Fellow

Jeremy Farrar is director of the Wellcome Trust-funded Oxford University Clinical Research Unit. Over the past ten years he has created a remarkable research institute in which his own research productivity has been phenomenal and an impressive training program has been developed. Under his direction the research programme has conducted seminal work on malaria, dengue, typhoid, tetanus, pyogenic and tuberculous meningitis and has become the leading centre for clinical research on avian influenza. These Pivotal clinical and virological studies have identified the dual importance of viral burden and the cytokine response to the lethal pathogenesis of avian influenza, and have described the rapid emergence of resistance to neuraminidase inhibitors. The unit has also conducted important research into Dengue shock syndrome, conducting the only large prospective randomised trials of fluid replacement and has provided an evidence-base for revision of the World Health Organisation classification. His commitment to fighting emerging infectious diseases at their source in developing countries is commendable and his contribution to capacity building in Vietnam and other countries is vital for the future of health care in these regions and serves as a model for others to follow.