Open in Browser     Swiss TPH News, December 2023   Celebrating Our Shared Commitment to Better Health    Wishing you and your loved ones a joyous holiday season and a happy New Year. As the year comes to a close, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude for your ongoing collaboration and partnership, which has played a vital role in our collective efforts to improve the health and well-being of people around the world. We look forward to continuing this journey together in the coming year, working towards a healthier future for all.     EMA Recommends Drug for Treatment of  Schistosomiasis in Young Children   Arpraziquantel, developed by the Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium, receives positive scientific opinion from the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of schistosomiasis in preschool-aged children. The consortium’s work to develop, register and provide access to arpraziquantel is a tangible contribution to the elimination of schistosomiasis.   ARTICLE     Combating Over-Prescription of Antibiotics in Children in Tanzania   A large-scale study by the DYNAMIC project has produced promising results: the use of a new digital clinical decision-making tool has led to a two- to three-fold reduction in the prescription of antibiotics. These results, published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Medicine, mark an important step towards curbing bacterial antimicrobial resistance.   ARTICLE     WHO Recognises Noma as a Neglected Tropical Disease   The inclusion of noma as an NTD will help elevate the global awareness of noma and stimulate better funding opportunities for research, interventions and support for noma survivors. With a systematic literature review in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, Swiss TPH researchers contributed to a better understanding of the epidemiology of the disease and helped lay the groundwork for the inclusion of noma in the WHO list of NTDs.   WHO NEWS     Milestone in the Fight against Sleeping Sickness   The European Medicines Agency has adopted a positive opinion of fexinidazole for the treatment of T.b. rhodesiense sleeping sickness, found in Eastern and Southern Africa. The positive opinion is followed a clinical trial conducted by the HAT-r-ACC Consortium, of which Swiss TPH is a part. This is an important milestone in the fight against this acute and lethal form of the neglected tropical disease.   ARTICLE     Limited Trust in Health Systems Hinders Universal Health Coverage   A series of papers published recently in the Lancet Global Health finds that only a quarter of people think their health system works well. The People’s Voice Survey analysed people’s views and trust in the system in 15 countries, adding a missing component to how one evaluates health system performance. Swiss TPH contributed to these studies, which were led by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Quality Evidence for Health System Transformation (QuEST) network.   ARTICLE     Mobile Phone Use May Affect Semen Quality   Does mobile phone radiation affect sperm quality? A team of researchers from the University of Geneva in collaboration with Swiss TPH has conducted the largest study to date on this topic. The results show that intensive mobile phone use is associated with a decrease in sperm concentration and total sperm count. However, no association was found between mobile phone use and sperm motility or morphology. The results are published in the journal Fertility and Sterility.   ARTICLE   • Nino Künzli, Meltem Kutlar Joss » Die Schweizer Luftreinhaltepolitik muss sich dem neusten Stand des Wissens stellen   • Angelika Jacobs » Noise, foul air and compromises   • Lukas Meier » Kelly Chibale: Learning to fail your way to success.   Project Updates   Vaccine Development against Helminth Infections   The WORMVACS2.0 consortium addresses the global helminth infection burden via an effective vaccine development pipeline. Focusing on schistosomes and hookworms, the EU-funded project aims to combat NTDs by advancing host immunity understanding, applying sustainable technologies and identifying vaccine candidates. The outcome will be a diversified portfolio for clinical testing, including a phase 1 trial of a schistosomiasis vaccine based on an mRNA platform. Swiss TPH is leading the preclinical evaluation of vaccine candidates. » Read more Early Sexual Differentiation in Plasmodium falciparum   A new SNSF-funded research project at Swiss TPH focuses on gametocytes, the transmissible forms of the malaria parasite P. falciparum. The project team will apply CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing, super-resolution microscopy techniques and various -omics approaches to study the early phase of gametocyte differentiation and the mechanisms underlying gametocyte sex determination. The aim is to gain novel insight into the molecular and cellular events driving gametocytogenesis, providing potential avenues for the development of urgently needed new interventions for malaria elimination. » Read more   Exposure to Pesticides in School Children   The Exposure to Pesticides by Air and Respiratory Health in School Children in Valais, Switzerland (PARVAL) study aims to assess pesticide exposure in school children. The study will explore the short-term association between pesticide exposure and respiratory health in primary school children living near vineyards and fruit orchards, taking into account the context of non-pesticide inhalants (i.e. air pollution) and pollen exposure. Recruitment of participants started successfully in November. » Read more Monitoring Cervical Cancer Services for Women Living with HIV   Together with our partners, we developed a monitoring framework to measure the performance of steps along the cervical cancer prevention and care continuum for women living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa. Stakeholders from 15 countries agreed on five core and 12 optional indicators, which can be adapted for use in different contexts. » Read the policy brief Link between EMF Exposure and Neurodegenerative Diseases   There is growing concern about a possible link between long-term exposure to electromagnetic fields, including extremely low frequency magnetic fields (ELF-MF), and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. The NLEON-EMF study aims to model residential exposure to low-frequency magnetic fields from power lines and railway lines. It will compare this exposure with mortality rate from neurodegenerative diseases, brain tumours and malignancies to investigate a possible link between ELF-MF and these health conditions. » Read more   Study with Us   Leadership   Develop a deep understanding of leadership in the context of international health and learn what it takes to lead an organisation or work group through a change that others want to be a part of. » Apply for the management course by 12 February 2024   Strategic Planning for Health Interventions   Learn how to assess the health situation in low-resource settings in order to prioritise interventions that are consistent with existing national health policies. » Apply for the management course by 11 March 2024   Swiss TPH in the Media   • SRF: Wie Biobanken helfen, Krankheitsrisiken besser einzuschätzen » Radio   • SRF: Wie Pestizid-Resistenzen das Malaria-Problem verschärfen » Radio   People of Swiss TPH   “Swiss TPH is a place where professionalism coexists with warm personalities, providing a great working environment to pursue my research into developing immunodiagnostics and treatment options for Buruli ulcer, a little-known flesh-eating disease affecting some of the world’s most disadvantaged people.” Louisa Warren, Postdoctoral Scientific Collaborator in Molecular Immunology » Watch the video Latest Publications   • Sprecher VP, Hofmann D, Savathdy V et al. Efficacy and safety of moxidectin compared with ivermectin against Strongyloides stercoralis infection in adults in Laos and Cambodia. The Lancet Infectious Diseases » Read full article   • Delvento G, Curteanu A, Rotaru C et al. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on primary health care practices and patient management in the Republic of Moldova - results from the PRICOV-19 survey. BMC Primary Care » Read full article       Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) Kreuzstrasse 2 4123 Allschwil, Switzerland communications@swisstph.ch Swiss TPH   Imprint | Data Privacy   If you do not wish to receive further newsletters, you can unsubscribe any time.