Dr Chong (BSc (HONS) Biochemistry, PhD (Microbial Ecology) is an Associate Professor and the Deputy Head of School (Research) at the School of Pharmacy, Monash University Malaysia. Dr Chong is an experienced researcher in microbial ecology, gut microbiome science and digital health. As a leader of microbiome science in Malaysia, he participated actively in public talks and forums on gut health topics related to disease, diet and lifestyle. With over a decade of interdisciplinary expertise, his work bridges microbiology, public health, and technology to address global challenges such as diabetes prevention, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and neurodegenerative disorders. His current research interest includes understanding the role of the gut-brain axis in neurological disorders, the interplay between diet, gut microbiome and host metabolism, and the impact of antibiotics on the gut microbiome.   

Dr Chong has taken various roles in education and research. At IMU, he was appointed the program director of MSc Molecular Medicine. He was instrumental in obtaining accreditation from the Malaysian Qualifications Agency to allow the program to be offered under the open distance learning mode. In addition, he established a double degree option for the MSc Molecular Medicine program to jointly award a second award of MSc Genomic Medicine from Queen Mary’s University of London (QMUL), UK through credit top-up.

Dr Chong is the Deputy Head of School – Research for the School of Pharmacy (SOP), Monash University Malaysia. The School of Pharmacy is part of the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences of Monash University, located at Parkville, Melbourne, Australia. Monash’s Pharmacy and Pharmacology subject has been consistently ranked among the top 5 in the Global QS ranking. As the DHOS-Research. Dr Chong is responsible for charting the research direction and aligning the research in Malaysia with the direction of the faculty.  

In 2024, Dr Chong was appointed the Director of the Monash Malaysia Microbiome Research Centre, a part of the Future Centre Initiative. The Future Centre has conducted several studies to reveal how ethnic-specific diets and lifestyles shape gut microbiota, paving the way for personalised healthcare strategies. In addition, he is also leading a multicentre study to investigate ethnic-specific links between diet, gut microbiome, metabolome, and Disorders of Gut-Brain Interaction (DGBIs) in Malaysia.

Dr Chong Chun Wie started his research career on the Polar soil bacterial community and their responses to the climate, environments and anthropogenic impact. Due to the nature of the research, he has gathered extensive experience in conducting field studies in environmentally challenging ecosystems. The knowledge and understanding of microbial ecology were further transferred to the study of human and animal's gut systems. For instance, his group is actively involved in researching the impact of diet, lifestyle, and ethnicity on gut microbial composition. In addition, he also studies the gut microbial composition of farm animals, term/preterm neonates and the link between gut health with communicable and non-communicable diseases (e.g. Parkinson's Disease, Diabetes, Oral Cancer etc). 

Dr Chong's group is currently studying the effect of diets (e.g. fibre, dextrins, protein) on diseases such as DGBIs and obesity using a systems biology approach. His team is also exploring the use of advanced multivariate and machine learning techniques in deciphering the advance interaction between microbial composition, metabolites productions and immune responses.  

Dr Chong is currently the head of the MUM Microbiome Research Centre. He is also the co-lead of the 1000MYMicrobiome Project.