Oral Presentation 40th Annual Lorne Genome Conference 2019

Using genomics to conserve Australia’s biodiversity (#39)

Katherine Belov 1
  1. School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

The Earth Biogenome Project has ambitiously decided to sequence the genomes of all known eukaryotic organisms over the next 10 years. The cost of this work will be on par with the cost of sequencing the human genome 15 years ago. Australia is contributing to these efforts through a variety of sequencing programs. I will focus this talk on the role that genomics data can play in the conservation of Australia’s unique biodiversity. In particular, I will provide examples using the Tasmanian devil and koala, two iconic species currently facing disease threats. I will also provide examples of using genomic data from our local species for biomedical purposes.