Ryan Lister

Ryan Lister leads an experimental research group exploring the epigenome in animals and plants, at the University of Western Australia. After receiving his PhD from UWA, Ryan undertook postdoctoral studies in Joseph Ecker's laboratory at The Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California from 2006. There he developed methodologies for utilizing new high-throughput DNA sequencing technologies to map the epigenome, the molecular code superimposed upon the genome that plays crucial roles in regulating the information contained in the underlying DNA sequence. His research has yielded new insights into the composition and function of the epigenome in a variety of systems, including plants, the human brain, and stem cells. Having returned to UWA in 2012, Ryan’s laboratory is focused upon understanding how these complex epigenomic patterns are established and altered, how they affect the readout of underlying genetic information, their role in brain development and function, and developing molecular tools to precisely edit the epigenome.