Global experts convene for malaria eradication conference

Leading malaria experts from public and private institutions around the world convened for a three-day conference aimed at discussing and rethinking the future of malaria prevention, control, elimination, and eradication. The culminating session, “Rethinking Malaria: The Science of Eradication Symposium,” emphasized the need to refocus on new research priorities due to the complex life cycle of the disease, as well as the need for multipronged collaborative efforts and strategies to achieve the goal of long-term elimination and eradication. The symposium combined lessons learned from past malaria efforts, underscored key challenges, such as resurgence of the disease due to complacency in prevention and control, and discussed new opportunities, including the development of a first-generation malaria vaccine that could provide 50 percent protection by 2015.

The conference was co-sponsored by HSPH’s Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases and the Harvard Institute for Global Health. Speakers included Professor Dyann Wirth, Richard Pearson Strong professor of infectious diseases and chair, HSPH Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases; Marcel Tanner, director of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute and co-chair of the Malaria Eradication Research Agenda; HSPH Dean Julio Frenk; and John MacArthur, Chief of the Program Implementation Unit at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases