Research Library

Global health security and funding is critical for keeping up with the progress made so far in combating global health challenges. It is for this reason that the need for the U.S.’s commitment to global health investments needs to be revisited and advocated once again writes fellow Farhan Majid in an op-ed for The Hill: https://bit.ly/2sqYqvp

Disease and poverty fellow Peter J. Hotez examines the rise of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in Texas, arguing that the spread of diseases like chikungunya West Nile, Zika and Ebola has not occurred by accident but instead reflects rapidly evolving changes and shifts in a “new” Texas beset by modern and globalizating forces.

This blog post examines four factors of globalization that make Texas a “ground zero” for new infectious tropical diseases and outlines steps the state must take to better mitigate global health threats.

While global attention in West Africa is focused on the emergence of Ebola virus infection, new information from the published literature and World Health Organization databases reveals that many other neglected tropical diseases are far more widespread and also require urgent attention.

Peter Hotez, Baker Institute fellow in disease and poverty and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, was named a U.S. science envoy by the State Department in December. The Houston Chronicle profiles Hotez's current project to prevent a virulent outbreak of a neglected tropical disease or emerging infection in ISIS-occupied territories in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Libya.

The latest December Ebola Situation Report from WHO indicates that Sierra Leone currently has the highest total number of reported cases — almost 8,000 — having recently overtaken Liberia. Adding to Sierra Leone’s woes is a new finding that the country is tied with Togo as the most hookworm-endemic country in Africa, with 34 percent of the population infected with hookworms. In this blog post, Peter Hotez, fellow in disease and poverty, examines whether or not there is a link between hookworm and Ebola in Sierra Leone.

Ebola is by no means the only major emerging virus infection with lethal epidemic or pandemic potential. A special issue of Microbes and Infection focuses on these dangerous emerging viral threats, with an emphasis on recent developments to create new therapeutics, immunotherapeutics, and vaccines, and highlights important research and development work coming out of leading universities and research institutes in China.

There is no question that Ebola virus infection is one of the most lethal of all of the neglected tropical disease (NTD) pathogens, but on a global scale there are a number of other NTDs that also cause large numbers of deaths, write Peter Hotez and Jennifer Herricks. In fact, at least six NTDs kill more people each year than all those who perished from Ebola virus infection this year.

Disease and poverty fellow Peter J. Hotez, M.D., recently discussed the ethical development of Ebola drugs for the New York Times' "Room for Debate" series. "Controlled trials would be the fastest and most accurate tests and the only proven path to determine vaccine safety and efficacy," Hotez wrote.

We can beat viruses. But it takes money and political will.