From Tucson to Genomics and Transgenics: The Vector Biology Network and the Emergence of Modern Vector Biology

Historical Profiles and Perspectives From Tucson to Genomics and Transgenics: The Vector Biology Network and the Emergence of Modern Vector Biology Barry J. Beaty 1 *, Denis J. Prager 2 , Anthony A. James 3,4 , Marcelo Jacobs-Lorena 5 , Louis H. Miller 6 , John H. Law 7,8,9 , Frank H. Collins 1 , Fotis C. Kafatos 1 1 Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States of America, 2 Strategic Consulting Services, Clyde Park, Montana, United States of America, 3 Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States of America, 4 Department of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California Irvine, Irvine, California, United States of America, 5 Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Malaria Research Institute, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America, 6 Malaria Vaccine Development Branch, National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland, United States of America, 7 Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, University of Arizona Tucson, Tucson, Arizona, United States of America, 8 Department of Entomology, University of Arizona Tucson, Tucson, Arizona, United States of America, 9 Department of Entomology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America, 10 Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, United States of America, 11 Faculty of Natural Sciences, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom Introduction The research enterprise is often charged with responding to emerging scientific needs and opportunities involving impor- tant public health issues. The establish- ment of the Vector Biology Network (VBN) by The MacArthur Foundation to address critical scientific, research, and human resource needs in vector biology is a model of how to respond to such a charge efficiently and effectively. When the Network was formed in 1989, the resurgence of vector-borne diseases, in- cluding malaria and dengue, had revealed critical research and training needs in vector biology. Major knowledge gaps in vector molecular biology and pathogen transmission limited development of new approaches for vector and disease control. The loss of vector biologists/medical entomologists complicated control of these diseases. Members of the VBN, an inter- national consortium of research laborato- ries, collaborated in the development and application of modern molecular and genetic approaches in vector biology and in the training of a new cadre of scientists capable of developing and applying mod- ern tools to combat these diseases. The VBN exploited the expertise and resources of the consortium institutions, and exceed- ed all of its milestones, including: devel- opment of molecular and genomic ap- proaches in vector biology; genetic transformation of insect vectors; charac- terization of vector immune systems; identification of molecular and biological bases of vector competence; and exploita- tion of identified vulnerabilities to interfere with pathogen transmission. The VBN recruited many established scientists from other fields and trained a new generation www.plosntds.org of leaders in vector biology. Most impor- tantly, the VBN participated in and helped catalyze a remarkable renaissance in vector biology/medical entomology. A Case Study of Collaborative Development of a Research Field Research on mosquitoes and other arthropod vectors of infectious diseases is of great importance for tackling neglected tropical diseases in the developing world. Vector biology is now a well-established and rapidly advancing field that is provid- ing new understanding of vectors and vector pathogen interactions and creating new opportunities for vector-borne disease (VBD) control. Many key milestones and recruitment and training of new research- ers in this field were made possible by the coalescence of several laboratories in the US and Europe into a collaborative research network focused on the biology of disease vectors. The Vector Biology Network (VBN) was established and fund- ed for ten years (1990–2000) by The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Founda- tion. The VBN was reinforced through endorsement and, in some cases, coordi- nated funding by the World Health Organization (WHO) and national re- search agencies and foundations, which collectively contributed to a remarkable renaissance of vector biology. The history of the VBN provides a valuable case study of how effective strategies can be devel- oped and deployed to address cost-effec- tively newly recognized scientific challeng- es related to important public health and social goals. The Challenge: Resurgence of Vector-Borne Diseases The stimulus for developing the VBN was the worldwide resurgence of VBDs. While extraordinary advances in antibiot- ics and vaccines have controlled many infectious diseases, VBDs continue to afflict hundreds of millions of humans annually, resulting in inestimable morbid- ity and misery and millions of deaths in disease-endemic countries [1]. These dis- eases are resurging in areas where they were previously controlled and are newly Citation: Beaty BJ, Prager DJ, James AA, Jacobs-Lorena M, Miller LH, et al. (2009) From Tucson to Genomics and Transgenics: The Vector Biology Network and the Emergence of Modern Vector Biology. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 3(3): doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0000343 Editor: Serap Aksoy, Yale University School of Medicine, United States of America Published March 31, 2009 This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Public Domain declaration which stipulates that, once placed in the public domain, this work may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose. Funding: This work was supported by The MacArthur Foundation. Competing Interests: All authors were members of The MacArthur Foundation Network on the Biology of Parasite Vectors (VBN), and all contributed to the preparation of this publication. Dr. Prager was the Director of Health Programs at the Foundation during the time of the VBN. None of the authors are currently funded by the Foundation. * E-mail: bbeaty@colostate.edu March 2009 | Volume 3 | Issue 3 | e343