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Professor Christopher C Goodnow BVSc, PhD, FAA

Director, Australian Phenomics Facility and Director, Immunogenomics Laboratory

Brief Biography

Christopher C Goodnow has pioneered the use of mouse molecular genetics to reveal key mechanisms regulating the immune system - in particular the crucial ability of the immune system to learn to differentiate our own “self” tissues from invading foreign microbes, and the capacity of the immune system to lay down specific memory of both self and foreign so that autoimmunity is minimized while immunity to infection becomes strong. His work has changed the conceptual framework of the field by showing that tolerance to self is acquired through a series of regulatory checkpoints at many steps in the maturation of immune cells.

After a BSc(Vet) and Veterinary degree at the University of Sydney, Goodnow trained in molecular and cellular immunology at Stanford University with Mark M Davis, at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute with Sir Gustav Nossal, and at the University of Sydney with Antony Basten. From 1990-1997, Goodnow headed a laboratory at Stanford University Medical School as an Assistant Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Since 1997, he has been Professor of Immunology and Genetics at The John Curtin School of Medical Research at The Australian National University, where he is currently Division Head. Goodnow was the Founding Director of the Australian Phenomics Facility - a major national research facility for mouse molecular genetics. In translating his scientific expertise, Goodnow served on the founding scientific advisory board of Illumina Inc - now a leading genetic analysis technology company - and was founder and chief scientific officer for Phenomix Corp, a private biotechnology company with treatments for diabetes and infection in clinical development.

Goodnow has authored many papers in Nature, Science and Cell, and serves on the editorial advisory boards of the Journal of Experimental Medicine, Immunity, Genome Biology, and Mammalian Genome. His honours and awards include the University Medal from Sydney University, Assistant Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Searle Scholar, American Association of Immunologists/Pharmingen Investigator Award, the Gottschalk Medal of the Australian Academy of Science, Commonwealth Centenary Medal, Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, Federation Fellow of the Australian Research Council, and the Australian Health Minister's Prize for Excellence in Medical Research.

• Personal Details
• Adademic History
• Awards and Honours
• Publications

Personal Details

Name:   Christopher Carl Goodnow
Date and Place of Birth:   September 19, 1959.   Hong Kong.
Citizenship:   Australia and U.S.A.
Email:   Chris.Goodnow@anu.edu.au

Qualifications:   BSc(Vet), BVSc, PhD

Current Position: Professor
Director of Immunogenomics Laboratory
Director of Australian Phenomics Facility
John Curtin School of Medical Research,
Australian National University

Photo: At the Cancerians Committee fancy dress party (as Danny Zuko and Sandy) thanks to the watchful eyes of The Canberra Times

Academic History

1979-84:   Training in Veterinary Medicine and Surgery, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Sydney

1983:    B.Sc.Vet research, "Cellular and Molecular Studies of Kappa Myeloma Antigen", Clinical Immunology Research Centre, University of Sydney, with Dr. R.L. Raison.

1984:   Graduated University of Sydney, B.V.Sc. Hons I, and B.Sc.(Vet) Hons I and University Medal

1985:   Visiting Student and Research Assistant in the laboratory of Dr. Mark M. Davis, Dept. of Medical Microbiology, Stanford University Medical School

1985:   NHMRC Biomedical Scholar, Ph.D. research, "A transgenic mouse model for self-tolerance in B lymphocytes", Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, with Professor Gustav JV Nossal.

1986-89:   NHMRC Biomedical Scholar, Ph.D. research, "A transgenic mouse model for self-tolerance in B lymphocytes", Clinical Immunology Research Centre, University of Sydney, with Associate Professor Ronald J. Trent and Professor Antony Basten.

1989-90:   Medical Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow, Clinical Immunology Research Centre, University of Sydney, with Professor Antony Basten.

1990-97:   Assistant Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute & Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University Medical School

1992-95:   Searle Scholar

1997:    Professor, Director of Medical Genome Centre, Australian Cancer Research Foundation Genetics Laboratory,
The John Curtin School of Medical Research, The Australian National University

2007: Professor and Head of the Division of Genetics and Immunology, The John Curtin School of Medical Research, The Australian National University

Awards and Honours

1979:   John Gurner and Frederick Ebsworth Prize for Biology, University of Sydney

1984:   Honours Class I with B.V.Sc. degree; Honours Class I and University Medal with B.Sc.(Vet) degree

1986:   NH & MRC Biomedical Research Scholarship

1989:   Medical Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship

1992-95:   Searle Scholar

1998:   American Association of Immunologists/Pharmingen Investigator Award

2005:   Australian Health Ministers Award for Excellence in Health and Medical Research

2006:  ARC Federation Fellow

2007: Ramaciotti Research Award