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Platform Construction for the Development of Global Public Goods 12,700,000 yen [Grant Project] Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) (Swiss) Public goods, such as energy and life-saving medicines, are essential elements for everyday life, and the development and supply of these public goods are encouraged by governments that provide developers with incentives, including tax exemptions for R & D costs or grants for research. However, some developing countries cannot secure these public goods because of insufficient infrastructure for development or an absence of capable domestic developers. Important roles for non-profit organizations include the development and provision of public goods that are not easily provided by governments or by market mechanisms, but some public goods, such as energy or life-saving medicines, have never been developed by non-profit organizations because their development requires highly specified skills and huge R & D costs. Through the cooperation of a non-profit organization, DNDi, and public medicinal (or medical) research institutes, the project aims to construct platforms for screening Asian natural substances as potential bioactive compounds to treat neglected diseases such as African Trypanosomiasis, Leishmaniasis, and Chagas Disease. Screening and information sharing will be conducted by organizing a consortium comprising six public institutes, the Kitasato Institute, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica (China), National Institute of Parasitic Diseases (China), Korean Pasture Institutes, BIOTEC (Thailand), and the Central Drug Institute, Lucknow (India). Researchers from these institutes will be sent to the Swiss Tropical Institute (STI) for training. Screening manuals will be prepared for African Trypanosomiasis, Leishmaniasis, and Chagas Disease. An annual meeting will be held to share information and tackle problems in screening. This year’s plans include organizing a steering committee for the management of the consortium, training researchers at STI for the screening of natural substances to treat African Trypanosomiasis, and holding the first annual meeting in Bangkok in May. (First year of a 3-year project) |
