Professor Mattick was responsible for the development of the IMB with Professor Peter Andrews. In 1988 he was appointed the Foundation Professor of Molecular Biology and Director of the Centre for Molecular Biology and Biotechnology at the University of Queensland.

The Centre was subsequently designated a Special Research Centre of the Australian Research Council (1991-1999) and was re-named the CMCB, with its primary focus being the molecular genetics of mammals and their diseases, including genome mapping, gene regulation, developmental biology and cell biology.

He was responsible for the development of one of the first recombinant DNA-based vaccines, and was the recipient of the 1989 Pharmacia-LKB Biotechnology Medal from the Australian Biochemical Society, and the inaugural (2000) Eppendorf Achievement Award from the Lorne Genome Conference. His current research interest is in the role of non-coding RNAs in the evolution and development of complex organisms. He has published over 100 scientific papers.

Professor Mattick is also, among other things, a member of the Australian Health Ethics Committee and the Research Committee of the NHMRC. He is a foundation member of the recently established International Molecular Biology Network (Asia-Pacific), was a foundation member of the Board of ANGIS (the Australian National Genome Information Service) from 1991-2000 and is currently a member of the Board of the Australian Proteome Analysis Facility. He is a member of the Queensland Biotechnology Advisory Council and on the Scientific Advisory Boards of several institutes nationally and internationally. He was appointed as an Officer in the Order of Australia in June 2001.