Bangladeshi scientist Senjuti Saha receives award for typhoid vaccine research
The researcher was awarded one of the 2026 Sabin Award for her contributions to applied genomics in the typhoid vaccine campaign, which reached over 40 million children in Bangladesh. In her homeland, Saha helped establish advanced laboratories for the sequencing of bacteria and viruses, a scientific and social work that has earned her several international awards.
Dhaka (AsiaNews) – Bangladeshi scientist Senjuti Saha is among three researchers who have received the Sabin Award for their contributions to vaccine development.
The Sabin Vaccine Institute, an organisation dedicated to promoting vaccine use worldwide, awarded Dr Senjuti Saha the Rising Star Award for her work using genomics to support one of the largest typhoid vaccine campaign ever, which reached more than 40 million children last year in Bangladesh.
As deputy executive director of the Child Health Research Foundation, Saha has played a key role in gathering scientific data to guide the vaccination strategy.
Over the course of her career, she has helped establish one of the country's leading genomic laboratories, capable of sequencing thousands of pathogen genomes to improve early detection of outbreaks and support the development of new vaccines, including those against Klebsiella bacterium, which causes infections in children and the elderly that are often resistant to antibiotics, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which primarily affects newborns.
The research, the scientist noted, is the result of years of collective work in Bangladesh, and demonstrates that quality science can emerge wherever there is a shared commitment to problem-solving.
Saha led the first complete sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 virus (which causes COVID-19) in Bangladesh, identifying local mutations and helping track the spread of the infection in the country.
In recent years, she has received several awards and recognitions. In 2023, she was included in the Asian Scientist 100 list, which highlights the continent's most prominent researchers, while in 2022, The Lancet scientific journal recognised her contribution to applied genomics for infectious diseases.
In 2020, she received another award for a science outreach project developed with the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and a recognition from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2018 for her commitment to global research.
In 2023, she received the Bangamata Begum Fazilatunnesa Mujib Padak, one of Bangladesh’s highest awards for women.
The Sabin Institute's other award for researchers, the Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal (named after the scientist who developed one of the polio vaccines), was awarded to Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci, already recognised for their contributions to the development of COVID-19 vaccines.
The two researchers, who are married to each other, were recognised for leveraging previous oncology research for a rapid response to the pandemic.
The award ceremony will be held on 12 May 2026 at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington.
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