Te Niwha Programme Nurtures Future Infectious Diseases Research Leaders

Developing new therapies to bolster ageing immune systems and better protect older New Zealanders, testing the potential of traditional medicines to treat respiratory infections such as COVID-19, and creating a database of viruses in animals unique to Aotearoa are some of the projects being undertaken by the next generation of infectious diseases leaders.

Te Niwha has awarded six emerging infectious diseases research leaders Fellowships to undertake targeted research and develop the leadership skills essential to strengthening Aotearoa New Zealand’s preparedness for current and emerging infectious diseases threats.

Te Niwha is Aotearoa New Zealand’s national infectious diseases research platform, with a mission to ensure the country has the world-class research capability to best prepare for current and emerging infectious disease threats.In addition to funding research projects, Te Niwha invests in people, training, and collaboration to meet this mission.

Te Niwha Mana Whakahaere Director Te Pora Thompson (Ngaati Hauaa) describes the inaugural one-year Kia Niwha Leader Fellowships as an intensive programme that was purposely designed with a dual focus to support early to mid-career researchers in their specialty and lift leadership areas necessary in best protecting New Zealanders from infectious diseases and their impacts.

“The Kia Niwha Fellowship programme follows the core principles of Te Niwha and supports each Fellow to individually and collectively lift their leadership in each area – Tiakitanga (Accountability and Integrity), Hononga (Relationships), Tūhonotanga (Partnerships) and Rangatiratanga (Leadership).

“Fellows have completed one of four compulsory waananga that aim to connect their research with communities, develop their priorities and leadership, and further learn from international and national tenured and respected infectious diseases and pandemic leaders,’’ Thompson says.

Below is information on the Kia Niwha Leader Fellows and the one-year projects they will undertake as part of the leadership programme.

Dr Theresa Pankhurst (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Porou) of the Malaghan Institute of Medical Research. Māori Kia Niwha Leadership Fellow.

Preclinical development of vaccines that rejuvenate the ageing immune system

The immune system protects people throughout their life from infection and disease. Like people, the immune system grows and evolves as it encounters new and familiar infectious organisms but also ages, becoming less efficient and effective. Older immune systems respond less effectively to vaccines, producing fewer protective antibodies and offering less protection from disease. This is one reason older people need more frequent vaccination. Why this happens is only just starting to be understood.

‘Germinal centres’ are unique immunological structures that form in response to an infectious disease. RNA technology, the ability to package cellular instructions – such as a vaccine or therapeutic agent – in microscopic bubbles and deliver them to cells like a courier service, is revolutionising biomedicine. It may also be the key to boosting ailing germinal centres by targeting the immune cells inside them. By assisting waning immune cells through targeted RNA technology, it may be possible to sustain germinal centre efficiency – offering the same protection of a younger, stronger immune system.

Dr Pankhurst has been seconded to the United Kingdom as part of an international partnership between the Malaghan Institute of Medical Research (Aotearoa NZ), and the Babraham Institute (Cambridge UK).

Dr Pankhurst will investigate the germinal centre response to mRNA vaccinations – developed by the Malaghan Institute – and how these change with age – using expertise and resources established by the Babraham Institute. She will also investigate whether encoding mRNA vaccines with specific ingredients might improve the age-related decline of the germinal centre, with the goal to identify new vaccines that better protect older members of our communities from infectious disease.

Dr Natalie Netzler (Ngaati Hamoa, Ngaati Hauaa) of Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland. Pacific Kia Niwha Leader Fellow

Broad-spectrum antiviral activities within indigenous Pacific traditional medicines

Over many centuries, indigenous healers across Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa region, including Aotearoa New Zealand, have developed effective traditional medicines that are still widely used today. Traditional healers are often more trusted and accessible than clinical doctors in remote Pacific villages, with many lacking a hospital.

Studies have found anti-inflammatory, anti-HIV and anti-bacterial activities within indigenous Pacific medicines, but few studies examine antiviral activities against contemporary respiratory viral threats, such as SARS-CoV-2, which caused the recent COVID-19 pandemic, measles, influenza, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Dr Netzler will explore traditional medicines suitable for treating respiratory infection through an existing collaboration with taulāsea (traditional Samoan healers). She will screen medicinal plant extracts for antiviral activities against viruses including SARS-CoV-2, RSV and influenza.

Through the collaboration with Samoan healers and scientists, unpublished preliminary data shows potential for two traditional Samoan medicines to treat COVID-19, warranting further investigation.

Indigenous and Western medicines are often used simultaneously, but little is known about the effectiveness of combinations. Where clinical antivirals are available, such as Paxlovid for COVID-19, Dr Netzler will examine their combination with traditional antivirals to see if they are effective when combined, or if they cancel out each other’s activities.

Dr Alice-Roza Eruera (Ngāpuhi-nui-tonu, Ngāti Ruanui) University of Otago, Otakou Whakaihu Waka. Māori Kia Niwha Leadership Fellow.

Mā te kimi ka kite; visualising native viruses of Aotearoa whānaui

Native animals in Aotearoa New Zealand are hosts to viruses not found anywhere else in the world. Little is known about these viruses, such as their potential to cause disease or spread to other animals or humans.

AI algorithms such as AlphaFold are used internationally to predict virus components. But they do not have enough reference models to produce reliable, confident predictions on highly divergent viruses such as those native to Aotearoa. Future native New Zealand viruses yet to be discovered will likely face the same issues.

Dr Eruera will create 3D structures of native New Zealand viruses and make them freely available as reference models to guide AI tools. Analysis of these structures will give information about viral evolution and could be used to determine the risk of spillover from animals to humans by comparing our native viral structures to known pathogens.

Dr Rose Collis – AgResearch

He puna mātauranga rānei te māwhaiwhai? The house of the spider, a spring of knowledge or not?

This research project will provide insights into antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in New Zealand’s environment and develop strategies to enhance surveillance, strengthen connections between scientific research and community groups, and contribute to better strategies for mitigating the transmission of AMR.

Dr Rose Collis will compare the potential of māwhaiwhai (spider webs) and freshwater for monitoring biodiversity and AMR. She will build relationships with mana whenua and community groups to interweave mātauranga Māori and western science. The project will focus on collecting water samples and māwhaiwhai from sites in the Tararua district, representing sites with contrasting land-uses such as urban, agricultural, and natural areas.

DNA will be extracted from the environmental samples and analysed using Nanopore long-read metagenomic sequencing to examine the microbial composition, detect pathogens, and identify AMR genes. Māwhaiwhai and freshwater samples will also be sent to Wilderlab for environmental DNA analysis to monitor the biodiversity at the sites and assess ecosystem health.

Dr Andrew Highton - University of Otago, Otakou Whakaihu Waka

Mini-lungs to study viral–immune responses

Mini-lungs are latest technology and grown as three-dimensional cellular structures from adult stem cells present in donated lung tissue or from lung wash fluid. They are highly representative of human lungs and can be infected with viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 (causing COVID19), influenza, and those that cause common colds, such as rhinovirus. This allows for the reaction of the immune system to things such as new viruses to be studied in the laboratory.

The immune system is the most important defence against viral infection. Of particular importance early in viral infection are immune lymphocytes known as natural killer cells. These can directly kill cells infected with viruses.

Dr Highton will develop a system of mini-lungs and natural killer cells to create an accurate lung disease model system in the laboratory. This latest technology will allow for the rapid monitoring of emerging viral threats and an understanding of the immune component of viral defence in lung infections to, ultimately, provide greater protection for patients.

Dr Nadia Charania - AUT

Applying complexity science to improve outcomes for migrants and refugees during pandemics

Migrants and refugees face a myriad of challenges as they settle in a new country, including language barriers, cultural differences, and limited access to employment and health services. During the COVID-19 pandemic, migrant and refugee communities were disproportionately impacted as infectious disease outbreaks amplify existing inequities.

Dr Charania will use a complexity-informed research approach, which unlike traditional research approaches, recognises dynamic relationships, unpredictability, and uncertainty within systems. Research in this area is limited and, to the researcher’s knowledge, complexity science has not been applied to improve pandemic outcomes among migrants and refugees.

Dr Charania will harness the principles of complexity science to improve pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response, focusing on migrants and refugees who are often overlooked in preparedness efforts. Narratives will be qualitatively collected from multiple stakeholders, including community members, organisation leaders, and pandemic planners, to analyse the interconnected factors and produce complexity-informed recommendations that reflect the realities of migrants and refugees over the phases of a pandemic.

Given the disproportionate burden faced by Māori and Pacific Peoples during pandemics, the results may also support improved outcomes as the focus is on more equitable and inclusive pandemic preparedness and response.

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