Learn more about the projects for each research theme at MRC Unit The Gambia.
Making every baby count: a facility-based audit and review of stillbirths and neonatal deaths in The Gambia
Contact: Dr. Uduak Okomo
Funding: Wellcome Trust-ISSF scheme
Dr Okomo won a pump priming grant to do an audit and review of stillbirths and neonatal deaths in a number of sites in The Gambia. The study will take place at government health centres in the Western Region Division, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and UNICEF. The data will be collected at the labour wards of six major health centres that provide obstetric care in the region. The resulting report will detail the annually births and the total of stillbirths and neonatal death per facility per year in order to better understand the issues relating to maternal and neonatal mortality and prepare for more substantial funding to address them.
EPIC-HIPC: Systems Biology to Identify Biomarkers of Neonatal Vaccine Immunogenicity
Contact: Prof Beate Kampmann, Dr O Idoko, Dr A Darboe
Funding: National Institutes of Health
This systems-biology-based project will describe the innate immune signatures elicited by specific vaccines given to neonates while examining the hypothesis that early “omic” signatures can predict vaccine immunogenicity. Cutting-edge “omics” tools are applied to small volume blood samples from neonates to understand the impact of maturation of the immune system and vaccines in the first week of life. New bioinformatics and parallel in vitro approaches are being developed with partners at Harvard and University of British Columbia to integrate and interpret these complex datasets. A validation cohort will also be recruited in Papua-New Guinea.
Site-preparedness and acceptancy of vaccines to be given in pregnancy- a WAGHA project
Contact: Prof Beate Kampmann; Dr Elhadji Mbaye (IRESSEF); Penda Johm, PhD student MRC
Funding: Imperial College/Pfizer
The project investigates the preparedness of women, health systems and health care workers to accept and administer vaccination in pregnancy in The Gambia and Senegal, using a mixed methods approach. It explores the attitudes and beliefs towards maternal immunisation through qualitative research and focus group interviews with pregnant women, women who delivered and their health care providers within urban and rural populations and health care settings in both countries.
Assessing Group Streptococcal Pyoderma in The Gambia (SPYDERM)
Contact: Dr Thushan deSilva
Funding: Higher Education Funding Council for England
This study will examine skin infections due to Group A streptococcus (pyoderma) in children under the age of 5. It will look at how common such skin disease occurs in children in this age and determine whether they also have scabies. Scabies is common in young children and Group A streptococcus can affect the rash caused by scabies. Skin infections with Group A strep might be linked to heart disease, just as GAS in sore throats, and that prevention of GAS infections could lead to a reduction in rheumatic heart disease in The Gambia.
Exploring mucosal molecular signatures associated with successful challenge with live attenuated influenza viruses
Contact: Dr Thushan deSilva
Funding: Human Infection Challenge Vaccine Network
For this study various methods of RNA extraction from nasopharyngeal samples will be optimized. A pilot study will then examine which of the methods is best suited to generate RNAseq data from such samples. Further analysis with synthetic absorptive matrix (SAM) will be carried out by collaborators once the methods have been shared.
Nasopharyngeal samples from the NASIMMUNE study will be used to generate the RNAseq data. These samples were taken before and after live attenuated influenza vaccine was administered. The data along with RNAseq data from mucosal samples from collaborating sites will then be analysed.
A Study of Intranasal Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine Immunogenicity and Associations with the Nasopharyngeal Microbiome Among Children in the Gambia (NASIMMUNE)
Contact: Dr Thushan deSilva; Prof Beate Kampmann
Funding: Wellcome Trust
This is a Wellcome Trust Intermediate Clinical Fellowship awarded to Dr deSilva. Using a systems biology approach within a clinical trial, the project investigates the mechanisms underlying varying level of immune responses to the live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) in young children over two flu seasons. Over 300 children aged 24 -59 months are being recruited in order to find out what might determine the differences in vaccine efficacy observed between sub-saharan Africa and Europe.
Genetic interactions between human populations and malaria parasites in different environmental settings across Africa
Contact: Alfred Ngwa
Funded by: Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Science in Africa
Plasmodium falciparum drug resistance in The Gambia: identification of potential markers by retrospective genomics approaches (CDA Award)
Contact: Alfred Ngwa
Funded by: Medical Research Council
PSP 2017- Extension of a study to measure the full impact of PCV13 on invasive pneumococcal disease and radiologic pneumonia in The Gambia
Contact: Grant McKenzie
Funded by: Pfizer
PSP 2017- A study to determine the impact of PCV13 on pneumocoocal carriage and to prepare for a trial of alternative PCV scheduling in The Gambia
Contact: Grant McKenzie
Funded by: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation