Driven and focused; born with the spirit of an academic, and the soul of an explorer; Saiful received a PhD in Molecular Parasitology from Imperial College, London in 2006 after which he immediately joined Universiti Malaya as an academic. Currently he is a professor of Biochemistry in the Faculty of Science. More than 12 PhD and 15 MSc students have graduated under Saiful’s supervision. With over 70 publications (WOS) and an h-index of 22, Saiful is a recognized authority in the field of proteomics and has multiple collaborations with researchers across the globe. He has received more than RM 5 million in research grants. Saiful also holds various management responsibilities. Of particular note are his roles as Deputy Dean (2015-2017) and Dean (2017-2022) of the Frontiers of the Natural World Research Cluster (formerly known as Frontier Science Research Cluster), Director of IPPP (JPP) (2022-2024), and Currently as Dean of The Faculty of Science (Since 2025). 

Dr. Siti Idayu Hasan is a Senior Lecturer in the Family Health Discipline at the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya. After completing her PhD, she embarked on a significant journey as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at UMCAS, collaborating with the International Tobacco Control project team in Canada. Her work focused on measuring the psychosocial and behavioral impact of key national-level policies under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). She is a Fellow of Hong Kong WHO Collaborating Centre (Tobacco Control) and Committee Member of Scientific Research Tobacco Working Group (WHO FCTC Malaysia). Continuing her career, Dr. Siti Idayu became the Impact Project Manager at UMCares. In this role, she led the development and management of frameworks to monitor, evaluate, and enhance the effectiveness of community-oriented projects. Her efforts have been pivotal in ensuring that these initiatives bring about meaningful and sustainable improvements in society. Dr. Siti Idayu’s current research themes include tobacco control, mental health, and impact evaluation. Her work in tobacco control encompasses projects like Smoking Cessation, Organizing, Planning, and Execution (SCOPE), Generational Endgame (GEG), and the International Tobacco Control (ITC) project. She is also deeply involved in mental health research, aiming to address and mitigate mental health issues within the community. Beyond her research, Dr. Siti Idayu consults in the expanding field of public health, with a particular focus on tobacco control and mental health. She enjoys engaging with the community through health promotion activities, such as the Generational Endgame initiative, conducted in various settings (i.e. workplace, school and public) to raise awareness and drive positive behavioral change. Dr. Siti Idayu's commitment to improving public health is unwavering. Her work is not just about research and academia; it’s about making a tangible difference in the lives of individuals and communities. She believes that through collaborative efforts and a deep-seated commitment to health promotion, we can create a healthier, more resilient future for everyone. Her journey inspires others to join in the mission of bettering our communities and making impactful contributions to public health.  

Wenn-Chyau Lee received his BSc (Hons) degree in Biomedical Sciences from University of Malaya, Malaysia in year 2011, and graduated with his PhD in Medical Sciences from University of Malaya in year 2014. Subsequently, he joined Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN, A*STAR) as a research fellow in Laurent Renia’s Laboratory. He was appointed as SIgN fellow after receiving OF-YIRG grant awarded by the National Medical Research Council (NMRC) of Singapore in year 2018. He joined the newly formed A*STAR ID Labs as an investigator in year 2021. Not long after that, he joined the Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya as a senior lecturer. As a parasitologist, he has involved in studies encompassing a number of medically important parasites and disease vectors. His main research interest revolves around the immuno-pathobiology of malaria. He has been investigating and deciphering the roles of rosetting (a phenomenon where a red blood cell infected with malaria parasite is stably adhered to uninfected red blood cells, forming a flower-like structure called ‘rosette’) in the pathogenesis of malaria. He also involved in research projects that contributed the draft genomes of Brugia pahangi, Toxoplasma gondii, Anopheles cracens and An. maculatus. He has been working as a research fieldworker in different places including the Thai-Burmese Border, China, peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo. As different laboratory settings are equipped differently, he enjoys adapting and improvising facilities available in the field sites to conduct experiments. To date, he has published (as first/ corresponding author) in a number of highly reputable journals such as Blood, eLife, EBioMedicine, Frontiers in Immunology, and Frontiers in Microbiology, and has become reviewers for journals such as Scientific Reports, Tropical Biomedicine, PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Acta Tropica, Bio-protocols, Journal of Blood Medicine, Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, and Frontiers in Medicine. He is also a review editor of Frontiers in Microbiology.