The Ellison Medical Foundation awarded $50,000 to support the development of an animal model of dengue virus pathogenesis that mimics human disease. This model, to be developed from reconstituted NOD/SCID mice, will help advance knowledge on this emerging disease, which currently has no treatment, and could be used to test human vaccines and antivirals to prevent its spread.
Infrastructure Awards
Development of Animal Model of Dengue Virus Pathogenesis
Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research
2004 Infectious Disease Program Award
|
Transcriptome of the Hepatic Stages of Plasmodium
New York University School of Medicine
2003 Infectious Disease Program Award
The Ellison Medical Foundation awarded $40,000 for studies of the transcriptome of the liver stages of the malaria parasite. This will allow investigators to expand their cDNA library from in vitro transformed exoerythrocytic forms of Plasmodium yoelii, analyze the sequence of random clones, and begin to define transcripts expressed specifically by the liver-stage parasites that may be important for vaccine or drug development.
|
Pandemic Preparedness for Influenza in Mainland China: An Unmet Need
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
2003 Infectious Disease Program Award
The Ellison Medical Foundation has pledged up to $1,537,234 to establish a center of excellence for influenza surveillance and research in South Central China. The center will be located at Shantou University Medical College, Guangdong, and will be affiliated with Hong Kong University. This collaborative project will support joint studies on transmission of influenza virus at the animal/human interface that will contribute to global pandemic preparedness, including virus surveillance in patients with respiratory symptoms and characterization of virus in animal reservoirs. Funds will help upgrade the influenza virus research laboratories at Shantou Medical College into state-of-the-art facilities where young scientists will be trained in the latest procedures in virology, molecular epidemiology, and influenza surveillance. In addition, this project will extend collaborative outreach to facilitate initiation of influenza surveillance in poultry markets in South Korea and Malaysia. |
Development of a Mouse Model for Dengue Virus Infection and Disease
University of California - Berkeley
2002 Infectious Disease Program Award
The Ellison Medical Foundation has pledged support of up to $750,000 over a period of
three years to support the Development of a Mouse Model for Dengue Virus Infection and Disease to elucidate the molecular mechanism of this disease, to better characterize the immune response, and to serve for pre-clinical vaccine testing and evaluating antiviral therapies. |
Development of Molecular Genetic Tools for Parasitic Helminths
University of Pennsylvania
2002 Infectious Disease Program Award
The Ellison Medical Foundation has pledged support of up to $2,832,368 for the 4 year project on the Development of Molecular Genetic Tools for Parasitic Helminths. This will involve developing methods and protocols for gene transfer and for specific disruption of gene function in both Schistosoma mansoni and Strongyloides stercoralis parasites with the goal of answering mechanistic questions related to drug discovery, vaccine development, and novel facets of parasitic biology. The project will involve collaboration among the University of Pennsylvania, Tulane University, and the CUNY Graduate Center.
|
Emerging Infectious Diseases
CDC Foundation
2001 Infectious Disease Program Award
The Ellison Medical Foundation has awarded $150,000 to support the printing, electronic production, and distribution of three issues of the Emerging Infectious Diseases journal published by the National Center for Infectious Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). |
Program in Molecular Pathogenesis and Global Infectious Disease
Marine Biological Laboratory
2001 Infectious Disease Program Award
The Ellison Medical Foundation has pledged support of almost $5 million over a
period of five years to support a five-year Program in Molecular Pathogenesis and Global Infectious Disease based at the Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution at The Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA. The interdisciplinary program will bring together scientists who study microparasites and environmental and evolutionary biologists. The scientists will study the molecular basis of disease mechanisms, evolution of virulence factors, pathogen diversity, and infectious agent dispersal in the environment. This award will support Scholars in Residence and Postdoctoral Fellowship programs. |
About Infrastructure Awards
Infrastructure Awards support the establishment of community-wide resources that will benefit a broad segment of researchers in the areas of programmatic interest to the Foundation. Examples include the development of reagent repositories, scientific databases, new model systems, or new experimental methodologies. Although nonrenewable, these awards provide an opportunity to develop and implement a new resource; ongoing long-term support, if required, must be identified from other funding sources.
In order to maximize the number of research grants given to individual investigators, the Foundation is not currently accepting unsolicited proposals for infrastructure awards.
The Ellison Medical Foundation