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t m c » p u l s e | j u n e 2 0 1 4 19 we call them tropical diseases, but it is really a misnomer. they are diseases of poverty. the tropical and subtropical climate is a component of it, but poverty is the overriding determinant. — Peter hotez, M.d., Ph.d. founding dean of the national school of tropical Medicine at baylor college of Medicine Diseases of poverty. That's a more fitting name for neglected tropical diseases, according to Peter Hotez, M.D., Ph.D., found- ing dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. They are diseases that con- taminate bathing and drinking water, cling to the feet of children playing barefoot in dirty streets, and are carried thousands of miles by ticks and mos- quitos. They not only linger in places of poverty, but also seem to cause poverty. And Hotez's team intends to do some- thing about them. "Over a billion people in the world suffer from neglected tropical diseases, and about 1.3 billion people live on no money. That includes 1.65 million fam- ilies in the United States that live on less than two dollars a day," said Hotez. Tackling Tropical Diseases the national school of tropical Medicine at baylor college of Medicine partners strategically to combat tropical disease, one vaccine at a time. Peter Hotez, M.D., Ph.D. right, and Maria Elena Bottazzi, Ph.D., serve as the dean and associate dean, respectively, of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. (Credit: Terry Vine Photography) "We call them tropical diseases, but it is really a misnomer. They are diseases of poverty. The tropical and subtropical climate is a component of it, but pov- erty is the overriding determinant. "Many of these tropical infections are not like infections you typically think of. These tend to be chronic, debilitating conditions — things like leprosy, or hookworm, or shistosomiasis," he continued. "Sometimes people have these diseases their entire lives, making them too disabled to work, so they lose income. Or these diseases actually reduce child intelligence and cognition. They shave IQ points off of kids, so they lose future wage earnings. And this has actually been shown. So these are major forces that actually trap the bottom billion in poverty." (continued page 22) B y A m a n d a D . S t e i n