Training and Research on Severe Malarial Anemia

描述（由申请人提供）：该提案是我们最初资助的福格蒂国际中心申请（D43 TW005884）的第二次更新，标题为“严重疟疾贫血的培训和研究”，以及我们用补充资金建立的额外项目，标题为“扩大严重疟疾贫血的研究，包括艾滋病毒/疟疾合并感染领域的培训和研究”。国际疟疾培训和研究计划（IMTRP）成立于2002年（Perkins, PD/PI）。在上一个资助周期内，受训者非常多产，共发表了23篇经同行评审的手稿（3篇已出版），并在国际会议上发表了52篇论文。基于我们活动的高度成功性质，我们计划继续培训流行地区的科学家掌握最先进的技术和遗传学和分子免疫学的定量分析。此外，我们将扩大我们的培训平台，以满足肯尼亚和国际科学界日益增长的需求。扩大后的项目将包括药物和疫苗发现以及生物统计学方面的培训。我们的培训战略方法依赖于以前和正在进行的遗传学方面的成功，这些成功已经确定了一些影响严重疟疾性贫血（SMA）的重要基因和基因途径，这些基因和基因途径现在将指导新治疗方案的开发。让受训者参与药物和疫苗的发现恰逢其时，因为全球SMA的治疗和管理取得的成功非常有限。此外，在所有科学领域取得成功的一个基本要求是生物统计，然而撒哈拉以南非洲严重缺乏生物统计学家。这一挑战将通过在这一重要领域提供长期培训来直接解决。选定培训的三个科学重点领域（遗传学和分子免疫学、药物和疫苗发现以及生物统计学）将得到新墨西哥大学（UNM）以及我们在肯尼亚、肯雅塔大学、马塞诺大学和肯尼亚医学研究所（KEMRI）的长期（10年）合作地点的国际公认专家的支持。总的来说，这个培训平台每年将得到教师导师3500多万美元的直接资助。在续期申请中，我们建议对三名目前已完成IMTRP硕士课程的博士生进行培训。此外，我们建议为一名正在完成博士学位的肯尼亚学员提供博士后培训，并为两名博士后（每年）提供每年11个月的现场培训，在三个重点领域之一接受最先进的培训。由于我们现在有幸培养了一些IMRTP成员，从博士水平到完成博士后研究，我们将扩大我们的活动，包括长期培训初级教师。我们建议每年为两名初级教员提供支持，帮助他们进入肯雅塔大学或马塞诺大学并获得教职。除了上述的长期培训外，我们还将提供中期培训，让同等比例的肯尼亚初级教师、博士后和博士生每年在新墨大花三个月的时间在三个重点领域之一进行专业培训（每年3个）。最后，我们将提供短期的，深入的

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal is the second renewal of our originally funded Fogarty International Center application (D43 TW005884) entitled, Training and Research in Severe Malarial Anemia and the additional program we established with supplemental funding entitled, Expanding Research on Severe Malarial Anemia to Include Training and Research in the Areas of HIV/Malaria Co-Infections. The International Malaria Training and Research Program (IMTRP) was established in 2002 (Perkins, PD/PI). During the last cycle of funding, the trainees were highly prolific generating 23 peer-reviewed manuscripts (3 in press) and 52 presentations at international meetings. Based on the highly successful nature of our activities, we plan to continue training endemic area scientists in state-of-the art technologies and quantitative analyses in genetics and molecular immunology. In addition, we will expand our training platform to meet the growing demands of the scientific community in Kenya and internationally. The expanded program will include training in drug and vaccine discovery and biostatistics. Our strategic approach for training relies on previous and ongoing success in genetics that have identified a number of important genes and gene pathways that influence severe malarial anemia (SMA) which will now guide the development of novel treatment options. Engagement of trainees in drug and vaccine discovery comes at an opportune time since the treatment and management of SMA around the globe has been met with very limited success. Moreover, an essential requirement for success in all scientific arenas is biostatistics, yet there is a critical shortage of biostatisticians in sub-Saharan Africa. This challenge will be directly addressed by providing long-term training in this important area. The three scientific focus areas selected for training (genetics and molecular immunology, drug and vaccine discovery, and biostatistics) will be supported by internationally recognized experts at the University of New Mexico (UNM) and at our long-standing (10 years) partner sites in Kenya, Kenyatta University, Maseno University, and Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI). Collectively, the training platform will be supported by more than $35 million in annual direct funding by the Faculty Mentors. In the renewal application, we propose to provide training for three doctoral students who are currently completed their MSc programs with support from the IMTRP. In addition, we propose to provide postdoctoral training for one Kenyan mentee that is completing his PhD and two postdoctoral fellows (per year) that will spend 11 months per annum on-site at UNM receiving state-of-the-art training in the one of the three focus areas. Since we are now in the fortunate position of having trained some members of the IMRTP from the doctoral level through completion of their postdoctoral fellowships, we will expand our activities to include long-term training of junior faculty. We propose to provide support for two junior faculty members per year as the trainees matriculate and procure faculty positions at either Kenyatta or Maseno Universities. In addition to the long-term training described, we will also provide medium-term training by having an equal representation of the Kenyan junior faculty, postdoctoral, and doctoral mentees spend three months per year at UNM for specialized training in one of the three focus areas (3 per year). Lastly, we will provide short-term, in-depth training to junior faculty, postdoctoral fellows, doctoral and medical students, and masters' level trainees through annual workshops that focus on (1) genetics and molecular immunology (2) drug and vaccine discovery (3) epidemiology and biostatistics (4) pathogenesis and hematology (5) clinical management of pediatric infectious diseases and (6) bioethics. The short-term training will take place at the KEMRI research facility in western Kenya and will be taught by scientific experts from the US and Kenya. The overall training paradigm designed in the renewal application will ensure that all trainees in the IMTRP receive the required technical and intellectual expertise to conduct independent research for the control and prevention of malarial anemia and other pediatric infectious diseases. Continuation of our highly successful training program will also provide the necessary technology transfer and capacity building required for establishing a critical mass of Kenyan scientists to address the challenging public health problems facing their society.