Rate My Professor Loren Flynn

Dr. Loren Flynn is a Postdoctoral Scientist and Senior Lecturer at the Personalised Medicine Centre, Health Futures Institute, Murdoch University. She is also a Senior Research Fellow and co-leads the Motor Neurone Disease Genetics and Therapeutics Research group at the Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science alongside Professor Anthony Akkari. A molecular geneticist with 14 years of expertise, Dr. Flynn holds a BSc and PhD, completing her doctorate at the University of Western Australia and Perron Institute under Professors Steve Wilton and Sue Fletcher before joining the MND group in 2017. Her research centers on identifying and developing antisense oligonucleotide therapeutics targeting disease pathology in neurodegenerative conditions, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS/MND) and Parkinson’s disease. She currently serves as Director for Therapeutic Development at Black Swan Biotech, advancing pre-clinical antisense therapy portfolios.

Dr. Flynn's contributions include leading efforts in genetic marker characterization for sporadic ALS and splice-modulating therapies. Notable publications encompass 'ALS Genetics, Mechanisms, and Therapeutics' (Genes, 2019), a highly cited review on ALS heritability and therapeutic targets; 'Genome-wide study of DNA methylation shows alterations in metabolic, inflammatory, and cholesterol pathways in ALS' (Science Translational Medicine, 2022); 'The SOD1-mediated ALS phenotype shows a decoupling...' (Nature Communications, 2022); 'Novel STMN2 Variant Linked to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Risk and Clinical Phenotype' (Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, 2021); and 'Entering the era of precision medicine to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis' (Molecular Neurodegeneration, 2025). With over 35 publications and more than 1,800 citations, her work has attracted significant funding, including a $1 million FightMND grant in 2020 for MND treatment testing and further support in 2021. Through the Centre for Molecular Medicine and Innovative Therapeutics (CMMIT), she heads the MND/ALS research group, supervises doctoral students, and supports commercial therapeutic development, influencing precision medicine advances for neurodegenerative diseases via international collaborations.