Neil Gemmell

The New Zealand Mana Tūārangi Distinguished Researcher Fellowship recognises the international reputation of Distinguished Professor Neil Gemmell FRSNZ FLS FSRB. Distinguished Professor Gemmell is a geneticist who has pioneered the use of genetics to control invasive species and protect rare species. His expertise encompasses evolutionary genetics, genomics, and molecular ecology.

Distinguished Professor Gemmell leads a team investigating mitochondrial mutations that harm males. Mitochondria are the powerhouses of our cells, generating cellular energy among other vital functions. Mitochondria have their own genome, known as mtDNA, which is inherited only from the mother, unlike the nuclear genome which is inherited from both parents. Mutations in mtDNA are implicated in many incurable degenerative diseases, metabolic disorders, ageing, cancer, and infertility, which particularly affect male offspring. Distinguished Professor Gemmell’s team will use mtDNA base-editing tools in fruit flies (Drosophila) to determine the effects of specific human mutations on fertility, longevity, and behavioural traits. This research has obvious implications for health, but also other applications such as pest control.

Distinguished Professor Gemmell completed undergraduate studies at Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington, and a PhD in Genetics at La Trobe University in Melbourne. After postdoctoral research at the University of Cambridge and University of Leicester in the United Kingdom he returned to Aotearoa New Zealand to take up a position at Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha — the University of Canterbury, and joined Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka – the University of Otago in 2008 to establish the Centre for Reproduction and Genomics. Distinguished Professor Gemmell was a principal investigator with both the Gravida Centre of Research Excellence and the Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution. Distinguished Professor Gemmell holds the University’s AgResearch Leading Thinkers Chair and an Inaugural Sesquicentennial Distinguished Chair, and has served as Dean of the School of Biomedical Sciences and Deputy Pro Vice-Chancellor (Acting) of Health Sciences. Distinguished Professor Gemmell is a Fellow of the Royal Society Te Apārangi, a past winner of the Hutton Medal, and currently convenes the Biological and Environmental Sciences Domain for the Academy of the Royal Society Te Apārangi.

Distinguished Professor Neil Gemmell. Supplied