Richard Ellis is head of genome analysis and molecular biology discipline champion at the Animal and Plant Health Agency. After completing his DPhil from Oxford, he spent over 10 years in academia studying bacterial ecology and population genetics before joining APHA.

His work now focuses on the application of high-throughput sequencing technologies for understanding the evolution and spread of pathogens (both bacterial and viral, including zoonotics), for investigating diseases of unknown aetiology, and the integration into disease surveillance programmes.

He oversees the laboratory teams responsible for routine disease testing required for both surveillance and trade, and the capacity to scale up testing in the event of a disease outbreak.