The Joint Clinical Research Centre (JCRC) is a medical research institution in Uganda, specializing in

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

treatment and management.

Location

The headquarters of JCRC are located on Lubowa Hill, at Plot 101 Entebbe Road, approximately , by road, southeast of

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...

, the capital and largest city of Uganda. The geographical coordinates of the institution's headquarters are:0°13'51.0"N, 32°34'00.0"E (Latitude:0.230833; Longitude:32.566667).

Overview

Founded in 1990, JCRC is a collaborative effort by three Ugandan ministries to address the challenges posed by HIV/AIDS and related infections: (a) the Ministry of Health, (b) the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

and (c) the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

. The institution works in close collaboration with

Makerere University College of Health Sciences Makerere University College of Health Sciences (MakCHS) is a constituent college of Makerere University, Uganda's oldest university. The schools of the college offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the biomedical sciences, health science ...

(MUCHS).

Research

JCRC focuses on HIV/AIDS research in all age groups, clinical trials of ARVs, nutritional and social interventions and the concomitant treatment of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. The institution also carries out

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

research. The majority of the institution's research projects are in collaboration with national, regional and international organisations, including funding agencies, international health research institutions, international

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

s and universities, as well as corporate philanthropists.

Governance

The research centre is administered by an eight-person board of directors, chaired by Justine Opio-Epelu. Other board members include Prof. Nelson Sewankambo, the immediate past Principal of Makerere University College of Health Sciences. Prof. Peter Mugyenyi, the internationally recognized HIV/AIDS researcher and pediatrician, who founded the institution, serves as the centre's executive director.

Future plans

The JCRC has plans to build an international research hospital worth US$120 million in collaboration with ''Tokushukai Medical Group'' of Japan. Commitment for 70 percent funding has been obtained from the

African Development Bank The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) or (BAD) is a multilateral development finance institution headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and private companies i ...

(AfDB). In March 2018, the institution procured an apheresis machine, which enables healthcare personnel to extract only those selected blood components from a donor's or patient's blood, and return the non-selected components back into the bloodstream of the donor/patient. This technique is of particular significance and utility, when treating patients with

sickle cell disease Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of blood disorders typically inherited from a person's parents. The most common type is known as sickle cell anaemia. It results in an abnormality in the oxygen-carrying protein haemoglobin found in red blo ...

and HIV/AIDS.

Developments

In July 2022, JCRC announced that later that year, the institution would start offering

bone marrow transplant Hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) is the transplantation of multipotent hematopoietic stem cells, usually derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood in order to replicate inside of a patient and to produce ...

services. Before that, many Ugandans who needed the treatment had to travel to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, where the it could be obtained least expensively. That same month, JCRC announced that a working collaboration had been established between (a)

Makerere University Makerere University, Kampala (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922. It became an independent national university in 1970. Today, Makerere University is composed of ni ...

(b)

Mbarara University Mbarara University of Science & Technology (MUST), commonly known as Mbarara University, is a public university in Uganda. Mbarara University commenced student intake and instruction in 1989. It is one of the ten public universities and degree ...

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...

and (e) the

Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry The Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry is the combined medical school and dental school of the University of Western Ontario, one of 17 medical schools in Canada and one of six in Ontario. History The medical school at the University of ...

. As part of that collaboration, a modern state-of-the-art research facility will be constructed at JCRC at a budgeted cost of US$33 million (approx. USh 124 billion). The new research facility will accommodate more research scientists from both countries in the fields of common scientific interest.

References

External links

Website of the Joint Clinical Research Centre
{{authority control Medical research institutes in Uganda 1990 establishments in Uganda Research institutes established in 1990 Wakiso District