
Qi Sun
Higher Degree by Research Candidate
Adelaide Medical School
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
PhD Candidate, MDS, BDS
Qi Sun is a PhD candidate at the University of Adelaide. After obtaining a Bachelor's degree in Oral Medicine in 2014, he pursued advanced studies at Shandong University, where he earned his medical license and completed a three-year residency program alongside earning a Master’s degree in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery in 2017. Following his academic training, he became an oral and maxillofacial surgeon and practised for five years in China. He specializes in the clinical treatment and research of oral and maxillofacial diseases, particularly temporomandibular joint disorder and osteoarthritis, oral and maxillofacial tumours, and alveolar surgical diseases. As a PhD candidate, Qi Sun focuses on bone infection, with a special interest in the mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment of periprosthetic joint infections.
Qi Sun is dedicated to investigating the mechanisms of osteocyte-mediated bone destruction in bone infectious diseases. Leveraging advanced methodologies such as histopathological analysis, droplet digital PCR (ddPCR), and Oxford Nanopore sequencing, Qi focuses on precisely identifying and quantifying pathogenic microorganisms within infected bone specimens. Building upon foundational research from Professor Gerald Atkins' group on osteocyte-driven bone resorption, Qi has utilized in vitro co-cultural models and mouse periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) models. By integrating these models with cutting-edge analytical techniques, Qi conducts comprehensive assessments of pathogen load and identification, offering novel insights into the etiology of bone infections. This work also extends to clinical PJI samples, contributing to translational advancements in understanding and managing these infections. A portion of this research has been published in the prestigious journal eLife.
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Appointments
Date Position Institution name 2025 - ongoing University Representatives Australia China Scholar Network 2024 - 2025 Lab Assistant University of Adelaide 2020 - 2022 Specialist in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Jinan Stomatological Hospital 2017 - 2020 Registrar/ Senior Registrar Jinan Stomatological Hospital 2014 - 2017 Resident Medical Officer (RMO) Qilu Hospital of Shandong University -
Awards and Achievements
Date Type Title Institution Name Country Amount 2024 Nomination Nomination of ANZBMS Roger Melick Young Investigator Award ANZBMS Australia - 2023 Scholarship University of Adelaide Research Scholarship University of Adelaide Australia - 2019 Award The Annual Outstanding Doctor Jinan Stomatologicall Hospital China - 2019 Award The Outstanding Clinical Teaching Lecturer Binzhou Medical University China - 2017 Award The outstanding paper of young researcher in the 2017th Annual Conference of Shandong Stomatological Association Shandong Stomatological Association China - 2017 Award The Outstanding Postgraduate Student Shandong University China - 2014 Scholarship Postgraduate Scholarship Shandong University China - 2014 Award The Outstanding Graduate Student Jining Medical University China - -
Language Competencies
Language Competency Chinese (Mandarin) Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review English Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review -
Education
Date Institution name Country Title 2022 University of Adelaide Australia PhD 2014 - 2017 Shandong University China Master in Oral Medicine ( Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery) 2009 - 2014 Jining Medical University China Bachelor in Oral Medicine -
Postgraduate Training
Date Title Institution Country 2014 - 2017 National Residency Training Qilu Hospital of Shandong University China -
Certifications
Date Title Institution name Country 2020 Specialist in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China China — Registered Medical Practitioner National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China China -
Research Interests
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Journals
Year Citation 2024 Sun, Q., Huynh, K., Muratovic, D., Gunn, N. J., Zelmer, A. R., Solomon, L. B., . . . Yang, D. (2024). Rapid bacterial evaluation beyond the colony forming unit in osteomyelitis. eLife, 13, RP93698-1-RP93698-11.
2024 Siverino, C., Sun, Q., Yang, D., Solomon, B., Moriarty, F., & Atkins, G. (2024). Establishing a Human Osteocyte-Staphylococcus Epidermidis Infection Model to Reveal Mechanisms of Chronic Bone and Joint Infections. Orthopaedic Proceedings, 106-B(S18), 40.
2017 Sun, Q., Wu, G., Chen, H., Chen, L., Chen, H., Zhu, G., & Zhao, H. (2017). Hyperbaric oxygen protects type II collagen in interleukin-1β- induced mandibular condylar chondrocyte via inhibiting the JNK/c-Jun signaling pathway. Oncotarget, 8(36), 60312-60323.
Scopus13 WoS7 Europe PMC12016 Chen, H., Wu, G., Sun, Q., Dong, Y., & Zhao, H. (2016). Hyperbaric oxygen protects mandibular condylar chondrocytes from interleukin-1β-induced apoptosis via the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. American Journal of Translational Research, 8(11), 5108-5117.
Scopus19 WoS16 Europe PMC15 -
Preprint
Year Citation 2024 Sun, Q., Huynh, K., Muratovic, D., Gunn, N. J., Zelmer, A. R., Solomon, L. B., . . . Yang, D. (2024). Beyond the Colony-Forming-Unit: Rapid Bacterial Evaluation in Osteomyelitis.
DOI Scopus1 Europe PMC32024 Sun, Q., Huynh, K., Muratovic, D., Gunn, N. J., Zelmer, A. R., Solomon, L. B., . . . Yang, D. (2024). Beyond the Colony-Forming-Unit: Rapid Bacterial Evaluation in Osteomyelitis.
DOI2023 Sun, Q., Huynh, K., Muratovic, D., Gunn, N., Zelmer, A., Solomon, B., . . . Yang, D. (2023). Beyond the Colony-Forming-Unit: Rapid Bacterial Evaluation in Osteomyelitis.
DOI
2024-2024, Medical Science 3rd Year Research Placement Course.
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Memberships
Date Role Membership Country 2025 - ongoing Advisory Board Member Australia China Scholar Network Australia 2024 - ongoing Member ANZBMS Australia 2022 - ongoing Member Chinese Stomatological Association China -
Presentation
Date Topic Presented at Institution Country 2025 - 2025 A novel molecular approach: rapid identification and quantification of bacterial load from bone of periprosthetic joint infection Beijing, China Chinese Orthopedic Research Society (ORS-China) China 2024 - 2024 Rapid Molecular Detection and Quantification of Bacterial Load in Periprosthetic Joint Infection Adelaide, SA, Austalia ANZBMS Australia 2023 - 2023 Absolute copy number quantification by digital droplet PCR (dd-PCR) to monitor bone infection Adelaide, SA, Australia Bio-Rad Laboratories Australia
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