Dr. Agus Sunarto

Dr. Agus Sunarto is the team leader of Aquaculture Biotechnology at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO, Australia). Agus was head of the Fish Health Research Laboratory within the Indonesian Ministry of Fisheries before joining CSIRO in 2013. He is a molecular virologist with a PhD from the University of Queensland, Australia. During his PhD, Agus discovered a new genetic lineage of koi herpesvirus (KHV), the Indonesian KHV C07 isolate, which is highly virulent in Australian carp. Funded by the Australian Government, this led to 15 years of research on KHV as a potential biocontrol agent for invasive carp in Australia, and further contributed to the development of the National Carp Control Plan. Built on his hands-on experience in viral biocontrol of carp, Agus has additionally led Tilapia biocontrol research. Throughout this work, modelling suggested that a combined viral and genetic biocontrol strategy would be a better approach for effective control of aquatic invasive species. As such, Agus then joined CSIRO’s Genome Engineering team to focus on integrating viral and genetic biocontrol technologies for invasive fish. Gene technologies have dual benefits, not only for innovative genetic biocontrol of invasive species, but also for improved aquaculture traits. This link naturally brought Agus to lead the Aquaculture Biotechnology team, which focuses on developing biotechnology and precision genome engineering (gene editing) for sustainable and resilience aquaculture.
Contact information: Email: Agus.Sunarto@csiro.au
Profile: https://people.csiro.au/S/A/Agus-Sunarto
Website: CSIRO | Aquaculture

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