John R. La Montagne, Ph.D.
Director
Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, NIAID
Dr. John R. La Montagne, Ph.D., Director of the Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (DMID), welcomed the Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Subcommittee of the National Advisory Allergy and Infectious Diseases Council and provided a brief report of Division activities. He thanked the ad hoc Subcommittee members Drs. Stanley Lemon and John Mekalanos. He also noted personnel and organizational changes since the last meeting.
Dr. La Montagne mentioned several activities in connection with the U.S.-Japan Cooperative Medical Science Program. A new Panel on Acute Respiratory Infections has been established; the first meeting was held in March in Japan. A successful second conference on emerging infectious diseases was held in Bangkok in March; a summary of the meeting will be published soon. Finally, there have been discussions concerning collaborative studies of Escherichia coli 0157 under the auspices of the Cholera and Related Diarrheal Diseases Panel; a workshop to discuss and develop specific proposals for collaborative efforts to address this emerging health problem will be held in Baltimore in June.
Program staff presented updates on four coordinated, collaborative clinical and pre-clinical trials groups which focus on the development and testing of new and improved therapeutic and vaccine measures: the Collaborative Antiviral Study Group, the Collaborative Antiviral Testing Group, the Mycoses Study Group, and the Vaccine Treatment and Evaluation Units.
The Biometry Branch presented information about its organization structure and research activities and solicited comments from the Subcommittee on their stated goals and future directions.
Malaria in Africa Activities. In the context of the global importance of malaria and the Institute’s long-standing commitment to research on this disease, Dr. Michael Gottlieb of the Parasitology and International Programs Branch discussed recent activities in this area. Specifically he reviewed the events leading up to the NIH co-sponsored International Conference on Malaria in Africa which was held in Dakar, Senegal in January 1997. That meeting brought together malariologists from the US, Europe and Africa to discuss the challenges and opportunities in malaria research needed to improve malaria control and to enhance the capacity of African scientists to conduct research. Dr. Gottlieb summarized the major scientific recommendations from the meeting including: 1) the need for improved communication in Africa (access to electronic communication and the Internet); 2) networking to study malaria in different epidemiological settings; and 3) establishment of repositories of malaria-related resources (parasite isolates, human samples; mosquito vectors, molecular and immunological reagents, etc.). Representatives from a number of public and private agencies which support biomedical research also attended the Dakar meeting and they considered a number of approaches to coordinate their activities and to increase funding for malaria research. Dr. Gottlieb indicated that the NIAID and NIH was actively engaged in this process and that a follow-up meeting of research funding agencies and others was scheduled for July in the Hague to further this effort.
The Council recognized the importance of these activities on a disease of great public health importance and they applauded the efforts undertaken thus far. Council looked forward to learning more about these activities especially about specific plans and initiatives under consideration by NIAID and by NIH.
Emerging Diseases. Dr. La Montagne presented an overview of DMID-activities related to emerging diseases and acknowledged that this continues to be a very active area for DMID. One challenge, given that resources are finite, is how to focus involvement in consortiums and collaborations with other agencies in the US and with other countries to produce tangible outcomes while managing very complex research programs.
Training. Dr. Robert Quackenbush, DMID, and Dr. John Bennett, DIR, presented material related to the DMID training program. Included was a summary of the review of the DMID training program by a panel of extramural scientists and presentation of their recommendations. Council discussed and enthusiastically supported these recommendations. One suggestion was to consider whether a coordinated institute oversight approach might permit better management of complex, multi-disciplinary research training.
Hepatitis C. Dr. Leslye D. Johnson, Chief of the Enteric and Hepatic Diseases Branch, provided an update on hepatitis C. The increasing importance of this viral infection as well as prevention and intervention status were highlighted. Current DMID activities including the new Hepatitis C Cooperative Research Centers (HC CRCs) and antiviral trial capabilities through the Collaborative Antiviral Study Group were presented as well as a brief summary of the recent NIH Consensus Development Conference on "Management of Hepatitis C". DMID recently initiated discussions with outside experts to develop a research-based approach for progress on hepatitis C. Subcommittee members heard about: 1) DMID’s current approaches, 2) the key needs such as access to defined clinical populations and the chimpanzee animal model as well as the development of suitable model systems, and 3) new opportunities like an infectious clone developed by one of the HC CRC investigators. Dr. Johnson summarized the research questions in the areas of transmission, host immune response, pathogenic mechanisms and natural history, and viral replication and therapy strategies which were defined with the help of the outside experts. Council members inquired further into the status of research and development. They believed that the approach was outstanding and that the key research areas provided definition and stimulus for future scientific investigation.
Pathogen Genome Sequencing. Recent advances in sequencing DNA and in bioinformatics have enabled investigators to rapidly sequence the entire genomes of microorganisms, including those of human pathogens. Dr. Michael Gottlieb reviewed the NIAID’s extensive support of bacterial genome sequencing projects. In addition, he articulated the benefits of this research for the improved understanding of pathogen biology and of host-pathogen interactions as well as for the development of diagnostics, drugs and vaccines. Dr. Gottlieb summarized the contributions of NIAID in the multiagency effort to sequence the entire genome of Plasmodium falciparum, the most lethal malaria parasite.
Dr. Michael Morgan of the Wellcome Trust, the other major public funder of pathogen genome sequencing projects, reviewed the Trust’s activities in this area, including their efforts to develop a "consortium" of public agencies and of pharmaceutical companies to sequence a larger number of pathogens of clinical and public health importance.
Following these reviews of ongoing activities, Dr. Ann Ginsberg of the Respiratory Diseases Branch presented a number of issues which are confronting the Institute with regard to these genome sequencing projects. Specifically, Dr. Ginsberg indicated that there are issues regarding: 1) project solicitation and the mechanism of their support; 2) the nature of review by an IRG; 3) the possibility of duplication of effort; 4) data release policies and intellectual property rights; and, 5) interactions with other agencies. Council members recognized the significance of these genome sequencing projects and their great potential. However, Council members also recognized the importance of the issues and concerns raised by Dr. Ginsberg and indicated that more time was needed to discuss them. Council adjourned without a clear set of recommendations and entrusted the Institute to further develop plans to deal with the concerns raised. back to top |