Pathology in tropical medicine

The pathology o f a parasitic disease is a major link between the investigating parasitologist and those concerned with its epidemiology, socioeconomic impact, clinical treatment and control. The epidemiologist requires information about the incidence and prevalence of major pathological lesions attributable to on infection, which in turn will determine the social and economic impact of the disease and thus its priority for control. For both diagnosis and treatment, the clinician requires an understanding of the pathological mechanisms, and the potential for new drugs or vaccine development largely depends on such understanding. Recent years have seen remarkable improvements in determining the nature of pathology associated with parasitic infections. and in understanding their causative mechanisms. With this issue, Parasitology Today begins a series of special reviews designed to bring together these insights into parasite pathology (see pages 271-282). In this introductory overview. Charles Mackenzie traces the origins and development of the science.     

The past and future of tropical medicine in Czechoslovakia.

The authors present a short historical review on the developments in the Czechoslovak tropical health studies with special reference to the post WW II period. Perspectives for future expansion are likewise outlined.     

The Bernhard Nocht Institute: 100 years of tropical medicine in Hamburg

The Bernhard Nocht Institute (BNI) is a four months younger and much smaller sibling of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz. It was founded on 1 October 1900 as an Institut für Schiffs- und Tropenkrankheiten (Institute for Maritime and Tropical Diseases) and was later named after its founder and first director Bernhard Nocht. Today it is the Germany's largest institution for research in tropical medicine. It is a government institution affiliated to the Federal Ministry of Health of Germany and the Department of Health of the State of Hamburg. As the center for research in tropical medicine in Germany the BNI is dedicated to research, training and patient care in the area of human infectious diseases, which are of particular relevance in the tropics. It is the primary mission of the BNI to develop means to the control of these diseases. Secondary missions are to provide expertise for regional and national authorities and to directly and indirectly improve the health care for national and regional citizens in regard to diseases of the tropics.     

Overview of some biomedical research projects in tropical medicine conducted at the Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Cientificas

The Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Cientificas (IVIC) is a government-funded multidisciplinary academic institution dedicated to research, development and technology in many areas of knowledge. Biomedical projects and publications comprise about 40% of the total at IVIC. In this article, we present an overview of some selected research and development projects conducted at IVIC which we believe contain new and important aspects related to malaria, ancylostomiasis, dengue fever, leishmaniasis and tuberculosis. Other projects considered of interest in the general area of tropical medicine are briefly described. This article was prepared as a small contribution to honor and commemorate the centenary of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz.