Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

Last updated

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Logo.png
Type Public
Established14 November 1898 (1898-11-14)
Endowment £25.6 million (2023) [1]
Budget £116.0 million (2022/23) [1]
Chancellor Elhadj As Sy
Vice-Chancellor David Lalloo
Total staff
620 (2020–21)
Students296 taught and 154 research (2020–21)
Location
Liverpool
,
England

53°24′31″N02°58′09″W / 53.40861°N 2.96917°W / 53.40861; -2.96917
CampusUrban
Colours   Red
  Burgundy
  Black
Website www.lstmed.ac.uk OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) is a post-graduate teaching and research institution based in Liverpool, England, established in 1898. It was the first institution in the world dedicated to the study of tropical medicine. LSTM conducts research in areas such as malaria and insect-borne diseases and operates as a higher education institution with degree-awarding powers. [2]

Contents

LSTM is also a registered charity, [3] with a research portfolio exceeding £220 million, supported by funding from organizations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust. [4] In partnership with the University of Liverpool, LSTM co-founded the Centre of Excellence in Infectious Diseases Research (CEIDR), which focuses on improving global healthcare and medical technologies. [5] [6] [7] [8]

History

Sir Alfred Lewis Jones provided the funds to found the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in 1898 Alfred Lewis Jones2.jpg
Sir Alfred Lewis Jones provided the funds to found the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in 1898

LSTM was founded on 12 November 1898 by Sir Alfred Lewis Jones, a prominent local ship owner. At the time, Liverpool was a prominent port city which carried on an extensive trade with overseas regions such as West and Southern Africa. Consequently, the number of patients in the region admitted to hospital with 'tropical' diseases soared. Recognising the need for a solution to this problem Jones, together with a number of fellow business men and health pioneers, pledged an annual donation of £350 for three years to promote the study of tropical diseases in the city. This offer of financial support was announced at the annual dinner of students of Liverpool's Royal Southern Hospital and was warmly accepted by the hospital's president who later went on to suggest that his hospital should act as the clinical focus of the studies in view of its proximity to the docks.

This initial endeavour later led to Jones's participation in helping to set up the School of Tropical Medicine. Having received news that the RSH greatly appreciated the collection of the hospital's 'tropical' cases into one centre rather than 'leaving them scattered about in the general wards' the suggestion was made that the arrangement might be made permanent. In light of this, the professional members of the hospital's committee were asked to meet and plan the new school; this they did and in due course the committee communicated its intention to the Colonial Office (which was, at the time, responsible for such matters).

Sir Ronald Ross, C.S. Sherrington, and R.W. Boyce working together in a laboratory at the LTSM in 1899 Sir Ronald Ross, C.S. Sherrington, and R.W. Boyce in a labor Wellcome L0012069.jpg
Sir Ronald Ross, C.S. Sherrington, and R.W. Boyce working together in a laboratory at the LTSM in 1899

In its response, the Colonial Office acknowledged the creation of the School of 'Tropical Diseases' at University College, Liverpool and commented on how 'excellently equipped for teaching of tropical medicine' it was, but made quite clear that no financial aid would be forthcoming as a similar Hygiene and Tropical Medicine had so recently been established in London with the support of the Colonial Secretary of the day, Joseph Chamberlain. The Colonial Office did concede, however, that all future candidates for the service who had attended training programmes in Liverpool would be given preference when applying.

Apparently the Liverpool School was nevertheless still unsuitable for doctors joining the Colonial Service since the letter continued: 'I propose that Officers already in the Colonial Service should be allowed to receive their instruction in Liverpool instead of at the School in London, but newly appointed Officers will always be sent to the latter School'. Liverpool did not accept this compromise and continued its pressure for full recognition. At last, on 12 July 1900 the Colonial Office finally acquiesced and the school was placed on the same terms as London with regard to newly appointed Officers. Similar recognition was given by the Foreign Office, which was responsible for Britain's protectorates. Thus, although the Liverpool School came into active being six months before the school in London, it took another year to persuade the Colonial Office to recognise it officially.

The LTSM main building as it appeared in 1951. Note the difference in discolouration between the two-halves of the building which were built at different times LSTM, Liverpool 1951.png
The LTSM main building as it appeared in 1951. Note the difference in discolouration between the two-halves of the building which were built at different times

It was not long before the school, helped largely by private donations from individuals like Mary Kingsley (the author of "Travels in West Africa" and an expert in African culture), began to flourish. The school soon recruited the eminent physician Rubert Boyce as its inaugural dean. Boyce then set about the business of appointing teaching staff and secured the services of Ronald Ross as the school's first lecturer in Tropical Medicine. The department was based in the Thompson Yates Laboratory until 1903 when the Johnston Laboratories opened. In 1902 Ross became the first British recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work on malaria transmission and in the same year a separate department of Tropical Veterinary medicine was set up with a dedicated laboratory at Crofton Lodge in Runcorn to allow for the study of large animals. Other notable staff of the time included Joseph Everett Dutton who discovered one of the trypanosomes that cause sleeping sickness, Harold Wolferstan Thomas who developed the first effective treatment for the disease, and his collaborator Anton Breinl, who later became 'the father of tropical medicine' in Australia. [9]

When Alfred Lewis Jones died in 1909 he left a large bequest to the school. Thanks to this and other donations that it received the school was able to set up its own laboratory and teaching premises in Pembroke Place, separate from the University of Liverpool, upon whose facilities it had previously relied. The laboratory was completed in 1914 but due to the advent of the war occupation of the building by LTSM was deferred and it was used as a Tropical Diseases Hospital offering courses to officers of the Royal Army Medical Corps. Professor R M Gordon joined the school in 1919 and by 1920 teaching had resumed and the school finally moved into its own building.

The new and original buildings Liverpool School Tropical Medical School 3.JPG
The new and original buildings

In 1921, the school opened its first overseas research laboratory in Freetown, Sierra Leone. This laboratory functioned continuously until the early stages of World War II and made many important discoveries in West Africa, including demonstrating that a species of black fly was responsible for transmission of filarial worm to humans, causing river blindness. It was work like this that was essential for the Liverpool school to understand tropical diseases and subsequently the school completed 32 expeditions to Africa and Central and South America over the following years.

In 1946, the appointment of LSTM's longest serving Dean, Brian Maegraith, marked a broadening of the School's size and curriculum. Maegraith famously declared 'Our impact on the tropics should be in the tropics!’ which resulted in the school forging links with other research institutions across the globe and bringing research innovations to those most in need. An ongoing example of this is the Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Programme which conducts research into local diseases of importance to Malawi.

From 2000 until 2019 LSTM was directed by Janet Hemingway, who initiated large financial investment and expansion. The school received higher education institution status in 2013 and in 2017 was awarded its own degree awarding powers by the Privy Council. [10] [11]

Wolfson Building, opened in 2014 Wolfson Building, LSTM.jpg
Wolfson Building, opened in 2014

Location

The school is located in buildings in Liverpool close to Royal Liverpool University Hospital.

Organisation and administration

The school's traditional emblem depicted in a stained glass window in the main building LSTM Stained Glass Emblem.png
The school's traditional emblem depicted in a stained glass window in the main building

The school's traditional emblem depicts a Viking longboat under sail and was designed by the famed Glaswegian designer Herbert MacNair. The elements of the emblem all have meaning.

The Viking longboat depicted in the emblem is a reference to Liverpool's maritime heritage and the school's location in Northern England, an area with significant historical links to Scandinavia that was subject to Viking invasion and the Danelaw throughout the tenth century. The fact that the ship is depicted under sail refers to 'journeys to unknown destinations', a reflection on the school's mission to research and treat tropical diseases. Similarly, the rising sun placed directly behind the ship indicates the beginning of the journey and pays respect to its auspicious motives. Finally, the eye depicted on the ship's sail pays homage to ancient deities connected with healing, particularly in Greek mythology.

The school's current logo is derived from its traditional emblem and depicts a stylised red-maroon sail.

The school's director is elected by its governing council every three to five years, with no limit on the number of terms that any individual director can be re-elected to. While Sir Rubert Boyce became the school's first director upon its foundation in 1898 there would not be another 'director' for almost ninety years. This is because the director post that Boyce held became associated with the newly endowed chair of tropical medicine upon its creation in 1902. From this date the title of director was replaced with that of 'Dean' until it was brought back into use with the election of David Molyneux in 1991.

Academic profile

Rankings
Global rankings
ARWU (2024) [12] 701—800

LSTM has a broad portfolio of basic and translational research and policy activities in infectious diseases and public health research. To achieve this, the school is split into four departments: (a) International Public Health (b) Tropical Disease Biology (c) Clinical Sciences and (d) Vector Biology. [13]

Department of International Public Health

The Department of International Public Health specialises in the use of research to guide policies, strengthen health systems and improve health care. This is achieved through work on monitoring and evaluation, gender equity, capacity strengthening and research into the role of human resources in policy development. The Department also leads research into the development and scale-up of large scale, complex interventions to prevent the spread of HIV and houses the rapidly expanding Centre for Maternal and Newborn Health.

Department of Tropical Disease Biology

The Department of Tropical Disease Biology conducts internationally rated basic research on tropical parasites such as malaria, lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, soil-transmitted helminths, schistosomiasis, trypanosomiasis and leishmaniasis, as well as research into snakebite and neglected tropical diseases. Housed in LSTM's Centre for Tropical and Infectious Disease the department is a global leader in drug and diagnostics discovery and disease pathogenesis.

Department of Clinical Sciences

The Department for Clinical Sciences focuses on improving the management of important diseases in the tropics. Researchers work across a broad spectrum of clinical sciences, including: experimental medicine; evidence synthesis; clinical trials; implementation and evaluation; teaching and clinical practice. Specific areas of interest include clinical infectious disease epidemiology, developing preventative and therapeutic strategies for respiratory infections, and improving child and adolescent health.

The Department also hosts the Cochrane Infectious Diseases Group who help inform global policy by working closely with the World Health Organization and others to prepare systematic reviews in tropical infectious diseases.

Department of Vector Biology

The Department of Vector Biology has a research profile that spans from functional genomics of disease vectors to clinical trials, implementation research and the development of tools for monitoring and evaluation of disease transmission. The Department's research is centred on improving the control of vector borne diseases in the developing world, with a focus on neglected tropical diseases and malaria. Understanding mosquito behaviour, evolutionary genomics and the extent, causes and impact of insecticide resistance on malaria control is major research strength of the department.

This Department has long been one of the world's premier sites of research on African Animal Trypanosomiasis (AAT, nagana), the major livestock disease in Africa. [14]

Cross cutting themes

Overlaid on this structure are five cross-cutting themes, which draw upon expertise from all four research departments. The themes are: Capacity Development; Centre for Applied Health Research and Delivery; Evidence-based Medicine; Neglected Tropical Diseases and the Centre for Health in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Teaching

LSTM offers a range of postgraduate education programmes, teaching over 600 students from around the world. These vary from taught master's degrees in humanitarian assistance and international public health, diplomas and short courses in tropical and infectious diseases, to research degrees leading to MPhil, DrPH and PhD. [15]

Awards

The Mary Kingsley Medal was instituted by LSTM co-founder John Holt in 1903 and is awarded for outstanding contributions in the field of tropical medicine. It is named in honour Mary Kingsley, a noted traveller and writer of the late 19th century, who had a powerful influence on the way Africa was perceived at the time, and who died in South Africa at the age of 38 from suspected typhoid. The 100th award was made in 2015. [16]

Recipients of the award include Patrick Manson, David Bruce, Waldemar Haffkine, Bernard Nocht, Hans Vogel, and Frederick Vincent Theobald.[ citation needed ]

Notable people

Directors and deans

Staff

Notable alumni

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine</span> UK public research university

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a public research university in Bloomsbury, central London, and a member institution of the University of London that specialises in public health and tropical medicine. The institution was founded in 1899 by Sir Patrick Manson, after a donation from the Indian Parsi philanthropist B. D. Petit.

Tropical diseases are diseases that are prevalent in or unique to tropical and subtropical regions. The diseases are less prevalent in temperate climates, due in part to the occurrence of a cold season, which controls the insect population by forcing hibernation. However, many were present in northern Europe and northern America in the 17th and 18th centuries before modern understanding of disease causation. The initial impetus for tropical medicine was to protect the health of colonial settlers, notably in India under the British Raj. Insects such as mosquitoes and flies are by far the most common disease carrier, or vector. These insects may carry a parasite, bacterium or virus that is infectious to humans and animals. Most often disease is transmitted by an insect bite, which causes transmission of the infectious agent through subcutaneous blood exchange. Vaccines are not available for most of the diseases listed here, and many do not have cures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tropical medicine</span> Interdisciplinary branch of medicine

Tropical medicine is an interdisciplinary branch of medicine that deals with health issues that occur uniquely, are more widespread, or are more difficult to control in tropical and subtropical regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uganda Virus Research Institute</span>

The Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI) is a medical research institute owned by the Uganda government that carries out research on communicable diseases in man and animals, with emphasis on viral transmitted infections. UVRI is a component of Uganda National Health Research Organization (UNHRO), an umbrella organization for health research within Uganda.

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) is an Arlington, Virginia-based non-profit organization of scientists, clinicians, students and program professionals whose longstanding mission is to promote global health through the prevention and control of infectious and other diseases that disproportionately afflict the global poor. ASTMH members work in areas of research, health care and education that encompass laboratory science, international field studies, clinical care and country-wide programs of disease control. The current organization was formed in 1951 with the amalgamation of the American Society of Tropical Medicine, founded in 1903, and the National Malaria Society, founded in 1941.

As of 2021, 11 universities in Uganda offer medical schools. Admission to medical school requires the candidate to have attained a Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) as well as proficiency in Biology or Zoology, Chemistry and Physics at A-level standards. Training leading to the degree of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB) lasts five years. Major examinations are conducted after the first, second and fifth year, with additional evaluations after each clinical rotation. After successful completion of the fifth year, candidates complete a year of internship under the supervision of specialists. Postgraduate training is available at Makerere University School of Medicine and other Public and Private Universities in a number of medical and surgical disciplines. The training takes three to four years and leads to the Master of Medicine (MMed) degree. The East, Central and Southern Africa College of Health Sciences is nowadays another alternative postgraduate training pathway in Uganda, such as Membership [MCS (ECSA)] and Fellowship [FCS (ECSA)] of the College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa (COSECSA); as well as in Internal Medicine through the East, Central and Southern Africa College of Physicians (ECSACOP) and the College of Obstetrics and Gynecology of East, Central and Southern Africa (ECSACOG) for Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

David Ofori-Adjei is a Ghanaian physician, medical researcher, academic and medical journal editor. His main areas of research are clinical pharmacology, pharmacogenetics, infectious diseases such as malaria, schistosomiasis, Buruli ulcer, and HIV/AIDS and public sector pharmaceutical management. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief of the Ghana Medical Journal.

Jean-François Rossignol is a French scientist, a medicinal chemist and a physician, born in France on September 5, 1943. He was educated at the University of Paris, later specializing in tropical medicine. He then pursued a career in academia and in the pharmaceutical industry discovering and developing new drugs for the treatment of parasitic diseases such as halofantrine in the treatment of multidrug resistant Falciparum malaria or albendazole and nitazoxanide for the treatment of intestinal protozoan and helminthic infections. In 1993, he co-created his own pharmaceutical company, Romark Laboratories, L.C., to develop his own invention nitazoxanide, the first of the thiazolides. At Romark, he is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company and its Chief Science Officer. Following the discovery of the antiviral activity of the thiazolides Rossignol went to Stanford University in California to study interferon stimulated gene pathways and chronic viral hepatitis under Prof. Emmet Keeffe and Prof. Jeffery Glenn. It was in the Glenn laboratory that the mechanism of antiviral activity of nitazoxanide against the hepatitis C virus was discovered.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval Medical Research Unit Three</span> U.S. Navy biomedical research laboratory

Naval Medical Research Unit Three (NAMRU-3) is a biomedical research laboratory of the US Navy located in Sigonella, Italy. Previously it was located in Cairo, Egypt. NAMRU-3 is the oldest U.S. overseas military medical research facility that has remained in the same location, and one of the largest medical research laboratories in the North Africa-Middle East region. The laboratory has been in continuous operation despite periods of political tension and a seven-year lapse in U.S.-Egyptian relations (1967–1973) since 1942.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janet Hemingway</span> British infectious diseases specialist

Janet Hemingway is a British infectious diseases specialist. She is the former Director of Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) and founding Director of Infection Innovation Consortium and Professor of Tropical Medicine at LSTM. She is currently the President of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rubert William Boyce</span> English pathologist and hygienist

Sir Rubert William Boyce FRS was an English pathologist and hygienist, known for his work on tropical medicine.

The Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC) is a not-for-profit, product development partnership (PDP) designed to facilitate the development and delivery of new and improved vector control tools to prevent malaria and other neglected tropical diseases. Their mission is to save lives, protect health, and increase prosperity in areas where disease transmitted by insects is endemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blasio Vincent Ndale Esau Oriedo</span> Kenyan doctor (1931–1966)

Dr. Blasio Vincent Oriedo, in full Dr. Blasio Vincent Ndale Esau Oriedo was an African epidemiologist and a parasitological scientist known for his contributions to tropical medicine and work to stem disease epidemics in colonial and postcolonial Kenya, the countries of East and Central Africa, and the Sudan. He is credited for saving thousands of native African lives from infectious disease. Dr. Oriedo was a recipient of the Extramural Medical Research Grant presented by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Moses R Kamya, is a Ugandan physician, academic, researcher and academic administrator, who serves as Professor and Chair of the Department Medicine, Makerere University School of Medicine, a component of Makerere University College of Health Sciences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University</span> Government organization in Thailand

The Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University is the only faculty specialising in tropical medicine in Thailand. It operates the Mahidol Bangkok School of Tropical Medicine (Mahidol-BSTM) as the main teaching facility and the Hospital for Tropical Diseases for patient treatment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Kariuki</span> Biologist (b. 1962)

Thomas M. Kariuki is a Kenyan biologist who is Chief Executive Officer of the Science for Africa Foundation. Kariuki previously served as the Director of Programmes for the Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Science in Africa (AESA). He was the Director of the Institute of Primate Research/National Museums of Kenya, for seven years. Kariuki’s research interests have spanned the immunology of neglected infectious diseases and he has been involved in global efforts to develop vaccines, drugs and diagnostics for poverty-related diseases. He has published on vaccines and diagnostics development for schistosomiasis (Bilharzia), malaria and co-infections and on policy issues related to biomedical research and funding. He is a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS), Senior Fellowship of the European Foundations Initiative for Neglected Tropical Diseases, Presidential honour of the Order of Grand Warrior of Kenya (OGW) for scientific leadership and public service, Honorary Professor of Research of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, LSTM.

Richard Iwa Idro is a Ugandan pediatric neurologist, researcher and academic, who serves as an associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Child Health at Makerere University College of Health Sciences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen McShane</span> British virologist

Helen Irene McShane is a British infectious disease physician and a professor of vaccinology, in the Jenner Institute at the University of Oxford, where she has led the tuberculosis vaccine research group since 2001. She is senior research fellow at Harris Manchester College, Oxford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Marsh (researcher)</span> British Malariologist and academic

Kevin Marsh is a British Malariologist, academic and a researcher. He is a professor of Tropical Medicine and Director of Africa Oxford Initiative at University of Oxford. He is also a senior advisor at African Academy of Sciences.

The Sleeping Sickness Commission was a medical project established by the British Royal Society to investigate the outbreak of African sleeping sickness or African trypanosomiasis in Africa at the turn of the 20th century. The outbreak of the disease started in 1900 in Uganda, which was at the time a protectorate of the British Empire. The initial team in 1902 consisted of Aldo Castellani and George Carmichael Low, both from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and Cuthbert Christy, a medical officer on duty in Bombay, India. From 1903, David Bruce of the Royal Army Medical Corps and David Nunes Nabarro of the University College Hospital took over the leadership. The commission established that species of blood protozoan called Trypanosoma brucei, named after Bruce, was the causative parasite of sleeping sickness.

References

  1. 1 2 "Financial Statements 2023" (PDF). Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  2. ↑ "Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Becomes Higher Education Institution". Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. 24 July 2013. Archived from the original on 17 June 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  3. ↑ "Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, registered charity no. 222655". Charity Commission for England and Wales.
  4. ↑ "Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine: Financial Statements for The Year Ended 31 July 2012" (PDF). Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. 12 November 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2014.[ permanent dead link ]
  5. ↑ "About". LSTM. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  6. ↑ "Malaria & other vector borne diseases" (PDF). LSTM. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  7. ↑ "Ronald Ross Medal". www.lshtm.ac.uk. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  8. ↑ "Infection & Disease". KQ Liverpool. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  9. ↑ "History of Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine". Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. Archived from the original on 26 November 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  10. ↑ Turner, Ben (24 July 2013). "Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine Wins Full Independence". Liverpool Echo . Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  11. ↑ "Degree awarding powers for LSTM". 16 August 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  12. ↑ "Academic Ranking of World Universities 2024". Shanghai Ranking Consultancy. 15 August 2024.
  13. ↑ "Research at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine". Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  14. ↑ "Why is nagana more widespread than sleeping sickness?". Tsetse.org. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
  15. ↑ "MCDC: Our Partners - Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine". Malaria Capacity Development Consortium. 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  16. ↑ "Mary Kingsley Medal". Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.