International Highlights

Summary of NIH International Highlights

March-May 2003

Program Developments

Fogarty International Center

On March 7, Dr. Gerald Keusch, FIC Director, served as moderator of a panel on “Setting Priorities:  Looking Beyond Bioterrorism” at the 12^th Annual Conference on Global Health Challenges in World Cities of the International Health Medical Education Consortium in New York City.  Dr. Keusch was also a panel member for “Rethinking Health:  Innovative Approaches and Partnerships”.

Dr. Keusch participated as a panel member at the Duke Center for Genome, Ethics, Law, and Policy’s program on March 19.  The panel members provided comments on each of two presentations given at the Nuffield Council report on the Ethics of DNA patenting and the UK report on patents, and the TB Alliance’s effort in drug/vaccine development.

Dr. Keusch served on the Roundtable on Science and Technology for Sustainability at the National Academy of Sciences on March 20-21.  Dr. Keusch is a member ex officio of this Roundtable, which is working to chart a long-term science and technology agenda for the transition to sustainability.

On April 1, Dr. Keusch presented a seminar on International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.  He spoke on “Building International Research and Capacity Building Programs.”

Dr. Keusch represented NIH at an April 7-8 meeting of the Committee of Interested Parties for the Center for Management of Intellectual Property in Health Research and Development in London.

On April 18, Dr. Keusch attended a meeting on global health initiatives at the Columbia University Department for Health and Biomedical Sciences in New York City, and also met with the Faculty of Medicine during his visit.

Dr. Keusch attended the International Food and Nutrition Forum at the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine in Washington, D.C. on April 23.  This forum provided the opportunity to discuss the World Health Report 2002:  Reducing Risks, Promoting Healthy Lifestyles.

Dr. Keusch participated in the Disease Control Priorities Project workshop entitled “Tropical Infectious Diseases” at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, held April 27-30.  Dr. Keusch spoke about the burden, successes, economics, scientific questions and controversies at the session defining priorities in tropical infectious disease.

Dr. Sharon Hrynkow, FIC Deputy Director, met with Christine Chirol of INSERM on March 3 to discuss the next meeting of the Global Forum on Bioethics Research which is to be held in Paris in 2004.

On March 6, Dr. Hrynkow convened the NIH Fellows from Developing Countries to discuss the establishment of NIH Alumni Associations in pilot countries.  The group also heard a presentations from NLM’s Julia Royal and Kathy Kwan on WHO’s HINARI program which provides full text articles to developing country institutions.

On March 19, Dr. Hrynkow represented NIH in an interagency discussion with Surgeon General Richard Carmona and Dr. Bill Steiger on the topic of post-war Iraq.  Dr. Zerhouni and Dr. Keusch subsequently asked Dr. Hrynkow to represent NIH on a DHHS Working Group on Iraq.

On March 25, Dr. Keusch, Dr. Hrynkow and Dr. Pierce Gardner, FIC Senior Advisor for Clinical Research and Training, met with Steven Schoenbaum of the Commonwealth Fund to discuss international programs and potential collaborations.

On May 7, Dr. Hrynkow and Dr. Gardner participated in a brainstorming session hosted by the Institute of Medicine on the possible establishment of a U.S. Global Health Service Corps. 

On April 6, Dr. Gardner presented an overview of FIC training and research programs to the post-doctoral program at Rockefeller University.

Dr. Gardner participated in a workshop in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on "Expanding AIDS Treatment, Care, and Prevention in Resource-Poor Settings" on April 13 –17.  The workshop was co-sponsored by GHESKIO, Zanmi Lasante, Partners in Health, the Division of AIDS at the Harvard Medical School, and Weil Medical College of Cornell University.  Dr. Gardner also conducted a site visit at the GHESKIO research/clinical facility that has been selected as a site for the FIC/Ellison Clinical Research Training Program.   

On April 30, Dr. Gardner represented FIC at a CDC meeting of the planning committee for the “4^th International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases” to be held in Atlanta, February 29-March 3, 2004. 

  Multilateral Activities

  UNESCO Declaration on Human Genetic Data

In early March, Mr. George Herrfurth, FIC Program Officer for Multilateral Organizations, coordinated NIH review and comments of a proposed international declaration on human genetic data that has been developed by UNESCO.  NIH comments sought to ensure that science/ethics issues in the non-binding declaration were appropriately addressed.  The U.S. expects to rejoin UNESCO later this year after more than an 18-year absence from the organization.  

Pan American Health Organization

On April 17, Dr. Keusch and Dr. Luis A Salicrup, FIC Program Officer for the Americas, met with Dr. Mirta Roses, the Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to review current FIC/PAHO collaborations and discuss possible new areas for cooperation.

  WHO World Health Assembly (WHA)

Since late April, Mr. Herrfurth has been coordinating NIH review of WHO background documents and proposed U.S. position papers for the 56^th WHA scheduled for May 19-28, including those related to the WHO World Report on Violence and Health, Traditional Medicine, and the WHO Strategy for Child and Adolescent Health, among others.

  Disease Control Priorities Project (DCPP)

During March and April, the DCPP Secretariat worked to plan and implement a program of consultations related to chapter development for the second edition of “Disease Control Priorities in Developing Countries” (DCP-2).   Recent and upcoming consultations include:  a consultation on tropical infectious diseases co-sponsored with the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIOCRUZ), on April 28-May 1 and two separate consultations scheduled in May on Discounting (to be held in Washington, D.C.) and Research and Development (to be held in Bethesda).  In June, DCPP will co-sponsor a workshop in Cuernavaca, Mexico, on Implementation Successes together with Mexico’s National Institute of Public Health (JNSP), the Center for Global Development, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.   The Cuernavaca consultation will also include a first meeting of the DCP-2’s Advisory Committee to the Editors (ACE) chaired by Dr. Jaime Sepulveda, Director-General of INSP.

  Bilateral Activities

Africa

Ms. Judy Levin, Program Officer for Africa and the Middle East, organized and participated in meetings at NIH on April 8 between representatives of FIC, OAR, NIAID, and NCI and Dr. G.B.A. Okelo, Secretary General of the African Academy of Sciences, based in Nairobi, and Ms. Noel Mugalo, a medical sociologist who serves as the Administrator for the Kenya National Academy of Sciences.

On April 17, Dr. Ken Bridbord, FIC Director of the Division of International Training and Research, and Ms. Levin gave presentations at a meeting which included nine Vice-Chancellors from African universities visiting NIH as part of a program arranged for them by the Society of Research Administrators International.

Canada:  Dr. Aron Primack, FIC Program Officer, Division of International Training and Research, met with Astrid Eberhart and Remi Quirion of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) on March 27 to discuss mutual interests in tobacco control programs.

On March 28, Dr. Keusch, Dr. Hrynkow, and Dr. Salicrup met with representatives from the Canadian Health Research Institutes (CIHR) to discuss ongoing collaborative research and training programs and to explore synergies for expanded future FIC/CIHR cooperation.

Mexico:   Dr. Salicrup represented FIC at the annual meeting of the U.S.-Mexico Science Foundation held April 10 in Washington, D.C.  During the meeting, new scientific priorities were identified by both countries, including cooperative research and capacity building activities related to infectious disease, environmental health, and drug abuse.

Dr. Rachel Nugent, FIC Program Officer, Division of International Training and Research, presented a paper on “Agriculture and Food System Policies to support a Global Strategy on Nutrition” at the PAHO Regional Consultation on Nutrition, Physical Activity and Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases held in Costa Rica on April 22-25.  Dr. Nugent is a member of the WHO Reference Group for development of a Global Strategy on Nutrition, Health and the Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases.

On April 30-May 2, Dr. Nugent met in Ottawa with representatives of the Canadian International Development Research Center (IDRC) to plan an external review of the IDRC’s interdisciplinary program on Ecosystem Approaches to Human Health.  Dr. Nugent will be one of two external reviewers of the program’s research activities in developing countries.

Asia and South Asia

Dr. Richard Krause, FIC Senior Scientific Advisor, Division of Advanced Studies and Policy Analysis, traveled to Hong Kong in early March to meet with medical researchers at the Queen Mary Hospital Medical School and discuss recent research on Group A streptococcal infections, including toxic shock syndrome, as well as invasive Group A strep disease.  Dr. Krause then traveled to India to discuss epidemiology of Group A strep infections in children with Indian researchers.  He also had meetings with collaborators at the Post-Graduate Institute for Medical Research and Training at Chandigarh to discuss research related to streptococcal infections in school-age children.  

Dr. Primack met with representatives of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) on April 30 to discuss FIC involvement in JSPS programs. 

China:   A delegation from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, led by Academy Vice President and President of Beijing University, Xu Zhihong, held discussions on scientific ethics on April 30 with representatives of FIC, OER, OIR and the Office of Research Integrity.  The delegation was also scheduled to meet with officials from NAS, AAAS, NSF, and with the presidents of Princeton, Harvard, MIT and Stanford.

Nepal:   On April 18, Dr. Primack met with the Dr. Mrigendra Pandey, Member of Nepal’s State Council, to discuss FIC programs, including those related to tobacco control.  Dr. Pandey served as Nepal’s representative to the WHO-sponsored Framework Convention on Tobacco Control negotiations.

Central and Eastern Europe

On March 20, Ms. Natalie Tomitch, Program Officer for Russia, NIS and CEE, participated in an interagency meeting convened by the State Department to discuss the future of science and technology (S&T) cooperation with Croatia and Hungary following the closure of the respective S&T Joint Funds.  State anticipates that bilateral meetings involving both countries will take place later this spring in Washington, D.C.

Ms. Tomitch and Mr. Pineda joined Dr. Sharon Hrynkow and Dr. Ken Bridbord in a meeting on April 10 with Dr. Andreas Skulberg of the Norwegian Ministry of Health’s Division of International Affairs regarding opportunities for collaboration with the Baltic Rim Network for Education and Training in Public Health.  The aim of the network is to develop academic capacity, human resources, and professional partnerships to adequately address priority public health issues in the Baltic States and Russia.

Middle East

Egypt:

In April, Ms. Judy Levin organized the review of 18 proposals for biomedical research projects submitted in response to the seventh annual call for applications under the U.S.-Egypt Joint S&T Fund program.  The venue for the meeting of the Joint Board, which is scheduled on May 20-22, has been moved from Cairo to Washington, D.C.  Ms. Levin represents NIH at the IWG meetings preparatory to the Board meetings.

Jordan:   On April 23, Ms. Levin met with Dr. Maha Arnaout at the request of the NCI Office of Communications to discuss with her FIC research and training opportunities for scientists from the Middle East.  NCI is hosting Dr. Arnaout, a pediatric oncologist at the King Hussein Cancer Center in Amman, for a six-week intensive cancer communications training session.  

Western Europe

France:   Mr. Mark Pineda, FIC Program Officer for Western Europe, joined representatives from OTT and NHGRI on April 22 for discussions with Mr. Alain Claeys, a Deputy in the French National Assembly, regarding stem cell policies and gene patenting issues.  Participants also exchanged views on the roles of government-funded research institutions and the private sector in the development of drugs, therapeutics and vaccines.

Germany:   On April 16, Mr. Pineda and representatives from NIH OD and NICHD met with Dr. Carola Reimann, a member of the German Parliament, to exchange views on stem cell research policy issues.

Italy :  On April 17, Secretary Thompson and the Italian Minister of Health, Dr. Girolamo Sirchia, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to facilitate increased cooperation in the areas of biodefense, oncology, and rare diseases between HHS and the Italian Ministry of Health.  The MOU notes that mechanisms for increasing cooperation in these areas can include exchanges of scientists, organization of meetings and scientific conferences, and coordinated scientific programs and research projects.  The MOU also allows for the future addition of other health topic areas for cooperation as may be identified by both parties. 

Spain :  On April 24, Secretary Thompson and Ms. Ana Pastor Julián, the Spanish Minister of Health and Consumer Affairs, signed a joint statement between to strengthen U.S.-Spain cooperation in the fields of public health and biomedical research.  The mechanisms of cooperation include exchange of information and scientists, organizations of meetings and workshops, research projects using available resources, and potential inclusion of developing country scientists in joint efforts. 

Russia and The Newly Independent States (NIS)

Moldova:   On March 7, Ms. Tomitch joined representatives of NIAID and NIAAA in a meeting with a State Department-sponsored delegation from Moldova, composed of tuberculosis experts primarily working with MDR-TB in prisons.  NIH staff provided an overview of international research and training opportunities relevant to TB-related research.

At the March 25 meeting of the Trans-NIH Sub-Committee on International Nutrition Research (SCINR), Ms. Tomitch gave a presentation on current nutrition-related priorities, needs and opportunities, and NIH-supported nutrition research in the NIS/CEE region.

Russia:   Ms. Tomitch facilitated a meeting at NIH on March 26 for a group of Russian HIV/STI specialists sponsored by the State Department’s International Visitor Program.  Representatives of NIAID, NIDA, NIMH, and FIC provided this group of physicians, NGO directors, health officials, epidemiologists, and educators with an overview of clinical and behavioral studies supported by the various ICs relevant to HIV/STI as well as information on international research and training opportunities.

On April 4, Ms. Tomitch provided an overview of FIC’s international research and training opportunities at NIDA’s annual Grant Process Session for Hubert H. Humphrey and INVEST Fellows. 

On April 8, Ms. Tomitch coordinated a visit to NIH by a group of Russian physicians and health officials, sponsored by the Open World Program of the Library of Congress and Rotary International.  Given the group’s primary interests in infectious disease prevention, treatment and control, tobacco and alcohol abuse prevention, and public health campaigns related to the above areas, the NIH visit included presentations by representatives of NIAID, NHLBI, NIAAA, NCI, and FIC, as well as an NLM tour.

Kazakhstan :  Ms. Tomitch participated in meetings arranged at NIH on April 16 for a delegation of nursing leaders from Kazakhstan, sponsored by State Department’s International Visitor Program.  The group met with representatives of NINR and FIC to discuss the role of nursing research and education in promoting improved health care services, and to learn about international research and training opportunities available through FIC.

On April 22, Ms. Tomitch participated in a conference and roundtable discussion in Seattle on “U.S. Russian Biotechnology Collaboration: Partnerships for a Global Economy.” The U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) and the Seattle-based Foundation for Russian American Economic Cooperation (FRAEC) sponsored the conference.

Program Notes

Pre-eclampsia Meeting

Dr. Jeanne McDermott, FIC Program Officer, Division of International Training and Research, represented FIC at the April 4-6 International Pre-eclampsia Summit organized by the Pre-eclampsia Foundation and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

AITRP and FIRCA Evaluations

Dr. Linda Kupfer, FIC Evaluation Officer, Division of Advanced Studies and Policy Analysis, will be starting a Phase I feasibility study of FIC’s AIDS International Training and Research Program (AITRP).  This study will look at whether or not it is feasible to do an outcome evaluation of the 15-year-old AITRP.  Dr. Kupfer will also begin an outcome evaluation of the Fogarty International Research Collaboration Award (FIRCA) based on the completed FIRCA Phase I feasibility study.

Recent FIC Seminars

March 20 – Dr. Peter Walsh, Princeton University on “Ebola and the Catastrophic Decline of African Apes”

April 3 – Dr. Gerry Killeen, Swiss Tropical Institute, on “Ecology as a Matter of Life and Death in Africa”

April 22 – Dr. Ira Schwartz, Naval Research Labs, on “Epidemic Outbreak Suppression Using Stochastic Prediction and Control”

May 6 – Ms. Christine Pace, NIH Clinical Center, on “The Quality of Informed Consent in Developing Countries: What the Data Show”

  National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine

  Bilateral and Regional Activities

Canada: NCCAM’s Linda Engel, Karen Kun, Dr. Richard Nahin and Dr. Nancy Pearson met with Dr. Remi Quirion, Scientific Director, and Astrid Eberhart, Assistant Director for Partnerships of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction, on March 28, 2003. The group was joined by Dr. Luis Salicrup of FIC. The group discussed the mission and goals of their respective organizations, as well as potential areas for future collaboration. 

England: Dr. Josh Berman represented NCCAM at the conference, “Medicinal Plants and Their Uses,” at the Imperial College, London, April 23-25, 2003.  The conference was sponsored by the Association of Applied Biologists and the Institute of Horticulture.

Dr. Berman provided a presentation on “Current USA Guidelines for Clinical Trials of Botanicals.”

France:  Dr. Josh Berman served as a study monitor at the program investigator site of the trial, “Tropical Treatment of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis with WR 279396: A Phase 2 Study in the Old World.” The study is supported by the U.S.Army/Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR).

India:  NCCAM’s joint April 7-11, 2003 workshop (being held under the auspices of the Indo – US Science and Technology Forum) in conjunction with the Department of Indian Systems of Medicine and Homeopathy, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India was postponed due to the commencement of war in Iraq.  Plans call for potentially rescheduling the workshop during 2003.

Latin America and the Caribbean: - NCCAM joined FIC, NIMH, NICHD, NCI, NIEHS, ODS, the Mexican Council of Science and Technology, and the Mexican National Institute of Public Health in co-sponsoring a grantsmanship workshop for Latin American and Caribbean scientists in Cuernavaca, Mexico, July 1-3, 2003.  The workshop’s goal is to assist scientists from leading Latin American and Caribbean research institutions in competing more effectively for NIH awards.

  Multilateral and other International Activities

“Supercourse,” A Global Distance Learning Project

Dr. Stephen Straus participated in the University of Pittsburgh’s “Supercourse,” a global distance learning project, through which medical and scientific experts from all over the world contribute PowerPoint lectures to be shared with fellow academicians.  Lectures are translated into up to 8 languages and are posted online to be downloaded and used by instructors worldwide.

  World Health Organization (WHO)

NCCAM communicated with WHO’s Traditional Medicine Programme concerning their request to establish relevant links between the NCCAM and WHO Traditional Medicine web sites. NCCAM is a WHO Collaborating Centre for Traditional Medicine.

Dr. Josh Berman chaired/co-chaired the WHO/Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR) product development team meetings on Miltefosine/Paromomycin for visceral leishmaniasis.  The meetings were held in London, England, April 30 – May 2. 

NCCAM provided comments on the draft U.S. Government’s position paper concerning traditional medicine, which will be utilized at the upcoming 56^th World Health Assembly (WHA), May 19-28, 2003, in Geneva, Switzerland. The position paper relates to the WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy 2002-2005 and a proposed resolution on traditional medicine that emanated from the 111^th Session of the WHO Executive Board.

NCCAM provided comments on the draft 2004-2007 WHO Medicines Strategy as it relates to traditional medicine to assist in informing the U.S. Government position concerning this strategy document. 

National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute

The Americas - The “Pan American Hypertension Initiative” (PAHI), launched by NHLBI and PAHO has been endorsed by eight international scientific organizations.  This initiative is designed to develop collaboration between national programs in hypertension in the Americas.  PAHI will focus on the health problems of an estimated 140 million hypertensives in the region, emphasizing the need to prevent and control this condition, and its sequelae of heart attacks, stroke, heart failure, disability and premature deaths. A joint blood pressure measurement standard has been developed with partners in the Americas, and tested by PAHO in its public health programs in Costa Rica.  A meeting with PAHO and country representatives was held in April 2001 at NIH to discuss further joint plans for implementing the PAHI initiative in the region.  The ten PAHI partners have developed a joint blood pressure measurement standard for use in future studies in the Americas.  This measurement standard will be published in the PAHO journal over the signatures of the Directors of PAHO and NHLBI.  A follow-up meeting is  planned.

Europe - An International Position Paper on “Women’s Health and Menopause: A Comprehensive Approach” was developed in follow-up of the international conference held in Washington in May 2001 on “Women’s Health in Menopause: New Strategies for Improved Quality of Life.”  The document was developed by NHLBI in collaboration with the Giovanni Lorenzini Medical Science Foundation in Milan, Italy and the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health, and scientists from other NIH institutes.  The full report was published by NHLBI in July 2002.  Chapter 13, Best Clinical Practices was published in March 2002 and has been widely distributed.  Also, the media have called attention to the report as the first of its kind.  The document covers a range of issues relating to the health of women: cardiovascular disease, cancer, osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s disease, sexuality, psychosocial factors, and the role of hormone replacement therapy.  Partners in the private sector have arranged for the  International Position Paper to be translated into eleven languages.

Afghanistan - The NHLBI has developed a proposal for training of Afghan health professionals in blood resources management and training.  This is part of a DHHS US-Afghanistan initiative.

India - Joint research is continuing between NHLBI Nobel Laureate Dr. Marshall Nirenberg and a scientist from India who recently arrived for a six month visit for joint research focusing on the molecular biology of neuronal cells, using drosophila as a model.

Iraq - Four NHLBI staff members have expressed interest in assisting in health projects in Iraq in response to the recent request from DHHS.

Italy - A US-Italy Symposium on Biomarkers for the Metabolic Syndrome and Related Cardiovascular Diseases will be held October 20-22, 2003 at the University of Milan, Milan, Italy.    

Japan - A joint US-Japan Symposium on Advances in Genetic Research in Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) was held in February 2003 in Osaka, Japan, with a follow-up Symposium on Bioethics of Genetic and Molecular Studies at the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare in Tokyo.  The Director, NHLBI headed the US delegation. The topics for discussion included: 1. The association of candidate genes with CVD in the USA and Japan based on case-control and population studies.  2.  The role of gene-environment interactions in CVD in the USA and Japan, and their use in targeted intervention strategies to reduce the risk of CVD in both countries.  3.  Comparative genetic studies of animal models and population-based human studies.

Russia - Two joint symposia are planned for 2003.  The US-Russia Joint Symposium on Cardiac Arrhythmia will be held in St. Petersburg, Russia in September. The US-Russia Joint Symposium on the Role of Infections and Inflammatory Responses in Heart and Lung Diseases will be held in Orlando, Florida in November.   Also, the US and Russian coordinators have agreed to expand the collaboration to a third area: Psychosocial Factors and Cardiovascular Diseases.  A joint workshop on this topic will be held in Washington, DC in June 2003.

A Russian exchange scientist will be working with US counterparts at the University of Pennsylvania on recombinant urokinase protein mutants.  This work is related to the preparation of a joint manuscript for publication.

Vietnam - A three member US working group had been scheduled to visit Vietnam in April to present a training seminar to Vietnamese hematologists from all over the country.  The topic focused on the use of bone marrow transplantation in the treatment of acute myeloid and lymphoid leukemias.  The meeting has been postponed due to the SARS epidemic.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

  Child Health and Nutrition Research Initiative Board Meeting

Dr. Gilman Grave, Chief of the Endocrinology, Nutrition, and Growth Branch of the CRMC, represented the NICHD on the Board of CHNRI on April 28-29 in Geneva, Switzerland.  CHNRI was established as an activity of the Global Forum on Health Research and has been primarily funded through the World Bank. As part its activities the Board approved a new Request for Contracts focusing on risk factors for low birth weight in developing countries.  The Board also reviewed responses to an earlier RFP designed to develop regional maps of infrastructure and expertise in performing research in child health in Latin America, Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.  The Board also worked on developing a strategic plan for funding future research activities.  

European Science Foundation for Early Infant Developmental Care

Dr. Tonse Raju, Medical Officer, Pregnancy and Perinatology Branch, CRMC, NICHD, participated in a meeting on March 13-15, 2003 in London, England, United Kingdom.  He will moderate a session and participate in developing a research agenda on "Developmental Care of the Newborn in the Intensive Care Unit."  The meeting was arranged by the European Science Foundation for Early Infant Developmental Care. 

WHO consultation on Nutrition in Care and Treatment of People Living with HIV/AIDS. 

Dr. Dan Raiten, Office of Prevention Research and International Programs has been selected as a member of a WHO Advisory Group of Experts to assist in the development of guidance for nutrition in care and treatment of people living with HIV/AIDS in resource-limited settings. The first meeting of that group will be held in Geneva on the week of May 12.  In anticipation of the initial meeting of the Advisory Group of Experts, Dr. Raiten developed a paper on nutritional considerations in the use of antiretroviral drugs in resource-limited settings.  To help accomplish this task OPRIP conducted a focused workshop with 6 invited scientists and other key members of the NIH, HRSA, FDA and AIDS communities to discuss the current state of knowledge with regard to the use of antiretroviral drugs in adults and children. 

  WHO/CDC/NIH Research Protocol Meeting, Geneva, Switzerland

Dr. Jennifer Read, Medical Officer, PAMA Branch, CRMC, attended a meeting regarding the ‘Kesho Bora’ Project in Geneva, Switzerland, April 7-11, 2003.  The purpose of the meeting was to further develop a research pprotocol regarding the impact of highly active antiretroviral therapy during pregnancy and breastfeeding on mother-to-child transmission of HIV and mothers’ health.  The main goal of this study is to optimise the use of antiretroviral drugs during the antepartum, intrapartum, and postpartum periods for mother-to-child transmission prevention and the health of the mother in settings where the majority of HIV-infected women breastfeed.  CDC and NIH are jointly funding one of the sites in this multicenter protocol (Nairobi).

Latin America

Global Network on Maternal and Child Research

Dr. Lorette Javois of the Developmental Biology and Genetics and Teratology Branch, CRMC, traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina on March 13-15, 2003 to site visit the data management center for the Birth Defects Treatment and Prevention Program study, “Tertiary Prevention by Systematic Pediatric Care”, at Center for Medical and Clinical Investigations (CEMIC) Hospital.  This study is part Global Network for Maternal and Child Health Research project on cleft palate headed by Dr. Jeffrey Murray of the University of Iowa.  She also participated in the training of the Estudio Colaborativo Latinoamericano de Malformaciones Congenitas (ECLAMC) physicians enrolling subjects in this study.  The session was conducted in Angra dos Reis, Brazil.

Brazil Post-Exposure Antiretroviral Prophylaxis Trial to Prevent Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

A clinical and laboratory training was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil February 3-5, 2003 for the NICHD/HIV Prevention Trials Network 040 Protocol "Phase III Randomized Trial of the Safety and Efficacy of Three Neonatal Antiretroviral Regimens for Prevention of Intrapartum HIV-1 Transmission".  The training was lead by Dr. Heather Watts, Medical Officer, PAMAB, CRMC and NICHD co-investigator for the trial, and staff from Westat Inc. Investigators from the Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz (Fiocroz) and eight clinical sites throughout Brazil participated in the training in preparation for beginning enrollment into the trial, which is anticipated to begin in May-June, 2003.

India

Workshop on Acute Lower Respiratory Infection in India

The Indian Council for Medical Research and the NICHD, the two nodal agencies for the Indo-U.S. Joint Program on Maternal and Child Health and Human Development Research (MCHDR), sponsored a workshop on, “Strategies to Reduce the Burden of Acute Lower Respiratory Infection in India,” March 10-12, 2003, in New Delhi, India.  The prevalence of acute lower respiratory tract infections worldwide is a growing problem, and is a leading cause of infant mortality in India. Efforts to develop appropriate diagnostic, treatment, and care modalities are ongoing and require a continuous infusion of new evidence-based strategies.  Experts from India, the US, Australia, and WHO recommended guidelines for the introduction of new childhood vaccines into India.  The NIH was represented by Dr. John Robbins, Chief, Laboratory of Developmental and Molecular Immunity, NICHD, and Dr. Danuta Krotoski, ADPRIP, NICHD, whose office serves as the U.S. Secretariat for the Joint Working Group on MCHDR.   Dr. Krotoski also met with the Indian Secretariats of the Contraceptive and Reproductive Health Research and MCHDR and participated in the inaugural meeting of the Indo/US Joint Working Group on Environmental Health.

Africa

Workshop on Empirical Evidence for the Demographic and Socio-Economic Impact of AIDS. 

Dr. Susan Newcomer, Demographer in the Demographic and Behavioral Sciences Branch of the Center for Population Research participated in the NICHD/OAR-funded Conference “Empirical Evidence for the Demographic and Socio-Economic Impact of AIDS”.  The conference was organized by HEARD, at the University of Natal, in conjunction with the University of North Carolina and the London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.  In addition, Dr. Newcomer presented grantwriting workshops at the Medical Research Council in Cape Town and at the Nelson Mandela Medical School in Durban and the Wits Health Consortium, in Johannesburg.  The latter workshop was organized in collaboration with Gray Handley, HHS Health Attache at the US Embassy in Pretoria. 

  International Workshop on HIV-1 Mother-to-Child Transmission, Kasane, Botswana

Dr. Lynne Mofenson, Chief PAMAB, CRMC, attended a an International Workshop on HIV-1 Mother-to-Child Transmission, held in Kasane, Botswana, January 21-26, 2003. The meeting was organized by Dr. Gabriella Scarlatti of the San Raffaele Scientific Institute in Milan, Italy and sponsored through funding of the European Union.  This meeting was held to gather clinicians and researchers involved in prevention of perinatal transmission studies from all over the world to outline the needs of and promote interaction and integration between health care programs, interventional trials, and research.  Dr. Mofenson chaired a roundtable discussion on clinical trials for prevention of transmission, provided a plenary overview talk on trials currently underway, and co-chaired the working group on this topic.

CDC/NICHD Trial of Antiretroviral Prophylaxis of Breast Milk HIV Transmission, Site Visit to Blantyre, Malawi. 

CDC/NICHD are co-funding a phase III clinical trial of extended post-exposure infant antiretroviral prophylaxis to reduce postnatal HIV transmission. Dr. Lynne Mofenson, Chief, PAMAB, CRMC, accompanied representatives from CDC on a site visit to the clinical trials sites in Blantyre, Malawi, on May 27-30, 2003.  This study will compare three extended antiretroviral prophylaxis regimens administered to breastfeeding infants for the first 14 weeks of life to assess effect on postnatal HIV transmission through breast milk.  The study is in final stages of

Global Network on Maternal and Child Research

Dr Anne Rimoin, Program Officer for the Africa Global Network on Maternal and Child Research made a site visit to Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo April 28 - May 1. Dr. Rimoin, the project’s senior US and foreign investigators, and key members of the ministry of health discuss the progress of the Global Network project “Management of STI’s Malaria and TB in pregnant Women”.  Opportunities for collaboration and resource sharing with the CDC/ GAP (Global Aids Project) program were also discussed.

National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research

NIDCR has updated and reissued a Program Announcement for the International Collaborative Oral Health Research Planning Grant (PAR-03-059).  The most significant change is an increase in the funding level to $100,000 per year for two years for this R21 mechanism.  The PA can be found at http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-03-059.html.

The International Health Officer, NIDCR, attended the second meeting of the American Dental Association’s Committee on International Programs and Development, which provides guidance to the ADA regarding its international programs.

NIDCR staff met on April 1 with Dr. Jacques Veronneau, a dental researcher working for the Quebec provincial government.  Dr Veronneau is conducting research on the prevention of early childhood caries.  Staff provided names and contact information for US researchers and institutions working in this field.

The NIDCR co-sponsored an International Workshop to develop consensus outcome measures for clinical research in Sjögren’s Syndrome.  The workshop was held in Bethesda, April 10-11, and was also co-sponsored by the Sjögren’s Syndrome Foundation, the NEI and the Office of Research on Women’s Health, as well as by private industry.

A session exploring international research for children’s oral health was held at the 2003 National Oral Health Conference in Milwaukee, April 29.  During the session, NIDCR staff presented an overview of the rationale and funding opportunities for international collaborative oral health research and showed the NIDCR film “Science Knows No Country.” Also featured were two of the International Oral Health Research Planning Grant principal investigators, who discussed their efforts to establish collaborative research projects in child oral health: Dr. Cynthia Pine (Models of Health Inequalities in Childhood Dental Caries) and Dr. Hillary Broder (Measuring Child Oral Health Quality of Life).

Dr. Lois Cohen received the American Association of Public Health Dentistry’s highest award, the Distinguished Service Award, for distinguished contributions in the socio-dental sciences and public health.  The award was presented during the AAPHD Awards Luncheon on April 28 during the National Oral Health Conference in Milwaukee.

NIDCR has committed to participate in the Global Health Research Initiative Program for New Foreign Investigators (GRIP), a program developed by FIC to promote productive re-entry of NIH intramurally-trained foreign investigators into their home countries.

Orientation to the international programs of the NIDCR were provided to visitors from the countries of Jordan, Sierra Leone and Panama, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the International Dental Manufacturers Association, the Friends of the NIDCR, the World Bank and the Global Forum for Health Research.  An overview was also provided to NIDCR dental public health residents, NIDCR intramural visiting scientists, and dental students from the University of Michigan.

Plans are proceeding for the Second International Women’s Leadership Conference in Dental Education Research and Service, Göteborg, Sweden, to be held June 20-23 as a satellite to the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) annual session.  The Associate Director for International Health will be presenting on the topic, Women Leading Change: The Case for Oral Health.

NIDCR is the WHO Collaborating Center for International Collaboration in Dental and Craniofacial Research, and staff will participate in a meeting of WHO Collaborating Centers in Oral Health, June 24, in Göteborg, Sweden.

At the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) Meeting in Göteborg, Sweden, NIDCR will sponsor two Hands-On Workshops, both on June 27.  The first is entitled, Clinical Research Opportunities for Dental Researchers in the International Setting.  The second will be on Ethical Issues in International Collaborative Research.  NIDCR will also have a booth in the exhibit hall, to disseminate information regarding research priorities and funding opportunities.  Staff will also participate as members of various IADR committees, including Nominations, Regional Development and Tobacco.

Dr. Bruce Alberts, President of the National Academies of Science, will be the 2003 David Barmes Global Health Lecturer.  This annual lecture, which is co-sponsored by the NIDCR and FIC, will be held on November 3 in the Masur Auditorium.

NIDCR staff has begun work with committees planning for international workshops to be held in 2004 on the topics of HIV/AIDS and oral health, women’s health and dental health statistics.