MEDIA RELEASE PR36614
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Funds 76 New Ideas to Improve Global Health, From
Chewing Gum to Chocolate
ARUSHA, Oct. 21 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
Scientists from 16 countries selected for their unconventional projects to fight infectious
diseases
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation today announced 76 grants of US$100,000 each to pursue
bold ideas for transforming health in developing countries. The grants support researchers in 16
countries with ideas as diverse as developing an electronic nose to diagnose tuberculosis and using
chocolate to help prevent malaria.
"Some of the biggest stumbling blocks in global health are now being overcome with promising
new vaccines and treatments," said Dr. Tachi Yamada, president of the Gates Foundation's Global
Health Program. "Grand Challenges Explorations will continue to fill the pipeline with possibilities
and hopefully produce a breakthrough idea that could save untold numbers of lives."
In three rounds of the foundation's Grand Challenges Explorations initiative, 262 researchers
representing 30 countries have been awarded grants. Newly-funded projects include efforts to
develop a paper cup that turns TB-positive sputum samples a bright orange, use a peptide found in
scorpions to block development of the malaria parasite, and adapt a protein that parasites use to
seal their egg cases as a "sticky coating" for intranasal vaccines.
Grantees from round 3 were selected from almost 3,000 proposals. All levels of scientists are
represented - from young post-graduate investigators to veteran researchers - as are a wide range
of disciplines, such as chemistry, bioengineering, electronics, mechanical engineering, infectious
disease, and epidemiology. They are based at universities, research institutes, nonprofit
organizations, and private companies around the world. Examples include:
Innovative ways to diagnose infectious diseases:
- Andrew Fung of University of California, Los Angeles aims to develop
chewing gum that can detect malaria biomarkers in saliva;
- Ranjan Nanda of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering &
Biotechnology in India will attempt to create a handheld "electronic
nose" that gathers and analyzes breath samples to diagnose tuberculosis;
- Udantha Abeyratne of the University of Queensland in Australia will
equip mobile phones and mp3 players with microphones to record cough and
sleep sounds, which could then be screened to diagnose pneumonia.
New strategies to fight malaria and mosquitoes:
- Steven Maranz of Weill Cornell Medical College in New York will test
the ability of a compound found in chocolate to keep malaria at bay;
- Annette Habluetzel of the University of Camerino in Italy will create a
micropellet food which, when activated by the sun, could generate
toxins that kill mosquito larvae;
- Peter Lubega Yiga of AdhocWorks Foundation in South Africa will test
the efficacy of a fermentation-based household mosquito repellent.
More effective vaccines:
- Cecil Czerkinsky of the International Vaccine Institute in Korea will
explore whether vaccines administered under the tongue can produce
strong immune responses in distant organs such as the lungs and
reproductive tract;
- Margaret Njoroge of Med Biotech Laboratories in Uganda will develop an
intranasal vaccine for mothers, designed to induce antibodies against
malaria in breast milk and confer immunity on their babies;
- Kate Edwards, at the University of San Diego will study how a brief
bout of exercise may enhance the efficiency of pneumococcal vaccine.
About Grand Challenges Explorations
Grand Challenges Explorations is a five-year, $100 million initiative to promote innovation in
global health. It is part of the Grand Challenges in Global Health initiative, which is supported by the
Gates Foundation to achieve major breakthroughs in global health.
Applications for the next round of Grand Challenges Explorations are being accepted through
November 2, 2009. Grant application instructions, including the list of topics for which proposals are
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to
help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving
people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In
the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people-especially those with the fewest resources-have
access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington,
the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of
For high-resolution still photography and information about the foundation's work, please visit:
SOURCE: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
CONTACT: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
+1-206-709-3400
media@gatesfoundation.org
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