Firdausi Qadri
ফিরদৌসী কাদরী
Born (1951-03-31) March 31, 1951 (age 73)
NationalityBangladeshi
Alma materUniversity of Dhaka
Liverpool University
Awardsfull list
Scientific career
FieldsImmunology
Vaccine
Microbiology
InstitutionsICDDR,B

Firdausi Qadri (Bengali: ফিরদৌসী কাদরী; born March 31, 1951) is a Bangladeshi scientist with specialization in immunology and infectious disease research. She has worked over 25 years on the development of vaccines for cholera[1] and has expertise on other infectious disease like ETEC, Typhoid, Helicobacter pylori, rotavirus, etc. Currently, she is working as a director for Centre for Vaccine Sciences of International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease and Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B). She also serves as chairperson of the Institute for developing Science and Health initiatives.[2] Her scientific achievements lie in enteric infections and vaccines including Vibrio cholerae and enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli—major causes of severe diarrhea. She has also focused on studying the immune response in Helicobacter pylori infected people in Bangladesh and the responses in patients with typhoid fever as well as vaccinees.[1] The Government of Bangladesh awarded her the Independence Award in 2023.[3]

Education and professional qualification

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Qadri got her BSc and MSc degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from the University of Dhaka in 1975 and 1977 respectively. In 1980, she got her PhD degree in biochemistry/immunology from University of Liverpool. After completing her postdoc in immunology from ICDDR,B she joined as an associate scientist in 1988 in the same institution. Currently, she is the senior scientist and director of Centre for Vaccine Science at ICDDR,B.

Research contributions

Qadri has focused her research on enteric diseases, specifically in the areas of immunology, genomics, proteomic technology and diagnostics, and vaccine development. She endeavored to introduce a new cheap oral cholera vaccine in Bangladesh [4] in replacement of Dukoral, which is costly for poor people and cost-ineffective as a public health tool.[5] She demonstrated the efficacy of Shanchol vaccine in mass population in slam areas in Dhaka,[6] then worked to have it adopted as a public health intervention in Bangladesh,[7] including Rohingya refugees.[8]

Honours and awards

In 2012, Qadri was awarded the Fondation Christophe et Rodolphe Mérieux's annual scientific 'Grand Prize', called the "Christophe Mérieux Prize", for her research on infectious enteric diseases.[9][10] This award made possible the creation of the Institute for Developing Science and Health Initiatives (ideSHi) in 2014.[11] In 2014, she has been named as a member of a high-level panel which will advise the UN chief on the organizational and operational aspects of a proposed Technology Bank and Science, Technology and Innovation Supporting Mechanism dedicated to the least developed countries.[12] She is also listed in the top 100 Asian Scientists list. This list is published by Asian Scientist Magazine.[13]

In August 2021, the Ramon Magsaysay Award was presented to Firdausi Qadri.[14]

Memberships

Qadri is a founder and a member of Board of Advisory of the Bangladesh Society of Microbiologists.[15] She is the International Ambassador for the American Society for Microbiology Bangladesh[16] and a fellow of the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences since 2008.[17]

Awards

References

  1. ^ a b "Dr Firdausi Qadri". World Health Organization. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013.
  2. ^ "Dr. Firdausi Qadri". Institute for Developing Science and Health Initiatives. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  3. ^ "9 people, fire service to receive Independence Award 2023". unb.com.bd. Retrieved 2023-03-10.
  4. ^ Qadri, Firdausi; Clemens, John D.; Sarker, Abdur Razzaque; Islam, Md Taufiqul; Ali, Mohammad; Islam, Muhammad Shariful; Khan, Jahangir A. M.; Dimitrov, Dobromir T.; DeRoeck, Denise (2018-10-09). "The impact and cost-effectiveness of controlling cholera through the use of oral cholera vaccines in urban Bangladesh: A disease modeling and economic analysis". PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 12 (10): e0006652. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0006652. ISSN 1935-2735. PMC 6177119. PMID 30300420.
  5. ^ Hutubessy, Raymond; Tebbens, Radboud J. Duintjer; Reyburn, Rita; Khatib, Ahmed M.; Chaignat, Claire-Lise; Ali, Said M.; Weiss, Mitchell G.; Schaetti, Christian (2012-10-04). "Costs of Illness Due to Cholera, Costs of Immunization and Cost-Effectiveness of an Oral Cholera Mass Vaccination Campaign in Zanzibar". PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 6 (10): e1844. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0001844. ISSN 1935-2735. PMC 3464297. PMID 23056660.
  6. ^ Qadri, Firdausi; Wierzba, Thomas F.; Ali, Mohammad; Chowdhury, Fahima; Khan, Ashraful I.; Saha, Amit; Khan, Iqbal A.; Asaduzzaman, Muhammad; Akter, Afroza (2016-05-04). "Efficacy of a Single-Dose, Inactivated Oral Cholera Vaccine in Bangladesh". New England Journal of Medicine. 374 (18): 1723–1732. doi:10.1056/nejmoa1510330. hdl:10852/77703. PMID 27144848.
  7. ^ Khan, Iqbal Ansary; Khan, Ashraful Islam; Rahman, Anisur; Siddique, Shah Alam; Islam, Md Taufiqul; Bhuiyan, Md Amirul Islam; Chowdhury, Atique Iqbal; Saha, Nirod Chandra; Biswas, Prasanta Kumar (2019-01-01). "Organization and implementation of an oral cholera vaccination campaign in an endemic urban setting in Dhaka, Bangladesh". Global Health Action. 12 (1): 1574544. doi:10.1080/16549716.2019.1574544. ISSN 1654-9716. PMC 6383613. PMID 30764750.
  8. ^ Clemens, John D.; Singh, Poonam Khetrapal; Nair, G. Balakrish; Islam, Md Taufiqul; Khan, Ashraful Islam; Flora, Meerjady Sabrina; Azad, Abul Kalam; Qadri, Firdausi (2018-05-12). "Emergency deployment of oral cholera vaccine for the Rohingya in Bangladesh". The Lancet. 391 (10133): 1877–1879. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)30993-0. ISSN 0140-6736. PMID 29781432. S2CID 29159499.
  9. ^ "Institut de France - Accueil" (PDF).
  10. ^ a b "Institut de France's Christophe Mérieux Prize". Mérieux Foundation (in French). 2013-09-17. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  11. ^ "About Us". Institute for Developing Science and Health Initiatives. Archived from the original on 2019-07-16. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  12. ^ "Bangladeshi scientist Qadri named member of high-level UN panel". The Daily Star. 2014-11-27.
  13. ^ "3 Bangladeshi researchers named in Asian Scientist 100 list". The Daily Star. 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2021-05-01.
  14. ^ "Firdausi Qadri". August 31, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  15. ^ "Board of Advisory". Bangladesh Society of Microbiologists. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  16. ^ "Contact The ASM International Ambassador in Your Country!". American Society for Microbiology. Archived from the original on 2013-11-05.
  17. ^ "Dr. Firdausi Qadri". Bangladesh Academy of Science. Archived from the original on 2015-06-10.
  18. ^ "Academy Gold Medal Award". Bangladesh Academy of Sciences. Archived from the original on 2015-09-26. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  19. ^ "Bangladeshi immunologist wins the C.N.R. Rao Prize". The World Academy of Sciences. Archived from the original on 2013-10-05.
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