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PDP FUNDERS GROUP
UPDATE 15: APRIL 1 TO APRIL 30, 2010
** items in blue or purple should be hyperlinked to the full text version; if I have made
mistakes many apologies
If you have any issues that you would like to include in the Update please send them
to Jane Rowley ([email protected])
Funder Announcements (since April 1, 2010)
DFID
1 April 2010
•
UK drive to end child diarrhoea deaths
A new UK drive to rid developing countries of the scourge of child deaths
by providing £10 million for new and more effective diarrhoea vaccines
and treatment was announced today by International Development
Minister, Mike Foster.
Diarrhoea is the second biggest child killer in the world, claiming the
lives of 4,000 children every day. The world’s poorest countries are hit
the hardest because of a lack of clean water, basic sanitation and
effective treatment.
Five million pounds UKaid will go to PATH to support the discovery of a
vaccine that, for the first time, will protect against the two leading
bacterial causes of diarrhoea – Shigella and Escherichia coli.
The UK funding to PATH will also help create additional vaccines for
Rotavirus, the most common cause of extreme child diarrhoea, which
will help make treatment more affordable.
In addition, £5 million will be given to the Institute for OneWorld Health to
support the development of an innovative new drug that aims to shorten
the duration of episodes of diarrhoea. …
Gates
Foundation
22 April 2010
 Statement by Joe Cerrell, Director, Europe Office, on the
EU’s Twelve Point Action Plan in Support of the
Millennium Development Goals
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation welcomes today’s proposals by
the European Commission (EC) of its twelve point action plan to meet
Europe’s commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
and address the needs of the world’s poorest people.
We applaud the call for other international donors to match Europe’s
level of ambition and the Commission’s plans to work with member
states to strengthen the accountability of their Overseas Development
Assistance (ODA) commitments.
23 April 2010

Ernest Loevinsohn Joins the Foundation as Director of
Global Health Policy and Advocacy
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced today that Ernest
Loevinsohn will join the Global Health Program as Director of Policy and
Advocacy on June 21. Loevinsohn has more than twenty years of
experience applying strategic vision to complex international issues,
most recently with the Canadian International Development Agency
(CIDA).
Loevinsohn will lead the foundation’s efforts to encourage political
commitment and effective investment in global health in both donor and
developing countries. He will also manage a grant program, oversee
work to build evidence to support effective policy making, and help lead
the foundation’s work on the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis,
and Malaria.
Wellcome
Trust
6 April 2010

Vaccine to stop pig parasite could reduce human
disease
A vaccine against the tapeworm Taenia solium has eliminated
transmission of the parasite in pigs in a field trial in Africa. It is hoped
that the vaccine could indirectly reduce the incidence of a debilitating
neurological disease in humans.
Taenia solium is transmitted among humans and also between humans
and pigs. Pigs are infected by ingesting food contaminated with human
faeces containing the parasite's eggs. In countries without proper
sanitation, and where pigs and humans live in close quarters, there is a
constant cycle of re-infection from the parasite.
In humans the infection causes neurocysticercosis - the most frequent
preventable cause of epilepsy in the developing world. Seizures are the
most common symptom, but infection can also cause blindness,
meningitis, dementia and in some cases death. ....
23 April 2010

People with HIV hold clues to Salmonella vaccine
development
A study published today in the journal ‘Science’ offers a long-awaited
explanation for the link between HIV infection and susceptibility to lifethreatening nontyphoidal strains of Salmonella. The research, funded by
the Wellcome Trust and GlaxoSmithKline, goes on to identify targets that
could be pursued for vaccine development.
Nontyphoidal strains of Salmonella (NTS) usually cause vomiting and
diarrhoea in high-income countries and are mainly contracted by
consuming infected foods, such as uncooked meat and eggs. NTS can
also cause fatal bloodstream infections in people with compromised
immunity, such as HIV-infected individuals, and children under two years
of age or with malaria, anaemia or malnutrition.
This is a particular problem in Africa where Salmonellae are the most
common bacteria to infect the blood. Such bloodstream infections can
be treated with antibiotics, but drug resistance is on the increase and
there is currently no vaccine available.
"The association between HIV infection and fatal cases of nontyphoidal
Salmonella disease has been known since the onset of the AIDS
pandemic 26 years ago, but this is the first time we've been able to offer
a scientific explanation why," said Dr Cal MacLennan from the University
of Birmingham, who led the research. ...
25 April 2010

Control, not elimination, key to Africa malaria battle,
argue experts
Global efforts focusing on eliminating malaria are counterproductive to
the fight against the disease in Africa, experts have warned. They
emphasise the importance of maintaining, and building on, control
strategies rather than aiming for a target that may not be met.
Buoyed by a reduction in malaria mortality in Africa, health leaders at a
2007 meeting on global malaria control switched their primary goal from
control to elimination.
But researchers from the Kenya Medical Research Institute-Wellcome
Trust Research Programme in Nairobi say that the emphasis on
elimination or eradication in strategic plans for the next 10-20 years in
Africa is "at best irrelevant and at worst counterproductive", raising
expectations that cannot be met.
Writing in the 'Lancet', they argue that using currently available methods
can reduce malaria from a major health priority to a fairly minor burden.
"Reaching low endemic control is achievable, its financing requirements
are predictable and its effects measureable," says Professor Bob Snow,
one of the authors.
"The result would be a huge public health success, a legacy we'd all be
proud of, but this isn't elimination, which seems to a more attractive term
to donors." ...
PDP Press Releases (since April 1, 2010)
Aeras
14 April 2010

Aeras and Crucell Announce Start of Phase II TB study
in South Africa
Dutch biopharmaceuticalcompany Crucell N.V. (NYSE Euronext,
NASDAQ: CRXL; Swiss Exchange: CRX)and the Aeras Global TB
Vaccine Foundation today announced the start of aPhase II clinical trial
of the jointly developed tuberculosis (TB) vaccine candidateAERAS402/Crucell Ad35 in HIV infected adults.
The Phase II study is designed to test the safety and efficacy of AERAS402/Crucell Ad35 in adults infected with HIV and will be conducted by
the AurumInstitute in Klerksdorp, South Africa. …
IVCC
23 April 2010

IVCC and Syngenta reach key milestone in development
of new product for malaria mosquito control
The Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC) and Syngenta
announced today that the latest field trials of the new Actellic® 300CS
micro-encapsulated formulation demonstrate effective control of
pyrethroid resistant mosquitoes on treated construction materials for
more than eight months.
Developed by Syngenta, and tested in laboratory and field evaluations
by Syngenta and IVCC partner laboratories in Switzerland and Africa,
Actellic® 300CS has subsequently been submitted to the World Health
Organization Pesticide Evaluation Scheme (WHOPES) for independent
performance and safety assessment. A recommendation from the WHO
at the end of the evaluation process is a key requirement for many aid
funded malaria control programs.
“The field data for Actellic 300CS has surpassed our original
expectations and shows real promise as a valuable tool to complement
our existing products,” said Mark Birchmore, Syngenta’s Global Brand
Manager for Vector Control. “Working together with the IVCC enables us
to leverage our expertise and capabilities to develop new products that
meet the needs of current and future malaria control programs.”
Actellic® 300CS is the result of applying advanced micro-encapsulation
technology to the WHO recommended insecticide, pirimiphos-methyl, to
develop a new long lasting product which targets malaria mosquitoes
resistant to the pyrethroid class of insecticides. Current alternatives to
pyrethroids typically only last for 3 months after application resulting in
additional cost and complexity for malaria programs. The submission to
WHOPES is a major step forward in making the product available to
national malaria control programs. ….
IOWH
7 April 2010

San Francisco Non-Profit Receives Funds from UK
Government to Target Neglected Diseases
The Institute for OneWorld Health (iOWH), a nonprofit organization
based in San Francisco, working to fulfill the promise of medicine for the
developing world, has received a grant from the Department for
International Development (DfID) in the United Kingdom (UK) to help
develop safe, effective and affordable new medicines for people with
infectious diseases. This funding was announced last week by the UK
International Development Minister, Mike Foster. …
The grant funds, ₤5,000,000 (approximately $7,616,033 US) from DfID
given to the Institute for OneWorld Health will, in part, support the
development of an innovative new drug that aims to shorten the duration
of episodes of diarrhea. The drug being developed is intended to speed
up the recovery time by reducing the amount of fluid loss, thereby
decreasing the likelihood of death as a result of diarrhea. This new drug
will be used in conjunction with Oral Rehydration Therapy (ORT) and
will also enhance the adoption of ORT.
IAVI
22 April 2010

IAVI and Lentigen to Collaborate on Design of Novel
AIDS Vaccine Candidate
The International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) and Lentigen today
announced a collaboration to design a preventive AIDS vaccine based
on Lentigen’s technology. The candidate AIDS vaccine will be devised to
safely mimic biological aspects of HIV infection and tested first in preclinical studies as part of an initial 18-month agreement. Lentigen’s
technology relies on a synthetic version of a virus related to HIV that has
been engineered, along with other safety modifications, to be incapable
of inserting itself into the human genome. …
MMV
8 April 2010

Pyramax® submitted to EMA for regulatory approval
On March 30, Shin Poong Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, Seoul, submitted the
registration dossier for a new artemisinin combination therapy (ACT),
Pyramax® (pyronaridine-artesunate) to the European Medicines Agency
(EMA) for regulatory approval under Article 58. This promising new
antimalarial has been developed by Shin Poong in collaboration with the
not-for-profit, Geneva-based research foundation Medicines for Malaria
Venture (MMV).
Pyramax is a fixed-dose combination artesunate with the mannich base
pyronaridine. These two drugs have never been developed and clinically
validated in combination before. Shin Poong and MMV have
demonstrated via four pivotal Phase III clinical trials in 23 study sites in
18 countries across Africa and Southeast Asia that together, they are as
efficacious and safe as the widely accepted ACT, artemetherlumefantrine, and other treatments of reference. …
23 April 2010

MMV supports trials of a new preventive treatment
option for pregnant women
Pfizer Inc. and Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) entered into an
agreement for the development, access and delivery of a fixed-dose
combination treatment consisting of azithromycin dihydrate (AZ) and
chloroquine phosphate (CQ) for the Intermittent Preventive Treatment of
P. falciparum malaria in pregnancy (IPTp). There is currently an unmet
need for new treatment options and the World Health Organization
(WHO) estimates that some 30 million pregnant women are at risk for
malaria in endemic areas in Africa each year.
A Product Development Team (PDT) comprised of representatives from
Pfizer, MMV and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
(LSHTM) will coordinate the trials and an external independent Data
Monitoring Committee of malaria experts will oversee them.Under the
agreement, Pfizer plans to seek marketing authorization in selected
malaria-endemic African countries where, with MMV, it will seek to
introduce the use of this important potential therapy to improve
pregnancy outcomes and neonatal survival. “Pfizer believes that an
affordable price for public sector sales of the medicine, in endemic
countries, if approved, is an important step towards increasing access
and safe intermittent preventive treatment for pregnant women,” stated
Jean-Michel Halfon, president & general manager of Pfizer’s Emerging
Markets Business Unit. ….
26 April 2010

MMV and Anacor join hands in hunt for new antimalarial
compounds
Anacor Pharmaceuticals today announced that it has entered into a
research agreement with not-for-profit Medicines for Malaria Venture
(MMV) to explore Anacor’s novel boron chemistry platform for
developing new therapeutics for the treatment of malaria. Under the
agreement, Anacor will be responsible for leading the research effort
and MMV will contribute its extensive malaria drug research expertise as
well as financial support. …
TB Alliance
1 April 2010

ATS Convenes World TB Day Congressional Briefing
In honor of World TB Day on March 24, the AmericanThoracic Society
(ATS) held a briefing in the House of Representatives ….
16 April 2010

Congressional briefing to highlight role of innovation in
creating health products for the developing world
On April 21, 2010, the Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC) will
host its first annual Congressional expo to highlight the need for and role
of new health products for diseases affecting people around the world.
GHTC advocates for research and development for new products—
including vaccines, diagnostics, drugs, microbicides and other tools—so
the most effective health solutions are available when we need them. In
order to meet the needs of tomorrow and ensure a long-term, sustained
approach to global health, it is critical to invest in research today.
The event—titled “Innovation in action: advancing new tools to combat
global health diseases"—will include a high-level panel to examine key
policy issues most critical in meeting the future needs of the developing
world.
29 April 2010

TB Alliance Appoints Robert C. Lorette Senior Vice
President, Business Development
Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance), a not-for-profit
product development partnership (PDP) accelerating the discovery and
development of new drugs to fight tuberculosis (TB), has appointed
Robert C. Lorette, Esq., Senior Vice President of Business
Development.
PDP Related News/ Articles
General
2 April 2010: New blog series “Vaccines: The Next 10 Years”
highlights role of vaccines in saving lives worldwide
5 April 2010: New UCSF Global Health Initiative Will Help
Bridge Gap Between Knowledge, Action
UCSF and SEEK Development, a global health and
development consulting group based in Berlin, Germany, have
launched an international partnership that aims to improve
global health by helping to turn scientific evidence into policy
and action. The Evidence-to-Policy Initiative, or E2Pi, officially
launches this week in San Francisco and Berlin, Germany.
"For many of the world's major health challenges – including
HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, and maternal and child deaths – a
failure to translate evidence on what works into practical health
policies is costing lives," said Sir Richard Feachem, director of
the UCSF Global Health Group, which is leading the
collaboration.
E2Pi aims to help address some of these challenges by
closing the gap between what is known and what gets done in
practice.
"The gap between available scientific knowledge and its
application in solving global health problems is one of the
reasons why poor countries suffer such a high burden of
disease and premature death," said Feachem, who was
formerly the founding executive director of the Global Fund to
Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. "E2Pi will help to
address this issue by conducting rigorous and independent
analyses of the available research evidence leading to specific,
action-oriented recommendations to policy- and decisionmakers."
Funding for the initiative's first three years is provided by a
$3.2 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Innovation in Action: Policies to accelerate the development
and delivery of global health tools. Global Health
Technologies Coalition (GHTC). April 2010.
The first annual report of the Global Health Technologies
Coalition (GHTC) on global health research and development.
The report focuses on the GHTC's three priority areas—US
policies related to public financing, regulatory pathways, and
incentives and innovating financing. It highlights the role US
agencies and policymakers play in advancing innovation for
global health products, as well as makes policy
recommendations to help accelerate the development of new
global health technologies.
Diagnostics
The Diagnostics Innovation Map: Medical Diagnostics for
the Unmet Needs of the Developing World. BVGH. April
2010.
Report produced by BVGH outlining the groundbreaking
technologies that are paving the way for rapid, accurate
diagnoses in the developing world.
Malaria
6 April 2010: Crucell Announces Collaboration with
GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals on Second Generation Malaria
Vaccine Candidate
21 April 2010: Next Generation Malaria Control
BASF has signed an agreement with the London School of
Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and the Innovative Vector
Control Consortium (IVCC) to develop a new generation of
malaria prevention products based on the BASF insecticide
chlorfenapyr.
TB
Efficacy and safety of a fixed-dose oral combination of
pyronaridine-artesunate compared with artemetherlumefantrine in children and adults with uncomplicated
Plasmodium falciparum malaria: a randomised noninferiority trial. AK Tshefu et al. Lancet . 375(9724). April 24
2010.
Financial Times special report “Combating Malaria”. April
23 2010.
8 April 2010: MicuRx Pharmaceuticals,Cumencor
Pharmaceuticals Partner with Pfizer to Discover and
Develop Antibiotics for Drug-Resistant TB
HIV
Progress towards development of an HIV vaccine: report of
the AIDS Vaccine 2009 Conference. AL Ross et al. The
Lancet Infectious Diseases, Volume 10, Issue 5, Pages 305 316, May 2010
Clinical Trials
19 April 2010: Evaluation report of the end-of-term review
on EDCTP programme released
20 April 2010: EC public consultation on the impact and
future of the EDCTP Programme
The European Commission is conducting a public consultation
regarding the impact and future of the European and
Developing Countries Clinical Trials partnership (EDCTP)
programme. This public consultation aims at collecting views
and opinions of all interested EDCTP stakeholders. The
consultation is open from from 08/04/2010 to 15/06/2010.