Dr Nicole McPherson

Dr Nicole McPherson is a Senior Lecture and ARC DECRA Research Fellow who runs the Sperm and Embryo Biology Group in the Freemasons Centre for Male Health and Wellbeing, the Robinson Research Institute and the Discipline of Reproduction and Development at the University of Adelaide. As of 2024, Dr McPherson is also the Director of Research for Genea (Australia’s premier IVF company). Her research group and ART discovery laboratory is located on level 5 of the Adelaide Health and Medical Science Building (AHMS).

Research Vision

For the development of a male-centred approach to pre-conception health and pregnancy care that includes programs focusing on the delivery of tailored pre-conception lifestyle advice to men, understanding the contributions of sperm for healthy conception, and advancements in male infertility treatments. Her research team undertake a vast array of projects including, fundamental sperm and embryo biology, human cohort studies, clinical IVF research and psychosocial research.

STUDENT PROJECTS (Semester 2, 2025 Start, Honours, Masters and PhD)

1. To define how sperm influence early embryonic reprogramming and the formation of a healthy infant (Grant Funded: Honours and PhD)

This project will comprehensively investigate the NOVEL role of sperm in the origins of chronic disease risk from conception, to better understand the intergenerational transmission of health vulnerabilities and personalised preventative measures. It’s a longheld dogma that sperm are just vessels for DNA and provide no regulatory control to the development of an embryo. Our work has been at the forefront of challenging this notion, showing that sperm non-genetic cargo (i.e. sperm microRNAs) delivered to the egg at conception alter chronic disease susceptibility of offspring. What precisely sperm microRNAs are doing post fertilisation and how they contribute to chronic disease risk will be this projects focus.

2. Space sperm (Honours, Masters)

Space exploration ignites curiosity and excitement, particularly with the rising interest in Mars settlement, deep space missions, and NASA’s ARTEMIS program, which aims to return humans to the moon by 2029, with a total investment exceeding $146 billion. Space exploration and mining requires the ability for mammals to be able to reproduce successfully in different gravitation forces. This project looks to understand how microgravity effects sperm function and fertilisation ability, as well as understanding how and if embryos are able to be produced in zero gravity. We have partnered with Firefly Biotech and the Andy Thomas Centre for Space Resources at the University of Adelaide, for the creation of the world’s first dual-axis 3D clinostat ‘Ice Moon’ suitable for gamete and embryo culture. This innovative platform allows us to accurately simulate any gravity between 0-1g to comprehensively integrate its importance in the formation of all life.

3. Improving sperm function in vitro (Grant Funded: Honours and PhD)

Fertility rates are declining globally, coupled with an increased usage of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), highlight the urgent need for improved consumer products that can increase natural conception rates and reduce interventional burden. Utilising molecular agents known to aid sperm function and survival we aim to create a wide range consumer led products that can better mimic natural sperm maturation and selection processes of the female reproductive tract clinically as well as straight to consumer fertility promoting lubricant to increase natural conception rates. This project looks to improve sperm function in vitro to increase fertilisation rates and improve embryo and fetal health in a wide range of mammalian species.  

Additional Supervisors: A/Professor Mark Nottle, Hannah Lyons

4. To create pre-conception health literacy on-line resources and emotional support programs for infertile men (Grant Funded: Honours and Masters)

During our exploration of challenges faced by infertile men, ‘Holistic Care’ emerged as a key theme, leading us to identify emotional support as an unmet need in this population. Men described how the emotional impact of an infertility diagnosis was often overlooked by health professionals, leading to feelings of marginalisation, and seeking information and social/emotional support outside the clinical setting.  This project will develop a peer-support service for men diagnosed with male-factor infertility in conjunction with Genea Fertility SA (8-15 participants), using a participatory-action approach and involving consumers at each stage of the process. We will perform focus groups to determine what information they want to know about male fertility and how they want it to look as well as create primary health care resources to better inform men.

Additional Supervisors: Professor Deb Turnbull, A/Professor Melissa Oxlad