Evelyn Funjika, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow under the University of Zambia-Vanderbilt Training Partnership for HIV-NCD Research Program working in the Kirabo Lab in the Division of Genetic Medicine and Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
Dr. Funjika is a visiting scholar from the University of Zambia, School of Natural and Applied Sciences, where she is a lecturer and researcher in Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry. She holds a BSc in molecular biology and genetics from the University of Zambia, an MSc in bioscience from the University of Leeds, and a PhD in cell matrix biology from the University of Manchester.
Her research focusses on studying the expression profile of the epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) along the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and its potential linkages to GI diseases. By using biochemical approaches to study subunit expression patterns together with computational and statistical methods to identify correlations, the goal of the research is to identify pathways that may link epithelial sodium transport and GI disease, and potentially identifying new biomarkers or therapeutic avenues for their management.