# Interdisciplinary malaria research training in Malawi

> **NIH NIH D43** · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · 2021 · $53,219

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Malaria continues to be one of the greatest threats to health and life in Malawi, and recent control efforts have
yielded only moderate success. New insights into what determines risk and how to design more effective
interventions are imperative to enhance control and ultimately eliminate malaria in the region. This Global
Infectious Diseases Research Training Program is established on the basis of long-standing and productive
collaborations between senior faculty members at the University of Malawi College of Medicine and a core
team of international investigators who have been engaged in malaria research in Malawi for decades. The
training program was crafted to train the experts required to develop independent research teams in Malawi
capable of designing, leading and analyzing results of locally and internationally relevant studies, and to create
a robust and sustainable graduate program in Malawian universities. Careful selection and training of a
molecular epidemiologist, a vector biologist and two biostatisticians will prepare leaders in the health research
agenda, focused on hypothesis-driven scientific questions. We will also provide formal short course training in
specific research methods and tailor opportunities for laboratory rotations to provide succession planning to
create a pipeline of future PhD candidates and the junior faculty members who support them. Through the
direct supervision, guidance and mentorship of the training team members, these trainees will benefit from
outstanding didactic educations and also from the hands-on mentoring provided by experienced colleagues
and recent graduates who are now faculty members in Malawi. This interdisciplinary training program is
designed achieve the following specific aims: (1) Train successful investigators in molecular epidemiology,
vector biology and biostatistics, (2) Establish core faculty for a rigorous, independent PhD program in Malawi,
and (3) Support succession planning for future PhD trainees and mentors within Malawi. The specific areas of
training were identified as essential to on-going and future health research in Malawi, reflect strengths of the
collaborating institutions (University of Maryland, Michigan State University and University of the
Witwatersrand), and create synergies with emerging opportunities within the University of Malawi. Cross-
cutting, innovative, well-executed and expertly analyzed studies will address specific challenges of malaria
treatment, prevention, and transmission reduction. In addition, the skill sets developed by all the trainees in this
proposed effort will be applicable to a wide range of infectious as well as non-communicable diseases.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10453101
- **Project number:** 3D43TW010075-05S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE
- **Principal Investigator:** Miriam K. Laufer
- **Activity code:** D43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $53,219
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2016-05-10 → 2022-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10453101

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10453101, Interdisciplinary malaria research training in Malawi (3D43TW010075-05S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10453101. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*