WHAT's New From NIAID, DMID, and the ICSSC

DMID and ICSSC to Host the International Research in Infectious Diseases (IRID) May 28-30, 2008 in Bethesda, MD

On May 28-30, 2008, DMID-sponsored investigators in the International Centers for Tropical Disease Research Network will gather in Bethesda, MD to share their research programs and findings. information and registration >

DMID and ICSSC Host Clinical Research Workshop in Rio de Janeiro for DMID-Sponsored Investigators

In March and April 2008, DMID and ICSSC hosted a five-day workshop on the fundamentals of international clinical research for investigators sponsored by the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. The workshop, attended by 33 researchers from seven countries, was held at the J.W. Marriott Hotel, near Rio de Janeiro's Copacabanna Beach, and included sessions on Good Clinical Practice, Study Design, Protocol Development, and Data Management and Analysis. view presentations >

ICSSC Hosts Clinical Research Workshop for DMID-Sponsored Investigators

More than thirty DMID-sponsored investigators from five countries attended an ICSSC-hosted workshop on the fundamentals of clinical research held at the Skamania Lodge in Stevenson, Oregon, on the scenic Columbia River Gorge. The workshop included more than twenty-five presentations on subjects fundamental to effective clinical research, including Good Clinical Practice, Research Ethics, Study Design, Data Management, and Manuscript Development and Publication. view presentations>

Researchers Find Quick Way to Make Human Monoclonal Antibodies against Flu

Human monoclonal antibodies (mAbs)—highly specific, identical, infection-fighting proteins produced in large quantities in the lab in cell lines that are derived from a single cell—against influenza can be rapidly produced in the lab, according to a new report from scientists supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Using cells drawn from volunteers inoculated with seasonal influenza vaccine, the investigators made influenza-specific mAbs in just a few weeks rather than the typical two to three months. The new technique could potentially be used to rapidly create mAbs for a range of uses, the team says. read more>

Early Promising Results in Malaria Vaccine Trial in Mali

A small clinical trial conducted by an international team of researchers in Mali has found that a candidate malaria vaccine was safe and elicited strong immune responses in the 40 Malian adults who received it. The trial was the first to test this vaccine candidate, which is designed to block the malaria parasite from entering human blood cells, in a malaria-endemic country. Based on these promising results, the research team is now conducting trials of this vaccine in 400 Malian children aged 1 to 6 years. Malaria is a leading killer in Africa and other developing countries, claiming more than 1 million lives each year, most of them children. read more>