Dr. Herren holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology (specializing in insect symbiosis) from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL).

He currently leads the icipe SYMBIOVECTOR programme which is developing strategies to use insect symbionts to block the transmission of vector borne diseases. The SYMBIOVECTOR programme discovered a Plasmodium transmission blocking symbiont, Microsporidia MB, that is currently being developed into a novel malaria control strategy.

Dr. Herren and this discovery were awarded “Breakthrough of the Year 2021” at the Falling Walls conference in Berlin. He has a track record of cross-theme collaborations at icipe and has mentored several post-doctoral researchers, Ph.D., and MSc students.