Exploring novel approaches to treat dengue fever and tuberculosis

The Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases (NITD) announced today the official commencement of a partnership with Eijkman Institute and Hasanuddin University to conduct clinical research into dengue fever and tuberculosis (TB). This new initiative is Novartis’ latest investment to discover and develop novel treatments for tropical diseases, and will strengthen translational clinical research in this area.

March 2, 2006 - The establishment of the NITD - Eijkman Institute - Hasanuddin University Clinical Research Institute (NEHCRI) will complement Novartis’ current research in dengue fever and TB. The new NEHCRI alliance will provide researchers at NITD will direct access to hospitals and patients in a real-life context on a daily basis.

“NEHCRI will create a valuable partnership for NITD. It will allow direct access to patients in an environment when dengue and TB are endemic,” said Professor Paul Herrling, Chairman of NITD and Head of Corporate Research at Novartis. “By providing additional training and education for young students, post-doctorates and healthcare staff, this should help us to come closer to our goals of having two compounds in clinical trials by 2008, and at least one novel and attractive compound available to patients by 2012.”

The incidence of dengue fever and TB are accelerating rapidly, especially in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization, more than 58,000 new cases of dengue fever were discovered in Indonesia in 2004, and some 2.5 billion people worldwide are at risk of the disease. The prevalence of TB is also alarming; a third of the world’s population is affected with the disease and more than two million people die from TB each year. Yet, there is no antiviral treatment to address the medical needs of dengue fever and new treatments are needed for TB.

Eijkman Institute will offer an excellent facility to enhance the study of molecular biology and biochemistry of dengue fever and TB, while the Medical Faculty of Hasanuddin University will establish a clinical research unit devoted to patient studies of new diagnostics, biomarker technologies and novel drug candidates.

“Neglected diseases lack sound epidemiology and clinical pathophysiology that are critical to drug discovery. We are excited to form an alliance with NITD to advance progress towards the understanding and treatment of these diseases,” said Professor Sangkot Marzuki, Director, Eijkman Institute.

Professor Idrus Paturusi, Director, Hasanuddin University, added: “NEHCRI will be a center of distinction that offers exceptional teaching and training opportunities for our scientists. We welcome NITD’s commitment to nurture our scientific talents and jointly help us to understand how we can better address the problems of dengue fever and TB in our country.”

NEHCRI is located at the Eijkman Institute in Jakarta and the Wahidin General Hospital in Makassar.

Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases (NITD)