09/04/2026
Baby steps toward better probiotics with Bonface Gichuki
Anthony completed his BSc in Biological Sciences at the Universidad Nacional de Piura in Peru. He continued his training at the University of Bordeaux, France, before moving to Asia to pursue a PhD at the National University of Singapore, funded by the A*STAR Singapore International Graduate Award. His doctoral research, conducted under the supervision of Professor Lisa Ng, investigated the immunopathogenesis of co-infections involving malaria parasites and alphaviruses, work that earned him the Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) in 2023.
Following his PhD, Anthony joined A*STAR Infectious Diseases Labs as a postdoctoral fellow, where he contributed to Singapore’s responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Mpox outbreak. The marked disparities in global preparedness and response exposed during these health emergencies motivated him to pivot toward global health, undertaking an MPhil in Population Health Sciences at the University of Cambridge in 2024.
He later moved to Finland to serve as a Specialist in the Welfare Epidemiology and Monitoring Unit at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL). His work there supported the development of real-time epidemic intelligence frameworks for severe respiratory infections, strengthening early warning capabilities and enhancing coordinated national response capacity.
