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Lima, Peru - LID

Site Institution: Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH), ), Laboratorios de Investigación y Desarrollos
U.S. Institution: Yale University
Research Areas: Malaria, Leptospirosis, Leishmaniasis, Hepatitis B, Parasitic Diseases, Immunology, Molecular Biology

Site Description:
The Laboratorios de Investigación y Desarrollos (LID) contributes to the scientific and technological progress of Peru through its state-of-the-art facilities that support cutting edge research and innovation.

Dr. Vinetz has worked in Peru since 1998, studying leptospirosis and malaria. Dr. Vinetz maintains a laboratory on the UPCH Faculty of Sciences campus (LID) and a fully functioning field laboratory. Dr. Gamboa leads the Malaria Research Group at LID-UPCH. This group has three independent laboratories that are the most modern facilities of their kind in Peru (outside of government). Facilities at LID include laboratories for molecular/cellular biology, bioinformatics and immunology. The Malaria Research Group also has laboratory facilities in Iquitos, which houses an insectary specialized in rearing mosquito species involved in malaria transmission. Drs. Vinetz and Gamboa have been collaborators for over 14 years. Together, they manage the Amazonian International Center of Excellence in Malaria Research (ICEMR), which focuses on utilizing a comprehensive approach to understanding the biological features of Amazonian malaria towards the ultimate goal of regional control and elimination of Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax.

Current research projects and focus areas include:
  • Amazonian Center of Excellence in Malaria Research (Amazonia ICEMR)
    • Goals: To continue supporting the Amazonia ICEMR in its effort to discover underlying principles and develop new tools to go beyond conventional malaria control activities towards regional malaria elimination.
  • Translational Research Development for Endemic Infectious Diseases of Amazonia
    • Goals: To continue supporting the Global Infectious Disease Training program at UPCH, which aims to enhance tropical infectious disease research capacity in Peru by focusing on research disciplines and diseases relevant to the Amazon region of Peru.
  • Immunology of asympomatic malaria and the immunity effects in plasmodium transmission
  • Study of the fundamental biology of malaria resilience in the Amazon - characterize human populations of malaria transmission reservoirs (epidemiology), study the molecular ecology and transmission biology of human-Anopheles interactions, and investigate molecular and cellular mechanisms of non-sterilizing clinical immunity to malaria caused by P. vivax and P. falciparum.
  • Leptospira and Leptospirosis – collaboration of multidisciplinary studies of Leptospira and leptospirosis, focused on clinical field studies of acute undifferentiated febrile illness to characterize epidemiological and clinical features of leptospirosis and ultimately deploy new novel molecular and point-of-care diagnostic tests.

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