Cameron Stewart

Dr. Cameron Stewart is a Research Team Leader at CSIRO's Health & Biosecurity Business Unit, based at the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness (ACDP) in Geelong, Victoria. His research focuses on host-pathogen interactions to develop novel intervention strategies, with expertise in host-encoded microRNAs as biomarkers for infection detection and disease severity forecasting.

Dr. Stewart's educational background includes:

• PhD in 2007 from The University of Melbourne
• Bachelor of Science (Honours) in 2003 from The University of Melbourne
• Post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School (2007-2008)

His primary research areas encompass host-pathogen interactions, biomarker discovery for infectious diseases, and the identification of host molecules as therapeutic targets. Notably, his team was the first to comprehensively profile microRNA responses to COVID-19 and has characterized proteins such as ILRUN. This work bridges microbiology, virology, immunology, and functional genomics to advance disease diagnostics and therapeutics.

Dr. Stewart has received several prestigious awards, including:

• CSIRO Chairman's Medal (2020)
• Corporate Citizen Award (Group) from CSIRO ACDP (2020)
• CSIRO Julius Career Award (2017-2019)
• CSIRO Livestock Industries Excellence in Young Scientists Award (2010)

His lab, the Host Response Team, is supported by multiple active grants from national and international bodies including the Department of Health, Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment, NHMRC, and Therapeutics Innovation Australia. These grants fund research on diagnostics for Johne's disease, Mycoplasma bovis, Hendra virus, and host responses to SARS-CoV-2.

The Host Response Team operates within the high-containment facilities of the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness, enabling cutting-edge research on dangerous pathogens. The team actively collaborates with institutions such as Monash University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and participates in networks like the Biosafety Level 4 Zoonotic Laboratory Network.