The Centre for Medical Mycology (CMM) LATAM Unit, a newly established international unit by agreement between the Medical Research Council Centre for Medical Mycology (MRC CMM) at the University of Exeter and the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil, has been awarded a prestigious grant of over R$ 5 million (£750,000) from FAPESP, the São Paulo Research Foundation, to match the funding from the MRC CMM at the University of Exeter.
This grant is a milestone for the medical mycology community in Latin America and will facilitate an integrated multidisciplinary and international team of mycologists to tackle challenges caused by three main endemic fungal infections in Latin America: Histoplasmosis, Sporotrichosis and Cryptococcosis.
Researchers in Latin America will be able to apply for funding to support their research, based on the CMM LATAM scientific remit: to better understand these three pathologies and to find solutions for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of these fungal infections. Additionally, this grant will enable public engagement activities, raising public awareness of the impact of human fungal infections and building public health capacity, directly impacting the lives of many.
An international team with over 40 researchers from nine different countries came together to support the FAPESP bid, led by the CMM LATAM Unit’s Local Director, Arnaldo Colombo (Unifesp), and the USP coordinators, Carlos Pelleschi Taborda (the FAPESP project lead), Sandro Rogério de Almeida and Fausto Almeida.
The full FAPESP article published on 10 June 2025 can be read here (Portuguese version only): https://agencia.fapesp.br/novo-centro-vai-estudar-micoses-endemicas-na-america-latina/54995
To learn more about the CMM LATAM Unit, please visit: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/research/medicalmycology/internationalunits/cmm-latam-unit/#a0.
Pictured above: the founders and leadership team of the MRC CMM and CMM LATAM Unit. From left to right: Ana Caroline Colombo (FUSP), William Horsnell (University of Exeter), Alberto Muñoz (University of Exeter), Marcio Rodrigues (Fiocruz), Gordon Brown (University of Exeter), Fausto Almeida (USP), Elaine Bignell (University of Exeter), Holly Wright (University of Exeter), Beatriz Gomez (Del Rosario University), Sandro Almeida (USP), Carlos Taborda (USP), Adilia Warris (University of Exeter), and Arnaldo Colombo (Unifesp).