Sue Clark

Professor Sue Clark is a distinguished molecular biologist and epigenetics researcher currently serving as the inaugural Head of the Genomics and Epigenetics Division at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Australia. Over three decades she has held successive leadership roles in premier Australian biomedical research institutions, including the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and the Sydney Cancer Centre.

Her foundational training comprises a BSc, BSc (Hons 1) and PhD from the University of New South Wales. Following post-doctoral work at Biotechnology Australia (1983–1988) on recombinant vaccine development and eukaryotic gene expression, she returned to basic research as Group Leader of the Gene Regulation Unit at the Kanematsu Laboratories (1992). In 2000 she established and directed the Epigenetics Group at the Sydney Cancer Centre, later moving to the Garvan Institute in 2004 to initiate and lead the Epigenetics Research Program within the Cancer Research Theme.

Professor Clark’s research has fundamentally advanced understanding of DNA methylation landscapes in normal and cancer genomes. Techniques she pioneered in the early 1990s—most notably bisulphite sequencing—now underpin global epigenomic research. Her laboratory’s discoveries have catalysed the commercialisation of methylation-based diagnostics for early cancer detection.

Scientific leadership roles include founding membership of the International Human Epigenome Consortium (IHEC) and Presidency of the Australian Epigenetics Alliance (AEpiA).