Dr Chamila Samarasinghe Vidane Arachchige

I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Global Centre for Environmental Remediation at College of Engineering, Science and Environment. My current research focusses investigating the environmental soil chemistry and toxicity, understanding the underlying mechanisms, and finding remedial options for organic and inorganic contaminants including total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), PFAS, nanoparticles, and Jet Fuel additives.  

I pursued my doctoral studies in the field of Environmental Remediation at the University of Newcastle from 2015 - 2019 under the supervision of Professor Megh Mallavarapu, Laureate Professor Ravi Naidu, Laureate Professor Robert John Aitken, and Dr. Kannan Krishnan. My doctoral research centered on understanding the impact and the underlying mechanisms of toxicity of different contaminants to the environmental and human health. This included investigating the effect of parabens and different nanoparticles to earthworms (life cycle assessments), animal cell lines and human spermatozoa.

My research career started with a Bachelor of Science (Pharmacy) Honours degree where I investigated a novel route of drug delivery (transcranial) using animal models. Key feature of this research was measuring the antinociceptive effect of opioid analgesic drug (methadone) to rats using transcranial route as drug delivery route, which included the preparation of transcranial oil formulation of methadone, application of the medications to the mammalian model, measuring the antinociceptive effect, and application of statistical tools for data analysis and interpretation. 

Research component of my Master of Public Health (in Epidemiology) included an island wide survey on the availability, price, and affordability of the medicines used for non-communicable diseases in Sri Lanka. The data obtained were analyzed following the standardized medicine price methodology and tools designed by the World Health Organization and Health Action International.

Prior to joining The University of Newcastle, I worked in different government and private, multinational companies. I started my career as an analytical chemist at SGS (Pvt.) Ltd in Sri Lanka where I performed analytical testing of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and food products using high performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography, and atomic absorption spectrometry (running, processing, and reporting) during 2006 – 2008. At SGS, I also assisted the team and undertook internal conformance audits to provide assurance regarding compliance with ISO/IEC 17025. Then I worked at National Medicines Regulatory Authority of Sri Lanka and State Pharmaceuticals Corporation where I exercised my duties in a broad context by evaluating and market authorization of applications for pharmaceutical and cosmetic products, inspecting the pharmaceutical manufacturing premises for Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and licensing purposes, coordinating and organizing activities and consultative workshops with the Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka and World Health Organization, and coordinating and attending the training programs organized by the Ministry of health for medical and allied health science professional. I have also served as a visiting lecturer in several universities in Sri Lanka including University of Colombo, University of Peradeniya, University of Ruhuna, and University of Sri Jayawardenapura. In these universities, I have involved teaching different modules: Forensic Pharmacy, Pharmaceutics, Pharmaceutical Ethics, Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Pharmaceutical Administration, and Hospital and Community Pharmacy.  

With my expertise and multidisciplinary background of environmental science, public health, and pharmacy, I contribute significantly to the field of understanding the toxicology and assessing the risks of contaminants/ chemicals to the ecological and human health. My research has been recognized both nationally and internationally through publication in leading multidisciplinary journals and presentations (Australia, India, and Sri Lanka). My current research interests include understanding the effects of contaminant exposures to environmental and human health.