MRC CMM Latin America (CMM LATAM) Unit

‌The CMM LATAM Unit is based in São Paulo, Brazil, a Latin American region that has a strong record of medical mycology research. 
The CMM LATAM Unit started in 2023 with the founding of the Management Board consisting of Arnaldo Colombo, Elaine Bignell, Gordon Brown, Carlos Tarborda, Sandro Almeida, and Fausto Almeida, and officially launched on 16th September 2024 at the University of São Paulo. Underpinned by a £1 million investment from the University of Exeter, the Unit will establish a sustainable, skilled and integrated taskforce to support research, training and public health against endemic mycoses in Latin America.

The aims of the CMM LATAM Unit are: To increase training in medical mycology, to disseminate knowledge of fungal diagnostics and therapeutics amongst health care workers, and to increase public awareness of the impact of human fungal infections in Latin America.

The CMM LATAM Unit will address five main themes:

1. The first will focus on host-pathogen interactions, with a view to developing vaccines and alternative therapies to control fungal infections and combat antifungal drug resistance.
2. The second will identify new biomarkers of fungal infections to develop new improved diagnostic tools.
3. The third theme will address the natural history and clinical management of fungal infections. For example, epidemiological data describing the emergence of Paracoccidioides and Sporothrix infections will be collected, new state-of-the-art research tools developed, and data gathered on the emergence of antifungal drug resistance and the validation of new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.
4. The fourth theme will be to create strong interdisciplinary clinical and research networks to accelerate progress in improving health against fungal infections in Latin America.
5. The final theme addresses capacity building and public engagement.