Basanez, M-G

Zain, SNM

Parasitology Today

Zain, Siti Nursheena Mohd

Basanez, Maria-Gloria

Spiral - Imperial College Digital Repository

levels comparable to LmFn-infected mice(Figure 1B). These findings might havepotential clinical applications in the futureto treat nonhealing cases of leishmaniasisin humans. Nonetheless, further investi-gation will be required to understand howdepletion of MRC1hi cells could regulatethe outcome of the diseases in humanpatients without impairing skin repair orcausing other unexpected complications.Another potential clinical application hasthe above described redifferentiation ofdermis M2-like macrophages to M1-likemacrophages with M1 stimuli thatresulted in clearance of the LmSd parasitein infected cells. Repolarization of M2-likemacrophages to an M1-like phenotype isalready being considered as a therapeuticstrategy in tumor immunotherapy [10].In summary, the study by Lee et al. [6]provides new insights into the longstand-ing puzzle of nonhealing infection with theL. major strain LmSd. As yet unidentifiedadaptations by this parasite promote asustained, long-term persistence in thedermis that is resistant to the strongTh1 response. This suggests that theLmSd parasite may have evolved bychanging its cell-surface oligosaccharidestructures to infect and survive in a spe-cific niche – the MRC1hi P4 dermal mac-rophages. Looking forward, it will beinteresting to identify the LmSd epitoperesponsible for the invasion of MRC1hicells and to establish whether these ordifferent mechanisms are responsiblefor other nonhealing leishmaniases.AcknowledgmentsSupport from the Czech Science Foundation (GrantsGACR 14-30186S, GACR 16-22346S) and COSTAction BM1404 Mye-EUNITER is gratefullyacknowledged.1Molecular and Translational Cardiology, Department ofCardiovascular Medicine, University Hospital Münster,Germany2Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Immunology,Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy ofSciences, Vídenská 1083, 14220 Prague, Czech Republic*Correspondence:yahya.sohrabi@ukmuenster.de (Y. Sohrabi) andlipoldova@img.cas.cz (M. Lipoldová).https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pt.2018.03.006References1. Kobets, T. et al. (2012) Leishmaniasis: prevention, parasitedetection and treatment. Curr. Med. Chem. 19, 1443–14742. Tolouei, S. et al. (2013) TLR2 and TLR4 in cutaneousleishmaniasis caused by Leishmania major. Scand. J.Immunol. 78, 478–4843. Neva, F.A. et al. (1979) Cutaneous leishmaniasis – a casewith persistent organisms after treatment in presence ofnormal immune response. Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg. 28,467–4714. Anderson, C.F. et al. (2005) Nonhealing infection despiteTh1 polarization produced by a strain of Leishmania majorin C57BL/6 mice. J. Immunol. 174, 2934–29415. Charmoy, M. et al. (2016) The Nlrp3 inflammasome, IL-1b,and neutrophil recruitment are required for susceptibility toa nonhealing strain of Leishmania major in C57BL/6 mice.Eur. J. Immunol. 46, 897–9116. Lee, S.H. et al. (2018) Mannose receptor high, M2 dermalmacrophages mediate nonhealing Leishmania major infec-tion in a Th1 immune environment. J. Exp. Med. 215,357–3757. Martinez-Pomares, L. (2012) The mannose receptor. J.Leukoc. Biol. 92, 1177–11868. Martinez, F.O. and Gordon, S. (2014) The M1 and M2paradigm of macrophage activation: time for reassess-ment. F1000Prime Rep. 6, 139. Akilov, O.E. et al. (2007) The role of mannose receptorduring experimental leishmaniasis. J. Leukoc. Biol. 81,1188–119610. Zheng, X. et al. (2017) Redirecting tumor-associated mac-rophages to become tumoricidal effectors as a novel strat-egy for cancer therapy. Oncotarget 8, 48436–48452ForumCollaborate orCollapse: CapacityBuilding in Zoonoticand Neglected TropicalDisease ModellingSiti Nursheena Mohd Zain1,3,*and Maria-Gloria Basáñez2,3We share the insights from asuccessful collaboration in orga-nizing and implementing aninternational scientific capacity-building workshop in Malaysiatitled Mathematical Modelling ofNeglected Infectious Diseases:Capacity Building in SoutheastAsia. This workshop focused onthe delivery of technical know-how and on essential soft skillsrelated to effective grant proposalwriting and networking.IntroductionThe academic world today has becomemuch more challenging as researchersface increasing pressures to publishand compete for increasingly scarcefunding resources. The research land-scape has further become much morecomplex and interdisciplinary in nature,requiring expert inputs from multiple sour-ces. Researchers have adapted to thesenew challenges by increasing collabora-tive research and other joint activities.Against the requirement to ‘publish orperish’, we now must add the adage:‘collaborate or collapse’. The pursuit ofscientific knowledge naturally is a lonelyjourney – the popular image of thescientists cloistered in their laboratoryand spending long hours peering intothe microscope is not far from the truth.However, the process of discovery andknowledge creation is necessarily an iter-ative process that combines hours of sol-itary contemplation with moments ofsocial connection. The process of sharinginformation becomes a source of valida-tion, an opportunity for critical feedback,and a deepening of scientific enquiry.Collaboration, however, is not a given. It iscertainly not a subject that is taught inuniversity. It is also not simply about thesharing of information. Rather it is con-cerned with the teamwork behind thecreative success of scientific projects.Such teamwork does not happen natu-rally and requires the building of cohesionbetween members towards achieving acommon goal and providing the neces-sary mentoring so that more experiencedmembers may help younger members tonavigate effectively.356 Trends in Parasitology, May 2018, Vol. 34, No. 5What, then, are the key elements for asuccessful collaboration? How can onedevelop these skills? These questionsapply particularly to early career scientistswho may not have sufficient tools to navi-gate the new challenges of academia. Inthis article we address this issue by sharingthe key lessons from a recently successfulcollaboration that resulted in the organiza-tion of a multidisciplinary and multinationalworkshop in Malaysia: Neglected Diseasesin SEA: Building Capacity in Epidemiologi-cal Modelling (from August 28, 2017 toSeptember 1, 2017), supported by theNewton-Ungku Omar Fund (NUOF)i, anintegral part of the wider Newton Fundumbrellaii. We frame these lessons bydescribing three important componentsof the researchers’ world – networking,mentoring, and nurturing.NetworkingNetworking involves building and main-taining contacts and relationships withothers. In academia this process can takeplace on all manners of platform – fromthe mid-morning coffee breaks (charac-teristic of British universities) to Whatsappgroups and participation in scientificseminars. Networking helps to broadcastone’s existence to the community and,more importantly, provides the buildingblocks for developing trust between indi-viduals. Trust is an important element inany relationship and is especially soamongst scientists who fiercely guardtheir data and know-how. This is why itis not easy to form scientific collaborativerelationships virtually utilizing socialmedia. Only when trust is establishedcan the sharing of knowledge and resour-ces take place. A tried and tested ‘trust’mechanism is the influence of the per-sonal introduction.In this case study, the lead author, basedin Malaysia, was taking a sabbatical leaveto acquire new skills and tools in themathematical modelling of infectious dis-eases. In order to find a suitable host forthis highly technical subject she reachedout to her PhD supervisor, based in Brit-ain, with whom, over the years, she hasbuilt and maintained a personal andresearch relationship. Through his under-standing of her Southeast Asian context,and what she needed intellectually, hewas able to identify the host who wouldbest meet her requirements. This in turnrequired tapping into his network ofscholars based in Britain to help makethe necessary introductions that wouldenable the hosting of the author duringher sabbatical period.By utilizing her personal networks, theauthor was able to access a wider pool,in various regions of the world, to help hergain more information and identify rele-vant options. Her network, further, wasable to assist her in making communica-tion and negotiating with the personalitiesand institutions that would eventually hosther. Thus, networking functioned as botha source of information for decision-mak-ing and an enabler for establishing theprofessional relationship between scholarand institution.MentoringIn academia the mentor plays an almostpastoral role, offering not only knowledgesharing but other forms of tangible andintangible support. The best mentorsshare their career experiences, personalknowledge, skills, and networks. Mentor-ing is not normally an entry that one putsin their CV, or a job obligation one needsto fulfill, but rather stems from a genuineinterest in supporting a colleague or stu-dent in advancing their career. This roleincludes helping the mentee to identifygoals and recommending pursuits todevelop specific areas for professionaladvancement. This relationship doesnot only benefit one party. Mentors alsocan develop useful skills in supporting andmotivating others while broadening anddeepening their own network and com-munity of practice.My host, and co-author, is a recognizedexpert with extensive years working onparasitic diseases modelling and capacitybuilding in Latin America and Africa [1–4].During our early interactions we discov-ered an opportunity to create broaderlinkages with similar work conducted inAsia. An important aspect of the relation-ship was her willingness to share knowl-edge and professional guidance as I setabout with my work programme. Thementoring environment she createdhelped me to learn about the work beingdone in Africa which, in turn, allowed meto identify important gaps in the wayinfectious disease epidemiology wasaddressed in Southeast Asia (SEA). Itwas through these exchanges that anidea began to coalesce to bring thismodelling tool across to SEA where thefield is still underdeveloped.Both of us worked together to crystalizethis idea in the form of a grant proposal toorganize a capacity-building workshop inthe mathematical modelling of neglectedand vector-borne diseases in the region.Coincidentally, the prestigious NewtonResearcher Links Workshop Grants callwas open for proposals and provided atimeline for us to focus our efforts. Thegrant criteria required strong linkagesbetween capacity building and creatingpolicy outcomes related to the eco-nomic development of partner coun-tries. We both tapped into ournetworks to identify the most suitabletalent to construct our team and shapethe programme. These included expertsfrom five institutions in the UK andMalaysia who crafted the technicalaspects of the modelling with the imple-mentation experience in Africa and howsuch models may be adapted to theSEA context. With a clear policy-ori-ented framework and strong content,and supported by a highly competentmulti-national team, we received thehappy news, 5 months later, that ourgrant proposal was successful.Trends in Parasitology, May 2018, Vol. 34, No. 5 357NurturingThe third component for successful col-laboration is the nurturing component. Ineffective research collectives the team isnever homogenous, and its dynamics areshaped by the diversity of its members –from seasoned scientists, to mid-careerand freshly minted PhDs, comingtogether with different sub-disciplinesand specializations. Social hierarchiesmay provide obstacles towards success-ful teamwork – impeding effective com-munication between members andlimiting the potential for creativity andknowledge synthesis.An important element in the design ofthe workshop was, therefore, to buildthe capacity of younger researchers tobecome effective team members.Hence the workshop adopted two keyobjectives: the first was to impart thelatest know-how and provide capacitybuilding in epidemiological modelling ofzoonotic and neglected tropical dis-eases adapted to the SEA context.The transmission of content wasinstructional and utilized the ‘R’ pro-gram – a software environment for sta-tistical computing and graphics (The RProject for Statistical Computingiii).Tackling all key modes of disease trans-mission relevant to the region, partici-pants were trained to model viral(rabies), bacterial (leptospirosis), hel-minth, and vector-borne (malaria)diseases.The second objective was to train theparticipants in communication and col-laboration skills. The majority of partici-pants were early career researchers atpostgraduate level from seven countries– Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Mexico,Portugal, Thailand, and the UK. Takingon an interactive format, two moduleswere introduced that focused on effectivegrant-proposal writing and professionalnetworking. This nurturing aspect of theworkshop was unique and helped to cre-ate a highly conducive environment forlearning and knowledge sharing, in addi-tion to strengthening the bond betweenparticipants and trainers.Concluding RemarksThis case study highlights an issue thattypically does not receive sufficientdiscussion but has a serious impact onthe effectiveness of scientific collabora-tion. It describes how aspects of net-working, mentoring, and nurturing wereemployed in the inception, design, andimplementation of an effective capacity-building workshop as a platform for sci-entific collaboration. Furthermore, itshows how these three componentsinteracted to deliver a successful out-come in the international workshop onmathematical modelling of neglecteddiseases organized in Malaysia. With adeeper appreciation of the social dynam-ics of scientific collaboration, and greatercare given to its constituents, moreeffective teamwork and partnershipsmay be created for the advancementof scientific knowledge.AcknowledgmentsWe would like to acknowledge the financial supportfrom the Newton-Ungku Omar Researcher LinksWorkshop Grant (2016-RLWK7-10289) and staffof the British Council, Malaysia, and in particularYen Sim Kuek and Rowena Lim for their encourage-ment and administrative advice. In the UK, weacknowledge the support of Kate Bilsborrow,Rebecca Sie, and Julie Middleton. Very specialthanks go to our team of tutors, Professor YvonneLim Ai Lian and Professor Indra Vythilingam of theUniversity of Malaysia; Dr Amanda Minter ofthe University of Warwick; Dr Pierre Nouvelletof the University of Sussex, and Dr Martin Walkerof the Royal Veterinary College (the latter two alsowith honorary appointments at Imperial CollegeLondon). Last but not least we would like toextend our gratitude to all the participants of theZoonotic and Neglected Tropical Diseases in SEAModelling Workshop for their enthusiasm and inde-fatigable engagement in all the teaching and net-working activities of the course. These are,in addition to those mentioned above and theauthors of this piece: Amirah Amir, Heo Chong Chin,Lee Soo Ching, Ursula Dalrymple, Jeremy Ryan DeSilva, Matthew Dixon, Nichar Gregory, Farah Haz-iqah Meor Termizi, Hannah Holt, Georgina Limon-Vega, Imadidden Musallam, Azdayanti Muslim,Maria Inês Neves, Mehru Nisha, Romano Ngui,Wirichada Pan-Ngum, Stuart Patterson, MahbuburRahman, Norhidayu Sahimin, Priyadarshi Sahu,Saleha Shahar, Emi Takahashi, Louise Vince, andCheong Fei Wen.Resourcesiwww.britishcouncil.my/programmes/newton-ungku-omar-fund/researcher-linksiiwww.newtonfund.ac.uk/iiiwww.r-project.org/1Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science,University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia2London Centre for Neglected Tropical Disease Research,Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Schoolof Public Health, Faculty of Medicine (St Mary’s campus),Imperial College London, UK3The Zoonotic and Neglected Tropical Diseases in SEAModelling Workshop*Correspondence: nsheena@um.edu.my (S.N. Mohd Zain).https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pt.2017.12.009References1. Basáñez, M.G. et al. (2012) A research agenda for helminthdiseases of humans: modelling for control and elimination.PLoS Negl. Trop. Dis. 6, e15482. Anderson, R.M. and Basáñez, M.G. (eds) (2015) Mathemat-ical models for neglected tropical diseases: essential toolsfor control and elimination, Part A. Adv. Parasitol. 87,pp. 4643. Anderson, R.M. and Basáñez, M.G. (eds) (2016) Mathemat-ical models for neglected tropical diseases: essential toolsfor control and elimination, Part B. Adv. Parasitol. 94,pp. 4344. Osei-Atweneboana, M.Y. et al. (2012) A research agenda forhelminth diseases of humans: health research and capacitybuilding in disease-endemic countries for helminthiasescontrol. PLoS Negl. Trop. Dis. 6, e1602358 Trends in Parasitology, May 2018, Vol. 34, No. 5

Collaborate or collapse: capacity building in zoonotic and neglected tropical disease modelling

Siti Nursheena Mohd Zain

Maria-Gloria Basáñez

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Trends in Parasitology

Collaborate or Collapse: Capacity Building in Zoonotic and Neglected Tropical Disease Modelling

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Collaborate or collapse: capacity building in zoonotic and neglected tropical disease modelling

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