The Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases (NITD) is hosting a global symposium in the Philippines, bringing world-renowned Dengue experts together to discuss critical issues facing Dengue treatment and prevention. The four-day symposium will focus on best research practices and clinical management, as well as the growing global presence and unmet medical need to treat this neglected disease.
"Dengue is a devastating disease that is impacting the lives of millions globally, in the developing as well as the developed world" says Paul Herrling, Head of Corporate Research at Novartis and Chairman of the Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases. "Our long-term commitment to helping reduce this global disease burden is part of Novartis' Corporate Citizenship efforts to improve access to medicines. By leveraging our experience, partnerships, and modern drug discovery tools, we hope to come closer to our goal of discovering effective treatments for tropical diseases."
More than 50 million cases of Dengue and 500,000 Dengue-related hospitalizations occur each year in both developed and developing regions due to the under investment in research and development for effective tools to detect and treat the disease. Dengue is one of the most prevalent emerging diseases in humans with no preventative vaccines or antiviral cures available at present.
The Dengue research group at NITD focuses on developing Dengue antiviral compounds, the idea being that administering antivirals in particular areas at the first indication of an outbreak will be more cost-effective than mass inoculations.
Goals for Dengue research at NITD include discovering medicines that will reduce the viral load in people with dengue and curtail transmission of the virus as well as reduce dengue-related morbidity and mortality.
The NITD takes a collaborative approach to research, as evidenced by its membership in the Dengue consortium, which consists of six healthcare and research companies that have joined forces to study vector-borne diseases.
"Initiatives such as the Dengue consortium are paramount as they create best-in-class partnerships to support and develop successful, cost-effective treatments for neglected diseases," said Philippine Department of Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III. "Partnerships are an effective model for developing new drugs for important but hitherto neglected diseases, allowing us to bring much needed, effective and affordable treatments to those who need them most."
In 1970, only five countries in South East Asia reported Dengue. By 2007, Dengue was endemic in more than 100 countries. Although one-third of the world's population lives at risk of infection, little is known about the pattern and dynamics of Dengue virus within outbreak situations. Dengue illness appears similar to other febrile illness in the early stages, which means diagnosis is often delayed or confused with other illnesses. This reduces the effectiveness of using clinical diagnosis for patient care and disease surveillance.
To combat this, the NITD is currently conducting several studies to better understand, identify and use genomic data and the molecular epidemiology of dengue to predict outbreaks and severity levels of the disease. Additional surveillance studies could prove useful in disease management, diagnosing dengue and predicting the likelihood of haemorrhaging.
The event is the first symposium held by Novartis on Dengue fever. In 2008, Novartis held a symposium on Tuberculosis (TB) in Maputo, Mozambique (the second symposium held by Novartis in East Africa). In 2006, Novartis held a symposium on TB in St. Petersburg, Russia, and in 2007 in Masan, Korea. The NITD hosts such events in endemic regions to help scientists and partners understand the true impact of the disease and the unique local challenges doctors, clinicians and patients in the region face.
The NITD represents a major part of Novartis' bid to improve the developing world's access to medicines. The NITD's overarching goal is to discover novel treatments and prevention methods for major tropical diseases. In those developing countries where these diseases are endemic, the Novartis Group intends to make treatments readily available without profit.
The focus of the NITD is to apply Novartis' drug-discovery expertise and cutting-edge technology platforms to fight against infectious diseases that are currently not well covered by modern treatment regimens, particularly dengue fever and tuberculosis.