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A few years ago it was lively
debated whether it is appropriate and sensible to maintain institutes for
tropical medicine in the industrialized world of moderate climates. Of course,
countries in the endemic regions of tropical diseases must be given every
support to do medical research and product marketing on their own. All the
more as the World Bank assesses that national development cannot succeed
without national research endeavours, and be it only to keep the talent
in the country. And there appears no field of research better suited than
diseases prevailing in the local population.
On the other side, biomedical research has developed into a costly high-technology
undertaking, and a number of roadblocks at present prevent a broader implementation
in low-income countries. This cannot mean that populations of low-income
nations not only suffer from collective poverty but also from diseases -
due to failing research activities in their part of the world. For institutes
of tropical medicine in industrialized countries, this implies a clear mandate
to do high-technology research.
It slowly is being realised that financing tropical-disease research is
by no means altruistic. Poverty-related diseases make poorer, and poverty
is considered one of the major threats to peace worldwide. Not to forget
national reputations in emerging economies. What is new is that the tropical
diseases themselves are getting closer. Be it due to globalisation or climate
change, West-Nile virus has taken over the USA in 2004, Chikungunya virus
emerged in Italy in 2007, and its vector, "tiger mosquito" Aedes
albopictus, moved into the Upper Rhine valley by 2008. New challenges are
arising.
Over more than a hundred years, Germany´s largest and most renowned
institute for tropical diseases, the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical
Medicine, has made historic contributions to the control of communicable
diseases and emerging infections. Its members feel obliged by the great
tradition and are prepared to meet the challenges of the future.
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