CAEP scientists make collaborative visit to Brazil
Nine members of staff from the Centre for Applied Entomology and Parasitology (CAEP) and Keele University Medical School participated in a two-day conference held in Botucatu, Brazil.
The collaborative visit, led by Prof. Gordon Hamilton and funded by Santander, was designed to discuss current and future opportunities for research and educational links. Keele staff joined staff from the Institute of Biotechnology (IBTEC) at UNESP (São Paulo State University) in a conference that gathered academic researchers from throughout São Paulo state. Various members of Keele staff also visited UNESP in São Paulo, Botucatu University Medical School, Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro and the Ilha Grande Annual meeting on insect vectors of disease.
IBTEC and CAEP have a unique formal agreement, funded by the São Paulo State funding agency FAPESP, to share two members of staff (Pelletier and Souza-Neto). An objective of this mission was to identify new research projects and funding opportunities as well as initiate educational exchanges that will strengthen this link. Several funding applications to UK/EU and Brazilian funding agencies are now in preparation.
Keele University Medical School representatives also held discussions at Botucatu University Medical School (the 3rd highest rated medical school in Brazil) to initiate bilateral cooperative links between both institutions and to arrange undergraduate medical student exchange partnerships. A student perspective on these links was provided by Owen Davies (second year undergraduate student) who was supported by an INSPIRE medical research award and a Sandander Research Bursary provided to Dr Pelletier.
Keele staff (Dr.s Chari, Hamilton, Horrocks, Merrick, Pelletier, Price, Skidmore, Souza-Neto and Tripet) with UNESP staff in Botucatu.