Irene Omedo

Irene Omedo

Molecular Biologist

Irene is a molecular biologist, currently holding a joint postdoctoral research position at the Kenya Medical Research Institute-Wellcome Trust Research Programme (KWTRP) in Kilifi, Kenya and the Big Data Institute, University of Oxford, United Kingdom. She has a PhD in malaria population genetics from the Open University, United Kingdom, as well as a BSc in Biochemistry and an MSc in Health Biotechnology, both from the University of Nairobi, Kenya.

Irene has a strong interest in genomic epidemiology of infectious diseases and its application in public health, with her current research focusing on using whole genome sequence data to study the transmission networks and temporal and spatial diversity of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, in Kenya. Beyond basic research, she has a keen interest in identifying and developing practical processes through which genetic data can be incorporated into routine national malaria surveillance and control programmes, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, to ensure that these programmes are more agile and responsive to the evolving malaria parasite and its mosquito vector.