Associate Professor Zhichao Wu is a Principal Investigator and Head of Clinical Biomarkers Research at CERA, and an Honorary Principal Fellow at the University of Melbourne.

He is a clinician-scientist whose research aims to exploit technological advances to prevent irreversible vision loss, especially from common eye conditions such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma.

His work focusses on establishing new biomarkers of these conditions using state-of-the-art imaging and functional assessment of the eye, which are used in clinical trials to expedite the discovery of new treatments. These biomarkers are also developed to enable the earlier detection of these conditions and their progression, prediction of vision loss, and the uncovering new insights about what causes these conditions. His research is undertaken in collaboration with researchers and industry both nationally and internationally.

Associate Professor Wu completed his PhD at the University of Melbourne (based at CERA), where he was awarded the Dean’s Award for Excellence in the PhD Thesis. He was subsequently awarded the prestigious NHMRC Neil Hamilton Fairley Overseas Clinical Research Fellowship and undertook research fellowships at the University of California, San Diego and Columbia University.

His work has also been recognised through the receipt of the Irvin M. and Beatrice Borish Award by the American Academy of Optometry in 2020, and included in the Ten of the Best NHMRC Research Projects in 2024. He also received the Melbourne Medical School Award for Outstanding Graduate Research Supervision in 2023, and is currently the recipient of an NHMRC Investigator Grant, Emerging Leadership 2.