Projects per year
Personal profile
Research interests
Specific Projects include:
Application for patients with Alport syndrome and polycystic kidney disease (PKD) Generation of stem cells from patients with kidney disease
We have published the first international report of the generation of stem cells, termed iPS cells, from human kidney cells (J Am Soc Nephrol 2011). We are interested in the application of iPS cells for patients with genetic kidney disease, in particular Alport Syndrome and PKD, and the ability of iPS to generate kidney cells. The use of pluripotent stem cells to generate replacement kidney cells may offer an unprecedented opportunity to generate human cells that represent kidney disorders and divide long-term, thereby enabling disease investigation, drug development and disease-modifying assays and hold an extraordinary potential for new drug discovery and personalized medicine. This is where the study of iPS cells could provide information about an individual patient to select or optimize that patient's preventative and therapeutic care and enable us to understand kidney disorders in a way we've never been able to before.
Stem cell therapy and reducing scarring and injury in chronic kidney disease
This research is focused on the development of strategies to promote of kidney 'self-repair' and the blood-derived immune cells that are important in this process. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have initiated considerable excitement in their role to promote acute kidney repair and tissue remodelling through the paracrine secretion of mitogenic and angiogenic factors. Following delivery to mice with acute kidney disease, MSCs preferentially home to the kidney and may promote downstream tissue repair via their ability to alter macrophage phenotype and function. However, the efficacy of MSCs is less apparent in a setting of chronic disease where fibrotic scarring is prevalent. Ongoing research projects are investigating the potential of kidney regeneration following MSC therapy that may be due to MSC-derived factors that alter macrophage phenotype, resulting in downstream tissue remodelling and accelerated wound healing.
A novel therapy for babies with kidney defects
There is growing evidence that genes important in kidney development are also vital in regeneration of the kidney and may "switch on" during kidney repair following injury. We are developing a protein called colony stimulating factor 1 (CSF-1) for clinical trials that can promote kidney growth and maturation. This exciting new finding allows for the development of innovative applications of CSF-1 therapy for the treatment of unborn babies with kidney defects for which there is currently no cure.
Community service
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
Pathology/Cell Biology, BSc(Honours), NA, University of Melbourne
Award Date: 30 Nov 1998
Medicine, PhD, Reactive Oxygen Species in Kidney Disease, University of Melbourne
Award Date: 25 May 1994
Research area keywords
- Kidney Disease
- Stem Cells
- Regenerative Medicine
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Targeting CaV3 in a cerebellar organoid model of medulloblastoma brain cancer
Azimi, I. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Ricardo, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Nayler, S. P. (Chief Investigator (CI))
20/03/24 → 20/03/26
Project: Research
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Engineering bone marrow-derived stromal cells to express anti-fibrotic cargo as a treatment for chronic kidney disease
Samuel, C. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Ricardo, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Kerr, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Li, T. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Jenkin, G. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hudson, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Polo, J. (Associate Investigator (AI)), Widdop, R. (Associate Investigator (AI)), Nikolic-Paterson, D. (Associate Investigator (AI)) & Teo, L. (Associate Investigator (AI))
1/01/23 → 31/12/26
Project: Research
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Modelling hereditary kidney disease using induced pluripotent stem cells: determining genetic mechanisms and developing novel targeted therapies
Ricardo, S. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Perin, L. (Partner Investigator (PI)), Prunotto, M. (Partner Investigator (PI)), Bertram, J. (Partner Investigator (PI)) & Laslett, A. (Partner Investigator (PI))
Project: Research
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The establishment of a joint Australia-China centre for excellence in stem cell science
Boyd, R. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Bernard, C. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Chidgey, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Elefanty, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Jenkin, G. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Li, L. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Li, Y. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Li, L. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Lin, C. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Ricardo, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Shen, L. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Stanley, E. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Trounson, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Wallace, E. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Wang, L. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Wen, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Zhou, S. (Chief Investigator (CI))
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (Australia)
Project: Research
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Fabry Disease Podocytes Reveal Ferroptosis as a Potential Regulator of Cell Pathology
Wise, A. F., Krisnadevi, I. A., Bruell, S., Lee, H. C., Bhuvan, T., Kassianos, A. J., Saini, S., Wang, X., Healy, H. G., Qian, E. L., Elliot, D. A., Steele, J. R., Fuller, M., Nicholls, K. M. & Ricardo, S. D., Feb 2025, In: Kidney International Reports. 10, 2, p. 535-548 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access2 Citations (Scopus) -
The activity of early-life gene regulatory elements is hijacked in aging through pervasive AP-1-linked chromatin opening
Patrick, R., Naval-Sanchez, M., Deshpande, N., Huang, Y., Zhang, J., Chen, X., Yang, Y., Tiwari, K., Esmaeili, M., Tran, M., Mohamed, A. R., Wang, B., Xia, D., Ma, J., Bayliss, J., Wong, K., Hun, M. L., Sun, X., Cao, B. & Cottle, D. L. & 28 others, , 6 Aug 2024, In: Cell Metabolism. 36, 8, p. 1858-1881 48 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access7 Citations (Scopus) -
A comparison of fixation methods for SEM analysis of self-assembling peptide hydrogel nanoarchitecture
McFetridge, M. L., Kulkarni, K., Hilsenstein, V., Del Borgo, M. P., Aguilar, M. I. & Ricardo, S. D., 21 Jan 2023, In: Nanoscale. 15, 3, p. 1431-1440 10 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
11 Citations (Scopus) -
Cellular delivery of relaxin-2 mRNA as a potential treatment for kidney fibrosis
Ding, C., Wang, B., Lai, X. F., Guo, Y., Tesch, G., Ding, X., Zheng, J., Tian, P. X., Ricardo, S., Shen, H.-H. & Xue, W., Aug 2023, In: Materials Today Bio. 21, 12 p., 100716.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access6 Citations (Scopus) -
Elucidating the cell penetrating properties of self-assembling β-peptides
McFetridge, M. L., Kulkarni, K., Lee, T.-H., Del Borgo, M. P., Aguilar, M. I. & Ricardo, S. D., 28 Sept 2023, In: Nanoscale. 36, p. 14971–14980 10 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review