Jennifer Rodger

Professor Jennifer Rodger is a Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Western Australia. She earned her BSc (Hons) in Biochemistry from the University of Bath, UK, in 1993, and a PhD in Molecular Neuroscience from the University of Paris VI (now Sorbonne University) in 1996, receiving the distinction Très honourable avec les félicitations du jury. Her PhD thesis examined the expression of syntaxin genes in the brain as key molecules in long-term potentiation (LTP) and learning. She conducted undergraduate research placements at the Weizmann Institute in Israel and the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa.

Following her PhD, Professor Rodger joined the University of Western Australia to work with Professors Lyn Beazley and Sarah Dunlop on neural regeneration. She holds a teaching and research position at UWA, co-coordinating the Neuroscience Undergraduate and Masters programs, and was promoted to Professor. She also serves as Head of Brain Plasticity Research, co-leader of the Neuropharmacogenetics project at the Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science, and MSWA Senior Research Fellow in Brain Plasticity. Her research focuses on mechanisms of topographic organisation in the brain through molecular, physiological, and theoretical approaches; structure-function relationships; brain plasticity in development and repair; and optimising repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) for clinical translation. Expertise areas include neurobiology, molecular biology, and regenerative neuroscience. Awards include the Raine Priming Grant (2009) and NHMRC Senior Research Fellowship (2011). Notable publications are 'Low intensity repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation enhances recovery after peripheral nerve injury in rats' (Nguyen et al., 2024), 'Low intensity repetitive magnetic stimulation reduces expression of specific microRNAs in the dorsal root ganglia' (Clarke et al., 2021), and 'Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation of the Brain: Mechanisms from Animal and Experimental Models' (Tang et al.). Her scholarship has over 6400 citations. She has spoken at UWA Research Week and edits for PeerJ.

Professional Email: jennifer.rodger@uwa.edu.au