Spotlight on Australia FIT/IP Beneficiaries

April 2, 2019

Australia FIT/IP works through WIPO projects and programs – as well as through institutions at the national level – to support placements of scientists, such as the fellows featured below, from least-developed and developing countries with leading medical research institutions.

The aim is to aid knowledge transfer and the use of intellectual property for knowledge development.

Fellows

Dr. Deus Ishengoma of Tanzania’s National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) worked alongside Dr. Darren Creek and Professor Christian Doerig at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia.

During his twelve-month fellowship, Dr. Ishengoma conducted research using sophisticated technologies – including metabolomics, proteomics, and infrared spectroscopy – to identify “signatures” of antimalarial drug resistance in parasites isolated from Tanzanian malaria patients.

Their findings can be used to develop improved point-of-care diagnostic tests, which would ultimately contribute to the improvement of antimalarial resistance surveillance in Africa.

Research partnerships leverage skill, resources, equipment, lab space, and personnel – it’s the best joint venture

Dr. Deus Ishengoma

Dr. Abdirahman Abdi of the Kenya Medical Research Institute spent three months working with Dr. Darren Creek at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia.

The aim of Dr. Abdi’s fellowship research was to uncover the key molecular mechanisms underlying the human response to malaria infection that would provide protection during controlled human malaria infection (CHMI) studies.

Through this fellowship, I got access to facilities not currently available at my home institute. I also benefitted from the expertise of everyone in the group, gained during one-to-ones and group meetings.

Dr. Abdirahman Abdi