Professor Anjana Silva is a Professor in Medical Parasitology in the Faculty of Medicine and Allied Sciences, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka. He graduated from University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka as a medical doctor in 2007. He completed the degree of Master of Philosophy at University of Peradeniya in 2012 and PhD at Monash University, Australia in 2017.
Anjana initiated his research career as a field biologist and a taxonomist, involving in several biodiversity expeditions carried out in Sri Lanka. He has authored several research publications in leading journals on the taxonomy and biology of freshwater fish, lizards and venomous snakes, including discoveries of 11 new species.
Being trained as a medical doctor in Sri Lanka, Anjana witnessed the enormous suffering associated with snakebite. With his backgrounds in herpetology and medicine, Anjana developed a passion in researching on snakebite. Since 2009, Anjana investigates the pathophysiology of snake envenoming and the role of antivenom as treatment, combining clinical studies, classical experimental and molecular pharmacological studies. Anjana has published 44 research papers in reputed journals and also delivered invited talks and key-note addresses in several international conferences. He is a reviewer to several journals in the fields of general medicine, clinical toxinology, tropical medicine, herpetology and ichthyology. Dr. Anjana Silva is a member of the Snakebite Expert Committee of the Sri Lanka Medical Association and an Executive Committee Member of the Sri Lanka Association for Laboratory Animal Scientists. He is also a member of the Viper Specialist Group (Asia region) of the Species Survival Commission of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Anjana has won several local and international awards in recognition of his work. In 2013, he was awarded the award for young scientist in the field of biology, by The World Academy of Sciences and the National Science Foundation. In 2015, Anjana won the best oral presentation awards at all three major clinical toxicology conferences (European, North American and Asia-Pcific) in the world. In addition, he won the Sri Lankan presidential award for scientific research in 2005, 2008, 2013, 2014 and 2016. His PhD thesis won the Vice Chancellor's commendation for thesis excellence in Monash University, Australia.