Dr Ross Tellam, using genes to enhance livestock enterprises.

Dr Ross Tellam: using genes to enhance livestock enterprises

CSIRO's Dr Ross Tellam expertise is in understanding the relationship between gene and phenotype.

• 24 March 2011 | Updated 14 October 2011

Overview

• Current activities
• Background
• Academic qualifications
• Achievements

Current activities

Dr Tellam is a Senior Principal Research Scientist in CSIRO Livestock Industries, based at the Queensland Bioscience Precinct in Brisbane, Australia.

Dr Tellam leads a number of project groups, including:

• the CSIRO component of the Bovine Genome Sequencing project
• understanding the genes that contribute to muscle hypertrophy in sheep with the aim of increasing muscling, leanness and feed conversion efficiency in the Australian production flock
• identification of the genes underlying the innate immune responses of mammary tissue to mastitis in dairy cattle

  Dr Tellam has been a key leader in the international Bovine Genome Sequencing Consortium.
• the role of epigenetics in livestock production traits.

His research interests include:

• the bovine genome sequence - bioinformatics and comparative mammalian genomics
• lactation and mastitis: identification of genes and proteins responsible for resistance to mastitis in dairy cattle
• skeletal muscle development in mammals, particularly muscle hypertrophy in Callipyge sheep and other lines of high muscling sheep
• genetics and livestock production traits
• epigenetics, chromatin remodelling and microRNAs in mammalian development and inflammatory responses
• control of gene expression.

Background

Dr Tellam started his research career in 1979 as a National Institute of Health (NIH) Postdoctoral Research Associate at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, USA.

He returned to Australia to work at the John Curtin School of Medical Research in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Here he was a Research Fellow in the Department of Physical Biochemistry from 1982–85 and the Department of Experimental Pathology from 1985–87.

Dr Tellam joined CSIRO in 1987. He has been a key leader in several large and multi-disiplinary research projects, including the international Bovine Genome Sequencing Consortium. 

Academic qualifications

Dr Tellam has been awarded a:

• Bachelor of Science (Honours) from the University of Queensland, Australia
• Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry, also from the University of Queensland.

Achievements

Dr Tellam has published approximately 120 articles and is the inventor on four patents with applications in the livestock production and food processing industries.

Dr Tellam was a leader of the Livestock Genomics Team, which in 2010 was awarded the CSIRO Chairman’s Medal for leadership of the international Bovine Genome Sequencing Consortium and scientific contributions dedicated to decoding of the cattle genome. In 2009, this project culminated in a milestone publication (Science 324: 522–28).

In 2005 he received the Geoffrey Gardiner Dairy Foundation Project Award.

Dr Tellam is currently:

• Adjunct Associate Professor, Griffith University
• member of the Editorial Boards of Veterinary Parasitology (1994-present) and Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2003-present)
• member of the Board of the Australian National Genome Information Service (1995-present) and its Board Executive (1997-present)
• member of the Bovine Genome Sequencing Project Advisory Committee.

Learn more about CSIRO Livestock Industries.