The Medical Research Council

Presentation to the Portfolio Committee on Science and Technology

March 16, 2005

http://www.mrc.ac.za

VISION

Building a healthy nation through research

MISSION

To improve the nation’s health status and quality of life through relevant and excellent health research aimed at promoting equity and development

MRCBUILDING A HEALTHY NATION THROUGH

RESEARCH

MRCCape Town

MRCDurban

MRCPretoria

• A Statutory Council – one of 9 Science

Councils

• Established by Act of Parliament

• 9% of Science Vote

• Turnover ~R350 million (60% baseline)

• Staff 800

• 48 Intra- and Extra-mural Research Units

Board President

Executive Management Committee

Environment and Development

Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Unit

Exercise Science and Sports Medicine Research Unit

Health and Development Research Group

Health Promotion Research and Development Group

Woman and Child Health

Gender and Health Research Unit

Maternal and Infant Health Care Strategies Research Unit

Mineral Metabolism Research Unit

Nutritional Intervention Research Unit

Infection and Immunity

HIV and AIDS Research Lead Programme

Clinical and Biomedical Tuberculosis Research Unit

Diarrhoeal Pathogens Research Unit

Genital Ulcer Disease Research Unit

HIV Prevention and Vaccine Research Unit

South African AIDS Vaccine Initiative

Immunology of Infectious Disease Research Unit

Inflammation and Immunity Research Unit

Malaria Research Lead Programme

Operational and Policy Tuberculosis Research Group

Pneumococcal and Meningeal Pathogens Research Unit

South African Traditional Medicines Research Unit

Tuberculosis Research Lead Programme

Non Communicable Disease

Anxiety and Stress Disorders Research Unit

Cancer Epidemiology Research Group

Chronic Diseases of Lifestyle Research Unit

Crime, Violence and Injury Lead Programme

Diabetes Research Lead Programme

Interuniversity Cape Heart Research Group

Medical Imaging Research Unit

PROMEC Unit

Health Systems and Policy

Burden of Disease Research Unit

Biostatistics Unit

Cochrane Centre

Health Policy Research Group

Health Systems Research Unit

National Telemedicine Lead Programme

Molecules to Disease

Bioinformatics Capacity Development Research Unit

Bone Research Unit

Centre for Molecular and Cellular Biology

Human Genetics Research Unit

Human Genomic Diversity and Disease Research Unit

Liver Research Centre

Molecular Hepatology Research Unit

Molecular Mycobacteriology Research Unit

Oesophageal Cancer Research Group

SA MRC/British MRC Receptor Biology Research Group

Indigenous Knowledge Systems Research Lead Programme

Income and income distribution in South Africa and selected countries

Source: Human Development Report 2000

Per capita income

1998 PPP$

Share of income or consumption 1987-1998

Country

Poorest 20% Richest 20% Richest 20% to

poorest 20%

South Africa 3,918 2.9 64.8 22.3

South and East African Countries

Botswana 3,611 .. .. ..

Burundi 147 7.9 41.6 5.3

Kenya 334 5.0 50.2 10.0

Lesotho 486 2.8 60.1 21.5

Mozambique 188 6.5 46.5 7.2

Namibia 2,133 .. .. ..

Rwanda 227 9.7 39.1 4.0

Swaziland 1,409 2.7 64.4 23.9

Tanzania, U. Rep. of 173 6.8 45.5 6.7

Uganda 332 6.6 46.1 7.0

Zambia 388 4.2 54.8 13.0

Zimbabwe 703 4.0 62.3 15.6

Selected developing countries

Brazil 4,509 2.5 63.8 25.5

Philippines 1,092 5.4 52.3 9.7

Sri Lanka 802 8.0 42.8 5.4

Thailand 2,593 6.4 48.4 7.6

Infant Mortality Rate by Population Group SADHS 1998

53.6

38.7

18.8

11.4

45.4

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Non-urban African Urban African Coloured White Total

de

ath

s p

er

1000 b

irth

s

 Province

House Type Piped water inside

%

Without toilet

%

Reporting hunger

%  %

traditional % shack

Eastern Cape 31.9 12.1 23.4 25.1 30.9

Free State 7.0 19.4 29.9 5.3 23.8

Gauteng 0.2 24.7 58.8 0.8 14.7

Kwa-Zulu Natal

18.6 19.3 34.6 12.7 26.8

Mpumalanga 8.7 17.5 27.6 3.5 31.9

Northern Cape

0.9 12.9 48.1 10.7 15.1

Northern 15.2 6.2 12.1 18.8 15.5

Northern West

1.7 12.1 21.6 5.7 22.5

Western Cape

0.2 15.9 76.7 3.8 15.0

South Africa  10.9

 16.9

 38.8

 9.7

 21.9

  Source: StatsSA 1999 October Household Survey 

Variations in household living conditions by province, 1999

Figure 1 : Prevalence of HIV among antenatal care attendees in South Africa, 1990-2003

0.71.7 2.2

4

7.6

10.4

14.2

17

22.8 22.4

24.5 24.826.5

27.9

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003

Year

HIV

Pre

vale

nce (

%)

HIV prevalence levels by sex and

age group in 2004

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

0-4

5-9

10-1

4

15-1

9

20-2

4

25-2

9

30-3

4

35-3

9

40-4

4

45-4

9

50-5

4

55-5

9

60-6

4

65-6

9

70-7

4

75-7

9

80-8

4

85+

Age group

Per

cen

tag

e

Males

Females

Figure 4 : HIV and syphilis prevalence among ANC attendees aged below 20 years in South Africa : 1991 - 2003

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003

Year

Pre

va

len

ce

ra

te (

%)

HIV RPR

Note : RPR trends by age are shown from 1998 when these became available

Cause Deaths PercentageTuberculosis

Influenza and pneumonia

Other forms of heart disease

Stroke

Hypertensive heart disease

Chronic bronchitis

General Symptoms and Signs

Ischaemic heart disease

Resp and cardiac in perinatal period

Diabetes mellitus

HIV disease

TOTAL

56 985

55 115

48 927

31 104

27 622

20 136

19 454

17 380

17 191

16 207

9 479

339 928

16.1

15.5

13.7

8.7

7.8

5.9

5.7

5.1

5.1

4.8

2.8

100

Number of associated deaths for the ten leading reported natural causes of death in 2001

Source: Statistics South Africa 2005

Cause Deaths Percentage

HIV/AIDS

Ischaemic heart disease

Homicide/violence

Stroke

Tuberculosis

Lower respiratory infections

Road traffic accidents

Diarrhoeal diseases

Hypertensive heart disease

Diabetes mellitus

165 859

32 919

32 485

32 114

29 553

22 097

18 446

15 910

14 233

13 157

29.8%

5.9%

5.8%

5.8%

5.3%

4.0%

3.3%

2.9%

2.6%

2.4%

Top 10 causes of death, South Africa 2000 National Burden of Disease Study, Total deaths 556 585

Source: Bradshaw et al., 2003

Estimated population pyramid, 2004 MRCBurden of Disease Research Unit

3000000 2000000 1000000 0 1000000 2000000 3000000

0 - 4

5-9

10-14

15 -19

20 - 24

25 - 29

30 - 34

35 - 39

40 - 44

45 - 49

50 - 54

55 - 59

60 - 64

65 - 69

70 - 74

75 - 79

80 - 84

85 +

Male Female