Immediate Release. September 9, 2002

Unique Medical Venture in Vietnam

A new centre for research into major infectious diseases funded by the Vietnamese government and the British Wellcome Trust biomedical research charity, will open in Ho Chi Minh next week

The two-storey building houses several laboratories for scientists investigating a range of diseases including malaria, typhoid, dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis, TB, meningitis and tetanus, all of which still cause major health problems in the country and through much of the tropical world.

The government has paid for the construction of the $1m (£650,000) Infectious Diseases Research Unit, which stands in the grounds of the Centre for Tropical Diseases, Cho Quan Hospital, in the Cholon District of the City. The Wellcome Trust has provided $1.5m (£975,000) for the building's equipment which will form the infrastructure of an international quality research facility and has made a commitment to fund medical research at the centre until at least 2005,

The project underlines the strong collaboration that has been formed between the Trust the government of Vietnam and scientists from the University of Oxford over the last decade.

In a statement the directorate of the Centre for Tropical Diseases said : " The Hospital, Health Service of Ho Chi Minh City and the Ministry of Health are very happy that the new research unit is now ready. This long-term medical and scientific collaboration is unique in Viet Nam and we look forward to many more years of productive research work with the University of Oxford and the Wellcome Trust."

The new building will house approximately 150 staff and will contain state-of-the-art laboratories for microbiology, haematology, biochemistry, molecular biology, immunology and pharmacology as well as a library, seminar room and coffee bar. The official opening on the 20th September 2002 will be performed by a delegation from the Ministry of Health.

The Centre for Tropical Diseases and the Wellcome Trust began their collaborative research programme in 1991 with some of the first studies of the Chinese herbal drug qinghaosu (artimisinin) for the treatment of malaria. This has gone on to be recognised as the most potent and potentially the most important anti-malarial treatment yet discovered. Within Viet Nam the widespread deployment of this drug has reduced the mortality rate of malaria to less than 5% of the levels experienced in the early 1990s.

Apart from running a plethora of research studies the collaboration is also recognised nationally and internationally for its contribution to clinical medicine. The hospital is represented on the Vietnamese national committees for malaria, dengue, typhoid, HIV, drug policy and on expert committees for the World Health Organisation ensuring that the research conducted is translated into real clinical benefits. It is hoped that this state of the art international - standard facility will serve as a resource for clinical science research for Viet Nam and for the region for many years ahead.

Dr. Jeremy Farrar, Director of the Wellcome Trust Infectious Diseases Research Unit said : "We are delighted the Vietnamese government has shown its continued support of quality medical research, and of this collaboration in particular, by funding this new centre.

"We have demonstrated our long-tem commitment to working here and through our joint efforts with the Centre for Tropical Diseases and the Health Service of Ho Chi Minh City we have started to make an impact on some of the major infectious diseases, including malaria, typhoid, tetanus and dengue, which are important in this country and world wide. With the continuing collaboration I hope we can make further strides.

" This building has been designed to provide a first class clinical and scientific resource suitable for the next few decades during which time I hope some of the many promising Vietnamese and international researchers who work here will have the opportunity to become national and international leaders in their fields"

Dr. Richard Lane, Head of International Health at the Wellcome Trust, said : "We have had a long and fruitful association with the Vietnamese government which has made impressive efforts to tackle some of the most pernicious diseases in the world.

" The opening of this new centre will allow us to ensure quality research in this region continues for many years to come."

Notes to editors:

Between 1991 and 1997 the number of deaths from malaria in Viet Nam fell from 2,500 to just 100 and remain at this level. This has been brought about mainly through the use of qinghaosu drugs.

Since 1996 the mortality rate for tetanus at the Centre for Tropical Diseases in Ho Chi Minh has fallen from one in three to just 8%. The increased use of ventilators, improved intensive care units and better nursing have been instrumental in saving more lives.

Typhoid: Drug resistance has caused serious health problems in Vietnam and many other parts of the world. Understanding resistance is one of the major tasks of the research team. Sequencing of Salmonella typhi - which causes typhoid fever- was carried out at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambs., England, and has led to a greater understanding of the bacteria with potential to identify new ways of tackling the disease. The sample was taken from a patient in Ho Chi Minh.

Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever: A mosquito-borne infection which can lead to a fatal fever. The World Health Organisation estimates there are 50m cases annually throughout the world. There is currently no vaccine. Research at the IDRU is looking at how the disease spreads so rapidly.

The Wellcome Trust is an independent research-funding charity, established in 1936 under the will of tropical medicine pioneer Sir Henry Wellcome. The Trust's mission is to promote research with the aim of improving human and animal health and currently spends £600m a year in this area. Website: www.wellcome.ac.uk

The University of Oxford : The Centre for Tropical Medicine Nuffield Department of Medicine at the University of Oxford is part of the collaborative partnership with the Centre for Tropical Diseases and the Wellcome Trust. The research conducted in Viet Nam is strongly supported by the unique facilities and expertise in Tropical Medicine available at the University of Oxford. There are frequent exchange of ideas and personnel between the Research Unit, the Centre for Tropical Diseases in Ho Chi Minh City and the University.

For further information please contact :
Barry Gardner, Wellcome Trust Press office. 0207 611 7329 :
E-mail: b.gardner@wellcome.ac.uk