Dyann Wirth, Ph.D.
she/her/hers
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Dyann Wirth, Ph.D., is a leader in molecular parasitology and global health research. She led the development of genetic engineering tools for protozoan parasites and this work is the foundation for molecular parasitology. She pioneered the use of genetic epidemiology to address transmission and spread of drug resistance of Plasmodium falciparum and translated this into practice.
Wirth is a founding member of Malaria Drug Accelerator (MalDA) that uses genomic and biochemical approaches to validate new drug targets. She plays a major leadership role in advancing both research and education in parasitology. She was the founding chair of the Molecular Parasitology Meeting and she served as chair of the WHO/TDR Chemotherapy of Malaria. She is faculty director of the Defeating Malaria: From the Genes to the Globe initiative at Harvard University and founded the "Science of Eradication" course, a global effort to bring together leaders in academic and national malaria control programs to establish a framework for malaria eradication. She is the current chair of the WHO Malaria Policy Advisory Group.
Wirth is the recipient of the Joseph Augustin LePrince Medal, the BioMalPar Lifetime Achievement Award and an Honorary Fellow of American Association for the Advancement of Science. She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and a fellow of the American Society for Microbiology. In 2021, Wirth received the Walter Reed Medal from the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene for her lifetime achievements. She is the first women to receive this highest honor from ASTMH.
Wirth is a founding member of Malaria Drug Accelerator (MalDA) that uses genomic and biochemical approaches to validate new drug targets. She plays a major leadership role in advancing both research and education in parasitology. She was the founding chair of the Molecular Parasitology Meeting and she served as chair of the WHO/TDR Chemotherapy of Malaria. She is faculty director of the Defeating Malaria: From the Genes to the Globe initiative at Harvard University and founded the "Science of Eradication" course, a global effort to bring together leaders in academic and national malaria control programs to establish a framework for malaria eradication. She is the current chair of the WHO Malaria Policy Advisory Group.
Wirth is the recipient of the Joseph Augustin LePrince Medal, the BioMalPar Lifetime Achievement Award and an Honorary Fellow of American Association for the Advancement of Science. She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and a fellow of the American Society for Microbiology. In 2021, Wirth received the Walter Reed Medal from the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene for her lifetime achievements. She is the first women to receive this highest honor from ASTMH.