Dr Brenda Anna Kwambana-Adams is a Wellcome International Intermediate Fellow and Reader in Microbiology and Global Health within the Department of Clinical Sciences at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) and the Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Programme. At the Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Programme she co-leads the Vaccines Theme and heads the Pneumonia and Meningitis Pathogens Research Group. She is also an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at University College London and Co-Director of the National Institute for Health and Care Research Global Health Group on Vaccines to Control Respiratory Pathogens and Antimicrobial Resistance across Africa.

Between 2018 and 2022, Brenda was a Senior Research Fellow at the Global Health Research Unit on Mucosal Pathogens at University College London. Prior to this Brenda was Deputy Head of the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre for New Vaccines Surveillance at the MRC Unit The Gambia at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine between 2016 and 2018. She led World Health Organisation technical missions to support meningitis outbreak responses and strengthen laboratory surveillance across sub-Saharan Africa during her tenure. Most notably, she led the technical team that identified a novel pneumococcal serotype 1 strain as the cause of the deadly 2016 meningitis outbreak in Ghana.

Brenda obtained her International Baccalaureate at the Red Cross Nordic United World College in Norway. She holds a BA in Biological Sciences from Wellesley College and an MSc in Medical Microbiology (Virology) from London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Her doctoral studies at the University of Leicester and research at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine were on the impact of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine on pneumococcal carriage and the respiratory microbiome among Gambian infants.

Brenda investigates the transmission dynamics and pathogenesis of respiratory pathogens to inform the development of targeted, vaccine-based interventions and improve health outcomes in low-resource settings. Her research integrates epidemiology and advanced 'omics' tools to generate evidence for more effective control strategies, particularly for the pneumococcus and other respiratory pathogens associated with outbreaks and antimicrobial resistance. Through her Wellcome International Intermediate Fellowship, she leads a novel vaccine-probe study that explores the role of children under five years old in the household transmission of the pneumococcus.

In parallel, Brenda is advancing the development of innovative tools for the early, rapid, and accurate diagnosis of central nervous system and bloodstream infections. These tools aim to improve case identification and diagnostic access in resource-limited settings, where delays often hinder timely treatment in laboratory confirmation.

Brenda also works closely with the World Health Organisation and Regional Reference Laboratories to strengthen the surveillance of acute bacterial meningitis across sub-Saharan Africa. Her work has contributed to shaping global health policy, including the World Health Organisation guidelines for controlling pneumococcal outbreaks in the African meningitis belt and the World Health Organisation Defeating Meningitis by 2030 Global Roadmap.

Brenda has been awarded several prestigious fellowships and recognitions, including the The Medical Research Council Unit The Gambia at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine West Africa Global Health Research Fellowship. Her work continues to bridge cutting-edge science with public health impact, focusing on equitable access to vaccines and diagnostics.

Brenda teaches on microbiology, molecular diagnostics, global health practice, and outbreak control. She supervises doctoral students on a wide range of research areas.