Wasay is currently Alicharan endowed professor of neurology at Aga Khan University (AKU); past president, Pakistan Society of Neurology and Pakistan Stroke Society; president, Neurology Awareness and Research Foundation; chairman, advocacy and awareness task force of World Federation of Neurology; editor, Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences; chief editor, Jahan e Aasab (neurology public awareness magazine); chair, seed grants research committee at AKU; and co-chair, Non-Communicable Diseases Think Tank at AKU. Wasay received several national and international awards for educational, research and advocacy activities, including Teachers Recognition Award (American Academy of Neurology), Distinguished Teacher Award (Pakistan Society of Neurology), Outstanding Teacher Award (AKU), Gold Medal for Research (Pakistan Academy of Medical Sciences), Advocacy Leader of the Year Award (American Academy of Neurology), Victor Rivera Award (UT Southwestern Medical Center, USA) and Lester R. Bryant Founders Award (Marshall University, Huntington, USA). He was awarded fellowship of the Pakistan Academy of Medical Science and Gold Medal in Health Sciences by the Pakistan Academy of Sciences.

Wonkam is a professor of genetic medicine, and director of the McKusick-Nathans Institute and Department of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, US. He is also director of GeneMAP (Genetic Medicine of African Populations), and immediate past-deputy dean of research at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, South Africa. After an MD training with the Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon, he has completed a doctorate in medical sciences (cell biology) at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and a PhD in human genetics at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. Wonkam also trained as a medical geneticist in genetic medicine at the University of Geneva. His scientific results are reflected in more than 230 peer-reviewed publications. His research focuses on genetic and genomic variations in the African population with a focus on 1) Genomics modifiers of Sickle Cell Disease (SCD); 2) Genetics of hearing Impairment, and 3) Ethical, Equity, and Educational Issues in Genetic Medicine Research. Wonkam is president of the African Society of Human Genetics.

Wyse (PhD, 1995, Porto Alegre, Brazil) is full professor of Biochemistry of the Institute of Basic Health Sciences at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. Her prizes include CAPES-Elsevier Award 2014, Pesquisador Gaúcho Award 2018 from the State Research Foundation and Scientist of the Year 2020 Award from International Achievements Research Center, USA. Her research work is focused on the neurotoxic mechanisms of homocysteine and neurometabolic and neurodegenerative diseases, as well as on neurobiology of menopause and neuroprotection, encompassing multiple experimental approach ranging from neurochemistry to behavior. Her studies have contributed to the understanding of biomolecule damage in hyperhomocysteinemic and homocystinuric patients and show potential to improve medical practice. She has published more than 400 scientific papers and has advised more than 70 masters and PhDs. Convinced that access to science and education are pillars to citizenship, she has launched a social project for underprivileged children of the public school system from the outskirts of her town, Porto Alegre. She published a book of poetry.

Zühlke is vice-president of the South African Medical Research Council, responsible for extramural research and internal portfolio and directs the Children’s Heart Disease Research Unit focusing on relevant pediatric heart diseases in Africa. She has authored more than 250 publications, including conference proceedings and book chapters, with an h-index of 58. She has more than 74,000 citations and was a finalist for South Africa in the Women in Science Award. In 2018, she received the MRC/DFID African Research Leader Award, the winner of the NRF award for Social Impact in Research, the International Metrodora Award for Public Health and Research and the UCT vice-chancellors Alan Pfifer Award for research. She was recently inducted into the prestigious University of Cape Town College of Fellows, the university’s highest academic honour, and is a member of the South African Academy of Sciences. She a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, European Society of Cardiology and American Heart Association. She is a B-1 rated researcher by the National Research Foundation, past-president of the Paediatric Cardiac Society of South Africa and the South African Heart Association.

Sir Zumla was born in Chipata, Zambia in 1955. He is dually qualified in Medicine (MB.ChB) and Science (PhD). He nearly lost his life to meningitis when he was working as a junior doctor in London in 1982. He subsequently progressed to a meteoric, star-studded, and extremely successful career focussed on tackling killer infectious diseases. Sir Zumla's research, training, capacity development, advocacy and charitable contributions to World Health Organization's Research and Development Blueprint Priority Diseases of TB, TB/HIV, COVID-19, MERS, and other epidemic-prone Emerging and re-emerging infections, are an exceptional major body of work developed with an upward trajectory along these specific themes over three decades. As of Nov 2022, Sir Zumla has over 880 publications (inc. 760 PubMed; 22 medical textbooks; 67 book chapters, and 40 journal themed series). His Google Scholar H-index is 122, i10index is 560, with 68,200 citations. Sir Zumla has received over 28 prestigious accolades/prizes including: Knighthood from HM The Queen-2017; IUATBLD UNION MEDAL-2018; Mahathir Science Prize-2020; EU-EDCTP Pascoal Mocumbi Prize-2021; Roy.Soc.Trop.Med.Hyg Sir Patrick Manson Medal.

Professor Dr. Mushtaq Ahmad, Director of the Bioenergy and Biodiversity Research Center at Quaid-i-Azam University, Pakistan, is a globally recognized plant scientist ranked among the top 1% of scientists worldwide. His pioneering research in Agro-Biodiversity, biotechnology, and sustainable biomass energy is reflected in over 1,000 peer-reviewed publications and 60 international books, earning more than 26,000 citations with an H-index of 80+. An accomplished mentor to 48 postdoctoral/PhD scholars and 185 graduates, Dr. Ahmad holds prestigious fellowships with The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), the Pakistan Academy of Sciences (PAS), the Islamic World Academy of Sciences (IAS), and the World Society of Sustainable Energy Technologies (WSSET). His international impact includes advisory roles with IPBES, IUCN, and the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, alongside elite honors such as the Chinese Academy of Sciences PIFI award, Honorary Professorships in China and Uzbekistan, and the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Pakistan's highest civil award for scientific excellence.

Wasim Ahmad is a Tenured Professor at Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, Pakistan. He obtained his PhD from Cambridge University UK in 1990. He did Post-doctorate from London University UK and Columbia University New York USA. He has made important Contribution in Human Genetics by identify several genes involved in hereditary disorders of skin, hair, skeletal, neurological and hearing impairment. His awards include COMSTECH award in Biology, Sitara-e-Imtiaz by Govt. of Pakistan, Distinguished Scientist and Gold Medal by Pakistan Academy of Science (PAS), National Distinguished Professor by Higher Education Commission (HEC). His membership includes fellow Pakistan Academy of Science and Third World Academy of Science (TWAS).

Alberts is a US Natl. Medal of Science awardee (2014). He has served as Editor-in-Chief of Science (2008-2013) and as one of President Obama’s first three United States Science Envoys (2009-2011). Alberts holds the Chancellor's Leadership Chair in Biochemistry and Biophysics for Science and Education at the University of California, San Francisco, to which he returned after serving two six-year terms as the president of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). Dr. Alberts is noted as one of the original authors of The Molecular Biology of the Cell, a pre-eminent textbook in the field soon to be in its sixth edition. Alberts has earned many honors and awards, including 16 honorary degrees. He currently serves on the advisory boards of more than 25 nonprofit institutions, including the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Strategic Education Research Partnership (SERP).

AlMomin is a Senior Research Scientist at the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) and Vice President of TWAS for the Arab partner since 2020. She contributed to the establishment of a Kuwaiti national biotechnology program and leads a Government initiative to establish a National Centre of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology. She initiated the inclusion of KISR as an affiliated centre with the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), being also Kuwait's Liaison Officer at ICGEB. AlMomin is a certified risk management professional from the International Federation of Biosafety Associations (IFBSA) and is a member of several entities, including the Commission of Science and Technology for Sustainable Development, the International Council for the Life Sciences, the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World. Her research interests are genetic engineering, diagnostics, population genetics, biodiversity, and biosafety. She led several pioneer projects and introduced several scientific innovations in her country and MENA region. She serves as a chair and member of several national and international committees.

Ashenafi is professor emeritus of food microbiology at the Institute of Pathobiology, Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia. He has studied the microbial dynamics of the fermentation of traditional Ethiopian foods and beverages and the behavior of several enteric pathogens during the fermentation process. This special research into the food and dietary practices of Ethiopians has generated foundational scientific knowledge about microbial fermentation, spoilage, preservation, and safety in traditional Ethiopian foods. He has recently been working on the importance of food safety and nutrition to the food security of Ethiopian households. His work has helped in laying the groundwork for further research in the field. He has been a Fulbright fellow and has also won the Faculty Scientific Achievement Award of the Ethiopian Scientific Society. in 2022, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from People to People (P2P) Health Care Professionals organization in diaspora. Washington DC, USA.

Dr. Jean Claude Autrey, CSK, BSc (London), MSc, PhD, DSc (Exeter), FTWAS, FMAST, FRSB, CBiol, was previous Director of the Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute where his career spanned over 40 years. He is the Chancellor of the University of Mauritius, Past President of the Mauritius Academy of Science and Technology, General Secretary of the International Society of Sugar Cane Technologists and Chair of ACP Sugar Research Programme and Chair of the ACP Scientific Advisory Group on Sugar, Chair Board of Directors, Bonsucro Ltd, London. He has served on various national and international bodies many of which he has chaired. He is a Member of The World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries (TWAS). He is an appointed member of the Conservatoire Board since May 2015.He is Commander of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean (CSK) and Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International.

Aziz is a professor at the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University—which he chaired from 2016–2021, and the head of MARC Bioscience Research Laboratories in Giza, Egypt. From 2021–2024, he has directed the Microbiology and Immunology Research Programme at the Children’s Cancer Hospital of Egypt. In 2005, he received his PhD in microbiology and immunology from the University of Tennessee, Health Science Center in Memphis, and carried out postdoctoral research at the University of Chicago, San Diego State University, and UCSD (2008–2013). He collaborates with the Argonne National Laboratory. His research spans microbiology and immunology, genomics of microbial pathogens and phages, and microbiomics. He is a pioneer of pharmacomicrobiomics, a discipline that studies drug-microbiome interactions. He has published more than 120 peer-reviewed articles, a book, nine book sections, and is maintaining two bioinformatics databases. His work has been nationally and internationally acknowledged through awards from TWAS, COMSTECH, and Shoman Awards. He is ranked among the 1% most productive authors in the SCOPUS database (based on c-score).

Babalola (Pr.Sci.Nat, MASSAF, FTWAS, FAS, FAAS, FISC, FRSB, FAAM) was the Vice President of the Org. for Women in Sci. for the Developing World (OWSD) & TWAS VP. Baba, an NRF B-rated scientist with an MBA, sits on several editorial boards and acts as an International Advisor to a few others. She was with IITA (Nigeria), ICIPE (Kenya), Weizmann Inst. of Sci. (Israel), Univ of the Western Cape, and now North-West Univ (South Africa). She has 21 years of experience in rhizosphere research. She is passionate about capacity building & has trained 39 PhDs & 29 MScs. Many of her products are in academia in the UK, Italy, America, Canada, Australia, Sweden, & Africa. She authored 450 publications. She is an AAAS-TWAS science diplomacy alumnus, impacting the world in policymaking, diplomacy, and diplomatic engagement. Her international experience spans the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. She enjoys global partnerships, and her efforts have received many awards, including finalist status at GenderInSite 2020, Clarivate 2022 & 2023, & SAWISA 2024. Baba has an H-index of 92, more than 40,000 citations & 56 professional certificates. She is #1 in Africa for Soil Science & Plant Nutrition

Badran (MSc and Phd. at Mich State U.) is Chairman Board of Trustees U. of Jordan, Chancellor U. of Petra, with more than 120 pubs., including 46 books and 4 patents. He was awarded honorary doctorates from, Sungkyunkwan U., Seoul; an Honorary Doctorate in Science from Michigan State U.; West Watkins distinguished Lectureship Award and Hall of Fame Alumni Award from Oklahoma State U. USA; Honorary Professorship from Eurasian National U. Kazakhstan; Honorary Doctorate in Business, Yarmouk U., Jordan. Awarded Arab Thought Foundation for best Arab Scientist in higher education research; TWAS Regional Prize for Building Scientific Institutions; Asia award for Outstanding Contribution to education. Badran is a former Prime Minister of Jordan (2005), Minister of Agriculture, Minister of Education, Former Deputy Director General of UNESCO Paris 1990-1998, President Arab Academy of Sciences and AFED.

Baharvand (PhD, 2004, Khwarizmi University) is a Professor, Founder, and Director of Royan Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Technology, Tehran, Iran. His prizes include Mustafa Prize, TWAS Prize in Biology, UNESCO-Equatorial Guinea International Prize, Islamic Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) Prize in Biology, three Razi Research Awards from Iran Ministry of Health and Medical Education, two Khwarizmi International Awards from Iran Ministry of Science, Research and Technology, two Dr. Hadavi’s Awards from Academy of Medical Sciences of Iran, Prominent Professor in 3rd term of Allameh Tabatabaei’s Award from Iran Vice Presidency for Science and Technology and National Elite Foundation, etc. He is a member of the International Society for Stem Cell Research, the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy, International Society for Extracellular Vesicles. He is currently the editorial board member of eight international journals (e.g., Journal of Biological Chemistry and Scientific Reports from Nature Publishing Group).

Balasubramanian is Distinguished Scientist and Director of Research-Emeritus, L.V. Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, India. After his PhD at Columbia Univ. and postdoctoral research (Univ. of Minnesota), he joined the IIT, Kanpur in 1967. In 1977, he moved to the Univ. of Hyderabad as Professor and later Dean. In 1982, he joined the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, where he was Director (1992-98). He is Fellow of all science academies of India, the German Acad. of Sciences Leopoldina, the Mauritian Acad. of Sciences, the African Acad. of Sciences, and of AAAS, US; member, Intl. Molecular Biology Network and World Innovation Foundation; winner, TWAS Prize in Medical Sciences; Khwarizmi Award, Iran; Bhatnagar, FICCI, Ranbaxy, Goyal and Bhasin Awards, India; UNESCO KALINGA Prize; Indira Gandhi National Award of India, Popularization of Science; Padma Shri; and Chevalier de l'Orde National du Merite, France. His field of research is: the biology of the eye

Basu was educated at Presidency College and Univ College of Science, Kolkata. He obtained his MSc (1964) and PhD (1968) in biochemistry. He is currently JC Bose Chair Professor of the Natl Academy of Sciences India at the Natl Inst of Science Communication and Information Resources, New Delhi. His previous positions include: Faculty associate, Dept of Microbiology, Michael Reese Med Ctr, Chicago; instructor and asst professor, Southwestern Med School, Dallas; asst director, Indian Inst of Chem Biol, Kolkata; deputy director, acting director and director, Inst of Micro Technol, Chandigarh; professor, Jawaharlal Nehru Ctr for Adv Scientific Research, Bangalore; director and professor of eminence of the Natl Institute of Immunology, New Delhi. He is elected member of the Indian Natl Science Acad; Indian Acad of Sciences; Natl Acad of Sciences India; and Amer Soc of Biochem and Mol Biol.

Beyene earned his PhD in prehistory in 1992 from the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris, France. He is researcher at the Ethiopian Heritage Authority and affiliated with the French Center for Ethiopian Studies in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Beyene is Fellow of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences, and International Member of the American Academy of Sciences. He is recipient of the Order of Academic Palms from the French Ministry of Education, France. He is corresponding member of the Institut de paléontologie humaine (Paris, France) and of the Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny (CARTA), University of Sandiago, CA, USA. He is actively leading and co-leading paleoanthropological research programmes in Ethiopia. He represented Ethiopia in the World Heritage Committee at UNESCO between 2009 and 2012. He initiated and prepared the nomination file for the Konso Cultural Landscape on UNESCO’s World Heritage list (nominated in 2011). He also led the field research and preparation of the dossier for the nomination of the Gedeo Cultural Landscape for UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

Bhuiyan obtained his PhD in 2010 from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. He serves as senior scientist and head at enteric infections and vaccines under Infectious Diseases Division at icddr,b. The primary goal of his studies is to understand the T-B cell interaction, and the type of T cells that are mainly responsible for B cell help. He is also actively involved in oral cholera vaccine clinical trials, where his team is evaluating humoral and adaptive immune responses in different age groups of participants of Bangladesh. He is currently a Fellow of the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences. During COVID-19 pandemic, his research area focused on measuring antibody responses in cases and contacts of Bangladeshi population to know the seroprevalence and the acquired information greatly assisted policymakers in planning and rolling out COVID-19 vaccination programs in Bangladesh. He is actively working at icddr,b for capacity building of the young researchers, and collaborating with scientists at Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins University, University of Gothenburg, University of Utah and University of Washington, including different institutes of Africa.

Blundell is Professor Emeritus and Director of Research in Biochemistry, Cambridge, UK, having been Professor of Biochemistry and Head, School of Biological Sciences, until 2009. He obtained D.Phil at Oxford University in 1967, and held positions at Oxford, Sussex and London before moving to Cambridge in 1996. He is a member of Academia Europaea; Fellow of Royal Society, Academy of Medical Sciences, Indian Natl. Academy of Science and Chilean National Academy; and has hon. doctorates from 16 universities. He was member of advisory group to Prime Minister; founding CEO, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council; Chair, Royal Commission Environmental Pollution; President, Biosciences Fed., Biochemical Society and Science Council. He co-founded Astex Pharma, sold recently for USD886M.

Buschiazzo holds a BSc degree in Biology (Universidad de La Plata, Argentina), and a PhD degree in Chemistry (1999, Institute Leloir, Universidad de Buenos Aires). He later specialized in protein crystallography as a postdoc at the Institut Pasteur (IP) in Paris (Department of Structural Biology and Chemistry), where he obtained a tenured position in 2003. Since 2006 he has been head of the Lab of Molecular and Structural Microbiology at IP Montevideo (a member of the IP International Network) in Uruguay. Maintaining this double appointment, in 2016 he was promoted to associate professor in the Department of Microbiology (IP, Paris). His science is focused on microbiology, aimed at understanding molecular mechanisms of key proteins. A special interest is dedicated to pathogenicity determinants in Leptospira and other bacterial pathogens. Buschiazzo leads a team with strong expertise in the structural biology and biochemistry of bacterial signaling systems. His lab has uncovered how proteins change their shape and conformation in very specific ways, enabling bacteria to sense their environment and internal milieu, and trigger adaptive responses.

Carlini earned her PhD from the Federal University of São Paulo, Brazil, in 1985. She was appointed professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, and was a PI at the Brain Institute of the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul. After retiring in 2012, she worked as an invited professor at UFRGS and nowadays, at the Federal University of Health Sciences of Porto Alegre. Member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences (2009) and a research productivity fellow of the Brazilian CNPq, Carlini was a pioneer in describing the non-enzymatic properties of ureases, such as their insecticidal, antifungal activities and pro-inflammatory, neurotoxic effects in rodents. Now, she studies how the ureases produced by Helicobacter pylori and Proteus mirabilis might contribute to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. She has refereed for more than 60 international journals, and S&T funding agencies. She was member of the editorial board of Toxicon for 20 years, and section editor of the Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research. In 2020, she became a guest editor and joined the Editorial Board of Current Neuropharmacology.

Castellanos Serra obtained her Doctorate in Chemistry in 1978 from U. of Paris XI (France), and in 2008 her 'Habilitation'. She is one of the founders of Cuban Biotechnology, first at the Center for Biological Research, and next at the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Havana, as group leader in Protein Chemistry and Proteomics, Div. of Phys. Chem. and Snr Prof., Fac. of Chem. Engg. and the Fac. of Chem. at the U. of Havana. Her main contributions are in the field of development of new methods in Protein Chemistry and Proteomics. She also trains and advises young scientists in the craft of scientific publishing. Her honours include: Cuban Natl Prize in Chemistry; Natl Award in Sciences Carlos J. Finlay; Natl Forum on Sci. and Techn. Award; and Sophia Kowalewskaya Award (USA). She has been incorporated into the Cuban Directory of Relevant Professors of XXth Century.

Cazzulo is professor of protein biochemistry at the Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnologicas, Universidad Nacional de General San Martin, and Investigador Superior, National Research Council, Argentina, since 1997. His previous positions include: Head of the Laboratory of Biochemistry of Parasites at the Fundacion Instituto Leloir, Buenos Aires (1986 – 1997), Head of the Research Department, Instituto Nacional de Parasitologia Dr. Mario Fatala Chaben, Argentinian Health Ministry, Buenos Aires (1980 – 1985), and Professor of Biochemistry, Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmaceuticas, Universidad Nacional de Rosario (1970 – 1980). He has directed or co-directed 28 Ph.D. Thesis. His work has focused on the metabolism of Trypanosoma cruzi, the causing agent of Chagas' Disease. His honours include: Doctor Honoris Causa (Medicine), University of Uppsala, Sweden; Medal of the Rector, Universidad de Chile, Santiago; and Dr. A.O.M. Stoppani Prize in Biochemical Parasitology, Argentinian National Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences. He is a member of the Latin American Academy of Sciences, since 1987, and the Argentinian National Academy of Sciences, since 2017.

Chakrabarti is senior professor, Department of Biochemistry, and Bioinformatics Centre, Bose Institute, Kolkata. He obtained his PhD from the Indian Institute of Science (1981), did postdoc. research at ETH, Zürich, Purdue Univ., UCLA and Caltech, USA, then worked at the National Chemical Lab., Pune (1990-97). Finding patterns in sequence and structure and deriving the underlying factors stabilizing the native fold of proteins and macromolecular interactions have been the hallmark of Chakrabarti’s work, which spans biophysics and bioinformatics. He is also involved in structural studies on proteins from Vibrio cholera, and the understanding the biological activity of nanoparticles. He is a fellow of all 3 science academies of India, and recipient of the JC Bose Fellowship. He is the President (2013-16) of the Asian Crystallographic Association.