Dr. Gayatri Sanku

Dr. Gayatri Sanku, PhD, MPH is a medical student, public-health researcher, and global-health consultant whose work bridges immunology, health-systems resilience, and translational policy. She earned her PhD in Microbiology and Immunology through the Georgetown–NIH Graduate Partnership Program before beginning medical training in the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Scientist Training Program.

At Georgetown–NIH her research focused on parasite–viral co-infection models and immune regulation in chronic infectious disease. She co-led an NIAID-funded COVID-19 project generating SARS-CoV-2–specific T cells and served as first author on multiple peer-reviewed publications in Frontiers in Immunology. She also consulted for the World Bank Group, contributing to flagship reports on pandemic preparedness, genomic surveillance, and health-system resilience.

Dr. Sanku has mentored undergraduate, MPH, and early-career trainees across academic and policy environments, guiding students through literature synthesis, data analysis, and manuscript preparation with a structured yet empowering approach. She maintains high standards while providing close, iterative feedback to help mentees build both technical skill and intellectual confidence.

She believes research is a discipline that sharpens analytical reasoning, intellectual integrity, and systems-level thinking — and she is especially passionate about expanding access to research for students from diverse lived experiences.