US-Africa Advanced Studies Institute on Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Disease in Africa; Cape Town, South Africa, June 2007

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This award funds an Advanced Studies Institute on Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Disease in Africa, to be held in Cape Town, South Africa in June, 2007. In recent years, mathematical modeling of infectious diseases has had an increasing influence on the theory and practice of disease management with such diseases as HIV/AIDS, foot-and-mouth disease, and SARS, and this is increasingly the case with diseases of Africa. In order to further understand and prevent the spread of infectious diseases, it is vitally important to train young mathematicians and scientists who are both knowledgeable about modeling as well as about disease contexts and data gathering. The success of recent joint US-African modeling studies points to the advantages of such collaborations and to the need for more trained researchers and students from both sides. To address the issue of training, the Center for Discrete Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science (DIMACS), in collaboration with the South African DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Epidemiological Modeling and Analysis (SACEMA) and the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), will hold a two-week advanced studies institute in Cape Town, culminating in a 3-day "capstone" workshop at which institute students and researchers from both the US and Africa will interact and establish collaborations. The institute will emphasize mathematical techniques used in epidemiological modeling including advanced topics such as meta-population modeling, continuous vs. discrete-time stochastic models; models with vertical transmission; spatial and individual-based models; age structure; and optimal allocation of disease control resources such as vaccine and antiviral doses. The workshop will discuss the design of cost-effective, sustainable strategies for combating disease spread in Africa, including modern statistical tools for surveillance, network methods, and evolutionary aspects of diseases of humans and animals. Speakers will address mathematical modeling tools for dealing with shortages of resources, drug resistance to tuberculosis, challenges from HIV and malaria, and potential alternative interventions for pandemic flu. Materials arising from the institute will be widely disseminated so that others can use them. The project will help the DIMACS program bring current international research into the undergraduate classroom in the US. Partnering with four historically Black colleges and universities (Clark Atlanta, Howard, Morgan State, and North Carolina A&T) will enable a diverse group of students to participate in the institute. The institute will provide US students with advanced disease-modeling knowledge within an international context, open new lines of communication between US students and researchers and their African counterparts, and provide a solid basis for collaborative partnerships that can last well into the future. Finally, including such a wide range of factors in the course increases the likelihood that the students and researchers will generate new approaches to modeling disease epidemics such as HIV/AIDS in Africa and the rest of the world.This award is co-funded by the Division of Mathematical Sciences and the Division of Information and Intelligent Systems.