9 December 2022– National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC) represented by Dr. Wonnop Visessanguan, Executive Director of National Center for Genetic Engineering and Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM) by Prof. Dr. Jürgen May, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BNITM signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Vector-borne Diseases Research. The signing was witnessed by, Prof. Dr. Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, Head of Department of Arbovirology, BNITM and Dr. Natapong Jupatanakul, Researcher, Frontier Biodesign and Biomolecular Engineering Research Team who initiated the collaboration between the 2 institutes.
In Thailand, arthropod-borne pathogens, particularly arthropod-borne viruses, have long posed a threat to public health, resulting in economic loss and a burden on the health of the population. As a result of climate change, arthropod-borne diseases continue to globally expand to regions that previously didn’t have indigenous transmission, such as Europe including Germany. Given the imminent threat of a new pandemic, international collaborative network is needed in order to overcome this global challenge.
During the past years, BIOTEC and BNITM researchers have established collaboration to gain a fundamental understanding of mosquito-arbovirus interactions and pathogen transmission. The partnership between BIOTEC and BNITM in data and resource sharing, as well as human resources and technological development could certainly advance scientific research in both institutions and benefit humankind.
