The present proposal outlines the establishment of a Tropical Medicine Research Center in the Philippines at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine located in Alabang, Metro Manila. This program project addresses three of the four WHO priority diseases endemic in the Philippines. These include three projects on schistosomiasis and one each on malaria and leprosy. Not only are these major infectious tropical diseases endemic in this region but they are also illnesses which have very active national control program in the Philippine. Each of the projects are linked to their respective national control programs in order that insights gained through this TMRC will have an immediate impact on the management of tropical diseases in the Philippines. The four projects are: (1) Morbidity and resistance to reinfection in schistosoma japonicum and development of a strategic plan for disease control. (2) Vaccine development against schistosomiasis japonicum. (3) Factors effecting endemicity of malaria: Implications for control. (4) Chemotherapy studies of multibacillary Leprosy. These projects involve a multidisciplinary approach to each disease and includes the disciplines of parasitology, biochemistry, biostatistics and clinical tropical medicine. This TMRC also represents a collaboration between RITM and 2 American and 1 Australian Institution. The scientific advisory committee is comprised of two Filipinos, two Americans, and an Australian. The direct participation of the Secretary of Heath of the Philippines in this Committee further emphasis the importance that the Philippine government places on this program project. Finally RITM is ideally situated for the study of a variety of infectious tropical diseases including filariasis, diarrheal diseases and acute respiratory illness in children. Thus this TMRC also outlines two visiting scientist positions which can be used in the future in order to promote an even wider range of Tropical medicine research at RITM.
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