Rufaro Chivaura

Rufaro Chivaura, born and raised in Harare, Zimbabwe. She has MSc in Medical Biochemistry from the University of Cape Town and has spent the past 8 years working in a medical testing laboratory specialises in Immunology tests (hormones, cardiac markers, cancer markers etc) and molecular tests (HIV, MTBMDR, HPV, HBV etc). Though working in that industry was very enjoyable, Rufaro now seeks to further her education by undertaking her PhD focusing on mapping antibody epitope specificity for broadly neutralising antibodies against HIV. Broadly neutralizing antibodies are usually classed as elite neutralizers. Broadly neutralizing antibodies developed by perinatally infected children may have different characteristics from those developed by adults. Previous work has shown children with chronic HIV infection have good cross clade breadth and potency thus it is important to understand which broadly neutralising antibodies are being produced and which epitope on HIV they are targeting. This is aid in the eventual development of a therapeutic treatment using antibody combination therapy with different epitope specificities.This multipronged approach could also assist in the development of a functional cure and vaccine development.