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April 16, 2003
Through the Preclinical Antiviral Testing Program for complementary and alternative medicine (PATP-CAM), the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) seeks to assess CAM products for their ability to combat pathogens, including those linked to emerging infectious diseases, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). (To learn more about SARS, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site www.cdc.gov/ncidod/sars/ or the World Health Organization Web site www.who.int/csr/sars/en/.)
The PATP-CAM (nccam.nih.gov/research/news/antiviral.htm), a joint effort of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and NCCAM, also collaborates with the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute on Infectious Diseases. This unique collaboration offers the opportunity to test potential CAM antiviral agents in vitro for their activity against numerous types of viruses. Preclinical evaluations of antiviral therapies are also conducted in animal models of human viral infections.
Given the recent emergence of SARS and the potential use of pathogens, such as anthrax, for bioterrorism, there is a critical need to systematically and rigorously investigate CAM approaches to prevent or treat infections caused by these and a variety of other pathogens. By inviting applications from scientists in the academic and business communities worldwide, NCCAM hopes to tap into the many possible sources of traditional remedies that may have application in this important, and often time-sensitive, area of research.
For additional information about PATP-CAM, contact:
Richard Nahin, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Senior Advisor for Scientific Coordination and Outreach
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
31 Center Drive, MSC 2182
Bethesda, MD 20892-2182
E-mail: nahinr@mail.nih.gov
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