Elevated to Emeritus: Prof. Gary Maartens transitions from Principal to Emeritus Investigator at CIDRI-Africa

Professor Gary Maartens is an Emeritus Professor in the Division of Clinical Pharmacology at UCT and recently accepted nomination to join the cohort of Emeritus Investigators at CIDRI-Africa, a move which provides all the benefits of Principal Investigator status but removes administrative burdens. 

He will be concentrating on his research interests, which include therapeutic aspects of HIV-associated tuberculosis (TB), drug-resistant TB, antiretroviral (ARV) therapy adherence, and the pharmacokinetics of ARV and anti-TB drugs. 

Gary has published over 300 peer reviewed articles and has been involved in many research firsts. He was Principal Investigator of the first randomised controlled trial (RCT) of standard versus double dose dolutegravir with rifampicin-based anti-TB therapy, showing similar virologic outcomes by arm; the first RCT of adjunctive corticosteroids in TB-associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (TB-IRIS), showing significant reductions in morbidity; and the first RCT of isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) in HIV-positive people on ART, showing that IPT was effective irrespective of tuberculin skin test status, which pre-ART studies had shown was the key determinant of IPT efficacy. 

He has been involved in international guideline development for the management of drug-resistant TB and HIV-TB co-treatment for the World Health Organization, and prevention and treatment of opportunistic infections in HIV for the joint guidelines from CDC, NIH, and IDSA. He served on the Tuberculosis Transformative Science Group of the AIDS Clinical Trials Group, NIH for ten years from 2011-2021. 

Gary was the founding president of the College of Clinical Pharmacologists in 2008. In 2015 he was awarded a gold medal for outstanding contributions to medical research by the Medical Research Council of South Africa.