EUCO-net

www.euco-net.eu

Partner

Lead partner - USAAR, Saarland University

ITM, Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine
AOUC, Careggi Hospital
ISS, Instituto Superior di Sanità
IBMT, Fraunhofer Society, Institute for Biomedical Engineering
CRIT RAMS, Central Research Institute of Tuberculosis of Russian Academy of Medical Sciences
FCAIDS, Federal Centre of AIDS of Russian Ministry of Healthcare and Social Development
NJI, National Jalma Institute for Leprosy and other mycobacterial diseases
SRF, Seth Research Foundation
SU, Stellenbosch University
CONICET, Fundacion Pablo Cassara, Centro de Ciencia y Tecnologia
FIOCRUZ, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz – Oswaldo Cruz Foundation
EUR – European Research and Project Office GmbH

Summary

The aim of EucoNET is to contribute to the implementation of and enhance international cooperation partner countries (ICPC) participation in the 7th Framework Programme in the areas of HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis research as well as to support other international efforts addressing HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and AIDS/TB co-infection, contributing to the UN Millennium Development Goals and supporting the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership programme.
EATG is the collaborative partner no. 5 and will contribute to achieve the overall objectives of the project by providing expertise from the ECAB group (represented by Michal Odermarsky).

Why

AIDS and TB are two major communicable diseases that cause severe public health problems worldwide. The two diseases are caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Mycobacterium Tuberculosis (MTB) respectively. Halting the spread of HIV/AIDS is one of the eight UN Millenium Development Goals, and the issue of HIV/MTB co-infection has been paid increasing attention recently.
Both diseases are not only representing a global public health problem on its own but in their combination are particularly threatening due to considerable mutual interaction: TB is the leading cause of mortality for people living with HIV/AIDS, and HIV is the most potent force driving the TB epidemic in countries with a high prevalence of AIDS1. Consequently, co-infection of HIV with MTB is a deadly combination with significantly accelerated disease progression and mortality. Especially in rural areas of Russia, India, South Africa, and Latin America both diseases are affecting large populations: In 2006, 39.5 million people suffered from HIV2, and 2 billion people were infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of TB3, with approximately 11 million people being “co-infected” with both diseases4. The number of people dying from AIDS worldwide increased to 2.9 million in 2006, and prevention measures are failing to keep pace with the growth of the epidemic. In 2005, more than 15 million children had lost one or both parents to AIDS5.

Up to now, there is a massive failure to respond to the dual epidemic in an integrated way, and despite an increasing awareness worldwide, greater commitment and increased funding, current prevention and treatment efforts as well as coordinated research initiatives need to be further strengthened to address the challenge of HIV/MTB co-infection. AIDS and TB programmes worldwide still work largely in isolation from each other and are focussing on national levels, although the urgent need to combat these two diseases and their detrimental combination is recognized internationally.

What

• The creation of an international consortia willing and ready to work together on projects in the field (especially under the 7th Framework programme)
• Sustainable net of experts in the field
• Publication of country reports
• Publication of AIDS/TB Roadmap

Contact

EATG Secretariat - Ana Lúcia Cardoso

Euconet taskforce - Michal Odermarsky

Euconet Project Coordinator - Claudia Giehl