معرفی
David Mahns is an Associate Professor in Integrative Physiology at the School of Medicine, Western Sydney University. His academic journey began with doctoral work in Cardiovascular Physiology completed in 1999, followed by post-doctoral work in sensory physiology under Professor Mark Rowe as an NHMRC research officer. He served as Lecturer & Course coordinator from 2003-2006, and was appointed Senior Lecturer in Integrative Physiology in 2007 before advancing to his current position as Associate Professor.
Dr. Mahns specializes in quantifying the contribution of sensory nerves arising from skin and deep structures such as muscle and bone to perception. His research addresses how we distinguish between non-painful (e.g., innocuous touch) and painful stimuli using psychophysical observations and detailed electrophysiological recording. In collaboration with Professor Macefield, he examines the contribution of different sensory nerves to allodynia, where gentle touch is perceived as painful. His work spans integrative physiology, microneurography, neuroscience, pain mechanisms, and sensory physiology.
Dr. Mahns holds the following qualifications:
- Bachelor of Science (Physiology and Pharmacology, UNSW)
- Bachelor of Science Honours (Physiology, UNSW)
- Doctor of Philosophy (Neurophysiology, UNSW)
His research publications demonstrate expertise in sensory nerve mechanisms, pain perception, neural coding of tactile stimuli, and the physiological basis of allodynia. Recent work has focused on understanding how C-tactile fibers contribute to cutaneous allodynia, how Pacinian corpuscles contribute to frequency discrimination, and the neural mechanisms underlying the nociceptive withdrawal reflex.
Dr. Mahns has made significant contributions to understanding the peripheral and central mechanisms of sensory processing, with particular attention to the crossover between innocuous touch and pain perception. His work bridges basic neuroscience with clinical applications, particularly in understanding pathological pain conditions.
As an active researcher with 108 publications and extensive citation record, Dr. Mahns supervises students in the field of sensory physiology and neuroscience. His research group provides opportunities to investigate the neural mechanisms underlying tactile perception and pain using both human psychophysical approaches and electrophysiological techniques.
