A/Prof Kathie Knights

Kathie Knights initially studied pharmacology and biochemistry at North East London Polytechnic, London graduating with a BSc Honours in 1978. After returning to Adelaide in 1979 she worked initially as a research assistant in the Department of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care at Flinders Medical Centre and subsequently as a full time post graduate student at Flinders University completing a PhD in 1984. Her interest at that time in the mechanisms of drug induced hepatotoxicity led her to a postdoctoral position in the Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Flinders University where she was appointed as a lecturer in 1989, to Senior Lecturer in 1994 and Reader in 1999.

Research

Kathie's major research interest is the metabolism of xenobiotic carboxylic acids in particular non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and the interrelationships with metabolism of endogenous chemicals. Her research encompasses the fields of analytical chemistry, biochemistry, enzyme kinetics and molecular biology. All of these techniques are used in order to help her identify the human liver and kidney enzymes responsible for the metabolism of commonly used drugs and endogenous chemicals.