Achim Hörauf elected as a member of the Mectizan Expert Committee
DZIF scientist Prof. Achim Hörauf is the first German member on the Mectizan Donation Program's Expert Committee.
Prof. Achim Hörauf, Director of the Institute of Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Parasitology at the University Hospital Bonn and scientist at the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), has been appointed to the Mectizan Donation Program's Expert Committee as the first member from Germany. This appointment recognizes Prof. Hörauf's significant scientific contributions to filarial disease research and his ongoing commitment to global health.
Since the late 1980s, the Mectizan Donation Program has been one of the world's most successful programs for donating drugs to treat neglected tropical diseases. Implemented in close collaboration with the World Health Organization, national health ministries, NGOs, and local health programs, the program enables the long-term, free provision of the drug ivermectin to combat river blindness (onchocerciasis) and lymphatic filariasis. Every year, hundreds of millions of people worldwide are treated in this way, especially in regions where these diseases are endemic.
The Mectizan Expert Committee provides independent advice to the Mectizan Donation Program, supporting evidence-based decision-making for drug donation, program implementation, and disease elimination efforts.
Source: Press release of the University Hospital Bonn (in German)
