Seasoned global health leader brings over 26 years of expertise in complex, multi-stakeholder projects 

Baltimore, January 16, 2025 — Leader in combatting global infectious diseases Kelly Curran is joining USAID-funded Supporting, Mobilizing, and Accelerating Research for Tuberculosis Elimination (SMART4TB) as Project Director on January 27.  

Former senior director for HIV and Infectious Diseases at Jhpiego, Curran’s career spans a variety of global health’s most pressing issues, from women’s health to HIV, COVID-19, and mpox, working with key stakeholders including country ministries of health, donors, multilateral agencies, researchers, clinicians and affected communities. Driven by a passion for transforming global health on the ground, Curran’s roles have involved designing and implementing effective multi-country programs, leading multidisciplinary teams, directing operations, and conducting research with life-saving results.  

“Kelly Curran has an extraordinary record of developing and implementing programs that have changed the trajectory of population health in countries afflicted with high burdens of communicable diseases and health inequities,” said Richard Chaisson, SMART4TB chief of party and professor of medicine and public health at Johns Hopkins University.  

“SMART4TB will benefit enormously from the depth of experience and innovative problem solving that Kelly has brought to some incredibly complex challenges,” said Payam Nahid, SMART4TB senior research advisor and Haile T. Debas distinguished professor of global health and executive director of the UCSF Institute for Global Health Sciences. “Her knowledge, passion, and energy will undoubtedly drive us forward in exciting new ways.” 

Curran’s most recent role involved overseeing the $391 million PEPFAR/USAID-funded Reaching Impact, Saturation and Epidemic control project, which is focused on supporting national HIV, COVID-19, mpox, and Marburg virus responses. In this project, she helped introduce 3HP TB preventive treatment for people living with HIV, and long-acting HIV prevention products in low- and middle-income countries with nurse-led service delivery models.  

“The global responses to COVID-19, HIV, and malaria show that we can change the course of an epidemic when scientific advances in diagnostics, therapeutics and prevention reach the people who need them most,” said Curran. “I am thrilled to join the SMART4TB team, and the global TB response, at this pivotal moment when so much scientific progress is being made against the world’s leading infectious disease killer.”   

Curran comes to SMART4TB at an exciting moment, as several multi-country treatment trials, vaccine preparedness, airborne infection control, and operational research projects are launching.  

Several promising tuberculosis (TB) vaccine candidates are in late-stage clinical trials and have the potential to accelerate the global community’s efforts to curb and ultimately end the disease. But vaccines can only save lives and prevent transmission if they are widely used, making preparation for the rollout of a TB vaccine critical. SMART4TB is proud to introduce the TB vaccine preparedness repository, which will facilitate coordination of research taking place on adult and adolescent TB vaccine preparedness.

The repository tracks completed, ongoing, and planned projects from across the globe, focusing on research that examines preparation for a new TB vaccine. The repository is updated semi-annually, with stakeholders reporting on ongoing and planned projects. If you would like to be added to this list, or have projects to add to the repository, or a question, please contact Joeri Buis at joeri.buis@kncvtbc.org.

Visit the repository HERE.

SMART4TB is proud to launch CABLab, a self-paced online curriculum for people looking to increase their knowledge to engage more deeply–or for the first time!–in TB advocacy and research. Built in collaboration with our regional Community Advisory Board partners, Afrocab, APCASO, and Eurasian Community for Access to Treatment (ECAT), CABLab covers a broad spectrum of topics, from vaccines to research fundamentals.

Through a mix of articles, videos, and interactive materials, along with opportunities for digital interaction and sharing, CABLab provides a forum where interested advocates can come together to continue expanding their TB knowledge.

CABLab will be launching in English on November 20, 2024, with French and Russian translations available in early 2025 but you can start registering now. We hope to expand to more languages in the coming years.

Register for CABLab HERE.

 

 

SMART4TB and the BETTER Project co-hosted a two-day meeting in Johannesburg last week to address the growing issue of expanded resistance to TB drugs. Bedaquiline, clofazimine, delamanid, linezolid, and pretomanid are the backbones of shorter, safer, more effective regimens for rifampin-resistant TB. However, resistance to them poses enormous challenges for affected individuals and the clinicians and programs who treat them.

Leading front-line clinicians, affected community members, and representatives from national TB programs convened to share experiences and develop best practices for this rising concern. They discussed the complicated decision-making process involved in treating and receiving treatment for a type of TB with limited options. This involved weighing the side effects and risks against the goals for the person living with TB, the physician, and the national TB program. They concluded that structured approaches to care for people living with expanded resistance to TB drugs should include:

• Timely access to genomic sequencing to identify drug-resistance mutations to enable early detection of expanded resistance to guide treatment;
• Wraparound care with holistic counseling and shared decision-making between the healthcare provider and person living with expanded drug resistance;
• Urgent development of equitable programs, developed in consultation with key affected communities, for pre-approval access to new drugs. These programs should include both clinical trials and compassionate use. The BETTER Project stands ready to provide clinical support to these programs and calls on drug developers and donors to prioritize this work; and
• Data collection using common elements and existing shared platforms to capture the extent of expanded resistance and outcomes to inform evidence-based policymaking.

SMART4TB and BETTER will produce a clinical field guide in the coming months, further detailing the above practices. If you are interested in receiving the field guide and learning more about our joint efforts, sign up for SMART4TB updates or follow us on LinkedIn. We will also distribute the field guide on our website and through TB listservs. If you are a provider treating expanded DR-TB, please contact Jen Furin at jenniferfurin@gmail.com and if you are a survivor and want to share your story, please contact Rekha Radhakrishnan at rradhak5@jh.edu.

Studies led by local, early-career researchers are linked to national public health priorities 

BALTIMORE AND SOWETO, September 9, 2024 —The Supporting, Mobilizing, and Accelerating Research for Tuberculosis Elimination (SMART4TB) Consortium is proud to announce the launch of two innovative operational research projects to improve TB prevention and early treatment in contacts of people with TB. The studies, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), followed a call for proposals from South African investigators to develop concepts for advancing the South African National TB Program’s research priorities.

“We’re thrilled to advance these important, locally developed concepts, all while nurturing the growth of early career investigators,” said Dr. Neil Martinson, executive director of the Perinatal HIV Research Unit in Soweto, South Africa and SMART4TB Consortium member.

The first study, Participatory Approaches to Strengthen Implementation of Contact Tracing and Treatment for TB or PACT-TB, will characterize barriers and enablers to delivering contact tracing and treatment services in Khayelitsha, Western Cape, and using participatory research methods, will co-develop interventions to increase contact tracing, testing and treatment. “TB Proof is passionate about partnering with communities affected by TB to advance implementation of the latest research,” remarked Ingrid Schoeman, PACT-TB lead and director of TB Proof, an advocacy organization started in 2012 by health workers who developed occupational TB. “And as a TB survivor myself, the chance to lead a research project to improve TB detection and prevention in people who are at high risk from close contact with TB is especially meaningful.”

The second study, led by Thobani Ntshiqa, a PhD candidate affiliated with the Aurum Institute, will evaluate the prognostic value of tuberculosis infection tests in predicting progression of infection to active TB disease among people who have close household contact with someone with TB. “TB preventive therapy uptake is stubbornly low in South Africa, with only 6% of household contacts of people with TB starting treatment,” noted Ntshiqa. “Predicting the progression of tuberculosis infection to active disease would help triage, prioritize and optimize the delivery of preventive therapy strategies among household contacts in high TB and HIV burden settings.”

A call for proposals released in December 2023 solicited applications for innovative operational research related to TB prevention, treatment and care to assist and support the National TB Program’s Research Priorities for TB in South Africa. The call targeted investigators who received their most recent degree within the last 10 years or are new to TB research. SMART4TB received more than 10 applications, which were carefully reviewed by a panel of 16 independent reviewers, representing SMART4TB technical experts, leaders from research and policy organizations and a South African member of Afrocab, one of SMART4TB’s regional community advisory boards.

“Both of these projects reflect some of our country’s biggest challenges in TB and their results will influence our strategies for detection and prevention going forward,” said Professor Norbert Ndjeka, chief director: TB Control & Management at the National Department of Health in South Africa.

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The SMART4TB Consortium brings together experts in TB tools development, implementation science, capacity strengthening, civil society engagement and policy translation. Led by Johns Hopkins University, consortium members include University of California, San Francisco, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, and Treatment Action Group.

SMART4TB is made possible by the support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents of this press release are the sole responsibility of SMART4TB and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, the United States Government or consortium collaborators or members.

Prioritizing scalable, point-of-care testing, five companies seek to produce the next major diagnostic advancement in TB

BALTIMORE, JULY 8, 2024 — Supporting, Mobilizing, and Accelerating Research for Tuberculosis Elimination (SMART4TB) is pleased to announce a collaboration with Sherlock Biosciences in developing their oral, swab-based point-of-care molecular test for TB. Sherlock joins the four companies, Boditech Med, Co-Diagnostics, Nuclein and Molbio Diagnostics, announced in January 2024 in receiving a first phase of SMART4TB funding and technical assistance to advance their novel tests with the hope of closing key TB diagnosis gaps. Among some of the traits that make Sherlock’s technology promising for TB diagnostics is ease of use, including the intended ability to self-collect the sample, and no need for extensive lab or storage infrastructure to complete the test. These features are especially important in reaching people in diverse, resource-limited healthcare settings where TB is often diagnosed.

Sherlock, and the previously announced developers, were selected by a panel of 11 TB and diagnostics experts from academic institutions and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Characteristics and data from this first phase will be evaluated by a similar group of experts, including affected community members, and those that meet key criteria will move into the next phase of funding to prepare for clinical assessment.

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The SMART4TB Consortium brings together experts in TB tools development, implementation science, capacity strengthening, civil society engagement and policy translation. Led by Johns Hopkins University, consortium members include University of California, San Francisco, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, and Treatment Action Group. SMART4TB is made possible by the support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents of this press release are the sole responsibility of SMART4TB and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, the United States Government or consortium collaborators or members.

Locally driven research is at the centerpiece of months-long USAID-funded program to continue building local capacity for tuberculosis research 

BALTIMORE, April 25, 2024 — Supporting, Mobilizing, and Accelerating Research for Tuberculosis Elimination (SMART4TB) is excited to welcome the second cohort of Early Stage Investigator (ESI) scholars. This year’s cohort reflects the depth and diversity of early career researchers, with a total of 50 scholars representing six countries in Africa and Asia. Simultaneously, SMART4TB is admitting 12 scholars from the first cohort to Phase II of the ESI program, a rigorous fellowship that hones in on researchers’ specific projects.

“This year’s cohort of Early Stage Investigators were impressive, reflecting the diverse background and interests of global researchers,” said Robert Bollinger, the Raj and Kamla Gupta Professor of Infectious Diseases at Johns Hopkins University. “It’s incredibly gratifying to meet new scholars and progress some of the scholars we trained last year into the next phase and see their research interests mature and solidify.”

Now in its second year, the first phase of the Early Stage Investigator program, is a 10-week intensive curriculum delivered by some of the world’s leading TB researchers. Topics include developing a research question and concept paper for a research proposal, engaging communities, designing a research study as well as reviewing and discussing their country’s current National Tuberculosis Program priorities. The countries represented in this new cohort include Nigeria, the Philippines, South Africa, Uganda,Vietnam and Zambia.

This Early-Stage Investigators’ Program creates unique opportunities for further enhancing the quality of locally led research by bringing investigators into direct contact with top-notch knowledge sources in TB research and education,” said Degu Jerene, a senior epidemiologist and team lead at KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation. “The program builds on what countries have started, paving the way to a sustainable model of capacity strengthening.”

After successful completion of Phase I of the program, scholars can apply to Phase II where they progress to the SMART4TB fellowship program that includes specific courses to help convert their research concept into a fully developed high quality TB research proposal. They receive mentorship from both a local and an internationally experienced SMART4TB faculty research co-mentor. Fellows also have access to strategic technical support consultations, including data management, biostatistics, research ethics, study design, implementation science and community engagement from SMART4TB experts. This year’s SMART4TB Phase II fellowship participants represent Mozambique, the Philippines, South Africa, and Zambia.

Márcia Chiluvane, a SMART4TB fellow from Mozambique described her experience as an ESI scholar. “The highlight was developing a research proposal that can address the challenges highlighted by my country’s National Tuberculosis Program. On this journey, I was surrounded and supported by a remarkable network of colleagues and mentors, both national and international, with vast expertise in tuberculosis.”

“The Early Stage Investigator program really speaks to the need for comprehensive mentorship for researchers early in their careers,” said Philip Hopewell, professor of medicine emeritus at University of California, San Francisco. “The research and ideas they produce will undoubtedly inform the field and strengthen local capacity in sustainable ways that will benefit future generations.”

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The SMART4TB Consortium brings together experts in TB tools development, implementation science, capacity strengthening, civil society engagement and policy translation. Led by Johns Hopkins University, consortium members include University of California, San Francisco, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, and Treatment Action Group.

The ADAPT for Kids study will evaluate accuracy of non-sputum tuberculosis diagnostic tests in children

BALTIMORE, February 15, 2024 — The Assessing Diagnostics at Point-of Care for Tuberculosis (ADAPT) for Kids study has enrolled its first participants at Instituto Nacional de Saúde (INS), Mozambique. ADAPT for Kids is evaluating promising TB diagnostic tests for children to inform World Health Organization (WHO) policy and ultimately provide children better, more accurate tests. The first tests studies will be tongue swab tests in children under 15 years, including children living with HIV. The study is led by Supporting, Mobilizing, and Accelerating Research for Tuberculosis Elimination (SMART4TB) consortium.

TB is a leading cause of death in children, and almost all (96%) childhood TB deaths occur in children not on treatment due to missed diagnosis. Pediatric TB is underdiagnosed, in part because existing tests don’t work well in children. “Better tools for diagnosis at the point-of-care means a faster start to treatment, which is vital to ending these senseless TB deaths in children,” said Dr. Nilesh Bhatt, ADAPT for Kids investigator and global clinical research director at the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

ADAPT for Kids will enroll children less than 15 years old with TB symptoms and risk factors, including children living with HIV. One of the first tests the study will evaluate utilizes tongue swabs to detect TB. Traditional TB tests rely on sputum, which is difficult for children to produce. “A tongue swab test would be a game changer, making TB diagnosis easier for both children and health systems to process and turn around,” said Dr. Celso Khosa, ADAPT for Kids investigator and director of the Centro de Investigação e Treino em Saúde da Polana Caniço (CISPOC) at Mozambique’s INS. ADAPT for Kids will generate critical evidence not just on test accuracy, but also on usability and acceptability among healthcare workers, critical components to ensuring effective tests are adopted by health systems and countries.

“Improving diagnostics is at the center of how we reach the ultimate goal of ending TB in Mozambique,” said Dr. Benedita Jose, the National TB program director in Mozambique. “We are excited to focus on children with this study and help get them access to the same cutting edge diagnostic technology that we look at for other populations.”

“SMART4TB is proud that the ADAPT for Kids study was developed and implemented in parallel and in collaboration with the ADAPT study in adults,” said Dr. Devan Jaganath, ADAPT for Kids investigator and assistant professor of Pediatrics at University of California, San Francisco. “Pediatric TB research too often lags behind, and SMART4TB is dedicated to closing research gaps for children by making sure we’re evaluating similar promising diagnostic technology in kids.” To further ensure standardized, high-quality evidence for children, ADAPT for Kids also is coordinating with the pediatric site with the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases-funded The Rapid Research in Diagnostics Development for TB Network (R2D2 TB Network).

A second ADAPT for Kids site at Mulago National Referral Hospital in Uganda, will be launched in the first half of 2024. Each site anticipates enrollment of 200-250 children per year.

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The SMART4TB Consortium brings together experts in TB tools development, implementation science, capacity strengthening, civil society engagement, and policy translation. Led by Johns Hopkins University, consortium members include University of California, San Francisco, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, and Treatment Action Group. SMART4TB is a cooperative agreement with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), made possible by the generosity of the American people.The findings in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development or the U.S. Government.

Significant investment in technology marks major advance in point-of-care testing, the highest priority diagnostic need for TB prevention and care 

BALTIMORE, January 9, 2024 — Supporting, Mobilizing, and Accelerating Research for Tuberculosis Elimination (SMART4TB) is excited to announce Boditech Med, Co-Diagnostics, Nuclein and Molbio Diagnostics as partners in developing oral swab-based, point-of-care molecular TB tests.

“The United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) strategic investment in diagnostics technology for TB is an area ripe for innovation,” said Claudia Denkinger, head of the Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine at University Hospital Heidelberg. “COVID-19 showed us that with the right incentives, many developers could utilize technology they were already working on to create efficient, scalable tests for different diseases. We have a similar ambition for TB, and this investment marks a vital step in the right direction.”

According to the World Health Organization’s ​​2023 Global Tuberculosis Report, 10.6 million people fell ill with tuberculosis  (TB) in 2022; 3.1 million were not reported because they were either not diagnosed or were diagnosed and not linked to care. Rapid molecular TB testing through platforms such as GeneXpert and Molbio has been an important advancement for TB by providing faster, more accurate diagnoses, including the detection of drug resistance. However, these tests largely still rely on sputum samples, which can be difficult to produce, and require infrastructure that challenges their use in a range of places where people seek care. To effectively treat people in settings where they are more likely to visit, healthcare providers need a test that is fast, accurate and can be conducted in any clinical setting.

“Rapid tests at the point of care for a person with TB is a game-changer. From the perspective of people with TB, it means getting a faster diagnosis and planning for potential treatment. From the clinician’s and program’s perspective, rapid, point-of-care testing can reach more people and improve the entire cascade of care, from prevention through treatment to contract tracing,” said Adithya Cattamanchi, chief, Division of Pulmonary Diseases and Critical Care Medicine at University of California, Irvine.

Developers were selected by a panel of 11 TB and diagnostics experts from academic institutions, USAID and​​ prominent organizations. The developers already have point-of-care molecular platforms in pre-commercialization or commercialization phase. In this effort, SMART4TB will provide financial and technical support to help adapt their technology to TB, and clinical support and regulatory guidance to help bring the final product to communities affected by TB.

“We’re excited about these partners because of the innovation they showed in their applications,” said Yuka Manabe, director at the Center for Innovative Diagnostics for Infectious Diseases at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “We believe they have a high chance of success in bringing a test to market on an aggressive timeline and ultimately, bringing TB care close to many more people.”

This project has three development phases, from prototype to a design-locked clinically evaluated test. Partners selected for the first phase will only move to the next phase if their test meets designated standards and will be evaluated by a series of experts, including affected community members.

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The SMART4TB Consortium brings together experts in TB tools development, implementation science, capacity strengthening, civil society engagement, and policy translation. Led by Johns Hopkins University, consortium members include University of California, San Francisco, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, and Treatment Action Group. SMART4TB is a cooperative agreement with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), made possible by the generosity of the American people.The findings in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development or the U.S. Government.

The ADAPT study will collaborate with global partners in this space as part of the largest-ever coordinated effort to further TB diagnostic development

BALTIMORE, November 7, 2023 — The USAID-funded Supporting, Mobilizing, and Accelerating Research for Tuberculosis Elimination (SMART4TB) award is excited to announce enrollment of study participants in Nigeria, Zambia and the Philippines in the Assessing Diagnostics at Point-of Care for Tuberculosis (ADAPT) study. This study seeks to identify and assess promising novel point-of-care TB tests that do not rely on sputum. The study will generate evidence to inform World Health Organization (WHO) review and ultimately, uptake of new, effective diagnostic tests in TB high-burden countries.

“Better diagnostics that work where patients seek care are key to finding the 3.1 million people with TB who go undiagnosed each year,” said Adithya Cattamanchi, chief, Division of Pulmonary Diseases and Critical Care Medicine at University of California, Irvine. “Our goal with this study is to evaluate tests that are easier on patients and that could produce fast, reliable results in diverse healthcare settings.”

Partnering with the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases-funded The Rapid Research in Diagnostics Development for TB Network (R2D2 TB Network), Feasibility of Novel Diagnostics for TB (FEND-TB), FIND and Unitaid-funded DriveDx4TB, ADAPT will first rigorously evaluate the performance of Tongue Swab Xpert Ultra and Truenat MTB Plus, two WHO-endorsed rapid molecular tests for TB to determine whether they are an effective alternative method for diagnosing TB. SMART4TB is partnering with the Zankli Research Centre at Bingham University in Nigeria, De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute (DLSMHSI) in the Philippines and Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ). Across these sites, the study will enroll 900 participants who present to health clinics with a cough for two or more weeks and/or have TB risk factors plus a positive World Health Organization (WHO)-recommended TB screening test, including key populations such as close contacts of people with TB, adolescents and people living with HIV.

“The difference a tongue swab test could make for patients—particularly young people and people living with HIV, who struggle to produce sputum—cannot be underestimated, influencing everything from their likelihood of getting tested to moving them more rapidly towards treatment options,” said John Bimba, director of the Zankli Research Centre.

“We need diagnostics tests that are user friendly. Healthcare settings for TB can vary widely and one of the goals with any new test is how well our staff is able to repeatedly conduct it. We will be looking at that closely with both tests,” said Charles Yu, former vice chancellor for research services and a professor at the College of Medicine of the De La Salle Medical Health and Sciences Institute.

“Rapid, low-cost and accurate tests can play a major role in ending TB in Zambia. We are looking forward to seeing the results and hope this study plays a role in transforming TB care globally,” said Monde Muyoteta, program director for TB at the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia.

Researchers expect to have initial results from the study to share in March 2024.

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The SMART4TB Consortium brings together experts in TB tools development, implementation science, capacity strengthening, civil society engagement, and policy translation. Led by Johns Hopkins University, consortium members include University of California, San Francisco, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, and Treatment Action Group. SMART4TB is a cooperative agreement with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), made possible by the generosity of the American people.The findings in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development or the U.S. Government.