Malawi Accelerated Research in Vaccines by Experimental and Laboratory Systems (MARVELS) Vision
- MARVELS is a research group that conducts excellent, translational, impactful research and training.
- Best vaccines and treatments for Malawi, developed by the best methods and led by Malawian scientists.
MARVELS now holds an expanded vision and takes advantage of strong clinical, laboratory, data and statistics teams to support important clinical trials.
MARVELS Mission and Values
1. Research
- We are committed to scientific excellence, community engagement and ethical research practices leading to research impact.
- Health care need informs our research priorities.
- We focus on rapid vaccine development and disease pathogenesis discovery using Controlled Human Infection Models (CHIM) of infectious diseases important to Malawi.
- We support and lead important clinical trials.
2. Training and capacity
- We understand that clinical and laboratory excellence, with ongoing training, are essential and inter-dependent for high quality research.
- We have a strong team, offering great training, job satisfaction and new horizons.
- We have world class laboratories, cutting-edge equipment and the right support for breakthrough discovery.
Group Leads
Prof Stephen Gordon
Chief Investigator
Stephen has conducted clinical and translational research in the UK and Africa since 1993; his research...........
Assoc Prof NPK Banda
Senior Physician Lead
NPK Banda is specialized in internal medicine, tropical and respiratory medicine with extensive clinical, teaching and...........
Clinical team (all clinical cadres)
Immunology Team
Charity Gunda
Junior Research Assistant
Currently working on qualitative study exploring the acceptability of the Controlled Human Infection Model (CHIM). With..........
In Malawi’s first CHIM clinical trial, 204 adults were randomized to receive PCV13 or placebo before..........
First-ever PnuBioVax (PBV) Controlled Human Infection Model (CHIM) Study
On July 15, 2025, the MARVELS team at MLW was deep in preparation for the first-ever.............
