Prof Thirumala Govender is currently Professor of Pharmacy in the Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Academic Leader of the Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Head of the Drug Delivery Research Proto-Unit and Head of the NanoHealth Pillar of the UKZN Nanotechnology Platform at UKZN. She was awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship and completed a PhD at University of Nottingham (UK) in 2000. Her PhD in nanotechnology identified technologies for enhancing drug incorporation into polymeric nanosystems for targeted drug delivery. Prof Thiru Govender’s current research on novel delivery systems focuses on nanotechnology and alternate routes of drug delivery. She has published widely in reputable international journals on the successful formulation and physicochemical/mechanical/mechanistic/in vitro/in silico/in vivo evaluation of various novel drug delivery systems e.g. pellets, nanoparticles, nanoplexes, nanoliposomes, nanomicelles, nanofibers, nanobubbles and buccal patches/films/tablets/microspheres/wafers for various communicable and non-communicable disease conditions which have included newly synthesized drug delivery materials. Prof Thiru Govender is a South African National Research Foundation (NRF) C1 rated scientist. Her current h-index is calculated as 20 (Scopus). She has 72 publications in ISI international journals, is a co-inventor on a patent filed and has 48 international and 62 local conference contributions. She has won several national awards from the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences of South Africa for excellence in both research and teaching i.e.: Johnson and Johnson Distinguished Teacher Award, Roche Achievement Award as well as the Adcock Ingram Award for Best Research Publications in Pharmaceutics. She has been the recipient of the UKZN Faculty of Health Sciences Award for Most Productive Researcher in the Associate Professor category. She has also received the UKZN nomination for Best Emerging Young Woman Scientist for the South African Women in Science Awards. Prof Thiru Govender has secured scholarships/research grants from the UK Commonwealth Association, NRF, Medical Research Council (MRC) and UKZN. She has successfully supervised/co-supervised students at Honours, Masters, PhD and Postdoctoral levels. Several have passed with distinction and have won international, national and UKZN awards for excellence in publications/presentations/posters. Prof Govender is an invited examiner for undergraduate and postgraduate degrees for various universities in Africa and in South Africa. She has also been an appointed member on the South African Pharmacy Council delegation for the inspection of Pharmacy Schools in the country. In recognition of her scientific expertise, Prof Govender is currently appointed as an Expert Evaluator on the Pharmaceutical and Analytical Committees of the Medicines Control Council of South Africa for the evaluation of new medicines for regulatory approval. She is also Chair of UKZN College of Health Sciences Women in Leadership and Leverage Committee and a College representative on the UKZN Animal Research and Ethics committee. Prof Govender was also a past Vice Chair of the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences of South Africa. She has occupied various other administrative positions on a University, College, Faculty and School level and has been the Convenor for a national pharmaceutical sciences conference. She is also a member of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists and local professional and scientific pharmaceutical organizations (South African Pharmacy Council, Pharmaceutical Society of South Africa and Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences of South Africa).

Design and Evaluation of novel drug delivery systems, Buccal and Transdermal Delivery of ARV drugs, Nanoantibiotics.