Associate Professor Ts. Dr. Lee Hai Yen (Natasha) is a microbiologist and vaccinologist at the Tropical Infectious Diseases Research & Education Centre (TIDREC), Universiti Malaya. She leads translational research in mRNA vaccine development and biomanufacturing, with a focus on strengthening infectious disease preparedness and national vaccine capability.

Her work advances mRNA platforms for neglected tropical diseases, integrating fundamental antigen design, lipid nanoparticle delivery, and scalable process development. In parallel, she develops antimicrobial postbiotic technologies and microbial bioprocessing strategies that bridge laboratory discovery with practical manufacturing and regulatory considerations.

Dr. Lee obtained her PhD in Food Safety (Microbiology) from Universiti Putra Malaysia and holds a Diploma in Vaccinology from the Institut Pasteur, Paris. She has authored more than 70 peer-reviewed publications and holds intellectual property in vaccine and microbial platform technologies. She has collaborated internationally, including with Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital, contributing to vaccine research and translational development efforts.

At the national level, she serves as an expert committee member under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI), supporting vaccine development technology and biomanufacturing capacity building in Malaysia and was appointed as Associate Research Fellow at Malaysia Genome and Vaccine Institute, a national recognition of her expertise in vaccine development. 

In addition to leading competitive research grants, she is actively engaged in postgraduate supervision, scientific training, and capacity development initiatives that align upstream research with translational execution.

Her work connects fundamental science with manufacturing and policy priorities, contributing to Malaysia’s long-term vaccine preparedness and biotechnology resilience.