Rate My Professor Dagmar Wilhelm

Associate Professor Dagmar Wilhelm is a vertebrate developmental biologist at the University of Melbourne's School of Biomedical Sciences, Department of Anatomy and Physiology, where she serves as Head of the Wilhelm Laboratory focusing on Gonad Development and Fertility. She earned her PhD in Cancer Biology from the University of Karlsruhe and a Bachelors Degree with Honours from the same institution, followed by a Graduate Certificate from the University of Melbourne. Her postdoctoral training included positions with Professor Christoph Englert at the Research Centre Karlsruhe, Germany, and Professor Peter Koopman at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience in Brisbane. Wilhelm established her independent research career as Laboratory Head at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, supported by an NHMRC Career Development Award Level II (2008-2011). In 2011, she received an ARC Future Fellowship and joined the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology at Monash University. In November 2015, she relocated her laboratory to the University of Melbourne as Senior Lecturer, advancing to Associate Professor in Developmental Biology.

Wilhelm's research investigates the molecular and cellular mechanisms regulating sex determination, gonad development, and fertility using mouse models, integrating developmental biology, cell biology, biochemistry, mouse genetics, and proteomics. Key projects include the role of the prorenin receptor in male and female fertility (NHMRC New Ideas Grant 2020-2022), post-translational control of cell fate decisions during embryonic gonad differentiation (ARC Discovery Grant 2015-2017), and molecular regulation of mammalian ovary development (ARC Discovery Grant 2017-2019). Her highly cited publication, 'Sex determination and gonadal development in mammals' (Physiological Reviews, 2007, with S. Palmer and P. Koopman), has shaped understanding in the field. Other notable grants include ARC Discovery Grants (2008-2011, 2010-2012) and NHMRC Project Grants. Awards include the ANZSCDB Young Investigator Award (2011). Her work has advanced knowledge of disorders of sex development and infertility, with over 150 publications and significant impact in reproductive biology.