Elena Bagley

Professor Elena Bagley is a faculty member in the Sydney Pharmacy School at the University of Sydney's Faculty of Medicine and Health. She also holds an affiliation with the Charles Perkins Centre. With a PhD from the University of Sydney (2001), she completed a C.J. Martin Fellowship (2001–2006), conducting postdoctoral research at the Vollum Institute (USA) and the University of Sydney's Pain Management Research Institute. Her laboratory focuses on synaptic dysfunction in brain disorders, particularly chronic pain, addiction, and anxiety. Current research projects explore opioid withdrawal mechanisms, amygdala function in anxiety, and pain-induced synaptic plasticity.

Key research methods include patch-clamp electrophysiology, optogenetics, immunohistochemistry, and behavioral assays. International collaborations include work with Dr. Sue Aicher at Oregon Health & Sciences University. She supervises PhD and master's students, such as Rakulan Santhakummar and Charlie Gregson. Notable grants include NHMRC Ideas Grants for opioid addiction research and collaborations on endogenous opioid systems.

Publications span synaptic plasticity, opioid-neuropeptide interactions, and pain circuitry, with impactful contributions to journals like Nature Communications and Journal of Neuroscience. Her work bridges basic neuroscience with translational pain management strategies.