Drug Discovery for Protozoan Parasites

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DESCRIPTION: This application requests support for a Keystone Symposia meeting entitled Drug Discovery for Protozoan Parasites, organized by Norman C. Waters, Frederick S. Buckner and Vicky M. Avery, which will be held in Santa Fe, New Mexico from January 15 - 20, 2012. Hundreds of millions of people world-wide are infected each year with protozoan parasites. The mortality and morbidity associated with these diseases are expected to increase due to the development of drug resistant parasites, the absence of adequate vaccines, and a shortage of anti-protozoan agents in the drug development pipelines. Understanding the pathogenesis; mechanisms of growth and differentiation; and metabolic processes of the parasites has provided new insights and challenges in the identification of novel drug targets for malaria, leishmaniasis, and trypanosomiasis. Integrated strategies combining target identification and validation with advances in structural biology, genetic manipulations and high-throughput high-content screening platforms are likely to accelerate the development of anti-protozoan drugs. This meeting is the only international meeting that addresses the development of drugs to treat and prevent parasite infections. It will bring together parasitologists, chemists, pharmacologists and clinicians from academia, government and industry to discuss opportunities for the advancement of novel anti-protozoan chemotypes and progression of lead compounds into clinical development. Opportunities for interdisciplinary interactions will be significantly enhanced by the concurrent meeting on Fungal Pathogens: From Basic Biology to Drug Discovery, which will share a keynote address and two plenary sessions with this meeting. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Infections due to protozoan parasites are widely regarded as "neglected diseases." In many parts of the developing world, deteriorating health care systems, inadequate medicines, lack of effective vaccines, drug resistance, civil unrest, economical hardship, and climate change are expected to lead to increases in deaths from protozoan parasites. The Keystone Symposia meeting on Drug Discovery for Protozoan Parasites is the only international meeting that addresses the development of drugs to treat and prevent parasite infections. It will bring together parasitologists, chemists, pharmacologists and clinicians from academia, government and industry to discuss opportunities for the advancement of novel anti-protozoan chemotypes and progression of lead compounds into clinical development.