Salim S. Abdool Karim, a South African epidemiologist, has made seminal contributions to HIV prevention and treatment globally. His clinical research showed that antiretrovirals prevent sexually transmitted HIV infection and genital herpes in women. He is an inventor on patents used in HIV vaccine candidates and antibody-based passive immunisation strategies. His TB-HIV treatment studies have shaped international guidelines on the clinical management of co-infected patients.
He Chairs the UNAIDS Scientific Expert Panel, the World Health Organisation's (WHO) HIV Strategic Advisory Committee and serves on the WHO TB-HIV Task Force. He is on the Boards of several journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet Global Health, Lancet HIV and mBio.
He is a member of the US National Academy of Medicine, American Academy of Microbiology, African Academy of Science, Academy of Science of South Africa and the Royal Society of South Africa. Among his many awards, he is recipient of The World Academy of Sciences’ Prize in Medical Science and the African Union’s ‘Kwame Nkrumah Scientific Award’, the most prestigious scientific award in Africa.
Professional position
- Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research), University of KwaZulu-Natal
- Director, Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA)
- CAPRISA Professor of Global Health, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University
Subject groups
- Health and human sciences
Clinical epidemiology, Medicine, clinical studies
