Dr Rukmali Wijayarathna is a post-doctoral researcher working with Professor Mark Hedger in the Endocrinology and Immunophysiology laboratory at the Hudson Institute of Medical Research.

Dr Wijayarathna received her bachelor’s degree in Veterinary Medicine at the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka. She then completed her PhD under the supervision of Professor David de Kretser in 2017. Dr Wijayarathna was enrolled in a joint PhD program between Monash University, Australia and the Justus-Liebig University in Giessen, Germany. Her PhD research expanded the knowledge on the roles of the pleiotrophic growth factors activins and their binding-protein follistatin within the male reproductive tract.

Dr Wijayarathna’s current research focuses on understanding the immunoregulatory mechanisms within the male reproductive tract. Her work will contribute to the improvement of men’s health worldwide.

Dr Wijayarathna is co-supervisor on the following student projects

• Discovering therapies to prevent inflammatory diseases of the male reproductive tract and infertility
• Exploring the functional regulation of the male reproductive tract in health and disease
• Uncovering the novel phenotype of macrophages in the testis

Selected publications

• Wijayarathna R, Genovese R, Meinhardt A, Loveland KL, Groome NP, Hinton BT, Hedger MP (2021) Examination of testicular lumicrine regulation of activins and immunoregulatory genes in the epididymal caput. Andrology: 20 Aug. Epub ahead of print. Doi: 10.1111/andr.13099

• Wijayarathna R, Pasalic A, Nicolas N, Biniwale S, Ravinthiran R, Genovese R, Muir J, Loveland KL, Meinhardt A, Fijak M, Hedger MP (2020) Region-specific immune responses to autoimmune epididymitis in the murine reproductive tract. Cell Tissue Res. Aug:381(2):351-360.

• Wijayarathna R, Hedger MP (2019) Activins, follistatin and immunoregulation in the epididymis. Andrology Sep;7(5):703-711.

• Wijayarathna R, de Kretser DM, Meinhardt A, Middendorff R, Ludlow H, Groom NP, Loveland KL,  Hedger MP (2018) Activin over-expression in the testis of mice lacking the inhibin alpha-subunit gene is associated with androgen deficiency and regression of the male reproductive tract.  Mol Cell Endocrinol Oct 27. S0303-7207(17)30550-6.

• Wijayarathna R, De Kretser DM, Sreenivasan R, Ludlow H, Middendorf R, Meinhardt A, Loveland KL, Hedger MP (2018) Comparative analysis of activins A and B in the adult mouse epididymis and vas deferens. Reproduction 155(1):15-23.

• Wijayarathna R, Sarraj MA, Genovese R, Girling JE, Michel V, Ludlow H, Loveland KL, Meinhardt A, de Kretser DM, Hedger MP (2017) Activin and follistatin interactions in the male reproductive tract:  activin expression and morphological abnormalities in mice lacking follistatin 288.  Andrology 5(3):578-588.

• Wijayarathna R, de Kretser DM (2016) Activins in reproductive biology and beyond. Hum Reprod Update 22(3).pii:dmv058. Review