RESEARCHER PROFILE
Associate Professor Amy McCart Reed (Filmed June 2024)
Senior Principal Research Fellow,
Centre for Clinical Research
University of Queensland,
Australia
Associate Professor Amy McCart Reed holds a PhD in molecular biology from The University of Queensland. She is a Fellow of the Faculty of Science of the Royal College of Pathologists Australasia. Her early postdoctoral work focused on understanding the genetic basis of colorectal cancer using experimental disease models, as part of a Cancer Research UK-funded colorectal cancer program led by Professors Ian Tomlinson and Andrew Silver.
After returning to Australia, she was recruited to the Molecular Breast Pathology group at UQ’s Centre for Clinical Research and has undertaken a series of studies investigating the genomic landscape of breast cancer special types. Amy’s research program includes studies on Metaplastic breast cancer and Invasive Lobular Carcinoma, two breast cancer special types in need of targeted therapy options.
Assoc Prof McCart Reed is the scientific lead on an MRFF-funded (Medical Research Future Fund) genomics program investigating the potential for the application of Whole Genome Sequencing in the breast cancer care pathway in Australia, ‘Q-IMPROvE’. She applies genomics and spatial transcriptomics methodologies to archival clinical samples to understand the differences between tumour types and their potential for treatment. Amy is passionate about clinical research, biobanking and precision oncology. In addition to her breast cancer research portfolio, she is on the steering committee for the Brisbane Breast Bank and the Scientific Advisory Board for Breast Cancer Trials.
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Precision and personalised nutrition
Laureate Professor Clare Collins is helping people access effective medical nutrition therapies that significantly reduce their risk of chronic disease. She and her team are developing innovative technologies, including apps and online programmes.
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Systems genetics to determine risk of developing diabetes complications
Professor Morahan invented the term “Systems Genetics” for the science field that examines how genetic variants can affect whole networks of genes and whole systems; there are now several laboratories and institutes of systems genetics around the world. He also developed the next-generation genetic resource, The Gene Mine, the most powerful of its type in the world, used globally in rapid mapping and identification of genes. Collaborators nationally and internationally have tested The Gene Mine for traits and diseases in which they specialise.
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DNA repair on the Fanconi anaemia pathway
Associate Professor Wayne Crismani is an internationally recognised expert in DNA repair, with a particular focus on Fanconi anaemia (FA)—a cancer-predisposition and bone marrow failure syndrome marked by extreme sensitivity to DNA damage. Based at St Vincent’s Institute in Melbourne, he leads a research program dedicated to understanding the genetic, cellular, and reproductive consequences of FA. He is currently supported by a Victorian Cancer Agency Mid-Career Fellowship and funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council.
