John Boyce

Professor John Boyce is a distinguished academic and researcher at Monash University, where he serves as a Professor and group leader in the Department of Microbiology within the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute. He is also a founding member of the Centre to Impact Antimicrobial Resistance, playing a key role in developing community engagement and environmental engineering strategies to combat antibiotic resistance. His work spans multiple disciplines including microbiology, genomics, and infectious disease research.

Professor Boyce's primary research interests focus on elucidating the molecular mechanisms of antibiotic resistance, bacterial pathogenesis, and host immunity to infections. He specializes in studying a wide range of Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogens, with particular emphasis on Acinetobacter baumannii, Pasteurella multocida, Burkholderia pseudomallei, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Dichelobacter nodosus, and Clostridium perfringens. His expertise in next-generation high-throughput sequencing for bacterial genomics and transcriptomic analyses has positioned him at the forefront of antimicrobial resistance research.

His research program encompasses several key areas: understanding how Acinetobacter baumannii uses its type VI secretion system to kill competitors; defining the molecular mechanisms of Pasteurella multocida pathogenesis; developing novel antibiotic combinations to treat multi-drug resistant pathogens; and investigating how small RNAs control gene expression in Gram-negative bacteria. These research streams are highly relevant to addressing global health challenges related to antimicrobial resistance.

Professor Boyce's publication record demonstrates a consistent trajectory of high-impact research, with recent work focusing on pathogenomics, structural biology of bacterial secretion systems, and optimization of antibiotic combinations against resistant pathogens. His collaborative approach is evident in the interdisciplinary nature of his publications, which span microbiology, pharmacology, structural biology, and environmental science.

Professor Boyce leads an active research group with multiple ongoing projects funded by competitive grants. His current projects include "Harnessing type VI secretion system lysins for fighting bacterial superbugs" (2025-2027), "Overcoming resistance emergence to recent antibiotics" (2025-2028), and "Role of Pasteurella surface polysaccharides in pathogenesis and immunity" (2021-2024). He collaborates extensively with researchers both within Monash University and internationally.

The Boyce Laboratory employs a range of advanced techniques including whole genome sequencing, transcriptomic analysis, proteomics, bacterial mutagenesis, and disease modeling in chickens and mice. This comprehensive approach enables the team to investigate bacterial pathogenesis from multiple angles and develop innovative strategies to combat antibiotic-resistant infections.