Dr Clara Liu Chung Ming is one of HRI’s outstanding early career researchers. She recently completed her PhD under the supervision of Associate Professor Carmine Gentile and was awarded the Chancellor’s Award for best PhD at the University of Technology in Sydney (UTS).
She now works as a Research Officer in Professor Julie McMullen’s Heart Muscle Laboratory focusing on cardio-oncology and breast cancer.
Please tell us about your background and what led you to HRI
I was born and raised on a small island called Mauritius. From a young age, I was always drawn to science, especially biology. It quickly became my favourite subject in high school and and I knew I wanted to build a future in that field. I moved to Melbourne to study at the University of Melbourne, where I majored in Neuroscience for my Bachelor’s degree and later to Sydney for my Master’s.
That’s where I met Assoc Prof Carmine Gentile during his Australian Bioprinting Workshop. Inspired by his work, I completed my Honours and PhD under his supervision at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS). My research was recognised with several competitive scholarships, including the NSW Education Waratah Scholarship and the Royal Society of NSW Scholarship, and I won the Chancellor’s Award for best PhD at UTS.
After completing my PhD, I joined HRI as a Research Officer. I love having the opportunity to continuously learn new skills, to be creative and to work with cutting-edge technology. HRI offers such a diverse and supportive work environment, making it a great place to grow and collaborate with brilliant and supportive colleagues.
Clara at work in the lab with Carmine (left) and Julie (right)
What is the focus of your research?
My research bridges heart disease and tissue engineering. During my PhD, one of my major projects involved creating “cardiac spheroids” or “mini-hearts” - tiny lab-grown models that closely mimic the behaviour of real human heart tissue. These models are particularly useful for studying the impact of diseases and treatments, including damage caused by chemotherapy, COVID-19, and pregnancy-related conditions like preeclampsia.
A key part of this work was developing personalised mini-hearts from patient blood samples - especially from women with preeclampsia, who face a higher risk of future heart disease. We used their blood cells to create heart cells, allowing us to examine their heart health in a personalised way. This approach could one day help predict and prevent heart problems more effectively.- a step toward better prediction and prevention.
I also explored the role of investigated acetylcholine - a brain chemical often found at lower levels in people with heart disease. In collaboration with researchers in another state, we created nanoparticles to deliver acetylcholine directly to the heart, helping to reduce damage caused by from blocked arteries or aggressive cancer therapies.
Now at HRI, I’ve built on that work and shifted focus to cardio-oncology. We’re studying how breast cancer treatments like immunotherapy and targeted therapies can unintentionally damage the heart and skeletal muscles. Using blood samples from cancer patients - with and without treatment-related heart issues - we're developing advanced mini-hearts and muscle models to replicate and better understand what’s happening in the body.
“Our goal is to identify which patients are at greater risk and ultimately make cancer treatments safer by reducing their long-term effects on heart and muscle health.”
One of the major gaps in this field is the lack of accurate models to study these issues, and I’m hopeful that my work can help address this challenge.
Why are you so passionate about cardiovascular research?
I’ve always been passionate about heart health and cardiovascular research. It’s something that hits close to home for me as my grandmother’s four brothers all passed away from heart-related diseases. I also had someone very special to me, who helped raise me and was like a second dad, die from a stroke a few years ago.
Sadly, almost everyone knows someone affected by heart disease. Even though we have treatments that can slow it down, there’s still no cure. That’s what drives me- I want to be part of the solution, helping to develop better ways to detect, treat, and hopefully one day prevent heart disease altogether.
