– Dr Merantha Moodley
Infectious diseases remain a critical global health challenge, particularly in regions such as sub-Saharan Africa, where the burden of HIV and tuberculosis continues to be deeply felt.
Nominated as a touchINFECTIOUS DISEASES Future Leader 2025, we speak with Dr Merantha Moodley, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Africa Health Research Institute and the HIV Pathogenesis Programme, whose work focuses on tissue-based HIV reservoirs and advanced imaging technologies. Her research harnesses spatial omics and immunology to explore persistent infection and host-pathogen dynamics, with a vision to inform cure strategies that are locally relevant and globally impactful.
I was born and raised in South Africa, where the impact of HIV and tuberculosis is both deeply personal and visible. From an early age, I was drawn to understanding the science behind these diseases and how we might overcome them. I pursued a background in medical sciences and physiology, developing a growing passion for microscopy as a tool to answer pressing questions in infectious diseases.
This interest led me to my current position as a postdoctoral research fellow in immunology and tissue biology in the Ndhlovu Lab at the Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI) and the HIV Pathogenesis Programme (HPP), under the esteemed mentorship of Professor Zaza Ndhlovu (Associate Professor of Medicine at the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard University).
I am committed to uncovering how HIV persists in the body by studying the spatial niches and myeloid cell targets that sustain infection, particularly within the lymph nodes, gut and brain. My career vision is to harness advanced technologies to unravel these complex host–pathogen interactions and translate these insights into meaningful solutions. I aspire to lead research that addresses the pressing challenges faced in African settings, while contributing to discoveries with lasting global impact.
One of the most rewarding moments in my career was uncovering the role of tissue macrophages as significant HIV reservoirs in lymphoid tissues. These findings expand our understanding of viral persistence beyond CD4+ T cells.
It has been deeply gratifying to see how this research has the potential to shape the field and spark new lines of inquiry. Knowing that our work could one day improve cure strategies, especially for communities in Africa most affected by HIV, gives me a strong sense of purpose.
This connection was strengthened during our lab’s engagements with collaborating doctors, nurses and surgeons, as well as our visit to FRESH (Females Rising through Education, Support and Health), where we met with consented participants and staff. I was honoured to receive the Lange Van Tongeren Young Investigator Award at AIDS 2024. This was awarded based on my abstract being ranked among the top in the Basic and Translational Science Track, for demonstrating innovation, originality, rationale and quality in the field of HIV research.
Absolutely. I have been fortunate to be mentored by several leading experts during my postgraduate studies, all of whom have influenced my development.
Professor Zaza Ndhlovu has had the most profound impact on my early career. His mentorship taught me to approach science with boldness and integrity, to ask difficult questions, and to keep the clinical and community relevance of our work at the forefront.
Coming from an in vitro background, I was inspired by how Professor Ndhlovu recognized the importance of tissue-driven research in Africa. He built this research capability from the ground up, recently celebrating 10 years of a successful lymph node study with promising findings. He also encouraged me to explore emerging technologies such as spatial omics to interrogate tissue-based HIV reservoirs.
His leadership and dedication to building scientific capacity in Africa have shaped how I think, work and mentor others. I hope to uphold his passion, values and commitment to translational science as part of the next generation of African researchers.
I am particularly excited by Africa’s progress in spatial omics, single-cell technologies, super-plex multi-omics, proteomics and advanced image analysis. These innovations are transforming how we study infectious diseases within tissue microenvironments. Much of this progress has been enabled by the Centre of Excellence for Spatial Omics Research in Africa (CESORA), an African-led initiative directed by Professor Zaza Ndhlovu that aims to advance African-led research.
It is a privilege to work in the Ndhlovu Lab at AHRI and HPP, where we house state-of-the-art imaging infrastructure, some of which are unique to the African continent. These tools enable us to visualise where HIV hides, how immune cells interact with infected cells and why the virus evades clearance. In my own research, applying these tools has revealed critical insights into macrophage reservoirs in multi-anatomical tissues. Coupled with advances in machine learning and super-plex imaging, these technologies offer powerful ways to develop targeted cure strategies. They are enabling us to ask and answer questions we could not previously address in HIV and infectious diseases research.
About Merantha Moodley
Merantha Moodley is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in Immunology and Tissue Biology at the Ndhlovu Lab within the Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI) (April 2023 –current). Her background is in the field of Medical Science-Physiology which she obtained her Master’s Summa Cum Laude, and received the Vincent Maphai Scholarship- “awarded to the top-ranked Masters student in the University of KwaZulu-Natal across all campuses and disciplines”.
Under the mentorship of Professor Zaza Ndhlovu, she is currently working on characterizing multi-anatomical tissue reservoirs of HIV Subtype C within lymphoid (lymph node and gut) and non-lymphoid (brain) anatomical compartments. She aims to elucidate whether underexplored cells such as macrophages, microglia and astrocytes harbor HIV reservoirs. She is highly skilled in using state-of-the-art microscopy tools such as in situ hybridization multiplexed super-plex proteomics and spatial multi-omics. These are accompanied by advanced image analysis to obtain pertinent answers to these research questions. With a goal to inform HIV Cure strategies, she strives to characterize their phenotype, spatial distribution and measure their specific contribution to the reservoir burden in these tissues.
Merantha has also been recognized as the Johnson & Johnson top 100 women in STEM. Currently, her most prestigious award is the IAS Lange Van Tongeren Prize for the Top Young Investigator awarded at AIDS 2024 in recognition of the top scoring abstract in the Basic and Translational Science track, demonstrating innovation, originality rationale and quality in the field of HIV research.
Further content in HIV and viral infections
This content has been developed independently by Touch Medical Media for touchINFECTIOUS DISEASES. Views expressed are the speaker’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Touch Medical Media.
Editor: Katey Gabrysch, Editorial Director.
Disclosures: This short article was prepared by touchINFECTIOUS DISEASES in collaboration with Merantha Moodley. The content was developed and edited by human editors. No fees or funding were associated with its publication. touchINFECTIOUS DISEASES utilize AI as an editorial tool (ChatGPT (GPT-4o) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat). Merantha Moodley has nothing to disclose in relation to this interview.
Cite: Merantha Moodley. Exploring HIV persistence with insights from Merantha Moodley: touchINFECTIOUS DISEASES Future Leader 2025. 21 August 2025.
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