The Lassa Fever Vaccine Efficacy and Prevention for West Africa (LEAP4WA) has presented two staff members in Nigeria with Master's Degree Support Program Awards to help them obtain master's degrees.
Research Pharmacist Paul Dike will attend the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine for a 2-year online Master of Public Health program. Clinical Research Specialist Oscar Ugwuezumba will complete a 1-year Kent State University online Master of Public Health program with a focus on epidemiology and biostatistics.
LEAP4WA is a unique multidisciplinary collaboration of seven leading research institutions in Africa, Europe, and North America to advance one of the most promising Lassa fever vaccine candidates to date. EIDB and partners in Nigeria are participating in Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of IAVI's Lassa fever vaccine candidate as part of this collaboration.
The trial sites in Nigeria will include EIDB-supported Clinical Research Center in Abuja as well as partner sites in Owo and Abakaliki, through a collaboration with the Africa Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases (ACEGID). All of these sites have been participating in EIDB Lassa epidemiology studies in anticipation of these trials. Read more about LEAP4WA here: https://www.leap4wa.org.