Dr Leavesley, a senior member of the Tissue BioRegeneration and Integration Research Program at QUT and Associate Professor in Medical Biotechnology, has a long-standing research interest in the function and development of epithelial and mesenchymal tissues from progenitor populations; how they move from location to location, what controls this and what they do when they get there.

His interests span the basics of mammalian cell and tissue division, specialisation (differentiation) and integrated development (from stem cell to functional system), wound healing and tumour growth and dissemination (metastasis).

Dr Leavesley is a cell biologist with an extensive practical experience in cell and tissue-based therapies. In particular he has skills in functional aspects of cell adhesion, metastasis, migration and wound healing.

His research experience has been directed at applied medical biotechnologies, many of which were funded via collaboration with industry partners (e.g. Baxter Healthcare) and have subsequently been commercialised. These collaborations required this research to be conducted in a timely, outcomes-focussed manner. Examples of the applied R&D he has been involved in include: development of dendritic cell vaccines for advanced disease; inhibition of post surgical abdominal peritoneal adhesions and scarring; peritoneal membrane repair to maintain ongoing peritoneal dialysis; improved blood stem cell harvest and ex vivo expansion for haematopoietic rescue; reagents for blood stem cell applications; and development of oral vaccines for enteric diseases including Vibrio cholera and Salmonella.

He has published 42 manuscripts in high-quality, international cell biology, tissue-engineering and biochemistry journals. In addition, he has been invited to present his research at many Australian and International learned Society symposia. He is a member of the Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine International Society, Australian Society for Medical Research, Matrix Biology Society of Australia and New Zealand and is an invited member of the Queensland state committee of AusBiotech Ltd.