Zvavahera Chirenje, MD

Adjunct Professor
M_ObGyn-Bixby-ZSFG
[email protected]
+1 263 470-4890

• Professor (full time) University of California San Francisco, Dept of Obstetrics, Gynaecology & Reproductive Sciences, San Francisco, USA
• Professor (voluntary) University of Zimbabwe Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Harare Zimbabwe
• Principal Investigator (PI) / Director for the University of Zimbabwe Clinical Trials Unit (UZ-UCSF CTU)

In 1994, Dr. Chirenje was one of the founding members of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded University of Zimbabwe - Clinical Trials Research Centre (UZ-CTRC), formerly University of Zimbabwe - University of California, San Francisco (UZ-UCSF) Collaborative Research Programme in Women’s Health. At this facility he conducts pivotal HIV prevention clinical trials in women with particular emphasis on Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) and HIV vaccine development and was instrumental in the establishment of the first HIV vaccine research capacity in Zimbabwe in 2017.

He oversees a research unit with 276 employees in Harare, Zimbabwe and 5 support staff in San Francisco, CA, providing leadership that promotes high quality research for 4 NIH sponsored networks of ACTG, IMPAACT, HPTN and HVTN. Over the past 26 years, Dr Chirenje has overseen the development of a centralized research support unit that coordinates fiscal management and executes NIH protocols at the highest level of data capture and retention of participants with a solid track record of scientific publications that has assisted in policy implementation for Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Health

His long-standing research focus has included evaluating the optimal performance of cervical cancer screening tests in low resource settings, cervical cancer screening and impact of HIV on HPV infections among women, finding safe and effective biomedical HIV prevention interventions for women, STI testing and treatment. Dr. Chirenje was Principal Investigator for a large protocol that screened 11,000 women in Harare, which became an international milestone study demonstrating the effectiveness of visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) in screening for cervical cancer in low resource settings.

Areas of interest:
• Evaluation of cervical cancer screening & treatment modalities in low resource settings.
• Implementation of HPV vaccination & HPV testing programmes in low resource settings.
• Evaluation of best biomedical HIV prevention methods among women (conducting pivotal HIV prevention trials on PrEP).
• Conducting HIV vaccine safety & efficacy trials.
• Conducting COVID-19 vaccine safety & efficacy trials.

Publications

Pharmacokinetic interaction assessment of an HIV broadly neutralizing monoclonal antibody VRC07-523LS: a cross-protocol analysis of three phase 1 trials in people without HIV.

BMC immunology

Chawana TD, Walsh SR, Stranix-Chibanda L, Chirenje ZM, Yu C, Zhang L, Seaton KE, Heptinstall J, Zhang L, Paez CA, Gamble T, Karuna ST, Andrew P, Hanscom B, Sobieszczyk ME, Edupuganti S, Gay CL, Mannheimer SB, Hurt CB, Stephenson KE, Polakowski LL, Spiegel H, Yacovone M, Regenold S, Yen C, Baumblatt JA, Gama L, Barouch DH, Piwowar-Manning E, Koup RA, Tomaras GD, Hyrien O, Roxby AC, Huang Y, HVTN 127/HPTN 087, HVTN 130/HPTN 089 and HVTN 136/HPTN 092 Study Teams

Hybrid versus vaccine immunity of mRNA-1273 among people living with HIV in East and Southern Africa: a prospective cohort analysis from the multicentre CoVPN 3008 (Ubuntu) study.

EClinicalMedicine

Garrett N, Tapley A, Hudson A, Dadabhai S, Zhang B, Mgodi NM, Andriesen J, Takalani A, Fisher LH, Kee JJ, Magaret CA, Villaran M, Hural J, Andersen-Nissen E, Ferarri G, Miner MD, Le Roux B, Wilkinson E, Lessells R, de Oliveira T, Odhiambo J, Shah P, Polakowski L, Yacovone M, Samandari T, Chirenje Z, Elyanu PJ, Makhema J, Kamuti E, Nuwagaba-Biribonwoha H, Badal-Faesen S, Brumskine W, Coetzer S, Dawson R, Delany-Moretlwe S, Diacon AH, Fry S, Gill KM, Ebrahim Hoosain ZA, Hosseinipour MC, Inambao M, Innes C, Innes S, Kalonji D, Kasaro M, Kassim P, Kayange N, Kilembe W, Laher F, Malahleha M, Maluleke VL, Mboya G, McHarry K, Mitha E, Mngadi K, Mda P, Moloantoa T, Mutuluuza CK, Naicker N, Naicker V, Nana A, Nanvubya A, Nchabeleng M, Otieno W, Potgieter EL, Potloane D, Punt Z, Said J, Singh Y, Tayob MS, Vahed Y, Wabwire DO, McElrath MJ, Kublin JG, Bekker LG, Gilbert PB, Corey L, Gray GE, Huang Y, Kotze P, CoVPN 3008 Ubuntu Study Team

Protein dose-sparing effect of AS01B adjuvant in a randomized preventive HIV vaccine trial of ALVAC-HIV (vCP2438) and adjuvanted bivalent subtype C gp120.

The Journal of infectious diseases

Chirenje ZM, Laher F, Dintwe O, Muyoyeta M, deCamp AC, He Z, Grunenberg N, Laher Omar F, Seaton KE, Polakowski L, Woodward Davis AS, Maganga L, Baden LR, Mayer K, Kalams S, Keefer M, Edupuganti S, Rodriguez B, Frank I, Scott H, Stranix-Chibanda L, Gurunathan S, Koutsoukos M, Van Der Meeren O, DiazGranados CA, Paez C, Andersen-Nissen E, Kublin J, Corey L, Ferrari G, Tomaras G, McElrath MJ, HVTN120 study team

"We chose PrEP because I wanted to be sure that this child my wife was going to conceive was indeed mine." Factors influencing the choice of safer conception methods and experiences with its use: a qualitative study among HIV sero-discordant couples in Zi

BMC public health

Brown JM, Musara P, Gitome S, Chitukuta M, Mataveke B, Chirenda T, Mgodi N, Mutero P, Matubu A, Chareka G, Chasakara C, Murombedzi C, Makurumure T, Hughes CS, Bukusi E, Cohen CR, Shiboski S, Darbes L, Rutherford GW, Chirenje ZM, Mhlanga F

Understanding the public health value and defining preferred product characteristics for therapeutic human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines: World Health Organization consultations, October 2021-March 2022.

Vaccine

Prudden HJ, Achilles SL, Schocken C, Broutet N, Canfell K, Akaba H, Basu P, Bhatla N, Chirenje ZM, Delany-Moretlwe S, Denny L, Gamage DG, Herrero R, Hutubessy R, Villa LL, Murillo R, Schiller JT, Stanley M, Temmerman M, Zhao F, Ogilvie G, Kaslow DC, Dull P, Gottlieb SL, Therapeutic HPV Vaccine PPC Expert Consultation Group*

The IARC Perspective on Cervical Cancer Screening.

The New England journal of medicine

Bouvard V, Wentzensen N, Mackie A, Berkhof J, Brotherton J, Giorgi-Rossi P, Kupets R, Smith R, Arrossi S, Bendahhou K, Canfell K, Chirenje ZM, Chung MH, Del Pino M, de Sanjosé S, Elfström M, Franco EL, Hamashima C, Hamers FF, Herrington CS, Murillo R, Sangrajrang S, Sankaranarayanan R, Saraiya M, Schiffman M, Zhao F, Arbyn M, Prendiville W, Indave Ruiz BI, Mosquera-Metcalfe I, Lauby-Secretan B

Safety, uptake, and use of a dapivirine vaginal ring for HIV-1 prevention in African women (HOPE): an open-label, extension study.

The lancet. HIV

Baeten JM, Palanee-Phillips T, Mgodi NM, Mayo AJ, Szydlo DW, Ramjee G, Gati Mirembe B, Mhlanga F, Hunidzarira P, Mansoor LE, Siva S, Govender V, Makanani B, Naidoo L, Singh N, Nair G, Chinula L, Parikh UM, Mellors JW, Balán IC, Ngure K, van der Straten A, Scheckter R, Garcia M, Peda M, Patterson K, Livant E, Bunge K, Singh D, Jacobson C, Jiao Y, Hendrix CW, Chirenje ZM, Nakabiito C, Taha TE, Jones J, Torjesen K, Nel A, Rosenberg Z, Soto-Torres LE, Hillier SL, Brown ER, MTN-025/HOPE Study Team

Use of a Vaginal Ring Containing Dapivirine for HIV-1 Prevention in Women.

The New England journal of medicine

Baeten JM, Palanee-Phillips T, Brown ER, Schwartz K, Soto-Torres LE, Govender V, Mgodi NM, Matovu Kiweewa F, Nair G, Mhlanga F, Siva S, Bekker LG, Jeenarain N, Gaffoor Z, Martinson F, Makanani B, Pather A, Naidoo L, Husnik M, Richardson BA, Parikh UM, Mellors JW, Marzinke MA, Hendrix CW, van der Straten A, Ramjee G, Chirenje ZM, Nakabiito C, Taha TE, Jones J, Mayo A, Scheckter R, Berthiaume J, Livant E, Jacobson C, Ndase P, White R, Patterson K, Germuga D, Galaska B, Bunge K, Singh D, Szydlo DW, Montgomery ET, Mensch BS, Torjesen K, Grossman CI, Chakhtoura N, Nel A, Rosenberg Z, McGowan I, Hillier S, MTN-020–ASPIRE Study Team

Tenofovir-based preexposure prophylaxis for HIV infection among African women.

The New England journal of medicine

Marrazzo JM, Ramjee G, Richardson BA, Gomez K, Mgodi N, Nair G, Palanee T, Nakabiito C, van der Straten A, Noguchi L, Hendrix CW, Dai JY, Ganesh S, Mkhize B, Taljaard M, Parikh UM, Piper J, Mâsse B, Grossman C, Rooney J, Schwartz JL, Watts H, Marzinke MA, Hillier SL, McGowan IM, Chirenje ZM, VOICE Study Team

Role
Investigators