DATE: August 21 (1-2PM US EDT)
REGISTER TO ATTEND: https://harvard.zoom.us/meeting/register/g3TP0PVISi6V74ZUZeiS5A
Presenter: Dr. Catherine K. Koofhethile
Dr Koofhethile is based at Botswana Harvard Health Partnership (BHP) as a Senior Research Scientist. She also holds an adjunct Professor Position at the University of Venda, SA. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship from Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health (HSPH) in the US where she was mentored by Prof. Roger Shapiro, Prof. Max Essex, and Prof. Phyllis Kanki. She now holds a Visiting Scientist position at HSPH. She is also a Visiting/collaborating research fellow at The Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard in the USA under the mentorship of Prof. Mathias Lichterfeld and Prof. Xu Yu. Dr. Koofhethile holds a PhD in Immunology from University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa under the supervision of Prof. Thumbi Ndung’u and mentorship of Prof. Zaza Ndhlovu and Dr. Christina Thobakgale-Tshabala where she characterized HIV specific immune responses associated with natural control of HIV-1 in a cohort of adults. She holds a master’s degree in Immunology from University of Birmingham, UK and a Bachelor of Science Degree with Honors in Medical Microbiology from the University of Surrey, Guildford, UK. Her current research focusses on the assessment of the genetic composition of HIV proviral reservoir and factors that drive HIV to persist long term in several cohorts including adolescents from Botswana who are receiving long-term ART. She has previously studied HIV-1 persistence in a cohort of infants from Mozambique who received ART early in life. She also studied how another type of HIV (HIV-2) persists in a different adult cohort. All this work is important for advancing HIV cure research. She is currently leading BHP’s efforts of setting up adolescent HIV cure research in Botswana and facilitating technology transfer. She is involved in building capacity at BHP by co-mentoring students as well as young researchers. She has previously been supported through Fogarty, HBNU, Harvard CFAR, SANTHE Collaborative grant, Povinelli and Campbell Foundations. She recently received several awards to support her research and path to independence since relocating back to Botswana in November 2022. Her current funding comes from several grants which include the SANTHE Path to Independence, Botswana’s Ministry of Communications & Innovation, NIH-Johns Hopkins CFAR Africure, SANTHE-SHARP and the NIH-K43 awards.
Sponsored by the HU CFAR Pathway Opportunities Steering Committee
