Professor Melissa H. Little has researched how the kidney forms and what goes wrong in kidney disease for more than 30 years. Internationally recognised as an expert on kidney development and stem cells, Professor Little and her team at Murdoch Children’s Research Institute produced the world’s first “kidney in a dish” – referred to as kidney organoids – from human pluripotent stem cells. Her group is now using these to advance disease modelling, drug screening, and continuing to improve our understanding of how the kidney develops. The goal is to identify new therapies that will ultimately restore normal kidney function and one day, even develop replacement organs.

Professor Little is the CEO of reNEW and the executive director of reNEW Copenhagen. She is the principal investigator of research teams at both reNEW Melbourne, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Australia and reNEW Copenhagen, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. As CEO, Professor Little is responsible for the oversight and coordination of all activities at the centre and its three research partner sites.

Professor Little is internationally recognised for her contributions to stem cell medicine, and she has been recognised by numerous international awards, including the Homer Smith Medal, Alfred Newton Richards Award, Julian Wells Medal, GlaxoSmithKline Research Excellence Award and Eureka Prize. Past President of the International Society for Stem Cell Research and the Australiasian Society for Stem Cell Research, she also led Stem Cells Australia from 2017-2021.

Professor Little is also chief scientist at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, honorary professor in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne and holds an honorary degree at the University of Leiden.