I am very pleased to introduce Malaria Journal’s new Editors-in-Chief: Chris Drakeley and Louisa Messenger. They have taken over the helm from the journal’s Founding Editor Marcel Hommel, who retired at the end of 2025.

Louisa Messenger is an Assistant Professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and is a specialist in environmental and global health with a focus on vector‑borne diseases. Her work covers the control of malaria and Chagas disease across Latin America and sub‑Saharan Africa, innovative vector‑control interventions, molecular entomology and disease surveillance. She has collaborated on projects with major global health organizations, including the US CDC, USAID, WHO, and the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative.  

 Before joining the University of Nevada, Louisa was an Assistant Professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

 Chris Drakeley is a Professor of Infection and Immunity at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and a Seniot Technical advisor at PATH. His expertise is on malaria transmission, epidemiology, and immunology, and his current initiatives include advancing malaria surveillance methods, improving understanding of zoonotic malaria such as Plasmodium knowlesi, and developing serological assays for malaria and other infectious diseases. His work contributes to global efforts to monitor and reduce transmission in diverse settings, including Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.

He is affiliated with multiple research centres at LSHTM, as well as providing scientific advice to Malaria No More and being a member of several WHO committees on malaria.

Louisa and Chris served as Associate Editors for Malaria Journal for many years prior to their appointment as Editors-in-Chief in 2026, so they know the journal well. They are planning to continue the inclusive, community ethos of the journal, and have several initiatives in mind for the journal over the next five years.

 Over the course of 2026, we will be building the Editorial Board further by bringing on more Associate Editors from across the world and range of disciplines working on malaria.

I am the Executive Publisher for Malaria Journal. Please feel free to reach out to me via the comments section below, if you have any questions about the journal.