Our group at the University of Sydney studies smouldering inflammation in multiple sclerosis — the slow, chronic disease activity that drives long-term disability even in patients whose relapses are well-controlled.

At the centre of this work is LEAP (Lesion Expansion and Analysis Pipeline), an automated MRI analysis methodology we developed to precisely quantify chronic lesion tissue expansion over time. LEAP has been validated across large longitudinal cohorts, applied in multi-centre clinical trials, and used to evaluate the effect of disease-modifying therapies on smouldering inflammation — including commercial analyses for Merck and Clene.

Our research spans lesion biology, imaging biomarkers, trial design, and treatment evaluation. If you are a researcher interested in our methodology or findings, the Lesion Expansion section is the best starting point. If you are a pharmaceutical or biotech company interested in applying LEAP to your trial data, visit our Drug Trials page or contact us directly.