Biography:

Malti Adhin is a Chemistry graduate of the Leiden University in the Netherlands, where she further specialized in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology to complete her PhD. After working as a post-doc for the Dutch Organization for Scientific Research (NWO), she returned to Suriname and joined the Faculty of Medical Sciences (AdeKUS). Currently, she is a tenured professor, heading the department of Biochemistry and teaches courses in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering and organizes practical courses aimed at developing students’ skills in these subjects.

She also serves as head of the Molecular Laboratory of the Institute for Biomedical Sciences (MWI-AdeKUS), where she has implemented new molecular diagnostic assays, that were previously unavailable in the country, including Chikungunya Virus testing, RT-PCR detection/typing for several respiratory viruses, early HIV diagnosis, HIV drug resistance genotyping, molecular malaria confirmation and detection and subtyping of Human Papillomavirus.

Furthermore, she established the national forensic DNA laboratory and oversees its forensic DNA services. Her research portfolio spans a wide range of topics in infectious diseases, with special emphasis on genetic diversity, mutations associated with drug resistance, epidemiology, and seroimmunity of emerging and neglected infectious diseases.

She was awarded the national distinction “Grootofficier in de ereorde van de Palm” in recognition of her scientific contributions to malaria elimination in Suriname.

She actively collaborates with leading international partners, including Harvard University, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and PAHO/WHO in USA; Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), RIVM and the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) in the Netherlands; and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) in Australia.

Professor Adhin is also an active humanitarian volunteer, having served for more than a decade as Vice-President of the Suriname Red Cross Foundation and as the Vice-President of the Board of the National Blood Bank.

For her dedicated public service, she received the national decoration “Commandeur in de ereorde van de gele Ster”.

Publications 

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Malti-Adhin

Current Research:

• Serological Malaria screening in Suriname; an additional tool in the Malaria elimination toolbox?

Assessment of the usefulness of the serological approach as tool for malaria elimination and gaining more insight in the distribution of anti-malaria antibodies in key populations in Suriname (in collaboration with the National Malaria Program)

• Genetic diversity and prevalence of HPV types circulating in Suriname

HPV diversity data will be utilized to predict the impact of current and future HPV vaccines  

• Seroimmunity surveillance study for the evaluation of Infectious Disease susceptibility in Suriname

First data on age-specific seroprevalence (sero-immunity) of vaccine- preventable diseases in Suriname (in collaboration with RIVM, Netherlands)

• Sanger Sequencing to gain insight in the HPV types contributing to development of cervical cancer in Suriname

Detailed assessment of HPV positive samples from retrospective cervical cancer cases, earlier not assigned to high-risk HPV types

• Microbiome research: Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in the Surinamese population (small-scale population study) Information on microbiome diversity across different populations and communities is crucial to prevent the spread of resistant bacteria and will contribute to a better understanding of the local AMR situation in Suriname

(in collaboration with Prof. Dr. Jaap van Dissel from the Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Netherlands).

• Establish the PvSeroTAT (Serological Test And Treatment) assay and subsequently evaluate its impact on Plasmodium vivax case management

(in collaboration with the Vivax Serology Partnership (VISPA) and WEHI, Australia).

• Developing Malaria Molecular Surveillance for Disease Elimination in the Americas

Introduction of cutting-edge genotypic surveillance approaches to support attaining/sustaining elimination status in the Americas (in collaboration with Dr. D. Neafsey, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Harvard University, USA)

Contact details:

m.adhin@uvs.edu
Tel: +597 442001 ext 635