Blagojce Jovcevski

Research Interests

Analytical Biochemistry Biochemistry & Molecular Biology Biochemistry and Cell Biology Biophysics Cell Biology Cellular Interactions Characterisation of Biological Macromolecules Medical Biochemistry: Proteins and Peptides Medical Biotechnology Microbiology Molecular Targets Neurosciences Protein Trafficking Proteins and Peptides Proteomics and Intermolecular Interactions Structural Biology Systems Biology

Dr Blagojce Jovcevski

Externally-Funded Research Fellow

School of Biological Sciences

College of Science

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

Blagojce completed his PhD at the University of Wollongong in 2017 on understanding the structure-function relationship of small heat-shock proteins, which are associated with numerous neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS, motor neuron disease), using native mass spectrometry and biophysical approaches. Blagojce joined the University of Adelaide in late 2017 as a Postdoctoral Research Associate working with Prof. Tara Pukala (Discipline of Chemistry, School of Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences) to utilise mass spectrometry-based techniques to understand the aggregation dynamics of amyloid-fibril forming proteins and their effects on proteostasis. In addition, Blagojce is also an Associate Investigator for the Research Consortium Program for Agriculture Product Development which is supported by the South Australia Department for Industry and Skills (2020-2023).In 2023, Blagojce joined the Discipline of Molecular & Biomedical Science (School of Biological Sciences) and established the Proteostasis and Disease Research Group - a multidisciplinary team focusing on the mechanisms and molecular networks regulating protein homeostasis (proteostasis) in several cell types (gut and the brain) and their contribution to neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson’s disease and ALS, through funding from The Hospital Research Foundation.

Research Overview

Understanding proteostasis mechanisms in the gut-brain axis in Parkinson's disease and motor neuron disease

The pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is believed to be caused by the aggregation of non-native proteins. Protein aggregation is due to the failure of protien homeostasis (proteostasis) mechanisms to maintain protein foldedness and effectively clear protein aggregates. My group focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms that maintain proteostasis in the gut-brain axis and how issues in this network fail to prevent protein aggregation in the gut, leading to proteinopathies namely Parkinson's disease and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). 

Bioactive profiling of high-value commerical and biomedical products from problematic waste biomass

Food waste in Australia is an ever-present economical and environmental issue, costing the Australian economy $37 billion annually with 7.6 million tonnes of food wasted per year and contributing up to 3% to Australia's greenhouse-gas emmisions. Transforming these waste streams to new viable products is therefore vital. I have been utilising analytical chemistry approaches to identify the composition of bioactives in these waste streams and profiling their bioactivities (neuroprotective, antimicrobial, antiviral) to guide the production of commercial and biomedical products through the Research Consortium Program for Agriculture Product Development.

Investigating the structural dynamics of amyloidogenic proteins using mass spectrometry-based approaches

My focus is on understanding the role lipids play in the aggregation dynamics of alpha-synuclein using a range of mass spectrometry-based approaches. Native MS is a high-resolution tool utilised in structural biology which can define a range of structural features within proteins, such as oligomeric distribution and polydispersity, unfolded/unstructured states, assembly stability and quaternary conformation of proteins. 

Development of novel peptide-based protein aggregation inhibitors and enzymatic-targetting antimicrobials

My work has also facilitated structure-informed design of peptide-based inhibitors of amyloid fibril formation as potential therapeutics of diseases where protein misfolding and aggregation are central, as well as enzymatic inhibitor screening of novel antimicrobial drugs targeting bacterial and fungal pathogens in collaboration with The Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS). 

Utilising native MS tools as a complementary tool in structural biology and structure-activity relationships

We continuely utilise MS-based approaches to complement traditional structural biology approaches (e.g. X-ray crystallography, cryo-EM, NMR) to structurally rationalise biomolecular function/activity to understand molecular chaperone function in proteostasis and guide antifungal and vaccine design against infectious disease.

 

Prospective Projects (Honours/Masters/PhD)

Project 1

Title: Developing gut-brain axis models mimicking synucleinopathies

Description: Synucleinopathies such as Parkinson’s disease (PD) and dementia with Lewy bodies arise from the formation of intracellular toxic protein aggregates. Formation of α-synuclein aggregates in the gut are trafficked from gut epithelial cells to CNS neurons during disease.

Location(s): Molecular Life Sciences/Adelaide Microscopy, North Terrace Campus

Available for: Honours/MPhil/PhD

 
Project 2

Title: Establishing the amyloid interactome in the gut-brain axis

Description: Identifying the molecular networks formed during protein aggregation is crucial for biomarker discovery and precision medicine approaches.

Location(s): Molecular Life Sciences, North Terrace Campus

Available for: Honours/MPhil/PhD

 

Project 3

Title: How do molecular chaperones contribute to protein homeostasis?

Description: Unravel the dynamic complexity of small heat-shock protein structure-function using biochemical and biophysical technologies to rationalise function and dysfunction in disease.

Location(s): Molecular Life Sciences, North Terrace Campus

Available for: Honours/MPhil/PhD

Date Position Institution name
2024 - ongoing Research Fellow/Lecturer (B), School of Biological Sciences University of Adelaide
2017 - 2023 Postdoctoral Research Associate (A), School of Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences University of Adelaide

Language Competency
Macedonian Can read, speak and understand spoken

Date Institution name Country Title
2012 - 2017 University of Wollongong Australia PhD (Biological Sciences)
2007 - 2011 University of Wollongong Australia Bachelor of Science (Honours) (Biological Sciences)

Year Citation
2025 Pachulicz, R. J., Jovcevski, B., Bulone, V., & Pukala, T. L. (2025). Acid-catalysed esterification of anthocyanin glucosyl units by organic acids: Chemical factors and structural implications. Food Chemistry, 480, 143878-1-143878-8.
DOI Scopus1 WoS1
2025 Pachulicz, R. J., Nkurunziza, D., Rusli, O., Coad, B. R., Collins, H., & Jovcevski, B. (2025). Brewer's waste isn't spent: Capturing the structural complexity and bioactive properties of hordatines in brewery waste products. Food Chemistry, 493(Pt 3), 145959.
DOI
2025 McDougal, D. P., Pederick, J. L., Novick, S. J., Jovcevski, B., Warrender, A. K., Pascal, B. D., . . . Bruning, J. B. (2025). A ternary switch model governing ERα ligand binding domain conformation. Nature Communications, 16(1), 13 pages.
DOI
2024 Yu, L., Jovcevski, B., Pukala, T. L., & Bulone, V. (2024). Profiling and optimized extraction of bioactive polyphenolic compounds from young, red-fleshed apple using eco-friendly deep eutectic solvents. Food Research International, 187, 114334.
DOI Scopus7 WoS4 Europe PMC4
2023 Pederick, J. L., Klose, J., Jovcevski, B., Pukala, T. L., & Bruning, J. B. (2023). <i>Escherichia coli</i> YgiC and YjfC Possess Peptide─Spermidine Ligase Activity. Biochemistry, 62(4), 899-911.
DOI Scopus5 WoS5 Europe PMC5
2023 Pachulicz, R. J., Yu, L., Jovcevski, B., Bulone, V., & Pukala, T. L. (2023). Structural Analysis and Identity Confirmation of Anthocyanins in Brassica oleracea Extracts by Direct Injection Ion Mobility-Mass Spectrometry. ACS Measurement Science Au, 3(3), 200-207.
DOI Scopus10 WoS9 Europe PMC4
2023 Stachura, D. L., Nguyen, S., Polyak, S. W., Jovcevski, B., Bruning, J. B., & Abell, A. D. (2023). Structural Study of Potent Triazole-Based Inhibitors of <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> Biotin Protein Ligase. ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 14(3), 285-290.
DOI Scopus2 WoS1 Europe PMC1
2023 Frkic, R. L., Pederick, J. L., Horsfall, A. J., Jovcevski, B., Crame, E. E., Kowalczyk, W., . . . Bruning, J. B. (2023). PPARγ Corepression Involves Alternate Ligand Conformation and Inflation of H12 Ensembles.. ACS Chemical Biology, 18(5), 1115-1123.
DOI Scopus6 WoS6 Europe PMC10
2023 Pantong, W., Pederick, J. L., Maenpuen, S., Tinikul, R., Jayapalan, J. J., Jovcevski, B., . . . Salaemae, W. (2023). Biochemical and Structural Characterization of Meningococcal Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase. Protein Science, 32(6), e4654-1-e4654-13.
DOI Scopus1 WoS1 Europe PMC2
2022 Sanders, H. M., Jovcevski, B., Marty, M. T., & Pukala, T. L. (2022). Structural and mechanistic insights into amyloid-β and α-synuclein fibril formation and polyphenol inhibitor efficacy in phospholipid bilayers. The FEBS Journal, 289(1), 215-230.
DOI Scopus23 WoS23 Europe PMC19
2022 Nguyen, S., Jovcevski, B., Pukala, T. L., & Bruning, J. B. (2022). Structural insights into the antifungal drug target guanosine monophosphate synthase from Aspergillus fumigatus. Acta Crystallographica Section D Structural Biology, 78(2), 1-12.
DOI Scopus8 WoS7 Europe PMC7
2022 Nguyen, S., Jovcevski, B., Truong, J. Q., Pukala, T. L., & Bruning, J. B. (2022). A structural model of the human plasminogen and Aspergillus fumigatus enolase complex.. Proteins, 90(8), 1509-1520.
DOI Scopus1 WoS2 Europe PMC1
2022 Pachulicz, R. J., Yu, L., Jovcevski, B., Bulone, V., & Pukala, T. L. (2022). Polyphenol characterisation and diverse bioactivities of native Australian lilly pilly (Syzygium paniculatum) extract.. Food & Function, 13(16), 8585-8592.
DOI Scopus7 WoS7 Europe PMC5
2022 Horsley, J. R., Jovcevski, B., Pukala, T. L., & Abell, A. D. (2022). Designer D-peptides targeting the N-terminal region of α-synuclein to prevent parkinsonian-associated fibrilization and cytotoxicity. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Proteins and Proteomics, 1870(10), 140826-1-140826-9.
DOI Scopus10 WoS12 Europe PMC7
2022 Pederick, J. L., Horsfall, A. J., Jovcevski, B., Klose, J., Abell, A. D., Pukala, T. L., & Bruning, J. B. (2022). Discovery of an ʟ-amino acid ligase implicated in Staphylococcal sulfur amino acid metabolism. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 298(10), 102392-1-102392-16.
DOI Scopus6 WoS7 Europe PMC5
2022 Stachura, D. L., Nguyen, S., Polyak, S. W., Jovcevski, B., Bruning, J. B., & Abell, A. D. (2022). A New 1,2,3-triazole scaffold with improved potency against Staphylococcus aureus biotin protein ligase. ACS Infectious Diseases, 8(12), 2579-2585.
DOI Scopus5 WoS4 Europe PMC4
2021 Nguyen, S., Jovcevski, B., Pukala, T. L., & Bruning, J. B. (2021). Nucleoside selectivity of Aspergillus fumigatus nucleoside-diphosphate kinase.. The FEBS journal, 288(7), 2398-2417.
DOI Scopus8 WoS9 Europe PMC7
2020 Jovcevski, B., Das, S., Smid, S., & Pukala, T. L. (2020). Polyphenol honokiol and flavone 2′,3′,4′-trihydroxyflavone differentially interact with α-synuclein at distinct phases of aggregation. ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 11(24), 4469-4477.
DOI Scopus18 WoS15 Europe PMC11
2020 Sajid, M. S., Jovcevski, B., Pukala, T. L., Jabeen, F., & Najam-Ul-Haq, M. (2020). Fabrication of Piperazine Functionalized Polymeric Monolithic Tip for Rapid Enrichment of Glycopeptides/Glycans.. Anal Chem, 92(1), 683-689.
DOI Scopus16 WoS15 Europe PMC10
2020 Sanders, H. M., Jovcevski, B., Carver, J., & Pukala, T. L. (2020). The molecular chaperone β-casein prevents amorphous and fibrillar aggregation of α-lactalbumin by stabilisation of dynamic disorder. Biochemical Journal, 477(3), 629-643.
DOI Scopus23 WoS22 Europe PMC15
2020 Wang, C. R., Bubner, E. R., Jovcevski, B., Mittal, P., & Pukala, T. L. (2020). Interrogating the higher order structures of snake venom proteins using an integrated mass spectrometric approach.. J Proteomics, 216, 103680.
DOI Scopus21 WoS20 Europe PMC19
2020 Horsley, J. R., Jovcevski, B., Wegener, K. L., Yu, J., Pukala, T. L., & Abell, A. (2020). Rationally Designed Peptide-Based Inhibitor of Aβ42 Fibril Formation and Toxicity: A Potential Therapeutic Strategy for Alzheimer's Disease.. Biochemical Journal, 477(11), 2039-2054.
DOI Scopus35 WoS58 Europe PMC43
2020 Yeoh, Y. Q., Horsley, J., Yu, J., Polyak, S. W., Jovcevski, B., & Abell, A. D. (2020). Short photoswitchable antibacterial peptides. ChemMedChem, 15(16), 1505-1508.
DOI Scopus16 WoS14 Europe PMC6
2020 Salman Sajid, M., Jovcevski, B., Mittal, P., Fatima, B., Hussain, D., Jabeen, F., . . . Najam-ul-Haq, M. (2020). Glycosylation heterogeneity and low abundant serum glycoproteins MS analysis by boronic acid immobilized Fe<inf>3</inf>O<inf>4</inf>@1,2-Epoxy-5-Hexene/DVB magnetic core shell nanoparticles. Microchemical Journal, 159, 8 pages.
DOI Scopus7 WoS8
2019 Liu, Y., Jovcevski, B., & Pukala, T. L. (2019). C-Phycocyanin from Spirulina Inhibits α-synuclein and amyloid-β fibril formation but not amorphous aggregation. Journal of Natural Products, 82(1), 66-73.
DOI Scopus32 WoS29 Europe PMC19
2018 Jovcevski, B., Andrew Aquilina, J., Benesch, J., & Ecroyd, H. (2018). The influence of the N-terminal region proximal to the core domain on the assembly and chaperone activity of αB-crystallin. Cell Stress and Chaperones, 23(5), 827-836.
DOI Scopus8 WoS8 Europe PMC8
2017 Jovcevski, B., Kelly, M., Aquilina, J., Benesch, J., & Ecroyd, H. (2017). Evaluating the effect of phosphorylation on the structure and dynamics of Hsp27 dimers by means of ion mobility mass spectrometry. Analytical Chemistry, 89(24), 13275-13282.
DOI Scopus13 WoS14 Europe PMC11
2015 Jovcevski, B., Kelly, M., Rote, A., Berg, T., Gastall, H., Benesch, J., . . . Ecroyd, H. (2015). Phosphomimics destabilize Hsp27 oligomeric assemblies and enhance chaperone activity. Chemistry and Biology, 22(2), 186-195.
DOI Scopus108 WoS107 Europe PMC103
2015 Cork, A., Ericsson, D., Law, R., Casey, L., Valkov, E., Bertozzi, C., . . . Kobe, B. (2015). Stability of the octameric structure affects plasminogen-binding capacity of streptococcal enolase. PLoS ONE, 10(3), e0121764-1-e0121764-18.
DOI Scopus15 WoS14 Europe PMC14
2013 Henningham, A., Ericsson, D., Langer, K., Casey, L., Jovcevski, B., Singh Chhatwal, G., . . . Walker, M. (2013). Structure-informed design of an enzymatically inactive vaccine component for group A Streptococcus. mBio, 4(4), e00509-13-1-e00509-13-9.
DOI Scopus26 WoS22 Europe PMC17

Year Citation
2019 Jovcevski, B., & Pukala, T. L. (2019). Mass Spectrometry and Its Applications. In V. Ramesh (Ed.), Biomolecular and Bioanalytical Techniques Theory, Methodology and Applications (pp. 219-253). USA: Wiley.
DOI Scopus3

Year Citation
2023 Nguyen, S., Jovcevski, B., Truong, J. Q., Pukala, T. L., & Bruning, J. B. (2023). A structural model of the human plasminogen and <i>Aspergillus fumigatus</i> enolase complex: insights for antifungal drug discovery. In ACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA A-FOUNDATION AND ADVANCES Vol. 79 (pp. C706). INT UNION CRYSTALLOGRAPHY.

Year Citation
2025 McDougal, D., Pederick, J., Novick, S., Jovcevski, B., Warrender, A., Pascal, B., . . . Bruning, J. (2025). A ternary switch determines ERα LBD conformation.
DOI
2025 Pachulicz, R. J., Nkurunziza, D., Rusli, O., Coad, B. R., Collins, H., & Jovcevski, B. (2025). Brewer's Waste Isn't Spent: Capturing the Structural Complexity and Bioactive Properties of Hordatines in Brewery Waste Products.
DOI
Year Funding Source/Project Title Amount (AUD)
2024-25 Moody Trust Fund - Project Grant (Sole CI): Understanding the molecular and biophysical basis of childhood Parkinson’s disease $2,500
2025 MS Australia - Incubator Grant (CID): Understanding neutrophil-driven pathogenic Th17 responses in MS $25,000
2025 Biochemistry Research Foundation Trust Fund - EMCR Project Grant (CIA): Investigating links between lipid metabolism and protein post-translational modifications in Alzheimer’s disease $30,000
2024-25 Biochemistry Research Foundation Trust Fund - Linkage Project Grant (CIA): Discovering drug leads in brewing waste to treat motor neuron disease $35,000
2023-26 The Hospital Research Foundation Group - EMCR Research Fellowship (Sole CI): Developing gut-brain axis cell models to probe proteostasis deficits triggering neurodegeneration $390,000
2019 Postdoctoral Travel Award - Lorne Conference on Protein Structure and Function (Sole CI) $250
2018 Australian Bicentennial Fellowship Travel Award - Menzies Australian Institute (Sole CI) $1,800
2015 American Society of Mass Spectrometry Asilomar Conference on Native Mass Spectrometry Travel Award -American Society of Mass Spectrometry (Sole CI) $1,500
2012-16 Henning Family Foundation PhD Scholarship - Australian Rotary Health (Sole CI) $101,500

Lecturer

Biochemistry II - Molecular & Cellular Biology (BIOCHEM2500/2502), Semester 1

Protein structure and function

Transport proteins and enzyme kinetics

Biochemistry III - Molecular & Structural Biology (BIOCHEM3000/3230/3004), Semester 1

Protein Lifecycle & Protein quality control

Membrane and protein trafficking

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2025 Principal Supervisor Characterisation and Profiling of Bioactive Molecules from Food Waste as Inhibitors of Protein Aggregation in Motor Neuron Disease Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Miss Rebekah Grace Munro
2025 Principal Supervisor Characterisation and Profiling of Bioactive Molecules from Food Waste as Inhibitors of Protein Aggregation in Motor Neuron Disease Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Miss Rebekah Grace Munro
2024 Co-Supervisor Investigating the interactions of Calcium and Intergin binding protein 1 and it’s contribution to cancer progression and chemoresistance Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Katrina Louise Schiller
2024 Co-Supervisor Investigating links between lipid metabolism and protein post-translational modifications in Alzheimer's disease Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Elaheh Eskandari
2024 Co-Supervisor Mass spectrometry Approaches to Analysis Intact Protein Assemblies in the context of protein-misfolding disorders Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Shima Amini
2024 Co-Supervisor Mass spectrometry Approaches to Analysis Intact Protein Assemblies in the context of protein-misfolding disorders Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Shima Amini
2024 Co-Supervisor Investigating links between lipid metabolism and protein post-translational modifications in Alzheimer's disease Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Elaheh Eskandari
2024 Co-Supervisor Investigating the interactions of Calcium and Intergin binding protein 1 and its contribution to cancer progression and chemoresistance Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Katrina Louise Schiller

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2021 - 2024 Co-Supervisor Mass spectrometry method development for the analysis of intact proteins Doctor of Philosophy Master Full Time Mr Shaun Thomas Ellis
2020 - 2021 Co-Supervisor Mass Spectrometric Characterisation of Protein Assemblies from Bitis arietans Snake Venom Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Miss Emily Rose Bubner
2020 - 2021 Co-Supervisor Structural and Biochemical Insights into Antifungal Drug Targets from Aspergillus fumigatus Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Stephanie Nguyen

Date Role Research Topic Location Program Supervision Type Student Load Student Name
2025 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Understading SOD1/TDP-43 aggregation in the gut in MND University of Adelaide - Honours Full Time Olivia Moore
2025 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Understanding the molecular and biophysical basis of childhood Parkinson’s disease University of Adelaide - Honours Full Time Natalie Payne
2024 - 2025 Principal Supervisor Developing cell models to understand α-synuclein aggregation and proteostasis in the gut University of Adelaide - Honours Full Time Ms Yifei Yang

Date Topic Location Name
2022 - ongoing Diagnosis and therapeutics of intrinsically disordered protein misfolding disorders Doctor of Philosophy - University of Adelaide Mr Zohaib Raza
2021 - 2024 Chemical and Functional Exploration of Agricultural Waste for Identification of High Value Bioactives Doctor of Philosophy - University of Adelaide Mr River Jack Pachulicz
2020 - 2024 Structural characterisation of snake venom proteins by mass spectrometry Doctor of Philosophy - University of Adelaide Miss Chia-De Ruth Wang
2020 - 2024 Biophysical characterisation of DNA triplexes for antigene technology Doctor of Philosophy - University of Adelaide Mr Jack Klose
2020 - 2023 The Synthesis and Activity of New Antibiotics Doctor of Philosophy - University of Adelaide Dr Damian Stachura
2019 - 2020 Functionalised polymers for glycopeptide enrichment Doctor of Philosophy - Bahauddin Zakariya University (Pakistan) Mr Muhammad Salman Sajid
2017 - 2021 MASS SPECTROMETRY-BASED STRUCTURAL INSIGHTS INTO PROTEIN ASSEMBLIES Doctor of Philosophy - University of Adelaide Mr Henry Michael Sanders

Date Role Committee Institution Country
2022 - 2023 Board Member Australian and New Zealand Society for Mass Spectrometry Executive Committee Australian and New Zealand Society for Mass Spectrometry Australia
2021 - 2022 Chair Adelaide Protein Group ASBMB Australia
2020 - 2021 Representative ASBMB Liason, Adelaide Protein Group ASBMB Australia
2019 - 2020 Member Lorne Proteins ECR Committee Lorne Proteins Australia

Date Role Membership Country
2019 - ongoing Member Australian and New Zealand Society for Mass Spectrometry Australia
2018 - ongoing Member Adelaide Protein Group Australia
2018 - ongoing Member Australian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Australia
2017 - ongoing Member Cell Stress Society International United States

Date Role Editorial Board Name Institution Country
2023 - ongoing Editor Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences Frontiers Switzerland
2022 - ongoing Editor Symmetry Symmetry Switzerland

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