In developing countries, microbes that cause many of the most significant infectious diseases, such as malaria, tuberculosis, and diarrhea, increasingly are becoming resistant to antibiotics. Meanwhile, few effective vaccines exist to prevent these infections, and efforts to develop new classes of antibiotics have yielded few results.
 
Dr. Finlay's team is investigating a new approach to treating bacterial and parasitic infections by enhancing the body's innate defense mechanisms. By acting on the cells of the immune system rather than on the disease-causing microbe directly, investigators expect to lessen the risk of developing drug-resistant organisms and the potential for broad-spectrum activity. The project team is focusing on a number of bacterial and parasitic pathogens, including enteric bacteria, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and Plasmodium falciparum.
 
The project team's goals are to develop an understanding of innate pathways and markers through its compound studies, clinical/animal studies, and bioinformatics analysis with InnateDB.  They plan to complete screening of novel compounds in the various infection studies and to begin the process of selecting lead candidates and therapeutic indications to continue studying.