From being recruited through a highly competitive international search to Centre Director, Professor Eduardo Eyras has charted an impressive journey at EMBL Australia. After joining the John Curtin School of Medical Research at the Australian National University in 2019 as an EMBL Australia Group Leader, he has now been appointed as Director of the Shine‑Dalgarno Centre for RNA Innovation.
We sat down with Eduardo to learn more about his appointment and the future of RNA research at ANU.
What is the Shine-Dalgarno Centre for RNA Innovation?
The Shine‑Dalgarno Centre for RNA Innovation (SDCRI) is a virtual, cross‑ANU centre that brings together researchers from multiple schools to advance RNA science and technology. RNA is central to how cells function and is now driving next‑generation biotechnology and medicine.
The Centre’s mission is to accelerate translation – from discovery to real‑world impact – through new RNA‑based therapeutics, diagnostics, and enabling technologies. SDCRI fosters a collaborative, multidisciplinary environment linking researchers with industry, clinicians, and government to tackle major health and biosecurity challenges.
Its research spans cancer, ageing, neurodegeneration, infectious disease and more. I plan to expand core activities into areas such as plant pathogens and molecular design, helping position ANU as a hub for RNA‑driven innovation.
Why is RNA such a powerful focus right now?
RNA came to global attention during COVID‑19 with the success of mRNA (messenger RNA) vaccines, which use synthetic mRNA to instruct cells to produce protective proteins. Although the technology was already advancing, the pandemic accelerated its development and uptake.
Beyond vaccines, RNA plays key roles across human, animal and plant diseases – from pathogenic viruses to cancer. It is both a versatile therapeutic tool and an important disease target. Engineered molecules, including RNAs and designed proteins, can precisely recognise and neutralise harmful RNAs.
RNA can also act catalytically, enabling it to function as sensors or switches for diagnostics and therapies. Fully realising these opportunities requires integration of AI, synthetic biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering. Many innovations apply across sectors – for example, RNA stabilisation is relevant to human health, agriculture and biosecurity.
“The interdisciplinarity of RNA research, and its potential for applications across many fields, are what make it such an exciting area of science.”
This momentum is reshaping industry: the global RNA therapeutics market, currently US$8-15 billion, is projected to reach US$23-45 billion by 2030-2035, with Asia-Pacific leading growth. This creates significant opportunities for translation, investment and impact.
What excited you about taking on the Director role?
My career has focused on connecting disciplines to solve complex problems in RNA biology. I’ve led collaborative projects and initiatives that unite researchers approaching RNA from different perspectives.
This role allows me to scale that work – linking discovery, technology development and translation through the SDCRI. It’s an opportunity to accelerate ambitious ideas, support cross‑disciplinary collaboration, engage industry and government and help train the next generation of scientists in this rapidly advancing field.
What do you see as the biggest opportunity or challenge for the Centre – and what would success look like in five years?
The biggest opportunity is linking world‑class RNA discovery science with real‑world impact as RNA technologies rapidly advance. Success will depend on building critical mass, strong translational pathways, and long‑term capability, rather than isolated achievements.
In five years, success would mean stronger commercial and clinical translation—moving RNA discoveries into clinical pipelines, creating spin‑outs, forming industry partnerships, and delivering deployable technologies. Achieving this requires early translational thinking, sustained funding, international partnerships, and shared research platforms that support long‑term innovation.
Another major opportunity is the way AI and RNA biology are coming together. AI is quickly becoming much more than a data‑analysis tool—it’s starting to automate how we collect data, plan experiments, and design new molecules. This can dramatically speed up discovery in biotechnology and medicine. For the Centre, success will mean making AI a core part of how we design, analyse, and engineer RNA.
If we can bring together strong translation, sustainable growth, critical mass, and AI‑enabled RNA science, the Centre will be well placed to lead nationally and globally.
How will the Centre support the translation of RNA research from discovery to real-world impact?
We will pursue several strategies:
- Industry partnerships to co‑develop technologies and enable commercial uptake. These also provide training opportunities, such as industry‑linked PhDs and joint projects.
- Early‑stage commercialisation support, working closely with ANU to embed IP and entrepreneurial thinking from the outset.
- Clinical translation, engaging clinicians and consumer groups to ensure RNA technologies meet real medical needs.
- Use of the National Therapeutic mRNA Platform, which provides a scalable pipeline for RNA design, testing, and optimisation across multiple applications.
- International collaboration, especially in the Asia‑Pacific region, where shared health and biosecurity challenges make coordinated innovation essential.
What does the Centre offer early-career researchers and students?
The Centre offers an interdisciplinary environment where early‑career researchers and students can work across biology, medicine, engineering, chemistry, physics, computer science and AI. Trainees get to work on real‑world problems and benefit from access to shared technologies and close interaction with leading RNA scientists. The Centre’s collaborative culture also encourages people to learn from each other, share ideas and combine perspectives across disciplines.
We place strong emphasis on career development beyond the lab, through commercialisation and entrepreneurship training, seminars, workshops, networking events and a developing industry internship program. These experiences build technical skills, translational know‑how and strong professional networks.
Together, these opportunities support mentorship, skill development and professional growth, helping trainees position themselves at the forefront of a rapidly expanding and globally significant field. Importantly, the Centre is also a community – committed to supporting early‑career researchers, welcoming new ideas and fostering openness, collaboration and innovation. Anyone interested in how RNA science can transform medicine, biotechnology or agriculture will find the SDCRI an exciting and supportive place to work and collaborate.
More information on the Shine‑Dalgarno Centre for RNA Innovation.