Dr. Muhamad Afiq Aziz is a senior lecturer and programme coordinator at the Institute of Biological Sciences, Universiti Malaya. He is a microbiologist and virologist specialising in infectious diseases, host-pathogen interactions, microbial genomics and environmental surveillance.  His research integrates virology, pathogen surveillance, wastewater-based epidemiology, antimicrobial resistance, environmental DNA and genomic approaches for public health and environmental sustainability. He has contributed to understanding innate antiviral immune responses, particularly in HIV, Tilapia Lake Virus (TiLV) and emerging viral infections. Since joining Universiti Malaya in 2020, he has secured competitive research grants as principal investigator and co-investigator and established international collaborations across Asia and Europe. He has received international recognitions, including the ASEAN India Research and Training Fellowship, the Asian Universities Alliance Scholars Award and the Universiti Malaya Excellent Service Award.