University of Liverpool Pr Hinton, has received a
prestigious award for his work on a
new type of Salmonella bacteria that is causing thousands of deaths in sub-Saharan Africa. The £1.5 million funding will support a major five-year research
project focused on invasive non-typhoidal Salmonellosis (iNTS), a
disease responsible for a new epidemic of bloodstream infections in
African people.
Salmonella target HIV-infected adults and immune-suppressed
children, and is killing more than 380,000 people each year across
Africa. Although the clinical picture is well-established, little is
known about the infection biology of iNTS pathogens because of the lack
of basic research into this neglected disease.
Pr Hinton, said: "I was shocked when I discovered how many people were
dying as a result of Salmonellosis in Africa, and I decided to refocus
my research towards this dangerous emerging pathogen."
The project will identify the virulence factors of Salmonella that
are responsible for a new clinical syndrome in Africa, and will drive
future developments of novel therapeutics and vaccines to combat this
dangerous infection. A pioneering approach, developed by Pr Hinton to study Salmonella
gene expression will also be used to find the bacterial genes that are
switched on during the actual process of infection. This will help to
reveal how the Salmonella are causing disease.