Ms. Hiruni N. Kuruppu Arachchi

Postgraduates: University of Ruhuna

Ms. Hiruni N. Kuruppu Arachchi is a postgraduate student at the University of Ruhuna and holds a BSc (Honours) degree in Medical Laboratory Science from the Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, University of Ruhuna. She registered for the MPhil degree in October 2025 at the Faculty of Graduate Studies, University of Ruhuna, Matara. Her MPhil research, titled “Antimicrobial properties of ethnomedicinal plants traditionally used for the treatment of urinary tract infections,” is conducted through the Duke Ruhuna Collaborative Research Centre, involving the Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, University of Ruhuna, and Duke University, under the Duke Global Health Institute Pilot Grant 2025. 

Her research is supervised by Dr. Kalani G. Jayasekara, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, University of Ruhuna, as Principal Supervisor. The co-supervisors are Prof. Harshini Peiris (Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, University of Ruhuna), Prof. Gayani Tillekeratne (Duke University School of Medicine and Duke Global Health Institute), Prof. Champica Bodinayake (Head, Duke Ruhuna Collaborative Research Centre, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ruhuna) and Dr. Subodha Wickramasinghe (Faculty of Medicine, University of Ruhuna).

The project is supported by co-investigators from Duke University and the University of Ruhuna, including Prof. Truls Østbye, Prof. Christopher Woods, Prof. Ajith Nagahawatte, Dr. Ruvini Kurukulasooriya and Dr. W. Buddhi N. T. Fernando.