Dr Muyiwa Owolabi is the Lead Clinician/ Clinical Coordinator of the Tuberculosis Case Contact (TBCC) platform at the MRC Unit The Gambia at LSHTM.
Dr Muyiwa’s professional background is in Paediatrics and child health and in this regard, he has led two major projects on TB vaccine clinical trials (MVA85A, Oxford University, and GSK M72/ASO 1E) in healthy infants since joining MRCG at LSHTM in 2008. These two clinical trials were the first to administer these novel vaccines in infants. His contribution to the TBCC has been important, in patients care, initiation and implementation of new projects coupled with overseeing of the entire field and clinic team as well as mentorship. At the MRC Festival, Dr Muyiwa will be presenting on the topic global burden of TB and the role of TBCC platform in TB control in The Gambia. The presentation will highlight what MRC Unit The Gambia at LSHTM’s research on TB is programmed to achieved. This includes identifying index TB cases and following up their family members for 2 years to enhance detection of co-prevalent and incident TB cases using high tech molecular techniques in line with WHO recommendations.

Dr Muyiwa will further the understanding of the immune profile of the index cases, co-prevalent and secondary cases for vaccine discovery and timely therapeutic intervention of resistant TB cases. The platform has significantly contributed to heightening TB awareness in The Gambia through its numerous community engagement programmes.