Dr Sophie Ping

Phone: +61 8 8946 6121
Fax: +61 8 8946 6847
Email: sophie.ping@cdu.edu.au
Course Coordinator: Bachelor of Nursing/Bachelor of Applied Science
Location: Building Yellow 2.2.11

Dr Sophie Ping completed a Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in English literature, and a science degree majoring in physiology at the University of Melbourne, in Victoria, Australia. She then completed a science honours year in neurophysiology, during which she investigated second messenger pathways involved in neuronal cell death. Sophie then completed a PhD in neurophysiology, also at the University of Melbourne, researching the mechanisms by which oestrogen is protective of the cholinergic basal forebrain neurons that are susceptible to death in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. Her research investigated the role of the neurotrophin receptor p75NTR and cholinergic neurotransmission in cognitive dysfunction, by measuring spatial learning performance in ovariectomised and acyclic female rats.

While completing her PhD studies, Sophie was employed full-time as the Senior Tutor for Medicine, Physiotherapy and Biomedical Science in the Department of Physiology at the University of Melbourne, and was responsible for teaching in and running Physiology and Pharmacology practical classes for undergraduate students, with a particular emphasis on human-subject practical classes. Sophie also worked as a problem-based learning (PBL) tutor in the undergraduate medical degree, a teaching method now widely embraced by Universities teaching pre-clinical sciences.

After leaving the University of Melbourne, Sophie worked for Medical Education Services Australia (MESA), and then travelled to Apia, in Western Samoa, where she was the Campus Coordinator and pre-clinical science lecturer for the Oceania University of Medicine (OUM). In addition to face-to-face teaching using the PBL method and in the Samoan National Hospital, OUM also provides distance education through the use of online teaching platforms. After returning from Western Samoa to Australia, Sophie again worked as a PBL Tutor at the University of Melbourne before coming to Darwin to take up the position of Health Science Lecturer at Charles Darwin University. Sophie currently teaches in and coordinates the SBI 171 and 172 Anatomy and Physiology 1 and 2 units, the NUR213 Pathophysiology unit, the SPE210 Motor Control and Development unit, and coordinates the BNBSC2 Bachelor of Nursing/Bachelor of Science degree. She is also a member of the Charles Darwin University EHS Faculty Ethics Committee.

Research interests

Neurophysiology

Teaching areas

SBI171 Anatomy and Physiology 1
SBI172 Anatomy and Physiology 2
NUR213 Pathophysiology
SPE210 Motor Control and Development

Administrative duties

Unit coordinator for SBI171, SBI172, NUR213, SPE210
Member of the Faculty of Education, Health and Science Ethics Committee

Publications

Ping, S., Trieu, J., Wlodek, M. and Barrett, G. The Effect of Estrogen on Basal Forebrain Cholinergic Neurons and Spatial Learning. Journal of Neuroscience Research 86: 1588-1598 (2008).

Lee, J., Albiston, A. L., Allen, A. M., Mendelsohn, F. A. O., Ping, S. E., Barrett, G. L., Murphy, M., Morris, M. J., McDowall, S. G. and Chai, S. Y. Effect of I.C.V. Injection of AT4 Receptor Ligands, NLE1-Angiotensin IV and LVV-Hemorphin 7, on Spatial Learning in Rats. Neuroscience 124:
341-349 (2004).

Wlodek, M. E., Ping, S., Kennedy, G., Kirk, J., Judd, T. and Keppell, M. Developments in Authentic Learning: A Woman's Reproductive Life Cycle. Proceedings of ED-MEDIA 2003, World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia & Telecommunications, June 23-28,
Honolulu, Hawaii USA (2003).

Ping, S.E., Greferath, U. and Barrett, G.L. Estrogen Treatment Suppresses Forebrain p75 Neurotrophin Receptor Expression in Aged, Noncycling Female Rats. Journal of Neuroscience Research 69: 51-60 (2002).

Ping, S.E. and Barrett, G.L. Ceramide Can Induce Death in Sensory Neurons, Whereas Ceramide Analogues and Sphingosine Promote Survival. Journal of Neuroscience Research 54: 206-213 (1998).