MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis

近年来，中东中东呼吸综合征冠状病毒、西非埃博拉病毒和拉丁美洲寨卡病毒的出现凸显了新传染病的持续威胁。防范和应对此类威胁是世界各地公共卫生机构和政府的一项优先事项。同样重要的是，由于科学研究提供了控制疟疾、艾滋病毒、结核病和小儿麻痹症等现有传染病的新方法，因此有必要确定哪些干预措施可能最有效地限制特定环境中由特定疾病引起的疾病。在这方面，疾病在人群中传播的计算机模型加上科学上严谨的数据分析已被证明是深入了解疾病如何传播以及可以采取哪些措施来限制对传播的控制的有力工具。全球传染病分析中心对这些科学方法进行研究，并将其应用于令人关注的疾病威胁。该中心的一个主要特点是它与公共卫生机构建立了密切联系，例如英国公共卫生机构、美国疾病控制和预防中心以及世界卫生组织，这些组织必须制定和实施控制传染病的战略。该中心的资深科学家在传染病建模和分析方面处于世界领先地位。他们在应对真正的流行病和对地方病（如疟疾、艾滋病毒、结核病和小儿麻痹症）进行流行病学研究方面具有广泛的经验。他们的工作通过中心与公共卫生组织和政府的许多互动直接影响疾病控制政策。MRC和帝国理工学院提供的资金使专门投资于与PHE、CDC和世卫组织以及许多低收入和中等收入国家（LMICs）的政府和研究中心建立密切的合作伙伴关系。我们还与致力于改善中低收入国家健康状况的其他重要组织（特别是比尔和梅林达·盖茨基金会、全球基金和全球疫苗和免疫联盟）密切合作。有了它们，我们的合作研究既引起了中心研究人员的科学兴趣，又为公共卫生决策提供了证据基础。中心资金支持所有项目可用的核心技术能力，并支付专门联络人员的费用，以促进和加强我们与主要全球卫生组织和中低收入国家的伙伴关系。医学研究委员会的资金也促进了中心内部更注重合作、培训和职业发展——培训下一代定量传染病流行病学家。我们还参与增加公共卫生机构和更广泛的传染病研究界对先进建模方法的了解，因此开办了大量介绍性短期课程和讲习班（过去5年在13个国家）。这种应用活动取决于本中心就不同疾病的传播动态、疾病如何随着时间的推移在遗传上演变、以及分析控制或治疗疾病的新方法。这项研究是跨学科的，中心的研究人员与世界各地领先的临床和实验科学家合作。中心继续提供资金将使现有的伙伴关系得以维持和加强，并将与中低收入国家的研究人员和卫生机构发展新的合作。通过支持博士培训和博士后职业发展，它还将继续扩大英国在应用于健康问题的数学建模和高级分析方面的技能基础。最后，MRC的持续支持将推动新的优先研究领域，包括改进新疫苗的开发和应对抗菌素耐药性带来的全球挑战的工作。

The continuing threat from new infectious diseases has been highlighted in recent years by the emergence of MERS-coronavirus in the Middle East, Ebola in West Africa and Zika in Latin America. Preparing for and responding to such threats is a priority for public health agencies and governments worldwide. Equally importantly, as scientific research delivers new approaches to controlling existing infectious diseases such as malaria, HIV, tuberculosis and polio, there is a need to determine what interventions are likely to work best to limit the disease and illness caused by a specific disease in a particular setting.In this context, computer modelling of the spread of diseases in populations coupled with scientifically rigorous data analysis have proven themselves as powerful tools for giving insight into how diseases spread and what can be done to limit that control that spread. The Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis undertakes research on these scientific methods and applies them to disease threats of concern. A key feature of the Centre is the close links it has made with with public health agencies - such as the Public Health England, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US (CDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO) - organisations which have to formulate and implement strategies to control infectious diseases. Senior scientists in the Centre are world-leaders in infectious disease modelling and analysis. They have broad experience in responding to real epidemics, and undertaking epidemiological research on endemic diseases (such as malaria, HIV, tuberculosis and polio). Their work directly influences disease control policy through the many interactions the Centre has with public health organisations and governments. Funding provided by MRC and Imperial College has allowed dedicated investment into the development of close collaborative partnerships with PHE, CDC and WHO and governments and research centres in many low and middle income countries (LMICs). We also work closely with other important organisations who work on improving health in LMICs (notably the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, The Global Fund and Gavi). With each, our collaborative research has both scientific interest to Centre researchers and contributes to the evidence base for public health decisions. Centre funding supports a core technical capacity available to all projects and pays for dedicated liaison staff who facilitate and enhance our partnerships with major global health organisations and LMICs. MRC funding has also facilitated a greater focus on collaboration, training and career development within the Centre - training the next generation of quantitative infectious disease epidemiologists. We are also involved in increasing knowledge of advanced modelling methods in public health institutions and the wider infectious disease research community, and so have run a large number of introductory short-courses and workshops (in 13 countries in the last 5 years)This applied activity depends on more fundamental research undertaken in the Centre on the transmission dynamics of different diseases, how diseases evolve genetically over time, and on analysing new approaches to control or treat diseases. This research is interdisciplinary, with Centre researchers working with leading clinical and experimental scientists around the world.Continued Centre funding will allow existing partnerships to be sustained and enhanced, and new collaborations with researchers and health agencies in LMICs to be developed. By supporting PhD training and postdoctoral career development, it will also continue to expand the UK skill base in mathematical modelling and advanced analysis applied to health problems. Last, continued MRC support will pump-prime new priority research areas, including work on improving the development of new vaccines and on tackling the global challenge posed by antimicrobial resistance.