ASTMH Newsletter

Greetings on behalf of the ASTMH Executive Committee, the ASTMH Council and our hard-working colleagues at headquarters. The Society has had a busy first quarter! In this letter, I will focus on several areas where careful groundwork over the last year is now yielding fruit. Of course, dynamic change rarely comes without dynamic discussion.

Tropical Medicine? Hygiene? Global Health?
At last year's strategic planning retreat, it was agreed that ASTMH should tap into the energy and enthusiasm surrounding "global health," and that this phrase should feature in our mission statement. A revised (and streamlined) ASTMH mission statement has now been drafted. Once approved by Council, the new mission statement will be e-mailed to members.

Here's a heads up, however: at last count, the new mission statement mentioned "global health" in five or six places. We also anticipate that our Society's tag line (the short phrase following the ASTMH name on letterhead, business cards, announcements, etc) will read "Advancing global health since 1903..."

So what about our Society's actual name? In this month's newsletter, a letter to the editor suggests that ASTMH should also adopt a new name, replacing "hygiene" with "global health." I'm not convinced.

For one thing, last year's analysis found that an official name change would be costly and could actually lose, rather than build, ASTMH brand recognition. Our government affairs consultants in Washington, D.C., have also cautioned against a name change. Finally, many of us feel that "hygiene" adds to our historical identity and gravitas¹ as opposed to organizations that are relative newcomers to our field. And for those who question the relevance of "hygiene" to our work, here are a few lines from Wikipedia: "Hygiene refers to practices associated with ensuring good health and cleanliness ... The term 'hygiene' is derived from Hygieia, the Greek goddess of health, cleanliness and sanitation. Hygiene is also a science that deals with the promotion and preservation of health."

One last rhetorical question: in the coming decade, will ASTMH truly champion the full band-width of "global health" — which includes many non-infectious conditions? If we did replace "hygiene" with "global health" in our Society's name, we would still recognize our unique focus on tropical and emerging infectious diseases — but many people outside our organization would not.

Okay, I rest my case. Now I invite you to make yours. Although this brief survey does not constitute a member-wide vote, your president and Council are very interested in feedback from a cross-section of members on this issue. Thanks in advance for responding.

Calling all Candidates
After six years of dedicated service, George Hillyer, our current secretary-treasurer, is stepping down at the end of 2008. For those who don't realize what a big job it is, the ASTMH secretary-treasurer — ably assisted by headquarters staff — has broad responsibilities, from financial stewardship to parliamentary tasks to communications (for example, corresponding with current and lapsed members and participating in special projects such as the writing of ASTMH grant applications). In addition, in its next iteration, the job of secretary-treasurer will focus to an even greater degree than in past years on the recruitment of new members to the Society.

After our May Council meeting, another announcement of this position (along with a formal job description) will be circulated; however, it's not too early for potential candidates for secretary-treasurer to identify themselves. A successful candidate will have documented skills pertaining to the duties outlined above, an established record within the Society and fresh ideas on how to engage with new constituencies and members. The term is three years and carries a yearly stipend. Interested individuals are encouraged to contact me at cpanosian@mednet.ucla.edu.

What's Up at the Journal?
I hope by now you have all read Jim Kazura's fine editorial in the January 2008 American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene and shared in the excitement of several new Journal features. Specifically, AJTMH now includes image-based clinical vignettes and monthly front matter (mini-scientific reviews and/or policy-advocacy perspectives — to date we have been treated to "Where Snails No Longer Fear to Tread," a discussion of new international regulations regarding yellow fever vaccination, and a call for more monitoring of dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever in northern Mexico and southern Texas). In addition, manuscript authors can now exercise the option of publishing their papers in an immediate, open-access model.

This newsletter also contains a "taste" of a photo-essay slated for publication in May's Journal on the recent political events in Kenya and their impact on CDC research in Kisumu and public health in Kenya in general. If you are based in the field and wish to share a similar photo-essay on a recent social or political event with implications for tropical health and/or disease transmission, please contact Jim Kazura, Bill Collins or Matthew Lesh.

What's Up with our Subgroups?
At last year's Society-wide retreat, funds were made available for all Society subgroups to conduct a strategic planning retreat. In January 2008, Clinical Group President Alan Magill organized a one-and-a-half-day meeting in Arlington, Va., which covered a wide range of topics of importance to the clinical constituency within ASTMH. Look for a summary in our next newsletter and a formal clinical track (with expanded offerings for clinically-oriented attendees) at this year's annual meeting in New Orleans.

A New ASTMH Web Site!
Another meeting leading to exciting change for ASTMH took place at Society headquarters in Northbrook, Ill., in January. Although the weather outdoors was frightful, the discussion indoors was delightful (to borrow from an old song) — largely focused on the ASTMH Web site and a variety of enhancements currently in the works. By the time this letter reaches members, a lymphatic filariasis video will be available for viewing at on the site and the 2,000+ Zaiman parasitology slide collection (each image separately watermarked and catalogued) will have been posted. Trainees may also access hand-outs pertaining to career development in tropical medicine originally circulated at last year's annual meeting.

Last but not least, I am happy to announce that our 2008 Web site "facelift" is well under way. Designers at headquarters are working hard to complete our new look before the May Council meeting. Then comes the public unveiling! Expect new photos and new links, and don't forget: we are always looking for fresh visuals from the field.

Closing Thoughts
Not long ago, I received an e-mail from Vishal Patel, a PhD candidate working on malaria drug development in Dyann Wirth's lab at the Harvard School of Public Health. Vishal wanted to know why ASTMH does not sponsor a Congressional Fellowhip, as does ASM, for example. In a subsequent telephone conversation, I explained that ASTMH does not (yet!) have the funds to underwrite this prestigious activity — but that we are very interested in identifying ways to introduce members to the crossroads of science and policy.

In fact, my conversation with Vishal was timely, since it coincided with a grant ASTMH is currently writing that will (hopefully) fund several new activities in the policy/advocacy arena. Thanks, in part, to Vishal, we are now incorporating an "ASTMH policy fellow" component in our application. I share this story for several reasons, but trust that it illustrates how one motivated ASTMH member can truly make a difference.

Message from the Editor

We are saddened by the passage of former members of the Society who are recognized in this issue of the News. They each made significant contributions to the field of public health during their outstanding professional careers.

Letters to the Editor

We welcome correspondence from the membership on matters of their concern, whether regarding Tropical Medicine and Hygiene News, or any other aspects of the Society. We'd like to hear from you.

For publication consideration in the next issue of the newsletter, send your letter to the editor to mlesh@astmh.org by July 1.

At the recent ASTMH annual meeting in Philadelphia, it was announced that the Council had considered, but narrowly rejected, the idea of changing the organization’s name to the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Global Health. We think the suggested name change was appropriate, and should have been implemented. Furthermore, given its importance, we feel that all society members should have input into this decision.

Incorporating “Global Health” into our society’s name would reflect the growing importance of this entire field and all it implies for medicine. “Hygiene” is a term that should be viewed in its historical perspective. It was most relevant when the causes of typhoid fever, dysentery and other infectious diseases were discovered and as the importance of sanitation was recognized.

Problems of sewage disposal and the importance of hand washing are still current, but they largely represent matters of implementation rather than study and research. How many papers on hygiene have been published recently in the society’s journal or presented at our annual meeting? How many hygienists and sanitarians are in ASTMH? How much grant support is provided specifically for hygiene?

In contrast, global health is an evolving and encompassing concept, the subject of an increasing number of publications and seminars. The world, and our perception of it, has changed. A growing number of individuals identify themselves as working in global health, and increasing funds from various sources are being made available for their work.

Individuals who work to improve the health of those living in the developing world are most likely to join an organization that is welcoming to their interests. Research and field workers in global health should find a natural home in ASTMH, mingling very well with our clinicians, malariologists, environmental scientists, arbovirologists and graduate student members.

Our society has a long history of working in global health. Now is the time to have our interests reflected in our name, both as our mandate and to welcome those who share these interests. The only reasons to retain our current name are tradition and nostalgia.

We suggest polling our members on the name change as a guide to future council action. If necessary, we are prepared to introduce this motion at our next annual meeting.

CDC-Kenya Staff Contend with Post-Election Violence

The following is an excerpt from a letter fo the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, to be published in the upcoming May issue. CDC-Kenya has staff, including ASTMH members, stationed in Kenya, where violence broke out earlier this year. For the complete description, be sure to read the May issue of AJTMH.

The post-election violence that shook Kenya in January and February of this year has, not surprisingly, also affected our work. The base of operations for our research in western Kenya is Kisumu City in Nyanza Province, and in Nairobi is the Kibera informal settlement, both areas particularly affected by the recent chaos in the country. There were no deaths or serious injuries among our staff. However, nearly all suffered a loss, whether the death or injury of a friend or family member, the loss of property, or the loss of ability to move freely from homes and workplaces. At least 40 staff had to relocate from western Kenya to other parts of the country because of threats to their personal safety because of their ethnic background. A few have returned to Kisumu, but some have not and likely will not. Until recently, some staff members in Nairobi were unable to return to work full-time in the Kibera informal settlement because of personal risks brought on by ethnic tensions in the area. In late January, eight American researchers and their families in Kisumu were required to temporarily relocate to Nairobi, although in the past few weeks a limited number have been allowed to return to Kisumu for several days at a time.

Amidst the disruptions and difficulties, there were numerous examples of staff performing heroically. One nurse and a clinical officer stood firm to keep a mission hospital open when other health facilities in the area, including the district hospital, had shut down. Many clinical staff volunteered at the Nyanza Provincial Hospital, which was severely understaffed in the post-election disruptions because doctors, nurses, and laboratory technologists were unable to return to their work stations. The KEMRI-CDC collaboration joined Red Cross International and other partners to provide medical care and trauma counseling in medical camps in Nyanza Province. Clinical staff in Nairobi tended to internally displaced persons in a city park.

By now most of our staff have returned to work. They mourn the losses, the fracturing, the barbarity, and the injustices that Kenya has experienced over the past months. Impressively, throughout this chaotic period, almost all our field projects and research continued to operate, sometimes haltingly, maneuvering around the disruptions of “mass action” days, spontaneous protests, scarcity of supplies, and staff relocations, and staff living in rural field sites continued working, despite disruptions in Kisumu City. During this period, we have had to carefully balance the need to keep critical research and programs functioning, while assuring that in doing so the safety of our staff is not jeopardized.

Attend the ASTMH 57th Annual Meeting

Even though December seems far away, the ASTMH 57th Annual Meeting is just around the corner, Dec. 7-11 in New Orleans. Make plans early to ensure you don't miss out on the premier gathering of professionals and students in the tropical medicine and hygiene field.

Visit the ASTMH Web site for hotel and travel information and updates on this year's can't-miss pre-meeting courses. Meet with old and new colleagues, and learn the latest leading science and research. This year's program will be packed with informative sessions spanning a wide variety of topics within tropical medicine.

The ASTMH Annual Meeting is returning to New Orleans for the first time in almost 20 years. Make the most of this opportunity to experience this unique's city culture, history and array of dining and entertainment options.

Complete Newsletter Archives Now Available

Now, for the first time ever, the complete archives of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene News are available, from the publication's first issue through today. Explore ASTMH's unique history through vivid articles, meeting recaps and rare photographs. This new database is searchable by year or keyword, including author name.

Browse through the archives and find out what was making news in tropical medicine 10, 25 or 50 years ago. Read about history being made, and see how some historic trends cycle and repeat.

Take a few minutes, or a few hours , to delve into the Society's rich past and read about the forefathers of tropical medicine.

Society News

Zaiman Slide Collection Now Available Online
Thanks to the generosity of Herman Zaiman and his family, ASTMH proudly presents “Pictorial Presentation of Parasites,” a famous collection of more than 2,000 slides of various vectors. This seminal image collection will remain a valued resource for those in the tropical medicine and hygiene field for decades to come.

2008 Dues Renewal
Don't forget to pay your 2008 dues. Use the paper invoice sent by mail or renew online. Simply click Dues Reminder on the left side of the screen.

ASTMH 57th Annual Meeting
December 7-11, 2008
Sheraton New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana

Call for Abstracts
Submit your abstract on line by May 28. Visit the ASTMH Web site for the Call for Abstracts, abstract submission guidelines and submission site link.

Pre-Meeting Courses
Clinical Pre-Meeting Course – Saturday, Dec. 6, and Sunday, Dec. 7
Malaria Eradication: Are We Ready to Try Again?
With the maturation of the debate on malaria eradication strategy, this course will focus on the progress and challenges of sustaining and expanding global support of malaria control.

Parasitology Pre-Meeting Course – Saturday, Dec. 6
Whole Genome Association Studies:
Understanding the Genetic Basis of Susceptibility to Infectious Diseases
This course will target scientists, physicians, clinicians, graduate students and educators with interests in the rapidly evolving field of whole genome association studies and how these approaches can be used to understand the basis for susceptibility or resistance to infectious diseases. Topics will include an overview of whole genome association, a review of the state of the art in technology development, an overview of computational analyses and biostatistics and a discussion of some of the bioethical considerations associated with these studies.

ASTMH Travel Awards
Application deadline: May 28
Limited funding is available to support annual meeting travel of selected students and young investigators from developing countries and the United States. Submit your online application here beginning in mid-April. Download the application guidelines.

Young Investigator Award
Application deadline: May 28
This award recognizes developing young scientists who are pursuing careers in various aspects of tropical disease research. Download the application guidelines.

American Committee of Medical Entomology (ACME) Student Travel Awards
Application deadline: June 11
Limited funding is available to support annual meeting travel for graduate students who plan to submit an abstract(s) pertaining to arthropods of medical importance. Download the application guidelines at http://www.astmh.org/meetings/education.cfm.

Elsevier Student Book Award
Application deadline: September 15
This award recognizes excellence in clinically-oriented research presented by a student or person in graduate medical training at the annual meeting. Download the application guidelines.

Regiatration and Housing
The registration brochure will be mailed in August. The Sheraton New Orleans will be the site of all annual meeting activities. It is located at 500 Canal Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130. For reservations, call the hotel at 504-525-2500 and mention that you are an ASTMH attendee to receive the special conference group rate.

Robert E. Shope International Fellowship in Infectious Diseases
Application deadline: May 15, 2008
The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene has established a fellowship to memorialize Robert E. Shope, MD, a past president and beloved member of the Society. The intent of the Robert E. Shope International Fellowship in Infectious Diseases is to provide international training opportunities in arbovirology and emerging diseases for those with an MD, DVM, PhD or related doctoral degree. The award recipient will be selected by the Robert E. Shope International Fellowship committee and will provide $25,000 to help defray travel costs, living expenses and/or research abroad. The Robert Shope Fellowship recipient will be required to prepare a report describing his or her experiences, with the potential to be invited to make a presentation at the society’s annual meeting. Submit your application on line by May 15 at http://www.astmh.org/funding/index.cfm.

Call for Society Award and Medal Nominations
ASTMH seeks nominations for the following awards and medals. Visit http://www.astmh.org/awards/call.cfm for nomination details. These awards will be presented at the ASTMH 57th Annual Meeting in December in New Orleans.
-- Bailey K. Ashford Medal
--- Walter Reed Medal
--- Harry Hoogstraal Medal
--- Dalrymple/Young Award
--- Communications Award

Certificate of Knowledge Exam in Clinical Tropical Medicine and Travelers' Health
The 2008 Certificate of Knowledge Examination will take place on December 6, 2008, immediately preceding the ASTMH 57th Annual Meeting. Visit the ASTMH Web site for exam application information, or send your name and postal mailing address to info@astmh.org to join the exam mailing list. The exam brochure and application form will be available in July.

Intensive Update Course in Clinical Tropical Medicine and Travelers’ Health
ASTMH will hold an Intensive Update Course in Clinical Tropical Medicine and Travelers’ Health on October 23-24 at Catholic University in Washington, D.C., immediately preceding the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA)/ICAAC Joint Meeting. This course provides a broad overview of core topics in clinical tropical medicine and travelers’ health. Presented in a two-day condensed format, it is an excellent review for health care professionals and individuals planning to take the ASTMH Certificate of Knowledge Exam. For more information on this course and exam, visit the ASTMH Web site, or contact info@astmh.org. The course brochure with registration information will be available in July.

Members in the News - In Memoriam

Joseph Greenberg passed away peacefully at the age of 89 at Sunrise Senior Living of Oakland Hills on Feb. 24. He had been suffering from congestive heart failure. Joe was a wry, gentle man who touched countless lives. He will be greatly missed.

Joe was born to Ukrainian Ashkenazi immigrant parents on December 20, 1918, in Revere, Mass. He grew up in Dorchester and Mattapan, attending Boston Latin School and then Harvard College. In 1940, Joe entered graduate school at Harvard to study biology. By 1942, he began field research on malaria control in northern Alabama for the U.S. Public Health Service. In early 1943, the Navy deployed him to the South Pacific theatre as a public health officer; he was forever proud that during his tour of duty, no cases of malaria occurred in any area for which he was responsible. After his Public Health Service unit was attached to the Second Marine Division, he participated in the battle for Tarawa Atoll in November 1943. Being shelled by Japanese gunners as his small landing craft approached the beach remained a vivid memory, and a frequently told story, for the rest of his life.

Following the war, he completed his Harvard doctorate and continued his Public Health Service career at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md. While at NIH, he devoted research to malaria, amebiasis, and schistosomiasis. In 1946, he married Lucille Stein and soon began raising a family in nearby Silver Spring. Their marriage spanned 26 years and produced four children.In 1956-57 he was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California at Berkeley. After a year back in Bethesda, Joe accepted a position directing cancer research at the Stanford Research Institute in Menlo Park, Calif.

In 1960, Joe moved on to the Palo Alto Medical Research Foundation (now The Palo Alto Medical Foundation Research Institute), where he was chief of the Microbiology Division until 1974. His research there contributed important insights into gene mutation and the genesis of cancer. In 1974, he relocated to Atlanta to finish his research career as chief of research for the Mycobacteriology Branch at the Centers for Disease Control. While at CDC, he directed a group that investigated drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis.

In 1954, Joseph Greenberg was awarded the Bailey K. Ashford medal of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene for distinguished work in tropical medicine.

Joe retired from CDC in 1980 to devote himself to his greatest passion in life — teaching people about birds. Even as a teen his favorite activity had been to walk three miles from his Dorchester home to the Children’s Science Museum in Jamaica Plain to participate in the Bird Club. Later, while living and working in Palo Alto, he led numerous outings for the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society. For over 20 years Joe taught birding classes at Emory University. Regular field trips went to the Georgia coast, the Florida panhandle, and the Appalachian mountains.

During summers between 1985 and 1993, Joe led excursions to distant destinations such as California, Arizona, Newfoundland and Manitoba. Joe knew the birds, and he also knew every fine restaurant along the way to his favored birding spots. His “birding and eating” trips became legendary; some students enrolled repeatedly in his class in order to partake of those wonderful field adventures.

Joe also was a pioneer in the campaign to raise awareness about the destruction of songbird habitat in the tropics, particularly the clearing of forests for agriculture. In 1997, he founded the Atlanta Audubon Shade-Grown Coffee Committee, whose work has continued ever since. He also served as State Coordinator for U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Breeding Bird Surveys in Georgia. The Georgia Legislature passed a resolution in 1997 praising his efforts on behalf of birds and birding. By 2002, health problems prevented him from teaching his classes, but he remained a dedicated birder. In 2006, he moved to Oakland, Calif., where he spent his final twenty months enjoying birds at his feeders at Sunrise of Oakland Hills.

Joe is survived by five children: Marti Keller of Decatur, Ga.; David W. Greenberg of Prince George, British Columbia; Douglas A.Greenberg of Berkeley, Calif.; Russell S. Greenberg of Takoma Park, Md., and Peter Fisher of North Carolina. Joe also had nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Marion Murphy Brooke, 1913 - 2008

Marion Murphy Brooke, 94, a third-generation Atlantan and a founding scientist of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), died on March 13.

He was born at home to Thomas Russell Brooke and Jesse Jones Brooke in 1913. In his youth, Marion loved the outdoors and camping, and was deeply involved with the Boy Scouts. He was the first Scout in the United States to earn the Canoeing merit badge. The Antarctic explorer, Admiral Byrd, presented him with the Eagle Scout medal when he was among the first Scouts in Atlanta to earn the rank. He was also a member of the Governor’s Horse Honor Guard.

In his late teens, Marion spent two summers near Boulder, Colo., at Ralph Hubbard’s Ten Sleep ranch. Hubbard was the American Indian authority who wrote the original chapter on Indian lore for the BSA handbook. At Ten Sleep, Marion learned Indian lore, crafts, dances and songs which he performed throughout his life, including at his grandchildren’s elementary school when he was in his 80s. For two summers during his mid-20s, Marion and his sister, Ruth, along with their mother led a group of teenage boys and girls from Atlanta on a European adventure. First, they spent a month in Norway at a maritime camp and, then, traveled through pre-WWII Europe.

Dr. Brooke was educated at Emory University, where he received his BA and MA, and Johns Hopkins University (JHU), where he received his ScD. Before going to JHU, he taught for two years at Emory at Oxford and coached fencing and swimming teams. While at Hopkins, he met and married the late Marian Dobler Brooke, who shared his life for 59 years. Dr. Brooke loved laboratory and field research and teaching. With his bride in 1942, he conducted a survey of malaria along the Upper Mississippi River. He taught the Emory School of Medicine’s required course in parasitology for over 30 years and also taught at JHU, Emory at Oxford, the University of Tennessee Medical School and the CDC. Dr. Brooke was commissioned into the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) during WWII, retiring after 20 years service with the rank of scientist director.

During his 40-year career at the CDC, Dr. Brooke established training and accreditation programs to improve the quality of public and private medical laboratories throughout the country. As a well-known parasitologist and medical science educator, he advised medical leaders in many countries. He worked with the World Health Organization, Pan American Health Organization and the U.S. Agency for International Development. In 1952, he investigated an epidemic of dysentery in a large prisoner of war camp in Korea. Even though he and his fellow investigators were providing a beneficial service for the Chinese and Korean prisoners, Peking radio branded them “war criminals.”

His scientific awards included the Leadership Award of the Conference of the Public Health Laboratory Directors, the Outstanding U.S. Graduate Award in Science/Research of JHU School of Public Health and the Professional Recognition Award of the American Board of Medical Microbiology. In 1965, Dr. Brooke received the Meritorious Service Award of the U.S. Public Health Service for “his outstanding leadership in the improvement of public health laboratory service through out the nation.”

Retirement enabled Dr. Brooke to spend more time on another great interest — portrait painting. He became a juried member of the Portrait Society of Atlanta and was treasurer for the Society. He was particularly pleased to paint the posthumous portrait of his mother, a founder of Camp Fire Boys and Girls program in Atlanta. The painting continues to hang in the organization’s lobby. Dr. Brooke also served as a director of Camp Fire in Atlanta. He was active and held leadership positions in the Druid Hills Kiwanis Club (president) and Life Enrichment Services (vice president for educational programs).

Marion and Marian Brooke shared joy of family, immediate and extended, and their Emory, Glenn Memorial, and CDC communities as well as travel and their houseboat, the Dos Marios, on Lake Lanier. Marion Brooke is survived by a son, Thomas Russell Brooke, and his daughter, Heather Brooke Harris; daughter, Martha Louise Brooke; and daughter, Barbara Brooke, and her two children, Jessica Brooke Anderson and David Brooke Anderson; cousins and nieces and nephews; and caregiver, Roger Aycock.

Robert Schaen Desowitz, 1926 – 2008
The son of Charles Desowitz and Bertha Schaen, Dr. Desowitz was born January 2, 1926 in New York. After graduating from Niagara Falls High School in Niagara Falls, N.Y., Dr. Desowitz attended the University of Buffalo, obtaining his BA cum laude in 1948. After that, he served in the U.S. Army from 1944 to 1946. A veteran of World War II, he was given the American Campaign Medal for Good Conduct and a World War II Victory Medal.

After his discharge from military service, Dr. Desowitz’s educational aspirations led him to the University of London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, where he received a double doctorate in parasitology and medical microbiology in 1951. Simultaneously, he was inducted as a fellow into the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. In 1961, he received the highest academic degree – DSc in Parasitology – from the University of London.

From 1951-1960, Dr. Desowitz was the principal science officer and head of the protozoology section at the West African Institute in Vom, Nigeria, concentrating on trypanosomiasis research. From 1960-1965, he was chair of medical parasitology at the University of Singapore School of Medicine. From 1965-1968, he was Chief of SEATO Laboratory’s Department of Parasitology in Bangkok, Thailand. From 1968-1995, he was a Professor of Tropical Medicine and Medical Microbiology at the University of Hawaii’s John A. Burns School of Medicine and the School of Public Health. While there, he was appointed to a commission to study the malarious effects of Agent Orange in Vietnam. Upon his retirement in 1995 to Pinehurst, N.C., he was named a professor emeritus for his distinguished service to the University of Hawaii and took a position as an adjunct professor of epidemiology at the School of Public Health at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The author of an award-winning textbook in medical parasitology, “Ova and Parasites,” Dr. Desowitz was also a renowned writer of science books for the general public, known for his wit and clarity. His books, published by W.W. Norton, include “New Guinea Tapeworms and Jewish Grandmothers” (1981), “The Thorn and the Starfish” (1987), “The Malaria Capers” (1991), “Who Gave Pinta to the Santa Maria” (1997), and “Federal Bodysnatchers and the New Guinea Virus: Tales of Parasites, People, and Politics” (2004). Reviewing one of his books in the New York Review of Books, M.F. Perutz wrote: “The strength of Desowitz’s book springs from his compassion and wide medical experience in many parts of the world.” Another reviewer, Rene Dubos, wrote: “Dr. Desowitz tells many wise and important things about the health problems of the Third World. Fortunately, he presents his views in the form of highly entertaining stories that reveal how the life complexities of the microbial agents of disease are more than matched by the oddities of human behavior.”

In terms of other distinguished career achievements, Dr. Desowitz was a Senior Exchange Fellow for the World Health Organization, a Fulbright Scholar, and a Senior Fogarty Fellow at the National Institutes of Health. He conducted important and vital research on tropical diseases throughout the world, from Samoa to Papua New Guinea and Africa, helping thousands of victims. He was also the founder of the Malaysian Society of Parasitology and Tropical Medicine in 1964. A freshwater clam, Hyriopsis limnoscapha desowitzi, found in the rivers of Vietnam, was named after Dr. Desowitz, as well as an animal parasite, Trypanosoma desowitzi. According to Dr. Louis Miller, Chief of NIH’s Malaria Vaccine Development Branch, Dr. Desowitz’s great contribution to the field of tropical medicine was adapting the parasite Trypanosoma vivax to the rat, so that scientists could effectively do research on this killer disease. In addition to his research activities, Dr. Desowitz was an admired and beloved teacher and lecturer mentoring and inspiring numerous dortoral and medical students in the study of disease of developing countries.

Despite illness, in 2007, Dr. Desowitz was the keynote speaker at the joint meeting of the Malaysian Society of Parasitology and Tropical Medicine and Royal Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; the Society of Parasitology, Denver; and the Pathology Grand Rounds Lecture Series, University of Vermont School of Medicine.

Dr. Desowitz is survived by his wife of 39 years, Carrolee; daughter Duba Desowitz Leibell and son Gregory Desowitz; and four grandsons, Brandon Charles Desowitz-Leibell, Zachary James Taylor Desowitz-Leibell, Robert Gregory Desowitz and Charles Michael Desowitz.

K. C. Mezey
Emeritus member, member since 1997

G. Richard O'Connor, MD
Passed away August 2007
Emeritus member

Eugene Campbell, member since 1997

Frank Etges, member since 1969

Events Calendar

Annual Academy/Health Health Services Research Meeting
June 8-10, 2008
Washington, D.C., USA
www.academyhealth.org/arm/register

ICE 2008
July 6-12, 2008
Celebrating Entomology: Contributions to Modern Science
Durban, South Africa
www.ice2008.org.za

The Gorgas Expert Course
August 4-15, 2008
Two weeks of bedside clinical experience on a 36-bed tropical disease unit
Lima, Peru
http://gorgas.dom.uab.edu/expert/expert.html

Introduction to Mathematical Models of the Epidemiology and Control of Infectious Diseases: Short Course for Public Health Professionals
September 1-12, 2008
Imperial College London, United Kingdom
www.imperial.ac.uk/cpd/epidemiology

Expedition Medicine National Conference
September 2-6, 2008
Washington, D.C., USA
www.expedmed.org

Infectious Diseases of the Nervous System: Pathogenesis and Worldwide Impact Conference
September 10-13, 2008
Paris, France
www.pasteur.fr/worldneuroinfections2008

ASTMH Intensive Update Course in Clinical Tropical Medicine and Travelers' Health
October 23-24, 2008
Washington, D.C., USA
Contact: info@astmh.org

American Society for Microbiology (ASM) 48th Annual Meeting
Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) 46th Annual Meeting
October 25-28, 2008
Washington, D.C., USA
www.icaacidsa2008.org

ASTMH 57th Annual Meeting
December 7–11, 2008
New Orleans, Louisiana USA
www.astmh.org

2009

17th Tropical Medicine Expedition to Kenya
February 1-13, 2009
Contact: Kay Schaefer, MD, PhD
Cologne, Germany
www.tropmedex.com

15th Tropical Medicine Expedition to Uganda
February 22 - March 6, 2009
Contact: Kay Schaefer, MD, PhD
Cologne, Germany
www.tropmedex.com

ASTMH 58th Annual Meeting
November 18 – 22, 2009
Washington, D.C., USA
www.astmh.org

President's Message