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.