Patrick Western

Centre for Reproduction and Development, Monash Institute of Medical Research, VIC

Dr Patrick Western’s research is focused on understanding the molecular and epigenetic processes underlying establishment of the male germ cell lineage and the occurrence of pluripotent germ cell tumours. Dr Western completed his doctoral studies on temperature dependent sex determination in the American alligator under supervison of Professor Andrew Sinclair, Professor Jenny Graves and Dr Jenny Harry. Following his Ph.D., Dr Western moved to Professor Azim Surani’s laboratory at the Wellcome Trust Gurdon Institute, Cambridge University, where he studied the reacquisition of pluripotency in differentiated somatic cells and identified novel genes associated with pluripotency in embryonic stem cells and germ cells. Dr Western moved to the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and joined the ARC Centre of Excellence in Biotechnology and Development in 2004 where he pursued his interest in germ cell development with particular focus on differentiation of male germ cells and the molecular and epigenetic regulation of germ cell pluripotency. In 2011, Dr Western established the Germ Cell Development and Epigenetics Group within the Centre for Reproduction and Development at Monash Institute of Medical Research. The Germ Cell Development and Epigenetics group is focused on early male germ line development and reinstatement of epigenetic patterns critical for establishment of the spermatogenic lineage and subsequent development.