave Grattan (Google Scholar)

Grattan Laboratory staff and students

Shalhd Al-Isawi imageShahd Al-Isawi, PhD student
Email alish382@student.otago.ac.nz

Jenny Clarkson_webJenny Clarkson, Research Fellow
Neural circuits required for maternal adaptation to pregnancy
Email jenny.clarkson@otago.ac.nz

charlie fang imageCharlie Fang, PhD student
Email fanch297@student.otago.ac.nz

alice freeman imageAlice Freeman, PhD student
Email alice.freeman@postgrad.otago.ac.nz

Teodora Georgescu_webTeodora Georgescu, Research Fellow
Email teodora.georgescu@otago.ac.nz

Zin Khant Aung_webZin Khant-Aung, Scientific Officer
Hormonal regulation of metabolism
Email zin.khantaung@otago.ac.nz

Pene Knowles_webPene Knowles, Research Technician
Prolactin neuroendocrinology
Email pene.knowles@otago.ac.nz

Mo Rizwan_webMohammed Rizwan, Research Fellow
Hypothalamic regulation of bodyweight and glucose metabolism
Email mohammed.rizwan@otago.ac.nz

Research Funders

Publications

Hackwell, E., Ladyman, S. R., Clarkson, J., McQuillan, H. J., Boehm, U., Herbison, A. E., Brown, R. S. E., & Grattan, D. R. (2025). Prolactin-mediates a lactation-induced suppression of arcuate kisspeptin neuronal activity necessary for lactational infertility in mice. eLIFE, 13, RP94570. doi: 10.7554/eLife.94570.3 Journal - Research Article

Phillipps, H. R., Hackwell, E. C. R., Sandovici, I., Constância, M., & Grattan, D. R. (2025). Loss of choroid plexus-derived insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) leads to hyposmia, while retaining post-partum mood resilience in mice. Journal of Neuroendocrinology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1111/jne.70058 Journal - Research Article

Ladyman, S. R., Georgescu, T. R., Stewart, A. M., Khant Aung, Z., Cheong, I., Grattan, D. R., & Brown, R. S. E. (2025). Prolactin modulation of thermoregulatory circuits provides resilience to thermal challenge of pregnancy. Cell Reports, 44(4), 115567. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2025.115567 Journal - Research Article

Stewart, A., Grattan, D., & Georgescu, T. (2024, August). Investigating the role of lactogenic hormones in the suppression of fever during late pregnancy. Verbal presentation at the BMS Postgraduate Symposium, Dunedin, New Zealand. Conference Contribution - Verbal presentation and other Conference outputs

Freeman, A. K., Ellery, S. J., Berry, M. J., Grattan, D. R., & Dyson, R. M. (2024, August). Prenatal creatine supplementation: Closing the gap to improve brain development following preterm birth. Verbal presentation at the BMS Postgraduate Symposium, Dunedin, New Zealand. Conference Contribution - Verbal presentation and other Conference outputs

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