devinitorg/iati-policy-markers huggingface dataset:
Non-invasive biomarkers of stress in mothers, fathers and infants in urban and rural Malawi: a feasibility study It is known that health in early life is a key determinant of later life risk of a number of important diseases including high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. Changes in stress hormones are thought to be important underlying mechanism. Stress hormones can be collected in biological samples collected in non-invasive ways - such as in saliva, hair and breast milk. However, this has only really been tested in high income settings and it is not known whether collection of these samples will be acceptable and feasible in Malawi. It is likely that there are local cultural and technical issues - for example, length of hair, views on collecting samples in infants, difficulty with collecting samples at home, challenges with storing samples at home.  Two large population studies have been funded to look at the relationships between health in early life and later life disease in Malawi.  Malawian infants are growing up in one of the least developed countries in the world and are at high risk of infections in childhood and heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure in young adulthood. There is a huge opportunity to link to these studies and conduct more detailed studies in smaller groups of participants to look at potential underlying mechanisms, such as changes in stress hormones.  Therefore in this funding application we wish to determine the feasibility and acceptability of collecting non-invasive biological samples for measurement of 'stress' hormones from mothers, their partners and their infants. We will ask 50 women and their partners, to collect samples of saliva at home from themselves and their infants. Our trained research staff will also seek permission to collect hair samples and we will ask women to provide breast milk samples. We will find out whether it is feasible to do these collections, ask the participants and the research staff for their views about the sample collections, and look at the quality of the samples collected and whether the protocols need to be changed in any way.  The findings will pave the way for a future funding application for a nested study within the larger studies. This will add value to the existing studies through exploration of underlying biological mechanisms linking early life development with later life disease. The proposed seed-funding will also build local capacity and expertise in use of non-invasive biological samples, which we identify to be of wider relevance for other work in Malawi. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Development of an intervention for improved management of self-reported abnormal vaginal discharge by women in rural north India. MRC PHIND award  conducting an early phase study to develop an intervention to address the public health issue of self-reported 'abnormal vaginal discharge'(AVD), a highly prevalent syndrome worldwide and in South Asia in particular. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Towards a global research network for the molecular pathological stratification of leishmaniasis. The leishmaniasis are parasitic diseases caused by one of several species of single cell parasites (Leishmania) that are transmitted to humans by the bite of infected phlebotamine sand flies.   These diseases affect over 150 million people across 98 countries worldwide, including many low and middle income countries (LMICs).  Some forms of leishmaniasis are fatal, whereas other are very stigmatising and affect quality of life, particularly in children and women.  Few drugs are available for patients leishmaniasis and no vaccines are currently registered for use in preventing or treating these diseases.  Importantly, the drugs that we do have are not universally effective and often have significant side effects.  Sometimes patients even in the same geographical area will respond quite differently to therapy, and for some drugs effectiveness may vary widely between different countries.  In order to make the best use of current and future drugs for the leishmaniasis, we need to understand more about why this is the case, and use that information to select appropriate drugs or drug combination for use in different settings. Using the appropriate treatment would save costs in health care, minimise the patient suffering that results from administering ineffective treatments, and reduce the economic burden of disease on patients, their families and communities.   In this proposal, we are aiming to lay the foundation blocks that will drive a new way of managing patients with leishmaniasis and conducting research into these diseases.  We will use new molecular approaches to extract as much information as possible from small tissue samples that are collected from patients to diagnose their leishmaniasis, and use this information to start to develop new tests that can help clinicians decide on the best course of treatment.  We will use the internet to ensure that the information obtained from these tissue samples is used most effectively for research, clinical decision making and for education and training.  We will conduct an analysis of the added value of these changes in approach, in order to provide a case for their adoption by health systems in LMICs and by the funders of research.  Ultimately, by adopting these practices we will seek to deliver improvements in health and economic prosperity in LMICs.  The research we propose over the next two years will not provide all the answers, but will provide necessary proof of concept data to support applications for future funding that may allow us to realise this longer term ambition. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Understanding the transmission of tuberculosis using Mycobacterium tuberculosis sequence data Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that causes a high public health burden. The World Health Organisation estimates that there are nine million new cases and nearly two million deaths each year. Establishing who transmits to whom and where is fundamental to disease control. By comparing the genetic profiles of tuberculosis-causing bacteria within large population-based studies we can identify likely transmissions based on the similarity of the strains. Our work will focus initially on a district of Malawi where tuberculosis disease prevalence has been high, and data and tuberculosis samples from nearly 2500 patients have been collected over twenty years. The inferred genetic profiles will use a higher proportion of the genome than used previously, allowing more accurate reconstructions of transmission chains. Factors influencing transmissibility will then be assessed directly by looking at the patterns of data within each transmission chain. These factors may be genetic variations within the bacteria themselves, or differences in the human hosts, including age, sex, HIV infection and treatment, and contact patterns. We will attempt to confirm any insights into these factors using data collected and generated from other populations. Ultimately, an improved understanding of the genetic and other processes underlying transmissibility could lead to the development of improved control measures. These could include novel drug or vaccine targets, or identification of geographical or socially determined hotspots of transmission. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis COVID-19 Additional funding in response to the covid-19 outbreak COVID-19 The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Zika award PE supplement Wellcome Trust/MRC Zika public engagement (PE) supplement funds award to contribute and complement ongoing local public education programmes. By engaging with underprivileged communities in Brazil and Colombia and disseminating information on current rese The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Sub-Saharan African Network for Congenital Anomalies: Surveillance, Prevention and Care GCRF Maternal and Neo Health  award to set up a  Sub-Saharan African Network to promote the prevention of Congenital Anomalies, and care for affected children and families, by building an evidence base through surveillance and research, improving capacity The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Improving maternal mental health in South East Asia through assets based approaches. GCRF Global Maternal and Neo award to improve the mental health and wellbeing of mothers, infants and families in South East Asia, through improvement in detection, assessment and treatment of perinatal mental illness. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Examining health system performance for indigenous people in the Peruvian Amazon through the lens of tuberculosis control. This project will investigate and identify the key features required by the Peruvian health system to provide high-quality health services to vulnerable populations. In order to do this, we will focus on one particularly vulnerable group: Indigenous People from the Amazon who suffer disproportionately from several health problems including tuberculosis (TB). The Project will focus on the barriers, enablers and facilitators of deliverying context appropriate, feasible and culturally respectful services to detect, diagnose and treat TB among one particular indigenous group: the Ashaninkas from the Central Amazon of Peru, located in the región of Junin.  Ashaninkas are the largest Peruvian Amazonian IP group, and have a higher prevalence of TB compared with other urban areas in Peru. Most health care policies in Peru, including TB policies have been designed with an urban approach making such policies inappropriate and ineffective in rural areas such as the Amazon.  This Project aims to address the limitations of current health system delivery strategies in rural areas through the study of TB health policies and implementation practices in the Peruvian Amazon. Through interviews with different stakeholders such as indigenous TB patients, community leaders, representatives of indigenous organizations, regional and national health care officials we aim to identify the constraints in service delivery for vulnerable groups and the opportunity to make feasible changes. We will focus on cross-cutting systemic issues to provide high quality health care. Through a systematic analysis of the data collected and one workshop with each type of stakehodler we aim to develop using a participatory approach, a comprehensive package of scalable interventions in order to improve the quality of care delivered by the NTP to Peruvian Amazonian communities and other vulnerable groups. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
IARC Co-Funding International Agency for Research on Cancer are running a call on Cervical Cancer at the MRC have agreed to co-fund in 19/20-20/21 The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
The use of human monoclonal antibodies to inform and enhance influenza vaccine virus selection. IIB  Research Boards Sep/Oct 2016  RM 2017 award to look at the use of human monoclonal antibodies to inform and enhance influenza vaccine virus selection in China The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
An inter-disciplinary approach to understanding and intervening on contextual factors that shape HIV-risk for young women and men in South Africa Globally, and in South Africa in particular, HIV remains a major public health challenge. In KwaZulu-Natal Province, the functional epicentre of the global HIV-epidemic, young women and girls (18-24) are particularly at risk of acquiring HIV, and young men, are the only group in the country with an rising HIV-incidence. These high rates of HIV-acquisition are driven by harsh social contexts of poverty, inequitable gender norms, and widespread levels of violence, driven by the long legacy of apartheid.   This project seems to achieve three aims: 1) to understand how social contexts shape young people's HIV-acquisition risk; 2) to develop an intervention to support young women and men to take control of their lives and HIV-acquisition risk; and 3) assess the feasibility, acceptability and potential impact of this intervention.  To achieve aim 1 we will use unique existing quantitative data sets to understand how social contexts shape HIV-acquisition risk in young people and then undertake long-term participatory research with 16 youth peer research associates (YPRAs) hired from two sites in KwaZulu-Natal - urban informal settlements and rural KwaZulu-Natal. Through this we will understand in multiple ways how risk manifests itself.   To achieve aim 2 we will work with the YPRAs and the team of researchers to develop an intervention with resonates with young women's and men's live.   To achieve aim 3 we will undertake a pilot evaluation of the intervention, assessing quantitative and qualitatively whether the intervention was felt to be feasible and acceptable by young people, and whether it shows any evidence of effect.  We will share results with the community through producing plain language summaries of the research we produce, and also a short video at endline, all in collaboration with the YPRAs. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Developing a Community Singing-Based Intervention for Perinatal Mental Health in The Gambia MRC AHRC award to develop a Community Singing-Based Intervention for Perinatal Mental Health in The Gambia The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Evaluating the role of pharmacists and m-Health strategies in the management of hypertension in General Pueyrredon Hypertension is one of the main cardiovascular risk factors in Argentina and the cause of a high number of diseases and deaths. Although there is extensive knowledge about effective treatments and preventive strategies, there is a gap that limits the translation of this knowledge on the benefits of the patients, especially of the poorer ones. Almost half of hypertensive patients do not know their condition and most of them are not appropriately controlled. Lack of access to health services due to multiple types of barriers as well as the lack of patients' adherence to control and treatment are the main problems that explain this gap. The incorporation and integration of the pharmacists to the health system and the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have showed highly promising results in the improvement of the management of this condition; however, they are scarcely used in Argentina. In 2018, the Secretariat of Health of the Municipality of General Pueyrredón, Province of Buenos Aires, prompted an innovating community-program, which incorporates the pharmacists to the municipal health system as well as a virtual platform ("Health MGP", https://saludmgp.rpmplay.com/) and a mobile app targeted to hypertensive patients. Pharmacists' incorporation will improve patients' access to health services, as most people have a pharmacy near their home and they do not need a scheduled turn to assist. Besides, pharmacists will collaborate in patients' follow-up, through blood pressure, counselling and medication use supervision. The virtual platform will permit hypertensive patients to be part of a virtual community, in which other hypertensive patients and health professionals participate and through which, the patient can interact with others and be actively involved in the management of the disease. The mobile app will send reminders to hypertensive patients to support their involvement in the program and reinforce adherence to recommendations. We propose a mixed-study to assess the access, acceptability, adoption and impact of this program, and to use this experience as a case study to promote the debate among key stakeholders of the policy and legal fields about the pharmacists' participation in the health system as well as the use of ICTs in the management of NCDs and hypertension. The incorporation of these technologies not only constitutes the future in the management of Chronic Disease but also represents a shift in the paradigm of care. They contribute to the transformation of the health system from one that is essentially reactive to one that is proactive through the active involvement of the patient in the self-management of their disease. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Is Lactoferrin more effective than inorganic iron in treating iron def anaemia in non-pregnant and if effective in pregnant women? 2 randomised trials Oral bovine lactoferrin is a novel, unconventional way to prevent low birthweight, preterm birth & neonatal deaths associated with maternal iron deficiency in low income settings. Each year about 20 million low birthweight babies are born worldwide. Low birthweight is caused by either preterm delivery (babies born earlier than expected) or fetal growth retardation. In countries where perinatal health services are limited, low birthweight and preterm birth are a major cause of neonatal deaths. Low birthweight babies are 20 or more times likely to die than heavier babies, with much of this mortality burden due to preterm birth. The current paradigm of using iron supplements (and folic acid) targeted at pregnant women often fails, in part because of the side effects, which are a strong barrier to use of the supplements early in pregnancy, a period of vulnerability for iron deficient women and their fetus and future newborn. And also because maternal inflammation and micronutrient deficiencies block effective utilization of iron Our approach will provide a product that will efficiently deliver iron and that can be taken early in pregnancy during a critical intervention window, which offers the potential to prevent neonatal deaths. The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.
Understanding the Epithelial Site-Specific Origin of HPV Neoplasia and its Control MRC IIB award to examine how site-specific deregulated human papillomaviruses gene expression can lead to disease within a LMIC The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.