Professor Catriona Waitt BSc (Hons), MBChB (Hons), MRCP, DTM&H, PhD

Research Overview

My Wellcome Fellowship will increase understanding of the transfer of medication through breastmilk from mother to infant. Priority drugs under study are antiretrovirals, antimalarials, anti-tuberculosis drugs (both drug-sensitive and drug-resistant tuberculosis) and antibacterials and is being undertaken between the Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University College of Health Sciences in Kampala, Uganda, the University of Cape Town, South Africa and the University of Liverpool. An accompanying Public Engagement Enrichment grant, ATtaining EQUity of Access TO Reseach (At The EQUATOR) will ensure the priorities of communities are addressed, study design and methods are discussed and results are communicated in an appropriate and timely manner. I am also Chief Investigator on the EDCTP-funded VirTUAL Consortium which combines pharmacometric techniques (physiologically-based pharmacokinetic modelling and population pharmacokinetic modelling) with a clinical trial and observational pharmacokinetic studies to understand the drug-drug interactions between antiretrovirals and anti-tuberculosis drugs, including among individuals who are often excluded from clinical trials. In addition to the primary data, this has enabled integration of clinical and pharmacometric methods and provides a valuable paradigm to use for future evaluation of complex pharmacology in complex populations. To build capacity in pharmacometric approaches, I am a faculty member of Pharmacometrics Africa (www.pmxafrica.org) and the Uganda chapter was launched in September 2021.