The BBVA Foundation Bestows the ‘Frontiers of Knowledge’ Award on Pedro Alonso and Peter Myler

In its 9th edition, the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the Development Cooperation category has been given to Pedro Alonso for “advancing the fight against malaria through the use of insecticide treated bed nets, which have cut mortality rates by 60%, and the trials for the first malaria vaccine to achieve partial effectiveness against the disease” and to Peter Myler for “directing the genetic sequencing of the parasites causing leishmaniasis and Chagas disease, which has led to the identification of therapeutic targets for future treatments and vaccines”.   

Pedro Alonso is the current director of the Global Malaria Programme at WHO, responsible for coordinating global efforts in disease control and elimination, and of establishing norms and guidelines to support malaria-affected countries worldwide. Prior to his position at WHO, he funded and directed, until 2014, the Barcelona Institute for Global Health and played a key role in the creation, in 1996, of the Health Research Center at Manhiça (CISM), Mozambique, an institution awarded with the “Príncipe de Asturias” Prize in International Cooperation. His scientific work has focused on the determinants of morbidity and mortality among the most vulnerable populations. He has pubished more than 300 peer-reviewed articles, mainly on malaria treatment, prevention and vaccine development.  

“It is an honour for us since Pedro Alonso was the founder and first director of ISGlobal” says  Antoni Plaséncia, general director of the institution, “and it is a recognition of our working model that values science as a driving force for change in our society”.

Peter Myler, Professor at the University of Washington, has directed the sequencing projects of the Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania major genomes and has been one of the pioneers in applying genome-scale systems biology approaches to decipher the molecular mechanisms that determine the expression of genes in parasites such as Trypanosoma. He currently directs the Seattle Structural Genomics Center for Infectious Diseases (SSGCID), an institute whose goal is to identify protein targets in emerging and reemerging infectious agents.

“The innovations behind the approaches pioneered by the two winners are poised to become critical parts of a more successful strategy to reduce infectious disease burdens in developing countries” in words of the jury.

The BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Awards seek to recognize and encourage world-class research and artistic creation, prizing high-impact contributions with the ability “to push back the frontiers of the known world”. Other awardees in previous editions within the same category include the Australian economist Martin Ravallion for his pioneer work in defining the extreme poverty threshold, the DNDi organization for developing and delivering new and affordable treatments for poverty-related diseases, and Brasilian epidemiologist Ciro de Quadros for his leadership in polio and measles elimination in the Americas.