Banu Sayera

Banu's research focuses on mycobacterial infections, epidemiology, diagnostics, and therapeutics, all fields where she has fostered international and national collaborations. She is currently a senior scientist and head of the program for emerging infections under the Infectious Diseases Division at icddr,b, where she has been working since 1991. Among her achievements are establishing the state-of-the-art BSL 2+ mycobacteriology laboratory at icddr,b; conducting the first-ever MDR-TB sentinel surveillance in Southeast Asia; bringing in new tools and technology in advancing TB diagnosis and management; research on TB prevalence and transmission in prison settings; standardizing stool processing method for Xpert MTB/RIF assay; and the successful development and implementation of an innovative social enterprise model for TB diagnosis and management in the private sector which has been incorporated in the National Strategic Plan. Banu is a fellow of the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences, and serves as a member in several scientific/programme committees, and has over 120 publications in peer-reviewed journals.