Pacific Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases Research
John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawai'i at Manoa
Director: Dr. Richard Yanagihara

MENTORS

Paul V. Effler, M.D., M.P.H.
Director, Division of Disease Outbreak Control, State Department of Health

Dr. Effler, who served in the Epidemic Intelligence Service at CDC in 1991-1993, has worked as a consultant for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Swaziland and Ethiopia and for the World Health Organization (WHO) in Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and the Philippines. Dr. Effler ws appointed Epidemiology Branch Chief in 1994 and State Epidemiologist in 1997. Currently, he is Chief of the Communicable Diseases Division and the Executive Director for Bioterrorism Preparedness. His current responsibilities encompass communicable disease surveillance and outbreak control and investigation, oversight of the State’s immunization program, and bioterrorism preparedness. He has broad research interests in infectious diseases, ranging from dengue fever, leptosprirosis diagnostics, influenza surveillance, and the epidemiology of infections caused by Campylobacter jejuni and Escherichia coli O157, as well as hepatitis C virus infection in incarcerated populations.

Marc T. Goodman, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Professor, Cancer Etiology Program, Cancer Research Center of Hawaii

Dr. Goodman is an exceptionally well-funded, internationally recognized population-based cancer epidemiologist, who has had a long-term interest in the association of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection with the risk of cervical neoplasia, and the interaction of HPV with diet, nutrition, and other co-factors on the development and progression of cervical dysplasia. With NCI funding, Dr. Goodman is conducting a long-term follow-up study on a multi-ethnic cohort of 1,150 HPV-positive women to identify factors that influence the persistence or resolution of HPV infection of the uterine cervix. The project’s specific aims are to study the association of the dietary intake of fruits and vegetables and the plasma levels of carotenoids, tocopherols, and vitamin C with HPV persistence; and to examine the role of HPV type, viral quantity, and multiple HPV infections in HPV persistence. The identification of these factors may improve the ability to characterize women who are at greatest risk for developing HPV-associated neoplasia.

George S.N. Hui, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Tropical Medicine and Medical Microbiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine

Dr. Hui, who has been funded by NIH since 1993, is a vaccinologist with broad training in tropical medicine and immunology. His research and academic interests have been in the area of malaria vaccine development and evaluation of potent adjuvants. Dr. Hui has collaborated closely with NIAID intramural scientists toward the development of a sub-unit, blood-stage malaria vaccine and with researchers at the Chinese University of Hong Kong to develop a malaria vaccine produced via a novel silkworm expression system. Dr. Hui’s current NIH research to study the basic mode of action of vaccine adjuvants has resulted in the identification of novel immunological pathways as mechanisms of immunopotentiation. Dr. Hui has also been very active in training programs for under-represented minority students. He is the director of the Hawai‘i chapter of the NIH/NIDDK High School Student Summer Research Apprenticeship Program. Each year, this program sponsors five or six outstanding students from Hawai‘i high schools to conduct biomedical research with prominent researchers at UHM. Dr. Hui is currently working toward providing a seamless transition between this high school program and the NIH summer research fellowship program for undergraduate students, so that promising ethnic-minority students will continue to develop their interests in biomedical research in an exceptionally resource-rich environment.

Vivek R. Nerurkar, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Tropical Medicine and Medical Microbiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine

Dr. Nerurkar leads the RCMI-supported activity on the Pathobiology of HIV-Associated Disorders and is the principal investigator of a research project on the genetic determinants of JC virus pathogenicity, supported by a five-year Collaborative Neurological Sciences award from NINDS. He is a Fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, a member of the Hepatitis Working Group of the Adult ACTG Virology PSG, and an active member of the Hawai‘i Advisory Committee for the Elimination of Tuberculosis. In addition to his role as Mentor in the new Center, Dr. Nerurkar is the director of the Technical Support Core. Dr. Nerurkar has worked tirelessly in mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, as well as junior faculty, at UHM. Since being recruited in 1994, Dr. Nerurkar has been instrumental in organizing the NCRR-supported Retrovirology Research Laboratory; he provided close oversight of the renovation of the BSL-2 core facilities and BSL-3 containment suite of this laboratory. In addition, he has been intimately involved in developing the basic-science research agenda for the Retrovirology Research Laboratory, and has spearheaded the international component of a bench-based molecular retrovirology research program at UHM, with collaborative research and training programs in Asia and the Pacific.

Karen M. Yamaga, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Tropical Medicine and Medical Microbiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine

For the past 14 years, Dr. Yamaga’s research interests have centered on the immunology and genetics of rheumatic autoimmune diseases. Her current research includes the analysis of antibody reactivity in acute rheumatic fever, the characterization of group A streptococci, especially those that trigger acute rheumatic fever, and the molecular genetics of early-onset osteoarthritis. Dr. Yamaga also serves as Associate Activity Leader of the RCMI-funded activity on Immunogenetic Diseases, led by Dr. Elizabeth K. Tam. She served as chair of the Department of Tropical Medicine and Medical Microbiology for seven years (1997-2003) and is now assisting the current chair, Dr. Duane J. Gubler, to develop the Asia-Pacific Institute of Tropical Medicine and Infectious Diseases. She has taught immunology to medical students and graduate students throughout her career and has written chapters on autoimmunity for a popular textbook in immunology.