The Star, Tuesday 29 August 2006

Cuba-Malaysia cooperation to develop vaccines

PENANG: Cuba may be best known for its fine cigars, old-world charm and Cold War past but it is also a hotbed of biotechnology activity.

Realising the potential for collaboration, Universiti Sains Malaysia is now working with Cuba’s Finlay Institute to develop vaccines for tuberculosis (TB) and meningitis.

USM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dzulkifli Abdul Razak said: “Finlay is teaming up with our medical school in Kelantan to produce the vaccines.

"We are currently waiting for RM127mil funding from the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry to undertake the five-year project.”

The partners would work on producing a TB vaccine first, he added.

“Cuba’s biotechnology is second to none even among developed nations. It has produced 12 vaccines, of which three are first in the world,” said Prof Dzulkifli.

He said although diseases such as TB, meningitis, malaria and cholera were rife, research on the ailments was lacking because pharmaceutical giants could not make money out of such Third World diseases.

Thus, USM would take on research in this areas even if they were not viable ventures, he told newsmen after opening the aerodynamics laboratory at USM’s engineering campus in Nibong Tebal on Tuesday.