Branch event: Genomics, a transformative technology for science and medicine

Waikato Branch of the Royal Society presents Professor Cristin Print, as the seventh and final speaker in their Lunchtime Lecture Series, Adjusting Life's Fundamentals: Genome Methods for New Zealand.

Abstract:

In this lecture series we have heard how genomics, and the related sciences of cloning and genome modification, are changing what is possible in NZ agriculture, science and medicine. In this final talk, Cris Print will discuss the field of bioinformatics.

Bioinformatics is the science that distils biologically and clinically useful information from raw genomic data. As well as changing our understanding of our living world, bioinformatics is showing us just how little we know about normal biology and disease, and therefore the importance of ongoing research. As examples, Cris will discuss: (i) how bioinformatics helps us understand the drivers and potential treatment of cancers of individual patients, and (ii) the live interpretation of data from a mini-gene sequencing machine that will be running during his talk. It is an exciting time to be a scientist - the more genomics we do, the more complex we realise humans are!

Presenter Bio:

Cris graduated in Medicine and Surgery from the University of Auckland in 1989. He worked as a house surgeon and undertook asthma research before completing an PhD in immunology. He used transgenic technologies to research how cells die in Melbourne, Australia, before moving to Cambridge University, UK, where he was a fellow of St Edmund's College and used genomics and bioinformatics to investigate human pathologies. He co-founded a public genomics company in Japan before returning to New Zealand in 2005 where he has been using genomics to better understand cancer and other diseases. Cris is currently a Professor in the University of Auckland's Department of Molecular Medicine and Pathology, Leader of the Auckland Genomics Into Medicine program, a Principal Investigator in the Maurice Wilkins Centre, on the Science Leadership Team of the Healthier Lives National Science Challenge, Chair of Scientific Advisory Board of the Auckland Regional Tissue Bank and Vice President of the Auckland Museum Institute. He is immediate past Director of the NZ Bioinformatics Institute and immediate past President of the New Zealand Society for Oncology.

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