Keywords
Biography
Dr Osvaldo Contreras is a cell biologist and biomedical researcher studying tissue regeneration and homeostasis loss in mammals, with a focus on the stromal and stem cell compartments. After completing his MSc degree, he received his PhD in cell and molecular biology in 2019, earning the Outstanding PhD Thesis Prize (2020). His PhD focused on tissue-resident fibro-adipogenic progenitor cell fate, plasticity, and heterogeneity in muscle...view more
Dr Osvaldo Contreras is a cell biologist and biomedical researcher studying tissue regeneration and homeostasis loss in mammals, with a focus on the stromal and stem cell compartments. After completing his MSc degree, he received his PhD in cell and molecular biology in 2019, earning the Outstanding PhD Thesis Prize (2020). His PhD focused on tissue-resident fibro-adipogenic progenitor cell fate, plasticity, and heterogeneity in muscle regeneration and heart repair in Prof. Enrique Brandan's Lab at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, with the co-supervision of Prof. Fabio Rossi (FRSC) at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
Since his PhD, Osvaldo has focused on comprehending myopathies and myogenic and fibroblast fate determination and differentiation in the context of fibro-fatty deposition, centring on three major signalling pathways — PDGF, TGF-β, and Wnt signalling — and their cross-talk.
As a Senior Postdoctoral Fellow, Dr Contreras uses in vivo (mouse and zebrafish) and pluripotent stem cell-based strategies to advance our understanding of heart development and repair, working at the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute. He also holds a Conjoint Lecturer position at UNSW Sydney, Faculty of Medicine and Health.
Osvaldo has secured more than $1.8M USD in governmental fellowships, grants, and awards, including a 2026 NSW Health grant to map the molecular landscape of heart muscle cell identity and cardiac stress in congenital heart disease. He has published 34 peer-reviewed articles (H-index 19, i10-index 23; over 2,000 citations) and built an extensive network of national and international collaborations. His research has been recognised with awards including the Sydney Cardiovascular Symposium Rising Star Award (2024), the Humberto Maturana Romesín Prize and the Australian Society for Stem Cell Research Rising Star Award (both 2022), the Miltenyi Research Award (2022), and the Hermann Niemeyer Medal (2016).
Beyond the lab, Osvaldo advocates for science culture, diversity, and equity in research, serving as co-Chair of the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute's Postdoctoral Development Committee, a member of its Diversity Committee, an eLife Community Ambassador, and co-founder and former co-Chair of the IUBMB Trainee Initiative. His career goal is to become a research leader, advancing knowledge of the mechanisms regulating cellular plasticity, heterogeneity, and behaviour, and translating that knowledge into medical applications that improve human health.
My Qualifications
|
PhD Biological Sciences mention Cell and Molecular Biology |
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile |
Departamento de Biología Celular y Molecular and Center for Aging and Regeneration Centre for Rregenerative Medicine, UBC, Canada |
03/2014 |
05/2019 |
Maximum Distinction, 100% |
|
Master of Biological Sciences, mention Cell and Molecular Biology, |
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile |
Departamento de Biología Celular y Molecular and Center for Aging and Regeneration |
03/2014 |
07/2015 |
Maximum Distinction, 100% |
|
Bachelor of Biological Sciences |
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (#1 Latam University Rankings - QS) |
Departamento de Biología Celular y Molecular and Center for Aging and Regeneration |
03/2008 |
08/2012 |
Ranked 1st, Double Distinction
|
My Awards
Australian Miltenyi Biotech Research Award September 2022
Nominated for Falling Walls Science Breakthroughs of the Year 2022 June 2022
Postdoc Award Highly Commended, Paul Korner Seminar Series Dec 2021
Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, Sydney, Australia
The FEBS Journal Poster of the Day Award, 45th FEBS Virtual Congress, Ljubljana July 2021
PDGF-PDGFR network modulates myogenic progenitor fate, migration, and proliferation
IUBMB MilliporeSigma Virtual Meeting Fellowship, to attend the 45th FEBS Congress USD 300 Mar. 2021
International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB)
Elected Junior Reviewer of Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology (JMCC) Jan. 2021-Present
Conjoint Lecturer, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia Jan. 2021-Present
People’s Choice Award-Art of the Heart, IMAGINE: 3D reconstruction of hiPSC derived cardiomyocytes Dec. 2020
Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, Sydney, Australia
Pan Pacific Connective Tissue Societies Symposium Conference Attendance Award Oct. 2020
Matrix Biology & Matrix Biology Plus Journals
Doctoral Prize “Excellence of Doctoral Thesis 2019”, for the best Ph.D. thesis Jan. 2020
Vicerrectoría de Investigación, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Fellowship for International Doctoral Thesis Jan. 2018
Vicerrectoría de Investigación, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Operational expenses to support the completion of the Doctoral Thesis, CONICYT 2017
Hermann Niemeyer Medal, for the best PhD. Student in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Sep. 2016
Chilean Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Support for presentation in International Congresses, to attend the Myogenesis GRC Italy 2015
Vicerrectoría de Investigación, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Best Image in Cell Biology, First Prize Oct. 2014
Chilean Society for Cell Biology (SBCCh)
National Doctoral Fellowship, Beca de Doctorado Nacional Folio 21140378 2014-2018
Comisión Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONICYT), Chile
Excellence Award for Doctoral Studies UC, Best Ph.D. Student 2014-2018
Vicerrectoría de Investigación, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Award for Academic Excellence, awarded to the best student to enter the Doctorate 2014
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
Undergraduate Student Excellence Fellowship of Honor, Best Undergraduate Student 2010
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
My Research Activities
Osvaldo studies the cellular and molecular mechanisms underpinning mammalian heart development, congenital heart disease pathophysiology, and heart repair, as well as fibro-fatty deposition in heart failure and muscle regeneration. His projects build on the team's recent discoveries using human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to model hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a rare and severe single-ventricle congenital heart abnormality. He also supports a dynamic team of scientists studying heart development and adult heart repair.
Driving projects
- Understanding cardiomyocyte cell cycle dynamics
- Developing 3D iPSC-derived cardiomyocyte organoids
- Characterising patient- and parent-derived organoids using multi-omics, robotics, and advanced imaging and electrophysiology platforms
- Testing candidate disease gene variants using CRISPR/Cas9 technology
- Characterising a mouse model of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF)
- Developing 2D and 3D cell culture tools to study fibro-fatty tissue deposition and repair using stromal cells and fibroblasts
- Building an inclusive, equitable, and diverse environment for supervising early-career researchers, including summer students, research assistants, honours students, and PhD candidates
Essential skills and techniques
- High-dimensional flow cytometry of stromal and immune cells from diverse tissues and organs
- Single-cell RNA sequencing analysis of embryo and adult tissues
- High-throughput and high-resolution imaging analysis of cells and tissues
- Multi-parametric analysis of cell cycle dynamics and proliferation across cell types
- Proteomics, phospho-proteomics, and bulk transcriptomics
- A broad range of cell and molecular biology techniques, including cloning, affinity purification, LC-MS/MS, western blotting, immunofluorescence, RT-qPCR, and co-immunoprecipitation
Location
Contact
ORCID as entered in ROS
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8722-9371