CYSTICERCOSIS WORKING GROUP IN PERU

The long-term collaborative relationship among several Peruvian institutions (San Marcos University; Cayetano Heredia University; Instituto de Ciencias Neurologicas) with the Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and others, led to the establishment of the Cysticercosis Working Group in Peru (CWGP) 27 years ago. From then on, new collaborations have been established with the NIH, Oregon State University, Imperial College in London, the ITG in Antwerp, the University of Melbourne in Australia, and other European and Latin American collaborators which add specific areas of expertise.

              The CWGP, one of the most productive networks in the study of T. solium taeniasis/cysticercosis, has worked under the auspices of NIH, The Wellcome Trust, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USAID, IDRC, and other international agencies. The group has been highly productive with more than 200 papers published in peer-reviewed U.S. and British journals, most of which are first-authored by Peruvians. The CWGP has made a significant impact on the cysticercosis field, demonstrating the kind of productivity that is possible when collaboration works to its maximum ability. The advances in cysticercosis achieved through this collaboration are extensive, and cover different aspects of this complex zoonotic disease.

              Peru is uniquely suited for investigations into cysticercosis, cyclosporiasis and hydatidosis because of the high endemicity of these diseases and a sophisticated research infrastructure that can support top level studies. The integration of veterinary, clinical, biochemical, and epidemiological resources, as well as the bi-directional transfer of skills between Peru and developed countries like the USA and England, is remarkable. The advances achieved through the collaborations within the Peru network and with other host countries are extensive, and cover different aspects of research in parasitic diseases. Research by the CWGP and collaborators has exmpanded other diseases endemic in Peru, including cystic hydatid disease (Echinococcus granulosus), cyclosporiasis (Cyclospora cayetanensis), Toxocariasis (Toxocara sp), Dyphillobothriasis (Dyphillobothrium pacificum), and others. In fact, C. cayetanensis was described and named on the basis of work done at the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, one of our base institutions.