Instituto Butantan Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro. The Butantan Institute is the largest producer in Latin America (and one of the largest in the world) of immunobiologicals and biopharmaceuticals. In 2001 it produced ca. doses of vaccines and vials of hyperimmune sera. The institute is responsible for the production of 90% of the vaccines used in Brazil. The institute contains a venom farm where researchers milk around a thousand snakes for their venom which is used to make antivenoms and for medical research. The production units manufacture the following bioproducts: The Butantan Institute is one of the major touristic and educational attractions
South American Institute of Government in Health and the Directive and Consultative Councils. The Executive Board is responsible for administering ISAGS according to the goals, functions, policies, plans, programs and projects established and approved by the Directive Council. The Directive Council is one of ISAGS’s permanent units and carries out directive functions, guided by the priorities established at the South American Health Council. It is formed by delegates assigned by the Health Ministers of member countries and is responsible for defining institutional policies. The Consultative Council, responsible for producing recommendations regarding the planning, management, implementation and evaluation of ISAGS’s programs, is formed by: South American Institute of