Google Scholar profile

Primary research interest

Genomics, computational and evolutionary biology

About me

Adept at genomics, lecturer in bioinformatics, researcher in complex genomes and evolution

Research

We use genomics and bioinformatics to investigate microbial evolution and symbiosis.

Genome evolution and innovation

We develop customised bioinformatic workflows to analyse non-model genomes, with an emphasis on eukaryotic microbes. Our research spans from algae, protists, draught-resistant plants, corals to jellyfish.

Featured projects:

Key collaborators: Debashish Bhattacharya (Rutgers), Uwe John (Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research), Glenn King (UQ), Tim McDermott (Montana), Shauna Murray (University of Technology Sydney), Jamie Seymour (JCU), Irene Wagner-Dobler (TU Braunschweig), Hwan Su Yoon (Sungkyunkwan)

Metagenomics and hologenomics of symbiosis

We adopt genomic approaches to study the abilities and functions of microbes in the environment, as well as how they work together with their partners to support symbiosis in distinct ecosystems.

Featured projects:

Key collaborators: Mark Aarts (Wageningen, the Netherlands), Debashish Bhattacharya (Rutgers), Patrick Buerger (Macquarie Univ.), Emma Camp (University of Technology Sydney), Ira Cooke (James Cook University), Paul Evans (UQ), Peter Erskine (UQ), Phil Hugenholtz (UQ), Jose Victor Lopez (Nova Southeastern U), Matthew Nitschke (Australian Institute of Marine Science, AIMS) Cynthia Riginos (UQ/AIMS), Mike Sweet (Derby), Antony van der Ent (Wageningen, the Netherlands), Madeleine van Oppen (AIMS/Univ. Melbourne)

Scalable phylogenomics

We develop and explore the use of alignment-free methods in large-scale inference of genome evolution as networks, beyond the conventional tree-like assumption of evolutionary history.

Featured projects:

Key collaborators: Ira Cooke (James Cook University), Wojciech Karlowski (Adam Mickiewicz U, Poland), Burkhard Morgenstern (Göttingen), Fengzhu Sun (U Southern California)

Teaching

I teach at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels at UQ.

I am the course coordinator for SCIE2100 and BINF6000 (Bioinformatics 1:Introduction), and I teach into BIOL3303 (Genomics), BIOL3903 (Advanced Genomics) and BINF7001 (Advanced Genome Informatics).

Competitive Access to Research Infrastructure 

National Computational Merit Allocation Scheme (NCMAS), 2022-2024
Comparative and Evolutionary Genomics of Microbes from Diverse Environments
Cheong Xin Chan (Lead CI), Phil Hugenholtz (CI)
2024 allocation: 3,600,000 Service Units, estimated value $144,000
2023 allocation: 7,600,000 Service Units; estimated value: $304,000
2022 allocation: 4,000,000 Service Units; estimated value: $160,000

National Computational Infrastructure Adapter Allocation Scheme, Q1 2023 round
Adaptive ecolution of coral algal symbionts
Cheong Xin Chan (Lead CI), Katherine Dougan (CI)
Allocation: 250,000 Service Units; estimated value: $10,000

National Computational Infrastructure Adapter Allocation Scheme, Q3 2022 round
Understanding heat tolerance of coral algal symbionts
Cheong Xin Chan (Lead CI), Katherine Dougan (CI)
Allocation: 250,000 Service Units; estimated value: $10,000

National Computational Merit Allocation Scheme (NCMAS) 2020-2021
Comparative and Evolutionary Genomics of Microbes from Diverse Environments
Cheong Xin Chan (Lead CI)
2021 allocation: 2,300,000 Service Units; estimated value: $92,000
2020 allocation: 1,600,000 Service Units; estimated value: $64,000

Researcher biography

Dr Chan has a PhD in Genomics and Computational Biology from UQ. He underwent postdoctoral training at Rutgers University (USA) in algal genomics and evolution. He returmed to UQ in late 2011 as one of the inaugural Great Barrier Reef Foundation Bioinformatics Fellows.

Dr Chan joined the School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences in 2020 as a group leader at the Australian Centre for Ecogenomics (ACE). His group uses advanced computational approaches to study genome evolution and develop scalable approaches for comparative genomics.