West African Emerging Infectious Disease Research Center (WA-EIDRC)

确保世界免受微生物威胁是一项紧迫的挑战，因为疫情对人类造成了严重影响。 健康，破坏地区安全，并有可能迅速升级为全球危机。近几 多年来，埃博拉、拉沙、寨卡和其他新兴病毒的严重爆发表明， RNA病毒病原体的威胁。这些突发公共卫生事件暴露了 世界各地迫切需要改善基础设施、科学知识和诊断工具 最危险的，并强调需要主动病原体监测，检测和发现。 西非对疫情的脆弱性不成比例，但我们缺乏对严重威胁的认识， 它们的自然历史和有效的预防策略。在本地和全球之间进行深入研究 需要合作伙伴，结合新的检测方法和流行病防范战略， 这些问题。我们将建立快速应对未来疫情的能力， 西非新发传染病研究中心。该中心将在多年成功的基础上扩大 跨学科研究和能力建设，汇集了来自美国的领先研究人员 美国、利比里亚、尼日利亚、塞内加尔和塞拉利昂。我们将：（1）进行全面的调查， RNA病毒疾病，并确定在宿主和宿主中传播的关键威胁;（2）确定风险因素 （3）剖析了重症RNA病毒的发病机理和自然史 疾病;（4）确定感染结果的诊断标准，以指导公共卫生干预。 我们的工作将通过新技术的开发，大大扩大西非的研究能力。 用于监测、诊断和病原体发现的解决方案。通过建立我们的中心， 优先病原体研究，技术转让，培训和能力建设，我们将制定灵活的 检测、缓解和预防未来传染病暴发的战略。

Ensuring a world safe from microbial threats is a pressing challenge, as outbreaks exact tolls on human health, disrupt regional security, and have the potential to rapidly escalate into global crises. In recent years, severe outbreaks of Ebola, Lassa, Zika, and other emerging viruses have illustrated how vulnerable the world is to threats from RNA viral pathogens. These public health emergencies have exposed the urgent need for improved infrastructure, scientific knowledge, and diagnostic tools in areas of the world most at risk, and underscore the need for proactive pathogen surveillance, detection, and discovery. West Africa has a disproportionate vulnerability to outbreaks, but we lack awareness of acute threats, their natural history, and effective strategies for prevention. Rooted research between local and global partners, combined with novel assays and strategies for pandemic preparedness is required to answer these questions. We will build the capacity to rapidly respond to future outbreaks by establishing the West African Emerging Infectious Disease Research Center. This center will expand on years of successful cross-disciplinary research and capacity building, bringing together leading researchers from the United States, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, and Sierra Leone. We will: (1) perform comprehensive surveys of acute RNA viral disease and determine critical threats circulating in hosts and reservoirs; (2) identify risk factors of virus transmission and evolution; (3) dissect pathogenesis and natural history of severe RNA viral diseases; and (4) determine diagnostic criteria for infection outcome to guide public health interventions. Our work will significantly expand research capacity in West Africa via technology development of novel solutions for surveillance, diagnostics, and pathogen discovery. By establishing our center with a focus on priority pathogen research, technology transfer, training, and capacity building, we will develop flexible strategies for detecting, mitigating, and preventing the emergence of future infectious disease outbreaks.