Nicholas Lister

Dr. Nicholas Lister is a Research Fellow at the University of New South Wales within the School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Science, Faculty of Science, where he conducts pivotal research in the Waters lab. His work centers on epigenetic regulation of sex chromosomes across diverse vertebrate models including marsupials, monotremes, birds, and reptiles, with specific focus on dosage compensation mechanisms and X chromosome inactivation in species exhibiting unconventional sex determination systems.

His educational foundation includes a PhD investigating epigenetic regulation in human cancer, particularly the roles of non-coding RNAs in disease pathogenesis. This background directly informs his current exploration of conserved and divergent epigenetic mechanisms across evolutionary lineages.

Dr. Lister's research interests span epigenetics, sex chromosome biology, and comparative genomics, with emphasis on how dosage compensation varies in organisms like the platypus (possessing 5X/5Y chromosomes) and the Australian central bearded dragon (exhibiting both genetic and environmental sex determination). His integrative approach combines molecular biology, genomic sequencing, and bioinformatic analysis to decipher the evolution of epigenetic silencing mechanisms, particularly how non-coding RNAs orchestrate chromosome-wide regulation.

His publication trends reveal a consistent focus on comparative epigenomics, with recent studies demonstrating incomplete transcriptional dosage compensation in birds and monotremes balanced by post-transcriptional mechanisms, and imprinted X chromosome inactivation in marsupials. These findings highlight remarkable diversity in epigenetic regulation across vertebrate evolution while underscoring fundamental conservation of silencing principles.

The Waters lab, where Dr. Lister is embedded, operates as a dynamic research collective dedicated to understanding epigenetic regulation through the lens of diverse sex determination systems. The team utilizes wallabies, Tasmanian devils, platypus, and bearded dragons to investigate how complex epigenetic silencing mechanisms evolved, with implications for understanding human developmental disorders and cancer epigenetics. Current projects include high-resolution mapping of X chromosome inactivation in non-model organisms and functional characterization of conserved non-coding RNA networks.