Dr Helen Ayles

Helen is a Reader in the Clinical research Unit London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and for the last 11 years have been director of research at Zambart, based full time in Lusaka Zambia.

She is the Zambia PI for the PopART (HPTN 071) Trial which will investigate whether a strategy of universal test and treat for HIV can reduce the incidence of HIV at community level. This important trial is being funded by a group of donors including OGAC, NIH and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She is also a PI for the BHOMA study, a community randomised trial to evaluate an intervention aimed at improving health outcomes by strengthening the health system. This study  is one of the 4 studies funded by the African health Initiative of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. She is also a site Pi on a new TB vaccine trial being conducted jointly by GSK and Aeras. Zambart is the research partner in Zambia on the STAR project ( HIV Self-Testing in Africa) funded by UNITAID which is looking to stimulate and shape the market for HIV self testing in 3 countries in Southern Africa. My PhD student ( Dr S-L Bailey) is currently conducting studies looking at the association of TB and diabetes.

Other research grants and interests include: field evaluation of TB diagnostics, association of TB and NCD as well as operational research into the implementation of TB/HIV collaborative activities.