Research organisations join forces to develop treatments for neglected infectious diseases

doi:10.1136/bmj.a389

BMJ 2008;336:1396-1397 (21 June), doi:10.1136/bmj.a389

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Research organisations join forces to develop treatments for neglected infectious diseases

Susan Mayor, London

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Two research organisations based in Paris, the Institut de Recherchepour le Développement (Institute of Research for Development)and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, have announcedthat they will work together to develop new candidate drugsto treat visceral leishmaniasis, Chagas’s disease, andsleeping sickness.

The collaboration will focus on the development of two typesof molecules: quinolines for visceral leishmaniasis and canthin-6-onealkaloids for Chagas’s disease. Researchers working atthe Institut de Recherche pour le Développement haveestablished that these molecules have potential therapeuticactivity.

Visceral leishmaniasis

The leishmaniases are parasitic diseaseswith a wide range of clinical symptoms that affect about 12million people and are endemic in 88 countries. Visceral leishmaniasis,also known as kala-azar, results in bouts of fever, substantialweight loss, swelling of the spleen and liver, and anaemia (occasionallyserious). If left untreated the fatality rate can be as highas 100% within two years.